Describing himself as “a square peg in a round hole,” a tearful Tony Bennett said Friday he suddenly retired from coaching at Virginia because he wasn’t suited to navigate the current landscape of college basketball.

Bennett — dressed in his signature suit-minus-tie look — told those gathered at his exit news conference that name, image and likeness money and the transfer portal have brought elements to the job that he’s “not great at.”

“I looked at myself and I realized, I’m no longer the best coach to lead this program,” Bennett said with athletic director Carla Williams seated next to him. “If you’re going to do it, you’ve got to be all in. You’ve got to have everything. And if you do it half-hearted, it’s not fair to the university and those young men. That’s what made me step down.”

Bennett led Virginia to the 2019 national championship a year after the Cavaliers became the first No. 1 seed to lose to a 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

He is the latest — and, at 55 years old, the youngest — high-profile coach to walk away citing a measure of burnout with the modern realities of the profession. That list includes former Villanova coach Jay Wright, who retired two years ago at 60.

“The game and college athletics is not in a healthy spot,” Bennett said. “And there needs to be change. I think I was equipped to do the job here the old way. That’s who I am and that’s how it was. My staff has buoyed me along to get to this point, but there needs to be change.”

[AP Top 25: Kansas gets No. 1 nod ahead of Alabama, UConn in preseason poll]

Former assistant Ron Sanchez, who rejoined the program last season, will take over as interim coach. Williams said a national search for Bennett’s replacement will begin shortly, but Bennett is hopeful Sanchez will perform well enough to land the full-time post.

Williams said Bennett told her of his decision on Wednesday morning, though she noted that the two had discussed the possibility at times over the past three years.

“I believe he is equipped to do the job, but as he said to all of you, he has to have his whole heart in it,” Williams said, her cheeks still stained with tears shed during Bennett’s remarks. “He is the embodiment of humility, because he could keep doing this and not have his heart in it, but it takes more courage to say, ‘I’m not the person for it.’”

As for the stunning timing of his retirement, less than three weeks before the team’s Nov. 6 opener against Campbell, Bennett said he thought seriously about stepping away immediately after the past season concluded with a First Four loss to Colorado State in Dayton, Ohio.

The Cavaliers struggled offensively in that game and haven’t won an NCAA Tournament game since the 2019 title matchup.

But, because the current recruiting calendar required him to immediately go to work evaluating potential transfers, Bennett said he never fully took the time to consider his situation.

He said he was excited about the players the program signed, about the new offense he was installing and about the prospects for the upcoming season. He felt, then, sufficiently energized to sign a long-term extension with Virginia, though he acknowledged it was never likely he would’ve lasted the full term of the deal, which ran out in six years.

Then, finally, there was a break in his hectic schedule. He and his wife, Laurel, took a trip during U-Va.’s fall break, giving the couple the chance to process and contemplate the future.

“That’s where I kind of came to the realization that I can’t do this,” Bennett said, becoming overcome by emotion. “It’s not fair to these guys, and to this institution that I love so much, to continue on when you know you’re not the right guy for the job.”

Bennett’s current players and staff stood toward the back of the room Friday, listening as he spoke.

“I’m happy for him,” said former player Isaiah Wilkins, now an assistant coach. “I see he’s at peace. I think he knows himself well and obviously it’s a family decision.”

With the person who hired Bennett, former Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage, looking on, Bennett talked about his pride in the way he and his staff built the Cavaliers into one of the nation’s most successful programs. Littlepage hired Bennett in 2009 following three strong seasons at Washington State.

After a 15-16 record in his first season at Virginia, Bennett went on to post 14 straight winning seasons.

He posted a 364-136 mark at the school, leading the program to two Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament titles, six ACC regular-season championships and 10 NCAA Tournament appearances. Bennett was named ACC Coach of the Year in 2014, 2015, 2018 and 2019.

“I didn’t envision, in 15 years, what it would be like,” Littlepage said. “I was thinking more in the short term. ‘We’ve gotta get this thing going and knew that would take a couple of years.’ … He had the pedigree. He had the understanding of the college game. He came to understand the University of Virginia in short order. There was no question he was going to have success.”

Long derided by many in the national media for his unusually slow tempo of play and defense-first — and second and third — mentality, Bennett’s first-round NCAA Tournament loss to UMBC in 2018 gave ample fuel to his critics, creating a chorus questioning whether his pack-line defense was built to win championships.

Bennett, in his signature way, handled the loss with grace and promised his heartbroken players that it would be “a ticket to someplace they couldn’t go without it.”

The following season, after a dramatic run through the NCAA Tournament, Bennett and the Cavaliers cut down the nets in Minneapolis, having topped Texas Tech and claimed the school’s first national title.

“I’ve been here for 15 years as the head coach, and I thought it would be a little longer, to be honest, but that’s been on loan,” Bennett said. “It wasn’t mine to keep. This position has been on loan, and it’s time for me to give it back.”

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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Get more from College Basketball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more

“The biggest heavyweight fight of our time.”

That’s what the man voicing over the PFL: Battle of the Giants cold open says of the highly anticipated showdown between Francis Ngannou and Renan Ferreira.

Hyperbole aside, it could be the biggest MMA fight of the year as it marks Ngannou’s highly anticipated return to the sport. The former UFC heavyweight champion hasn’t competed in the cage in nearly 1,000 days. One year after his last UFC fight, he decided to leave as the promotion’s heavyweight champion to sign with the PFL.

Now, after two high-profile boxing matches with Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, Ngannou will be welcomed back by Ferreira, the 2023 PFL season winner who’s emerged as a force to be reckoned with.

The magnitude and scope of Ngannou vs. Ferreira is underscored in the cold open, which you can watch in the video above.

PFL: Battle of the Giants takes place Saturday at The Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The event’s main card streams on ESPN+ and DAZN pay-per-view, with prelims available during MMA Junkie’s watch-along.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for PFL: Battle of the Giants.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – One of the biggest MMA stars in recent years, Jorge Masvidal, is gearing up for a return to the cage, and American Top Team coach Mike Brown was pleasantly surprised to see how good he looked when he returned to the mats.

Masvidal (35-17 MMA, 12-10 UFC) recently expressed his desire to make a comeback to MMA after retiring last April. He hasn’t been completely removed from combat sports, though. In July, he boxed against the man he fought in the inaugural BMF title fight, Nate Diaz.

Despite spending a majority of the past year focusing on boxing, Brown says Masvidal is already in shape to compete in MMA, and that includes the grind of wrestling, which is typically the most grueling aspect of the sport.

“I was actually surprised when Jorge came back to the gym, how good of shape he was in,” Brown told MMA Junkie. “He was actually in really good shape, and he had obviously been training, and I’m talking wrestling shape. He was jumping right in and wrestling with the best guys.

“He didn’t get out of shape. He’s focused, and he’s ready. He has that itch and wants to do it again. He’s obviously a big star. There’s a lot of matchups that I’m sure people want to see. There’s a lot of fights I would like to see.”

Masvidal called it a career the first time after losing four consecutive fights. He failed to top then-champion Kamaru Usman in back-to-back title fights, lost a Fight of the Night against Colby Covington, and then came up short against Gilbert Burns.

“Gamebred’s” path to a title shot would be long, especially considering how much the welterweight division has changed in such a short period. But that’s fine with Brown, who would rather him take fights against other established stars than up-and-coming contenders.

“I’d like to see him in a more exciting, like a BMF-type fight,” Brown said. “Nothing like (a title contender fight), I don’t know, like a (Justin) Gaethje type of guy. I always like the Diaz brothers, that would be great. Nate for the third time, whatever, you know?

“There’s 20 fights that would probably excite me with Jorge. He’s exciting, man. He’s always fun to watch. He’s the man.”

Masvidal, 39, saw his popularity grow astronomically after his five-second flying knee knockout of Ben Askren in 2019. He followed that up by becoming the winner of the first-ever BMF title fight by stopping Nate Diaz. Although he hit a rough patch of results, Brown is excited to see him get back to action.

“I say it all the time: I think he’s got more weapons than anybody in the sport. He’s got so much technique, so much skill and can do so many different things. He’s fun to watch, and he’s also good on the mic as well.”

Blackpool manager Steve Bruce will miss Saturday’s match against Barnsley following the death of his baby grandson.

In a statement, the club said four-month-old Madison’s passing was “sudden and unexpected”.

“Everyone at the football club sends their love to Steve and his family,” Blackpool said.

“We ask that their privacy is respected.”

Millwall sent “unconditional love and support” to their former striker Matt Smith, who is Madison’s father and Bruce’s son-in-law.

Smith made 91 appearances for Millwall, and also played for Leeds United, Fulham, QPR and Salford City before retiring in August.

Bruce, 63, joined the Tangerines on a two-year deal in September after nearly two years out of football management.

The former Newcastle United and Aston Villa boss has helped the Seasiders into 10th place in League One, losing just one of his six league matches in charge.

Alex Bruce, Steve’s son, will not be in attendance for Salford’s League Two match against Crewe Alexandra on Saturday.

Salford City said “our love and full support” was with their assistant manager following the death of his nephew.

Describing himself as “a square peg in a round hole,” a tearful Tony Bennett said Friday he suddenly retired from coaching at Virginia because he wasn’t suited to navigate the current landscape of college basketball.

Bennett — dressed in his signature suit-minus-tie look — told those gathered at his exit news conference that name, image and likeness money and the transfer portal have brought elements to the job that he’s “not great at.”

“I looked at myself and I realized, I’m no longer the best coach to lead this program,” Bennett said with athletic director Carla Williams seated next to him. “If you’re going to do it, you’ve got to be all in. You’ve got to have everything. And if you do it half-hearted, it’s not fair to the university and those young men. That’s what made me step down.”

Bennett led Virginia to the 2019 national championship a year after the Cavaliers became the first No. 1 seed to lose to a 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

He is the latest — and, at 55 years old, the youngest — high-profile coach to walk away citing a measure of burnout with the modern realities of the profession. That list includes former Villanova coach Jay Wright, who retired two years ago at 60.

“The game and college athletics is not in a healthy spot,” Bennett said. “And there needs to be change. I think I was equipped to do the job here the old way. That’s who I am and that’s how it was. My staff has buoyed me along to get to this point, but there needs to be change.”

[AP Top 25: Kansas gets No. 1 nod ahead of Alabama, UConn in preseason poll]

Former assistant Ron Sanchez, who rejoined the program last season, will take over as interim coach. Williams said a national search for Bennett’s replacement will begin shortly, but Bennett is hopeful Sanchez will perform well enough to land the full-time post.

Williams said Bennett told her of his decision on Wednesday morning, though she noted that the two had discussed the possibility at times over the past three years.

“I believe he is equipped to do the job, but as he said to all of you, he has to have his whole heart in it,” Williams said, her cheeks still stained with tears shed during Bennett’s remarks. “He is the embodiment of humility, because he could keep doing this and not have his heart in it, but it takes more courage to say, ‘I’m not the person for it.’”

As for the stunning timing of his retirement, less than three weeks before the team’s Nov. 6 opener against Campbell, Bennett said he thought seriously about stepping away immediately after the past season concluded with a First Four loss to Colorado State in Dayton, Ohio.

The Cavaliers struggled offensively in that game and haven’t won an NCAA Tournament game since the 2019 title matchup.

But, because the current recruiting calendar required him to immediately go to work evaluating potential transfers, Bennett said he never fully took the time to consider his situation.

He said he was excited about the players the program signed, about the new offense he was installing and about the prospects for the upcoming season. He felt, then, sufficiently energized to sign a long-term extension with Virginia, though he acknowledged it was never likely he would’ve lasted the full term of the deal, which ran out in six years.

Then, finally, there was a break in his hectic schedule. He and his wife, Laurel, took a trip during U-Va.’s fall break, giving the couple the chance to process and contemplate the future.

“That’s where I kind of came to the realization that I can’t do this,” Bennett said, becoming overcome by emotion. “It’s not fair to these guys, and to this institution that I love so much, to continue on when you know you’re not the right guy for the job.”

Bennett’s current players and staff stood toward the back of the room Friday, listening as he spoke.

“I’m happy for him,” said former player Isaiah Wilkins, now an assistant coach. “I see he’s at peace. I think he knows himself well and obviously it’s a family decision.”

With the person who hired Bennett, former Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage, looking on, Bennett talked about his pride in the way he and his staff built the Cavaliers into one of the nation’s most successful programs. Littlepage hired Bennett in 2009 following three strong seasons at Washington State.

After a 15-16 record in his first season at Virginia, Bennett went on to post 14 straight winning seasons.

He posted a 364-136 mark at the school, leading the program to two Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament titles, six ACC regular-season championships and 10 NCAA Tournament appearances. Bennett was named ACC Coach of the Year in 2014, 2015, 2018 and 2019.

“I didn’t envision, in 15 years, what it would be like,” Littlepage said. “I was thinking more in the short term. ‘We’ve gotta get this thing going and knew that would take a couple of years.’ … He had the pedigree. He had the understanding of the college game. He came to understand the University of Virginia in short order. There was no question he was going to have success.”

Long derided by many in the national media for his unusually slow tempo of play and defense-first — and second and third — mentality, Bennett’s first-round NCAA Tournament loss to UMBC in 2018 gave ample fuel to his critics, creating a chorus questioning whether his pack-line defense was built to win championships.

Bennett, in his signature way, handled the loss with grace and promised his heartbroken players that it would be “a ticket to someplace they couldn’t go without it.”

The following season, after a dramatic run through the NCAA Tournament, Bennett and the Cavaliers cut down the nets in Minneapolis, having topped Texas Tech and claimed the school’s first national title.

“I’ve been here for 15 years as the head coach, and I thought it would be a little longer, to be honest, but that’s been on loan,” Bennett said. “It wasn’t mine to keep. This position has been on loan, and it’s time for me to give it back.”

Reporting by The Associated Press.

[Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily.]

Get more from College Basketball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more

“The biggest heavyweight fight of our time.”

That’s what the man voicing over the PFL: Battle of the Giants cold open says of the highly anticipated showdown between Francis Ngannou and Renan Ferreira.

Hyperbole aside, it could be the biggest MMA fight of the year as it marks Ngannou’s highly anticipated return to the sport. The former UFC heavyweight champion hasn’t competed in the cage in nearly 1,000 days. One year after his last UFC fight, he decided to leave as the promotion’s heavyweight champion to sign with the PFL.

Now, after two high-profile boxing matches with Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, Ngannou will be welcomed back by Ferreira, the 2023 PFL season winner who’s emerged as a force to be reckoned with.

The magnitude and scope of Ngannou vs. Ferreira is underscored in the cold open, which you can watch in the video above.

PFL: Battle of the Giants takes place Saturday at The Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The event’s main card streams on ESPN+ and DAZN pay-per-view, with prelims available during MMA Junkie’s watch-along.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for PFL: Battle of the Giants.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – One of the biggest MMA stars in recent years, Jorge Masvidal, is gearing up for a return to the cage, and American Top Team coach Mike Brown was pleasantly surprised to see how good he looked when he returned to the mats.

Masvidal (35-17 MMA, 12-10 UFC) recently expressed his desire to make a comeback to MMA after retiring last April. He hasn’t been completely removed from combat sports, though. In July, he boxed against the man he fought in the inaugural BMF title fight, Nate Diaz.

Despite spending a majority of the past year focusing on boxing, Brown says Masvidal is already in shape to compete in MMA, and that includes the grind of wrestling, which is typically the most grueling aspect of the sport.

“I was actually surprised when Jorge came back to the gym, how good of shape he was in,” Brown told MMA Junkie. “He was actually in really good shape, and he had obviously been training, and I’m talking wrestling shape. He was jumping right in and wrestling with the best guys.

“He didn’t get out of shape. He’s focused, and he’s ready. He has that itch and wants to do it again. He’s obviously a big star. There’s a lot of matchups that I’m sure people want to see. There’s a lot of fights I would like to see.”

Masvidal called it a career the first time after losing four consecutive fights. He failed to top then-champion Kamaru Usman in back-to-back title fights, lost a Fight of the Night against Colby Covington, and then came up short against Gilbert Burns.

“Gamebred’s” path to a title shot would be long, especially considering how much the welterweight division has changed in such a short period. But that’s fine with Brown, who would rather him take fights against other established stars than up-and-coming contenders.

“I’d like to see him in a more exciting, like a BMF-type fight,” Brown said. “Nothing like (a title contender fight), I don’t know, like a (Justin) Gaethje type of guy. I always like the Diaz brothers, that would be great. Nate for the third time, whatever, you know?

“There’s 20 fights that would probably excite me with Jorge. He’s exciting, man. He’s always fun to watch. He’s the man.”

Masvidal, 39, saw his popularity grow astronomically after his five-second flying knee knockout of Ben Askren in 2019. He followed that up by becoming the winner of the first-ever BMF title fight by stopping Nate Diaz. Although he hit a rough patch of results, Brown is excited to see him get back to action.

“I say it all the time: I think he’s got more weapons than anybody in the sport. He’s got so much technique, so much skill and can do so many different things. He’s fun to watch, and he’s also good on the mic as well.”

Blackpool manager Steve Bruce will miss Saturday’s match against Barnsley following the death of his baby grandson.

In a statement, the club said four-month-old Madison’s passing was “sudden and unexpected”.

“Everyone at the football club sends their love to Steve and his family,” Blackpool said.

“We ask that their privacy is respected.”

Millwall sent “unconditional love and support” to their former striker Matt Smith, who is Madison’s father and Bruce’s son-in-law.

Smith made 91 appearances for Millwall, and also played for Leeds United, Fulham, QPR and Salford City before retiring in August.

Bruce, 63, joined the Tangerines on a two-year deal in September after nearly two years out of football management.

The former Newcastle United and Aston Villa boss has helped the Seasiders into 10th place in League One, losing just one of his six league matches in charge.

Alex Bruce, Steve’s son, will not be in attendance for Salford’s League Two match against Crewe Alexandra on Saturday.

Salford City said “our love and full support” was with their assistant manager following the death of his nephew.