Lamar Jackson was absent again at practice during the portion open to reporters Wednesday, as the Baltimore Ravens superstar deals with an ankle injury that has already caused him to miss one game.

Coach Jesse Minter said Monday that Jackson was “definitely doing better,” though he wasn’t sure how the quarterback’s practice would look Wednesday. “To Lamar’s credit, he’s doing everything he can to get back out there,” Minter said. ESPN reported Wednesday that Jackson has a “realistic chance” to play Sunday, citing a league source.

Jackson was injured two weeks ago in a victory over the Tennessee Titans. The Ravens were able to win on the road last week against the Atlanta Falcons with Tyler Huntley at quarterback. They play on the road against the Cleveland Browns this coming Sunday.

Jackson was sacked on the final play of the first half of the Ravens’ 24-18 win over the Titans when defensive end Jermaine Johnson landed on the back of his leg. He had completed 15 of 20 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns before the injury and didn’t return. Jackson has a sprained left ankle, according to NFL Media.

Huntley finished the Tennessee game, then completed 24 of 32 passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns against the Falcons. He scored the winning touchdown on a 1-yard run in overtime of the 30-23 victory.

Baltimore (4-1) has some margin for error after a solid start. That’s in contrast to last season, when Jackson was hurt early on and didn’t come back until the team was 2-5. He rarely looked great after that, so there’s some risk in bringing him back too soon.

Jackson hurt his hamstring in a Week 4 loss at the Kansas City Chiefs last season and missed three games. He returned with four touchdown passes in a 28-6 win at the Miami Dolphins, but over his first eight weeks back, he completed 59.8% of his passes with eight touchdowns and five interceptions while averaging 21.8 rushing yards per game.

Huntley has won all three of his starts for the Ravens since the beginning of last season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Michigan’s football team might have some help on the way this season.

A judge granted a temporary restraining order for former Miami tight end Alex Bauman and former Boise State defensive back Jeremiah Earby, a pair of student-athletes who are enrolled at Michigan and hope to join the team for their fifth season.

Judge Julia B. Owdziej, based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, ruled that both players are eligible to play this season. She wrote on Tuesday that preventing them from being eligible would be “irreparable and severe,” while the harm to the NCAA would be “negligible.”

A message seeking comment was left with the NCAA on Wednesday. A Michigan spokesman declined comment.

The NCAA ‘s new eligibility rule is being challenged in multiple courtrooms across the country. Plaintiffs say the rule is unfair to the class of 2022 student-athletes, depriving them of the opportunity to earn money through NIL deals and revenue-sharing now flowing from schools to their athletes under the House settlement.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order earlier this week giving the state’s colleges and universities the option of allowing athletes who graduated from high school in 2022 to play a fifth year in defiance of the NCAA. Under the order, public and private universities in Ohio can allow athletes to play, even though the NCAA’s new guidance excludes those who have already played four seasons.

In a letter to the NCAA’s member schools, the governing body’s president, Charlie Baker, said Tuesday that DeWine “cannot legislate NCAA eligibility rules.”

“One elected official seeking to make their own rules for their own schools’ advantage is a terrible way to run athletic competitions,” Baker said, while also pushing Congress to pass the Protect College Sports Act, a sweeping bill aiming to institute guardrails around how colleges pay their players and what those players can and cannot go to court to fight.

The Wolverines, under first-year coach Kyle Whittingham, have started 0-2 in the Big Ten for the first time since 2014 and host Penn State on Saturday.

Bauman and Earby would potentially give them a boost.

Big Ten Related Stories

The 6-foot-5, 250-pound Bauman had 18 receptions for 166 yards and a touchdown last season for the Hurricanes after playing for three seasons at Tulane. He has 63 career catches for 610 yards and 13 touchdowns.

The 6-2, 186-pound Earby was an All-Mountain West Second Team player after making four interceptions last season at Boise State, where he was a two-year starter. He spent his first two seasons at California.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior has been banned for four league matches, including the “clasico” against Barcelona, after pulling the hair of an opponent in Saturday’s 1-0 win over Villarreal.

Vinicius was shown a straight red card in the 73rd minute for having tugged hard on the hair of Villarreal’s Nathan Saliba when they were sprinting down the field, moments before the Madrid player scored a goal. The goal was also ruled out.

The Spanish soccer federation’s disciplinary federation announce the four-match suspension shortly before Madrid’s Champions League match at Roma on Wednesday.

It said he had been banned for two matches for the hair pulling and a further two matches for his subsequent aggressive protests to referee Isidro Díaz de Mera.

Vinícius screamed at Díaz de Mera while his teammates tried to calm him down as he left the field.

Díaz de Mera wrote in his match report that after being shown the red card Vinícius “protested my decision, raising his voice, toward where I was standing in an aggressive manner, and being held back by teammates.”

Vinícius will miss Sunday’s home match against Sevilla and the following week’s trip to Barcelona. He will also miss away matches at Racing Santander and Valencia.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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Good news: If you’re really excited about the National League Championship Series, you can watch it an hour earlier on Thursday night!

MLB announced on Wednesday afternoon that Game 4 of the NLCS between the Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium has been moved up from 9 p.m. ET on Thursday night to 8 p.m. ET. The game can be viewed on FS1, with pregame coverage beginning at 7 p.m. ET.

This news comes in the wake of Game 3 of the American League Championship Series between the Cleveland Guardians and Tampa Bay Rays being moved up from 6 p.m. ET on Thursday night to 1 p.m. ET ahead of projected inclement weather in Cleveland.

Regarding the NLCS, right-hander Tyler Glasnow is the Dodgers’ projected Game 4 starting pitcher, while the Brewers are yet to project their respective starter.

The Brewers won Games 1 and 2 of the series in Milwaukee, getting a 2-1 victory in Game 1 and a 7-4 victory in Game 2 that saw them knock Dodgers star right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto out of the game in the bottom of the third inning.

Game 3 of the series is on Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET. Los Angeles is sending left-hander Blake Snell to the hill, while Milwaukee will counter with fellow southpaw Robert Gasser.

WHAT YOU SHOULD READ NEXT

Shohei Ohtani will be in the Dodgers’ lineup for Game 3 of the NLCS against the Brewers.

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Jim Leonhard’s patience is being tested by a porous Buffalo Bills defense that’s giving up too many points, too many yards and having difficulty stopping opponents on fourth down.

And the first-year defensive coordinator is done making excuses regarding a new-look unit experiencing growing pains five weeks into the season.

“It’s time to be good at something, and that’s our struggles right now,” Leonhard said. “It’s too inconsistent to pretend that we’re building and working and making improvements. Everything’s being evaluated.”

Leonhard maintained confidence in his players, but cautioned the next step could involve roster changes.

“This is professional football. If we don’t feel like the answers are there then, yeah, then there gets to be some big conversations,” he said.

Leonhard addressed reporters over a Zoom conference call on Tuesday, a day after quarterback Josh Allen bailed out the defense in a 37-34 overtime win at the Los Angeles Rams.

The Bills (4-1) are staying in Southern California before leaving for Las Vegas to face the Raiders (3-2) on Sunday.

In thanking Allen for playing what he called the role of Superman, Leonhard said relying on the offense to carry the load isn’t a recipe for success.

“It has to change. It has to get better,” he said. “We plan on being in a lot of big games, and it’s our job as a defense to go close them out for wins.”

Familiar Issues Keep Cropping Up

And while the Rams high-octane attack presented a steep degree of difficulty, he said it doesn’t make up for the ongoing problems that continue arising.

__ Buffalo allowed 33 first downs against LA, matching the most the defense has surrendered dating to 1991. The Bills have allowed 20 or more first downs in each of their five outings, one short of last season’s total.

__ A re-shuffled secondary experienced coverage and communication issues in allowing Matthew Stafford’s 383 yards passing. The Bills have allowed 250 or more yards passing four times already, twice more than last year.

__ Fourth-down stops are a problem, with Buffalo allowing opponents to convert 8 of 9 attempts after the Rams went 2-for-2.

__ The inability to get off the field is not only reflected in Buffalo allowing the third-most yards per outing (389) and fifth-most points (141) in the NFL thus far, it’s tiring out a unit that’s played 350 snaps, the second most behind Detroit.

“You play that many snaps, it’s hard to sustain,” Leonhard said, referring to the defense playing 78 snaps on Monday — the most by Buffalo since 2023.

“We have to get some bigger wins earlier in the game,” he added. “I have to be more aggressive in helping us get off the field in some situations to help these guys not get to that fourth quarter and be burned out.”

In taking over the defense following Sean McDermott’s firing, Leonhard anticipated more from a unit entering the season making the switch to a 3-4 system and breaking in four new starters.

Though injuries have played a role, the weak spot has involved the secondary, with the starting cornerback position unsettled opposite Christian Benford. After starting the first four games, second-year player Maxwell Hairston was replaced by rookie Davison Igbinosun on Monday.

The Bills’ depth was already thin at the position in opening the season with five cornerbacks, including Dee Alford filling the nickel position.

Part of the problem, Leonard said, is players trying to do too much.

“There’s a fine line of trying harder and trying smarter,” he said. “I have that tendency. You want to do more, you want to do extra. Sometimes, it’s just relax, take a step back and simplify. Slow down.”

Reporting by the Associated Press.

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This week in sports features a desperate Dodgers team trying to get in the win column and the last two college football national champions facing off against one another.

What better time than now to throw those matchups and a few others into a parlay.

Here’s what I’m looking at. 

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Dodgers Win Game 3 (-176)

It’s now or never for the back-to-back champs, as they head home trailing the Brewers 2-0. The Dodgers certainly don’t look like the Dodgers of old. Instead, they seem more like just old Dodgers. However, at home, desperate, and with a pitching advantage, I’ll take them to win and get this series to 2-1.

Ohio State Over 27.5 (-110)

The battle of the last two national champions should be a fun one on Saturday, but I’m betting on the Buckeyes to get their points against Indiana. 

Indiana is at home and hasn’t lost a game since a week before Christmas 2024. However, the Hoosiers’ defense looks vulnerable. It gave up nearly 300 yards passing to Northwestern and almost 400 total yards last week against Nebraska. 

Ohio State star receiver Jeremiah Smith should have yet another big day.

BYU Under 17.5 (-135)

It will be an electric atmosphere in Provo, Utah, on Saturday, as BYU gets a rare visit from Notre Dame. 

The crowd can only take you so far, though. 

Without running back LJ Martin, BYU and its limited weapons will struggle to find much success offensively against this unforgiving defense of Notre Dame. 

Jaguars Moneyline (-148)

The Jaguars were sloppy, despite their victory last week in London over the Eagles. I expect a much more efficient performance this week, with an emphasis on eliminating penalties. 

The Jaguars have been in London all week preparing. Meanwhile, the Texans will head there following a road win against the Titans. There’s a big situational and travel edge for the Jags, who can all but finish the playoffs hopes of the Texans with a win. 

   Over 52.5 (-115)

When these teams met a year ago, it was a 40-40 tie. The Cowboys are still just as lethal on offense as they were a year ago and might somehow be worse defensively this season. It’s hard to go wrong betting the Over in Cowboys games.

Hill’s Pick: 5-Leg Parlay +1546 (bet $10 to win $164.60 total)

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Shea Ralph finally has Vanderbilt right where the reigning AP women’s Coach of the Year is most comfortable going into her sixth season.

Chasing championships.

“I think every year it’s like, ‘Vanderbilt! Surprise. We’re good!’ It’s not a surprise,” Ralph said. “We came here to be good. We came here to be great. I’m excited. This is what I’ve trained for. And I’m excited to be able to share that with our players.”

Revitalizing a team whose lone Final Four berth was back in 1993 is why athletic director Candice Storey Lee lured Ralph away from UConn, where she won a national title as a player and six more as an assistant coach.

“I’ve spent the better part of my life working with great players, playing with great players,” Ralph said.

Shea Ralph and guard Mikayla Blakes, who led the nation in scoring last season, are in the third year of their relationship at Vanderbilt. (Photo by Carly Mackler/Getty Images)

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Vanderbilt is coming off its best season in nearly 20 years. The Commodores went 29-5 and reached the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2008-09. Ralph has seven players back from that team, led by All-American Mikayla Blakes and point guard Aubrey Galvan, who was the Southeastern Conference freshman of the year in her debut.

“We have to prove ourselves first,” Galvan said.

Blakes led the nation in scoring with 27 points per game and was even better in SEC play, averaging 30.5 points per game.

That’s why she won SEC player of the year and now is the conference’s preseason player of the year. Blakes is only the 13th player in league history to win both player of the year and freshman of the year and first since five-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson to win the awards back-to-back.

Blakes is working to be more of a leader and overall player now that the 5-foot-8 guard has more help going into her third season at Vanderbilt. Blakes knows the more confidence she helps her teammates build keeps her from being the focal point.

“My role is going to change,” Blakes said. “We have a lot of good scorers this year and really a lot of good players. So I feel like doing whatever the team needs me to do and continue to read defenses really well.”

Key Transfer Portal Additions

Ralph wanted more rebounding and scoring, and she added two players through the transfer portal. Forward Mia Woolfolk is used to the SEC grind after leading Georgia in rebounds, averaging 5.4 a game as a sophomore. Woolfolk also ranked second in scoring with a career-best 13.9 points a game, which is why Ralph is happy the 6-2 forward is on her team now.

“I tell her every day, ‘You used to torch us,’” Ralph said.

Vernell Atamah was the Southland Conference player of the year last season after leading that league scoring with 19.2 points a game for Northwestern State. Ataman ranked 29th nationally in scoring. She also shot 39.4% from 3-point range, ranking 11th nationally making 2.9 3-pointers a game.

Best Recruiting Class Yet

Ralph brought in her highest-ranked freshman class yet with a trio led by Olivia Jones, a consensus five-star recruit who played in the McDonald’s All-America Game. ESPN ranked Jones 14th nationally. Jones joins Blakes as the only five-star recruits to sign with Vanderbilt out of high school.

Jones also helped the U.S. win gold at the 2026 FIBA U17 Women’s World Cup. Ralph is trying hard not to compare Jones to Blakes.

“In terms of her impact on our program, on our team, the intensity that she practices with, the determination, the attitude she brings every day, her personality, it reminds me a lot of some of the greatest players I’ve coached, including Mikayla,” Ralph said.

This class also features 6-4 forward Jhai Johnson and Sther Ubaka, a forward from Brazil who played two seasons at DME Academy in Florida and is on her country’s national team. Johnson’s ability to play both in the paint and outside will be a big boost to a program that has struggled to rebound.

Blakes Still The Key For Vandy

All the talent has Ralph busy figuring out exactly what she has and where to move the players around to help Blakes tap into all of her skills for a simple reason.

“So that she becomes unguardable in every way,” Ralph said.

Women’s College Basketball Related Stories

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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After trailing two games in the National League Championship Series, all eyes shift toward the Los Angeles Dodgers and four-time MVP Shohei Ohtani.

The Milwaukee Brewers pitching staff rivals the best in baseball, but the Dodgers’ real problem might be internal. The Dodgers offense has been inconsistent through two games, followed by a rare and painful slump from Ohtani.

With Ohtani’s slump showing very few signs of improvement, manager Dave Roberts made the decision to move him down in the lineup. 

Ohtani has been moved from fourth to sixth in the Dodgers’ lineup, with Kyle Tucker sliding up to take his spot. Batting sixth marks the lowest spot Ohtani has ever occupied in a starting order throughout his career.

“Yeah, I mean, obviously it hasn’t been good,” Roberts told The Athletic on Monday. “He doesn’t feel great. I think for me, it’s having a conversation with him [Tuesday], kind of try to figure out what’s best for him, what’s best for us. He certainly has earned that conversation and deserves it.”

This isn’t an ordinary slump for Ohtani. 

For the first time in his career, he is nearly unplayable offensively. Since September 1, Ohtani’s recorded only nine hits for a .180 batting average, with just one extra-base hit and one RBI, while striking out 21 times in 50 at-bats.

The postseason hasn’t gotten any better for Ohtani at the plate. 

Across six postseason games, Ohtani is hitting just .150 with three singles, zero RBIs and seven strikeouts in 20 at-bats. For a slugger who routinely changes games with one swing – Ohtani went deep 54 and 55 times in his first two seasons with the Dodgers, leading the NL in 2024 – his home-run drought stretches all the way back to August 18.

Ohtani has been noticeably playing through injury after spending roughly two weeks on the IL with left knee and right biceps pain before the end of the regular season. Prior to the NLDS, he told reporters that he didn’t feel 100% and thought he could play through it.

“I haven’t been able to get a good grasp of the root cause of all this,” Ohtani said. “I think that process is going to happen during the offseason when I’m going to have a little bit more time to be able to address it. But as of now, it’s something I’m just going to have to manage.”

For a player of Ohtani’s caliber, the thought of dropping him in the Dodgers lineup was once unimaginable. But down two games, Roberts now has all the pressure on his shoulders to make the right call.

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Ready or not, here comes Dodge and likely, the manufacturer is coming to Cup.

As The Athletic reported Tuesday, Dodge appears set to come to NASCAR with Kaulig Racing starting next season. 

As its CEO, Tim Kuniskis, has repeatedly said, 2027 was the goal — even if many people had told him that was too aggressive of a plan.

But all the signs are that Dodge is coming and that it just needs to get its engine deal finalized. 

Dodge is racing to the finish line to be ready to compete in Cup in 2027.

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Presumably, Dodge will work out a deal with ECR to supply engines. As long as ECR can make it work out so that its Dodge production can have enough separation between its Chevrolet production, it will be a resolution, at least for the short-term.

There’s no doubt that NASCAR wants a fourth manufacturer, something that should boost interest in the sport. ECR (formerly Earnhardt Childress Racing engines and owned by Richard Childress) could use the business.

Considering the friction between Childress and NASCAR after the antitrust trial last December, something that can benefit Childress and the sport would make both sides smile. 

A look back as a Dodge Challenger competed in Xfinity in 2018.

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And Chevrolet knows this would benefit a long-time Chevrolet supporter in Childress.

Solidifying Dodge as a manufacturer would also allow NASCAR to move forward with any potential engine rule modifications, with 2030 likely the earliest those would go into effect.

Kaulig would be the only team expected to be supported by Dodge. 

It is the organization that has worked tirelessly this year to put five RAM trucks on the track. Its drivers are 13th (Justin Haley), 15th (Brenden Queen), 20th (Mini Tyrrell) and 21st (Corey LaJoie) in the standings, with a combined one top five and 14 top 10s.

Kaulig would be the only team expected to be supported by Dodge next season.

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That performance hasn’t been a surprise at all for a new program with no data. Dodge/RAM has no tech center, no simulator dedicated to its program. All of that is in the works to be built.

Shouldn’t it be built before Dodge enters Cup? That would be nice. But there are two big reasons that Dodge wants to move faster than it should.

The first is that, no matter the preparation, the first year or two will likely be rough anyway, so they might as well start the process. 

The other is that, if company brass is ready to spend the tens of millions it takes to compete in NASCAR (with a significant amount put toward marketing), it is better to do it now than delay and risk a change in mind or leadership.

There are those who believe that Brad Keselowski is already headed to Dodge. While he won a title in Dodge’s last year in Cup (2012) and his family has a history with the manufacturer, Keselowski mentioned that he feels he can win races in Tier 1 equipment.

But Dodge won’t have Tier 1 equipment early. It will need to show the top drivers in the sport that it can get there. 

The best way to do that is to get on the track and show progress. And by doing it this way, Dodge has more potential to overachieve because it will most likely enter 2027 with low expectations from within the industry.

If it shows any sort of promise, it could attract (with a big check) some top talent. 

And if this all appears rushed, it’s because it is. 

But in the current state of affairs, it will still attract buzz. Look at the trucks. The addition of RAM brought a great deal of interest, partially with its truck that has rotated drivers throughout the year.

It will add another storyline and add another manufacturer in NASCAR. It will be worth watching, no matter the initial results.

WHAT YOU SHOULD READ NEXT

Chase Briscoe has been red-hot over the last two weeks. Were his back-to-back wins enough to move him to the top of NASCAR’s contender rankings?

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The Oregon Ducks entered the college football season with one of the shortest prices to win a national championship, thanks to a talent-stocked roster built by Dan Lanning and headlined by future NFL quarterback Dante Moore.

Fast-forward to today and the Ducks are 3-2, Moore is hurt, the offense can’t run the ball and the secondary is a huge question mark.

Oregon is now as high as -800 to miss the College Football Playoff.

I think it’s the toughest team in the country to price.

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“That was a two-week game to get ready for UCLA,” former Las Vegas bookmaker Ed Salmons told me over the phone. “Oregon had all the time in the world to practice and prepare with [Dylan] Raiola, and it looked like they just dropped him into the middle of the game cold. He was missing passes by like five yards on most throws. He was just awful. The entire offense was.

“I make Oregon +14 at Ohio State.”  

My, how the once mighty Ducks have fallen.

“Oregon doesn’t look quite as sharp or efficient as the teams we’ve grown accustomed to seeing in recent years,” Caesars Sportsbook head of football Joey Feazel said. “The talent is still there, but it will be fascinating to see how this team responds and whether it can navigate adversity.”

As for UCLA (5-0 SU, 5-0 ATS), the Bruins opened on Sunday as a 3-point home favorite against Wisconsin, with quarterback Nico Iamaleava’s status up in the air. He has since been ruled out and the line dipped to UCLA -2.5.

That’s a rat line if I’ve ever seen one.

“I would like Wisconsin at +3,” Salmons admitted. “This line tells the story, though. And it’s usually a good idea to bet against backup quarterbacks.

“Backup quarterbacks in college are awful. Except for at UMass.”

“Colton Joseph can play, too,” professional bettor Slice added. “He was a star at Old Dominion last year. The kid had 35 touchdowns and a ton of those were on the ground. [Luke] Fickell struck gold with that kid in the portal.”

Colton Joseph has proven that he can be a force for the Badgers (Getty Images).

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One of the most anticipated games this Saturday takes place in Provo, with No. 2 Notre Dame at No. 8 BYU. The Fighting Irish are currently 10.5-point favorites in the market with a total of 47. Both teams are undefeated.  

“I definitely like Under 47,” Salmons opined. “BYU takes the longest time between snaps of any team in the country, which is hard to believe. I’m sure they’ll have plenty of designed quarterback runs to move the sticks and hold the ball. They have a good defense, too. It feels like a low-scoring game.

“These top-10 matches are usually solid Under looks.”

Boy, was that true when Georgia beat Alabama 20-17 last weekend.

Finally, let’s talk Minnesota Vikings.

They continue to win games and make you money with a 4-1 ATS mark. Their quarterback room isn’t special, but the defense is downright dominant.

Are they actually contenders?

Brian Flores’ Vikings defense is the star of the show in Minnesota (Getty Images).

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“The Vikings’ defense is unquestionably the strength of the team, and it’s easy to see why Brian Flores is generating head coaching buzz yet again,” Feazel said. “The offense showed signs of improvement last week in New Orleans and looked more cohesive than it has at times this season.

“Until the Vikings prove they can consistently win because of their offense, rather than simply avoiding mistakes and leaning on their defense, it’s hard to say they’re a true Super Bowl contender right now.” 

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