Sports

8:00 AM ET College football can be cyclical, and the pendulum swung back toward defense in 2021. Georgia won its first national title in 41 years behind a historically good defense that produced eight picks in last month’s NFL draft, including a record five in the first round. The Big 12, long both celebrated and

12:00 AM ET There are tough losses. And then there is the kind of loss the Reds suffered on Sunday: It’s like when you’re out for a walk on a beautiful sunny day and you see the cutest little puppy who greets everybody with its tail wagging 100 mph and then you go up to

10:27 PM ET Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Zane Smith drove away from pole-sitter John Hunter Nemechek and Ty Majeski on a restart with nine laps to go at Kansas Speedway on Saturday night for his third NASCAR Truck Series victory of the season. The 22-year-old Smith, who moved from GMS Racing to Front

2:41 PM ET Liverpool kept their hopes of winning the quadruple alive with a 6-5 penalty shootout victory over Chelsea in the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium on Saturday. Cesar Azpilicueta missed and Mason Mount saw his spot kick saved for Chelsea as Kostas Tsimikas scored the crucial penalty. – ESPN+ viewers’ guide: Stream

3:42 PM BST Kathleen McNamee DUBLIN, Ireland — Building a lasting impact is something World Rugby has struggled with when it comes to the women’s game. But the word ‘legacy’ was central to its messaging as the organisation looks ahead to the next decade of the sport as the hosts for the World Cups in

8:06 AM ET With UFC 274 officially in the rearview mirror, it’s time to recalibrate and reassess what’s at stake for the next few months in the sport. The lightweight division put on a show last weekend, as Charles Oliveira and Michael Chandler secured big wins to keep their names front and center for wearing

1:26 AM ET Associated Press PARIS — Elina Svitolina can vividly recall her struggles as an anxious young player on the international tennis circuit, and is now campaigning for better mental health protection for juniors starting out in their careers. The former No.3-ranked Svitolina remembers how tough the weight of expectation was, the loneliness and

1:51 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — Kyrie Irving might have to show the Brooklyn Nets he’s more than a great basketball player if he wants a future with the team. General manager Sean Marks made clear Wednesday that Irving will have to prove a commitment to being available to his team, a commitment

8:29 AM ET Most of golf’s young superstars will be heading to Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, next week for the PGA Championship, the second major of the season. But all eyes will be on two aging former champions — Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods — and also on London. 2 Related On

7:50 AM ET Dmitry Bivol has officially entered the pound-for-pound conversation. Bivol scored a big upset on Saturday in Las Vegas, defeating former No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter Canelo Alvarez. He retained his WBA “super” light heavyweight world title and also earned a spot in ESPN’s top-10 list for the first time in his career. Alvarez

7:00 AM ET NFL experts We’re now over a week removed from the 2022 NFL draft, and rookie camps have just started to kick off. So it is a good time to ask our NFL expert panel to weigh in on some of the biggest lingering questions. That includes what our writers and analysts liked,

8:00 AM ET It’s OK to admit it: It is sometimes difficult to remember which teams are in Conference USA. The roster has changed pretty frequently, and while recent seasons had seen relative stability, that’s all come crashing to a halt with the departure of three programs for the Sun Belt (Marshall, Southern Miss, Old

7:05 AM ET The 2021-22 NHL season included a great deal of highlights, from the dominance of the Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers, to the goal-scoring prowess of Auston Matthews and Chris Kreider, to spectacular goaltending from Igor Shesterkin, Frederik Andersen and Jacob Markstrom. But there can be only one team that gets to raise

8:54 AM ET Gleyber Torres lifted the New York Yankees to a thrilling victory Sunday over the Texas Rangers with a walk-off home run to right field. After the game, Rangers manager Chris Woodward also took aim at Yankee Stadium’s short porch. “Small ballpark, that’s an easy out in 99% of ballparks. … [Torres] just

7:41 PM ET Associated Press DARLINGTON, S.C. — Joey Logano bumped leader William Byron from behind on the next to last lap to win the Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway on Sunday. Logano, the pole-sitter, tracked Byron for about 25 laps until catching him and hitting him hard in the rear bumper turn three. Byron

7:08 PM ET ESPN News Services LOUISVILLE, Ky. — With favorite Epicenter and Zandon dueling in front, Rich Strike came charging up the rail in the closing strides for a stunning 80-1 upset in the Kentucky Derby on Saturday. Jockey Sonny Leon guided Rich Strike from far back in the 20-horse field to beat 4-1

6:08 PM ET LIVERPOOL, England — The Quadruple is still on the horizon for Liverpool, but it is beginning to look like a more distant dream after Jurgen Klopp’s team finally stumbled in their pursuit a history. Even though a 1-1 draw at home to Tottenham took Liverpool back to the top of the Premier

6:56 AM ET ESPN Betting Insiders The 148th running of the Kentucky Derby kicks off Triple Crown season. The race for the elusive crown begins this Saturday at Churchill Downs with Zandon as the 3-1 morning-line favorite. Our focus moves to pari-mutuel betting, which is different from the normal sports betting futures we are used

7:52 AM ET Eddie Alvarez looked like he was holding a golf ball in his mouth, and his right cheek was comically swollen. To compound matters, Alvarez’s left leg was barely mobile due to numerous hard kicks to it. In Detroit, the former UFC lightweight champion was embroiled in the third round of a back-and-forth

8:00 AM ET Super middleweight undisputed champion Canelo Alvarez moves up in weight to challenge light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol for his WBA world title on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (DAZN PPV, 9 p.m. ET). This will be Alvarez’s second fight at 175 pounds. In November 2019, Alvarez defeated Sergey Kovalev