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Alex Collins, the former Arkansas running back who went on to play five seasons in the NFL, died after he was involved in a motorcycle crash in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida, on Sunday night, the Broward County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

He was 28.

Collins crashed into a sport-utility vehicle on West Oakland Park Boulevard, according to the news release. The SUV was making a left turn when Collins’ motorcycle hit its rear passenger side, causing him to go through a window and come to rest inside the vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The crash is under investigation.

“Alex was cherished by his family and friends as well as supporters from all around the world,” Collins’ family said in a statement Monday night. “All who truly know him can attest to his drive, determination, and larger-than-life personality.”

A fifth-round pick of the Seahawks in 2016, Collins was released by Seattle a year later and became one of the biggest surprises of the 2017 Baltimore Ravens. He led Baltimore with 973 yards rushing and six touchdowns, celebrating each score with an Irish dance that he learned from the daughter of his high school football coach.

“With heavy hearts, we mourn the passing of Alex Collins,” the Ravens said. “Always quick to greet everyone with a smile, he was a genuinely kind person who carried a special joy and passion wherever he went. May Alex always be remembered for the light and love he brought to so many people in his life.”

In 2018, Collins struggled to match the same success and was placed on injured reserve in December because of a foot injury. Baltimore released him four months later after he was charged on gun and drug violations. He returned to Seattle in 2020 and ’21, and was the team’s lead back for a time after starter Chris Carson was injured.

Collins most recently played this spring with the USFL’s Memphis Showboats, rushing for 98 yards and a touchdown in three games.

In a social media post, former Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson called Collins one of his favorite teammates.

Several members of the Ravens who played with Collins, including Lamar Jackson, Marlon Humphrey and Mark Andrews, also expressed their condolences during media availability on Tuesday.

“From the bottom of our hearts, as an organization, every player, every coach, from [owner] Steve [Bisciotti], right on through the whole organization, we want to wish that family our utmost heartfelt condolences and also our prayers for them and for Alex in eternity,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said on Tuesday. “He was a great guy. Every day on the practice field [he brought] great energy. [He was] a great dancer, as you might remember — a great dancer. And we loved having him here.”

Before the NFL, Collins starred at Arkansas, where he rushed for 1,000 yards in three consecutive seasons and scored 20 touchdowns as a junior. He is one of just five players in SEC history to rush for 1,000 yards in three straight seasons, along with Herschel Walker, Kevin Faulk, Darren McFadden and Benny Snell Jr., according to ESPN Stats & Information research.

“We are so saddened by the sudden and tragic passing of Alex Collins. He was a legendary Razorback and an even better person,” the Arkansas football account posted on social media.

Ryan Mallett, a backup quarterback for that 2017 Ravens team who also starred at Arkansas in college, also died earlier this summer. He drowned in late June while swimming with his girlfriend in Florida.

ESPN’s Brady Henderson contributed to this story.

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Purdue RB Mockobee has season-ending surgery

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Purdue RB Mockobee has season-ending surgery

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue running back Devin Mockobee will miss the rest of his final college season after undergoing ankle surgery late last week, coach Barry Odom announced Monday.

Mockobee finishes his career as the fourth-leading rusher in Boilermakers history with 2,987 yards, trailing Mike Alstott, Kory Sheets and Otis Armstrong, a College Football Hall of Famer. Mockobee also ranks in the school’s top 10 in carries with 630 and career 100-yard games with nine.

Odom said Mockobee injured his ankle late in an Oct. 25 loss to Rutgers. He was ruled out of last weekend’s 21-16 loss at No. 21 Michigan following Friday’s surgery.

“We were hoping we would get a little bit better news after they did that procedure on his ankle, but unfortunately, the injury he sustained, he’s played his last game here,” Odom said. “I sure hate that because he is such a wonderful young man, a great leader of this program and a great representative of Purdue University. The things he poured into this program and university since I’ve been here, he will go down as one of the really enjoyable, great guys I’ve had a chance to coach. We’ll be connected forever, and I know this place means a lot to him.”

Losing this season’s leading rusher couldn’t come at a worse time for the Boilermakers (2-7, 0-6 Big Ten). They are mired in a six-game losing streak and remain one of four winless teams in league play. Purdue’s next chance to snap a school-record 15-game losing streak in conference games comes Saturday when it hosts No. 1 Ohio State (8-0, 5-0).

Antonio Harris started against Michigan then rotated with Malachi Thomas. Harris finished with 11 carries for 54 yards and one touchdown while Thomas had 15 carries for 68 yards. Malachi Singleton, a quarterback, also finished with six carries for 24 yards.

Odom did not say whether he would follow a similar game plan against the Buckeyes.

Mockobee joined the Boilermakers as a walk-on from Boonville, Indiana, but quickly emerged as their top rusher in 2022.

He set school freshman records by rushing for 968 yards and posting four 100-yard games while scoring nine times for the Big Ten West Division champions. After losing the Big Ten championship game to the Wolverines, first-time head coach Ryan Walters gave the 6-foot, 202-pound rusher a scholarship.

But Mockobee struggled with fumbles in 2023, starting just four games and finishing with 811 yards and six TD runs. He rebounded by starting all 12 games in 2024 and producing 687 yards rushing and four scores. He had a team-high 521 yards rushing and 4 TD runs in 8 games this season before getting injured.

Mockobee finished his career with 86 receptions for 839 yards and 3 touchdowns and the only completed pass of his career was a TD pass earlier this season.

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NCAA sends concerns to prediction market Kalshi

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NCAA sends concerns to prediction market Kalshi

The NCAA sent a letter to Kalshi, a company that offers prediction markets on college basketball and football, expressing its concern about the company’s “commitment to contest integrity and the protection of contest participants,” according to a copy of the letter obtained by ESPN.

In the letter, dated Oct. 30, NCAA chief legal officer Scott Bearby asked Kalshi how it monitors collegiate sports markets for integrity concerns and activity by prohibited customers, who it considers a prohibited customer, whether it will report integrity concerns to the NCAA and whether the company will cooperate with NCAA investigations.

“We welcome Kalshi’s stance on its efforts to protect the integrity of NCAA competitions and to reduce instances of abuse and harassment directed at student-athletes and other participants,” Bearby wrote.

The NCAA also asked if Kalshi would ban prediction markets similar to prop bets, which the company began offering this fall.

Prop betting markets, Bearby noted in the letter, heighten “the risk of integrity and harassment concerns.” In March last year, NCAA president Charlie Baker called for a ban on prop bets on college athletes in states with legal sports wagering.

The NCAA also asked Kalshi in the letter to review language on its website that the NCAA says implies a relationship between them.

“Kalshi has robust market integrity provisions required by our status as a federally licensed financial exchange,” a Kalshi spokesperson said in a statement to ESPN. “We value the NCAA’s feedback and are working on adjusting the language on our site. We are currently reviewing and addressing their additional requests.”

Prediction markets like Kalshi have emerged over the past year and are competing with traditional sportsbooks in the betting market. Kalshi is battling multiple lawsuits by state gambling regulators, who allege that the company is violating state laws by offering event contracts that mimic sports bets. Kalshi argues that it does not fall under state jurisdiction and is instead regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, a federal agency.

In March, Kalshi announced a partnership with IC360, an integrity monitor used by many collegiate and professional leagues.

The NCAA has faced an increasing number of alleged betting violations by players in recent years. In September, the NCAA announced that a Fresno State men’s basketball player had manipulated his performance for gambling purposes and conspired with two other players in a prop betting scheme. In total, the association has opened investigations into potential betting violations by approximately 30 current or former men’s basketball players.

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Canes query ACC on late roughing call in SMU loss

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Canes query ACC on late roughing call in SMU loss

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Miami has asked the Atlantic Coast Conference for clarity on a number of officiating decisions made in its loss this past weekend to SMU, including a critical 15-yard penalty in the final moments of regulation.

Miami lost the game, 26-20. The Hurricanes, who were as high as No. 2 in the AP Top 25 last month, have dropped two of their last three games and are now ranked No. 18.

Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal said Miami has not gotten an answer from the ACC. It’s unclear if any explanations will be coming.

“Certainly, we’re waiting what the response is, as well as on the roughing the passer one which we certainly don’t agree with,” Cristobal said Monday. “But at this point in time, the best we can do is turn it in and hope for a better result next time.”

The Hurricanes’ Marquise Lightfoot was called for unnecessary roughness against SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings with about a minute left in the fourth quarter, giving the Mustangs 15 yards and a first down. Miami had called time out just before the fourth-and-9 play was snapped, and the Hurricanes argued to no avail that Lightfoot did not hear the whistle.

Replays showed that Lightfoot, who did make contact with Jennings, tried to hold the SMU quarterback up after apparently realizing the play was dead.

That penalty gave SMU the ball on the Miami 37, and the Mustangs went on to kick an overtime-forcing field goal.

Miami also was incensed about how a pass interference flag that would have aided the Hurricanes was picked up, and how officials missed a Hurricanes receiver getting tackled in the end zone on a play that wound up as a Miami interception in overtime.

Miami was called for 12 penalties in the game for 96 yards, compared with four by SMU for 40 yards. The eight-penalty differential tied Miami’s biggest of the season; it had 13 penalties compared with five by Florida State when those teams played in Tallahassee last month.

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