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AVONDALE, Ariz. — Ryan Blaney was fastest of NASCAR’s championship contenders Friday in the only practice session ahead of the title-deciding season finale Sunday at Phoenix Raceway.

“Ryan Blaney gets around Phoenix really, really well,” said Blaney crew chief Jonathan Hassler. “There’s never been a time that we haven’t had speed.”

Kyle Busch and Bubba Wallace, two drivers already eliminated from the playoff field, paced the Friday night practice. Blaney was third and followed by Christopher Bell, who is one of the final four drivers racing for the title.

William Byron, winner at Phoenix in the spring, was seventh fastest and Kyle Larson was the slowest driver of the title contenders in 11th. Larson also grazed the wall with his Chevrolet late in the 50-minute practice session.

“We have a small paint mark. No big deal,” said Larson crew chief Cliff Daniels, who said it is about the 10th time this year the team will have to repair that portion of the car after a Larson wobble.

“I’ve got no problem with him pushing hard,” Daniels added. “This isn’t exactly overstepping the edge. He always pushes the car really hard, and especially in practice, which is great for us, right? It lets us know what kind of speed he can extract out of it, what kind of adjustments we need to make.”

The Cup champion will be the highest-finishing driver among the final four contenders on Sunday.

Larson won the title by winning the race here at Phoenix in 2021 and is back in the championship round for the second time in three years. Bell was in the finale a year ago, while Blaney and Byron are making their first appearances.

Although the oddsmakers have named , it is Blaney who enters the race with the most momentum. He won last Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, has two wins in the last five races, and has been runner-up at Phoenix in NASCAR’s last two visits.

Blaney is trying to give Team Penske a second consecutive Cup title after teammate Joey Logano won a year ago.

Byron and Larson both drive Chevys for Hendrick Motorsports, which won back-to-back titles in 2020 and 2021 with Chase Elliott and Larson. Bell is the lone Toyota representative and driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, which last won a title with Kyle Busch in 2019.

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Auburn’s Freeze diagnosed with prostate cancer

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Auburn's Freeze diagnosed with prostate cancer

Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer and is expected to make a full recovery after doctors detected the disease in its early stages, the school announced Friday.

Freeze, 55, will continue coaching the Tigers while receiving treatment, Auburn officials said in a statement.

“Recently, Coach Freeze was diagnosed with an early form of prostate cancer,” the statement said. “Thankfully, it was detected early and his doctors have advised that it is very treatable and curable. He will continue his normal coaching duties and responsibilities, and with forthcoming proper treatment, is expected to make a full recovery.

“Coach Freeze is incredibly appreciative of our medical professionals and has asked that we use his experience as a reminder of the importance of prioritizing and scheduling annual health screenings.”

The Tigers are scheduled to start spring practice March 25.

Freeze’s teams went 11-14 (5-11 SEC) in his first two seasons, including a 5-7 campaign in 2024. With the additions of transfer quarterback Jackson Arnold (Oklahoma), wide receivers Eric Singleton Jr. (Georgia Tech) and Horatio Fields (Wake Forest), offensive tackle Xavier Chaplin (Virginia Tech), and others, the Tigers are expected to be much improved this coming season.

At Liberty, Freeze coached from a hospital bed set up in the coaches’ box during the Flames’ 24-0 loss to Syracuse in his debut on Aug. 31, 2019. Freeze was recovering from surgery for a herniated disk in his back and a staph infection.

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Bowling Green’s Loeffler takes QB job with Eagles

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Bowling Green's Loeffler takes QB job with Eagles

Bowling Green coach Scot Loeffler is leaving the school after six seasons to become quarterbacks coach of the Philadelphia Eagles.

Loeffler, 50, went 27-41 at Bowling Green but led the Falcons to bowl appearances in each of the past three seasons, posting a 16-10 record in MAC play during the span.

He will replace Doug Nussmeier, who left the Eagles with Kellen Moore to become the New Orleans Saints‘ offensive coordinator. Loeffler will work under new Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo, who had been the team’s passing game coordinator and associate head coach.

“Scot has been dedicated to not only BGSU Football, but to all our student-athletes and BGSU Athletics, as well as our Falcon Marching Band and spirit programs,” university president Rodney Rogers said in a statement. “He cares deeply about player development and student success, and we wish him all the best as he continues his coaching career in the NFL with the Super Bowl-winning Philadelphia Eagles.”

Loeffler returns to the NFL for the first time since 2008, when he coached quarterbacks for the Detroit Lions. A former Michigan quarterback, Loeffler coached QBs at his alma mater from 2002 to 2007 and also with Central Michigan and Florida. He first became an offensive coordinator with Temple in 2011 and made coordinator stops with Auburn, Virginia Tech and Boston College before landing his first head-coaching opportunity at Bowling Green.

The coaching change means Bowling Green players now have a 30-day window to enter the NCAA transfer portal. The Falcons had already lost three All-MAC performers to the portal in December in running back Terion Stewart (Virginia Tech), offensive tackle Alex Wollschlaeger (Kentucky) and linebacker Joseph Sipp Jr. (Kansas). Bowling Green also is losing record-setting tight end Harold Fannin Jr. to the NFL draft.

Athletic director Derek van der Merwe will lead the search for Loeffler’s replacement. In a statement, Van der Merwe praised Loeffler for building “a very successful program in a challenging climate in collegiate sports.

“I am looking forward to this process of finding the next great leader for our program who embraces what it means to be a Falcon,” Van der Merwe added.

ESPN’s Max Olson contributed to this report.

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Texas raises ticket prices as player costs go up

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Texas raises ticket prices as player costs go up

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas will be raising football season ticket prices by $13 per game next season as the program, already one of the richest in the nation, tries to meet rising costs.

Athletic director Chris Del Conte announced the price increase this week in his annual campus town hall, where he detailed the program’s expected finances upon final approval of a landmark $2.8 billion lawsuit settlement that lays the foundation for players to receive money directly from their schools.

Texas will have nearly $30 million in new costs and about 200 new scholarships across all sports, Del Conte said. The ticket price increase will help cover some of that.

The increased scholarships will cost about $9.2 million, and the school plans to pay $20.5 million annually to its athletes.

“We plan to get to the full limit,” Del Conte said. “We’re doing that because we want to maintain Texas as the best athletic department in the country.”

Texas was the only program to qualify for the College Football Playoff each of the past two seasons. The Longhorns lost in the semifinals both years.

Texas reported $332 million in operating revenue and $325 million operating expenses in the 2024 fiscal year, the first time a top-division public school had topped the $300 million mark in both categories, according to USA Today.

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