Inside the cracks at the center of the MLBPA — and what’s next
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Jeff Passan, ESPN
IN THE IMMEDIATE aftermath of the Zoom call Monday night that threw the Major League Baseball Players Association into chaos, a veteran player, stunned at the mutiny that had unfolded in front of him, said to himself, “What the f— was that?” Over nearly three hours, he said, he had witnessed years of pent-up frustration from player leaders unleashed on MLBPA leadership. And one moment at the end of the meeting burned itself into his mind.
Earlier in the afternoon, a coordinated effort by players had unfolded to replace Bruce Meyer, the union’s deputy executive director and lead labor negotiator, with Harry Marino, the lawyer who had organized minor league players who eventually would become members of the MLBPA. Near the end of the call, the matter had been put to an informal poll, and a significant majority of the dozens of players in attendance raised their hands in favor of change. Faced with his hand-picked No. 2 receiving a no-confidence vote from a large portion of the union’s executive board, MLBPA executive director Tony Clark told the group that it was his decision whether Meyer would be removed from his job.
He was not wrong. Union rules grant Clark, not the players, the right to hire and fire. But the sentiment espoused by Clark in that moment roiled players throughout the game Tuesday and Wednesday, enveloping the union with the sort of palace intrigue typically reserved for a Sunday night HBO series. The veteran was among a large swath of players troubled by Clark’s comment after hearing him say consistently, over more than a decade running the MLBPA, that players run the union. The fallout cast questions across the rank and file not just about Meyer’s murky future but Clark’s long-term viability as executive director.
The call ended with no clarity on the future of union leadership. Backers of Clark have since rallied around him, attempting to whip support from players for what they believe will be a showdown for control of the MLBPA. While Clark could remain in charge of the union he has guided for more than a decade, the power play has damaged him considerably — and player leadership does wield the power to unilaterally vote him out of the position. If they do, Marino, the 33-year-old who blindsided the baseball establishment with a daring power play, could find himself not as Clark’s deputy but in the top role himself, though he’ll have to work to sway player leaders who were left in the dark about the move and know little about him.
Interviews with more than two dozen people involved in the fight — union officials, the outsiders seeking to unseat them, players on the union’s executive board and throughout the league and influence-wielding agents — offered a portrait of a union in flux amid an offseason of lower-than-expected spending on free agents. The cores of each side have been firmly established: union leadership, those skeptical of Marino and powerful agent Scott Boras advocating for status quo, while outspoken major leaguers, all of the minor league player leaders and influential player agents back the ouster of Meyer and, perhaps by extension, Clark.
Long trumpeted as the strongest union in America, the MLBPA is facing a seminal choice that will help guide the game’s future. With the current collective bargaining agreement set to expire Dec. 1, 2026, the MLBPA has plenty of time to rebuild solidarity and come equipped for its quinquennial clash with MLB. Which direction it takes might depend on which party can sell the players on its vision.
“WHY NOW?” another player leader asked Tuesday. MLB’s 2024 season was hours from beginning when the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres faced off in Seoul, and here stood the union in the throes of internal war.
There were several reasons for the urgency, but one was simply the calendar. With the end of spring training near, those who wanted change feared that players would lose interest in union politics during the season. It happened six years ago, when a group of players frustrated with a historically slow free agent market tried to form a coalition to remove Clark, the former All-Star first baseman who became the first ex-player to run the union when he took over in December 2013 after the death of Michael Weiner. It fizzled out, and Clark — who had led negotiations on the collective bargaining agreement in 2016 widely panned by players — pledged to hire help.
In came Meyer, a veteran attorney who had worked for the players’ associations of the three other major men’s professional sports. He arrived with a bulldog attitude and desire to fight the league and win back much of what the union had lost financially in 2016. Almost immediately Meyer rubbed MLB the wrong way — a point he wore with pride.
Meyer refused to accede when MLB wanted to cut players’ pay in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and commissioner Rob Manfred wound up implementing a 60-game season when the sides couldn’t strike a return-to-play deal. The hostility amplified after the 2021 season, when MLB locked the players out for 99 days. The eventual collective bargaining agreement won players a $20 million boost on the lowest threshold of the luxury tax, a 25% raise on the minimum salary, a $50 million bonus pool for arbitration-eligible players, a draft lottery to prevent tanking and incentives to not keep rookies in the minor leagues to manipulate their service time. While the executive subcommittee — one filled with Boras clients in five of the eight slots — voted 8-0 against the deal, a large majority of players supported it.
Two years later, though, the seeds of disillusionment that sprouted in those negotiations are in full bloom. After two robust free agencies following the latest CBA, the market this year slowed dramatically, from $3.9 billion guaranteed last year to $2.9 billion, and left veteran players without jobs on the eve of the season. Players have whispered about the lack of a clearly defined plan to outfox MLB’s enormous and effective labor relations unit, as well as the large salaries and travel expenses of the union’s leaders, which have only grown in recent years. The most recent defeat for some players was the San Francisco Giants’ release of J.D. Davis, the veteran infielder who received just $1.15 million of his $6.9 million salary because the collective bargaining agreement didn’t guarantee deals won in salary arbitration cases.
On top of all that, a narrative about a working relationship between Meyer and Boras has taken root. No firm evidence buttressed the notion, and both parties denied it, but among players and particularly the agents who competed with Boras, the perception hardened into a reality, though one that longtime executive subcommittee member Andrew Miller said he did not see.
“I wish it never got to this point of back and forth,” Miller told ESPN. “I was not always on the same page with Bruce, but he’s been a professional. I believe what he’s been quoted as saying about it not being true. It’s not something I ever saw that was worrying to me.”
The thought of some of those seeking change: Taking out Meyer could wound Boras, who is in the midst of an offseason when the free agent markets collapsed for numerous stars he represented. If Boras was vulnerable, Meyer could be the proxy to attack him.
If any of this change was going to happen, it needed to do so quickly. And Marino and his supporters believed he was the one to spur it on.
A left-handed reliever, Marino had spent two seasons in the early 2010s in the Arizona and Baltimore organizations. The paltry salaries paid to minor league players appalled him, and after going to law school at the University of Virginia, he left a law-firm job to attempt what no one previously had the gumption to try: unionizing minor league players. As the executive director of Advocates for Minor Leaguers, Marino married moral arguments with social-media savvy to affect change, securing minor league players housing paid for by teams. The work caught the eye of the MLBPA, which provided funding to the group, and Clark’s support of Advocates’ efforts — both offering advice to Marino or talking with players — paved a partnership that would ultimately imperil his job.
With minor leaguers prepared to unionize, the MLBPA offered to bring them under its umbrella and form a minor league unit alongside its big league group. It would be one of Clark’s signature achievements as executive director. He had toiled for seven years in the minor leagues. He lived the grind. He knew that unionization would drastically improve the lives of more than 5,500 players.
In early September 2022, the MLBPA sent out union-authorization cards. Soon thereafter, MLB voluntarily recognized the minor league unit, and Clark told The Wall Street Journal about Marino: “His consistency to the cause is as high as anyone that I’ve been around. It comes through loud and clear in how he fights for players and how he’s been willing to engage on any and all of the issues that are front and center. … [I]f this was going to become a possibility, Harry is someone you want to be a part of the equation.”
The minor league unit received 34 seats — one player from each team and four subcommittee members — to join the 38 major league players on the executive board. It bewildered some union officials, who worried that giving 47% of voting power to players who hadn’t spent a day in the major leagues could lead to a disastrous outcome. Especially if someone like Marino mobilized the group.
In recent weeks, he did. Marino, who joined the MLBPA as an assistant general counsel following the unionization efforts, left the union in July 2023, three months after negotiating the first minor league collective bargaining agreement. Though he had clashed with Meyer, with whom he worked on the agreement, and other union officials, he remained on the radar of a group of major league player leaders impressed by his work with minor leaguers.
They reached out to him earlier this year with a plea: Come fix the union. The coalition seeking change spanned players present and past. Former players such as Daniel Murphy, an executive subcommittee member in 2020, backed new leadership, telling ESPN on Wednesday: “Whether they get uprooted from their positions is not up to me, but I think guys are finally seeing the truth.”
With widespread minor league support, Marino knew he’d need a wider swath of current big leaguers. If he could map out a compelling vision, his supporters believed, MLB players were bound to join a campaign to replace Meyer. During spring training, Marino held secret meetings with player representatives in Arizona and Florida, avoiding Boras clients out of fear that they would kibosh his efforts. In recent days, he outlined his strategy in a one-page document distributed to some players and obtained by ESPN. In it, he criticized the MLBPA’s “mediocre staff and lack of clear bargaining strategy,” said it had “unproductive relationships with both the agent community and the league” and denounced its “inexcusable spending habits.” He pledged to “shift power back to the members” through “informed recommendations backed by data and reasoning” and “trim the waste and excess,” writing: “Our job is to make you rich, not the other way around.”
Marino also laid out a plan for his first 250 days as part of union leadership. He would hire an outside firm to perform an audit on the MLBPA’s finances, conduct a survey of players to learn about their issues with the union and bargaining priorities, and begin a nationwide search for senior leadership and a collective bargaining team “under supervision of the Executive Board.” At the MLBPA’s board meeting in November 2024, the document said, Marino would introduce the new hires and present goals and strategy for bargaining, propose a new budget and offer a plan for better communication.
His consortium grew, and by Saturday, a majority of player leaders — major leagues and minor leagues combined — expressed privately they were in favor of swapping Meyer for Marino. Marino took that information to Clark and proposed a plan: Marino would take over bargaining and build a team of veteran labor lawyers. He believed Clark would see the binary nature of the offer: Clark could say yes, and theoretically unify the group, but to say no could throw the union into conflict and put himself at risk. Clark asked for time to think.
On Sunday, a text chain among major league player leaders asking whether they wanted to replace Meyer with Marino — created to form a record of players’ votes — confirmed Marino had a majority. A day later, after union officials finished their final in-person meeting on their 30-team spring tour, Marino’s camp reached out to Clark and reaffirmed that they wanted to work with him as the executive director and Marino his deputy. Shortly thereafter, Clark called for the Zoom meeting.
It soon became clear that Marino’s read on the situation — that Clark would acquiesce and dismiss Meyer — was wrong. Clark backed Meyer, who was also on the call. They listened as players levied complaints on a variety of topics, from the dip in free agent spending to exasperation that some high-ranking players didn’t know that Clark had been given a new five-year contract in November 2022 until reading about it online. Players harped on union leaders’ poor communication.
Other players chimed in about Marino’s hypocrisy on the same subject. His campaign had intentionally left some players — and, by extension, their teams — in the dark. It was antithetical to the solidarity they preached, and the approach by Marino — who asked Clark to be included in the call but was not granted access — particularly bothered some players who were not familiar with Marino. Though Meyer’s support was limited, players asked why the union needed change and how Marino, with minimal experience, would make them better.
By Monday night, reports of the meeting circulated among players. On Tuesday morning, it dominated conversations in clubhouses across the game. A range of emotions revealed themselves: livid, confused, emboldened. Some player representatives knew about Marino’s play and didn’t inform their clubhouses. Others, left in the dark, didn’t have answers to questions asked by teammates. Officials from both parties spent the day on the phone, making their case to players. Boras went public, shredding Marino to The Athletic.
“If you have issues with the union and you want to be involved with the union, you take your ideas to them,” he said. “You do not take them publicly, you do not create this coup d’etat and create really a disruption inside the union. If your goal is to help players, it should never be done this way.”
To those convinced the Boras-Meyer link was real, the comments served as affirmation, further harming Meyer — and Clark as well — in the eyes of players. While it would be malpractice for the two top officials at the players’ union not to have a relationship with the agent who represents more major league players than any, power struggles often turn dirty, every small thing growing outsized.
Marino wasn’t immune, either. Critics painted him as a Svengali whose power over minor league players carried little weight, even if it would carry votes. They argued that he would bend to MLB and implement a salary cap. That he’s tied to CAA and WME, agencies whose clients have among the strongest voices, in the same way Meyer is to Boras. That his approach was an act of aggression, unseemly, in defiance of history and protocol.
In a statement, Marino told ESPN: “I have spent the entirety of the past two weeks in meetings and phone calls with Major League Players. From those conversations, three things have become clear. First, Players want to know how their hard-earned money is being spent. They deserve a full audit of the MLBPA’s financials. Assuming the staff has nothing to hide, this should not be a problem. Second, Players have lost confidence in the MLBPA’s current collective bargaining team and want to move in a new direction.
“Third, some Players have questions about me and what that new direction might look like. That’s totally fair. While the Players’ desire for change has been simmering for some time, over the past week it has come to the surface in a manner unexpected to everyone, myself included. As always, I will make myself available to speak to any Player who wants their voice heard and their questions answered.”
THE POSSIBILITY OF a Clark-Marino pairing running the union together died Monday. Perhaps it was never feasible, a half-measure, but that reality forces players into the sort of uncomfortable position that could conceivably save Clark. Because for all the warts players suggest the union has, all the dissatisfaction percolating, they like him personally. They liked him enough to extend his contract through 2027. And they might like him enough to let him see it through.
“The MLBPA has been and always will be fully transparent with its Players,” Clark said Wednesday in a statement to ESPN. “We recently negotiated two collective bargaining agreements on behalf of our members: a Major League agreement that made tangible Player gains in the face of an ownership lockout, and a first ever agreement on behalf of Minor League Players. An attempted takeover coordinated by a disgruntled former employee does nothing to change those facts.
“The question before us now is how we build from here. Those are conversations that we are having, and will continue to have with our membership.”
When the politicking settles and votes on the future of the MLBPA are taken, it will come down to the numbers. Though the board consists of 72 seats, currently 11 minor league representative positions are unfilled, cutting into Marino’s count for the potential removal of Clark. It’s unlikely Clark will be able to poach any of the 23 minor leaguers who do have a say — even if he makes the case that they would not be union members without him having pushed for a minor league unit — which leaves eight votes to give a majority to Marino’s side. If Clark were deposed and Marino made a play for the job, though, coming in to run the union on the strength of barely a quarter of big league clubhouses would leave him weak from the moment he started.
Knowing that — and knowing if he ties himself to Meyer, Clark could conceivably write his own end — Clark’s maneuver could be a repeat of 2018: Agree to dismiss Meyer or accept his resignation, then conduct a search for a new deputy executive director, only this time with more help from the executive board. At this point, it might be the clearest path to his survival. It is also not one Clark has made five days after Marino’s first meeting with him, indicating a bond with Meyer.
Clark started to do damage control Tuesday, telling players that his words about the decision to keep or fire Meyer being his did not reflect his true feelings that the will of players runs the union. How that lands — whether players believe Clark is genuine or simply a man trying to save his job — will color his attempt to survive in the coming days. The executive subcommittee met Wednesday night as well.
Next will be more phone calls, more canvassing, more impassioned rhetoric. Clarity will come soon enough. In an email sent to players Tuesday afternoon obtained by ESPN, Clark told players to reach out to him with any questions and that they will reconvene as a group in the coming days.
“The focus of this union,” he wrote, “has always been, and always will be, the Players.”
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Chris Low
Go ahead and pinch yourself. We have actual college football in less than two weeks.
The 2025 season is almost upon us, and with it comes the second year of the 12-team College Football Playoff. New stars will emerge. Familiar faces are back for an encore, some wearing new uniforms.
We unveil ESPN’s 2025 preseason All-America team realizing there won’t be any debate about those players left off (yes, that is sarcasm). Only five players who were first-team selections on our 2024 postseason team made the cut: Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith, Florida center Jake Slaughter, Texas linebacker Anthony Hill Jr., Ohio State safety Caleb Downs and Michigan place-kicker Dominic Zvada.
Clemson and Alabama lead the way with three first-team selections each, while Ohio State, Penn State, Notre Dame, Texas and Pittsburgh have two first-teamers each. Georgia has one first-team selection, but three second-team selections.
OFFENSE
Klubnik was one of the most improved players in the country last season. His next step is proving that he’s one the best players in the country. Coming off a season that saw him account for 43 touchdowns, Klubnik has all his top receivers back and enters his third year as the Tigers’ starter. Klubnik passed for 36 touchdowns a year ago and his ability to scramble for first downs makes him especially difficult to defend.
Second team: Garrett Nussmeier, LSU
Love is poised for an amazing season after rushing for 1,125 yards and 17 touchdowns — and not losing a fumble — in Notre Dame’s run to the national championship game this past season. Despite playing injured in the postseason, the 6-foot, 214-pound Love showed his mettle. He combines breakaway speed with the kind of toughness and tackle-breaking ability that separates the great running backs.
Second team: Kaytron Allen, Penn State
There’s no shortage of power and speed in Penn State’s running backs room. Singleton will team with Kaytron Allen to give the Nittany Lions the best one-two punch in the country. Singleton, a 6-foot, 224-pound senior, has started since his freshman season. He rushed for 1,099 yards this past year and averaged 6.4 yards per carry. He also caught 41 passes and accounted for 17 touchdowns (12 rushing, 5 receiving).
Second team: Makhi Hughes, Oregon
Smith returns as college football’s premier player and the one who strikes the most fear into opposing defensive coordinators’ hearts. The 6-3, 225-pound sophomore is a nightmarish matchup for defensive backs with his blend of size, strength and speed. He had 17 touchdown catches last year, including four in the Buckeyes’ first two playoff games, and averaged 17.5 yards per catch.
Second team: Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State
Williams joins Smith as the second true sophomore to earn first-team All-America honors. He had five touchdowns catches in his first four games last season at Alabama and returns as one of the most explosive players in the game. He should be even more consistent in Year 2. Williams averaged 18 yards per catch and tied for fourth nationally with five receptions of 50-plus yards.
Second team: Antonio Williams, Clemson
Stowers is still developing as a tight end after starting his career as a quarterback. The 6-4 redshirt senior has bulked up to 235 pounds and looks more like a receiver with the way he runs routes and gets open. It seems his best is yet to come, even after catching 49 passes for 638 yards and five touchdowns a year ago. His top game came in Vandy’s upset win over Alabama, when he pulled in six catches for a career-high 113 yards.
Second team: Max Klare, Ohio State
The NFL scouts love Fano, and there are a lot of reasons why. The 6-6, 302-pound junior has been a starter the past two seasons and has split time at left and right tackle. Fano earned a 93 overall grade last season by Pro Football Focus, which led all FBS tackles. He’s a devastating run blocker and didn’t allow a sack this past season after the opening week.
Second team: Francis Mauigoa, Miami
Ioane blossomed into one of the Big Ten’s best interior offensive linemen last year in his first full season as a starter. The redshirt junior has slimmed down to 330 pounds after playing closer to 350 this past season. With Ioane back, along with Singleton and Allen at running back, Penn State should have one of the top running games in college football.
Second team: Joe Brunner, Wisconsin
When Slaughter announced that he was returning for his senior season, it was huge news for the Gators’ offensive line and a huge boost for coach Billy Napier. The 6-4, 303-pound Slaughter makes life easier for quarterback DJ Lagway and is a steadying force for the offense. Slaughter played 800 snaps last season, and his experience, versatility and toughness will serve the Gators well in 2025.
Second team: Parker Brailsford, Alabama
After beginning his career at Kansas, Reed-Adams is back for his second season at Texas A&M after starting every game at right guard this past year. The Aggies should have one of the best offensive lines in the country, meaning he will have talented players on each side of him. The 6-5, 330-pound Reed-Adams is effective in the running game, and he also allowed just one sack last season.
Second team: Cayden Green, Missouri
One of the most physically imposing offensive linemen in college football, the 6-7, 366-pound Proctor enters his third season as Alabama’s left tackle. For such a huge man, he’s incredibly quick and mobile; he also played basketball and threw the shot put in high school. Proctor recorded 639 snaps and 54 knockdown blocks last season, earning second-team All-SEC honors from the coaches.
Second team: Kage Casey, Boise State
All-purpose: Desmond Reid, Pittsburgh
Is there anything Reid can’t do? He was an instant hit at Pitt this past season after transferring from Western Carolina and scored touchdowns three different ways (4 rushing, 5 receiving and 1 on a punt return). The 5-8, 175-pound Reid is a blur on the field. He averaged 154.9 all-purpose yards last year, the most among returning FBS players, and could get even more touches in 2025.
Second team: Isaac Brown, Louisville
DEFENSE
Stewart burst onto the scene this past season as one of the best freshmen in college football and immediately asserted himself as one of the most feared pass rushers in the SEC. The 6-5, 245-pound Stewart finished with 6.5 sacks to rank third among FBS true freshmen. He also forced three fumbles. With a year of experience in the SEC, Stewart should be even better, and more consistent, in 2025.
Second team: Colin Simmons, Texas
Woods has said he wants to be more consistent this season, and to that end, he has been diligent this offseason about getting in tip-top shape as he enters his third year on campus. The 6-3, 315-pound Woods has elite interior pass-rushing skills and played some on the outside as a freshman. He’s more suited to play tackle and finished with 8 ½ tackles for loss, including three sacks, this past season.
Second team: Christen Miller, Georgia
Overton is one of those rare players with the size (6-5, 285) to handle the hybrid bandit position, which is part defensive lineman and part edge rusher. Overton started his career at Texas A&M before transferring to Alabama. This will be his second season in Kane Wommack’s defense, and after recording 42 total tackles and a team-leading nine quarterback hurries a year ago, Overton is in line for a big senior campaign.
Second team: Rueben Bain, Miami
The bad news for Clemson fans is that this is likely Parker’s last season in orange. The good news is that this should be the best version of him. He’s a dominant 6-3, 265-pound pass rusher who is always making big plays. Parker forced a school-record six fumbles last season and has 16.5 sacks over his first two seasons. His production only went up this past season after battling through migraines early in the year.
Second team: Keldric Faulk, Auburn
From the time he arrived on the Forty Acres, Hill has been destined for stardom. Now in his third season, the 6-3, 235-pound Hill is one of the country’s most well-rounded linebackers. He tied for fourth among FBS linebackers last season with 16 ½ tackles for loss, and he also forced four fumbles. Whether he’s pressuring the quarterback or chasing down ball carriers, Hill is a big play waiting to happen on defense.
Second team: Deontae Lawson, Alabama
There’s stuffing the stat sheet on defense, and then there’s Louis. He was everywhere for the Panthers last season with 101 total tackles, including 15 ½ for loss, and had four interceptions, returning one 59 yards for a touchdown in a win over Syracuse. He also forced a fumble and blocked a kick. Louis enters his redshirt junior season as one of the most disruptive defenders in the country.
Second team: Taurean York, Texas A&M
An outside linebacker in Illinois’ scheme, the 6-3, 275-pound Jacas has been a fixture on the Fighting Illini’s defense since his freshman season. He has 16 career sacks (eight last season), and with 13 tackles for loss a year ago, he is the second-leading returnee among Big Ten linebackers. Jacas is one of the most productive edge rushers in college football, but he makes game-changing plays no matter where he lines up.
Second team: CJ Allen, Georgia
Marcus Freeman continues to bring in promising young talent to the program, and Moore was a prime example this past season. He returns for his sophomore season as one of the top cornerbacks in the country. Moore was the FWAA Freshman Defensive Player of the Year in 2024, when he led the Irish with 11 pass breakups and finished with two interceptions and two forced fumbles.
Second team: Avieon Terrell, Clemson
The only question with McCoy is his health after he tore an ACL in January while training at home. The Vols hope to have him back for the start of the season in some capacity, but there’s no timetable at this point as he continues to recover. McCoy, who started his career at Oregon State, was the backbone of Tennessee’s secondary last season. He tied for the team lead with four interceptions, and the Vols allowed just 11 touchdown passes in 13 games.
Second team: Chandler Rivers, Duke
Downs came into college football as one of the top prospects in the country, played that way as a freshman at Alabama and took yet another step this past season after transferring to Ohio State and helping lead the Buckeyes to the national championship. The prototypical safety, Downs was third on Ohio State’s team last season with 81 tackles, 7 ½ of them for loss, and had two interceptions.
Second team: Koi Perich, Minnesota
Taaffe came to Texas as a walk-on and enters his redshirt senior season as one of the top defensive backs in the nation. Taaffe has played in 43 career games with 26 starts. He had 78 total tackles last season, including 5 ½ for loss, 2 interceptions and 10 pass breakups. Taaffe’s instincts and range are both outstanding. His 91.3 coverage grade led all safeties last season, according to Pro Football Focus.
Second team: KJ Bolden, Georgia
SPECIAL TEAMS
Zvada’s return for his senior season was a coup for Michigan’s special teams. He has a huge leg, and his ability to make long field goals is invaluable in close games. Zvada was 7-of-7 on attempts of 50 yards or longer a year ago and 21-of-22 overall. And he can make clutch kicks: See his 21-yarder in the final seconds of Michigan’s win at Ohio State last season.
Second team: Will Ferrin, BYU
Thorson is still working his way back from a left (nonkicking) knee injury in the SEC championship game last year. He was a finalist for the Ray Guy Award as the top punter in the country last season. Thorson is essentially an extension of Georgia’s defense, as 22 of his 42 punts were downed inside the 20-yard line and 14 more were fair catches.
Second team: Ryan Eckley, Michigan State
Brown is getting a reset at LSU after rolling up 3,273 all-purpose yards at Kentucky over the past three seasons. The Tigers want to get him as many touches in as many roles as possible. Brown is the Wildcats’ record holder for career kickoff return average (30.3 yards) and leads all active players with five kickoff returns for touchdowns, the most of any SEC player in history.
Second team: Kam Shanks, Arkansas
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Greg Wyshynski
When Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk raised the Stanley Cup over his head for the second straight season, the on-ice celebration included two of the most important people in his life: Father Keith Tkachuk, who played 18 seasons in the NHL; and brother Brady Tkachuk, captain of the Ottawa Senators.
Keith was smoking cigars and hoisting the Cup with Matthew around the arena. Brady was holding a beer and diligently avoiding contact with the Cup, as superstition dictates that an NHL player should never touch it if they’ve never won it before.
The celebration was another memorable moment for the Tkachuk boys and their father. This month, another one arrived: The trio graces the cover of EA Sports’ NHL 26 Deluxe Edition.
“Growing up, Matthew and I dreamed of playing just like our dad,” Brady Tkachuk said. “Even now, his influence on how we play and prepare remains huge. It’s an honor to be featured on the cover. Having him standing alongside us makes the whole thing even better.”
We spoke with Matthew and Brady Tkachuk recently about their video game history, the Panthers’ wild offseason, Brady’s future in Ottawa, Matthew’s health heading into next season and their thoughts on the new NHL collective bargaining agreement.
But first, we asked two of the first players named to the 2026 U.S. men’s Olympic ice hockey team about chasing gold. Responses were edited for length and clarity.
You guys became USA Hockey legends after the 4 Nations Face-Off, if you weren’t already. Obviously, the tournament did not end the way Americans wanted. Is winning Olympic gold in the 2026 Winter Games in Italy the ultimate revenge on our friends in Canada?
MATTHEW TKACHUK: I don’t even know if you look at it as revenge, but it’s been a long time coming since USA Hockey’s been at the top of the mountain. Canada’s owned the Olympics or World Cups or even the world championships, although we got that back a little bit this year. They’ve been the leader in all of that and the team that we’ve all been trying to knock off.
I don’t think it’d be as much as revenge than showing how far along USA Hockey has come. We’ve had some incredible players and national teams that we’ve looked up to our whole lives but that haven’t gotten the job done. So, not only would winning [gold] accomplish dreams for us, but hopefully it would bring a lot of satisfaction for those guys that paved the way for us.
Brady, you play in a Canadian city while trying to win Olympic gold for the Americans. What’s that dynamic like?
BRADY TKACHUK: Learning from experience, it’s a little bit of a different position to be in. All the people that support you on a day-to-day basis, now they don’t want you to win.
Your dream as kids is winning the Stanley Cup and winning a gold medal for your country. I know that’s always been our two main goals. But we got into hockey, and a lot of people got into hockey, from the 1980 Miracle on Ice. And now, we have an opportunity to pave the way for the next generation of kids in the U.S. that maybe wouldn’t be playing hockey if they didn’t get to experience USA Hockey in the Winter Olympics and potential gold medals.
There’s not just playing for ourselves in that locker room with that group, but you’re really playing for your country and you’re playing for the next generation of kids. And like Matthew said, you’re playing for the guys that have paved the way, that are to be so supportive and fired up to be watching.
You guys are NHL 26 cover athletes, along with your dad. We spoke to Keith recently, who reminisced about seeing the glow of a video game screen under the doors of your bedrooms, whether it was when you were younger or in Matt’s case, when he was playing in Calgary. What’s your brief history of playing video games together?
MATTHEW TKACHUK: Yeah, we would play. I think during COVID was probably the last time I religiously played, and that was when we were all under one roof before I had my house in St. Louis. Brady and I played a lot. NHL is definitely one of them. I think Brady has played more throughout his life than I have, and that was one of the things that he was much better at than I am. So, I didn’t really play too much against him.
We played the game like how you’d probably expect us to play: Turn off all the penalties, make all the guys really big and fast. It was like prison rules NHL. So, it was a lot of fun.
BRADY TKACHUK: I honestly feel like we had a pretty religious routine. Right after school, if it was a nice day, out for roller hockey then dinner and then we were playing NHL. We try to sneak in a best-of-seven if it was early enough, but it was a lot of fun. Either we played together or most of the time, we’re playing together against each other and it was a ton of fun.
Now that you’re in the NHL, what is the level of interest or concern among the boys when it comes to their EA Sports ratings? Do they still care?
MATTHEW TKACHUK: We don’t talk about it too much. I know that there’s one day, maybe it might be at the beginning of the year, which I guess is coming up here soon, where you go over your rating or you guess another player’s rating. I think where they get pissed off is when you guess their rating and it’s way lower than their actual rating is.
You’ve got to be careful with who the sensitive guys are on the team because you don’t want that to actually affect them — and you never know if it might. Hockey players are proud athletes. You want to have a decent rating.
BRADY TKACHUK: I’m probably one of the guys that will just play a game as the Sens to see where my rating is at, to see how good my guy is. This version is exciting because it’s more individual-based. You can see within the game how I am in real life, and that’s really cool and unique.
These ratings are always fun. And to be honest with you, I don’t know what the rating is going into this year’s game. I know they give a midyear bump and that’s the goal: That hopefully I get a midyear bump because that means I’m playing well.
Matthew, your name was recently listed by the White House as being part of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition, joining names like Wayne Gretzky and Mariano Rivera. How did you get involved in that?
MATTHEW TKACHUK: I’m not actually allowed to comment on that until it’s official yet. So, I have to wait on that a little bit. But I promise in a few weeks, if that comes true, I’ll answer that for you.
Let’s talk about something that did come true: The Florida Panthers somehow hanging on to Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad and Brad Marchand as free agents. How shocked were you that GM Bill Zito was able to pull that off?
MATTHEW TKACHUK: I don’t know if I was shocked. I think at the time, as a player and more importantly as a friend, you’re more worried that one of your buddies is going to go elsewhere. At the end of the day, you want your teammates and your best buddies to be happy with whatever decision they make. So, if that’s chasing a ton of money or if that’s going to where they want to play, you just got to be happy for them.
The best part about those three is they all believe in what we’re doing in Florida. They want to live in Florida, they want to play on a good team, and they want to have a great group of players surrounding them.
Out of all of them, I was most confident in [Ekblad] staying the most. Just because he’s been a lifelong Florida Panther. I just think it was going to be impossible for him to leave. And then the other guys … I mean, this was a chance for them to cash in. You just didn’t know if it was going to be with us or not.
I was surprised, though, that they were all able to stay. I thought that with the way the money was tied up, you didn’t know if it was going to be possible — and somehow it was. Everybody was taken care of so well.
Bill did a great job of making sure it could happen. You want your best buddies to be rewarded with how great they played and how great they’ve been up to this point. I think they all got rewarded very well, and I’m just so excited to have a chance to hopefully run it back with them this year.
When did you know about Marchand? Was it when he was smoking cigars on the back of a golf cart outside of the Elbo Room? At some point, were you just convinced the guy liked it down there vs. leaving as a free agent?
MATTHEW TKACHUK: Marchand, when he first got traded, I would’ve thought there was never a chance that we’re going to be able to keep everybody. As time goes on and you have success and you get to know guys and you get to know what their wants and desires are with the rest of their career — or where they want to live — you can start connecting the dots. People just don’t want to leave Florida when they come. I think that that is the case with them and everybody that’s been there.
The only time you’re going to see guys leave is if it’s such a crazy difference with money. Some of these guys that we’ve had the last few years have really cashed in with other teams, which we’re so happy to see. I think that’s really the only way you’re going to see guys go elsewhere.
We have too good of a thing going right now, and everybody wants to be a part of it.
Brady, your dad threw cold water on all the speculation about you leaving Ottawa when we spoke recently. How much did making the playoffs, showing the progress of the Senators, give you a sense of relief that maybe some of that speculation might go by the wayside now?
BRADY TKACHUK: Yeah, I think we really needed to make the playoffs to show everybody that we’re a team that’s capable of that, but also capable of doing more than just making the playoffs.
The last couple of years, it was kind of stagnant. We had high expectations and we didn’t quite accomplish what we needed to. And with that came doubt. But I think it showed with the steps that we took last year that we have a great hockey team. I think that we’re kind of just getting started with what we want to accomplish. Playoffs are great to get to, but that’s not our end goal. The sky’s the limit for our group.
I think [that success] helped with all the speculation. When things aren’t going well, people are always assuming or trying to think in my shoes. But I was kind of never really in that thought process. It was all about sticking it out. It’s been a long time coming, for not just our team but the city, to get into the playoffs. And I think it was really important to me to end that drought.
Through all that adversity that we faced with being the bottom five teams to finally get to the playoffs was an amazing feeling. But now that we got there, I think everybody wants a little bit more and wants to accomplish all of our childhood dreams.
Obviously, the season is getting closer. Brady, we saw you were training with Trevor Zegras this summer. What are your thoughts about him getting a fresh start in Philadelphia with the Flyers?
BRADY TKACHUK: Yeah, I drove up to Connecticut and skated with him. I’ve known ‘Z’ throughout the years but got to know him pretty well when we played world championships together. He’s a great guy, and I think it’s going to be great for him to get a fresh start in Philly and under Rick Tocchet. They have a great culture there, and I think he’s just going to do a good job of fitting in.
I’ve always thought playing against Philly that they play super hard, but they have a lot of great players with skill. So, I think that is going to be the best thing for him. I’m excited to see his progression this year and see how the change affects him. I bet that’s going to be for the good.
Matthew, you were dealing with some significant injuries by the end of last season and said it was “50/50” regarding offseason surgery. What’s your path for the next few months? Are you still hoping to maybe hit the ice in October?
MATTHEW TKACHUK: I’m still hoping to hit the ice as soon as possible. If I do get the surgery, it definitely will be the first two, maybe three months [of the season] if that’s the case. But it’s still undecided at this point.
Finally, the NHL and NHLPA have signed off on a new collective bargaining agreement. We haven’t heard from many players about this deal. What did you like? What did you wish was in it that didn’t make the cut?
BRADY TKACHUK: I think Marty [Walsh], Ron Hainsey and the NHLPA did a really good job. A lot of it came behind the scenes with the NHL. They kept it discreet.
I think it’s important that we did a four-year deal and to navigate where our league is in four years’ time. Obviously, there’s things that will probably trend and want maybe more of in four years’ time. But I think the changes that they made are exciting. The 84-game schedule [means] more hockey for people to come and watch. I think it’s going to be good.
Less preseason crap, too.
MATTHEW TKACHUK: Took the words right out of my mouth.
That’s the one main thing I like. I’ve never liked the preseason setup. I mean, guys do a great job of coming into [camp] in shape. There are the captain’s skates before the preseason because everyone wants to get back and see the boys. So, I think preseason has been overrated. It’s way too long, and the games are way too much. However they were able to shorten that, I was on board with that for sure.
Just get into the season. Just get on with it.
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Greg Wyshynski
Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk said he remains undecided about getting surgery before the 2025-26 season but acknowledged he could miss significant time should he require it.
Tkachuk, 27, revealed after the season that he sustained a torn adductor muscle and a sports hernia injury while playing for Team USA in the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. He missed the final 25 games of the NHL regular season but returned for Game 1 of the Panthers’ first-round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tkachuk had 23 points (8 goals, 15 assists) in 23 games during the playoffs, including seven points in the final against Edmonton, to lead the Panthers to their second straight Stanley Cup championship.
Coach Paul Maurice said his star forward was “a mess” healthwise heading into the postseason.
“We weren’t hopeful at the start that he would survive the first round,” he said.
Tkachuk said after the season that it was “50/50” whether he’d have surgery, adding that the offseason provided ample time to make that call. Tkachuk told ESPN on Friday that “I’m still hoping to hit the ice as soon as possible.” Should he decide to go under the knife, Tkachuk said, it’s likely he’ll miss multiple months of action.
“If I do get the surgery, it’ll definitely be the first two or maybe three months if that’s the case. But it’s still undecided at this point,” said the Panthers star, whose contract and cap hit could be placed on long-term injured reserve during his recovery.
It’s been a notable offseason for Tkachuk. He appears on the cover of EA Sports’ NHL 26 and is featured with brother Brady and father Keith on the cover of the game’s deluxe edition.
Matthew and Brady Tkachuk were among the first six players named to the 2026 U.S. men’s Olympic hockey roster for the Winter Games in Italy next year. Matthew Tkachuk also married fiancée Ellie Connell in July.
All of that was after another epic, multiday Stanley Cup celebration by the Panthers in Fort Lauderdale and Miami that featured spontaneous appearances at bars, clubs and beaches as well as a championship parade.
The Panthers’ chances for a third straight Stanley Cup received a boost this summer when GM Bill Zito was able to re-sign a trio of star veteran free agents: center Sam Bennett (8 years, $64 million), defenseman Aaron Ekblad (8 years, $48 million), and winger Brad Marchand (6 years, $31.5 million).
Tkachuk said that he wasn’t surprised that all three players wanted to remain with the Panthers but that he was amazed that Zito found a way to make the money work under the salary cap.
“I thought that the way the money was tied up, you didn’t know it was going to be possible, and somehow it was,” he said. “Everybody was taken care of so well, and Bill did a great job of making sure it could happen. I think they all got rewarded very well, and I’m just so excited to have a chance to hopefully run it back with them this year.”
Tkachuk said he was confident that Ekblad would return, having been a Panther since he was drafted by Florida first overall in 2014. He was a little less certain about Bennett and especially Marchand, who both had a chance to break the bank in free agency.
“When Marchand first got traded [at the deadline this spring], I would’ve thought there was never a chance that we were going to be able to keep everybody. But as time goes on and you have success and you get to know guys’ wants and desires for the rest of their career, you can start connecting the dots,” Tkachuk said. “People just don’t want to leave Florida when they come [here]. We have too good of a thing going right now, and everybody wants to be a part of it.”
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