Texas A&M or Notre Dame? It’s a bag of mixed emotions for Duke with Mike Elko, Riley Leonard facing off
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David Hale, ESPN Staff Writer
DUKE QB GRAYSON LOFTIS is looking for a politically correct way to answer a fraught question, turning to teammate Jaylen Stinson for help. Instead, Stinson eggs him on, hoping to avoid having to answer himself.
There’s a big Week 1 showdown between his former head coach, Mike Elko, now leading Texas A&M, and Riley Leonard, the guy Loftis shared a QB room at Duke with last year, now taking snaps at Notre Dame. Who ya got?
“I don’t want to touch that one with a 10-foot pole,” Loftis says. “A zero-zero tie, I guess.”
Well, that would mean Leonard didn’t throw a TD pass, right?
Loftis changes course.
“OK, 180-180,” he says, throwing up his hands.
Right. There are no good answers here.
It’s an impossible choice for the Duke holdovers, but it’s also something of a microcosm for modern college football — a coach and a QB, once tethered by success at one school, now going head-to-head on completely different sidelines; a matchup of A&M and Notre Dame and, perhaps, between college football’s espoused values and the cold reality of its bottom line.
For Leonard, Notre Dame was a chance to play for one of college football’s most storied programs in an era in which name, image and likeness dollars and NFL prospects often require the biggest stage possible. It also meant leaving the only Power 5 school to offer him a scholarship out of high school.
For Elko, the A&M job was a chance to arm himself with every resource imaginable in an era in which cash is the key to talent acquisition at a place desperate to win big. But it also meant leaving his former team under the cloak of darkness in November, with his players left to learn of his departure on social media the next morning.
For Duke — or what’s left of a program that went from a 2-10 abyss to the brink of greatness to a transfer portal exodus in two years under Elko — it has been a time of both frustration and resilience.
So when Notre Dame and Texas A&M kick off on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET on ABC), plenty of folks at Duke will be watching with mixed emotions.
And while Leonard and Elko won’t be conflicted about their preferred outcome, even they won’t be immune to the feelings that come with facing an old friend.
“Who he is as a person, the respect and admiration I have for him,” Elko said, “I would pick any other quarterback on the planet to be on the other side of the field for that game.”
IT ACTUALLY TOOK another month before Leonard’s career at Duke was truly over, but it effectively came to a blunt ending in the final seconds of a 21-14 loss to, of all teams, Notre Dame.
A few minutes earlier might’ve been the apex of the Elko-Leonard partnership. Duke was 4-0. ESPN’s “College GameDay” had come to campus for the showdown with Notre Dame, a first in program history. Leonard was getting Heisman Trophy buzz, and though the offense had been anything but pretty that night, he’d willed the Blue Devils to a 14-13 lead late in the fourth quarter.
But Notre Dame converted a fourth-and-16 by mere inches, scored two plays later, then kicked off to Leonard and the Blue Devils with just 27 seconds to play. Leonard was desperate, scrambled in a collapsing pocket and took a merciless hit that awkwardly bent one of his legs.
Pain shot from Leonard’s ankle as he lay in a heap on the field. Meanwhile, Notre Dame recovered the loose ball and went on to win 21-14.
Leonard completed just 16 more passes in a Blue Devils jersey in two losses to Florida State and Louisville before opting for surgery and, ultimately, the transfer portal.
His destination: Notre Dame.
“It’s an ongoing joke,” Leonard said. “I was just talking trash today, saying they got lucky.”
It’s impossible to say what might’ve happened had Duke won that game, had Leonard not been helped off the field with his right leg dangling and his ankle aching. What Leonard is certain of is that he never considered the transfer portal before the injury.
“Absolutely not for a second did I have a thought of ending up here after that game,” Leonard said. “But God’s got a funny plan for my life. It’s just crazy to think about, but it’s something I really appreciate and I’m not taking any day for granted.”
In high school in Fairhope, Alabama, Leonard was a basketball star. It wasn’t until his senior season that football became his priority, and by that point, he had garnered few suitors on the recruiting trail. But a high school coach was pals with then-Duke coach David Cutcliffe, whom he saw enough from Leonard to offer a scholarship.
Cutcliffe was fired after Leonard’s first year at Duke, however, and it was Elko who really gave the QB his shot. The decision paid immediate dividends, with Duke winning nine games in 2022, largely buoyed by Leonard’s success.
It all felt like a perfect story until Leonard was tethered to a hospital bed, recovering from ankle surgery in November 2023.
By then, rumors were swirling that Elko would leave. The vultures were circling as portal season approached. The word in certain circles was that Leonard had already decided he was leaving, too, though multiple sources with direct knowledge of the situation argued otherwise, noting Elko and Leonard were still discussing a possible return as late as Nov. 26, the day Elko ultimately left for Texas A&M.
Truth is, Leonard said, he wasn’t eager to leave the only college that had given him a chance, but he said he ultimately had to make “a selfish” decision. Not the wrong decision, he said, just not the choice that might’ve been best for everyone around him.
“You can give him some grace, but you’ve got to call a spade a spade,” said DeWayne Carter, a former Blue Devils defensive tackle and one of Leonard’s closest confidants. “You’ve got to be selfish in that world, and Riley is the farthest thing from selfish in this universe. He did all he could to come back for us [from the ankle injury], and he had a right to make a decision for himself. It was never a secretive thing. He had conversations with us, and I told him I supported him.”
Another voice of support came from Notre Dame’s last starting QB, Sam Hartman — a player who had left an ACC school where he carved out a legendary career in favor of one last ride with the Irish.
Hartman’s transfer had its own critics, and when the Irish honored him at their 2023 Senior Day festivities, Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson lamented the situation, suggesting Notre Dame was just a flirtation, while Wake was home. It was, perhaps, a reasonable take. Clawson noted that, when Hartman posted images to his social media playing the new EA Sports College Football game, he was playing with Wake, not Notre Dame.
But when Leonard reached out for advice, Hartman gave him the hard sell. No, it wasn’t easy to leave a place he loved. Yes, Notre Dame was still the right decision.
And so Leonard said goodbye to Duke, and went to a play for the team that had delivered the most punishing blow to his career thus far.
Like Hartman, he said, there are no regrets.
“Everybody here is the biggest Notre Dame supporter. Everywhere you go we feel the love. You’re in the middle of nowhere Indiana, but it’s such a special place,” he said. “I feel like I’ve become a better person spiritually, mentally, as a football player, a student. It’s been a great experience so far.”
ELKO MET WITH his team at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 26. He had been offered the head-coaching job at Texas A&M, a place where he spent three years (2018-21) as defensive coordinator, and he was seriously considering accepting.
This wasn’t the first time Duke’s players had heard some version of this story. Elko had been a hot name on the coaching carousel after his stellar debut season with the Blue Devils, but at every other turn, he demurred.
He loved Duke. Elko has two kids in high school in Durham, and if he took the A&M job, he’d be leaving them behind. Athletic director Nina King had given him his first opportunity as a head coach, and he wanted to be loyal.
But offers like Texas A&M don’t come around often. He had gone home to talk with his family about it, and in the meantime, then-Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork — who would leave for a new job himself less than two months later — and the head of the board of regents flew to Raleigh, North Carolina, to await his response.
Hours passed as Elko, his wife and his kids debated the job. It wasn’t until nearly midnight they came to a decision, and by that time, Bjork & Co. had been waiting on a tarmac at the Raleigh airport for three hours.
Elko called King around 11:55 p.m. and told her he was taking A&M’s offer and promptly left for Texas.
The next morning, the news was everywhere.
“There were a lot of hard feelings for me and the school and the staff,” Carter said. “You wake up and are learning stuff from Twitter. I was mad. I was definitely mad.”
Former Duke defensive tackle Aeneas Peebles, now at Virginia Tech, called it “a messy time.”
“Going through a coaching change and hearing the rumors on Twitter, even weeks before it actually happened, especially an amazing coach like Elko,” Peebles said, “hearing rumors that brought life back to this place, it hurt.”
Elko scheduled a videoconference meeting with the team for the afternoon of Nov. 27, and a report quickly surfaced suggesting a number of players planned to boycott.
Ultimately, the whole team joined the meeting, however, which Elko said was brief. What was left to say?
“When you leave for a lateral job, everything you say is bulls—,” Elko said. “You make a public statement, but we broke up. There’s no good way to do that. I certainly regret not being there Monday morning to talk to people, but it was a really unique station. If I could change anything, I’d have somebody stop that plane.”
Peebles said he has come to understand why Elko made the decision. Leonard, too. In the end, they all made the same choice.
The game is about the team, Peebles said. The business is about the individual. The freedom to leave is both a lifeline and a dagger.
“At the end of the day, this is an unforgiving game,” Peebles said. “It’s not a game that caters to people. It brings people together, but it for sure doesn’t cater to an individual or an individual’s feelings, and there have been a whole lot of great players who got stuck in terrible situations.”
IF ANGER WAS the first emotion for Carter, that quickly shifted into something more resolute. He had been at Duke for five years, and he didn’t want his story to end on this note.
“My immediate thought,” Carter said, “was, ‘How do we finish this the right way?'”
The math suggested there would be no happy ending. Initially, more than 20 Duke players entered the transfer portal — though several ultimately chose to stay. It took 13 days for Duke to hire Elko’s replacement, Manny Diaz. A host of stars who had helped rebuild the Duke program were on their way out, including Leonard, tailback Jordan Waters, defensive end R.J. Oben (who joined Leonard at Notre Dame) and defensive back Brandon Johnson.
Carter could’ve walked away, too, and started training for the combine. His legacy at Duke was secure. Instead, he marched into a splintered, chaotic locker room and restored order. There was a bowl game to win, and no amount of turmoil would be excuse enough to walk away from one last chance to play together.
“They’re the reason guys played in that game, even guys who were transferring out,” said Duke strength coach David Feeley. “They wanted to win that game. That was one of the most special experiences I’ll ever get is watching the power of that locker room keep it all together for a bowl win.”
It’s not that the hard feelings simply vanished amid a desire to win a bowl game — “Trust me, it wasn’t 100 percent perfect every day,” Carter said — but there was unity in the approach to those few weeks in December when it was clear the end was near, but it hadn’t quite arrived.
A handful of players who had already entered the transfer portal insisted on playing in the bowl game, including Peebles. Leonard was still recovering from surgery, but he was at every practice, cheering on his teammates and coaching from the sideline. Guys were taking calls and planning their futures, but when it came time to focus on Troy — Duke’s 76 Birmingham Bowl opponent — the team was uniformly focused.
“That was the shining light that reinforced that Duke’s all about good people,” Peebles said. “We all thought about the good stuff and the good this place had done for us, so it almost felt wrong not to finish it together.”
When Diaz was finally hired on Dec. 7, he was initially a bit surprised at the mood of his locker room. It was turbulent, to say the least, but also strangely engaged. Diaz had been a part of coaching changes before, but he had never seen anything like this.
It was a team that knew the end was near, but refused to rush toward the exit.
“Those couple weeks were tough,” said Loftis, who started Duke’s 17-10 win over Troy. “You look around and you’re like, ‘What the heck?’ But I think what stuck out was just looking inside the locker room and banding together as brothers.”
When it was over, the business of football became real once again with dozens of players going separate ways.
Looking back, it ended the way it had to, but also with a reminder that all the days between business decisions still matter, too.
“At the core, that’s just who we were at Duke,” Carter said. “I’d bet they’re still the same way. We were always friends first.”
ELKO HAS BEEN thinking a lot of the first game he coached against Wake Forest in 2017. He was defensive coordinator for the Deacs for three years (2014-16) before Notre Dame came calling for him, too, and in November of that year, he faced off against his former players.
It made him sick.
“It was the worst feeling on the planet,” Elko said. “I was with all those kids and now I’m on the other side. I hated that feeling. And I imagine it will be the same with Riley [on Saturday].”
Leonard has thought about what it will be like to see his former coach on the sideline across from him.
“I love Coach Elko,” Leonard said. “I know saying something scandalous would be good for a story, but that’s just not how it is.
Elko has also thought about what he’d say if they bumped into each other during warm-ups. In a perfect world, he said, it’d be best to share hugs afterward.
At Duke, there’s a feeling of nostalgia. It’s not anger anymore. Just perhaps a little sadness thinking about what was and what might’ve been.
During the draft process, Carter said teams asked him about Elko’s departure — perhaps hoping to rattle him or egg him into saying something negative about a former coach. He never hesitated.
Peebles seriously considered returning to Duke after Diaz was hired, but it wouldn’t have been the same. Still, he looks back on his time there — and his time with Elko — as a blessing.
“I love Coach Elko, and he did a great job,” Peebles said. “He had to make a hard decision the same as I did, but he did a lot for me.”
Elko, too, acknowledges the paradox of his situation: He’s at Texas A&M, in large part, because of all the work his players at Duke did to achieve success.
It took a while for the tide to turn inside the Duke locker room. For a number of the veterans, they remembered that 2-10 season in 2021 and the videoconference announcing Cutcliffe had been fired. They remembered trusting Elko and having that belief rewarded with immediate success. They faced another fork in the road with Elko’s departure and wondered where the next path might lead.
“When you lose your head coach and your starting quarterback in short order, guys are going to be unsure where the future of the program lies,” Diaz said. “This is one of the new challenges of our sport, is you’ve got to win your locker room right away. Ten years ago, nobody had a choice but to buy in. Now that buy-in has to happen right off the bat, which is hard.”
It’s hard to pin down the exact moment the holdovers bought into Diaz’s vision for the program’s future. There were many small moments, Feeley said, though Diaz credits retaining the team’s strength coach as a pivotal starting point. But Diaz also believes the arrival of quarterback Maalik Murphy was another. Murphy was a blue-chip recruit coming out of high school, but he found himself sandwiched between Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning on the Texas depth chart, and so he, too, hit the transfer portal in search of a new opportunity. He found it at Duke, a place where blue-chip recruits rarely call home.
“They believe their superpower comes from work,” Diaz said, “and not just being anointed by the recruiting gods.”
But Murphy had been anointed, then he chose Duke. It was a reminder the portal works both ways, and Duke could be a destination as much as a launching bad.
And it’s Murphy, too, who finds the right words to help Loftis answer that impossible question about the proper rooting interest when Elko and Leonard face off, because if there’s still one undeniable echo of college football’s deepest roots it’s this: Rivals stay rivals.
“I want Notre Dame to win,” said Murphy, a former Texas Longhorn. “I don’t like A&M.”
Andrea Adelson contributed to this story.
Alijah Arenas, son of Gilbert Arenas, will suit up for the USC Trojans next season.
The five-star, 6-foot-6 guard from Southern California announced his decision on Thursday. He picked the Trojans over his father’s alma mater, the Arizona Wildcats, while also receiving offers from the Kansas Jayhawks, Louisville Cardinals and Kentucky Wildcats. He reclassified in December from the class of 2026 to 2025.
Here is a look at the most successful father-son combos in sports history.
Multiple sports
Deion Sanders/Deion Sanders Jr./Shilo Sanders/Shedeur Sanders
Father’s accomplishments: Deion played 14 seasons in the NFL. He was drafted No. 5 overall in 1989 by the Atlanta Falcons after being named a two-time All-American at Florida State. Sanders was named a Pro Bowler eight times, with 53 interceptions throughout his career and two Super Bowl wins. He also played nine seasons of professional baseball for the Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees, Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants. He famously played in a game for the Falcons against the Miami Dolphins, then immediately flew to Pittsburgh to dress for his baseball game with the Braves against the Pirates in the NLCS. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2011.
How his sons followed: Deion Sanders Jr. was a two-star athlete in the 2012 class, signing with SMU as a wide receiver and kick returner. As a sophomore kick returner, Sanders Jr. was named a second-team All-American Athletic Conference selection. Shilo was the No. 287-ranked prospect in the 2019 class and signed as a cornerback with South Carolina.
Shilo and Shedeur were coached by their father during their college football seasons with the Jackson State Tigers and Colorado Buffaloes.
MLB
Ken Griffey Sr./Ken Griffey Jr.
Father’s accomplishments: Ken Griffey Sr. played 19 seasons in the major leagues, mostly with the Cincinnati Reds. He was part of the Big Red Machine that won World Series titles in 1975 and 1976. Griffey Sr. was a three-time All-Star and finished his career with a .296 batting average, 152 home runs and 859 RBIs. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the 1980 All-Star Game and has been inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame.
How his son followed: Ken Griffey Jr. also had a long career, playing 22 seasons in the big leagues, including 13 with the Seattle Mariners and nine with Cincinnati. Griffey Jr. was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2016. He is seventh all time with 630 career home runs, was a 13-time All-Star and won 10 Gold Gloves for his play in center field. He was the American League MVP in 1997 and led the AL in home runs four times during his career.
In 1990, Griffey Sr. and Griffey Jr., both playing for the Mariners, made history when they became the first father-son duo to hit back-to-back home runs in a game.
Bobby Bonds/Barry Bonds
Father’s accomplishments: Bobby Bonds played the majority of his 14 seasons with the San Francisco Giants and became just the second player to hit 300 career home runs and steal 300 bases, joining Willie Mays. He set records for most times leading off a game with a home run in a season (11) and in a career (35) — both of which have since been broken. Bonds was a three-time All-Star and three-time Gold Glove winner.
How his son followed: Barry Bonds played 22 seasons, mostly with the Giants, and was a seven-time National League MVP. Bonds holds the records for most career home runs, with 762, and most home runs in a season, with 73. He was a 14-time All-Star, 12-time Silver Slugger Award winner and eight-time Gold Glove Award winner. Bonds tied his father for the most seasons with 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases, with five. He also holds the MLB records for walks (2,558) and intentional walks (688) in a career.
Sandy Alomar/Roberto Alomar/Sandy Alomar Jr.
Father’s accomplishments: Sandy Alomar Sr. competed in 15 seasons and could play all infield and outfield positions. He was an All-Star in 1970 and played a full 162-game season that year and in 1971. Alomar Sr. was a talented bunter and aggressive on the base paths, totaling 227 stolen bases in his career, including 39 in 1971.
How his sons followed: Twelve-time All-Star Roberto Alomar was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2011. He won World Series championships with the Toronto Blue Jays in 1992 and 1993. He won more Gold Gloves (10) than any other second baseman and finished his 17-year career with a .300 batting average, 2,724 hits and 210 home runs. Sandy Alomar Jr. was the first rookie catcher to start an All-Star Game, and he won Rookie of the Year and a Gold Glove Award in 1990. Alomar Jr. was named an All-Star six times during his 20-year career and had a 30-game hitting streak in 1997.
Cecil Fielder/Prince Fielder
Father’s accomplishments: Cecil Fielder was a three-time All-Star and won a World Series title with the New York Yankees in 1996. In 1990, he was the first player since George Foster in 1977 to hit at least 50 home runs in a season. Fielder led the American League in home runs in 1990 and 1991 and in RBIs from 1990 to ’92. He hit 319 career home runs, recorded 1,008 RBIs and was a two-time winner of the Silver Slugger Award.
How his son followed: Fielder was the youngest player (23) to hit 50 home runs in a season. Prince Fielder was a six-time All-Star and won the Home Run Derby twice — once as an NL All-Star and once as an AL All-Star. He totaled 319 career home runs, the same number as his father, and drove in 1,028 runs. Fielder was a three-time Silver Slugger Award winner and the AL Comeback Player of the Year in 2015.
Cecil and Prince Fielder are the only father-son duo to each hit 50 home runs in a season.
Vladimir Guerrero/Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Father’s accomplishments: Guerrero spent 16 seasons playing in the MLB for the Montreal Expos, Anaheim Angels, Texas Rangers and the Baltimore Orioles. He was a nine-time All-Star, the 2004 American League MVP and an eight-time winner of the Silver Slugger award. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018 and finished his career with 2,590 hits.
How his son followed: Guerrero Jr. signed with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2015 and made his major league debut in 2019. He hit 48 home runs in the 2021 season and became the second father-son duo to hit 40 home runs in a season, joining Prince and Cecil Fielder in accomplishing that feat. Guerrero has since been a four-time All-Star and a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger winner for the Blue Jays.
NBA
LeBron James/Bronny James
Father’s accomplishments: LeBron James is still going strong in his 22nd NBA season. He’s the league’s all-time scoring leader and eclipsed 40,000 points last season. LeBron has won four NBA championships and made an NBA-record 20 straight All-Star appearances.
How his sons followed: The Los Angeles Lakers selected Bronny James with the No. 55 pick in the 2024 NBA draft, pairing him with his dad, LeBron, in the NBA. The two appeared in a game together in October 2024, becoming the first father-son duo to do so in NBA history. Bronny is expected to split time between the Lakers and their G-League affiliate. Bryce, LeBron’s youngest son, committed to Arizona in January as part of the Wildcats’ 2025 class.
Dell Curry/Stephen Curry/Seth Curry
Father’s accomplishments: Dell Curry retired as the Charlotte Hornets‘ career scoring leader (9,839 points) and ranked first in 3-pointers made (929). Curry was named NBA Sixth Man of the Year in 1994 and averaged 11.7 points and 2.4 rebounds per game in his 16-year career.
How his sons followed: Stephen Curry has led the Golden State Warriors to four NBA championships and been named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player twice. Curry is a 10-time All-Star and was the NBA scoring champion in 2016 and 2021. He holds the NBA record for most made 3-pointers in a regular season, with 402, and most consecutive regular-season games with a made 3-pointer, with 268. Seth Curry was a two-time NBA D-League All-Star and has spent time with several NBA teams. He averaged 12.8 points over 70 games in 2016-17 with the Dallas Mavericks.
Doc Rivers/Austin Rivers
Father’s accomplishments: As a player, Doc Rivers was known for his defense, but he averaged a double-double during the 1986-87 season, with 12.8 points and 10.0 assists per game. He was an NBA All-Star in 1988 and played with four teams during his 13-year career. Rivers was named Coach of the Year in 2000 with the Orlando Magic and led the Boston Celtics to an NBA title as their coach in 2008. He was the head coach of the LA Clippers from 2013-2020 and Philadelphia 76ers from 2020-2023. He was announced as the Milwaukee Bucks head coach in January 2024.
How his son followed: In 2015, Austin Rivers was traded to the Clippers and became the first NBA player to play for his father. Rivers has averaged 9.2 points per game in his seven-year career, including 15.1 PPG in 2017-18 with the Clippers. He then played for the Wizards, Rockets, Knicks, Nuggets and the Timberwolves.
Mychal Thompson/Klay Thompson
Father’s accomplishments: Mychal Thompson, the No. 1 pick in the 1978 NBA draft, won back-to-back NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1987 and ’88. Thompson was on the All-Rookie team in 1979 and went on to average 13.7 points and 7.4 rebounds per game in his career. He averaged a double-double in 1981-82, with 20.8 points and 11.7 rebounds per game.
How his son followed: Klay Thompson won four NBA championships with the Golden State Warriors. Mychal and Klay Thompson became just the fourth father-son duo to each win an NBA title as a player and the first to each win back-to-back championships. Klay is a five-time All-Star, was named to the All-Rookie team in 2012 and won the 3-point contest in 2016. He holds the NBA playoff record for most 3-pointers made in a game, with 11.
Joe “Jellybean” Bryant/Kobe Bryant
Father’s accomplishments: Joe “Jellybean” Bryant played eight seasons in the NBA before heading to Europe and playing seven seasons with teams in Italy. He scored 53 points in a game twice during the 1987-88 season with Pistoia. Bryant played into his 50s, suiting up for the American Basketball Association.
How his son followed: Five-time NBA champion Kobe Bryant is fourth in career scoring, with 33,643 points. He played 20 seasons for the Lakers and was named an All-Star 18 times. Bryant was named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player in 2008 and the Finals MVP in 2009 and ’10. He was the NBA scoring champion in 2006 and ’07 and was named to the All-NBA first team 11 times and the All-Defensive first team nine times. Kobe had both his No. 8 and his No. 24 retired by the Lakers.
NFL
Archie Manning/Peyton Manning/Eli Manning
Father’s accomplishments: Archie Manning was a quarterback in the NFL for 13 seasons, mostly with the New Orleans Saints. Despite never leading a team to a winning record, Manning made the Pro Bowl in 1978 and ’79. He threw for 125 touchdowns and rushed for 18 during his career. He has been inducted into the Saints’ Ring of Honor and the Saints’ Hall of Fame.
How his sons followed: Peyton Manning was the first pick in the 1998 NFL draft and holds the NFL records for career passing yards (71,940) and passing touchdowns (539). He is the only starting quarterback to win a Super Bowl for two franchises. A 14-time Pro Bowler, Manning was named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player five times and a first-team All-Pro seven times.
Eli Manning was the first pick in the 2004 NFL draft and led the New York Giants to two Super Bowl titles, earning Super Bowl MVP honors both times. He is a four-time Pro Bowler, ranks sixth in passing yards in NFL history and started 210 consecutive games from 2004 to 2017, the second-longest streak by a quarterback in NFL history.
Howie Long/Chris Long/Kyle Long
Father’s accomplishments: Eight-time Pro Bowl selection Howie Long played his entire 13-year career with the Raiders organization. The defensive end helped the Raiders win the Super Bowl in 1984, and he was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1985. Long finished his career with 84 sacks and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000. He also made 10 fumble recoveries and two interceptions during his time in the NFL.
How his sons followed: Chris Long was the No. 2 pick in the 2008 NFL draft and won back-to-back Super Bowls — with the New England Patriots in 2017 and the Philadelphia Eagles in 2018. The defensive end recorded 70 sacks in his 11-year career.
Kyle Long, a three-time Pro Bowl selection, was a guard for the Chicago Bears. He was a second-team All-Pro in 2014 and made the All-Rookie team in 2013.
He returned from his 2019 retirement with a one-year stint with the Kansas City Chiefs for the 2021 season but did not play due to injuries.
Clay Matthews Jr./Clay Matthews III/Casey Matthews
Father’s accomplishments: Clay Matthews Jr. played 19 seasons in the NFL, mostly with the Cleveland Browns. He appeared in 278 games, the most by a linebacker, and recorded 1,561 tackles, 69.5 sacks and 16 interceptions in his career. Matthews was a four-time Pro Bowler and was first-team All-Pro in 1984, recording 12 sacks that season.
How his sons followed: Clay Matthews III, a six-time Pro Bowler, helped the Green Bay Packers to a Super Bowl title after the 2010 season. The linebacker was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2010 and totaled 91.5 sacks, 17 forced fumbles and six interceptions in his 11-year career.
Linebacker Casey Matthews played from 2011 to ’14 for the Philadelphia Eagles and recorded 2.5 sacks.
Christian McCaffrey/Ed McCaffrey
Father’s accomplishments: Ed McCaffrey’s 13-year NFL career included three Super Bowl wins and one Pro Bowl appearance. He earned 7,422 receiving yards and notched 55 receiving touchdowns, a majority of which came with the Denver Broncos. Ed McCaffrey played a key role in the Broncos winning back-to-back championships in 1997 and 1998.
How his son followed: A highly touted recruit out of Stanford, Christian McCaffrey has lived up to the hype in the NFL. In his eighth season, the running back has rushed for 6,224 career yards and 52 touchdowns, including a league-leading 1,459 yards in 2023, when he earned Offensive Player of the Year honors.
NHL
Bobby Hull/Brett Hull
Father’s accomplishments: Bobby Hull received the Hart Memorial Trophy twice as the NHL’s most valuable player and earned the Art Ross Trophy three times as the NHL’s leading points scorer. The left wing won the Stanley Cup in 1961 with the Chicago Blackhawks and was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983. Hull led the NHL in goals seven times and was the second-leading goal scorer in NHL history, with 610, when he retired. Hull won back-to-back All-Star Game MVP awards in 1970 and ’71.
How his son followed: Brett Hull scored 741 goals in his career, the fourth-highest total in NHL history. The right wing won Stanley Cups in 1999 with the Dallas Stars (including scoring the championship-winning goal) and in 2002 with the Detroit Red Wings. Hull scored at least 50 goals in five consecutive seasons, and his 86 goals in 1990-91 are the third most in a season in NHL history. He was named the NHL’s MVP that season and received the Hart Memorial Trophy. Hull was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009, joining his father to become the first father-son duo in the Hall.
Keith Tkachuk/Matthew Tkachuk/Brady Tkachuk
Father’s accomplishments: Keith was selected 19th overall in the 1990 NHL draft and played for 18 years with four different teams. He finished his career with 527 goals and 1,065 points. At the time that he scored his 500th goal, he was just the fourth American-born player to achieve that milestone and was the sixth American-born player with 1,000 points.
How his sons followed: Matthew was selected sixth in the 2016 NHL draft by the Calgary Flames but has since been traded to the Florida Panthers, where he helped lead the team to a 2024 Stanley Cup title.
Brady was taken with the fourth pick in the 2018 draft by the Ottawa Senators. He was named the team’s captain in 2021 and has scored 171 regular-season goals in his career.
Auto racing
Dale Earnhardt/Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Father’s accomplishments: Dale Earnhardt won 76 Winston Cup races, including the 1998 Daytona 500. Earnhardt claimed seven NASCAR Winston Cup championships, tying Richard Petty for the most all time. It was 22 years before Jimmie Johnson matched the accomplishment in 2016. Earnhardt died as a result of a collision on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 and was posthumously inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame inaugural class in 2010.
How his son followed: Dale Earnhardt Jr. won 26 Cup series races, including the Daytona 500 twice (2004, 2014). He had 260 top-10 finishes in Cup races in his career. Junior was a fan favorite, winning the Most Popular Driver award 15 times. He was the Busch Series champion in 1998 and ’99 before being named NASCAR Rookie of the Year in 2000. He is retired and a broadcaster now.
Next generation
Carmelo Anthony/Kiyan Anthony
A four-star shooting guard from New York, Kiyan Anthony announced his commitment to Syracuse in November 2024. Kiyan follows in the footsteps of his father, Carmelo, who averaged 22.5 points and 6.2 rebounds across a 19-season NBA career. Carmelo spent a season at Syracuse, leading the Orange to the 2003 national championship.
Dikembe Mutombo/Ryan Mutombo:
Ryan followed in his father’s footsteps and played for the Georgetown Hoyas as a 7-foot-2 center. He transferred to play for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets after three seasons with the Hoyas.
Penny Hardaway/Jayden Hardaway/Ashton Hardaway:
Both Jayden and Ashton played for their father with Memphis. Jayden is a guard who averaged 3.1 points per game in the 2023-24 season, while Ashton averaged 2.3.
Dajuan Wagner/D.J. Wagner:
D.J. spent the 2023-24 season with the Kentucky Wildcats, averaging 9.9 points and 3.3 assists per game. He transferred to the Arkansas Razorbacks after the season.
Dennis Rodman/DJ Rodman:
DJ was a 6-foot-6 forward for USC. He averaged 8.4 points per game and made 36.2% of his 3-point shots in the 2023-24 season for the Trojans. He went undrafted in the 2024 NBA draft.
Shaquille O’Neal/Shaqir O’Neal:
Shaqir is a 6-foot-8 forward at Florida A&M. He averaged 1.8 points per game in the 2023-24 season for Texas Southern.
Peja Stojakovic/Andrej Stojakovic:
Andrej was a McDonald’s All-American out of high school before committing to the Stanford Cardinal. He averaged 7.8 points per game as a freshman for the Cardinal. He transferred to UC Berkeley after the 2023-24 season.
Jerry Rice/Brenden Rice:
Brenden transferred to the USC Trojans from the Colorado Buffaloes prior to the 2022 season and led the Trojans with 12 touchdown receptions in 2023. He had 791 yards receiving on the year and was selected by the Los Angeles Chargers in the 2024 NFL draft.
Marvin Harrison/Marvin Harrison Jr.:
Harrison Jr. won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s best wide receiver and finished the 2023 season with 1,211 yards and 14 touchdowns. He was selected No. 4 by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2024 NFL draft as one of the best receiver prospects available.
Frank Gore Sr./Frank Gore Jr.:
Gore Jr. was No. 32 among all FBS running backs in rush yards in 2023 with 1,131. He had 10 rushing touchdowns and averaged 4.9 yards per rush. Gore Jr. went undrafted in 2024 but signed with the Buffalo Bills.
Emmitt Smith/E.J. Smith:
E.J. had a slow start to his collegiate career with just 587 rush yards and five touchdowns in four seasons with Stanford. He transferred to Texas A&M in 2024.
Honorable mentions
Ray Boone/Bob Boone/Bret Boone/Aaron Boone; Felipe Alou/Moises Alou; Tom Gordon/Dee Gordon/Nick Gordon; Rick Barry/Brent Barry/Jon Barry; Bill Walton/Luke Walton; Larry Nance/Larry Nance Jr.; Tim Hardaway/Tim Hardaway Jr.; Bruce Matthews/Jake Matthews/Kevin Matthews; Jackie Slater/Matthew Slater; Gordie Howe/Mark Howe; J.P. Parise/Zach Parise; Peter Stastny/Paul Stastny; Lee Petty/Richard Petty/Kyle Petty; Mario Andretti/Michael Andretti/Jeff Andretti/Marco Andretti; Ken Norton Sr./Ken Norton Jr.; Calvin Hill/Grant Hill; Peter Schmeichel/Kasper Schmeichel
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Jorge Castillo
On Dec. 8, one month and nine days after a nightmare fifth inning torpedoed the New York Yankees‘ hopes of overcoming a 3-1 deficit to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, the Yankees absorbed another franchise-shifting loss at the winter meetings in Dallas.
Juan Soto wasn’t returning. And he wasn’t just not returning — he was signing with the New York Mets.
The Yankees offered the superstar outfielder a 16-year, $760 million contract. When he rejected it, general manager Brian Cashman and his front office turned to plans they had devised during their pursuit of Soto should they need to pivot. His departure set in motion a flurry of activity over a 12-day stretch in mid-December to attempt to raise the floor on a roster with franchise cornerstones Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole still in their primes.
“You can’t replace a Juan Soto,” Cashman told ESPN this week. “So how do you cushion the blow and diversify that throughout the lineup? And then the defense was a real problem on our roster. We had a bad defensive team. We have an opportunity to upgrade the defense at the same time, which will improve our run prevention and our pitching. So, getting more athletic, getting more protection on the defensive front while still trying to provide good, strong balance on the offensive side was, ultimately, the simple framework.”
The Yankees believe their aggressive restoration attempt after an uncharted disappointment — losing a bidding war for your superstar free agent? To the Mets? — wasn’t just successful. They believe it was an upgrade.
“Some people may disagree with me,” Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner told the YES Network on Tuesday, “but some people will agree with me: I think we have a better team right now than we did a year ago today.”
The Yankees’ first post-Soto move — just 48 hours after Soto accepted a 15-year deal worth $765 million guaranteed to defect to Queens — was to bolster a strength: They added another front-line arm to a deep rotation with an eight-year, $218 million contract with Max Fried, one of the three best starters on the free agent market.
A day later, the Yankees agreed to re-sign reliever Jonathan Loaisiga to a one-year, $5 million deal. Two days after that, they acquired Devin Williams, arguably the best closer in the sport, from the Milwaukee Brewers for left-hander Nestor Cortes and prospect Caleb Durbin. Four days later, they finalized a trade with the Chicago Cubs for Cody Bellinger. Three days after that, they acquired reliever Fernando Cruz and catcher Alex Jackson from the Cincinnati Reds for backup catcher Jose Trevino.
Then, on Dec. 21, the last major addition: an agreement with veteran first baseman Paul Goldschmidt on a one-year, $12 million contract.
“The Soto deal is insane,” a rival executive said. “It could be a blessing in the end. Fried is an ace. Bellinger might hit 30 HRs there and shores up their defense. Goldschmidt is a Hall of Famer. Added a bullpen arm. All in all, pretty good.”
The Yankees let second baseman Gleyber Torres and relievers Clay Holmes and Tommy Kahnle walk in free agency. Anthony Rizzo and Alex Verdugo are among the other contributors from last season’s club who won’t return.
“I think they’ve pretty much nailed everything they’ve done,” a rival scout said.
Among the Yankees’ potential targets in a pivot were left-hander Blake Snell and shortstop Willy Adames. The team held Zoom calls with both free agents. Real interest was expressed from both sides. But both players decided to sign in the week before Soto made his choice. The Yankees, not wanting to commit to any long-term deals before knowing where Soto would sign, watched them go elsewhere.
The Yankees also held a Zoom call with Corbin Burnes, the third of the big three free agent starters, but an offer was never made, sources said. The Yankees, with Snell off the market, instead focused on Fried.
In the bullpen, Williams represents an upgrade over Holmes, the Yankees’ closer until he lost the job in early September, though it could be for just one season. Williams arrives with just one year of control remaining, just like Soto had.
“At the end of the day, we are trying to win,” Cashman said. “It’s a win-now move, just like Soto’s acquisition the previous year was a win-now move. And, obviously, the Yankees are about impact and trying to find impact.”
The Cubs, seeking to free up payroll, were between trading Bellinger to the Yankees or Toronto Blue Jays, according to sources with knowledge of the negotiations. The Cubs ultimately settled on the Yankees’ offer of right-hander Cody Poteet, also sending the Yankees $5 million to pay down Bellinger’s salary over the next two years.
At the time of the trade for Bellinger, the Yankees were still shopping for a first baseman. They never had interest in signing Pete Alonso, sources said. Christian Walker could have been a fit, but the Yankees decided they didn’t want to pay the penalty for signing a player who was given the qualifying offer. The Yankees engaged in discussions with the Cleveland Guardians on Josh Naylor, but the two sides couldn’t come to a resolution, according to a source, before Naylor was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
In the end, it came down to giving the job to Ben Rice, a rookie last season, or signing one of two free agents in their late 30s: Goldschmidt or Carlos Santana. Goldschmidt, another former MVP, is 37 years old and coming off his worst season, but the Yankees were encouraged enough by his strong second half (.271/.319/.480) with St. Louis to make the low-risk investment.
Goldschmidt’s down season — he batted .245 with 22 home runs, a .716 OPS, and 1.1 fWAR — would still be a considerable improvement on the production the Yankees received from their first basemen in 2024, who ranked last in the majors in OPS (.594), tied for 26th in home runs (17) and 27th in fWAR (-1.2).
Offsetting the loss of a player of Soto’s caliber — one who recorded a .989 OPS, blasted 41 home runs, posted an 8.1 fWAR, routinely delivered in clutch situations and made life easier for Judge hitting behind him — is an inexact science, with several moving pieces beyond all those transactions.
Judge is slated to move from center field, where the metrics said he performed poorly last season, back to right field. Jasson Dominguez, the organization’s top prospect, should be given an extended run for the first time after September call-ups the past two seasons — and he should be an upgrade in left field over Verdugo, one of the least productive regulars in baseball last season. Add Bellinger in center field, and the Yankees’ outfield projects to drastically improve defensively.
“What’s going to matter ultimately is the wins and losses that transpire over the six months when we open March 27th,” Cashman said. “Once that starts, that’s the real world. Sleep on us, don’t sleep on us. Overrate us, underrate us. None of it matters. All that matters is us winning. And if we win as much as we’re capable of winning, then it keeps those dark storms, that are really not fun to deal with, away. And that’s all I care about.”
The Yankees aren’t quite finished yet. They would like to further replenish the roster in two areas.
Acquiring a third baseman or second baseman — and having Jazz Chisholm Jr. play the other position — remains on their to-do list, though club officials maintain they have internal options, including DJ LeMahieu, Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza. Trading for Nolan Arenado or signing Alex Bregman are not among the options, sources said.
They could also use a left-handed reliever; the team’s 40-man roster currently doesn’t include one. A reunion with Tim Hill, who excelled after joining the Yankees in June and recorded a 2.05 ERA in 35 appearances, is on the table.
Financially, the salaries of Goldschmidt, Fried, Williams and Bellinger will combine for $74.6 million on the Yankees’ competitive balance tax (CBT) payroll while Soto alone will count as $51 million against the Mets’ CBT ledger. To facilitate further acquisitions, however, the Yankees prefer to shed right-hander Marcus Stroman‘s contract, which includes $37 million over the next two seasons. The Yankees’ current projected CBT payroll is $302.9 million, according to Cot’s Contracts, putting them nearly $62 million over the tax threshold.
Since they’ve been over the tax for at least three straight years, the Yankees would be taxed at a base rate of 50% plus a 60% surcharge if they exceed the threshold by at least $60 million at the end of the season.
Last season, the Yankees paid a $62.5 million tax for their $316 million CBT payroll. The tax bill was the third-highest among the nine payees. The Mets were second. The team that beat them in October was first.
The Dodgers, after investing more than $1 billion in player contracts last winter, continued splurging after winning the World Series, committing more than $450 million to free agents this winter after paying a $103 million tax payment on top of their $353 million payroll last season. Their spending spree has drawn angst from all corners of the baseball world — including from the Yankees, once the free-spending Goliath who engendered ire throughout the industry.
“It’s difficult for most of us owners to be able to do the kind of things that they’re doing,” Steinbrenner said.
The Yankees, according to Forbes, are the highest valued franchise in the majors and the fourth-highest-valued sports franchise in the world at an estimated $7.55 billion. The Dodgers rank a distant second in baseball and 24th in the world at $5.45 billion but are making major inroads in Japan with Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and now Roki Sasaki on the roster.
For now, the Dodgers are the defending champions, and they are, on paper, better than ever — with All-Stars seemingly everywhere. The Yankees, without Soto, will try to chase them down with a very different roster after a very busy offseason. Time will tell if their pivot was enough.
“It’s impossible to make 110% great decisions at all times,” Cashman said. “We’re trying to aspire to that, but maybe this ’25 version will be the magic run. We’ll see.”
Joey Logano has found a way to tune out months of negativity.
Critics? Naysayers? Anyone who thinks his third Cup Series championship was a fluke?
“I can’t hear it because my trophies, they kind of, like, echo around me,” Logano quipped during a videoconference call with media Wednesday.
Logano won his third title in November, sparking debate about whether NASCAR’s current playoff format is the best way to determine the series’ worthiest champion. Few could make a strong case for that being Logano in 2024.
He won four races, had 13 top-10 finishes and rarely had the car to beat over 37 events.
He got huge breaks along the way, too. He used what amounted to a Hail Mary to win in Nashville — stretching his empty fuel tank through five overtimes — just to qualify for the postseason. And then he was actually eliminated from playoff contention in the second round only to be reinstated when Alex Bowman’s car failed a postrace inspection.
While competitors have since called for NASCAR to tweak its playoff format, with some wanting to move the finale to a different track every year instead of keeping it at Phoenix Raceway, Logano — not surprisingly — believes the setup is just fine.
“The playoff system is very entertaining,” he said, adding that teams often get hot in other sports and win it all. “It takes a lot to get through the 10 races to win the championship. … When the playoffs start, a lot of times you see teams that fire up.
“And we’ve been one of those teams, thankfully, and it’s worked out for us three times. But I don’t think that means you have to change the playoff system.”
NASCAR said earlier this week that no tweaks would be made to the championship format in 2025. Instead, officials plan to study it for another year before making any decisions. That won’t stop drivers from stumping for a makeover.
“I think it deserves a look for sure and probably a change down the road,” Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron said. “I just don’t know what that change is. I feel like we’ve just gotten into such a routine of going to the same racetrack for the final race, and having similar tracks that lead up to it has gotten a little bit predictable. But you could say probably the same thing in other sports, with the [Kansas City] Chiefs hosting the AFC championship every year.
“It’s just kind of the nature of sports, probably; it gets a little bit repetitive. But it’d be nice to see the final race to move around.”
Team Penske has won the last three Cup Series titles, with Logano sandwiching championships around teammate Ryan Blaney. All of those came in Phoenix, where the finale landed in 2020 after nearly two decades at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
NASCAR has made wholesale changes to its schedule in recent years, including moving the season-opening Clash and the all-atar race.
The Clash bounced from Daytona International Speedway to the Los Angeles Coliseum and is now headed to historic Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for Sunday’s exhibition.
The all-star race went from North Carolina to Tennessee to Texas before landing back in North Carolina.
No one would be surprised to see the finale end up with similar movement.
“We have some tracks that could be awesome for the championship, like Vegas and Homestead and even Charlotte,” Byron said. “Just being open to all the different ideas would probably be cool and bring some buzz and also just kind of even the competition out.”
With no changes in sight for now, Logano, 34, can focus on a fourth championship. He’s one of six drivers with three Cup titles and needs another to join Jeff Gordon (4), Dale Earnhardt (7), Jimmie Johnson (7) and Richard Petty (7) as the only guys with at least four.
“Probably not until I’m done racing will I be content with what I have because I’m not done yet,” Logano said. “I got a lot of years ahead of me to win more championships and races.
“As great as it is, the first 20 minutes is amazing because you’re celebrating with your team and your family. And then every day [after] it becomes a little less exciting and more thoughts of, ‘We got to do it again.'”
Another one surely would do a lot to drown out those detractors.
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