
‘I got a shiver down my spine’: How Roberto Luongo saved a beer league team’s season
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Published
12 months agoon
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Greg Wyshynski, ESPNSep 13, 2024, 07:00 AM ET
Close- Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer.
The Beer League Leafs, a 40-and-over adult hockey team in South Florida, sat nervously in their dressing room. With their starting goalie unavailable, they didn’t have a clue who would be in the net for their win-or-go-home semifinal playoff game that night.
Suddenly, their replacement goaltender waddled into the room. But this wasn’t just some random beer leaguer. This was a goaltender who starred in the NHL for 19 seasons. This was a Hockey Hall of Famer, second all time in regular-season games played for a goaltender (1,044).
This was Roberto Luongo, now a special advisor with the Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers. And he was there to literally save their season.
“I got a shiver down my spine. I couldn’t believe it, because this is what I prayed for,” Leafs captain Brad Bargman said. “I was like, ‘This guy is going to be amazing.'”
While their playoff game took place on August 15, news of Luongo moonlighting in a beer league only spread this week when a video of his locker room entrance went viral.
When reached for comment by ESPN, Luongo said, “It’s an urban legend story and I prefer to leave it that way.”
How did a 45-year-old Hockey Hall of Famer end up playing goal in a South Florida beer league playoff game?
It was not by responding to a “goalie needed” ad on Facebook, which was widely reported by media sites that aggregated the video this week. Terrific anecdote, unfortunately untrue.
“In reality, it was a combination of them needing a goalie and Luongo being at the practice that day and saying, ‘Hey, I’ll play,'” said Zach Randolph, adult hockey coordinator for the Panthers IceDen in Coral Springs.
Having current and former NHL players walking around the facility is commonplace, since many of their children skate at the rink. Panthers players have been known to drop in randomly. On the day of the Florida Stanley Cup parade, three Panthers players stopped by to celebrate during a men’s league game. Forward Ryan Lomberg, now with the Calgary Flames, even dropped the puck for a faceoff.
“But it’s not every day that we have them playing in the beer leagues,” Randolph said.
Bargman had known Luongo for some time. He coached Luongo’s son Gianni, and Luongo now coaches Bargman’s son Bryce. He sometimes wondered if Luongo would suit up for the Beer League Leafs but felt that asking him would be “taking advantage of our friendship.”
Bargman is also a big fan of the Florida Panthers, where Luongo spent most of his playing career. Back in 2021, Brad and Bryce Bargman wore Panthers gear to a Tampa Bay Lightning game in violation of a policy that restricted fans from wearing gear supporting other NHL teams in the premium seating areas. After Brad Bargman published a viral video that showed two Amalie Arena employees confronting them, the Lightning said they’d no longer enforce the policy.
Colin Manuszewski is the goaltender for the Beer League Leafs, but he was unavailable for their semifinal playoff game against the terrifically named No Regretzkies. That put Bargman in a tough spot. The options for a replacement in the middle of August were limited. And he desperately needed a goalie. This wasn’t just a playoff hockey game for Bargman — this was personal.
As Bargman tells it, the No Regretzkies are comprised of players who used to be on the Beer League Leafs a few years ago. Things happened, disagreements persisted and “they left me and started their own team,” he said.
A team that would win multiple adult league championships after forming.
Among the players who left the Leafs was Petr Schastlivy, 45, who played 129 games in the NHL with the Ottawa Senators and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim before spending the next 14 years in Russia’s KHL.
Bargman said one of the philosophical issues between himself and his former players was that he didn’t want to have NHL players such as Schastlivy on his team.
“Everybody was giving me a hard time about it, saying, ‘You guys cheat, you win every season,’ stuff like that” he said.
Ironically, he was about to depend on a Hockey Hall of Famer to win a playoff game against his former teammates.
The Monday before the semifinal, Luongo and Schastlivy were both in the Panthers IceDen coaches’ room with Bargman.
“Hey Petr. Big game on Thursday. By the way, this is our goalie. Roberto’s our goalie,” Bargman joked to Schastlivy.
Amidst the laughter, Luongo said he’d actually consider filling in for the Leafs.
The next day, Bargman texted Luongo to see if he was serious, with no response. On the eve of the game, he texted again. To his surprise and relief, Luongo said he was in. Bargman would later find out that Luongo wanted to use the game to prepare for a return to the ice in Montreal during his day with the Stanley Cup.
Bargman told Randolph that he didn’t have any other goalie options lined up. Considering that the No Regretzkies had their own ex-NHL player in their lineup, Randolph felt comfortable signing off on Luongo playing for the Leafs.
“They were in a pinch and needed a goalie. And I’m not exactly gonna tell Louie ‘no,'” Randolph said. “I was sure half of the other team was going to be upset about it and the other half would be like, ‘Holy s— we have the opportunity to score against Roberto Luongo.”
Bargman decided not to tell anyone that Luongo was his goalie for the semifinal, even as his teammates pestered him on game day. Luongo was given his own locker room to suit up before the game.
Luongo had to walk over from one rink to another to be with his team. At 6-foot-3, wearing professional equipment, he didn’t go unnoticed. “Everyone was just looking at him, being like, “Oh, s—, is that Roberto Luongo?'” Randolph said. “The whole place started buzzing.”
A larger-than-usual crowd of fans amassed around the rink ahead of the men’s league semifinal. There were even familiar chants of “Luuuuuuuu!” during the first period when Luongo would make a save — which he did with frequency in a shot-filled first period.
“He told me he was tired and wasn’t going to make it through the whole game,” Bargman recalled with a laugh.
Luongo surrendered two goals in the game. The second one was a long-range goal by Schastlivy. He had faced Luongo once during their respective NHL careers, during a 2003 game between the Senators and Panthers. Luongo stopped both Schastlivy shots he faced that day, but Schastlivy got the better of him in beer league play.
The Leafs found themselves down 2-1 in the game.
“My biggest fear was that Roberto would lose,” Bargman said. “If he loses, not only does he feel stupid, losing in a beer league game. But I’ll feel extra stupid because it’s against my old team.”
Despite playing shorthanded, as beer league teams tend to do in the summer, the Leafs rallied for a 4-2 victory, sending them to the championship game and their star goalie to another victory.
The team celebrated at the upstairs bar afterward without Luongo, who left for home. Bargman said the 10:15 p.m. start time made it a long night for the Hall of Famer.
That was it for Roberto Luongo’s beer league season. Manuszewski returned to the crease for the championship game, which the Leafs won to finish atop the league.
Bargman said that even if Luongo had wanted to play in the final, he would have gone back to Manuszewski.
“I’m not about that. That’s our goalie. You lose with your goalie. You win with your goalie,” he said.
Luongo’s beer league season was a success. He got some ice time before his day with the Cup. He did what many NHL fans in Toronto dreamed he’d one day do: help propel the Leafs to a championship. And he allowed Bargman the chance to get one over on his former teammates.
“The revenge is sweet. I beat them at their own game. I had an NHL player,” he said.
Randolph said that Luongo’s viral moment has helped give the rink and the adult leagues more exposure during a time when hockey’s hotter than ever in South Florida, thanks to the Panthers’ Stanley Cup.
Has the league considered commemorating this moment? Perhaps by renaming an award for best adult league goaltender after Roberto Luongo?
“I mean, he did give up two goals, so I don’t know,” Randolph said with a laugh.
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Sports
Week 1 showed us offseason narratives mean nothing until games are played
Published
12 mins agoon
August 31, 2025By
admin
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David HaleAug 31, 2025, 12:26 AM ET
Close- College football reporter.
- Joined ESPN in 2012.
- Graduate of the University of Delaware.
During the long, dark months between the end of one season and the beginning of another, we tell each other stories, because we need something to fill the void. We dress those stories up, calling them things like “way too early” rankings, preseason predictions or scalding hot takes, and we sustain them with statistics, data and historical perspective. But ultimately, they are at best educated guesses and, at worst, outright lies.
Then Week 1 comes along and college football delivers us a heaping dose of the truth, exposing our deceptions to the world like the kiss cam at a Coldplay concert.
On Saturday, college football’s truth still seemed hard to believe.
We’ve spent months burnishing the image of our next Heisman Trophy winner, Arch Manning. Only, in Week 1, Manning’s offense was overwhelmed by the defending champs, as Ohio State dumped Texas 14-7.
We’ve spent the summer laughing incredulously at Florida State ‘s Tommy Castellanos, seemingly the only player foolish enough to poke the bear by taunting Alabama when, in fact, he was a fortune-teller. Nick Saban couldn’t bail out the Crimson Tide on Saturday, and the Seminoles, buried after a 2-10 season a year ago, toppled Bama in convincing fashion 31-17.
We’ve heard all offseason Clemson was the class of the ACC, a nearly perfect team built around loads of returning talent that, after Dabo Swinney lost a bet with Tom Allen on who’d win the three-legged race at the team’s annual team picnic, even added players from the transfer portal. On Saturday, however, Clemson’s offense looked woefully similar to those stagnant offenses of years past. LSU‘s defensive front steamrollered its way to a 17-10 win in what used to be Clemson’s Death Valley, which must now be referred to as Critical-but-Stable Condition Valley due to the stakes of this matchup between two teams with the same nicknames for their stadiums.
Yes, Saturday’s results revealed that all our offseason narratives were no different than the description on a John Mateer Venmo transaction — dangerous, hilarious and completely made up.
In Columbus, the preseason No. 1 Longhorns couldn’t crack the scoreboard for the first 56 minutes of action. This was to be Manning’s coming-out party after two years in waiting behind Quinn Ewers; instead, the day belonged to new Ohio State defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, a man hired only so Ryan Day wouldn’t have the weirdest-looking beard on staff. Patricia’s defense had an answer for everything Texas threw at it, holding Manning to just 17-of-30 passing, picking off a critical third-quarter pass to set up the decisive touchdown and stuffing the Horns on fourth down four times — including twice inside the 10-yard line.
It’s not that Ohio State’s offense wowed. A unit that proved deadly in last year’s College Football Playoff en route to a national championship mustered just 203 total yards — the Buckeyes’ worst regular-season output since 2015. But new quarterback Julian Sayin avoided any catastrophic mistakes and delivered a 40-yard dagger to Carnell Tate in the fourth quarter despite no one even knowing who his uncles are. If it wasn’t an emphatic endorsement for the 2025 version of Ohio State, it was a reminder the Buckeyes will not be swept aside without a fight.
In Tallahassee, Kalen DeBoer took another huge step toward having the word “tarmac” appear on his Wikipedia page. Since toppling Georgia last September and climbing to No. 1 in the AP poll, the Tide are just 5-5 overall, and Saturday’s loss to Florida State — a team that finished 2-10 a year ago — marks a new nadir.
In the aftermath, DeBoer was left scrambling for answers, saying, “There’s no excuse about what happened. We’ve got to play our style of ball. Last year isn’t this year. You’ve got to focus on the moment …” and there’s a long run past midfield by Castellanos.
Castellanos had promised a win, saying in June he saw no way Alabama could stop him. Lo and behold, he was right. The signal-caller who was benched at Boston College just a year ago ran all over an Alabama defense that seemed utterly flustered at times, despite FSU’s game plan including just nine completions.
Fewest completions in a win over Alabama since 2008:
FSU – 9, today
Okla – 9, Wk13, 2024
LSU – 10, Wk10, 2011
Mich – 11, bowl, 2024
Aub – 11, Wk14, 2013
Aub – 13, Wk14, 2010So, 3 all-time Saban classics (Cam, 9-6, Kick 6) and 3 of DeBoer’s 14 games as Bama HC.
— 💫🅰️♈️🆔 (@ADavidHaleJoint) August 30, 2025
But it was FSU coach Mike Norvell who delivered his own truth in the fourth quarter. After a year in which he aged on the sideline the way a president does over two terms, Norvell promised he wouldn’t let this team roll over in the face of adversity. After Alabama charged back to within one score, FSU faced a fourth-and-1 at its own 36, and Norvell decided to go for it. It was a decision that would have been lambasted if it had failed and the Tide tied the game, but Alabama transfer Roydell Williams plunged ahead for 4 yards, FSU capped the drive with a touchdown, and Norvell’s message to his team couldn’t have been more clear. This year is different.
Things are different at LSU, too. While so much of the college football world had grown to love Brian Kelly’s annual Week 1 postgame press conferences in which he’d raise a podium over his head while decrying his lack of a ground game and yelling “Hunk smash!” this year’s Bayou Bengals actually played hard from start to finish and finally snagged a season-opening win.
In what was billed as a showdown between arguably the two best QBs in college football, it was the LSU defense that stole the show, tormenting Cade Klubnik throughout and holding Clemson to 31 rushing yards. Clemson’s last 19 plays were all passes, and Klubnik was under pressure on nearly all of them. Swinney may insist on bringing his own guts, but he keeps leaving his rushing attack at home.
So here we are, still not quite through with the opening scenes of the 2025 season, and we’ve already upended the Heisman race, slayed a giant and left Kelly with a smile on his face. What were the odds?
Of course, that’s the point, right? After an offseason in which conference commissioners tried to codify their own stories in the form of scheduling metrics, guaranteed playoff bids and TV revenue splits, a real Saturday of games is the respite from the narratives, a reminder that the games remain blissfully unpredictable.
After all, to paraphrase Lester Bangs from “Almost Famous,” the only true currency in this bankrupt world of college sports is the jokes you share with someone else when watching Alabama lose as a 14-point favorite again.
Jump to a section:
Trends | Under the radar | Heisman five
Notes from the road | Best of Texas-Ohio State
Week 1 vibe check
Each week, major upsets, emphatic wins and stellar performances grab the headlines around the college football ecosystem, but there are also many smaller storylines that matter just as much. We try to capture those here.
Trending up: Trendy fashion choices
Georgia Tech upended Colorado on Friday 27-20, but the real buzz was all about the attire of return man Eric Rivers, who took the field dressed as though he was the lead singer of Talking Heads during the “Stop Making Sense” tour or had just been selected sixth overall in the 1999 NBA draft.
Pierrot, by Jean-Antoine Watteau, 1718-19 pic.twitter.com/dHRfgGYzPP
— ArtButMakeItSports (@ArtButSports) August 30, 2025
If the Yellow Jackets have any sense of humor at all, Rivers should line up for his first scrimmage play next week rocking a pair of parachute pants.
Trending down: Bad fashion choices
To honor the city of New Orleans on the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Tulane had hoped to don its 2005 uniforms for its game against Northwestern on Saturday. The Wildcats denied the request, which led to a 23-3 whooping by the Green Wave and some spicy comments from Tulane coach Jon Sumrall afterward.
“When you disrespect the city of New Orleans, you’re going to run into it,” Sumrall said. “I’m not trying to be a jerk, but don’t disrespect the city of New Orleans.”
In contrast, after Florida State’s QB disrespected the city of Tuscaloosa this offseason, Alabama responded by writing a sternly worded letter to its commissioner insisting that, instead of a nine-game slate, the SEC move to a 12 conference games so this can’t happen in the future.
Trending up: In-game ad revenue
Deion Sanders delivered on his promise to have a portable toilet on the sideline for Colorado’s game against Georgia Tech, and he even got it sponsored by Depend.
Deion Sanders indeed has a portable toilet next to Colorado’s bench, to accommodate him following bladder reconstruction surgery.
And it’s sponsored. pic.twitter.com/GegvViVJQC
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) August 29, 2025
While we’re certainly glad to see Sanders is feeling better, the Buffs’ loss makes this sponsorship feel as though it’s one of the worst on-field marketing disasters since Red Lobster sponsored Les Miles’ ill-fated sideline seafood tower during the 2015 Texas Bowl.
Trending down: The middle seat from ATL to SYR
Tennessee‘s offense certainly didn’t look any worse off after waving goodbye to Nico Iamaleava. Transfer Joey Aguilar threw for 247 yards and three touchdowns in a 45-26 win over Syracuse.
This, of course, was bad news for whichever member of the Orange had to sit next to Syracuse coach Fran Brown on the flight home, as Brown famously refuses to shower after a loss. Luckily, for just an additional $29.95, Spirit Airlines will furnish the team with one of those “new car smell” air fresheners to hang above Brown’s seat.
Trending up: Short road trips
UConn packed the house at Rentschler Field with its largest crowd since 2013.
A total of 37,594 in attendance today at The Rent!
The largest crowd since 2013 🫡 pic.twitter.com/FTGYFP1Spa
— UConn Huskies (@UConnHuskies) August 30, 2025
This could certainly be in response to fans getting excited after last year’s 9-4 campaign. Or it could be that the opponent, Central Connecticut State, drove up attendance. CCSU is actually closer to Rentschler Field (12 miles) than is UConn (24 miles).
Trending down: The Group of 5
On Thursday, the Group of 5’s playoff picture was upended when No. 25 Boise State — the lone ranked team outside the Power 4 — was stomped by USF Bulls 34-7. Then on Friday, the defending American champion, Army, fell in embarrassing fashion to FCS Tarleton State.
This could leave the door wide open for a surprise team from the Group of 5 to make a playoff run, but unfortunately Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti already called dibs on the spot and invoked the “no take backs” clause of his proposed playoff plan, so … congratulations Maryland. You’re in now.
Trending up: Upstaging celebrities
Much was made of the engagement of Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift earlier this week, but the Kansas City Chiefs tight end didn’t manage the most romantic proposal of Week 1. That honor goes to this guy, who popped the question in the only truly romantic way possible: with mayonnaise.
LOVE HAPPENS IN MAYO LAND 💍 pic.twitter.com/WBLqschvhb
— Duke’s Mayo Classic (@DukesMayoBowl) August 30, 2025
We assume the wedding will be officiated by an anthropomorphic Pop-Tart, they’ll exit the reception by riding on the back of the Wake Forest Demon Deacon’s motorcycle, and they’ll honeymoon at the Bahamas Bowl which, this season, is probably being played in Little Rock, Arkansas for some reason.
Trending up: Lincoln Riley’s job security
USC thumped Missouri State 73-13, racking up nearly 600 yards of total offense and rushing for six touchdowns.
Riley would like to remind everyone that even if they get shut out against Georgia Southern next week, he would still be averaging 36.5 points per game, and that’s pretty good.
Trending down: Life expectancy for K-State fans
One week after seeing their team fall to rival Iowa State in the verdant hills of Ireland, Kansas State fans nearly suffered an even bigger indignity at the hands of a school mostly surrounded by cornfields, as North Dakota took a 35-31 lead into the final minute of the game.
Avery Johnson rode to the rescue this time, however, engineering a 10-play touchdown drive capped by a 6-yard completion to Joe Jackson to escape with a 38-35 win. Johnson threw for 318 yards and three touchdowns in the game and is now listed as the emergency contact on 86% of Kansas residents’ medical forms.
Trending up: The First State
Delaware toppled Delaware State 35-17 on Thursday, the Blue Hens’ first game as an FBS member.
With fellow newcomer Missouri State getting blown out by USC, that means that Delaware alone has the best winning percentage in FBS history (minimum one game). It’s the most exciting thing to happen in to the state since the new Hot Topic opened at the Concord Mall.
Under-the-radar game of the week
Entering Saturday’s action, Kent State had lost 21 straight games. The program was in shambles, and its last head coach, Kenni Burns, had been fired and (possibly) replaced by an AI program developed by some MIT dropouts who thought they were playing Minesweeper and accidentally coded a football algorithm.
And yet, the football gods smiled upon the Golden Flashes in Week 1, delivering a win in truly epic style.
Trailing 17-14 to Merrimack, a school that exists only in a child’s imagination, a player named — this is true — Da’Realyst Clark ran back a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, putting Kent State up 21-17 with 5:28 to play.
1:17
Merrimack Warriors vs. Kent State Golden Flashes: Full Highlights
Merrimack Warriors vs. Kent State Golden Flashes: Full Highlights
Sure, Kent State has Texas Tech, Florida State and Oklahoma — all on the road — in its next four games, but that’s of little importance today because, for the first time in nearly two full calendar years, the Golden Flashes are victorious. Turns out, that AI that thinks the Greek god of wisdom is Toyotathon knows a little something about football after all.
Under-the-radar play of the week
During pregame celebrations in Eugene on Saturday, the famed Oregon Duck took a nasty spill and lost his duck head, exposing the human underneath. While that was good for a laugh, the mascot’s reaction was truly impressive, as he sprinted a solid 25 yards at full speed wearing feet made out of felt, all while (we assume) screaming, “Look away! Look away! I’m hideous!” before returning to his secluded lair beneath an opera house.
0:16
Oregon Duck loses his head and scampers off
Oregon Duck loses his head and scampers off
Heisman five
On one hand, Arch Manning saw his Heisman odds tumble after struggling in a 14-7 loss to Ohio State. On the other hand, at least he’s unlikely to have the Heisman stolen from him by Charles Woodson now, so he has got that going for him. Which is nice.
1. Oklahoma QB John Mateer
The Washington State transfer completed 30 of 37 passes for 392 yards and accounted for four touchdowns in a 35-3 win over Illinois State, a performance so impressive his friend sent him $50 bucks with the note: “Definitely not because of sports gambling.”
2. Florida State QB Tommy Castellanos
Some would call it ego. Some would call it cockiness. Castellanos would call his offseason commentary facts. After talking smack on Alabama in June, Castellanos backed it up with 230 total yards and a touchdown to take down the Tide 34-17. Given that head coach Mike Norvell is superstitious, we recommend Castellanos keep this up by insisting the Noles will hang 300 on East Texas A&M next week.
3. Georgia QB Gunner Stockton
Stockton threw for two touchdowns and ran for two more in a 45-7 win over Marshall on Saturday, then we assume he drove his F-150 over to the Burger King parking lot, sat in the back and listened to John Mellencamp cassettes while wearing a denim jacket and promising he’ll never waste his life working in the factory like his old man.
4. LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier
After throwing for 230 yards and a touchdown in a win over Clemson, Nussmeier now looks like the odds-on favorite to be the No. 1 pick in next year’s NFL draft. His dad, Doug Nussmeier, just so happens to be the offensive coordinator of the Saints, and he was in attendance for Saturday’s win. After the game, the younger Nussmeier responded to his dad’s enthusiasm that he could be drafted by the Saints by saying, “Oh, wow, yeah. That sounds great, but really, it’s OK. You don’t need to go to all that trouble. Really. I’m sure there are lots of other quarterbacks who need a good home and, honestly, just focus on them. I’ll go to the Rams. It’s fine. That’ll be fine.”
5. Iowa State QB Rocco Becht
One week after upending Kansas State in Ireland, Becht delivered the Cyclones a dominant victory over FCS power South Dakota, throwing for 278 yards and three touchdowns in a 55-7 win. By federal law, South Dakota now needs to add Becht’s image to Mt. Rushmore in place of Thomas Jefferson.
Notes from the road
How FSU pulled the upset
Florida State coach Mike Norvell talked for months about wanting his team to play with an edge, with desperation, with heart — three key intangibles missing last year during a miserable 2-10 season.
The college football world saw all of that on display in a 31-17 win over Alabama. But perhaps most jaw-dropping was the physical way in which the Seminoles dominated the Crimson Tide up front. After allowing an opening 75-yard drive, the Florida State defense clamped down from there — and allowed just 3 yards per rush for the game.
The revamped offensive line, with four veteran transfers, dominated in its own right — not only opening up holes, but pushing defenders backward at nearly every turn. Florida State rushed for 230 yards, a year after averaging 89.9 yards per game — ranking No. 128 in the country.
“We wanted to be the aggressor, and we were,” Norvell said. “Our players, they rose to the challenge. We talked all year, and I’ve used the buzzwords of edge and desperation. That goes to the heart, and you saw heart tonight. We saw a team that absolutely loves playing this game together and were physically dominant, emotionally together, and they responded. This is a first step, but it’s a big step.”
0:35
Florida State fans storm field after Noles upset Alabama
Florida State fans storm the field after opening the season with a 31-17 win over No. 8 Alabama.
It is a big step because of what happened a year ago. Florida State came off a 13-1 ACC championship season with one of the worst performances in school history. Those outside the program questioned Norvell, questioned the program’s direction. He needed a win like this to remind the general public the Florida State is not what it showed a year ago.
On the flip side is Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer, who already went into the season with Crimson Tide fans skeptical about him and the direction of the program after a 9-4 debut that ended with a bowl loss to Michigan.
You will remember DeBoer got the Alabama job over Norvell, and now the pressure is rising as the successor to Saban. Alabama lost a season opener by two touchdowns for the first time since 1970.
“There’s no excuses about what happened,” DeBoer said. “Last year isn’t this year, and it’s going to be an uphill climb for us, but you can’t think of it in the big scope of things. You’ve got to focus on the moment. And the next moment is, ‘What happens tomorrow?’ And we’ll find out. We’ll find out.” — Andrea Adelson
Ohio State’s defense came ready
Ohio State opened its national championship defense with a dominating defensive effort. And for the second straight season against Texas, the Buckeyes produced a game-clinching stop.
Despite eight new defensive starters, the Buckeyes flew around all afternoon and flustered hyped Texas quarterback Arch Manning into a stunningly erratic performance.
The Buckeyes did not surrender a play longer than 15 yards until late in the fourth quarter. They also came up huge in the red zone.
In the first half, the Buckeyes stuffed a Manning quarterback sneak on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line. Then in the fourth quarter, cornerback Davison Igbinosun swatted away a Manning fourth-down pass to the corner of the end zone.
“Every time you get a fourth-down stop, it’s like a turnover,” Day said after the game.
After a Texas touchdown with 3:28 to play, the Longhorns got the ball back again with a chance to tie.
But just like last season — when Jack Sawyer’s strip sack and score propelled Ohio State to victory over Texas in the CFP semifinals and to the national championship game — the Buckeyes got the key final stop — as Caleb Downs tackled Jack Endries short of the marker on fourth down.
The Buckeyes’ defensive performance allowed them to ease quarterback Julian Sayin into his first start. Sayin was 13-for-20 for 126 yards and a score in his first start. Unlike Manning, however, Sayin avoided turnovers.
“We were fairly conservative [offensively] because we felt like our defense was playing well,” Day said. — Jake Trotter
Best moments from Texas-Ohio State
Sports
Fierceness beats Journalism to win Pacific Classic
Published
2 hours agoon
August 31, 2025By
admin
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Associated Press
Aug 30, 2025, 10:46 PM ET
DEL MAR, Calif. — Fierceness overcame a poor start to win the $1 million Pacific Classic by 3 1/4 lengths at Del Mar on Saturday, beating Preakness and Haskell winner Journalism, who was the 2-5 favorite.
Ridden by John Velazquez, Fierceness ran 1 1/4 miles in 2:01.00. Trainer by Todd Pletcher, the 4-year-old colt shipped in from New York. He paid $5.20 as the second choice in the wagering.
Fierceness veered sharply in toward the temporary rail leaving the starting gate.
“I got him out of there, but he overreacted by pulling in the other direction,” Velazquez said. “He got straightened out going into the first turn. I was able to save ground behind the leaders. On the back stretch, he was keen to go on, that’s why I moved between horses going into the turn.”
Journalism was last in the seven-horse field before rallying in the stretch but couldn’t catch the winner.
Ultimate Gamble finished third and Indispensable was fourth.
With the victory, Fierceness earned a berth in the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at the seaside track north of San Diego in November. He finished second in the race last year.
Nysos, the slight morning-line favorite, was scratched hours before the race when Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert noticed minor bruising in a hind foot. Nysos has had health-related issues throughout his career. He missed most of his 3-year-old season because of nagging setbacks. He was coming off a 15-month layoff when he finished second in the Churchill Downs Stakes on May 3.
Sports
Bama can’t stop Castellanos as FSU stuns Tide
Published
6 hours agoon
August 31, 2025By
admin
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ESPN News Services
Aug 30, 2025, 07:46 PM ET
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — New quarterback Tommy Castellanos led a punishing rushing attack for Florida State with 78 yards and a touchdown as the Seminoles stunned No. 8 Alabama 31-17 on Saturday, ending the Crimson Tide’s streak of 23 straight wins in season openers.
Coming off a 2-10 season, Florida State handed a crushing setback to Alabama, which was viewed as a College Football Playoff contender under second-year coach Kalen DeBoer.
Castellanos, a transfer from Boston College, made headlines over the summer after saying legendary Alabama coach Nick Saban wasn’t there to “save” the Tide vs. Florida State in their Week 1 matchup and that he doesn’t “see them stopping me.” He backed up that jab by spearheading FSU’s dominant ground attack while staying efficient through the air, finishing 9 of 14 passing for 152 yards.
Students and fans swarmed the field at Doak Campbell Stadium to celebrate the upset by the Seminoles, who closed as 13 1/2-point underdogs at ESPN BET.
Under new offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn — who spent eight seasons as Auburn’s head coach — Florida State was physical from the start, finishing with 230 rushing yards and averaging 4.7 yards per carry. The Seminoles averaged just 89.9 yards during their disastrous 2024 season.
The Crimson Tide had not dropped a season opener since losing 20-17 to UCLA in 2001 under Dennis Franchione, and this defeat will ratchet up the pressure on DeBoer from the demanding Tuscaloosa faithful. His predecessor, Nick Saban, led Alabama to six national titles.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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