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The NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning have left Florida ahead of Hurricane Milton to practice the rest of the week in the Raleigh, North Carolina, area for their season opener at the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night.

Milton, currently a Category 5 hurricane, is projected to make landfall in the Tampa Bay area Wednesday night. It had maximum sustained winds of 165 mph as of Tuesday afternoon, and forecasters warned of a storm surge as high as 15 feet in Tampa Bay, leading to evacuation orders for beach communities all along Florida’s Gulf Coast.

The Lightning’s home opener, also against Carolina, is set for Saturday night and is on as scheduled for now.

The NFL’s Buccaneers made a similar decision, deciding to travel early to New Orleans for their game against the Saints on Sunday.

It’s third time in the past seven years the Bucs have shifted operations to another area to avoid bad weather.

The Glazer family, which owns the Bucs, booked two planes for a traveling party of about 350 people and 31 pets that included players, coaches and staff who would normally travel to an away game. Staff also had the ability to include their immediate family members and pets.

The team also purchased more than 200 hotels rooms in the Orlando and Gainesville areas for employees and families who wanted to evacuate from their homes ahead of the storm.

An NBA preseason game in Miami — which is not expected to feel hurricane conditions, but is likely to get strong wind gusts and several inches of rain — between the Heat and the Atlanta Hawks was pushed back from Thursday to Oct. 16.

Tropicana Field, home of MLB’s Tampa Bay Rays, has been designated as a staging site for first responders and state and local emergency management services aiding with debris removal. The ballpark in St. Petersburg has been set up to host 10,000 people, with cots set up on the playing surface.

At the college level, the American Athletic Conference announced that the football game between Memphis and South Florida at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa has been rescheduled from Friday night to Saturday.

South Florida is relocating its football team to Orlando later Tuesday, coach Alex Golesh said.

The conference plans to monitor conditions after Milton passes and adjust accordingly.

UCF‘s Big 12 home football game vs. Cincinnati remains scheduled for Saturday’s 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff in Orlando.

The Knights rescheduled events in several other sports, including shifting UCF’s home volleyball match against Colorado from Wednesday night to Sunday. UCF and Arizona changed the location of Thursday’s women’s soccer match from Orlando to Houston. With Arizona set to play at Houston on Sunday and UCF scheduled to play at Colorado the same day, the teams agreed to play Thursday’s match in Texas.

UCF’s men’s soccer match vs. Marshall was rescheduled from Friday night to Sunday. Other college events postponed include a women’s soccer match in Boca Raton between Florida Atlantic and Rice; it was slated for Thursday and now will be played Oct. 17.

The LPGA postponed qualifying for its Q-Series — which had been set to start Sunday and slated to run through Oct. 18 in Venice, Florida, at Plantation Golf and Country Club — and said in a statement that the safety of athletes, caddies, staff, volunteers and the local community is the top priority. The LPGA will announce an update after the storm.

“Our thoughts are with the entire Florida community as we prepare for the storm,” the LPGA said.

Countless high school sports events scheduled around Florida also were called off. In many counties, officials were waiting to see what would happen with football games scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Utes’ Whittingham reenergized after ’24 free fall

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Utes' Whittingham reenergized after '24 free fall

FRISCO, Texas — A dynamic new quarterback, a new offensive system and two projected first-round picks up front have Utah coach Kyle Whittingham feeling enthusiastic about the Utes’ chances of bouncing back from a disastrous debut season in the Big 12.

Utah was voted No. 1 in the Big 12 preseason poll last year after joining from the Pac-12, but a brutal run of injuries and inconsistency resulted in a seven-game conference losing streak and a 5-7 finish — the program’s first losing season since 2013.

After weeks of contemplation about his future and what was best for the program, Whittingham, the third-longest-tenured head coach in FBS, decided in December to return for his 21st season with the Utes.

“The bottom line and the final analysis was I couldn’t step away on that note,” Whittingham told ESPN at Big 12 media days Wednesday. “It was too frustrating, too disappointing. As much as college football has changed with all the other factors that might pull you away, that was the overriding reason: That’s not us, that’s not who we are. It just left a bad taste in my mouth. I did not want to miss the opportunity to try to get that taste out.”

“The bottom line and the final analysis was I couldn’t step away on that note. It was too frustrating, too disappointing. … That’s not us. That’s not who we are. It just left a bad taste in my mouth. I did not want to miss the opportunity to try to get that taste out.”

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham on going 5-7 in 2024

Whittingham and Utes defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley conducted a national search for a new offensive coordinator and quickly zeroed in on New Mexico‘s Jason Beck. Then they managed to land Devon Dampier, Beck’s first-team All-Mountain West quarterback, via the transfer portal.

After finishing 11th nationally in total offense with 3,934 yards and 31 total touchdowns and putting up the fourth-most rushing yards (1,166) among all FBS starters, Dampier followed his coach to Salt Lake City and immediately asserted himself as a difference-maker for a program that had to start four different QBs in 2024.

“He’s a terrific athlete,” Whittingham said. “He’s a guy that, if spring is any indication, he’s an exciting player, and we can’t wait to watch him this season. … He’s got that ‘it’ factor. He’s a leader. Needless to say, very excited to see what he does for us.”

They’ve surrounded Dampier with 21 more newcomers via the transfer portal and will protect him with two returning starters at tackle in Spencer Fano and Caleb Lomu, who are projected first-round NFL draft picks by ESPN’s Matt Miller.

“We feel they’re the best tandem in the country,” Whittingham said. “The offensive line in general, I feel, it’s the best since I’ve been there. And that’s quite a statement. We’ve had some really good offensive lines. We’ve got two first-rounders and three seniors inside that have played a lot of good football for us. That better be a strength of ours, and that’s what we’re counting on.”

Whittingham has previously said he did not want to coach past the age of 65. Now that he’s 65, he acknowledges that he might’ve arrived at a different decision about his future had the Utes ended up winning the Big 12 in 2024. He is reenergized about getting them back into contention, but he’s not ready to say whether this season might be his last.

“The best answer I can give you is, right now, I’m excited and passionate about going to work every single day,” Whittingham said. “As soon as that changes, I’ll know it’s time. I’m just counting on knowing when the time is right. I can’t tell you exactly what the circumstances will be other than losing the fire in the belly.”

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MLB to utilize ABS challenge system during ASG

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MLB to utilize ABS challenge system during ASG

The automated ball-strike system is coming to the All-Star Game next week in Atlanta.

MLB officials added the feature to the annual exhibition game knowing it could be a precursor to becoming a permanent part of the major leagues as soon as next year.

The same process used this past spring training will be used for the Midsummer Classic: Each team will be given two challenges with the ability to retain them if successful. Only a pitcher, catcher or hitter can ask for a challenge and it has to happen almost immediately after the pitch. The player will tap his hat or helmet indicating to the umpire he wants to challenge while any help from the dugout or other players on the field is not allowed.

MLB officials say 72% of fans who were polled during spring training said the impact of ABS on their experience at the game was a “positive” one. Sixty-nine percent said they’d like it part of the game moving forward. Just 10% expressed negativity toward it.

MLB’s competition committee will meet later this summer to determine if ABS will be instituted next season after the league tested the robotic system throughout the minor leagues and spring training in recent years. Like almost any rule change, there were mixed reviews from players about using ABS but nearly all parties agree on one point: They prefer a challenge system as opposed to the technology calling every pitch.

As was the case in spring training, once a review is initiated, an animated replay of the pitch will be shown on the scoreboard and the home plate umpire will either uphold the call or overturn it. ABS uses Hawk-Eye system technology which tracks the pitch trajectory and location in relation to the strike zone, providing an instant assessment which can be relayed to the home plate umpire.

The All-Star Game will be played at Truist Park in Atlanta on Tuesday.

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Royals sign former Cy Young winner Keuchel

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Royals sign former Cy Young winner Keuchel

The Kansas City Royals have signed former Cy Young Award winner Dallas Keuchel to a minor league contract, the team announced Wednesday.

The 37-year-old left-hander will start at Triple-A Omaha and will earn a prorated $2 million salary if he reaches the big leagues, sources tell ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

Keuchel has not pitched in the majors for nearly a full calendar year. He elected to become a free agent on July 18, 2024, after being designated for assignment by the Milwaukee Brewers.

In four starts with the Brewers last season, Keuchel had a 5.40 ERA in 16 2/3 innings without a decision. In 13 major league seasons, the 2015 American League Cy Young winner with the Houston Astros is 103-92 with a 4.04 ERA in 282 appearances (267 starts).

After pitching his first seven seasons with the Astros, Keuchel has made appearances for six different teams since 2019. He won a World Series with Houston in 2017 and is a two-time All-Star selection and five-time Gold Glove winner.

Information from Field Level Media was used in this report.

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