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Wednesday witnessed the Colorado Avalanche answer their biggest offseason question by re-signing center Brock Nelson to a three-year contract, with a source telling ESPN the deal is worth $7.5 million annually.

Nelson’s future had been in question ever since he arrived in a March 9 trade from the New York Islanders. Although he filled the Avalanche’s second-line center void in the interim, Nelson was a pending unrestricted free agent who was expected to be one of the most coveted players in free agency on July 1.

Instead, the 33-year-old Nelson, who had six goals and 13 points in 19 games, will remain with an Avalanche franchise that will seek to win its second Stanley Cup since 2022.

“We’re thrilled to have reached an agreement with Brock to keep him in Colorado for the next three seasons,” Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland said in a statement. “He’s been a great center in this league for a long time, and he brings professionalism and a dedicated work ethic on and off the ice. We think he’s a great fit and is a stabilizing presence to our second-line center role with his size and ability to touch all areas of the ice.”

Getting a new deal done with Nelson is the latest entry in what’s become a near-annual challenge for the Avalanche when it comes to solidifying a second-line center. Nazem Kadri, who was part of their title-winning team, left in free agency to sign with the Calgary Flames. That turned into the Avs going through a revolving door of second-line centers that saw several players attempt to fill that void with the front office making a trade to get All-Star Ryan Johansen prior to the 2023-24 season.

Johansen struggled in Denver, which led to the team trading him ahead of the deadline and acquiring Casey Mittlestadt from the Buffalo Sabres. Mittlestadt scored four goals and 10 points in 18 regular-season games before finishing with nine points in 11 playoff games. He signed a three-year deal last June worth $5.575 million to give the Avs a then-25-year-old second-line center for now and the future.

Mittelstadt would struggle during his first full season in Colorado, which saw him fall further down the depth chart. It prompted the Avs to make a trade for Nelson before eventually moving Mittlestadt in a trade with the Boston Bruins that saw them get Charlie Coyle.

Enter Nelson. A nine-time 20-goal scorer, Nelson was one of the most consistent players the Islanders cultivated with a farm system that has produced several players, including Avs defenseman Devon Toews, who arrived in a 2020 trade and would form one of the league’s strongest defensive tandems with 2020 Norris Trophy winner Cale Makar.

Having Nelson also gives the Avalanche what might be one of the strongest top-nine center setups in the NHL, led by reigning Hart Trophy winner Nathan MacKinnon on the top line while Coyle operates at third-line center.

PuckPedia projects that the Avalanche will now have $1.2 million left in free agency to address their roster concerns.

Like many of their peers in a championship window, the Avs have most of their core signed to long-term deals. Nelson now one of eight players who have three or more years remaining on their current contracts.

The Avalanche have a six-player UFA class that’s led by forward Jonathan Drouin and defenseman Ryan Lindgren. Drouin, who had signed consecutive one-year deals with the Avalanche starting in 2023, scored 11 goals and 37 points in 43 games. A year earlier, he scored 19 goals and finished with a career-high 56 points.

As for Lindgren, he was also a trade deadline addition in a deal the Avs made with the New York Rangers. Lindgren had three points in 18 games while logging 18:59 in ice time per game with the Avs in a top-four role that also provided them with another penalty killer.

It’s possible that the Avalanche could use trades to create more cap flexibility while playing in a Central Division that saw five teams make the postseason with a sixth, the Utah Hockey Club, finished seven points out of the final Western Conference wild-card spot.

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Florida freshman WR Wilson to debut vs. Texas

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Florida freshman WR Wilson to debut vs. Texas

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida has offensive help on the way with a freshman receiver who just might make a difference against No. 9 Texas on Saturday.

Dallas Wilson is practicing for the first time since injuring his left foot in training camp and is scheduled to make his collegiate debut against the Longhorns, coach Billy Napier said Monday.

Napier called Wilson’s availability “a big deal.”

“Three good days of work last week, and I thought he handled the load well,” Napier said. “He feels really good. So far, so good.”

Wilson, a 6-foot-3, 213-pound newcomer from Tampa, was the star of Florida’s spring game in April. He caught 10 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns, and all indications in fall practice pointed to it not being a fluke.

But Wilson injured his foot late in camp, spent weeks in a protective boot and watched from afar as the Gators (1-3, 0-1 SEC) struggled to move the ball and find the end zone. Florida scored 16, 10 and 7 points, respectively, in consecutive losses to South Florida, LSU and Miami, raising speculation about Napier’s future in Gainesville.

Quarterback DJ Lagway has been the focus of the team’s offensive woes. The sophomore who went 6-1 as a starter last season missed most of the year dealing with injuries and looked rusty when the season began.

Although Lagway’s mechanics seemed improved in the team’s 26-7 setback at Miami on Sept. 20, his offensive line got manhandled and allowed way too much pressure for anyone to notice. Lagway completed 12 of 23 passes for 61 yards against the Hurricanes.

Napier used the off week to get Lagway more live-action reps in hopes of getting him “caught up.” But he also reiterated the need to “play better around him.”

“Each position group needs to step up,” Napier said. “More detail, eliminate errors, eliminate penalties, whatever the case may be. I just think more detail and better overall play around him. And, obviously, he needs to continue to get back closer to being himself.”

Adding Wilson to the mix should help.

The Gators haven’t shown much depth at receiver. Freshman Vernell Brown III has been Lagway’s go-to guy, catching 18 passes for 219 yards. But Eugene Wilson III, J. Michael Sturdivant and Aidan Mizell have been mostly underwhelming.

Dallas Wilson has been unable to help — until now. The Gators are confident he will change the narrative against the No. 1 scoring defense in the SEC.

“Just having him out is going to be amazing for us,” Lagway said. “His ability to go deep, his ability to make plays underneath and be able to make miraculous plays with the ball in his hands, it’s going to be great to have him back.”

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Finebaum mulls leaving ESPN for U.S. Senate run

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Finebaum mulls leaving ESPN for U.S. Senate run

SEC Network host Paul Finebaum said Monday that he would consider leaving ESPN to run for the U.S. Senate, representing Alabama.

The 70-year-old Finebaum said during a recent interview with Outkick that he’d run as a Republican to fill the seat vacated by former Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville, who has said he’ll run for Alabama governor in the 2026 elections. Tuberville’s current Senate term ends in 2027.

The qualifying deadline to run for Senate is Jan. 26, 2026. Finebaum said he would likely have to leave his hosting and analyst duties if he decided to run. He told Outkick he’d make a decision within the next 30-45 days.

Finebaum said he hadn’t seriously considered politics, but the assassination of Charlie Kirk was the impetus to give a run at politics further thought. He noted that he had received a “text” from “one or two people in Washington” gauging his interest in politics.

“[It was] something I never thought about before,” Finebaum told Outkick.

Finebaum is currently registered as a Republican in North Carolina, where he works for the SEC Network. He told Outkick he recently moved to Alabama, where he hosted a radio show for years, and would re-register there.

Finebaum hosted radio shows in Alabama for almost 30 years before joining ESPN and the SEC Network. He started his media career as a newspaper writer and columnist.

“Alabama has always been the place I’ve felt the most welcome, that I’ve cared the most about the people,” he said. “I’ve spoken to people from Alabama for 35 years, and I feel there is a connection that is hard to explain.”

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Petrino overhauls staff, fires defensive assistants

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Petrino overhauls staff, fires defensive assistants

Bobby Petrino has fired three defensive assistants just one day after being named interim head coach at Arkansas as part of an overhaul of the Razorbacks’ coaching staff.

Petrino dismissed defensive coordinator Travis Williams, defensive line coach Deke Adams and defensive assistant Marcus Woodson in the latest moves after being appointed interim coach for the rest of the season to replace Sam Pittman, who was fired Sunday following five-plus seasons as Arkansas’ head coach.

“I just felt like how we performed on Saturday gave me an indication that maybe Sam had lost the team a little bit because they generally had played really hard for him throughout his tenure,” Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek said of the move, which came on the heels of a 56-13 home loss to Notre Dame.

Petrino, 64, returned to Arkansas in 2023 as offensive coordinator after serving in a number of jobs. In four years as the Razorbacks’ head coach, he went 34-17, including consecutive seasons with double-digit victories in 2010 and 2011.

“Coach Petrino, as we met yesterday, he accepted this opportunity with the understanding that he also wanted an opportunity to formally be a candidate for our head coaching position, and he will have that opportunity, but we’ll also subsequently run a search for our next head coach at the same time,” Yurachek said.

Pittman’s dismissal, Petrino’s temporary promotion and the defensive assistant dismissals weren’t the only changes. Chris Wilson was named the team’s interim defensive coordinator.

Petrino had high praise for Wilson, who was in his first year with the Razorbacks as an assistant defensive line coach.

“My experience [with Wilson] goes way back to having to battle against him when he had all the great defensive linemen at Mississippi State,” Petrino said. “Very, very impressed with what he’s done throughout his career. Guy’s got a Super Bowl ring. He brings a lot of credibility into the room.”

Several defensive players posted cryptic messages on social media following the firing of Williams, who had served as the team’s defensive coordinator since 2023. Yurachek and Petrino encouraged players to welcome change amid a 2-3 start to the season.

“The No. 1 thing is, you have to get used to change. You know, your whole life there’s going to be change. So how we handle that, our attitude on how we handle that, will determine how quickly we improve,” Petrino said.

Petrino was involved in a single-vehicle motorcycle crash in April 2012 that left him with four broken ribs. At first, he said he was riding alone, but a police report revealed a woman was riding with him. The woman turned out to be a former Arkansas athlete who was in a romantic relationship with the married Petrino. The coach had given her a job in the football program and a $20,000 gift.

Petrino was fired by then-athletic director Jeff Long for misleading his bosses about what happened with the accident and his relationship with the football staffer.

Pittman, 63, went 32-34 with the Razorbacks.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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