Inside how the Dodgers fixed Roki Sasaki — and possibly saved their World Series repeat hopes
PHILADELPHIA — Halfway across the world, Roki Sasaki had a secret admirer. In 2021, his first season in Nippon Professional Baseball, the Chiba Lotte Marines’ teenaged phenom regularly blew triple-digit fastballs by hitters and complemented them with a split-fingered fastball that behaved like a high-velocity knuckleball. Once a week, new videos of Sasaki’s latest start would find their way onto social media, and when they did, Rob Hill would consume them with equal parts appreciation and awe.
“I keep a mental tab of a lot of pitchers that I like,” said Hill, the Dodgers’ 30-year-old director of pitching, “and I’ll go back and look how they’re doing and see how their bodies are moving and playing, like almost a game of: If they were with me, what would I do?”
On Sept. 4 this year, Hill got the opportunity to answer that question. Over the previous four months, Sasaki’s ballyhooed rookie season with the Dodgers had devolved into a disaster. He struggled through eight starts, hit the injured list with a right shoulder impingement May 13, started throwing again two weeks later and was shut down once more June 16. He returned to the mound for Oklahoma City two months after that with a fastball sitting at just 93 mph in Triple-A and had lost hope of contributing substantively to the Dodgers’ attempt to be the first team in a quarter-century to win back-to-back World Series.
Then came the early-September debrief with Hill at the Dodgers’ complex in Arizona. For months, officials throughout the organization had worked to gain Sasaki’s trust, cognizant of how loath he was to offer it. President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, general manager Brandon Gomes and manager Dave Roberts all had let Sasaki know they hadn’t lost faith, even as he’d gone from the major league rotation to minor league mediocrity. They would provide whatever tools he needed as the season went on.
Finally, following another middling Triple-A start, Sasaki pronounced himself open to a mechanical overhaul. What happened over the next week changed the course of his season — and the Dodgers’. Small but significant tweaks to Sasaki’s delivery unlocked the monster within. The desire to compete — to win — prompted him to embrace a move to the bullpen. And following a pair of successful big league relief outings to end the regular season, Sasaki found himself thrust into the ninth inning of Los Angeles’ past two playoff wins: a wild-card series clincher against the Cincinnati Reds and Game 1 of the National League Division Series at Philadelphia’s raucous Citizens Bank Park. His fastball sat over 100 mph, his splitter tumbled with ferocity, and he looked the part of dominant closer.
“When he came back, I told him he’s got a different look now,” Roberts said. “He’s got the look of a killer.”
For all of the grief directed at the Dodgers because of their half-billion-dollar payroll and cadre of superstars, their ability to diagnose issues and coach players up, to open clear lines of communication and remain on the same page — to make players better and make that change sticky — is among the best in baseball. The Dodgers’ exceptional financial might makes them behemoths. Their skill at creating other advantages available to even those with much lower payrolls makes them terrifying.
The resurrection of Sasaki is their latest triumph, and they’re confident that with the extra strength he developed during his time off, the cue he found to hone his delivery and the dominance he has experienced in the bullpen, it’s here to stay. Everything coming together in less than a month was fortuitous, yes, but it was no accident.
HILL CALLS IT the deposition. When the Dodgers are looking to extract more from a pitcher, they’ll send him to Hill and Ian Walsh, the organization’s pitching performance coordinator, for a question-and-answer session that can last hours. There are the simple asks: What is your routine, and what are you most comfortable throwing, and what hurts? And then the ones a little more far afield: Was there anything a coach told you in fifth grade you still apply today? Or is there pain in your body you’ve gotten used to that probably isn’t normal?
The transition of the 23-year-old Sasaki to Major League Baseball was atypical. Almost every Japanese player who leaves for MLB does so after a series of high-end accomplishments. Sasaki did throw a perfect game in 2022 followed by eight more blemish-free innings in his next start. But over the next two seasons, he barely threw 200 innings total, with arm and oblique injuries limiting his time on the mound. Sasaki had no desire to follow his forebears in accumulating accolades in Japan before heading to the United States. And even the hundreds of millions of dollars he could have received by coming over after age 25 as an international free agent were not worth delaying what he believed his destiny: to pitch against the world’s best hitters.
He also, the Dodgers recognized, wasn’t himself in his final seasons in Japan. During his meetings with teams, Sasaki wanted one question answered: How would you fix my fastball? It had leaked velocity over the previous two seasons, and teams’ responses, Sasaki figured, would offer him the best insight into their philosophies on pitching. The Dodgers knew Sasaki’s unique leg kick would make his delivery difficult to replicate, but their philosophy on pitching takes that into account.
“I don’t ascribe to a mechanical model,” Hill said. “Mechanics are not something to be modeled. The human body and the way that it moves is going to determine the output of what you do. Your own structural and physical constraints, and then your ability to coordinate your movements, is going to dictate what you do. I’m not going to be a towel-drill guy or a Driveline guy. I’m a get-you-better guy.”
Even though Hill had thoughts on how to upgrade Sasaki’s mechanics during the spring, he didn’t want to overstep his bounds. Shohei Ohtani didn’t look like the most talented player in the game’s history in his first spring. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the Dodgers’ ace this season, grappled with inconsistency for the first half of his MLB debut last year.
“And Roki’s younger than both of them were when they came,” Dodgers reliever Blake Treinen said. “You come over, you’re young, you’ve got the weight of the world on your shoulders. It’s not the easiest thing. I don’t know if some of it is that, but I don’t think it really matters at this point. I’m just grateful, because it’s not easy for people to come out of where they’re at. Sometimes that can wreck somebody.”
As much as mental wreckage had accrued for Sasaki from the beginning of the season through August, his physical issues had compounded even more. The mechanical changes Hill had noticed were, he said, almost certainly due to his right shoulder. Every big-league-caliber pitcher, Hill said, is an elite compensator. If something is wrong physically, they are capable of finding ways to move their bodies to make up for the deficiency. The problem is that doing so creates instabilities elsewhere in the body. And eventually, under the weight of those stresses, it breaks down.
“Good or bad, right or wrong, he hasn’t had a whole lot of instruction. He’s just been on his own program because of the talent,” Roberts said. “And there was a point where he was in Arizona where the group came together and said, ‘Hey, you’ve got to give Rob a chance.’ And to his credit, he bought into that and just kind of freed himself up.”
During the deposition, Hill did what he called an accusation audit. He understood any skepticism Sasaki might have, and he wanted to address it head on, so Hill laid out all of the potential negatives of working with him. Maybe Sasaki was concerned with how Americans view pitching mechanics. Or the number of Dodgers pitchers who have suffered injuries. Or that they cannot possibly understand what it’s like to be him. And if Sasaki is annoyed by Hill or just doesn’t like him, that’s fine. He wouldn’t be the first. But at the end of the day, Hill said, he needed Sasaki to understand one thing and one thing only: The only thing Hill cared about is making him better.
“You can tell me you want to spin upside down on your head midway through your delivery,” Hill said. “If it comes out 100, I’m going to just sit back and watch. I’m not going to shove you into a box. I’m not going to tell you that you have to move a certain way, you have to use your glute, you have to use your foot. I’m just going to ask you different things that make sense in your head, and then we’re going to find a way to make it come to life.”
It came to life with what Hill calls the buffet. Following the deposition, Hill and Walsh broke down the answers and emerged with a suite of options to help fix the issues. They believed that Sasaki’s troubles stemmed from his pelvis tipping forward, which caused him to rotate too early. During the pitching delivery, energy builds in the body, ripples up to the arm and is projected onto the ball at release. Any disruption — even something that goes unnoticed by the naked eye — can wreak havoc. And with Sasaki, that havoc equaled 7 mph of fastball velocity going AWOL.
On Sept. 5, Hill and Walsh presented the buffet. In particular, they believed the set position of Sasaki’s back leg could fix what ailed him. During the deposition, Sasaki had shown them videos from the 2022 and 2023 seasons, when his stuff was at its best, and his back leg wasn’t nearly as extended. By flexing the back leg, with his knee starting over his toes, Sasaki could avoid hinging his pelvis and delay it from dragging his center of mass forward too early, which prevented his front leg from having enough time to stabilize.
“Rotating the pelvis early is just death to everything,” Hill said.
For three hours that day, they discussed the effect of the flexed back leg. Starting in the new position would allow Sasaki to stand tall with his exaggerated front-leg kick, flare that leg straight down, plunge into a deep position and delay rotation. A specific cue resonated with Sasaki. Up, down, out. Up, down, out. If he lost feel for his delivery, he could remind himself: Up, down, out. Though the new delivery would look similar, the delay allowed him to stabilize and extend, smoothing out an energy transfer that had grown too mushy and eaten away at his fastball velocity.
Typically, the Dodgers will have pitchers work on drills before trying out proposed fixes. Sasaki didn’t want to wait. The two months of not throwing a ball, and the trust he had in Los Angeles’ team physician, Dr. Neal ElAttrache, had his shoulder feeling better than it had in years. With additional strength gained in his lower half in the weight room during his time off, Sasaki was eager to test out the back-leg theory as soon as possible. There was little time to spare if he was to have any chance of contributing in October.
“I think I can do it,” Sasaki said.
Hill and Walsh weren’t going to say no. Players know their bodies and minds better than coaches ever can. On Sept. 6, Sasaki stepped onto the mound at the complex and sat 95 to 97 mph. Hill and Walsh were blown away. Because Sasaki told them during spring training that his bullpen sessions are typically 4 to 5 mph slower than what he throws in a game.
“What I try to do in that deposition is basically figure out if this is a software issue or hardware issue,” Hill said. “Like, is this a skill issue? Or are you hurt? Do you have a bony block in your hip that we don’t have diagnosed properly that is like actually limiting the ability to do things right? Once it’s somewhat determined that it’s not a hardware issue, it can happen quick if you just align the joints in the right way, especially with a guy who’s already produced a crazy amount of velo in his life.”
THREE DAYS AFTER that bullpen session, Sasaki took the mound for his next Triple-A start. He went 4⅔ innings, walked four and allowed three runs. And the Dodgers were ecstatic. Because the stuff was back. His fastball averaged 98.3 mph and topped out at 100.6. His splitter was dastardly. He even threw the cutter Hill helped teach him during spring training.
Almost immediately, the plans for Sasaki changed. The Dodgers’ bullpen was reeling. Tanner Scott, the closer signed to a $72 million deal over the winter, had faltered. Kirby Yates, another high-profile free agent signing, wasn’t much better and later would go on the injured list with a hamstring strain. For all of Los Angeles’ starting pitching depth, the bullpen was a liability. So the Dodgers approached Sasaki and told him that if he wanted to play meaningful baseball this season, there was a clear path through the bullpen.
“He saw what was happening with our starters and said, ‘Sign me up,'” Roberts said. “And so then it was on us.”
Still with Oklahoma City, Sasaki struck out a pair in his first relief outing Sept. 18. He followed three days later with another clean inning. The Dodgers summoned him back to the big leagues and threw him Sept. 24 and 26 to see how his arm would respond to going twice in three days. He punched out four, didn’t walk anyone and cemented his spot on their postseason roster.
“The fun part about relieving,” Sasaki said, “is the opportunity to be able to contribute to the game, to the team every day.”
And contribute he has. While Roberts wouldn’t officially name Sasaki the Dodgers’ closer, Sasaki will pitch in the highest-leverage spots as long as Los Angeles is in the playoffs. Against the Phillies, his fastball sizzled as high as 101 mph. He caught J.T. Realmuto looking on an unfair splitter and shook off a Max Kepler double to induce a Nick Castellanos groundout and Bryson Stott popout, securing the first save of his professional career.
“The goal was to come back fully healthy and just fully ready to pitch again,” Sasaki said. “So I was cognizant that there could be that possibility that I may not pitch in the regular season again. There’s been a lot of support staff, coaching staff, the people around me who helped me get to where I am today. So, yes, very grateful for that.”
He appreciates Hill and Walsh, Friedman and Gomes, Roberts, and Dodgers pitching coaches Mark Prior and Connor McGuiness. Strength coach Travis Shaw, who helped build Sasaki’s body to withstand what would be asked of it. The organization’s biomechanics experts who can point out whether his pelvis starts hinging again. The teammates who, even if they wondered at one juncture whether Sasaki was made to thrive in MLB, no longer have any doubts.
Now it’s about performing. Even if Sasaki will transition back to starting pitching next year, he is a reliever this month, a vital piece of the Dodgers’ plans to conquer October again. More than that, he’s a reminder that with trust and competence, what’s lost can be found.
“Never, ever write somebody off, never give up on somebody, regardless of how bad the circumstances look,” Hill said. “Because you truly never know.”
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Eli Lederman
With just a few weeks to go before the early signing period, the 2026 class is mostly wrapped up. Only eight of the prospects ranked inside the ESPN 300 remain uncommitted, including just one — defensive end Jordan Carter — among ESPN’s top 100 recruits.
However, there’s still plenty of activity expected over the homestretch of the 2026 cycle. As committed prospects hit the road for November visits across the country and top programs scour the flip market for late-cycle additions, recruiting drama this time of year is expected. Adding to the intrigue this fall is early activity on the coaching carousel that left job openings at major programs, including Auburn, Florida, LSU and Penn State, sparking flip interest from other top schools and sending committed recruits to reconsider their options before December.
As the business end of the 2026 cycle arrives, ESPN spoke to sources across the industry about 10 prospects who could be on the move in the 23 days between now and the early signing period.
Hometown: Erwinsville, Louisiana
ESPN 300 rank: No. 1
Position rank: No. 1
Committed to: LSU
Recruiting intel: Brown became the highest-ranked pledge of the Brian Kelly era at LSU when he committed to the Tigers over Miami and Texas A&M in July. Five months later, the nation’s top-ranked recruit remains the cornerstone of the program’s incoming class as the school searches for its next coach in the wake of Kelly’s firing.
Brown, who was recruited as a legitimate two-way offensive/defensive line prospect, recorded 91 tackles and eight sacks across his first three varsity seasons at Louisiana’s University Laboratory School, which is located on the LSU campus, just one mile east of Tiger Stadium.
The latest: Brown has emphasized the value of playing at LSU as a Louisiana native and the chance to remain close to home throughout his recruitment. More than two weeks after Kelly’s dismissal, ESPN sources continue to expect Brown to sign with the Tigers during the early signing period, regardless of where the program’s coaching search stands at that point.
Brown’s continued commitment is critical for LSU, not only because he would be the program’s first No. 1-ranked signee since Leonard Fournette in 2014 but because the 6-foot-5, 285-pound defender is seen as the linchpin of the Tigers’ incoming class, according to sources within the program. If Brown sticks with LSU, those sources expect the majority of the 2026 class to do the same.
Still, Brown has been the subject of renewed interest from Miami and Texas A&M in recent weeks. Between those two, sources believe Texas A&M — a narrow runner-up for Brown’s pledge in June — presents the biggest threat to LSU. Brown is not slated to take any visits this month, but his recruitment will be one to watch.
Hometown: Flowood, Mississippi
ESPN 300 rank: No. 39
Position rank: No. 3
Committed to: Auburn
Recruiting intel: Auburn beat Florida, Ohio State and Texas A&M to Womack’s commitment in August, and Mississippi’s 2024 Gatorade Football Player of the Year remains the Tigers’ top-ranked 2026 pledge.
ESPN sources viewed Womack’s pledge as tied heavily to the future of Auburn coach Hugh Freeze before the program fired the third-year coach Nov. 2. After Freeze’s exit, Womack is considering all of his options, with major programs interested.
The latest: Texas A&M is working on several high-profile flip targets in the final stages of the cycle, including Womack, Brown, Anthony Jones (Oregon) and Kevin Ford (Florida). Among that group, Womack might be the most attainable for coach Mike Elko and the Aggies.
Texas A&M finished second in Womack’s recruitment over the summer, and the Aggies are expected to have him back on campus this weekend for the program’s visit from South Carolina.
In-state programs Mississippi State and Ole Miss are two others in pursuit of Womack; his visit for the Bulldogs’ Week 11 loss to Georgia marked a significant development for Mississippi State. Summer finalists Florida and Ohio State can’t be counted out either.
Hometown: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
ESPN 300 rank: No. 78
Position rank: No. 13
Committed to: Penn State
Recruiting intel: College talent evaluators view the longtime Penn State commit as a potential multiyear starter at the next level. It’s a big part of why Ohio State and West Virginia, among a group of other major programs seeking to land an impact, late-cycle addition on the offensive line, have swarmed Brown since the Nittany Lions fired coach James Franklin last month.
“The programs that are coming in right now are teams that need a right tackle,” Brown’s father, Tim, told ESPN. “It’s very specific — it’s not the recruiting we experienced before.”
An agile, big-framed blocker capable of playing across the offensive line, Brown marked a seismic in-state win for Franklin’s staff when he committed to Penn State in July 2024. Nearly a year and a half later, his future increasingly appears to lie somewhere other than Happy Valley.
The latest: Brown closed October with a midweek visit to West Virginia before spending Week 10 at Ohio State during the Buckeyes’ 38-14 win over Penn State on Nov. 1.
Brown’s father played at West Virginia in the early 2000s under coach Rich Rodriguez, and beyond family ties, the program has impressed Brown with its long-term vision for Rodriguez’s second stint leading the Mountaineers. The culture at Ohio State left an imprint on him as well, and Brown might return for an official visit with the Buckeyes later this month.
North Carolina is another program working to sway Brown. He also plans to leave the door open with Penn State and its next coach. But with the clock ticking on the Nittany Lions’ coaching search and Brown intent on making a decision no later than the first week of December, Ohio State and West Virginia appear well-positioned for an important flip.
Hometown: Vero Beach, Florida
ESPN 300 rank: No. 81
Position rank: No. 14
Committed to: UCLA
Recruiting intel: Smith’s June pledge to UCLA marked a once-in-a-decade offensive line commitment for the Bruins. But a lot has changed since then, most importantly, the team’s coach. With interest swirling from around the country, will Smith ultimately land at Ohio State or in the SEC? Or can the Bruins hang on to their lone remaining ESPN 300 pledge?
The latest: Though Smith has maintained his commitment to UCLA, the 6-foot-6, 320-pound lineman has made the rounds this fall with Ohio State, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Tennessee emerging among the most prominent flip contenders in his recruitment.
Smith visited Ole Miss in September, and he was on campus at Tennessee for an official visit during the program’s Week 10 game against Oklahoma. ESPN sources expect the Rebels and Vols to be the most serious players in Smith’s process.
Sources have also reinforced the possibility of Smith remaining with UCLA. His commitment earlier this year came with a significant financial package, and Smith remains close with UCLA offensive line coach Andy Kwon. It’s not out of the question that Smith could stick with the Bruins under a new head coach, particularly if Kwon remains on the program’s staff.
Hometown: Gonzales, Louisiana
ESPN 300 rank: No. 84
Position rank: No. 15
Committed to: LSU
Recruiting intel: Brian Kelly’s departure certainly accelerated potential movement in Martinez’s process. But the 6-foot-6, 280-pound lineman had been in contact with multiple SEC programs this fall, well before LSU moved on from its fourth-year coach last month.
With elite length and physicality, Martinez projects as a standout run blocker with positional flexibility in college. He held offers from Alabama, Georgia, Oregon, Tennessee, Florida, Texas A&M and Penn State upon his commitment to the in-state Tigers in February.
The latest: Texas made a notable jump in Martinez’s recruitment when he visited for the Longhorns’ win over Vanderbilt on Nov. 1, and Martinez is scheduled to return for an official visit when the program hosts Arkansas on Nov. 22.
“I’ve never heard him say, ‘I don’t want to go home,’ on a visit,” his mother, Kandace, said. “He loved it [at Texas]. He wanted to figure out when we were coming back before we even left.”
The Longhorns reach mid-November as clear front-runners among Martinez’s flip contenders. Oklahoma and Tennessee also are still involved in his process, and Martinez remains in contact with the LSU staff. But as things stand, the return trip to Texas later this month is the only visit Martinez has scheduled before the early signing period.
Hometown: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
ESPN 300 rank: No. 141
Position rank: No. 13
Committed to: Penn State
Recruiting intel: The longest-tenured member of the Nittany Lions’ 2026 class, Mickens has been looking elsewhere over the past month, with Indiana, Oklahoma and Ole Miss emerging among the leading contenders.
Mickens accounted for more than 3,200 rushing yards and 54 touchdowns on the ground across the first three seasons of his high school career. He initially shut down his recruitment earlier this year after a brief flirtation with Notre Dame. But since Franklin’s firing Oct. 12, Mickens stands as one of the top available running backs across the 2026 class.
The latest: Mickens heard from nearly a dozen programs after Franklin’s departure. He has since narrowed his process to three programs and plans to hit the road in the coming weeks.
Mickens is set to visit Indiana this weekend for the Hoosiers’ Week 12 matchup with Wisconsin. He’ll travel to Oklahoma, where Mickens has developed a close relationship with running backs coach DeMarco Murray, on Nov. 29, and Mickens is working to set up a trip to Ole Miss before the end of the regular season. From that group, ESPN sources view Oklahoma as the leading contender for Mickens, who also has considered South Carolina.
Hometown: West Palm Beach, Florida
ESPN 300 rank: No. 142
Position rank: No. 1
Committed to: Auburn
Recruiting intel: The nation’s top-ranked inside linebacker remains committed to the Tigers, but Balogoun-Ali has drawn significant interest from power-conference programs in the week-plus since Freeze’s departure from Auburn.
Balogoun-Ali entered his senior season this fall as a three-year varsity contributor with 161 career tackles. His initial commitment to the Tigers over Kentucky and Missouri in June was influenced heavily by a connection with Auburn linebackers coach and defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin, who took over as the Tigers’ interim coach Nov. 2.
The latest: Georgia, Miami, Missouri and Notre Dame are among the programs that have continued pushing to flip Balogoun-Ali over the past week. But for now, Balogoun-Ali told ESPN he remains locked in with Auburn under Durkin while the program searches for its next head coach.
“The strongest reason I committed to Auburn was to play and learn under Coach Durkin,” Balogoun-Ali told ESPN. “With him becoming interim, I’m going to give it time. Right now, it’s still War Damn Eagle.”
Missouri has been the most active program in Balogoun-Ali’s recruitment in recent weeks. In-state Miami presents another attractive spot. Georgia and Notre Dame stand as two late-arriving contenders still looking to add high-level talent on defense in the 2026 cycle.
Hometown: Duncanville, Texas
ESPN 300 rank: No. 158
Position rank: No. 20
Committed to: Florida
Recruiting intel: Ford picked Florida over Ohio State and Texas in July. The promising edge rusher from Texas is still committed to the Gators, keeping in close contact with the program’s coaching staff since coach Billy Napier’s departure last month.
“It necessarily didn’t impact my recruitment,” Ford told ESPN of Napier’s firing. “I liked the campus at Florida and how the fans and culture are building for years to come. I’m not really hoping to see anything with the coaching search, just a person who can elevate the program.”
However, Ford is still drawing interest from multiple programs. He has already set for a visit with USC later this month, and looks likely to take a few more campus trips in the coming weeks.
The latest: Clemson, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and USC are leading the charge to pull Ford away from the Gators in the lead-up to the early signing period.
Initially expected to visit Texas Tech for the program’s top-10 showdown with BYU on Saturday, Ford did not make the trip to Lubbock but could still visit with the Red Raiders this month. Texas A&M, which has hosted Ford twice this fall, stands as another major player in his recruitment as the Aggies pursue late-cycle defensive line talent. USC has been a constant presence throughout Ford’s process and will host him when the Trojans face UCLA on Nov. 29.
Ford remains one of the top members of Florida’s 2026 class. But the Gators will have to fend off several surging programs to keep his pledge through signing day.
Hometown: McDonald, Pennsylvania
ESPN 300 rank: No. 162
Position rank: No. 42
Committed to: Penn State
Recruiting intel: Another longtime Penn State commit, Sieg is courting late-cycle interest from Indiana, Notre Dame, Pitt and West Virginia as he evaluates his next steps while keeping an eye on the Nittany Lions’ coaching search.
“I was really looking forward to getting set up there this December and being able to get into it,” Sieg said of Penn State. “But everything happens for a reason. So right now, I’m just trying to weigh my options and make sure me and my family make the best decision possible.”
A two-way star at Fort Cherry (Pennsylvania) High School, roughly 30 miles outside of Pittsburgh, Sieg remains the third-ranked pledge in Penn State’s 2026 class. But that could change over the next month as programs swarm to one of the nation’s top available safety prospects.
The latest: Sieg hit the road in the weeks after Franklin’s exit at Penn State, opening with trips to Indiana and Pitt before visiting Notre Dame this past weekend. He’ll also visit West Virginia later this month, as the Mountaineers have pitched Sieg on the chance to play both ways, tacking on opportunities at wide receiver/running back to his defensive duties.
Among the flip contenders, Indiana and Notre Dame appear best positioned in Sieg’s recruitment. Similar to other Penn State pledges, Sieg is also keeping an eye on where Franklin might land in a process that is expected to go down to the wire.
“My plan is to probably make a decision on signing day or right before,” Sieg said. “I’m trying to wait and see what ends up happening with Coach Franklin and a lot of the coaches that are still at Penn State and see what they end up doing before I make a final decision.”
Hometown: Leakesville, Mississippi
ESPN 300 rank: No. 258
Position rank: No. 14
Committed to: Auburn
Recruiting intel: Mathews, Auburn’s lone top-300 skill position pledge, fits the mold of the tall, playmaking wide receiver the Tigers have recruited in recent years. He told ESPN that the program’s decision to move on from Freeze, paired with consistent interest from a trio of rival SEC programs, has prompted him to reconsider his options in the late stages of the cycle.
“I’ve had to question myself multiple times,” Mathews said. “I’m hoping to see them grow and not falter from these losses, and in the process, see them strengthen our offense.”
Mathews’ senior season was cut short by an ACL tear. But if healthy, he projects as a potential Day 1 contributor wherever he lands next fall, which explains why the attention he has attracted this fall has only intensified since Freeze’s firing late last month.
The latest: LSU, Ole Miss and Texas A&M were among Mathews’ finalists when he committed to Auburn in August. Weeks out from the early signing period, he told ESPN that those three programs remain in close contact, working to flip the 6-foot-2 pass catcher from the Tigers.
Mathews saw two of those programs in person last month when he visited LSU for the Tigers’ Oct. 25 game with Texas A&M. Though Mathews intends to return to Auburn in the closing weeks of the regular season, he’s also likely to visit a few other campuses before signing day.
“Don’t be surprised if I’m on the road when the Tigers are not playing at Jordan-Hare,” Mathews said.
As Auburn conducts a coaching search, Mathews’ recruitment could roll into the first week of December, opening the door for one of his top-three suitors to make a late move.
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Greg Wyshynski
NEW YORK — Nashville Predators star Ryan O’Reilly said he regrets a frustration-fueled postgame rant last week in which he blamed himself for the team’s struggles.
“I think it came off as, ‘Gosh, you sound like a crybaby,'” he told ESPN on Monday.
After the Predators lost to the Philadelphia Flyers last Thursday, O’Reilly offered a brutal assessment of his own play, saying Nashville won’t have success “if I’m playing pathetic like that” as a No. 1 center. “[I] turn the puck over everywhere. Can’t make a six-foot pass to save my life,” O’Reilly said in a video clip that went viral. “It’s stupid. I’ve had one good year in my career. I don’t have an answer, that’s for sure.”
O’Reilly said that he “should have just bit my tongue” after the game. “Obviously, you don’t want things to get out there and it doesn’t look good on anyone on the team. I think I sound a bit like a baby where I should have politely shut up and be better and then that’s it,” he said.
The 34-year-old center has 6 goals and 6 assists in 17 games this season. His 12 points are second on the team in scoring. This is O’Reilly’s third season with the Predators. He won the Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues in 2019, capturing the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
The Predators are 5-8-4 heading into their game at the New York Rangers on Monday night. They were 5-9-3 in their first 17 games last season before eventually finishing 7th in the Central Division, 28 points outside of the last Western Conference playoff spot.
O’Reilly didn’t like that his rant last week brought added attention to a Nashville team that’s once again off to a slow start. “Obviously that [frustration] gets out there and it doesn’t look good on anyone on the team. You don’t want to draw attention to anything like that for our team,” he said.
However, the Predators center was optimistic things are better for Nashville than they were last season at this time.
“I think we’re much better defensively. Bounces aren’t going our way, but it’s a long season. We’re not giving up by any means and we’re going to keep fighting to find it,” he said. “Being a No. 1 center on this team, I think I do have to be better. It’s simple as that. I just maybe could have worded it a little bit better [last week].”
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