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Two days after leading Indiana to its first Big Ten championship in 58 years, Fernando Mendoza was announced as a Heisman Trophy finalist Monday.

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love and Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin joined the Hoosiers’ quarterback as the four finalists.

The winner will be revealed Saturday in New York.

Mendoza defeated Sayin and the Buckeyes in the Big Ten championship game Saturday to earn the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.

Mendoza clinched the victory with a 33-yard strike to Charlie Becker on third down, allowing the Hoosiers to run out the clock in the 13-10 victory to remain unbeaten. Mendoza passed for 222 yards and the go-ahead touchdown in the third quarter, as Indiana knocked off the Buckeyes, who had beaten the Hoosiers 30 consecutive times, dating back to 1988.

“We were never supposed to be in this position,” said Mendoza, the game’s MVP, after the victory, “but now we’re the flipping champs.”

Mendoza — the minus-1200 favorite to win the Heisman, according to DraftKings Sportsbook — will try to make more history this weekend. The Hoosiers have never had a Heisman winner, although running back Anthony Thompson finished runner-up in the voting to Houston quarterback Andre Ware, who is an ESPN college football analyst, in 1989.

Mendoza, a junior, transferred to Indiana from Cal during the offseason.

The Heisman Trophy has been awarded to the nation’s most outstanding college football player since 1935. The top four vote-getters, determined by more than 900 voters, are selected as finalists. The voting panel includes members of the media and former Heisman winners.

Though Vanderbilt didn’t make the playoff, Pavia is having a historical run for the Commodores.

The senior led Vanderbilt to its first 10-win season in school history and set school records with 3,192 passing yards and 27 passing touchdowns.

Love and the Fighting Irish also narrowly missed the playoff, as Miami surged past Notre Dame in the final rankings.

Love scored 21 all-purpose touchdowns, passing Jerome Bettis (1991) for the most in a season in Notre Dame history. Love, a junior, also ended the regular season fourth nationally with 1,372 rushing yards and third with 18 rushing touchdowns, while averaging 6.89 yards per carry.

Though he fell short in the Big Ten championship to Mendoza, Sayin had a spectacular first season starting for the Buckeyes. He ranks second nationally with a QBR of 89.6 and owns the best completion rate (78.4%) in FBS history. Sayin, a sophomore, threw three touchdowns Nov. 29, as the Buckeyes snapped a four-game losing streak to Michigan with a 27-9 victory in Ann Arbor.

Ohio State is the No. 2 seed in the playoff, and like the Hoosiers, will have a first-round bye.

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Fired Moore in custody, suspect in alleged assault

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Fired Moore in custody, suspect in alleged assault

Sherrone Moore was in custody in the Washtenaw (Michigan) County Jail on Wednesday night as a suspect in an alleged assault, just hours after he was fired as Michigan’s football coach for having what the school said was an “inappropriate relationship with a staff member.”

Moore was initially detained by police in Saline, Michigan, on Wednesday and turned over to authorities in Pittsfield Township “for investigation into potential charges.”

Pittsfield police released a statement Wednesday night saying they responded at 4:10 p.m. to the 3000 block of Ann Arbor Saline Road “for the purposes of investigating an alleged assault. … A suspect in this case was taken into custody. This incident does not appear to be random in nature, and there appears to be no ongoing threat to the community.

“The suspect was lodged at the Washtenaw County Jail pending review of charges by the Washtenaw County Prosecutor,” the statement continued. “At this time, the investigation is ongoing. Given the nature of the allegations, the need to maintain the integrity of the investigation, and its current status at this time, we are prohibited from releasing additional details.”

Pittsfield police did not name the suspect in its statement.

Earlier, Saline police stated they “assisted in locating and detaining former University of Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore. Mr. Moore was turned over to the Pittsfield Township Police Department for investigation into potential charges.”

Michigan fired Moore on Wednesday following an investigation into his conduct with a staff member.

“U-M head football coach Sherrone Moore has been terminated, with cause, effective immediately,” the school said in a statement. “Following a University investigation, credible evidence was found that Coach Moore engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.”

Moore, 39, spent two seasons as Michigan’s coach, after serving as the team’s offensive coordinator.

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Braves sign vet OF Yastrzemski to 2-year deal

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Braves sign vet OF Yastrzemski to 2-year deal

ATLANTA — The Atlanta Braves signed veteran outfielder Mike Yastrzemski to a two-year deal Wednesday that includes a club option for 2028.

The 35-year-old Yastrzemski hit .233 with 17 home runs and 46 RBIs in 146 games last year between San Francisco and Kansas City.

Yastrzemski, who spent the first six-plus seasons of his career with the Giants before being sent to the Royals in July, will make $9 million in 2026 and $10 million in 2027. Atlanta holds a club option for 2028. Yastrzemski will make $7 million if the Braves pick up the option. He will receive a $4 million buyout if they do not.

The versatile Yastrzemski, the grandson of Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski, can play all three outfield positions and is a career .238 hitter. His best season came in the COVID-19-shortened 2020 campaign, when he batted .297 with 10 homers in 54 games and finished in the top 10 in NL MVP voting.

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Rule 5: Yanks pick Winquest, Rockies get Petit

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Rule 5: Yanks pick Winquest, Rockies get Petit

ORLANDO, Fla. — The New York Yankees made their first selection in a Rule 5 draft since 2011 on Wednesday, taking right-hander Cade Winquest from the St. Louis Cardinals.

Winquest was one of 13 players — and 12 right-handed pitchers — chosen in the major league portion of the draft.

The Rockies took RJ Petit, a 6-foot-8 reliever, with the first pick from the Detroit Tigers. Petit, 26, had a 2.44 ERA in 45 relief appearances and two starts between Double A and Triple A last season. The Minnesota Twins chose the only position player, selecting catcher Daniel Susac from the Athletics.

Clubs pay $100,000 to select a player and must keep him on the active major league roster for the entire following season unless he lands on the injured list. Players taken off the roster must be offered back to the former club for $50,000.

The 25-year-old Winquest recorded a 4.58 ERA with a 48% groundball rate in 106 innings across 25 games, including 23 starts, between Single A and Double A last season. He features a fastball that sits in the mid-90s and touches 98 mph plus a curveball, cutter and sweeper. He is expected to compete for a spot in the Yankees’ bullpen next season.

Right-hander Brad Meyers was the last player the Yankees had chosen in a Rule 5 draft. He suffered a right shoulder injury in spring training and was on the injured list for the entire 2012 season before he was offered back to the Washington Nationals. He never appeared in a major league game.

Also picked were right-hander Jedixson Paez (Colorado from Boston), right-hander Griff McGarry (Washington from Philadelphia), catcher Carter Baumler (Pittsburgh from Baltimore), right-hander Ryan Watson (Athletics from San Francisco), right-hander Matthew Pushard (St. Louis from Miami), right-hander Roddery Munoz (Houston from Cincinnati), right-hander Peyton Pallette (Cleveland from Chicago White Sox), right-hander Spencer Miles (Toronto from San Francisco), right-hander Zach McCambley (Philadelphia from Miami) and right-hander Alexander Alberto (White Sox from Tampa Bay).

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