Larson gets waiver, eligible for NASCAR playoffs
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR on Tuesday granted Kyle Larson the waiver he needs to remain eligible to compete in this year’s playoffs despite missing the Coca-Cola 600 because he instead ran the Indianapolis 500.
The decision came after nearly nine days of internal NASCAR debate over whether Larson should be punished for choosing to stay in Indianapolis, where rain delayed the May 26 race by four hours. That meant Larson had zero chance of making it back to Charlotte in time to start the Coca-Cola 600.
But it was always his intent to race at Charlotte Motor Speedway and Larson did make it to the track, only to have the race called for rain before he ever turned a lap in his No. 5 Chevrolet. Justin Allgaier started in Larson’s place and was credited with a 13th-place finish.
“This was without a doubt unchartered waters; in the past, those waivers had been given mostly for medical reasons or for drivers suspended from our event, and those waivers were granted fairly quickly,” said Elton Sawyer, NASCAR senior vice president of competition. “This one was unprecedented in that we had a driver miss one of our races, one of our Cup championship events, to be at another event. That’s why it took as long as it did. The time we took, which was a week, was exactly the right time we needed to make the decision.”
Larson appeared to react to the waiver with a meme he posted on social media of him giving the thumbs-up.
Larson, who has two wins this season that make him automatically eligible for the playoffs, had his Cup Series standings altered after Sunday’s race outside St. Louis. Although he was listed as second in the overall standings, all his playoff points had been wiped away.
The playoff points were restored in Tuesday’s standings.
“To not have Kyle Larson in our playoff and give our fans the opportunity, the chance to see him race for a championship, at the end of the day, that didn’t feel that was the right decision for us to make,” Sawyer said.
Larson, who finished 18th at Indianapolis in large part because of a late speeding penalty, had worked out a minute-by-minute plan with Hendrick Motorsports to ensure he’d make the start of the Coke 600. But when rain disrupted the Indy 500, Rick Hendrick made the decision to keep Larson in Indianapolis.
All of Hendrick Motorsports was in constant contact with NASCAR and under the impression there was no issue so long as Larson made it back to compete in the 600.
Sawyer said no one from Hendrick was ever guaranteed a waiver if Larson did not make the NASCAR race.
“Under normal circumstances, completing ‘The Double’ is one of the toughest tests in sports. Despite our best efforts, this year’s combination of weather conditions in Indianapolis and Charlotte made it impossible,” Hendrick said. “Although losing ground in the standings was hard to swallow, we were especially disappointed for the fans at the Coca-Cola 600 who were not able to see Kyle race.
“I’m extremely proud of everything he did to prepare and the months of planning by our team and our partners at Arrow McLaren to run these two crown jewel events. We hoped race day would play out differently, but the program was still incredibly positive for everyone involved. Kyle’s performance throughout May was a great reflection on the level of talent competing each week in the NASCAR Cup Series. We appreciate NASCAR communicating with us throughout the effort and granting our request for a playoff waiver.”
Larson was the fifth driver in history to attempt to run the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 in the same day. Only Tony Stewart in 2001 completed all 1,100 miles.
There is concern now that NASCAR’s tough stance will deter drivers from trying the feat in the future. Larson had a two-year deal with Arrow McLaren and Hendrick to run Indy again in 2025, but it is not clear if NASCAR’s lengthy deliberations will upend those plans.
Waivers in NASCAR until now have been handed out like candy.
When NASCAR launched the playoff system in which a regular-season victory locked a driver into the playoffs, it wanted to ensure the driver wouldn’t start skipping races because their slot in the championship playoffs was guaranteed.
NASCAR said the drivers still needed to participate in all the events. But if they got injured? Well, then a waiver was available to excuse the absence from the Cup Series event.
Since then, the issue has become murky at best. NASCAR has granted waivers for physical injuries and illness but also for mental health and a suspension for accusations of domestic violence. Matt Kenseth, who had not driven in the Cup Series since 2018 when Chip Ganassi hired him during Larson’s suspension in 2020 for using a racial slur, even got a waiver.
Age waivers have been given in the Truck Series for drivers who missed the start of the season because they weren’t old enough to compete full time. Chase Elliott, Larson’s teammate at Hendrick Motorsports, last year was given two waivers: one for missing races while injured, the second for missing a race while he was under NASCAR suspension for intentionally wrecking Denny Hamlin.
The rulebook states that “Unless otherwise authorized by NASCAR, driver(s) and Team Owner(s) must start all Championship Events of the current season to be eligible for The Playoffs. If a starting position was not earned, then the driver(s) and Team Owner(s) must have attempted to Qualify, at the discretion of the Series Managing Director, for the Race.”
Sawyer conceded that although the rain in Indianapolis meant Larson was not at Charlotte in time for the start of the race, Larson made every attempt to race the 600.
“Our decision-making was, although we had the inclement weather in Indy as well as Charlotte, Kyle made every attempt to get to Charlotte,” Sawyer said. “He was standing in the pit box with his helmet on, ready to go, and unfortunately we had weather in Charlotte, as well, and we weren’t fortunate enough to get the race going again.”
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David Hale
The ACC will roll out its new nine-game conference schedule in a modified form for the 2026 football season, the conference announced Tuesday, with a full nine-game slate beginning in 2027.
For the upcoming season, which the ACC is calling a “transition year,” 12 of its 17 schools will play nine conference games, with Clemson, Georgia Tech, Florida State, North Carolina and Boston College playing just eight. Those five teams each have multiple Power Four opponents already scheduled outside the conference.
Because the ACC has an odd number of teams, one school will play eight league games each season starting in 2027.
Four ACC schools — Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech and Louisville — have an annual rivalry game against the SEC, and while Louisville AD Josh Heird said his school is eager to play a strong schedule each season, the other three initially balked at the lack of scheduling flexibility that would come with a nine-game conference slate and an annual nonconference game against their SEC rival.
Clemson has also scheduled an annual series against Notre Dame that starts in 2027, meaning that any year in which the Tigers are slated for nine ACC games, they’d be guaranteed at least 11 games vs. Power Four opponents.
Under the ACC’s new nine-game scheduling plan, which was approved in September, each team will be required to play at least 10 games against Power Four competition, meaning one nonconference Power Four game for the schools playing the full nine-game conference slate, and two for any teams playing eight.
The ACC will also adjust its tiebreaker policies for the 2026 season and beyond as a result of the unequal scheduling. The new formula, however, might also address concerns following this year’s five-team tie for second place in the conference that allowed a 7-5 Duke team to reach the championship game, which the Blue Devils ultimately won.
This marks the fourth different scheduling format for the ACC in the past four years. In 2022, the ACC agreed to scrap divisions for the 2023 season. In 2024, Cal, Stanford and SMU joined the league, forcing the ACC to adjust its annual rivalry games to fit the expanded roster of schools. The new nine-game league schedule, the ACC said, will allow for increased flexibility in scheduling and allow schools to face off more frequently.
The ACC remains contractually tied with Notre Dame as well, playing five nonconference games per year against the Fighting Irish.
Teams with a nine-game ACC slate in 2026
California
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Home: Clemson, Pitt, Stanford, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
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Away: NC State, SMU, Syracuse, Virginia
Duke
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Home: Boston College, Clemson, North Carolina, Stanford
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Away: Georgia Tech, Miami, NC State, Virginia, Wake Forest
Louisville
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Home: Florida State, Pitt, SMU, Stanford, Wake Forest
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Away: Georgia Tech, North Carolina, NC State, Syracuse
Miami
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Home: Boston College, Duke, Florida State, Pitt, Virginia Tech
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Away: Clemson, North Carolina, Stanford, Wake Forest
NC State
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Home: California, Duke, Louisville, Syracuse, Wake Forest
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Away: Florida State, North Carolina, Stanford, Virginia (in Brazil)
Pitt
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Home: Florida State, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Syracuse
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Away: Boston College, California, Louisville, Miami, Virginia Tech
SMU
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Home: Boston College, California, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
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Away: Florida State, Louisville, Stanford, Syracuse
Stanford
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Home: Georgia Tech, Miami, NC State, SMU
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Away: California, Duke, Louisville, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
Syracuse
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Home: California, Clemson, Louisville, SMU
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Away: Boston College, North Carolina, NC State, Pitt, Virginia
Virginia
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Home: California, Duke, North Carolina, NC State (in Brazil), Syracuse
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Away: Florida State, SMU, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
Virginia Tech
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Home: Georgia Tech, Pitt, Stanford, Virginia
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Away: Boston College, California, Clemson, Miami, SMU
Wake Forest
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Home: Duke, Miami, Stanford, Virginia
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Away: California, Georgia Tech, Louisville, NC State, SMU
Teams with an eight-game ACC schedule in 2026
Boston College
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Home: Florida State, Pitt, Syracuse, Virginia Tech
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Away: Duke, Georgia Tech, Miami, SMU
Clemson
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Home: Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina, Virginia Tech
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Away: California, Duke, Florida State, Syracuse
Florida State
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Home: Clemson, NC State, SMU, Virginia
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Away: Boston College, Louisville, Miami, Pitt
Georgia Tech
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Home: Boston College, Duke, Louisville, Wake Forest
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Away: Clemson, Pitt, Virginia Tech, Stanford
North Carolina
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Home: Louisville, Miami, NC State, Syracuse
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Away: Clemson, Duke, Pitt, Virginia
LUBBOCK, Texas — Big 12 champion Texas Tech, which has a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff, has extended the contracts of all three of its coordinators and the team’s general manager through the 2028 season.
The school announced the extensions Tuesday night for offensive coordinator Mack Leftwich, defensive coordinator Shiel Wood, associate head coach and special teams coordinator Kenny Perry, and GM James Blanchard.
“I appreciate (athletic director) Kirby Hocutt and our administration for proactively investing in the future of our football program,” head coach Joey McGuire said. “Our expectation is to compete annually for championships with this staff and the resources we have in place here at Texas Tech.”
Those new contracts for the assistants come two weeks after McGuire got an extension through the 2032 season and a significant pay raise.
Fourth-ranked Texas Tech (12-1) will play in the Orange Bowl CFP quarterfinal game on New Year’s Day against Oregon or James Madison.
Jeremiyah Love, the star Notre Dame running back and Heisman Trophy finalist, made it official Tuesday night and declared for the 2026 NFL draft.
Love made the announcement on social media, thanking his family, Fighting Irish coaches and teammates, among others, and saying he “could not have picked a better place for me to grow into the man I am today.”
Love is widely expected to be the top running back selected in next year’s draft.
The 6-foot, 214-pounder is projected to go No. 3 in Mel Kiper Jr.’s latest Big Board for ESPN, and Field Yates has him going 14th to the Kansas City Chiefs in his latest mock draft.
Love scored 21 all-purpose touchdowns in 2025, passing Jerome Bettis (1991) for the most in a season in Notre Dame history. The junior also ended the regular season fourth nationally with 1,372 rushing yards and third with 18 rushing touchdowns, averaging 6.89 yards per carry.
He finished third in Heisman voting behind winner Fernando Mendoza, the quarterback of No. 1 Indiana, and Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia. And he was Notre Dame’s first winner of the Doak Walker Award, given to the top running back in college football.
Love’s junior season already has ended because Notre Dame (10-2) didn’t make the College Football Playoff and opted against playing in a bowl.
As a sophomore, Love rushed for 1,125 yards and 17 touchdowns on 163 carries, helping Notre Dame reach the CFP championship game, which it lost 34-23 to Ohio State. He had 28 catches for 237 yards and two touchdowns that season.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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