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Looking to get in on the fun with NCAA March Madness?

Try a bracket challenge!

Here is a quick primer on how a March Madness bracket works, and how you can use the sportsbooks as the ultimate cheat sheet. By the end of this primer, you’ll be ready to jump in and shoot your best shot, even if you don’t know the name of a single player in the tournament.

Brackets are a popular way to bet, and anyone at all can win a bracket challenge. Remember, this is March MADNESS! You can expect the unexpected. Let’s break down how a bracket works.

A March Madness bracket starts with 64 teams (68 teams, really, but you don’t have to worry about the first four games Tuesday and Wednesday). Bettors will pick a winner from each of 63 games and get points for each correct pick along the way.

But, wait! You don’t know anything about college basketball? That’s O.K. There are plenty of hints to help you make smart decisions along the way.

Next to each matchup, you will see each team’s seeding. A seed is quite simply a team’s ranking. The 64 teams in the bracket are split into four regions of 16 teams. Each region is ranked 1 through 16; the 1 seed is the most favored, through to the 16 seed, which is the least favored. In addition, to reward the top teams, first-round matchups pair the No. 1 seed with the No. 16 seed, the No. 2 seed with the No. 15 seed, and so on. So, as you can see, the number one seed is always at an advantage. A number one seed has only lost in the first round twice in the tournament’s history: first when UMBC upset Virginia in 2018 and then again in 2023 when Fairleigh Dickinson upset Purdue.

Cam Spencer and the defending champ UConn Huskies are one of four No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament.

Sam Greene/USA TODAY Network

As each round progresses, you will get more points for picking the teams that advance. Games in the second round are worth twice as much as games in the first round, and so on. There are a total of seven rounds, with the penultimate round being the Final Four, and the final round being the national championship game.

Using sportsbooks as a cheat sheet

Here’s another hint: you can also use sportsbook futures odds as a cheat sheet to help you fill out your bracket!

At a sportsbook when you look at the odds for a game, a (-) sign indicates the favorite, while a (+) indicates the underdog. This plus the seeding can help you choose winners. For example, Las Vegas currently has Auburn (-750) favored vs. Yale (+525) in the first round. The sportsbook is telling us the odds are great that the Auburn Tigers will advance to the next round.

Another way to use the sportsbooks as a cheat sheet for your bracket involves point spread bets. If you see a spread of more than five points between competing teams in a given matchup, history tells us to bet on the favorite. If there is less than a five-point spread, and the favored team hasn’t won much in their last 10 games or is very closely matched with the opponent, it could be a good time to bet on the underdog. In the above example of Auburn vs. Yale, the point spread is -12.5. Again, this is a major indicator that the Tigers will advance in the first round. However, in the game between the Colorado State Rams (-125) and the Virginia Cavaliers (+105), the point spread is a mere -1.5 points. This could be an opportunity to pick an upset with the Cavaliers. This can help you make some decisions when filling out the first round of your bracket.

You can also look at futures odds and work backwards! You can check in now on odds for the Sweet 16, Final Four and national championship. If a team has a (-) sign in front of their odds, the sportsbooks think they are more likely to advance (and therefore they are going to pay out less money for that bet). If a sportsbook has a (+) in front of a team’s odds, that team is considered less likely to advance and the sportsbook is willing to pay more than your initial investment for that wager.

For example: if the sportsbook has UConn at -110 to make the Final Four while Gonzaga is at +1400, you can assume it’s pretty likely UConn will make it to the Final Four, while Gonzaga is more of a long shot. What Vegas thinks can give you an edge if you don’t know where to start.

The most important thing to remember in betting March Madness is that it’s called madness for a reason. No one will fill out a perfect bracket; in fact, the odds to fill out a perfect bracket are about 1 in 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 – that’s 9.22 quintillion. So, don’t think about being perfect! Just have some fun, root for some underdogs and enjoy the madness! 

Related: 2024 March Madness: Odds and Spread for Every Round 1 Game

The Baltimore Ravens all but signaled the end of Odell Beckham Jr.’s tenure with the club when they released the veteran wide receiver with a post-June 1 designation last Wednesday. 

But Beckham confirmed he won’t be returning to the Ravens next season, penning a goodbye message to teammates and fans on Instagram. 

"Swea on everything I appreciate the Flock more than yall could EVER imagine. Did everything I could wit the opportunities I had. Wish I got to do it big for yall 💍. Thank you for the Vibez! To the City of Baltimore I fxck wit yall forever FRRRR. And most importantly to my brothers over there this shxt a lifetime sentence, I love yall! BiggestTruzzz," Beckham wrote.

View the original article to see embedded media.

Beckham, who signed a one-year contract with Baltimore last April, expressed regret in his farewell that he couldn’t deliver a championship to Ravens fans. 

The New Orleans native appeared in 14 games for the Ravens in 2023, tallying 35 receptions for 565 yards and three touchdowns. 

Most importantly, Beckham, who missed just two games with the Ravens in '23 due to an ankle injury, largely proved to teams that he was healthy after missing the entire '22 season rehabbing a torn ACL he suffered during Super Bowl LVI when he was a member of the Los Angeles Rams. 

As many as 12 teams expressed interest in Beckham when he was a free agent last offseason, although there has been little reported interest in the three-time Pro Bowl selection thus far in free agency. 

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — As a player director and member of the PGA Tour Policy Board, Tiger Woods “absolutely needs to be involved” in a meeting scheduled for Monday with the head of the Private Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia, Rory McIlroy said.

It appears that is going to be the case.

If not, Yasir Al-Ramayyan, the governor of the PIF, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan, who is also the CEO of new PGA Tour Enterprises, and several other player directors are going to a lot of trouble to be in the Bahamas.

A source told Sports Illustrated that the meeting which board member Patrick Cantlay confirmed Sunday would be taking place is going to happen in Nassau, Bahamas. Or, more specifically, the Albany Resort where Woods often parks his yacht and hosts his annual fundraising golf tournament.

PGA Tour Policy Board member Tiger Woods appears to be meeting Monday with his fellow board members and Yasir Al-Rumayyan.

Jason Parkhurst/USA TODAY Sports

Golfweek reported on Friday that a meeting would take place soon between the backer of LIV Golf and that the six player directors on the PGA Tour board were “strongly encouraged” to attend.

McIlroy said Sunday that such a meeting should have taken place “months ago.”

Some members of the Strategic Sports Group, which recently committed some $1.5 billion to PGA Tour Enterprises in the form of private equity, are also expected to end.

Cantlay, who withdrew from this week’s Valspar Championship, described the meeting as more of a meet and greet. Webb Simpson has said previously that he felt it was time to meet the people behind LIV Golf and get an idea of what they are looking to do.

“Well, I’ve gotta hear out what they have to say, and I will always do my best to represent the entire membership whenever I am in a meeting in that capacity,” Cantlay said after his final round at the Players Championship. “I think more information is always better.”

Cantlay indicated he was in more of a listen mode. Simpson, at the Arnold Palmer Invitational recently, said he felt at this point it was “very dangerous” to not make a deal with the PIF.

“I think we’re in a position where we want to do the right deal,” he said. “We don’t want to just do a deal because we’re afraid that the LIV tour might recruit more players. That’s certainly a fear. But I think it’s obvious. The writing is on the wall. We’re not in a position where we need to do a deal for money. We need to do a deal for the good of the game. And for the health of the PGA Tour long term. That’s my hope.”

Simpson added: “I don’t know what they (LIV and the PIF) want. I don’t know what the players playing for LIV want. I think they’re very happy where they are. I think they’re very happy with the decisions they’ve made. But I’ve heard from enough people who have grown a little distasteful with the current state of golf. Not pointing blame at LIV or PGA Tour or anyone.

“When you come to big tournaments like the Arnold Palmer Invitational, you want to know the guy who won beat most or all of the best players. Right now the PGA Tour still has more great players, but LIV has great players as well. I just think for the health of the game and longevity and for what fans are used to seeing ...”

The 2024 Players Championship had an ending that nobody will ever forget Sunday at TPC Sawgrass, with Scottie Scheffler getting the win after three players missed birdie putts on the final hole that would have forced a playoff. 

Wyndham Clark was the last of those players to miss his putt, and his was the most brutal of the three. His ball looked as if it was going to fall into the hole, but then it rolled around it and stayed out. 

This angle of his miss makes it even more heartbreaking, as you can see that Clark starts to celebrate while thinking he was going to make it: 

Unreal. pic.twitter.com/HU5GEd7o6g

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 17, 2024

Ouch. 

Scottie Scheffler made history Sunday when he stormed back to win his second straight Players Championship with a final round at TPC Sawgrass that never will be forgotten. 

The No. 1 player in the world fired an 8-under 64 and then held on to win after three players, including Wyndham Clark, missed birdie putts on the final hole that would have forced a playoff.

Scottie Scheffler and his wife, Meredith, share a sweet moment after the Players Championship. 

Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union

Scheffler became the first golfer to ever win back-to-back Players Championships, and he also picked up his second straight win in as many weeks after winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando. 

Scheffler talked Sunday night about what keeps him grounded and how his wife, Meredith, is key to that: 

Scottie Scheffler after winning 2024 Players Championship: "I have a great wife, and if I started taking my trophies and putting them all over the house and walking in all big-time, I think she would smack me on the side of the head and tell me to get over myself pretty quickly." pic.twitter.com/WJMGeYP09W

— Golfweek (@golfweek) March 17, 2024

Golf fans loved it: 

How can you not love this guy.

A great role model and a genuinely good man. At the top of his profession. https://t.co/vqd2jOghOl

— EMQBets (@EMQBets) March 18, 2024

How can ya not love Scottie and Meredith Scheffler?? 😂 https://t.co/oIrBC4P54O

— Adam Awes (@AdamAwes10K) March 18, 2024

Huge win for the Tour that the best player on the planet since Prime Tiger also happens to be one of the most down to earth, normal dudes you’ll find https://t.co/m20kt1Bzk5

— Hot Karl (@karl_mamba) March 18, 2024

Best player we’ve seen since Tiger and this is his attitude. Be prepared for many more wins https://t.co/5YO8ScWEae

— Alec (@AShortess) March 18, 2024

Congratulations Scottie! Glad you are grounded & that your wife keeps you that way. So happy I have someone to root for that is humble, likeable, & great for the game. Cant wait to watch you at Augusta! https://t.co/jRFDUt8lo5

— Carol Marsh (@philsno154) March 18, 2024

This https://t.co/XtLkOVk6zd

— Rea Schuessler, PGA (@SchuesslerRea) March 18, 2024

With the first week of NFL free agency in the books, let’s assess which teams got better or worse by declaring winners and losers.

Yes, the Carolina Panthers will again be on the losing side. That’s not a spoiler. (You know the franchise is in bad shape when local celebrities are questioning the direction of the organization.)

But, hey, at least the Panthers got something in return for trading Brian Burns to the New York Giants. The Minnesota Vikings lost Kirk Cousins for nothing in free agency and were left scrambling for a starting quarterback. The Vikings, however, prepared for the outcome of losing their star player (take notes Panthers) and quickly landed Sam Darnold and an extra first-round pick for the 2024 draft.

Unlike the Dallas Cowboys, the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders have had a busy free agency. But only one of the two NFC East teams were mentioned in the winner’s category.

Let’s not waste more time because plenty occurred last week. Here are the winners and losers from the first wave of free agency.

WinnersTexans take advantage of C.J. Stroud’s rookie contract Hunter got $48 million guaranteed from the Texans.

Matt Krohn/USA Today network

The edge rusher swap that wasn’t a trade between the Houston Texans and Vikings defined the difference in situations each team has this offseason.

Some Texans fans might have been upset to see Jonathan Greenard leave for the Vikings—he got four years, $76 million. But a day later, the Texans upgraded, signing Danielle Hunter to a two-year, $49 million deal, including $48 million guaranteed. I say upgrade because he’s a proven player who’s ready to help a team win a Super Bowl now, which is a realistic goal in Houston because of DeMeco Ryans and C.J. Stroud. The Texans quickly realized they needed to be aggressive because of the window they have with Stroud’s rookie contract. Ask the Bills, Chargers and Bengals how important it is to maximize these rookie contract years before the bill comes due on the star quarterback.

If the Texans paid Greenard, who’s three years younger than Hunter, they would have needed to commit beyond two years, even though Greenard has had only one dominant season since being drafted in 2020. The Texans know what they have with Hunter and it could do wonders for Will Anderson Jr.’s second season in Houston. Ryans’s defense also gained Azeez Al-Shaair and Denico Autry last week.

The trade for Joe Mixon and the re-signing of Dalton Schultz will benefit Stroud and make the Texans a strong contender in the AFC. But I’m not ready to say they’ll dethrone the Kansas City Chiefs in the conference. Let’s wait for the NFL draft before forming the list of teams that could surpass K.C.

Falcons add weapons after Cousins signing

The more signings the Falcons make, the more I like the Kirk Cousins move to Atlanta.

After signing Cousins (four years, $180 million), the Falcons quickly added depth and speed to a receiving corps that desperately needed those two attributes. The issues weren’t as noticeable last year because the Falcons had a dreadful passing attack with Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke—they often failed to get the ball to an open Drake London.

Cousins will hit his receivers and now has more weapons beyond London, Kyle Pitts and Bijan Robinson out of the backfield. The Falcons flipped Ridder to the Cardinals in exchange for wide receiver Rondale Moore and added former 49er Ray-Ray McCloud III, who could also help on special teams.

New coach Raheem Morris has already addressed two needs that ultimately doomed Arthur Smith during three seasons in Atlanta. The Falcons now have a franchise quarterback and plenty of depth at wide receiver.

Jacksonville Jaguars … for not paying Calvin Ridley The Jaguars didn't overspend on Ridley, who received a four-year, $92 million deal from the Titans.

Steve Roberts/USA TODAY Sports

The Jacksonville Jaguars made a few questionable decisions in free agency such as paying wide receiver Gabe Davis $39 million over three years. But at least they didn’t overspend on Calvin Ridley, who signed a massive four-year, $92 million deal with $50 million guaranteed to join the Tennessee Titans.

The loss of Ridley stings, but at least the Jaguars won’t be asking themselves in a year or two why they committed so much money to a player on the wrong side of 30 and with only two 1,000-yard seasons in his career.

Perhaps Ridley is worth the money and does well with Will Levis in Tennessee, but often the team that doesn’t overspend ends up being the true winner in the long run. The Jaguars can fill Ridley’s void by drafting a wide receiver to go with Davis and Christian Kirk.

As for the Titans, you won’t find them in the losers’ section of this story. They have had a strong free agency with the acquisitions of running back Tony Pollard, center Lloyd Cushenberry and cornerback Chidobe Awuzie.

Commanders’ smart, underrated signings

The Washington Commanders appear to be the bad team that spends an absurd amount of money in free agency because the roster is filled with holes.

But they’re not spending just to spend. These are savvy bargain moves on players with upside. Edge rusher Dorance Armstrong (three years, worth up to $45 million) isn’t a household name, but he often made the most of his opportunities playing behind Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence in Dallas. It wouldn’t be surprising if Armstrong, 26, is as good as Greenard and Bryce Huff, two ascending edge rushers who got paid more last week.

The other Washington signings were cheaper than Armstrong, moves that could benefit the incoming rookie quarterback and a defense that needs plenty of help.

Here are the notable signings: Running back Austin Ekeler (two years, $11.43 million), guard Nick Allegretti (three years, $16 million), center Tyler Biadasz (three years, $30 million), edge rusher Clelin Ferrell (one year, $3.75 million), linebacker Bobby Wagner (one year, $6 million in guarantees), linebacker Frankie Luvu (three years, $36 million) and safety Jeremy Chinn (one year, $4.1 million).

It’s a new era in the nation’s capital.

Lions address defensive issues The Lions added more help in the secondary with the addition of Davis.

Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports

Speaking of new eras, the Detroit Lions are Super Bowl contenders and they’re acting like it.

The Lions haven’t gotten complacent after their run to the NFC title game, addressing holes on their defense. They didn’t get much return from last year’s notable signings of defensive backs Cameron Sutton, Emmanuel Moseley and C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who left to re-join the Philadelphia Eagles.

Sutton and Moseley, who re-signed on a one-year extension, will be competing for snaps with the arrival of Carlton Davis III, who was traded to Detroit by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Lions also added a versatile defensive back in Amik Robertson, a slot cornerback for the Las Vegas Raiders last season.

But the improvements weren’t just in the back end of the defense. Defensive tackle D.J. Reader and edge rusher Marcus Davenport joined a front featuring Aidan Hutchinson and Alim McNeill. With an improved defense, the Lions might have a strong case for having one of the best rosters in the NFL.

Vikings begin post-Cousins plan, land extra first-round pick

The Vikings had a concerning quarterback dilemma after they lost Cousins to the Falcons in free agency. It seemed the Vikings were going to roll into the 2024 season with newcomer Sam Darnold as the starting quarterback. That’s why many tweets and columns were published about the possibility of Justin Jefferson asking for a trade.

The Vikings weren’t going to trade Jefferson, regardless of the post-Cousins plan this season. But now it appears the Vikings might know what they’re doing at quarterback, a plan that could make the soon-to-be highest-paid wide receiver happy. Minnesota acquired an extra first-round pick in next month’s draft after sending Houston second-round picks this year and next along with a sixth-rounder (No. 188) in 2024.

Now the Vikings are armed with the Nos. 11 and 23 picks to possibly move into the top five of the draft. Not sure if that would be enough to crack the top three because the Bears, Commanders and Patriots seem set on selecting a quarterback. But that could be enough to take the Chargers’ No. 5 pick and possibly select Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy.

An intriguing first-round quarterback paired with a bridge quarterback in Darnold would put the Vikings on a fast track to moving on from Cousins. The team could also have a dominant defense in 2024, putting less pressure on Darnold and the to-be-determined rookie signal-caller.

The Vikings added Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel and Blake Cashman to Brian Flores’s defense. The offense will welcome former Packers running back Aaron Jones to play with Jefferson, Jordan Addison and tight end T.J. Hockenson. 

LosersPanthers with more head-scratching decisions The Panthers received only second- and fifth-round picks for Burns.

Morgan Tencza/USA TODAY Sports

Country music star Luke Combs should start his own Panthers blog because he had solid analysis of the team’s decision to trade Burns to the Giants.

“What are we doing?” Combs wrote with several question marks and exclamation points. “No first-round pick for (Christian) McCaffrey a few years back and now none for Burns?”

Fair questions, especially when the Panthers were offered two first-round picks from the Rams for Burns back in October of 2022. The team also passed on trading Burns at the ’23 trade deadline before sending him to the Giants for second- and fifth-round picks.

That’s just poor planning all around and indecisiveness from the organization. It’s understandable that the Panthers didn’t want to commit $150 million to Burns, but that’s a scenario that should have been discussed in October when his value was much higher. 

Eagles’ risky splash moves

I’m a bit hesitant to criticize the Eagles’ free agency moves because they found a way to retain edge rusher Josh Sweat and now won’t have as many question marks on defense. But the Eagles took too many risks and overpaid for players that don’t play linebacker or cornerback.

I get the thinking, though. Younger players from the draft are often the best way to repair a position of need. So the Eagles, coming off a second-half collapse to a season that started 10–1, could end up finding draft gems to improve the defense and might get a few picks if they trade edge rusher Haason Reddick.

But if the Eagles had thoughts of bringing back Sweat on a restructured deal, there was no need to splurge on the signing of Bryce Huff, who agreed to a three-year, $51.1 million contract. The Eagles already spent a 2023 first-round pick on Nolan Smith. And, yes, maybe Smith isn’t ready to be a full-time starter after a quiet rookie season, but the Eagles got bold betting on Huff, a rotational player for the Jets last season.

Perhaps the Eagles would have been better off paying linebacker Patrick Queen and sticking with the edge rushers they already had. Instead, the Eagles took another gamble on linebacker Devin White, who lost his starting job last season in Tampa Bay. White hasn’t played at a Pro Bowl level since 2021 and ended up getting a one-year, $7.5 million deal from the Eagles.

As for the Saquon Barkley signing of three years, $37.75 million, the team invested too much in a running back who has struggled with injuries and hasn’t made a dominant impact on the field the past few seasons. But, then again, he was playing with the Giants, who had shaky quarterback play from Daniel Jones and a lackluster group of pass catchers.

Barkley could shine in the Eagles’ offense, but similar to the Huff signing, that money could have been spent on linebackers and defensive backs. There’s also risk with the Eagles trading for quarterback Kenny Pickett, but at least he’s not being counted on to be a starter. Somehow the Pickett addition makes the most sense from the many signings the Eagles have had the past seven days.

Bears mishandle Justin Fields’s development, trade The Bears received a sixth-rounder from the Steelers, which could become a fourth, for Fields.

Jeff Hanisch/USA TODAY Sports

The Justin Fields era will be remembered for unfilled potential, partly because of the Chicago Bears’ poor mismanagement with building a productive surrounding.

Fields didn’t develop into a star quarterback and is now a backup for Russell Wilson in Pittsburgh. All the Bears got in return was a 2025 sixth-round pick, which becomes a fourth-rounder if Fields plays 51% of the snaps in ’24.

Fields deserves some blame for not making it work in Chicago because of inconsistent performances as a passer. But the dynamic athlete carried the team many times, despite poor surroundings. The Bears couldn’t even net a Day-2 pick for a player who has so much untapped potential and helped the team win four out of its final six games in 2023.

Chicago made the right decision to draft a quarterback with the No. 1 pick in next month’s draft, which will likely be USC’s Caleb Williams. They have also had a productive free agency with the trade for Keenan Allen, re-signing of Jaylon Johnson and the additions of D’Andre Swift and Gerald Everett.

But the Bears botched the Fields trade, waiting until the last minute of free agency to send him to the Steelers, a low-risk, high-reward acquisition for them. Chicago could have waited until training camp to wait for a QB-needy team to make a better offer for Fields. Instead, they took what they could get and didn’t make Fields wait—one of the rare times they did right by him.

Dolphins’ all-in approach backfires

The Miami Dolphins lost plenty of talent in free agency with the departures of Christian Wilkins, Robert Hunt and Van Ginkel.

They couldn’t afford to keep their top in-house free agents because of how aggressive they have been the past few seasons, including trading for Tyreek Hill, Jalen Ramsey and Bradley Chubb. All they have to show for this all-in approach are two wild-card losses the past two seasons and limited cap space.

Now the Dolphins’ roster is weaker and they no longer have the luxury of leaning on Tua Tagovailoa’s rookie contract—he’s due for a massive pay day this spring or summer.

The Dolphins took a few steps back, but they did make notable signings with cornerback Kendall Fuller, Jordyn Brooks and a few other players who might be on the back end of their careers. That’s probably not enough to beat the Buffalo Bills in the AFC East.

Aaron Donald knew his career was complete on the night of Jan. 14. Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay got that message loud and clear the next day when the all-planet all-timer came into his office as the team was shaking off its playoff ouster in Detroit the night before.

“I’m full,” Donald simply told McVay.

Nothing was official yet. But the coach had all the information he needed.

“I’m just like, And you should be. You have every right to feel that way,” McVay said over the phone Sunday afternoon. “What an amazing thing. The words won’t do justice to the way that he so eloquently articulated it to me and just put it in a way that, as a human being, all you’re really looking for is to be at peace and to be happy. He was full. And, man, did you feel that. You’re just so happy because he earned it too.”

Donald earned absolutely everything that’s been said about him over the last few days.

The 32-year-old was the 2014 Defensive Rookie of the Year after being drafted 13th that April. He was first-team All-Pro in eight of nine years after that, with the only exception coming in his injury-marred season of ’22. He missed six games that season, and only three in the other nine years of his career. He was a Pro Bowler in all 10 of his NFL seasons, and won Defensive Player of the Year in ’17, ’18 and ’20.

Donald announced his retirement Friday.

Yannick Peterhans/USA TODAY Sports

He is quite simply, to this era, what Lawrence Taylor was in the 1980s, or what Deion Sanders was in the ’90s: a defensive player so great that, at his peak, there was no parallel for him. And, thanks to a relentless passion for both football and competition, Donald’s peak really encased his entire career, right from the start. Jeff Fisher, who coached Donald from 2014-16, will tell you the start goes back to before Donald even put on pads for a full-contact practice.

“You get into camp and you’re trying to teach guys how to practice without pads, and he’s just wrecking practice—so you know when the pads go on he’s going to wreck practice,” Fisher says. “You know this guy’s going to live in the backfield. You knew that. And the one thing that’s interesting is the countless offensive linemen that got better that were on the Rams roster during that period of time because they had to practice against him.”

And therein lies the interesting thing about Donald’s greatness—it seems like half the story Fisher and McVay, the two head coaches he played for, tell aren’t from the game field.

Similar to Fisher, McVay will never forget the first practices he had with Donald. This was as a coach who had worked against Donald as Washington’s offensive coordinator, which gave McVay a good idea of what a terror Donald was on the field. And yet, even given that experience, McVay wasn’t fully ready for what he was about to see in a non-padded practice.

“The only exposure I had to him in preseason activities, because of some of the contract stuff, was when he came to one of the first voluntary mini camps that you are allotted for new coaching staffs,” McVay says. “I have never seen somebody single-handedly destroy practice the way that he did in that two-day practice session. It’s hard enough to block him as it is. But then when you don’t have any pads or anything to really be able to get fits, his quickness, his get off, his accuracy with his hands, it was a human highlight reel.”

Because of all that, McVay says with a laugh, he actually felt fortunate that Donald held out through the coach’s first two offseasons in Los Angeles: “He steals souls. Here’s the thing, it gives false tells for everybody else on defense, and then you just totally ruin the confidence of any player that you’re going against.”

And did it ever translate on to the game field.

Coming out, Donald was seen by many, because of height, weight, and length deficiencies, as a player who would need to be in a certain scheme, and need to be paced, to be his best. But he proved himself to be a monster in, well, just about every system—from Fisher and Gregg Williams’s aggressive 4–3 to Wade Phillips’s attacking 3–4 to the more conservative Vic Fangio–inspired looks Brandon Staley and Raheem Morris ran. And Donald proved to be a player with unbelievable endurance: He played 90.41%, 83.57%, 84.47%, and 89.1% of the Rams’ defensive snaps in 2018, ’19, ’20 and ’20, respectively, which are absurdly high numbers for a defensive tackle.

Part of it was because physically, he was so strong, so quick, so low-to-the-ground and so good with his hands that trying to block him was like trying to catch a greased salmon. It was also, though, because his work didn’t stop with the physical stuff.

“He’s looking around and he’s the last one to put his hand in the ground,” Fisher says. “He knows protection. He knows which way the center’s turning. He knows where the help’s coming from. … He knows where the receivers are. He may not admit to it, but he knows formations. He knows exactly what to expect from a protection standpoint.

“The interesting thing was over the years, just talking to people, the offensive coordinator sitting up in the box calling the plays would have the mandate all week prior to playing the Rams, O.K., you guys got one job and that’s to tell me when he’s not in, when he’s taking a breath. They’d have like a separate call sheet for that. But when he’s in, I gotta stay with these calls.”

It all added up to, simply, one of the greatest careers a defensive player has ever had. Maybe the greatest.

“They asked me personally, where does he rank [of guys I coached]? He’s there with Reggie White, as far as the career,” Fisher says. “Different positions. Reggie was either, (a), a left end or (b), we put him on the nose. Reggie just couldn’t play any of the other positions, because it was awkward for him. The dominating player that he was, that’s where he kind of fit in. …

“Aaron was different. Just watch him. I’m so excited for him. I’m honored that I got to be somebody that got to be around him and the career that he had. When the great ones come, everybody wants to be part of those careers. It was just delightful to coach, he’s a great young man.”

Through our conversation, that’s what McVay kept coming back to, as well—how the person, the dad he is, the worker he is, the teammate he is, helps to complete the picture of just how impactful Donald has been on everyone around him.

Now, McVay is charged with charting life without him for the Rams.

The coach said he had a feeling, really, all year this might happen. Donald would take an extra moment during a game, or an additional few minutes with a young player after practice, or time to laugh with a buddy of his. He even went a little further with Christmas gifts this year, and those, to McVay, were all tells on where the veteran’s head was at. And maybe his way of leaving behind a little something extra for those he played with.

“I’m hopeful that he’ll be around a lot,” McVay says. “He’s welcome. I think the way that he lives on is you continue to honor his legacy and use him with the stories that you can tell to these guys. Fortunately, a lot of these guys have seen it, so when you reference it, they’ve seen it and you can use that as an example. His legend will never go away. There are stories upon stories. There’s evidence on the film. I think the things that resonate the most are usually storytelling when you’re really trying to paint a picture or teach a lesson.

“And he’ll be someone that I reference for the rest of my life as long as I’m fortunate enough to be coaching.”

How the Pittsburgh Steelers’ quarterback situation in 2024 plays out, for better or worse, rests on the shoulders of Mike Tomlin. This, of course, relates to how the last 10 days played out in Pittsburgh. It also relates to how the last 10 years played out.

Regardless of how you feel about how Kenny Pickett handled the Russell Wilson signing, it’s fair to say that the 2022 No. 20 pick was in a less-than-ideal environment to develop the last two years.

Pittsburgh’s offensive issues trace back to the team moving on from Todd Haley, who, for all the friction he may have caused, fielded units that finished second, third, seventh and third in total offense over his last four years with the Steelers (2014–17), and finished top 10 in scoring in each of those seasons. Tomlin turned to quarterbacks coach Randy Fichtner after firing Haley, in large part because Fichtner was close with Ben Roethlisberger. Then, when that didn’t work, the coach promoted Fitchtner’s quarterbacks coach, Matt Canada.

The results have been ugly. The Steelers have been 23rd or lower in total offense the last five years running, and out of the top 20 in scoring in four of those five years.

Pickett threw seven and six touchdowns, respectively, in his first two NFL seasons.

Philip G. Pavely/USA TODAY Sports

That’s what Pickett walked into when he was drafted in 2022. He also was pushed out onto the field in Week 5 as a rookie after spending all spring and summer taking third-team reps behind Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph. Year 2, as it turned out, would be worse. In early December, word leaked that the team had considered benching Pickett before the midseason firing of Canada, and before the season finale, rumors surfaced that the 25-year-old, recovering from tightrope surgery, was refusing to dress as Rudolph’s backup.

Pittsburgh had a quarterback who had his first two seasons thrown in a blender, finished that stretch hurt and then got raked over the coals based on those end-of-season whispers. And all of that’s without touching on how a mercurial receiver room affected the offense as a whole.

Regardless of how you see Pickett, that’s a lot for any player to work through in his first two years; it contextualizes what happened over the weekend leading into free agency.

On Saturday night before the legal tampering period kicked off, Tomlin told Pickett that he wasn’t sure if the team would land Wilson, but if it happened, there’d be an open competition for the job. Pickett said he was fine with that. Wilson agreed to terms Sunday. On Monday, Tomlin told Pickett that Wilson would work from pole position to start, and get the first reps at the beginning of OTAs, with Pickett competing from there.

Wilson hadn’t been given any assurance to be the starter (or really much of anything else). But you can see how Pickett’s first two years as a pro affected how he saw what Tomlin was telling him. His guard was up. He felt misled, based on conversations less than 48 hours apart from each other. Which is why he ended up asking for a trade. You can assign blame on that to whoever you want.

The bottom line coming out of all this is that where the Steelers are, now two full seasons separated from Roethlisberger’s last snap, is a function of how Tomlin has handled his quarterback room. Now, he’s gotten a ton right over his 17 years in Pittsburgh. He’s earned the benefit of the doubt.

Still, this one’s messy. And while the Steelers did come out of it with a good solution, pivoting to a very affordable trade for Justin Fields (we’ll get to that in a minute) and ending up with both Fields and Wilson for $4.44 million and a conditional 2025 Day 3 pick, their future at the most important position in the sport is now completely up in the air, with neither quarterback under contract for ’25.

Bottom line, if Pittsburgh doesn’t get good quarterback play in 2024 (with Pickett now off to the Philadelphia Eagles, Rudolph with the Tennessee Titans, and Trubisky back with the Buffalo Bills), there’ll be some tough questions for one of the NFL’s best coaches of the last 25 years to answer.

The Chicago Bears got stuck in between on Fields. In the end, I’m not sure what Chicago could’ve done to get more for its 2021 first-round pick.

As we detailed two weeks ago, Bears GM Ryan Poles accelerated just about everything on the evaluation of USC quarterback Caleb Williams, in order to give the team flexibility to trade Fields early in the offseason if the right opportunity came along. And after the combine, it was clearly uncertain whether that opportunity would come at all.

The two teams they’d circled as potential suitors for Fields—the Atlanta Falcons and Pittsburgh—were fishing around other players at the position. How the top of the market, stocked with Kirk Cousins, Baker Mayfield and Wilson, shook out would affect the Bears’ ability to find the right trade. Then, the top of the market did shake out, and not in Chicago’s favor.

The Falcons landed Cousins. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers kept Mayfield. The Steelers signed Wilson. And as all that was happening, action on the second tier of the market materialized. The Minnesota Vikings replaced Cousins with Sam Darnold; the Las Vegas Raiders landed Gardner Minshew as a bridge; and the New England Patriots did the same with Jacoby Brissett. Those three players cost a grand total of zero draft picks, illustrating something else pretty vividly: Teams might’ve seen Fields as a better option than Darnold, Minshew and Brissett, but not enough so where they’d give up draft picks for the difference, particularly given the spots the Vikings (positioning themselves to trade up for a quarterback), Patriots and Raiders (retooling, and doing so without a surplus of picks) were operating from.

So that left Chicago with a couple options. One was to keep Fields, which could make things awkward for the No. 1 pick coming in. Another was to squat on his rights and hope someone else would get desperate, be it because of an injury or some plan laid out not coming to fruition. In the end, though, Poles kept his word and did right by Fields (and probably Williams, too), in moving forward with the trade with the Steelers.

That deal materialized Friday night and into Saturday after Pittsburgh moved Pickett, giving Chicago an extra sixth-rounder in 2025 that can become a fourth-rounder if Fields plays 51% of the team’s offensive snaps next season. That might be unlikely—Tomlin was clear with Fields that he’s coming in as the backup and will work from there behind Wilson—but it does protect the Bears if Fields finds his way on the field and stays there.

Is it ideal? No. The Bears were hoping for a return like the one the New York Jets got for Sam Darnold three years ago, or the San Francisco 49er and Kansas City Chiefs once pried for Alex Smith. But in the end, if Williams fulfills his potential, this will be a simple sunk cost along the way. And Chicago did, again, do right by a young quarterback who did all the right things for them as a worker and a person over the last three years.

The Eagles had an interesting week. It happened, of course, with a couple of moves that were right up GM Howie Roseman’s alley: a contract extension for a lineman (guard Landon Dickerson scored a four-year, $84 million deal), and the acquisition of a distressed asset at quarterback (grabbing Pickett). And, then, there was the needle-mover that was uncharacteristic.

A year ago, Roseman and the Eagles were lauded for their backed-off approach at running back, with Miles Sanders allowed to leave for just $6 million per year with the Carolina Panthers, and D’Andre Swift coming in for a 2025 fourth-rounder and a seventh-round pick swap. The reality that just 12 months later the Eagles would move on Saquon Barkley at more than $12 million per year in base pay seems to fly in the face of that.

Barkley goes from one NFC East team to the next.

Kyle Ross/USA TODAY Sports

But there’s more to this than meets the eye. After digging around a bunch, here are some factors I can outline that played into the Eagles’ decision to go big on Barkley …

1. Last year, the Eagles’ run game ranked first in the NFL in yards before contact and dead last in yards after contact. So where Swift brought a ton to the table, Philly saw a little more meat on the bone there, if they could bring a bigger back to the table. The 230-pound Barkley fits the bill. He’s one of six players in the league to have over 1,000 yards after contact over the last two years.
2. What’s different about Barkley, from there, is his ability to combine that with real pass-game value, which Philadelphia felt was underutilized a bit in his time with the Giants, particularly amid the quarterback tumult there after Daniel Jones’ injury last year. So where some might pigeonhole Barkley as a back, the Eagles saw a difference-maker.
3. The 49ers’ success after trading for the league’s biggest running back contract, belonging to Christian McCaffrey, didn’t hurt from a precedent standpoint. It allowed San Francisco to move the needle on offense past the stacked deck it was already playing with at receiver, tight end and even fullback. McCaffrey, in that environment, found a way to become the 49ers’ most important offensive player.
4. Part of the reason for that is the amount of touches a premier back gets, more than any receiver or tight end could. So the value was there, if you saw Barkley in the very elite category at the position, from a per-touches standpoint.
5. The dollars make sense too. Barkley, even if he hits every incentive, will be on a contract with an APY lower than Courtland Sutton’s with the Denver Broncos, or where Hunter Renfrow was at on his last deal with Vegas.
6. The caveat, of course, is that Philadelphia has to keep Barkley healthy to get the sort of return they’re hoping for. But there’s some precedent there, too. The Detroit Lions made Swift available last year because it had gotten to the point where they felt like they couldn’t trust his health. The running back only missed one game with the Eagles, who have a lot of faith in what their medical and training staffs (revamped a couple years ago) do to keep players on the field.

And then, there’s this: smart teams don’t work from absolutes. So just because the Eagles did one thing one year doesn’t mean they’re going to operate the same way the next. In this case, the Eagles were open-minded and diligent, and that all led them to Barkley.

The Arizona Cardinals love Kyler Murray. I didn’t think I’d be writing that a year ago—when everyone thought Arizona would be the worst team in the league, preparing to draft Williams and offload Murray in 2024—but that’s where we are. And the team has now backed up the feelings it expressed on social media in a very big way.

By carrying Murray on the roster through the weekend, they locked in a $29.9 million guarantee for him for 2025. Now, it’s not like they could’ve just cut him without penalty (not that they’d considered it) over the last couple of weeks, since his $35.3 million for this coming season is already locked in. But if GM Monti Ossenfort and coach Jonathan Gannon had any intention on bailing, doing it sooner would’ve been better than later.

Instead, those two are now building around Murray, which, again, isn’t the result many people expected a year ago.

How’d Murray win over his new bosses? I collected some anecdotes …

• Quickly, through his rehab from ACL surgery, Murray started blowing up what perception held. In the early parts of 2023, right after Gannon and Ossenfort were hired, some might’ve expected Murray to retreat to Texas or California. Instead, he was in Arizona and at the facility daily, working with Cardinals senior reconditioning coordinator, Buddy Morris, going above and beyond to work his knee back to health.

• Oftentimes with players going through such a rehab, you’d see a reluctance to get too in the weeds on football stuff, but the opposite happened in April as the classroom-heavy beginning of the offseason program got going. At that point, there was no certainty that Murray would play at all in 2023, but he was engaged and inquisitive in working with OC Drew Petzing and staff, even as they built an offense that would look very different from the air raid schemes that Murray ran in high school, college and his first four years in the pros.

• Murray actually stayed in Arizona to keep working through parts of late June and July—after the offseason program concludes, but before training camp starts—which is very unusual for veterans, who normally use that time to get away.

• When he first got back out there (and after he’d established he was more coachable and relatable to teammates than previously advertised), he looked like Kyler. In his first game of 2023, Murray engineered a game-winning drive. He rode out a bumpy effort against the Rams. And at the very end, he was playing his best ball, in a win over Philadelphia, and a tight loss against the Seattle Seahawks.

• That Eagles game was where Murray’s steps in the offense turned a corner. As Gannon, Petzing and the staff called out things on the headset (throw the slant), they saw a quarterback who was running the offense as they saw it, with his actions closely matching those little missives between the coaches. And as for Murray’s one mistake, a pick, he quickly told them after: “I f---ed up.”

Murray has essentially been designated as Arizona’s franchise quarterback.

Joe Camporeale/USA TODAY Sports

And in that game, there was also a single play that showed Murray’s poise. In the fourth quarter, on fourth-and-4 from Philadelphia’s 5-yard line, Gannon decided to go for it. The Eagles threw a zero blitz at the quarterback. Murray quickly digested it and threw the ball to a spot where Michael Wilson would corral it for a touchdown to tie the game at 28.

On the play, Murray was coachable, he was gutsy, and he was clutch. By then, the Cardinals knew they had a quarterback they could build around.

I’ll give the Jets a hat tip for their creativity in fixing their offensive line. No one thought, going into last week, that Morgan Moses would’ve been a critical piece for a New York team that clearly needed help up front. But he was, in part because his acquisition, which was hardly simple on its own, would also enable a few other pieces to fit into the puzzle.

First and foremost, it doesn’t happen without GM Joe Douglas being willing to admit that letting Moses walk two years ago was a mistake. It also might not happen if Douglas doesn’t have a close relationship with Ravens GM Eric DeCosta (the two worked together for a decade-and-a-half in Baltimore). It might not have happened had those two elements not opened the lines of communication, and had the financials not really worked for New York.

All of it came together with the two GMs discussing the deal as the Ravens worked out a restructure with left tackle Ronnie Stanley. Once that was done, they could move forward.

From there, they negotiated a deal that had the teams swapping fourth-round picks (the Ravens moved theirs up from 135th to 113th in the process), and the Jets sending Baltimore a sixth-rounder. After that, with Moses locked in at that affordable number as the team’s presumed starter at right tackle, Douglas moved forward aggressively.

First he went and poached guard John Simpson from the Ravens—a player the Jets saw as an explosive run blocker, particularly in how he’d maul defenders as a puller—at $12 million over two years. Then, he landed eight-time Pro Bowler Tyron Smith on a deal that carries a base value of $6.5 million, with incentives that can lead him to a place where he’s paid like a top-five tackle. The Jets saw Smith as perhaps the greatest pass protector of all-time in his prime, and still one of the best in that area when healthy.

So at a base cost of $18 million, the Jets surrounded center Joe Tippmann and guard Alijah Vera-Tucker (whose ability to play tackle gave a little flexibility in who the Jets pursued) with three proven commodities, and put a fleet of young players the team wants to keep working with into backup roles where they can develop properly.

And so what’s next?

Well, Smith and Moses are only under contract for this coming year, so this does not, to be very clear, take the idea of the Jets drafting a tackle at No. 10 off the board. But it does give them the flexibility to look somewhere else with that pick—and it all happened at a pretty affordable rate, thanks to the team going a little outside the box with the position group.

Things worked out fine for the Los Angeles Chargers last week, in freeing themselves from the cap logjam created by last year’s contract restructures. The end result was Mike Williams being cut, Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa accepting pay cuts, and Keenan Allen turning one down and getting dealt to Bears. That shapes up to create an equation that Jim Harbaugh’s very familiar with.

In San Francisco, and at Michigan, Harbaugh’s team were often loaded with defensive stars, and had rugged offenses without a ton of flash at receiver. So having to make it work with Quentin Johnston and Joshua Palmer at receiver, rather than Williams and Allen, is probably more palatable to the new program than going without Bosa and/or Mack would’ve been.

Also, the Chargers still have the fifth pick in a receiver-rich draft. If the Cardinals trade out of No. 4, Harbaugh could land his old No. 1 receiver’s son, Marvin Harrison Jr., or Washington's Rome Odunze or LSU’s Malik Nabers. Even with a short trade down, they could get one of those players, or Georgia’s Brock Bowers, to restock Justin Herbert’s weaponry.

Meanwhile, the Chargers got Gus Edwards, and there’ll be another tailback they can grab somewhere in the draft (maybe even Harbaugh’s guy Blake Corum).

So overall? This was a pretty good turnout from a tough situation for the new Chargers regime—one that, good as Allen and Williams are, shouldn’t compromise the team’s ability to contend in Harbaugh’s first year back in California.

There will be smart signings this week—and some of them will be guys who are available now because of their age. Which is seen as a drawback by a lot of folks, but it doesn’t have to be.

The last iteration of the Patriots dynasty feasted on third-contract guys like that, and the Ravens have done something similar, both with the same logic. The thinking goes that when you sign someone who lasted that long in the league, you’re not guessing on how they’ll handle money, you have a longer track record to go on, and in a lot of cases (not all) you’ll get a player who’ll bring leadership ability to the table.

Among those who fit into that category this year for Baltimore: Odell Beckham Jr., Kevin Zeitler, Michael Pierce, Jadeveon Clowney and Ronald Darby.

So that’s my way of saying that free agency isn’t over, and some smart, enterprising team could wind up getting a lot out of someone from this 30-something bucket of players: CB Xavien Howard, OT Trent Brown, S Justin Simmons, CB Stephon Gilmore, CB Steven Nelson, DE Calais Campbell, WR Michael Thomas, QB Ryan Tannehill or even a couple of those Ravens names (Beckham, Zeitler and Clowney) we already mentioned.

That Vikings trade gives us all a window into where J.J. McCarthy now stands in the eyes of NFL teams. And that’s not to say that they all love him. It is to say that, assuming the Bears, Commanders and Patriots stay put and draft quarterbacks—zero of the three have shown an appetite for trading one of those picks—McCarthy is not just worthy of being, at worst, the fourth QB off the board, but maybe someone worth moving up for.

For now, what we know is Williams will almost certainly be a Bear. We also know that North Carolina’s Drake Maye and LSU’s Jayden Daniels are likely to go at No. 2 and 3, in some order.

Maybe Washington or New England pulls a shocker and takes McCarthy over one or both, but, for now, any team investigating a trade up to No. 4 or 5 with the Cardinals or Chargers has to be comfortable with McCarthy, as well as the other two, since there’s no guarantee of anything past the likelihood Williams won’t be there.

McCarthy is projected to go at No. 5 in Sports Illustrated’s most recent mock draft. 

Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports

So if Minnesota’s loading up for a trade up from No. 11, it’s a pretty good signal that McCarthy has worked his way into a spot within the first 10 picks.

And that leaves us with this week’s quick-hitting takeaways. Let’s get rolling with those …

• With Calvin Ridley, Tony Pollard and Lloyd Cushenberry aboard, the new Titans regime should be able to get a clear answer coming out of 2024 on whether or not Will Levis is the guy. And if he is, there’s a nice core on offense to work with, presuming the tackle need there is addressed in this tackle-rich draft (the Ridley signing could be a sign they’re leaning tackle at No. 7 already).

• While we’re there, Allen, Swift, DJ Moore, Cole Kmet, Braxton Jones and Darnell Wright should give Williams a good group to work with as a rookie. And the Bears can still add to that with the ninth pick.

• The Rams have been a logical landing spot for Jets QB Zach Wilson. I’d say maybe even more so now with Jimmy Garoppolo signed in Los Angeles. Wilson could use a reset, and to sit for a year, so going somewhere he’d be third string, would afford him such much-needed time. I’ve also heard his old OC from the Jets, Rams OC Mike LaFleur, would be very open to a reunion.

• Good move by the Cleveland Browns bringing in Mike Vrabel as a consultant. He’s got a connection through Jim Schwartz, who Vrabel had in Tennessee for two years, and a growing friendship with Kevin Stefanski. Vrabel’s value should be in the vision he has for game management and building a program. With a lot of turnover on staff the last two offseasons, adding such a voice with the experience he has should be valuable for Stefanski and the Browns.

• That it slipped that Drew Lock will compete for the Giants’ job with Daniel Jones only re-opens the discussion on New York taking a quarterback in the first round. Like a few teams, they have investigated the price of going up. And teams below them, whether right or wrong, view the Giants at No. 6 as a team you may need to leapfrog to get one of the top four quarterbacks.

• The Chiefs’ signing of Marquise “Hollywood” Brown to a one-year, $7 million deal (with upside to $11 million) is one that we could be talking about a lot in the fall. At his best, Brown was a home-run hitter who had to be accounted for from the minute he left the huddle. And Kansas City has a pretty good idea on how to use big-play threats.

• Nine years after drafting him, the Jacksonville Jaguars went out and landed Arik Armstead. And the championship pedigree that Armstead, a captain the last four years running in San Francisco, can bring should be really valuable for a Jacksonville group that struggled to take the next step last year.

• De’Vondre Campbell’s signing in San Francisco was a reminder of how unfortunate Dre Greenlaw’s injury was in Super Bowl LVIII. Campbell is there largely as insurance for the possibility Greenlaw’s absence carries into the season.

• How did Sam Howell fetch a nice little haul for the Commanders, with Washington moving up the 102nd pick to 78th, and the 179th pick to 152nd, for moving the quarterback to Seattle? A key factor was that he has two years left on his rookie contract, giving the Seahawks runway to develop him and see what he’s got.

• Lots of rules talk coming this week, with the league meeting kicking off in just six days.

West Virginia head women’s basketball coach Mark Kellogg decided to poke the bear.

The Mountaineers enter the NCAA women’s tournament as the No. 8 seed in the Albany 2 bracket. This means they’re one victory away from a matchup with No. 1 seed Iowa and star Caitlin Clark, but before that, will need to defeat Princeton in the round of 64. 

Kellogg addressed both games with a one-liner that quickly went viral, calling his shot for West Virginia to send Clark and the Hawkeyes home early.

“Let’s win one, and let’s send Caitlin Clark packing early,” Kellogg said after the selection show.

WVU HC Mark Kellogg with some strong words

“Let’s win one and send Caitlin Clark packing”

pic.twitter.com/7VKBbSFXi9

— Wesley Shoemaker (@wesleyshoe) March 18, 2024

Iowa is currently ranked No. 2 in the country with a 29–4 record behind another stellar season from Clark. The senior guard was the 2023 AP Player of the Year and is the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer.

Clark has averaged 31.9 points, 8.9 assists and 7.3 rebounds per game this season while shooting 46% from the field and 38.1% from beyond the arc. She’s propelled Iowa into the elites of college basketball and is a key reason they’re one of the favorites to win the national title.

West Virginia finished the 2023-24 season with a 24–7 mark, tied with Baylor for fourth in the Big 12. They’re led by guard JJ Quinerly, who averages 19.6 points per game this season.

The University of Michigan opted to make a change to its men’s basketball program on Friday, parting ways with head coach Juwan Howard after five seasons.

Athletic director Warde Manual called Howard “among the greatest Wolverines to ever be associated with our basketball program” in a parting statement. However, the statement also said that the program was not living up to expectations and “not trending in the right direction.”

Following the news, Howard issued a statement on Sunday thanking the school and numerous people involved, including Manual. He cited the program’s success over his five seasons at the helm while showing appreciation for his family, Wolverines players and the staff amid health challenges throughout the 2023-24 season.

Thank you, Coach Howard 💙💛 pic.twitter.com/POingwtrJD

— Michigan Men's Basketball (@umichbball) March 17, 2024

Howard, who also played three seasons at Michigan from 1991-92 through 1993-94, is unquestionably a “Michigan man forever,” as he said.

He took over as the program’s head coach ahead of the 2019-20 season and led them to a 1912 record. Howard’s best year came in 2020-21, as the team went 23–5 and was ranked as high as No. 2 in the country.

That year, Michigan was the regular season champion and advanced to the NCAA tournament, losing to UCLA in the Elite Eight.

Michigan made the tournament twice under Howard’s watch, also going dancing in 2022 before bowing out in the Sweet 16 with a 63–55 loss to Villanova. Howard coached 159 games at Michigan, finishing with an 87–72 record.

Hailey Van Lith made the move from Louisville to LSU ahead of her senior season and enjoyed a solid year with the Tigers in 2023-24. 

LSU earned a No. 3 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament, pitting them up for a matchup against No. 14 Rice in the opening round. Should they take care of business in the first round, they’ll potentially be greeted by none other than the Cardinals during the round of 32.

• 2024 March Madness: Latest News & Analysis

Louisville was also drawn into the “Albany 2” section of the women’s bracket as a No. 6 seed, and it is due to meet No. 11 Middle Tennessee in their opening-round tilt.

Upon the announcement of the potential matchup with her former squad, Van Lith looked totally taken aback before breaking into laughter. At the same time, Tigers coach Kim Mulkey and star forward Angel Reese began excitedly pointing in Van Lith’s direction. 

Priceless!

Check out @LSUwbkb , @KimMulkey @haileyvanlith and @Reese10Angel reaction to @LouisvilleWBB being sent to Baton Rouge for the NCAA Tournament. #LSU pic.twitter.com/mnuamNbquR

— Jacques Doucet (@JacquesDoucet) March 18, 2024

Van Lith played three seasons for Louisville from 2020-23, featuring in 101 games for the program. During her junior season, she averaged 19.7 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists before entering the transfer portal.

Although it’s no guarantee that both the Cardinals and Tigers win their first-round matchups, the potential for a collision between the two teams in the second round of the tournament did not go unnoticed by Van Lith and company. It also could make for an intriguing matchup and one of the most enticing storylines early in the tournament.

There was no question about the No. 1 overall seed for the women’s tournament. (Who else but the undefeated South Carolina Gamecocks?) But plenty of bracket drama was in store beyond that on Selection Sunday.

Let’s start with the second regional in Albany. There at the top, you have the one-seed Iowa Hawkeyes, two-seed UCLA Bruins and three-seed LSU Tigers. That’s both teams from last year’s national championship game—each has since graduated some of its talent, yes, but they’ve both shown a clear ability to move beyond those key losses—bookending a program that had its own case for a top seed for most of the year in UCLA. Then you have the four-seed Kansas State Wildcats, who delivered the first loss of the season to Iowa, and the five-seed Colorado Buffaloes, who delivered the first loss of the season to LSU. All in one region! That’s an awfully dense concentration of talent. If you were expecting Caitlin Clark & Co. to return to the Final Four or Angel Reese to run it back with LSU or Lauren Betts to make a deep run with UCLA? You can only pick one. It’s going to be a tough road out of this regional.

Clark & Co. earned a No. 1 seed after winning the Big Ten tournament, but the Hawkeyes’ region won’t be an easy one with defending champ LSU and two-seed UCLA in the mix. 

Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen/USA TODAY NETWORK

“It just ended up working out that way based on where you can put teams,” said committee chair Lisa Peterson. “If you look at the overall balance of the different regions, there wasn't a drastic difference. But I can completely see where those first four [seeds in Albany 2], it looks that way.”

Then look at the fourth regional in Portland. Three of the four No. 1 seeds in the bracket were more or less obvious: South Carolina had been unquestionable for weeks in Albany 1, Iowa sealed its spot by winning the Big Ten tournament for Albany 2, and the USC Trojans did the same with the Pac-12 tournament for Portland 3. But that fourth one in Portland? It had once seemed likely it would belong to the Stanford Cardinal. But that was thrown into doubt with a conference tournament loss to USC. There was a case to be made that the Pac-12 was strong enough this year to merit two No. 1 seeds. But there was stiff competition here from the Texas Longhorns, who’d made a remarkable run through the Big 12, even without their injured point guard Rori Harmon.

The committee ultimately gave Texas that last No. 1 seed and Stanford the corresponding No. 2.

“This was one of the most highly debated things we did,” Peterson said. “You definitely want to make sure you get that one-line right.”

It mostly came down to recent play, including their respective conference tournaments, she said. Texas is 9–1 in its last 10 games; Stanford is 8–2. Texas won the Big 12 tournament by beating three NCAA tournament teams; Stanford fell in the Pac-12 tournament finals and beat only one NCAA tournament team. But the conversation was so close that it was like “trying to slip a piece of paper between teams,” Peterson said.

Dawn Staley fines herself in a familiar position as the Gamecocks enter the women’s tournament as an undefeated one-seed. 

Jim Dedmon/USA TODAY Sports

Here are some more takeaways from Selection Sunday:

• South Carolina could face opponents it has already played this season in both the first and second rounds. The Gamecocks faced the 16-seed Presbyterian Blue Hose in December and the eight-seed North Carolina Tar Heels in November. (They won the former by 70—yes, 70, seven-zero, winning so comfortably it almost seemed uncomfortable—but did face a bit of a challenge from UNC.) It’s unusual to see multiple potential repeat opponents for a team so early. But, of course, there’s a lot that’s unusual about these loaded, balanced Gamecocks. They’re about as close of a lock for the Final Four as you can get.
• We have two bids from the Ivy League! The nine-seed Princeton Tigers had an automatic bid thanks to winning the conference tournament. No surprise there: Princeton has been ranked throughout the season and has pulled off first-round tourney upsets in each of the last two years. But the only Ivy League team to beat Princeton this regular season was… the Columbia Lions. They had a tournament case of their own. They’d ultimately gone 23–6 after seeking out a fairly tough non-conference schedule; Columbia coach Megan Griffith made an impassioned plea to the committee in a press conference this weekend. They agreed with her. “Great regular season,” Peterson said. “They tried to challenge themselves outside of the league, and just really felt like they deserved to be in the tournament.” It will be the first NCAA tourney appearance for the Lions. They’ll be a 12-seed with a first-four play-in game against the Vanderbilt Commodores.
• The two-seed Notre Dame Fighting Irish dropped some unfortunate news during the bracket reveal. Senior forward Kylee Watson announced that she tore her ACL when she injured her knee last week in the semifinals of the ACC tournament. Watson had started every game for the Irish this year before she got hurt and represents a huge loss for this roster. Her numbers may not be overwhelming—six points and five rebounds per game—but she offers size, grit and a key defensive presence. That’s a difficult blow for the Irish—especially given that it’s the second consecutive season in which they’ve had to announce an injury right before the tournament.
• The last few years have been full of discussion about the increased parity in the women’s game. That now feels less like a trend and simply more like a new norm. “What we've been saying all year is that women's college basketball, there's so much parity happening,” Peterson said. “It makes it really exciting for the game… Now it doesn't matter if you don't go to the four schools that you always heard of back in the ’80s and ’90s, that you can go to any school and you can win a national championship.” This is only the third year the NCAA has allowed the women’s tournament to use the branding of “March Madness.” Expect it to prove—again—that it more than deserves the name.

March Madness is upon us after a chaotic championship week and plethora of bid stealers. Predicting how the 2024 NCAA men’s tournament will unfold on the court can be tricky—which is why we’re here to help.

Related: March Madness: Forty Things to Watch in the 2024 NCAA Men’s Tournament

Now that the field of 68 is set, Sports Illustrated’s Kevin Sweeney and Pat Forde make their picks for each round of the tourney, all the way to the Final Four in Phoenix.

[ March Madness 2024: News & Analysis | Schedule | Bracket ]

Below are our expert brackets.

Kevin Sweeney Click here for a full-sized version of Sweeney’s picks.

Sweeney’s Final Four: Auburn Tigers, Baylor Bears, Houston Cougars and Purdue Boilermakers.

Sweeney’s 2024 champion: Purdue.

Pat Forde Click here for a full-sized version of Forde’s picks.

Forde’s Final Four: UConn Huskies, Baylor Bears, Houston Cougars and Creighton Bluejays.

Forde’s 2024 champion: UConn.

2024 NCAA men's tournament regional breakdowns

• South Region: Top Two Seeds Houston and Marquette Have Strong Cases For Final Four

• West Region: North Carolina Earns Last No. 1 Seed But Has Hard Path

• Midwest Region: Can Purdue Finally Break Through?

• East Region: Auburn Could Stand in UConn’s Way of a Repeat National Championship

Related: March Madness: Eight Best Men’s NCAA Tournament Games of First Weekend

The NCAA men’s tournament bracket is finally out! After a few big surprises during the selection show, the field of 68 is set, and now the countdown is on until Thursday for wall-to-wall action of the most dramatic sporting event in the world. Which games should you have circled on your calendars? Here’s a look at the eight best Round of 64 matchups you won’t want to miss.

[ March Madness 2024: News & Analysis | Schedule | Bracket ]

No. 5 Wisconsin Badgers vs. No. 12 James Madison Dukes, Friday, 9:40 p.m. ET

This will be a very popular 12-over-5 upset pick, with the 31-win Dukes matching up with a Wisconsin team that showed some cracks down the stretch. While the Badgers did make a deep run in the Big Ten tournament highlighted by a win over the Purdue Boilermakers, Wisconsin did lose eight of 11 before that tournament run to slip out of a top-four protected seed. Can the Dukes pull the upset? If they do, a potential second-round date with Duke would be all kinds of fun.

Related: South Region Breakdown: Top Two Seeds Houston and Marquette Have Strong Cases

No. 8 Florida Atlantic Owls vs. No. 9 Northwestern Wildcats, Friday, 12:15 p.m. ET

The FAU storyline has been a big one all season in college basketball. In some ways, nothing the Owls could have done in the regular season would have mattered: Since the moment FAU’s core announced plans to return from last year’s Final Four team, a second deep March run has been the standard. But how will Florida Atlantic balance not being Cinderella this time? The Owls have a tough road, starting with Boo Buie and Northwestern in Brooklyn. Buie is the type of player who can single-handedly win a tournament game or two, and that might be necessary given the Wildcats’ injury issues.

Florida Atlantic guard Bryan Greenlee slaps hands with Johnell Davis during a game earlier this season.

Petre Thomas/USA TODAY Sports

Related: East Region Breakdown: Auburn Could Stand in UConn’s Way

No. 5 Gonzaga Bulldogs vs. No. 12 McNeese State Cowboys, Thursday, 7:25 p.m. ET

Will Wade, he of “strong-ass offer” fame, is back in the NCAA tournament, completing the first year of his rehabilitation tour at McNeese State with a trip to the Big Dance. Gonzaga, which last missed the second weekend of the Dance a decade ago, won’t be an easy team to pick off, but McNeese won’t be intimidated from a talent standpoint. If they can handle Graham Ike on the interior, the Cowboys might have a chance to pull the upset.

Related: Midwest Region Breakdown: Can Purdue Finally Break Through?

No. 4 Kansas Jayhawks vs. No. 13 Samford Bulldogs, Thursday, 9:55 p.m. ET

Kansas has been circled as a potential vulnerable top-four seed due to the Jayhawks’ injury woes. Stars Hunter Dickinson and Kevin McCullar Jr. are believed to be ready for the NCAA tournament, but who knows how healthy the two actually are and what amount of rust they might need to shake off. Playing against a Samford team that presses all 40 minutes and is very disruptive might be an uncomfortable first-round game.

Related: March Madness: Forty Things to Watch in the 2024 NCAA Men’s Tournament

No. 6 Clemson Tigers vs. No. 11 New Mexico Lobos, Friday, 3:10 p.m. ET

Looking for a mid-major darling to fall in love with? Meet the Lobos, who snuck into the Big Dance by ripping through the Mountain West tournament over the weekend. They did so by beating three NCAA tournament teams in three days, including the hyper-physical San Diego State Aztecs in the Mountain West title game. The Lobos’ explosive guards Jaelen House and Donovan Dent could be a problem for Clemson, which struggles defensively especially in the backcourt. And House could easily be a darling of the Big Dance thanks to his fiery nature and dogged defensive work. This one should be fun.

Related: West Region Breakdown: North Carolina Earns Last No. 1 Seed But Has Hard Path

No. 3 Kentucky Wildcats vs. No. 14 Oakland Golden Grizzlies, Thursday, 7:10 p.m. ET

Oakland’s the perfect high-variance team to throw into a single-elimination game. The Golden Grizzlies take a ton of threes and have played well against top competition, including a win over the Xavier Musketeers and close calls against the Ohio State Buckeyes and Illinois Fighting Illini. Kentucky will be a popular choice to win the title thanks to its explosive offense, and a blowout here would only add fuel to that fire. But don’t be surprised if Greg Kampe’s team at least makes this one a game.

Related: March Madness 2024: Complete Schedule, How to Watch, Game Times, Odds for Men's NCAA Tournament

No. 6 Texas Tech Red Raiders vs. No. 11 NC State Wolfpack, Thursday, 9:40 p.m. ET

America fell in love with NC State star big man DJ Burns Jr. during the Wolfpack’s dream run to the ACC tournament championship. Can the Pack’s Cinderella story continue in the Big Dance? The next challenge is Texas Tech, a team that finished the season with big wins over the Baylor Bears and BYU Cougars to build some momentum into the Big Dance. The Red Raiders are one of the best three-point shooting teams in the nation and will be a tough cover for Kevin Keatts’s bunch.

No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide vs. No. 13 Charleston Cougars, Thursday, 7:35 p.m. ET

This might be the highest-scoring game of the first round, with KenPom projecting a 93–82 final for a whopping 175 points scored. Both teams love to push the pace, and Alabama has proven it can absolutely torch teams from smaller conferences in the regular season (see its five 100-plus-point explosions in nonconference play). Can Pat Kelsey’s team slow down the Tide and finally break through in the Big Dance?

Providence won’t be dancing at the 2024 NCAA tournament after the selection committee left Kim English’s Friars out of the field on Sunday.

English didn’t seem to agree with Providence not making the tournament, prompting the irate coach to blast the sport’s analytical approach in a fiery rant.

“I think the analytics are bulls–,” said English, via college basketball writer Kevin McNamara. “I think you can schedule bad teams in your non-leagues and beat the snot out of them and beat them by 50 or 60...”

“But right now [there] might be a change in college basketball. Scheduling to beat teams by 40 or 50 might be a thing to do,” he added.

• 2024 March Madness: Latest News & Analysis

Kim English: ‘I think the analytics are bullshit.’ pic.twitter.com/pDfGsW2CUA

— Kevin McNamara (@KevinMcNamara33) March 17, 2024

English said that analytics don’t favor teams like the Friars, who played against difficult opponents and top coaches in the Big East.

Only three teams from the Big East made the tournament–Marquette, Creighton and UConn–while the rest of the conference was not selected, including hopefuls such as St. John’s (20–13), Seton Hall (20–12) and of course, Providence (21–13). 

English admitted that there were games the team didn’t “take care of,” which likely contributed to their omission from the 68-team field, but he maintained that there were “flaws” in the analytical system.

March Madness is upon us, and the release of Sunday’s 2024 men’s NCAA tournament field of 68 means it’s time to start analyzing seedings, matchups and potential Cinderellas.

Who’s making it out of Dallas in the South Region? Here’s our preview and prediction.

[ 2024 March Madness: Latest News & Analysis ]

State of the No. 1 seed: Houston Cougars

The Cougars were absolutely rolling until they hit a brick wall named the Iowa State Cyclones in the Big 12 tournament final. Losing that game by 28 points doesn’t seem like a very good way to enter the NCAA tourney. Prior to that, Houston had won 11 straight in the deepest conference in America, most of them with relative ease. The Cougars should be built for success in this tournament with excellent guards and vicious defense. If there is a concern, it’s lackluster scoring inside the arc (just 48.4% accuracy on two-point shots) and sketchy foul shooting (69.4%).

Related: March Madness: Forty Things to Watch in the 2024 NCAA Men’s Tournament

Toughest draw: No. 7 Florida Gators

After advancing to the SEC tournament title game, the Gators were probably hoping for something better than a No. 7 seed. Their first-round game is against either the Boise State Broncos or Colorado Buffaloes, both of which had an argument to be seeded higher. If Florida gets past that round, the No. 2 seed Marquette Golden Eagles will be waiting for it. And to make matters worse, the Gators must regroup quickly from the brutal broken leg suffered Sunday by 7-footer Micah Handlogten, who has been a reliable rebounder this season.

Related: West Region Breakdown: North Carolina Earns Last No. 1 Seed But Has Hard Path

Team that could bust your bracket: No. 12 James Madison Dukes

The Dukes could create some first-weekend chaos as a No. 12 seed. James Madison has the nation’s longest active winning streak at 13 games and began the season with a win at the Michigan State Spartans. They have a plus-7.8% accuracy differential from the three-point line, making 36.4% of their threes and allowing just 28.6%. Their first-round opponent, the Wisconsin Badgers, is coming off of an exhausting Big Ten tourney run that concluded Sunday and included an overtime game Saturday, while JMU concluded its tournament Friday. If James Madison beats Wisconsin, we could have Dukes-on-Duke crime in the second round against the No. 4 seed Blue Devils.

Related: Midwest Region Breakdown: Can Purdue Finally Break Through?

Player to watch: Tyler Kolek, Marquette Golden Eagles

There are a lot of great guards in this region, from Jamal Shead and L.J. Cryer at Houston to Wade Taylor IV at Texas A&M to Jeremy Roach at Duke to Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham at Kentucky to KJ Simpson at Colorado. But the most intriguing one is Marquette point guard Tyler Kolek. He didn’t play in the Big East tournament due to an oblique injury, and Marquette’s justifiably high hopes for the Big Dance will hinge on his health. Kolek is the best passer in the tournament, averaging 7.6 assists, but he also can score (15 points per game) and rebound (4.7).

Related: East Region Breakdown: Auburn Could Stand in UConn’s Way

Most intriguing matchup: No. 3 Kentucky Wildcats vs. No. 14 Oakland Grizzlies

The No. 3 seed Wildcats and No. 14 Grizzlies will shoot a million threes, run the floor and only occasionally guard each other. This has the makings of the highest-scoring game of the first round. If Oakland gets hot from the outside and doesn’t give up too many lob dunks to the taller Wildcats, the Grizzlies can make this stressful for Kentucky. John Calipari hasn’t gotten out of the first weekend since 2019.

Marquette guard Stevie Mitchell and the Golden Eagles look as strong as their No. 2 seed suggests.

Brad Penner/USA TODAY Sports

Regional finalists: Houston vs. Marquette

Both could face challenges in the second and third rounds, so nothing is guaranteed. But this is one region that looks like the top two seeds are legitimately the best teams.

Pick to win the region: Houston

Houston will win a game against Marquette that could feature a whole lot of deflections and forced turnovers. These are two of the most disruptive defensive teams in the nation.

Kyrie Irving dazzled the NBA world Sunday afternoon, nailing an absurd buzzer-beating shot over Nikola Jokić to lift the Dallas Mavericks past the Denver Nuggets.

With the game tied at 105 and 2.8 seconds left to play, Irving took an inbounds pass in the right corner and dribbled around the horn to the top of the lane, where he lofted a running left-handed prayer over the outstretched left arm of the 6’11” two-time NBA MVP.

Ballgame.

KAI CALLED GAME 🚨 pic.twitter.com/0bCaVuutXx

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) March 17, 2024

Irving’s reaction afterward was almost as good as the winning shot. In a video shared by the Mavericks on social media, a joyous Irving can barely find the words to describe the emotional rush.

“Oh my gosh,” Irving said, seemingly in disbelief. “Oh, that’s incredible. That is incredible.”

Irving is then greeted by teammate Josh Green and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who sat courtside at the game with his wife, Brittany.

Kai was lost for words 🥹@KyrieIrving // #MFFL pic.twitter.com/QqxiNEu8ts

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) March 17, 2024

NBA fans loved it.

Kai gets props from @PatrickMahomes. "HIM" recognize "HIM". #OfCourse #NuffSaid https://t.co/v53vNvEWQy

— Chris Arnold (@MrChrisArnold) March 17, 2024

Happy Kyrie makes me happy https://t.co/zEXuLkMfa4

— David Mino (@CincoDeMino) March 18, 2024

Such a pure reaction. He can't believe his own game winner 🥺 https://t.co/SCvGop2m8a

— Dennis (@Mav_Zer0) March 17, 2024

Lol Pat said greatness dawg just greatness that's it https://t.co/QtLo32nmLh

— starr (@starrtraak) March 17, 2024

💪🏿 💎 https://t.co/0Dy298SjaX

— Dez Bryant (@DezBryant) March 17, 2024

St. John’s won’t be playing in the postseason this year after failing to earn a bid to the NCAA tournament and rejecting a potential invitation to the National Invitation Tournament.

Red Storm coach Rick Pitino discussed his thoughts on the situation not long after learning his team’s fate Sunday evening, lamenting the “fraudulent” NET ranking system before offering some insight into his team’s season.

“We’re 32 in the NET. First of all, I think we should all probably never mention that word again because I think it’s fraudulent,” said Pitino, via SNY. “I think the NET is something that shouldn’t even be mentioned anymore. … We were 26th in KenPom, so I don’t know. We tried to play a tough schedule. We tried to do things the right way, and we didn’t get in.”

Rick Pitino calls NCAA's NET rankings system "fraudulent" in explaining why St. John's wasn't selected to the 2024 NCAA Tournament pic.twitter.com/JtFiALEjZc

— SNY (@SNYtv) March 17, 2024

Pitino went on to say his team planned to take missing the NCAA tournament on the chin and move on.

• Forde: 40 Things to Watch in NCAA Men’s Tournament
• 2024 March Madness: Latest News & Analysis

“[The committee] didn’t think we measured up to their standards, and we’ll take it very positively like men and move forward. We’re not going to gripe. We’re not going to say we got screwed. None of that helps. Bitterness does not help. I’ve had enough bitterness in my life to last a lifetime,” said Pitino.

St. John’s, in Pitino’s first season as coach of the program, ended the year 20–13, having bowed out in the semifinal of the Big East tournament at the hands of UConn. The Red Storm had won six games in a row prior to that loss, but their late push ahead of the tournament wasn’t enough to sway the committee. 

March Madness is upon us, and the release of Sunday’s 2024 men’s NCAA tournament field of 68 means it’s time to start analyzing seedings, matchups and potential Cinderellas.

Out West, North Carolina earned the fourth and final No. 1 seed, but will have to go across the country in the second weekend if the Tar Heels want to make a trip to the Final Four. The Arizona Wildcats land on the No. 2 line, but get a more favorable regional path with hopes of eventually playing for a championship in their home state.

Who’s making it out of Los Angeles in the West Region? Here’s our preview and prediction.

[ 2024 March Madness: Latest News & Analysis ] 

State of the No. 1 seed: North Carolina Tar Heels

North Carolina had won eight straight before Saturday’s ACC title game loss to the bid-stealing NC State Wolfpack, highlighted by a road win at Cameron Indoor Stadium against the Duke Blue Devils on the last Saturday of the regular season that vaulted the Heels onto the No. 1 line. Hubert Davis’s team has bounced back in a big way from missing the Big Dance in 2023 and still features a pair of huge pieces from the ’22 run to the national title game in RJ Davis and Armando Bacot.

Davis is one of the Tar Heels’ returning players from the 2022 NCAA tournament run.

Geoff Burke/USA TODAY Sports

The biggest key for the Tar Heels’ turnaround has been on the defensive end of the floor, where UNC is in the top 10 of KenPom’s efficiency metrics. Elite defense plus having one of the best guards in the country in Davis is a good recipe in the Big Dance.

Related: March Madness: Forty Things to Watch in the 2024 NCAA Men’s Tournament

Toughest draw: No. 6 Clemson Tigers

Clemson could have been an intriguing team to make a deep run, with wins over the Alabama Crimson Tide and North Carolina in the regular season as proof the Tigers can win big games. But drawing a New Mexico Lobos team coming in surging off a Mountain West tournament championship in the first round is brutal, and there’s a real chance the Lobos will actually be favored by sportsbooks in the game. Even with a win there, Clemson would have to take down the Baylor Bears just to get out of the first weekend.

Related: Midwest Region Breakdown: Can Purdue Finally Break Through?

Team that could bust your bracket: No. 11 New Mexico Lobos

The Lobos may be best positioned of the six Mountain West teams in the field to make a deep run, both because of their talent level and matchups. New Mexico has high-major size and athleticism, with dynamic guards Donovan Dent and Jaelen House leading the charge. The Lobos have the firepower to score with a team like Baylor in a potential second-round date, and who knows, they could make things interesting in a track meet vs. Arizona in the Sweet 16.

Related: East Region Breakdown: Auburn Could Stand in UConn’s Way

Player to watch: Caleb Love, Arizona Wildcats

Love’s career arc has been most unique in recent college hoops history. He disappointed as a freshman at North Carolina, exploded to help lead the Heels to the national title game as a sophomore, was part of a Tar Heel team that flopped historically as a junior and now is trying to lead his new school to the promised land as a senior. Poetically, a trip to the Final Four for the Wildcats could require Arizona to go through North Carolina.

Most intriguing matchup: No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide vs. No. 13 Charleston Cougars

If you’re looking for a track meet, this first-round matchup is for you. Both of these teams love to push the pace and have the talent to score plenty of points. Alabama could be vulnerable to an upset after finishing the season poorly and rating as the worst defense among the top four seeds. Plus, the coaching personalities here in Nate Oats and Pat Kelsey are incredibly entertaining.

Regional finalists: North Carolina Tar Heels vs. Baylor Bears

The Tar Heels could get to the doorstep of a second Final Four in three years, but it won’t be easy to get all the way to Phoenix. Baylor beating Arizona in Los Angeles would be an upset, but the Bears have the type of offensive firepower to outscore almost anyone and showed some real grit down the stretch of the season.

Pick to win the region: Baylor

The Bears get great point guard play from RayJ Dennis and have two of the best freshmen in the country in Ja’Kobe Walter and Yves Missi. The youngsters will shine in the Big Dance and bring Baylor to the Final Four. 

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — PGA Tour players sought and received more power in the aftermath of the surprising June 6 “framework agreement” with the idea that there would no longer be any surprise announcements without their input.

Tiger Woods was added to the PGA Tour Policy Board, another player seat was created to have six members, and negotiations continued—or so we thought—with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF), which backs LIV Golf.

Along the way, the Tour entered into a billion-dollar-plus agreement with Strategic Sports Group, a consortium of wealthy team sports owners and the Fenway Sports Group, to help fund the new for-profit PGA Tour Enterprises. That was one step in an ongoing process.

But since that announcement in January, there continues to be debate over whether or not a deal with the PIF—and, in theory, unification—will occur.

Peter Malnati and his fellow players on the PGA Tour Policy Board have a lot of questions and may start to get answers Monday.

Imago

In recent weeks, board members such as Woods, Patrick Cantlay, Webb Simpson and Adam Scott have been asked if they’ve had any dealings directly with the PIF as this has played out. And while it’s no shock that they might not have dealt with Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of the PIF, it is somewhat surprising that there have been no dealings with lower-level PIF personnel.

Clearly the heavy lifting for this deal would need to get done by the various in-the-trenches people on both sides. But if you’re trying to learn how this might work, what the PIF wants, and you’re going to have a final say in the outcome … doesn’t that suggest some direct conversations with the people who are on the other side? Nine months later?

“We’ve got to understand that better as a membership,” said player director and one-time winner Peter Malnati, 36, after the third round of the Players Championship. “Like, what is our stance? At first, for me, like the announcement of June 6, I felt massive resistance to that personally. As I’ve learned more, I think I understand better and I’m very open-minded to learning what involvement they want, what they want out of this and how they think they can help. I’m very open-minded to that now. I think there are players who have resistance to that relationship, for sure. So that’s why I do think it’s important that maybe our next step is to meet at some point.”

A meeting was to take place Monday with player directors “highly encouraged” to attend. Cantlay on Sunday confirmed it. Malnati was unaware of such a meeting Saturday when he spoke to reporters but seemed anxious to have one. Others suggested the same thing.

Still, it is surprising at this point that there seems to be only vague knowledge of LIV Golf, what it is doing and what a possible alliance might mean. When asked what he thought about team golf—which is LIV Golf’s business model—Malnati was all over the place.

“I need to understand better what Yasir is really trying to accomplish there,” he said. “Obviously the greatest team event in golf right now is the Ryder Cup, and it’s incredible. What they’re doing ... it seems like a very forced team model, to me. At the end of the day, are there any fans that care which team won the tournament? That seems so contrived to me.

“And so I feel like we could also create some contrived team golf somewhere outside of the FedEx Cup season, but what does he really want is a question that I want to understand better. Because I don’t think it’s some contrived, fake, add up random guys’ scores and call them a team. I don’t think that’s it.”

There is a good bit to unpack there. It’s true that nobody really knows what Al-Rumayyan wants. Does he want the team concept as part of the PGA Tour Enterprises? Would there be more fluidity among the teams? Would there be fewer events and LIV players in other events outside of LIV? Is he just interested in a seat at the table and being part of the larger ecosystem?

Whatever the desire, clearly those are the talks that should have already been occurring.

And say what you want about LIV’s team format—it has been panned in many circles—it is the league’s business model. The captains have all been given equity shares in their teams. The idea is to sell them as franchises, which would become a revenue source for LIV Golf, PGA Tour Enterprises or both. Malnati seemed blissfully unaware of any of that.

He also addressed the issue of LIV players competing again in PGA Tour events. They are currently barred from doing so, and conjecture around unifying the game suggests there needs to be a way back. And that has all manner of views.

“That might be the thing that’s most top of mind for people,” Malnati said. “You would find opinions that ran the gamut, from guys that just have a line in the sand that say never, and ... Rory’s (McIlroy) been pretty outspoken that he wants to see the best players playing on the PGA Tour. So we’re going to have to net out somewhere in the middle.

“I think the easiest, most likely route we go when we do find a way for guys to come back, is just guys aren’t coming back to the PGA Tour with membership on the PGA Tour. They’re coming back to the PGA Tour as guys that are going to have to earn their way back here. I think there’s certain methods that we’ve been able to establish and put in place that will be really, really good for the PGA Tour and its membership, and our fans too.

“This player equity plan, I don’t understand it, it’s a little bit above my head, but I certainly know enough to say that I really do support it. It’s going to make players owners of the Tour, and guys who violated our policies aren’t ever going to be eligible for that. That’s a big deal. So I think, if we do find a pathway for guys to come back, there will certainly be safeguards in place to protect the members of the Tour who stayed here.”

The teams and a way back for LIV players are just two of the myriad issues that need to be worked out if there is to be a deal. And yet, several of the players on the PGA Tour side who will be involved and ultimately approving any kind of deal have plenty to learn.

The Iowa Hawkeyes are ready to dance.

On Selection Sunday, the Hawkeyes women’s team was awarded its first No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament since 1992. Iowa ranked as the second overall seed behind the undefeated South Carolina Gamecocks. The other No. 1 seeds are USC and Texas.

In the Albany 2 Region, the Hawkeyes are slated to start their March Madness run against the winner of No. 16 Holy Cross—UT Martin in the first round at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City on either Wednesday or Thursday. Iowa will host the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament.

Coming off a three-peat as Big Ten champs, the Hawkeyes (29—4) will be hunting their first-ever NCAA title this year. Led by the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer in Caitlin Clark, Iowa is staring down a treacherous path in a region loaded with the defending national champion, LSU, plus UCLA, Kansas State and Colorado.

Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes are poised to play their first two games of the 2024 NCAA tournament at home, with their first matchup coming against the winner of the Holy Cross-UT Martin play-in game.

Jeffrey Becker/USA Today sports

Last season, Kim Mulkey’s Tigers beat Iowa, 102—85, in the national championship game to win their first NCAA title in program history. This time around, Clark and the Hawkeyes will be looking to make some herstory of their own. Iowa’s NCAA women’s tournament history includes five Elite Eights, two Final Fours and one national title game appearance.

Dawn Staley’s No. 1-seeded Gamecocks (32–0) are on the other side of the bracket and could potentially face Iowa in this year’s national championship game in Cleveland.