Sports
Ducks ignore ‘outside noise,’ improve CFP hopes
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Since entering the Big Ten last year, Oregon has shown it can win in several of the league’s most hostile environments, not losing a single road game. Perhaps more impressive: How the Ducks have won.
The latest example came Saturday at Iowa‘s Kinnick Stadium as No. 9 Oregon won 18-16 following Atticus Sappington‘s 39-yard field goal with three seconds to play. Oregon prevailed without top wide receiver Dakorien Moore and top tight end Kenyon Sadiq. Another starting receiver, Gary Bryant Jr., left Saturday’s game with a right ankle injury on the team’s second series and did not return.
As a steady rain fell and temperatures dropped, the Ducks leaned on their run game, which gashed No. 20 Iowa for 261 yards on 36 carries, and special teams, which produced 12 points, including a safety after a bad snap by Iowa.
“We said special teams had to be special today,” coach Dan Lanning said.
Iowa has won consistently under coach Kirk Ferentz by being better at the line of scrimmage and in the kicking game. But Oregon held the edge in both areas Saturday.
The Ducks outrushed Iowa by 121 yards.
“Oregon’s always been the team of the flashy uniforms and fast spread offense, explosive,” linebacker Bryce Boettcher said. “Coming to the Big Ten, I get it, Iowa’s been a classic team running the ball, I-formation, and we did it better than them tonight, which is pretty cool to see.”
Oregon’s rushing total marked the most yards Iowa has allowed since 2022, and its 7.3 yards-per-rush average is the highest the Hawkeyes have surrendered since 2014, when Indiana averaged 8.1. Led by Noah Whittington, all four Oregon rushers averaged more than 6 yards per carry, and all four had a run of 19 yards or longer.
“We went into this game saying, ‘We run in the trenches,'” said Whittington, who had 118 rushing yards. “We don’t really pay attention to the outside noise, but going into this game, it was kind of put in our faces by the coaching staff, ‘Our O-line wasn’t going to be able to hold up with what Iowa had up front.'”
Despite Oregon’s consistent running success, its game-winning drive hinged on the arm of quarterback Dante Moore, who had just 65 total passing yards as the Ducks took possession with 1:51 left, after Iowa marched 93 yards in 12 plays to take its first lead of the game. Moore had thrown an ugly interception in the end zone and never established a passing rhythm, but he completed 5 of 6 attempts, including a 24-yarder to Malik Benson that put the Ducks into field goal range.
Benson and fellow wide receivers Jeremiah McClellan and Cooper Perry all recorded their first receptions of the game on the final drive.
“Dante was lights out in that drive,” Lanning said. “It reminds me of what we do in practice. We put our guys in a lot of scenarios like that, but I don’t ever give them 1:51.”
Despite a strong special teams showing, Oregon needed one more kick to win from Sappington, who had connected from 46 and 40 yards but had three misses from beyond 30 yards on the season. Whittington initially wanted to close his eyes and pray, but Moore told him to watch the pressure-packed kick, which they both had seen Sappington make many times in practice.
Sure enough, it sailed through.
“When [Iowa] called timeout to ice me, I just go through my process, breathe, know that it’s all out there for me to go get it,” Sappington said. “That moment was made for me.”
After debuting in the CFP standings at No. 9, Oregon strengthened its playoff profile with a win that should resonate with the selection committee. The Ducks finish the regular season against three teams with winning records — Minnesota, No. 19 USC and No. 23 Washington — a challenging path for a young team, but one that doesn’t make Oregon flinch.
“Our guys are resilient, they’re tough, they can handle tough moments,” Lanning said. “If it’s a four-quarter fight, we can do a four-quarter fight. I had guys coming up to me at the end of the game, like, ‘Coach, breathe.’ That’s what I’m telling them all week.
“For them to be able to come up and say that same thing to me, it just tells you that they believe in what we’re doing.”
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New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye made his case for the NFL MVP award on Sunday as he threw five touchdown passes in the team’s demolition of the New York Jets.
Four of Maye’s five touchdown passes came in the first half.
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New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye warms up before an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
He found tight end Austin Hooper on a 2-yard touchdown pass to start the game. Then, he lit it up in the second quarter. He connected with Rhamondre Stevenson, Stefon Diggs and Hunter Henry for touchdown grabs as the Patriots took a 35-3 lead into the locker room at the half.
Before he was taken out of the game, Maye found Efton Chism III for a 10-yard touchdown grab.
Maye finished the game with a perfect passer rating (157.0). He was 19-of-21 with 256 passing yards and was only sacked once. Joshua Dobbs subbed in for Maye before the game was over.
NFL LEGEND MAKES BOLD TRAVIS KELCE PREDICTION AS CHIEFS STAR MULLS FUTURE
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) is run out of bounds by New York Jets linebacker Jamien Sherwood (44) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin)
Patriots won the game, 42-10.
Maye became the first Patriots quarterback to throw five touchdown passes since Tom Brady did it in 2017. Brady did it in a win against the Houston Texans on Sept. 24, 2017. Brady had 378 passing yards in that game.
Unlike Brady, Maye isn’t putting up 300-plus yards through the air regularly. He only had one this season despite being a contender for the MVP. He did it for the first time last week against the Baltimore Ravens. He was 31-of-44 for 380 yards and two touchdowns in the 28-24 win.
The Patriots moved to 13-3 on the season with the convincing win over the Jets. It’s the first time they’ve reached at least 13 wins in a single season since the 2016 season. Brady led the Patriots to a Super Bowl victory that year.
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New England will wrap up the season at home against the Miami Dolphins next week.
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New Orleans Saints defensive end Chase Young made an incredible play on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.
Titans rookie quarterback Cam Ward dropped back to pass in the second quarter, but the Saints’ pass rush quickly descended on him. Ward tried to make a move around one defender but didn’t see Young in his blind spot.
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New Orleans Saints defensive end Chase Young (99) returns his strip for a touchdown in the first half of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Nashville, Tennessee. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Young ripped the ball out of Ward’s hands and took the ball to the end zone for a Saints touchdown. It helped cut their deficit to 13-10.
Young, the No. 2 pick of the 2020 NFL Draft, joined the Saints after the 2023 season. He only had one fumble return for a touchdown in his career — his rookie season when he was with the Washington Commanders. He was the Defensive Rookie of the Year that season.
He came into the game with seven sacks, three pass breakups and 28 tackles.
New Orleans Saints defensive end Chase Young (99) celebrates his strip and touchdown return with cornerback Alontae Taylor (1) in the first half of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Nashville, Tennessee. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
NFL LEGEND MAKES BOLD TRAVIS KELCE PREDICTION AS CHIEFS STAR MULLS FUTURE
Young’s play would be the lone highlight for the Saints’ defense in the first half. Tennessee took a 20-10 lead into the locker room after Ward bounced back with a touchdown pass to Elic Ayomanor before the break.
New Orleans has struggled for most of the season, but the defense was supposed to be something to take pride in. The Saints entered the game eighth in yards allowed and 14th in points allowed.
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So far, that kind of defense hadn’t shown up in Nashville.
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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Matthew Tkachuk was back on the ice with the Florida Panthers on Sunday, appearing at practice for the first time this season and more than four months after he had surgery to repair a sports hernia and torn adductor muscle.
Tkachuk has not played since Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final, when the Panthers clinched their second consecutive title by again topping the Edmonton Oilers. He went through the summer trying to rehab but eventually decided that he needed the surgery.
“He looks awesome,” Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe said. “Good to see him back out there. He brought us some energy today, that’s for sure.”
Tkachuk was wearing a yellow noncontact jersey, an indication that he’s not yet ready for game action. Florida plays host to Washington on Monday and Montreal on Tuesday, then will be the home team for the NHL Winter Classic at the Miami Marlins‘ ballpark against the New York Rangers on Friday.
The Panthers are scheduled to practice at the ballpark on Thursday, but there’s no guarantee that Tkachuk will play Friday.
“There’s a whole bunch of things he’s got to get through. The question is, is there enough time,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “He might be healthy enough or close to enough that he could play, but we’re not guessing on this. … As much as we like the spectacle of it and we’d love for him to be a part of it — it would be great for the game to see him out there — the Florida Panthers need him healthy for the rest of the year.”
After the Panthers won their second straight Stanley Cup in June, Tkachuk revealed that he had sustained the injuries while playing for Team USA in the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. He missed the final 25 games of the regular season but returned for Game 1 of the Panthers’ first-round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Tkachuk had 23 points — eight goals and 15 assists — in 23 playoff games, including seven points in the Stanley Cup Final.
The Panthers have been without a slew of key players all season, including captain Aleksander Barkov. They entered Sunday tied for the second and final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, only five points out of the lead in the Atlantic Division.
Florida has gone through this season with the expectation that Tkachuk would be back on a “December-ish” timeline. He has said he wants to play in the Winter Classic, the Panthers’ first outdoor game, and for Team USA at the Milan Cortina Olympics in February.
“We will enjoy the talent upgrade,” Maurice said. “He’s a great player. But it’s the personality more. He’s chirping on the ice, right? He’s giving it to guys. They’re laughing. He’s bringing a little joy to everyone. He’s funny on the bench. He has an incredible emotional IQ in terms of the game of hockey. When nothing needs to happen, he doesn’t do anything. When something needs to happen, he figures out the right way.”
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