Lindsay signs on with Cumberland

Tara VanDerveer will see her legacy at Stanford remain on display moving forward, as the school announced Thursday that it is naming the floor of its basketball arena in honor of the Hall of Fame coach. VanDerveer, 70, retired after last season, her 38th year in charge of the Cardinal. She guided Stanford to 14 Final Fours and three national titles (1990, 1992, 2021). VanDerveer began her coaching career at Idaho (1978-80) and also coached at Ohio State (1980-85). In January, she surpassed Mike Krzyzewski to become the winning college basketball coach of all time, men's or women's. VanDerveer finished with a 1,216-271 record, including a 1,064-220 mark with the Cardinal. In addition to dedicating the Tara VanDerveer Court at Maples Pavilion in November, Stanford is endowing a women's basketball assistant coaching position in VanDerveer's name. VanDerveer said in a statement, "This endowment will go a long way to strengthening the future of Stanford women's basketball. I have many wonderful memories of leading the women's basketball program at Maples Pavilion. It's an honor, and a little surreal, to know that my name will be linked to both in these ways, and I look forward to celebrating with all our fans this fall." Stanford hired one of VanDerveer's longtime assistant coaches, Kate Paye, last month to take over as head coach. Paye, who played for the Cardinal from 1991-95, began working under VanDerveer in 2007. --Field Level Media

Former Cal State Fullerton guard Max Jones is transferring to Kansas State for his final college season, according to multiple reports Thursday. Jones reportedly also considered New Mexico, Texas A&M, Mississippi State, Florida Atlantic and Loyola Chicago. Jones averaged 15.3 points and 3.0 rebounds in 24 games (21 starts) for the Titans last season. He was second on the team in scoring and also was second with 42 3-point baskets and 41 steals. One season earlier, Jones averaged 12.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in 32 games. He had 34 treys and 30 steals. Jones played two seasons at Division II Tampa before transferring to Cal State Fullerton following the 2021-22 season. He averaged 21.9 points in 21 games as a sophomore for the Spartans. Earlier this offseason, Kansas State landed Dug McDaniel, the former Michigan player considered to be one of the top point guards in the transfer portal this year. --Field Level Media

Saints first-round pick Taliese Fuaga signed a fully guaranteed four-year contract on Thursday worth $17.3 million with a team option for a fifth season. Fuaga was the 14th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft and is expected to start immediately with the offensive line in flux in front of starting quarterback Derek Carr. The team shared a video of Carr embracing Fuaga as they arrived at the team facility. The contract matches the maximum draft slot afforded the Saints with the 14th pick. Fuaga started 25 games at right tackle for Oregon State and could be tried at left tackle. Trevor Penning, a first-round pick in 2022 who was injured in his first training camp, was benched last season and replaced by Andrus Peat. But Peat left in free agency to sign with the Raiders. Ryan Ramczyk is the returning starter at right tackle but he's coming back from offseason knee surgery. A consensus first-team All-American and first-team All-Pac-12 selection in 2023, Fuaga was the third offensive tackle drafted during a run on offensive players that lasted until the Colts selected UCLA defensive end Laiatu Latu 15th. Notre Dame's Joe Alt (Chargers, No. 5 overall), Alabama's JC Latham (Titans, No. 7) and Penn State's Olu Fashanu (Jets, No. 11) have not yet signed their rookie deals. --Field Level Media

Pro Football Hall of Famer Jimmy Johnson, a lockdown cornerback who spent his entire 16-year career with the San Francisco 49ers, died on Wednesday evening, his family announced. He was 86. The Hall of Fame made the announcement Thursday for Johnson's family, which said he had been in declining health for some time and had remained in the San Francisco area. Enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 1994, Johnson played from 1961-76. He competed in 213 games -- at the time a franchise record later broken by Jerry Rice. Johnson's 47 interceptions also were a team mark later broken by Ronnie Lott. "Jimmy Johnson was extraordinarily athletically talented," Pro Football Hall of Fame President Jim Porter said in a statement. "The 49ers enjoyed the luxury of using him on offense and defense early in his career to fill team needs. Once he settled in at left cornerback, he flourished. The notion that a ‘lockdown' cornerback could cut the field in half for the opposition was true with Jimmy. "Only rarely would other teams' quarterbacks even look his direction, and more often than not regretted the decision if they challenged him." Johnson was selected to the Pro Bowl for four straight seasons (1969-72) as well as in 1974. He was first-team All-Pro in 1970-72. The Pro Football Hall of Fame selected him for the All-Decade Team of the 1970s. "I don't look at someone and think that he can't beat me," Johnson said. "If you play long enough, you're going to get beat. The question and the key to your effectiveness is how often." He also played halfback and flanker in 1962 and 1963, catching 40 passes for 690 yards and four touchdowns. San Francisco selected him as one of its three first-round draft choices (sixth overall in 1961). He was a football star at UCLA at wingback and defensive back as well as a track standout in hurdles and long jump. His brother, Olympic gold medal-winning decathlete Rafer Johnson, was his presenter at the Hall of Fame induction ceremony on July 30, 1994. "Jimmy is a quiet man, but he played with determination and commitment," Rafer Johnson said. "Most of all, Jim was and is a gentle man and a true gentleman." Jimmy Johnson won the Pro Football Writers' George Halas Award for courageous play in 1971 after playing half of that season with a broken wrist. He twice received the Len Eshmont Award, chosen by 49ers players and given to a teammate for inspirational play. "Jimmy Johnson has not only been a great football player, he has been one of the game's finest citizens throughout his career," Joe Thomas, the team's vice president and general manager at that time said when the 49ers retired Johnson's No. 37 jersey in 1977. "There is no one in the NFL who does not have the highest respect for him, both as a player and as a man." --Field Level Media

Former Vanderbilt and Mississippi State quarterback Mike Wright is transferring to Northwestern for his final season of eligibility. Wright told ESPN on Thursday that he chose the Wildcats to play for head coach David Braun and new offensive coordinator Zach Lujan. "Those two guys were the main factors," said Wright, who made three starts last season at Mississippi State and 11 starts in his time at Vanderbilt (2020-22). Wright has completed 55.5 percent of his passes for 2,520 yards with 24 touchdowns and 14 interceptions across 38 career games. He has also rushed for 1,229 yards and 10 TDs. The starting quarterback gig is open at Northwestern with last season's QB1 Ben Bryant out of eligibility and former backup Brendan Sullivan transferring to Iowa. Wright's competition to lead the Northwestern offense in 2024 includes sixth-year veteran Ryan Hilinski and redshirt sophomore Jack Lausch. --Field Level Media

The Los Angeles Rams are releasing veteran wide receiver Ben Skowronek, NFL Network reported Thursday. Skowronek, 26, appeared in all 17 games last season but managed only eight catches for 66 yards and one score. He caught 58 passes for 575 yards and one TD in 45 games (12 starts) since the Rams drafted him in the seventh round in 2021. In addition to stars Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua, the Rams' receiver room includes Tutu Atwell, Tyler Johnson, Demarcus Robinson and 2024 sixth-round pick Jordan Whittington. --Field Level Media

Lions general manager Brad Holmes continues checking off priorities in Detroit, and a long-term extension for quarterback Jared Goff is rising to the top of the list. "He's earned an extension," Holmes said in a radio interview with 97.1 The Ticket. "It's important. It's a high priority for us. Both sides are working really, really hard. These things just take time." Closing in on the final season of a four-year, $134 million contract Goff signed before he was traded to Detroit in the QB swap that sent Matthew Stafford to the Los Angeles Rams, an extension has been in the works for months. Holmes hoped to simultaneously share big contract news on Goff last month when the Lions struck new deals with offensive tackle Penei Sewell and wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. "In a perfect world, we would've had all three of them done. Bang, bang, bang," Holmes said. "But these things just kind of take a while. Especially with the quarterback market. But I do have faith that it's going to get done." Talks with Goff's agent, Ryan Tollner, took a back seat during the NFL draft. Holmes didn't select a quarterback among the Lions' six picks but did draft Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker in the third round in 2023. Goff turns 30 in October. A former No. 1 overall pick, Goff averaged $33.5 million annually on his existing contract while the market has exploded since massive deals last offseason raised the bar beyond $50 million per season. The top-paid quarterback in terms of average pay per season is Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals at $55 million. He has $1.01 million more in guaranteed salary than the Los Angeles Chargers gave Justin Herbert, whose AAV is $52.5 million, in the same neighborhood but just ahead of Jalen Hurts (Philadelphia Eagles) and Lamar Jackson (Baltimore Ravens). "We've done a lot of work. Again, both sides have. We've done a lot of work, dialogue's been consistent," Holmes said of how close the sides might be to a contract. "There hasn't been just dead periods and all that stuff. We've been talking. Again, I do have faith looking at all the numbers. You gotta think about what can we do now, and what are the impacts on the future, as well. And we look at all of it, because we said all along, when (coach) Dan (Campbell) and I first got here, we're looking to build sustained success, and that's still the goal." Goff completed 67.3 percent of his passes for 4,575 yards and 30 touchdowns last season while leading Detroit to its first division title since 1993 and its first two playoff wins since the 1991 season. --Field Level Media

Lions GM: QB Jared Goff 'earned' extension, a high priority