Red Raider Soccer sweeps Lincoln County

It's official: Bears rookie Caleb Williams to start at QB

Chicago Bears rookie Caleb Williams on Friday was named the team's starting quarterback for the upcoming season. The announcement comes as little surprise, given the Bears selected Williams with the top overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft out of Southern California. Tyson Bagent, 23, is expected to serve as the backup. He started four games as an undrafted rookie last season. Bears coach Matt Eberflus didn't mince words when announcing the decision on Williams. "No conversation. He's the starter," Eberflus said. Williams, 22, said he's ready to take the steps to learn how to lead. "To be a great leader, you have to learn how to follow first. So right now I'm following all the vets, I'm following all the coaches, I'm listening -- having both ears open and my mouth shut -- just kind of sitting back listening," he said. "When I get to the point of when I learn everything, when I learn the ways of how we do it, the culture, the playbook and what the offensive line, wide receivers are all doing, running backs and tight ends, things like that, then you can start taking the lead, then you can start taking the helms of it and take the next steps. "For right now though, I'm listening more than I'm speaking and talking and I'm taking it one step at a time and being in the moment." Williams won the Heisman Trophy in 2022 and passed for 3,633 yards, 30 touchdowns and five interceptions for the Trojans in 2023. In three seasons at Oklahoma (2021) and USC combined, Williams put up prolific passing numbers: 10,082 yards, 93 touchdowns and 14 interceptions with 27 rushing TDs. Bagent completed 94 of 143 passes for 859 yards with three touchdowns and six interceptions in five games last season. --Field Level Media

Giants sign first-round pick Malik Nabers to reported $29.2M deal

New York Giants first-round draft pick Malik Nabers signed his four-year rookie contract Friday ahead of the start of rookie camp. The team announced the signing but not the terms. Multiple reports said the fully guaranteed deal is worth $29.2 million with a signing bonus of $18.1 million and includes the standard team option for a fifth season. Nabers, a wide receiver, was selected by the Giants with the sixth overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft out of LSU. Nabers, 20, had 89 catches for 1,569 yards and 14 touchdowns in 13 games last season while playing with Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Jayden Daniels. Nabers also was a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, which honors the nation's best receiver. That honor ultimately went to Marvin Harrison Jr. of Ohio State. --Field Level Media

Missouri State is joining Conference USA effective July 1, 2025, becoming the league's 12th member. The Bears currently are part of the Missouri Valley Conference. "This is an exciting day for Missouri State," Missouri State president Clif Smart said. "The opportunities associated with membership in an FBS conference allows us to continue to expand as a university and raise our reputation to the next level. We have valued our membership in the Missouri Valley Conference -- a premier conference in the NCAA -- and look forward to a final year in the league before we transition to CUSA." Missouri State will compete in sports that include football, men's and women's basketball, baseball and softball, and beach volleyball. "We are so excited for the opportunities that CUSA membership will bring to our university, our student-athletes, our coaches and our fans," athletic director Kyle Moats said. "This move represents a transition to a national brand and a platform that will help raise the profile of Missouri State University and the city of Springfield. The steps we have taken over the past 15 years to invest in a successful broad-based athletics program have prepared us for this long-awaited moment." In the 2022-23 academic year, Missouri State finished second in the MVC's All-Sports Trophy standings, driven by five regular-season and postseason league titles. Conference USA currently is made up of FIU, Jacksonville State, Liberty, Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee State, New Mexico State, Sam Houston State, UTEP and Western Kentucky. Kennesaw State will join on July 1, with Delaware also coming on board on July 1, 2025. --Field Level Media

Coach Dan Campbell to miss Lions' rookie minicamp

The Detroit Lions will hold rookie minicamp this weekend without coach Dan Campbell, who is away from the team for unspecified personal reasons. Campbell is expected to return to the team later this month, the Detroit Free Press reported Friday. The next scheduled event is May 21-23 with organized team activity practices. The team's draft picks, undrafted free agents and tryout players are among those at the three-day camp in Allen Park, Mich. The Lions had six picks in last month's NFL draft, headlined by a pair of cornerbacks -- first-round selection Terrion Arnold (Alabama) and second-rounder Ennis Rakestraw Jr. (Missouri). The team also has brought in 15 undrafted free agents. The Lions finished the 2023 season with a 12-5 record and won the NFC North. Detroit reached the conference title game but lost, 34-31, to the San Francisco 49ers. --Field Level Media

Las Vegas Raiders first-round draft pick Brock Bowers signed a fully guaranteed four-year contract worth $18.1 million with a team option for a fifth season. Bowers, a tight end, was selected by the Raiders with the 13th overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft out of Georgia. The first back-to-back Mackey Award Winner (2022, 2023) given to the top tight end in college football, Bowers had 31 touchdowns (five rushing) in three seasons with the Bulldogs. In 40 career games, the 6-foot-4, 240-pound Bowers hauled in 175 receptions for 2,538 yards. Also on Thursday, the Raiders signed five other draft picks. They are cornerback Decamerion Richardson (fourth round, Mississippi State), linebacker Tommy Eichenberg (fifth, Ohio State), running back Dylan Laube (sixth, New Hampshire), safety Trey Taylor (seventh, Air Force) and cornerback M.J. Devonshire (seventh, Pitt). --Field Level Media

Raiders sign first-round pick Brock Bowers, others

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