BATON ROUGE, LA – Verge Ausberry had secured the greatest booty of college football’s coaching carousel, but LSU’s athletic director still had to travel behind enemy lines to retrieve it.

No trouble, right? Fly into Mississippi. Pick up the package. Fly out.

Ha. Nothing about hiring Lane Kiffin could ever be so easy.

The initial plan had been that LSU’s plane would pick up Kiffin from the Tupelo airport, 50 miles from the University of Mississippi. At least that would provide some distance between the LSU envoy and the Ole Miss fans furious by Kiffin’s heel turn.

Once aboard the plane, Ausberry learned plans had changed. They’d be flying into Oxford, ground zero itself, to secure LSU’s prize.

“I said, ‘We’re going where? Oxford? They’ll be shooting missiles at us,’” Ausberry said.

No missiles fired, but Ole Miss students and fans who gathered at the airport gave the LSU plane and anyone who boarded it a middle-finger salute.

As Ausberry waited for Kiffin to arrive, the pilots asked him if he wanted to deplane and use the restroom.

“I said, ‘That’s OK. I’ll hold it,’” Ausberry said.

Smart thinking.

Kiffin had concerns of his own, and why shouldn’t he? He’d made his choice to leave Ole Miss on the playoff’s doorstep, but he still had to get out of Dodge.

Ole Miss had hired Kiffin when powerhouse schools like LSU didn’t want him. The Rebels had given Kiffin the opportunity to relaunch his career inside the SEC and rebuild his image.

The relationship became gloriously beneficial for both parties for six seasons, but Kiffin couldn’t resist the itch to coach another blue-blood. He left Ole Miss at the worst possible moment — with the Rebels on the verge of their first playoff appearance.

As Kiffin made for his exit route, Ole Miss fans wanted to give him the sendoff he’d earned.

Kiffin claims people tried “to run us off the road” on his drive to the airport. Kiffin had his son, Knox, in the vehicle with him. Kiffin, concerned for their safety, says he called a cop friend for help.

At the Oxford airport, fans were lined up at the fence line, waiting to jeer Kiffin and flip him the bird. Not your ordinary job change, though perhaps a bit familiar for Kiffin.

Even after Kiffin boarded the plane, he wondered to himself: Had he made the right choice to leave?

And then he landed in Baton Rouge.

A king’s welcome awaited. Fans cheered and hollered his name. The savior had arrived. Kiffin noted the time. He’d been in town for six minutes.

“There’s the (LSU) fans, just all of them out there at the airport, and their excitement and their passion … as we’re going to the office, and you go by Tiger Stadium, and it’s lit up, and you are like, I absolutely made the right decision,” Kiffin said, “and (those bad feelings) all went away.’

This is how it goes in the South’s college football hotbeds. They’ll worship you when you arrive. If you win big, they’ll worship you more. You’ll become more than a king. You’ll be a god. What a power trip. Just ask Nick Saban.

If you fail, they’ll holler for your firing.

And, buddy, if you leave for a hated rival, well, good luck getting out of town. Because, that’s not just a job change. That’s betrayal.

One town’s traitor becomes another’s hero.

“That’s the SEC,” Kiffin said. “I’ve been around it long enough to know that, and it’s just the passion of the SEC.”

Kiffin admitted that hearing what Ole Miss fans said as he left and seeing their reaction hurt him. It got to him. He also took it as a compliment: If they were that incensed at him leaving, that must have meant he’d done the job well while he was there.

When Kiffin returns to Ole Miss next season on the LSU sideline, it’ll be the hottest game on that weekend’s calendar. Don’t forget to bring the mustard, Rebels.

Much has been said and written lately about what Kiffin’s exit means for his legacy. At Ole Miss, his name is forever tarnished, but I’m not sure Kiffin’s legacy is all that changed, on the whole.

This is his legacy. He’s arguably the most polarizing figure in college football history.

Years ago, he left a great SEC job in the middle of the night but not undetected. Tennessee fans gathered in protest and literally burned objects in the street.

He’s the lightning rod with enough charisma and talent to make everyone in one state love him, even as everyone in another hates him after he twisted the knife on them.

Of course Kiffin would become the first college football coach to ever leave his team and not coach it in the playoff. And for anyone who thought a coach would never do that, and skip out on a chance to win a national championship, well, you’ve never met Kiffin. He’s the rebel who doesn’t bend to norms.

He likes to say he doesn’t just think outside the box. He builds a new box.

Stay and pursue a national championship at Ole Miss? That would sound nice to some, but, sorry, that’s Baton Rouge calling. Kiffin would have liked to accept the LSU job and have still coached Ole Miss in the playoff. When Ole Miss brass made him choose, he cast his lot with LSU.

And when more coaches repeat this move in the future, Kiffin will take pride in knowing he was the pioneer. He steamrolled the path for all the renegades who’ll inevitably follow.

You’ll hear plenty about how this moment — a coach leaving one team on the playoff’s doorstep to move up the perceived food chain — is awful for the sport.

Is it? Or is it the epitome of this sport.

These past 48 hours and the scenes emanating from Oxford and Baton Rouge could be a dang infomercial for college football, especially within the SEC, or at least a YouTube tutorial for those who don’t understand this zany enterprise.

College football’s never been about the postseason, and certainly not about the College Football Playoff. Heck, the playoff is younger than Kiffin’s youngest son.

College football peaks in the fall, when the rivalries burn hottest, when fans storm the field seconds after an upset ends, not worrying about who they might trample along the way, when games radiate from college towns, inside ancient 100,000-seat cathedrals instead of the glitzy NFL stadiums that hijack the games in the playoff.

No matter how big the bureaucrats make the playoff, college football isn’t about the playoff.

It’s about loving your team, hating your rivals, worshipping your heroes while you revile the heels.

At the heart of college football are the rivalries that burn as hot as the sun.

And at the center of those rivalries, are the coaches.

Even as college athletes celebrate more power and recognition than they’ve ever had before, the coaches are college football’s stars in ways they are not in the pro leagues.

And there’s never quite been a coach like Kiffin. Everyone feels some type of way about him, and they’ll feel those feelings deeper after these past three days.

In Oxford, their former king disgusts them now. That’s fine. He’ll be feted at LSU.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s senior national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.

The New England Patriots defeated the New York Giants 33-15, extending their winning streak to 10 games.
Patriots quarterback Drake Maye finished with 274 passing yards and two touchdowns.

FOXBOROUGH, MA — Time is a flat circle.

The New England Patriots have one of the best quarterbacks in the league and sit atop the AFC. The dynastic days are in the rearview mirror, but a new era of Patriot hegemony could be dawning. 

Perhaps that’s an overreaction to the Pats’ 33-15 demolition of the New York Giants on “Monday Night Football.” The final extended the Patriots’ winning streak to 10 and did the same to the Giants’ losing streak, which now stands at seven. Beyond the box score, of course, are winners and losers. Let’s dive into it all. 

WINNERS

Drake Maye 

The second-year quarterback has an effortlessness delivery that makes everything look easier than it is. The intermediate balls are feathered. The ones that need zip have the proper amount. Even the simple looks impressive. 

In the first half, Maye was 16-for-20 with 208 passing yards and two touchdowns while averaging 10.4 yards per attempt. He finished 24-for-31 with 274 yards (he has not yet surpassed 300 yards passing despite his dynamite season).

Maye leads the league in completion percentage after 13 weeks and is third in passing yards per game. 

Mike Vrabel (and mustaches) 

The mustachioed head coach of the Patriots has his team on a 10-game winning streak in his first season in New England. They are the No. 1 seed in the AFC and face two 2024 playoff teams (the Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens) out of their bye before games against the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins.

Marcus Jones

If Jones doesn’t have the mantle of most-feared return man in the league by this point, maybe it’s time he starts being talked about that way. Jones scored the first touchdown of the night with 5:17 left in the first quarter when he returned a punt 93 yards up the left sideline – evading Giants punter Jamie Gillan’s futile attempt to push him out of bounds – for his second punt-return TD of the year.  

According to ESPN, it was Jones’ 75th career punt return, which qualifies him for the official NFL record book. His average career punt return of 13.6 entering the game was already the highest in NFL history – before that lengthy runback. 

Christian Elliss

The Patriots linebacker had two massive hits that would have been fitting for the retired “Jacked Up!” segment on ESPN. The first came against Dart, who was running up the right sideline but wasn’t stepping out of bounds. So Elliss unloaded on the youngster and the hit was so forceful Dart went nearly horizontal. 

On a kickoff in the second quarter, Elliss had a (legally questionable?) shellacking of Gunner Olszewski whose helmet paint flew off. 

Jaxson Dart

The rookie signal-caller doesn’t have much to work with but his two-point conversion toss to Darius Slayton is one example of how talented he is. He threw for 139 yards and didn’t turn the ball over in his first game back after missing two games with a concussion.

Joe Buck

LOSERS

Giants’ special teams 

As if giving up a lengthy punt return for a touchdown wasn’t bad enough, it was just the start of New York’s special-teams gaffes. Kicker Younghoe Koo had maybe the blooper of the entire NFL season when he lined up for a 47-yard field goal in the second quarter. Koo stumbled and his right foot got stuck in the Gillette Stadium turf, turning the attempt from routine to lowlight-reel-worthy. In fairness to Koo, neither the snap nor hold were crisp.

Olszewski was rocked on a kickoff return in the second quarter and fumbled the ball back to the Patriots; he departed the game with a concussion. 

Mike Kafka 

The interim head coach had to bench Abdul Carter and deal with some horrid special teams play. But the call on Devin Singletary’s 22-yard touchdown out of the wildcat was creative and commendable, a wrinkle on Jameis Winston’s electric touchdown against the Detroit Lions last Sunday. But the decision to punt halfway through the fourth quarter while trailing by two scores was a contradictory decision to going for two after the Singletary score. Keeping Dart in the game when it was already lost was also unwise. He remains winless in his audition for Brian Daboll’s former job. 

Abdul Carter

Benched to start the game for the second time in three games, Carter missed the first quarter for disciplinary reasons. It’s a bad look for Carter, who missed a team walkthrough that led to him missing the first series against the Green Bay Packers on Nov. 16. The rookie clearly needs somebody in the locker room to straighten him out. These are not the type of storylines the team that drafted him third overall seven months ago wants to deal with. 

Self-preservation 

Dart running up the sideline and decked by Elliss with such force that his body went horizontal was perhaps too typical of a rookie who hasn’t yet learned a lesson.  This is a player who has been in the concussion protocol four times and missed the last two games with the head injury. Somebody has to get that message through to the 22-year-old. 

Joe Schoen 

His roster is completely non-competitive, it turns out, regardless of who the coach is. Is Giants ownership really comfortable with him leading the search for the next sideline leader in New York? 

Denver Broncos

It was a fun 24 hours for Sean Payton’s team as the No. 1 seed in the AFC, but now that the Pats are 11-2, New England has jumped back into the top spot in the conference. 

Buffalo Bills

As the Patriots enter their bye week, they hold a 2.5-game lead over the Bills in the division race and made Buffalo’s quest for home-field advantage in the playoffs all the more difficult. 

NCAA women’s hockey is hurdling toward the holiday break with familiar faces atop the national rankings. 

Wisconsin and Ohio State have combined to win the past six championships, with the two schools facing off against each other in the Frozen Four final in each of the past three years. All signs point to another all-WCHA match up this spring with a sizable gap forming between the WCHA’s power programs and the rest of the nation.

This past week did nothing to change that with Ohio State and Wisconsin combining to outscore non-conference teams 45-3. While they remain the teams to beat at the top, the rest of The Hockey News’ top 10 continue to make their push.

Here’s a look at the top 10 NCAA women’s hockey programs this week.

Women’s college hockey power rankings

1. University of Wisconsin (WCHA)

The star power in Wisconsin’s lineup is hard to combat. Caroline Harvey took the national scoring lead this week, with the projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 PWHL Draft also becoming the WCHA’s all-time leading scorer among defenders. This past week, Wisconsin won a pair of lopsided decisions at the SMASHVILLE Showcase where they outscored Mercyhurst and Stonehill by a combined 22-3 margin.

2. Ohio State (WCHA)

Ohio State continues to get better, probably because they’re a program that is not led by seniors — but by underclass players like U.S. national team member Joy Dunne, and Swedish rookie sensation Hilda Svensson. Ohio State easily disposed of nationally ranked Clarkson and Colgate by a combined 13-0 score, outshooting their opponents 111-26 and proving that even the best ECAC teams remain a step behind.

3. University of Minnesota (WCHA)

After a nightmare week that saw Minnesota drop a pair of games to Minnesota State, the Golden Gophers entered a much needed bye week to regroup. Abbey Murphy, who leads the WCHA with 18 goals in 16 games, and teammates remain one of the most talented groups in NCAA women’s hockey. But this team will need more consistency to challenge Ohio State and Wisconsin.

4. University of Minnesota-Duluth (WCHA)

Another powerhouse on a bye week, UMD’s only blemishes this season have come against Wisconsin, Ohio State and Minnesota. To be a top team, the 10-6-0 Bulldogs need to beat a top team. With the Olympics around the corner, they also have the extra challenge of All-American goaltender Eve Gascon and reigning NCAA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Kraemer being pulled in multiple directions as members of Canada’s national program.

5. Penn State (Atlantic Hockey America)

Before dropping the first of their two-game series against Northeastern this weekend — Penn State won the second game — the Nittany Lions were the only undefeated program in the nation. Tessa Janecke continues to dominate this high octane offense that trails only Wisconsin with a +69 goal differential. They’ve been rolling over opponents in Atlantic Hockey America, but have a tougher schedule ahead including games against Cornell and Ohio State (twice).

6. Cornell (ECAC)

Cornell can win on any given night with Annelies Bergmann in net. She is near the top of NCAA statistical leaders with 10 wins, as well as a 1.56 goals-against average and .942 save percentage. In 14 games this season, Cornell has allowed 23 only goals against, an unrivaled mark in the ECAC. What makes Cornell susceptible to upsets, such as the one they suffered last Friday against Vermont, is the absence of a true offensive star.

7. Northeastern (Hockey East)

Captain Lily Shannon, who already surpassed her career-high point total from last season, led the Huskies to a 3-2 upset win over Penn State this weekend with a two-point night. Northeastern had their nine-game winning streak snapped against the Nittany Lions, but they remain the best team in Hockey East. With Swedish stopper Lisa Jönsson in the crease, Northeastern is hard to beat.

8. Connecticut (Hockey East)

Connecticut is a low-scoring team up front, but with netminder Tia Chan back there to clean up any mess, UConn keeps winning. If Connecticut can find a way to spark Julia Pellerin and Claire Murdoch, who are off to uncharacteristically slow starts, they’d be a threat to move up. Edging Quinnipiac 4-3 and Yale 3-2 on the weekend increased their winning streak to four games.

9. Quinnipiac (ECAC)

No one has found a way to cool off Kahlen Lamache who leads the nation in goals with 21 through 18 games. But after splitting games against Connecticut and Sacred Heart over the weekend, the program has its biggest weekend of the season coming up, with key games against nationally ranked Colgate and Cornell.

10. Clarkson (ECAC)

This is not the same Clarkson team that relied on top-10 PWHL draft picks Haley Winn, Nicole Gosling and Anne Cherkowski last season. However, what they do have is a group of bright young rookies in Sara Manness, and French national team member Manon le Scodan. Clarkson has lost to opponents they shouldn’t have this season. They also lost to Ohio State last weekend, but bounced back with a hard-fought 2-0 win against St. Cloud State in non-conference play.

The Chicago Bears have moved into the top seed in the NFC playoff picture following a win and a loss by the Los Angeles Rams.
Two division have new teams in first place after Sunday’s action.
Several teams, including the Dallas Cowboys and Houston Texans, are making late-season pushes for a playoff berth.

Every week for the duration of the 2025 regular season, USA TODAY Sports will provide timely updates to the NFL’s ever-evolving playoff picture − typically starting Sunday afternoon and then moving forward for the remainder of the week (through Monday’s and Thursday’s games or Saturday’s, if applicable. And, when the holidays roll around, we’ll be watching then, too).

What just happened? What does it mean? What are the pertinent factors (and, perhaps, tiebreakers) prominently in play as each conference’s seven-team bracket begins to crystallize? All will be explained and analyzed up to the point when the postseason field is finalized on Sunday, Jan. 4.

Here’s where things stand with Week 13 complete:

NFC playoff picture

1. Chicago Bears (9-3), NFC North leaders: With back-to-back victories over winning adversaries − in conjunction with the Rams’ stunning loss Sunday − the Bears have now rocketed to the top of the conference. Chicago’s 6-2 record in NFC games sends LA (4-3) down a spot. Remaining schedule: at Packers, vs. Browns, vs. Packers, at 49ers, vs. Lions

2. Los Angeles Rams (9-3), NFC West leaders: Carolina snapped their NFC-high six-game winning streak in rainy Charlotte, a loss that dropped LA out of the conference’s top spot. Remaining schedule: at Cardinals, vs. Lions, at Seahawks, at Falcons, vs. Cardinals

3. Philadelphia Eagles (8-4), NFC East leaders: Two losses in a row not only mean a lot more scrutiny but − beware − a team that could fall into the Cowboys’ clutches in the division if it’s not careful. Remaining schedule: at Chargers, vs. Raiders, at Commanders, at Bills, vs. Commanders

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-5), NFC South leaders: They narrowly beat Arizona to narrowly maintain their half-game lead over Carolina in the division. But the schedule is awfully forgiving the rest of the way aside from two meetings with those Panthers. Remaining schedule: vs. Saints, vs. Falcons, at Panthers, at Dolphins, vs. Panthers

5. Seattle Seahawks (9-3), wild card No. 1: All three of the ‘Hawks’ losses are against NFC opponents, including two in the division − defeats that won’t serve them well in the tiebreaker department. Seattle’s Week 11 loss to the Rams meant they couldn’t move up Sunday … but they are otherwise tied for first place in the NFC West. Remaining schedule: at Falcons, vs. Colts, vs. Rams, at Panthers, at 49ers

6. Green Bay Packers (8-3-1), wild card No. 2: They merely maintained their standing (for now) with their Thanksgiving win at Detroit, but a loss would have dropped them from the field entirely. A thin margin for the Pack to be sure … yet they remain just a half-game off the NFC North lead, too. Remaining schedule: vs. Bears, at Broncos, at Bears, vs. Ravens, at Vikings

7. San Francisco 49ers (9-4), wild card No. 3: They now have a 1½-game lead on their wild-card pursuers after Sunday’s win, but are only a half-game behind the Rams and Seahawks for the NFC West lead. Remaining schedule: BYE, vs. Titans, at Colts, vs. Bears, vs. Seahawks

8. Detroit Lions (7-5), in the hunt: Getting swept by the Packers further entrenches Detroit, which could have moved into a wild-card slot with a Turkey Day win, on the outside of the field. Huge game this Thursday night with Dallas. Remaining schedule: vs. Cowboys, at Rams, vs. Steelers, at Vikings, at Bears

9. Dallas Cowboys (6-5-1), in the hunt: Three wins in a row further fuels playoff aspirations in Big D. Week 14’s game in Detroit looms as massive − and potentially must-win − for the Cowboys and Lions. Remaining schedule: at Lions, vs. Vikings, vs. Chargers, at Commanders, at Giants

10. Carolina Panthers (7-6), in the hunt: The upset of the Rams on Sunday reaffirms the Panthers as an outfit to be reckoned with, though they didn’t gain any ground in the wild-card or divisional races (on a day when they could have gone into first place had Tampa Bay lost). Remaining schedule: BYE, at Saints, vs. Buccaneers, vs. Seahawks, at Buccaneers

AFC playoff picture

1. New England Patriots (11-2), AFC East leaders: The first team in the league to 11 wins thanks to Monday night’s rollover of the Giants, the Pats are in a very tight race with Denver, the teams’ airtight tiebreakers set to take effect once New England’s bye is over. Remaining schedule: BYE, vs. Bills, at Ravens, at Jets, vs. Dolphins

2. Denver Broncos (10-2), AFC West leaders: Denver held a one-game advantage in the common-games tiebreaker with New England − the difference being the Patriots’ Week 1 loss to the Raiders − before the Pats won Monday night. Remaining schedule: at Raiders, vs. Packers, vs. Jaguars, at Chiefs, vs. Chargers

3. Jacksonville Jaguars (8-4), AFC South leaders: Their win in Nashville coupled with Indy’s loss moves the Jags into first place by virtue of the common-games played tiebreaker, which they own by a one-win advantage. Slide back later, and victories over the Chiefs and Chargers could serve them well when it’s time to sort out tiebreakers. Remaining schedule: vs. Colts, vs. Jets, at Broncos, vs. Colts, at Titans

4. Baltimore Ravens (6-6), AFC North leaders: A sloppy performance against the Bengals briefly cost them first place in the division and a slot in the projected playoff field − but Pittsburgh’s loss Sunday conferred it back, the Ravens currently with one additional win over the Steelers in the common-games tiebreaker. Remaining schedule: vs. Steelers, at Bengals, vs. Patriots, at Packers, at Steelers

5. Los Angeles Chargers (8-4), wild card No. 1: They looked fairly fresh while taking out the Raiders in their return from the bye. Then QB Justin Herbert got hurt. But the Bolts’ 7-2 record in AFC games currently renders them the top-seeded wild card. Remaining schedule: vs. Eagles, at Chiefs, at Cowboys, vs. Texans, at Broncos

6. Indianapolis Colts (8-4), wild card No. 2: They’ve dropped three of their past four to fall off the conference pace … and have now ceded first place in the AFC South to Jacksonville after Sunday’s loss to Houston. Though they beat the Chargers in Week 7, the three-way tiebreaker (conference record) currently takes precedence, and the Colts are 6-3 in those contests. The schedule doesn’t let up the rest of the way out. Remaining schedule: at Jaguars, at Seahawks, vs. 49ers, vs. Jaguars, at Texans

7. Buffalo Bills (8-4), wild card No. 3: They got back into the win column at Pittsburgh, thus hanging on to the AFC’s final projected wild-card spot. A 5-3 record in conference games leaves Buffalo behind the Chargers and Colts in the wild-card seeding. Remaining schedule: vs. Bengals, at Patriots, at Browns, vs. Eagles, vs. Jets

8. Houston Texans (7-5), in the hunt: They’ve won five of six, including four in a row. If they want to win the AFC South for a third straight year, the Texans likely need to sweep the Colts − and they took their first step toward that with Sunday’s win at Indy − while continuing their surge. Remaining schedule: at Chiefs, vs. Cardinals, vs. Raiders, at Chargers, vs. Colts

9. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6), in the hunt: They’re virtually tied with the Ravens … but won’t be after next weekend’s trip to Baltimore. A 5-3 record in AFC games does slot the Steelers ahead of K.C. (3-4) for now. Remaining schedule: at Ravens, vs. Dolphins, at Lions, at Browns, vs. Ravens

10. Kansas City Chiefs (6-6), in the hunt: Not only will they almost certainly not win the AFC West for the first time since 2015, they could miss the postseason for the first time since 2014 − Andy Reid’s second year in K.C. And don’t forget they’ve lost to the Broncos, Chargers, Bills and Jags, who are all ahead of them. Remaining schedule: vs. Texans, vs. Chargers, at Titans, vs. Broncos, at Raiders

NFL teams eliminated from playoff contention in 2025

When the Nebraska women’s volleyball team steps onto the court, inspiration is always within reach for Harper Murray. All the outside hitter has to do is look down at her fingers, which she carefully tapes before every match.

She inscribes ’27’ on the tape binding her left ring finger in honor of her late father Vada Murray, who died when she was 5 years old. He wore No. 27 while playing football at Michigan. Murray then writes former coach John Cook’s initials on her left pointer finger, ‘a father figure’ that helped her grow as a player. She also adds Huskers head coach Dani Busboom Kelly’s initials on her middle finger as a reminder to lay it all on the line.

The initials on her right hand changes every year.

‘Every year for the past three years, I have written the location of the Final Four,’ Murray told USA TODAY Sports. ‘On my pointer finger and my middle finger, I have the letters ‘KC,’ which is Kansas City, which is where the NCAA Tournament is held this year.’

Nebraska was named the top overall seed during the NCAA Tournament selection show on Sunday and will begin its journey to Kansas City against Long Island University at 8 p.m. ET Friday. The Cornhuskers, who have won five national titles, fell short of their first since 2017 losing to Penn State in the semifinals last season.

Nebraska (30-0) has since kicked off the Busboom Kelly era with its first undefeated season since 2000. The Huskers will make their 44th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance after winning the Big Ten title while dropping six sets the entire season. Although Busboom Kelly said ‘whoever is (coaching Nebraska) would be doing well,’ her players argue otherwise.

‘When (Busboom Kelly) came in here, that Nebraska standard wasn’t lost at all. She knew what she wanted and she really pushes us to reach that level,’ Nebraska middle blocker Andi Jackson told USA TODAY Sports. ‘She’s been in our shoes before and … she can really relate to us and she knows what we’re feeling and she knows what it takes to win.’

Long before succeeding longtime coach and mentor John Cook in January, Busboom had already done a lot of winning at Nebraska. The Cortland, Nebraska, native won national titles as a player in 2006 and as an assistant coach in 2015.

But even the best coaches have their limitations. During an appearance on the Welcome To The Party podcast earlier this month, Busboom Kelly described her coaching style compared to Cook, who ‘was so good for so long, but he had his way. He had his plan and there wasn’t a lot of deviating from that.’

‘We’re really a collaborative group. I’m huge on that as a head coach,’ Busboom Kelly said. ‘I really trust my players to give me honest feedback. … It never has to be my way or the highway. Our team has grasped that. They love the collaboration and they love the ownership.’

Busboom Kelly’s credentials and reputation earned instant buy-in from the team, but it was her commitment to empowering her players that took the elite program to another level this season.

‘Anyone off of our bench, any of our game-changers, they can go in and the level stays the exact same,’ Jackson said. ‘It’s rare. I don’t think at a lot of programs can say your bench can be the second best team in the country. We have the privilege of getting to say that and (Busboom Kelly) has just been such a huge part of that.

‘She just gives us so much confidence and we know that with her as our coach, we just can play fearless.’

Nebraska’s three Player of the Year semifinalists

When the AVCA Player of the Year semifinalists were announced earlier this month, Nebraska had three of the 14 players on the list — Jackson, Murray and junior setter Bergen Reilly. It’s another example of the Huskers’ depth.

‘We have arguably the best in each position for the country,’ Jackson said. ‘We have the best setter in the country, we have the best outside in the country. And I think it just shows how strong our team is, especially at that front row that we have. When Harper (Murray), Bergen (Reilly) and I are up, we always give each other a smile because we know what we have to offer.’

The trio has led Nebraska to the nation’s top hitting percentage (.352) and the fourth-highest kill per set mark (14.70). Murray leads the Huskers with 3.55 kills per set and is averaging 2.15 digs per set. Jackson is averaging 2.75 kills per set on .471 hitting with 1.13 blocks per set, while Reilly is averaging a team-high 10.31 assists per set and 2.73 digs per set. 

‘We’ve been side by side for three years and it’s such a special row, because we just know that all of us have been through thick and thin together and our bond is so strong,’ Jackson added.

Huskers blocking out ‘outside noise’

Busboom Kelly knew Nebraska would be a title contender this season. ‘I was expecting us to be great, but certainly not undefeated. … They continue to exceed our expectations.’

Nebraska has asserted its dominance, winning 48 straight sets between Sept. 20 and Nov. 14, a streak that came to an end in the Huskers’ 3-1 win over UCLA. Players said dropping the set was ‘relieving’ and ‘freeing.’

‘It was just getting shoved down our throats how much Nebraska was winning … every time you opened any platform it was there,’ Jackson said. ‘After we lost that set, I looked at (my teammates) and I was like, ‘That is the best thing that could have happened to us.’ It’s over now. The weight is off of our shoulders. We don’t have to hold it up anymore, because I do think as much as we like to say play free, when that outside noise does creep in, it can just feel like there’s kind of a weight on the court while we’re playing.’

Murray added, ‘At some point we’re going to drop a set and we don’t want that to come in the NCAA Tournament and not be prepared and not know how to come back from it.’

Playing volleyball at Nebraska comes with a national spotlight and relentless attention. As Busboom Kelly put it, Nebraska ‘volleyball is so serious’ and ‘that is of course is why people come here,’ but with, as with any storied program, there’s pressure to execute.

‘There is a standard and we are expected to win … but we don’t want to put too much pressure on ourselves,’ Jackson said. ‘One thing that makes being at Nebraska so special is the team culture that we have. … We do such a good job of just caring for each other … especially when that noise starts to get really big towards the end of the season.

‘We just remember where our value actually comes from, because there can be so much outside noise and so many things being said with our team clustered all over the media. There can be lots of negativity.’

Murray said she and her teammates set social media limits to ensure the group maintains focus and aren’t ‘consumed’ by the onslaught of attention: ‘Not everyone’s going to be perfect and know how to handle criticism online or have a boundary for themselves, but that’s something that just comes with experience. And I think a lot of the older girls have done a good job guiding the newcomers.’

When the Huskers step on the court ahead of first serve, their attention will be on the team.

‘Before every game, we always say what matters are the six on the court and the 10 girls on the bench, not anyone else,’ Murray said. ‘The biggest thing for us is focusing on what we have going on on the court.’

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Broadcaster Joe Buck guest-hosted ‘Good Morning America’ before calling a ‘Monday Night Football’ game on the same day.
Buck enjoys the challenge of hosting ‘GMA’ as it allows him to use a different broadcasting skillset.
He credits his work ethic to his father, legendary broadcaster Jack Buck, who never turned down an assignment.

FOXBOROUGH, MA — Joe Buck walked into the broadcast booth on the main concourse of Gillette Stadium on Dec. 1 when a security guard offered some feedback. 

“Hey Joe, nice job on ‘GMA’ today!” 

This certainly qualified as a marathon Monday for Buck, who guest-hosted “Good Morning America” in New York before flying to call the ‘Monday Night Football’ game between the New England Patriots and New York Giants on ESPN. 

It was Buck’s fifth time hosting “GMA” after he expressed interest in doing so earlier this year. The Disney bosses – the company owns ABC and ESPN – were happy to oblige. The double-duty aspect of Buck’s day was equal parts promotional and logistical, with the “MNF” assignment a short flight from New York. 

“That was a blast,” Buck told USA TODAY Sports from the booth. “I’m always up for a challenge. Really, it was more of a logistic challenge. Now I’m here, so let the games begin.” 

For Buck, 56, the opportunity allows him to flex a different muscle of his broadcasting skillset.

“People go, ‘Well why would you want to do that?’ It’s good for me. It’s good for my brain,” Buck said. “It’s good for, I don’t know, just kind of being challenged. It’s a long day, but so what? People work a heck of a lot harder in the real world than getting up and being on TV with makeup on your face. I’m not downplaying it, but that’s kind of what I saw my dad do when I was a little kid.” 

Buck watched his father Jack Buck, a broadcaster who grew up during the Great Depression and “had to scrape to make ends meet together when he was a kid and didn’t have anything,” Buck said. “And so when he got a job, whatever they asked him to do, he went and did,” Buck added, “and he never said no.” 

With Joe Buck a “yes” for this task, he flew to New York on Sunday with his prep work for the Giants-Patriots game done. It reminded Buck of calling Major League Baseball during his 25-year tenure at FOX when he’d call the postseason in the middle of the NFL season. 

For the first half of Monday and all day Sunday he could concentrate on “GMA” responsibilities. “You just have to compartmentalize,” he said. 

Buck woke up at 4:30 a.m. ET and made it to the studio an hour later. He sat at the anchor desk and did his teleprompter reads and tosses. 

“It felt good from the start, just in the – this sounds corny – everyone’s so good at what they do,” Buck said of doing “GMA.” “I’ve never been part of a show where everything goes just like clockwork like that.” 

The show is well-laid out and that makes it as easy as possible on whoever the guest host is, Buck said. 

“It makes it fun,” he said. “You can lead to something, you know it’s going to pop up, you say someone’s name and they turn around. I don’t know, I feel like TV is not always like that.” 

Somewhat differently than his approach for a prime-time football game, he went about his “GMA” prep segment-by-segment and tackled what was in front of him at the advice of the producers, who feed him only what he needs to know, he said. Sometimes it feels like he’s exclusively tossing to chief meteorologist Ginger Zee because “that’s what I think they trust me to do at this point,” he said jokingly.

Once the show ended at 9 a.m. ET, he hopped on a plane and made it to the Boston suburbs. He wasn’t planning on napping but by 1 o’clock “it just overtook me.” He snoozed, rose, grabbed something to eat, showered and made his way to the stadium. 

 “Yeah, it’s like, ‘Oh Nicolás Maduro, am I going to have to sit down with him?’ Just kidding,” Buck joked.  

Normally, Buck is paying attention to news and storylines about the NFL and his fantasy team, but also enjoys being a citizen of the world.

“I try to know a little bit about the world around me,” he said, adding: “Being able to show versatility and having at least somewhat interesting conversation with somebody in that arena is a good thing.” 

By nightfall, Buck was back in a more familiar arena – a football stadium.

“I don’t know, you just go do it,” he said. “And it’s fun. It’s a blast. To start my day and end my day the way I’m doing it (Monday), I wouldn’t trade it for anything.” 

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FOXBOROUGH, MA — Jaxson Dart has a message for anybody who thinks he should reconsider his playing style.

‘This isn’t soccer,’ the New York Giants quarterback said.

In Dart’s return from a two-game absence following a concussion he suffered Nov. 16 against the Chicago Bears, he took one of the more vicious – and by the book – hits a quarterback can take in the NFL when New England Patriots linebacker Christian Elliss leveled him near the Giants’ sideline in the first quarter of the eventual 33-15 Patriots victory on ‘Monday Night Football.’

‘I play the game aggressively,’ Dart said defiantly following the loss. ‘I took one hit that people are talking about. I slid. Got out of the way of a lot of hits. I appreciate people wanting me to be healthy and all that stuff, and I want to be healthy too.’

In Dart’s view, he was trying to reach the first-down marker when Elliss blasted him. He maintained the hit had no effect on the way he went about the rest of the game, although there were certainly instances in which he seemed hesitant, trapped between wanting to take off or throw the ball away or whatever rapid thoughts must cross the mind of a rookie quarterback with a pocket collapsing around him. 

“It didn’t hurt,” he said, “so that didn’t play any thought in my mind.” 

Dart might be right about the fact that his concussion suffered against the Bears came on a fluky play. He claimed he lost control of the ball while running it and, while trying to regain possession, failed to properly brace himself for contact with the ground. That moment cost him two games of his rookie season. 

But he’s also ignoring the three other times he was evaluated for a concussion since the start of the preseason, and Monday marked his eighth career start. 

The Ole Miss product encouraged anyone who questioned his play style to watch his tape from high school and college. This is simply who he is, he says. 

“It’s not a shocker to anybody. It’s how I’ve played,” the No. 25 overall pick in the 2025 draft said. “I felt like if you just watch the game, like, I did slide. I did avoid a lot of hits, so you’re going to get hit. It’s football.”

But what about the fact this is the NFL? Dart replied that all adjustments are different. 

“So just like any other league, you take new steps, there’s bigger, faster players. My body feels good. I’m going to play aggressive,” he said. “I feel like if I just turn into a complete pocket passer, that’s just not how I want to play the game. I feel like there’s an advantage to me using my legs. So, yeah.” 

Nobody is asking Dart to become a statue. But to show an ounce of understanding and humility would come across as maturity. 

Instead, Dart kept doubling down. 

“I understand the question, but this is football,” said Dart, who often looked exasperated standing behind the podium. “Like, I’m going to get hit if I’m in the pocket or outside the pocket. I feel like I played this way my whole entire life. It shouldn’t be any shocker to anybody if you followed along with my career. 

“You’re going to get hit. Things happen. It’s just part of the game.” 

Giants interim head coach Mike Kafka said he “obviously” doesn’t want Dart to take any hits that are unnecessary but saw that the quarterback was “working his way out of bounds” on the play.

“Listen, Jaxson’s an aggressive football player,” Kafka said. “He’s on the sideline, trying to get himself out of bounds. Takes a hit. He bounced up. He’s a tough kid.” 

Patriots cornerback Carlton Davis III said Dart is “a gutsy player” who “wants to make plays.” Young players trying to prove themselves in the NFL often play that way.  

“Just by watching the film, you could tell he’s going to take some chances, and that’s good for him,” Davis told USA TODAY Sports. “That’s the only way he could really learn in this league – taking chances and being confident.” 

Davis considers Dart a playmaker who “when he hits his stride, he’ll be similar to Baker Mayfield.” 

That’s high praise, but even the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback is still dealing with the ramifications of being tough with a left shoulder injury that knocked him out of a Nov. 23 game against the Los Angeles Rams and hampered him in a win over the Arizona Cardinals a week later. It was his toughness and attempt to play through an injury that served as a motivating factor for the Cleveland Browns to move on from him and trade for Deshaun Watson after all. 

Maybe Dart can learn from the quarterback on the other sideline Monday night. Patriots second-year signal-caller Drake Maye dealt with a reputation for running too much and being reckless in doing so, and he twice took big hits at different points in the season but didn’t miss any time.

Maye said he learned his lesson after he had to exit against the Los Angeles Chargers on a similar sideline hit as a rookie. 

“I think it’s something that’s been across the league that has showed up with quarterbacks near the boundary or near the sideline, just kind of relaxing,” Maye said. 

Maye added: “So just be smart and know you’ve almost got to accelerate or get down or do something over there. I think Jaxson, he made some good plays with his feet, so he’s tough to handle.”

Fast-forward a year and Maye has developed into one of the most comfortable-looking pocket-passers in the NFL and entered the Patriots’ bye week as one of the leading candidates to win the 2025 MVP award. 

“Everybody’s journey is different,” Dart said. “I’ve known Drake for years and he’s done a great job. He also went through a struggle his first year, too. Everybody’s journey’s different. I’m just trying to do my best to change this franchise around a little bit and do my part. Just got to stay diligent.” 

A lot can change in a year, as Maye and New England have proved. How Dart approaches a similar hurdle will determine whether he can actually institute the change he desires within a franchise that desperately needs it. 

FOXBOROUGH, MA — The New York Giants’ special teams unit didn’t have its proudest half against the New England Patriots on ‘Monday Night Football.’

After allowing a 94-yard punt return for a touchdown in the first quarter, the field-goal unit came onto the field in a 17-7 game with 6:35 remaining in the second quarter.

The snap from Casey Kreiter was high and not handled well by punter Jamie Gillan, who is the holder in the operation. Younghoe Koo, the kicker, looked slightly hesitant coming into his kick and his right foot became stuck in the Gillette Stadium turf.

‘The ball kind of slipped a little bit,’ Giants interim head coach Mike Kafka said. ‘(Koo) wasn’t sure if it was going to get set. Jamie tried to reset it and by that time, it was kind of, he was already kind of out of his groove on it. So it was just tough right there.’

Koo’s trip forced Gillan to pick the ball up and the punter tried to scramble, but he lost 12 yards and the play went into the record books as a sack.

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Fewer than 24 hours after firing 13-year head coach Mark Stoops, Kentucky reportedly named his replacement Dec. 1.

Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein, a Louisville alum, will be taking the reins in Lexington as a first-time head coach, per a report from ESPN. He will take over a 5-7 Wildcats team that just lost 41-0 to Stein’s alma mater, as he attempts to right the ship.

Stoops was the all-time winningest coach at Kentucky, racking up 82 wins. He barely finished his career there above .500, going 82-80 in that span. Kentucky missed bowl games in consecutive years for the first time in 10 seasons, exacerbating the urgency to show Stoops the door.

The timing of firing Stoops was puzzling, with Jon Sumrall accepting the Florida job earlier on Nov. 30. Sumrall, who played at Kentucky, was a popular name being tied to the job as an alum. But the subsequent timing of Stein’s hiring indicates he was a priority target for Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart and the Kentucky brass.

The seeds for Stein to Kentucky have been cultivated for over a year.

Now, Stein will have an opportunity to prove he can thrive in SEC football as well, as he looks to do what Clark Lea has done at Vanderbilt and help one of the more difficult jobs in the conference turn things around.