OWINGS MILLS, Md. – With a first name one letter longer than a key character in “The Wire,” the HBO classic show set in Baltimore, perhaps Marlon Humphrey was long destined to play for the Ravens. 

The fictional Marlo Stanfield was a cold-blooded killer who wore the crown as the city’s drug kingpin in the second half of the five seasons the show ran. Humphrey, the cornerback commonly referred to as “Marlo” by teammates and coaches, won’t win NFL Defensive Player of the Year, though he did earn an All-Pro selection to complement his third Pro Bowl appearance. But no Ravens defensive player came up big when it mattered most more than Humphrey during the 2024 regular season. 

There was the interception of Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow in Ravens territory with Baltimore trailing by three points and three minutes remaining (Baltimore went on to win in overtime). He had two interceptions in front of a national “Monday Night Football” audience against Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who scored 21 points in the fourth quarter after he left with a knee injury that kept him out of the Ravens’ next game, a loss to the Cleveland Browns. 

There was a pick-six, the first of his career, in Week 16 against the Pittsburgh Steelers – the Ravens’ AFC North rival and wild-card round opponent Saturday night (8 p.m. ET, Amazon) – that gave the Ravens a two-touchdown lead in the fourth quarter. Earlier in the season, he picked off a pass in the end zone in an 18-16 loss to Pittsburgh in which the defense did not allow a touchdown. Quarterback Lamar Jackson said Humphrey’s strip of Bengals running back Chase Brown on “Thursday Night Football” “woke us up” with the team trailing 21-7 on the way to a 35-34 comeback win. 

And he does it all with a personality untypically found in most NFL locker rooms.

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“He’s one of a kind, man,” Ravens cornerback Brandon Stephens told USA TODAY Sports. “He comes with energy every day, just a high-energy guy. I don’t know another Marlo besides Marlo.” 

Who else journals before a game while leaning against the goal post in frigid temperatures? Or reveals that he’s gone to Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti for advice on his love life?

During the offseason, a Bleacher Report story called Humphrey the most overrated defensive back in the NFL. His statistically improved season is not only a testament to his talent, Stephens said, but also how he approaches every day of work. He’s focused inside the building and puts even more time in outside of it. 

“His personality is unique to him,” wide receiver Nelson Agholor told USA TODAY Sports. “He has a unique personality – charismatic, outgoing, definitely a team guy. So all in all, respect it and (got) love for the guy.” 

That personality is on display in front of the team every single day, said Aghlor, who has had scores of teammates across the four different organizations he’s played for in 10 seasons. 

“But he’s consistent with it. So it’s not really a show, it’s who he is,” Agholor said. “At first, it was hard for me to understand. I thought he was joking, but that’s really him. That’s his personality.” 

Humphrey finished the season with 15 passes defended, a career-high six interceptions (the same number he had from 2020-23) and 50 solo tackles. The 2019 season was Humphrey’s first Pro-Bowl nod, and he was also named to the AP’s All-Pro first team. 

“It was kinda quick to get accustomed to how he is,” said Stephens, who was drafted by Baltimore in 2021. “I think when I first got here I was like, ‘I didn’t know Marlo was like this.’

“You become accustomed to it.”

As the College Football Playoff continued, the Ravens offered a prompt for players to give their predictions to the camera while walking off the field. Humphrey stood there for minutes while everybody else quickly shouted their answers, and he gave an impassioned explanation of why he believed his Alabama Crimson Tide were jobbed. 

“We love Marlon. We want Marlon to be himself,” Orr said. “If he’s not himself, then something’s wrong. So, we want Marlon being his crazy self, and we appreciate it, and I think he appreciates us for letting him be himself.” 

Humphrey became a father in December and married earlier in 2024. He entered the season slimmed down (like quarterback Lamar Jackson), at about 190 pounds, after he spent the last few seasons around the 200-pound mark. 

“I got my grown-man weight on me, and it just never went off,” Humphrey said in camp. “It’s a young man’s game, so I decided to get a little lower.” 

During training camp, Humphrey offered some insight into how he wanted to approach the season. Offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris died suddenly at the age of 70 in August, and tight end Mark Andrews was involved in a car accident. That Orr had to retire from playing early due to a neck condition also affected him. 

“It’s helped me just be more calm as a player, just go into it, enjoy what I can enjoy, control what I can control, and I think that’s been the biggest difference, I would say,” Humphrey said in December. “And also, trying to eliminate unknown stress.” 

For example, Humphrey said, instead of being one of the last players to show up for the team plane on road trips, he beat the Amtrak train that took the Ravens to New Jersey to play the New York Giants in December. 

“This organization, these coaches – I’m just grateful. All of those little things have really helped me just take stress off the body,” Humphrey said. “And you put that in, and you can just be able to play more free, and I feel like it’s shown up this year.”

The Ravens’ first-round draft pick in 2017 (16th overall), Humphrey is in his eighth pro season but is just 28 years old. Orr said he’s stepped up his leadership skills this year because he has no choice as someone players with less experience look up to. 

“He definitely has a unique personality, but the thing I love about it is he’s gonna be himself and you’re gonna get Marlon, and he is going to tell you the truth,” Orr said. “He is going to tell you how he feels, and it’s always coming from a good place.” 

Since Week 11, the Ravens rank first in the NFL in expected points added (EPA) per dropback (-.15) They’ve surrendered 15.1 points per game in that span, a drop from the 25.3 they gave up over the first 10 games of the season. 

That coincided with Humphrey playing moving predominantly to the nickel corner spot, lining up opposite receivers in the slot, as rookie Nate Wiggins kept holding his own on the outside. Another key change was benching safety Marcus Williams and starting Ar’Darius Washington while moving Kyle Hamilton back to a traditional safety role. 

Playing nickel allows Humphrey to play more aggressively, and he can abandon the caution he holds onto as a corner. 

“I like hitting people,” Humphrey said during training camp. 

Humphrey entered this year with the goal of staying healthy, and outside of the minor knee injury he suffered against Tampa Bay, he did. 

“When Marlon’s healthy and playing at the level that he’s playing at, he makes us a better defense,” Ravens passing game coordinator/assistant head coach Chris Hewitt told reporters in December. “He brings that grit. He brings the energy, and that’s what this defense is made up of. He embodies everything that we talk about as far as being a Raven, so when he’s playing that way, we play better.” 

The stage is set for one of the most highly anticipated national championship games in modern college football history.

You know the names. Notre Dame, perhaps the sport’s defining program, fresh off College Football Playoff wins against Indiana, Georgia and Penn State. Ohio State, another heavyweight, which has responded brilliantly to another loss to Michigan to end the regular season.

The Fighting Irish needed some help from Penn State to win 27-24 in the Orange Bowl. Down 10-0 late in the first half and 24-17 in the fourth, Notre Dame tied the game on a 54-yard touchdown pass with under five minutes to play and then took advantage of a costly interception by Drew Allar to hit the go-ahead field goal with 7 seconds remaining.

After rolling over Tennessee and Oregon, the Buckeyes’ 28-14 win against Texas in the Coton Bowl wasn’t put away until an interception by safety Caleb Downs late in the fourth quarter. Despite the unclean performance, Ohio State will be the favorite against the Irish.

Another source of pregame hype comes from the conclusion of the debut 12-team playoff format. While the new format has come under scrutiny for the selection and seeding process, the tournament has yielded a marquee matchup to decide the national championship — in other words, the playoff has been a success.

Here are the early keys and biggest storylines leading into the matchup on Monday, Jan. 20, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta:

Which Riley Leonard shows up?

For a time on Thursday night, Leonard was in line to shoulder the blame for a painful loss. His costly interception five minutes into the fourth quarter allowed the Nittany Lions to take a touchdown lead, though Leonard’s scoring pass to Jaden Greathouse on the ensuing possession evened the score.

That was one of two turnovers on the night for Leonard, who entered the Orange Bowl with only six interceptions in 349 pass attempts. Overall, he completed 15 of 23 throws for 223 yards and a score and added 35 yards on the ground, easily outplaying Allar.

The Irish will need more of the same from Leonard and then some against Ohio State, only without the giveaways, since feeding the Buckeyes additional possessions is the easiest way to ensure a Notre Dame loss.

Crucially, Leonard will have to be a hammer on third down. He’s converted on 11 of 13 third-down opportunities when the Irish need three or fewer yards. Given how Notre Dame typically struggles to find explosive plays downfield, extending drives on manageable third-down tries will be one of the biggest keys of the game.

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Who can stop Ohio State?

Not Tennessee, not Oregon, not Texas. Another win against the SEC makes this surge to the championship game even sweeter for the Buckeyes.

The Cotton Bowl win showed why Ohio State is so dangerous. While the offense was unable to get Jeremiah Smith involved, the defense forced two turnovers and held the Longhorns to 58 rushing yards and a combined 6 of 18 on third and fourth down.

This group also delivered the game’s defining moment. Down by a touchdown, Texas had first-and-goal at the Buckeyes’ 1-yard line with four minutes to play. After the Longhorns stumbled back seven yards on three plays, Quinn Ewers was sacked and stripped by Ohio State defensive end Jack Sawyer, who scooped up the loose ball and went 83 yards for a score.

It won’t take perfection for Notre Dame to beat the Buckeyes. But it may take something close to perfect, especially if the OSU defense keeps this up while the passing game gets back in rhythm.

Can the Notre Dame defense stop the run?

This hasn’t necessarily been an issue all season. While the Irish rank 41st nationally in rushing yards allowed per game, that total is inflated by two games against service academies; Navy and Army ran for a combined 429 yards but lost by a combined 72 points.

But the run defense really struggled out of the gate against Penn State. After giving up a combined 125 yards against the Hoosiers and Bulldogs, the Irish gave up 141 rushing yards to the Nittany Lions in the first half. That improved dramatically in the second half, however.

Ohio State presents a different type of threat the Nittany Lions’ duo of Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen. The Buckeyes are less likely to make the running game the primary focus of offense but are more explosive. See TreVeyon Henderson’s 75-yard score late in the first half against the Longhorns as one great example.

It’s no coincidence that Notre Dame’s closest games — Texas A&M, Northern Illinois, Louisville and Penn State — have come when the opponent is successful running the ball.

But one thing to keep in mind if this game comes down which team can convert on third down. While Leonard and the Irish have been very good on short-yardage downs, Notre Dame’s defense has been very solid in the same situation: opponents have just 19 first downs on 42 carries when facing third down and three or fewer yards.

The last time most casual tennis fans saw Coco Gauff, her US Open title defense had ended in devastating fashion with a fourth-round loss to fellow American Emma Navarro, the same opponent who knocked her out at Wimbledon. 

But what a difference four months makes. 

After another change in her coaching team, some minor technical adjustments and a little bit of confidence, Gauff enters the Australian Open this week as one of if not the favorite to take home her second Grand Slam title. 

It’s been a fascinating journey for the 20-year-old Floridian. After a largely disappointing summer, including a medal-less trip to the Paris Olympics and several early-round losses, something clicked for Gauff last fall. She won the China Open, a prestigious WTA 1000 event, then backed it up by winning a record $4.8 million payday at the WTA Finals in Saudi Arabia. 

More importantly, she finished the season with wins over her two biggest rivals in that event, beating No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and No. 2 Iga Swiatek, who had beaten Gauff in 11 of their previous 12 meetings. 

It wasn’t a fluke. 

At the United Cup a little more than a week ago to open the 2025 season, Gauff once again beat Swiatek, 6-4, 6-4, helping Team USA win the title and making a major statement that their previously one-sided rivalry had turned.

“Obviously this start of the season gives me a lot of confidence,” she told reporters. ‘I feel like when I’m playing confident tennis I’m playing great tennis.”

Everything about Gauff’s game looks improved since separating from ESPN analyst Brad Gilbert as her primary coach and adding Matt Daly, a former Notre Dame player who is known as a grip specialist. It has led to Gauff deploying a steadier and more punishing forehand, while fixing some issues with the serve that gave her so much trouble last year. 

Barring a pretty big upset in the early rounds, Gauff should be on for a semifinal showdown with Sabalenka, the two-time defending Australian Open champion. 

Here are four more things to know about the first major of the tennis season, beginning Saturday evening in the U.S.:

Carlos Alcaraz goes for the career Slam

You have to be a pretty special talent to win two majors in a season and the Olympic silver medal but still come out of 2024 feeling like it was a slight disappointment. But that’s kind of where Alcaraz found himself last year as he battled some injuries, inconsistent stretches and lost significant ground in the rankings to No. 1 Jannik Sinner. 

But after adding the Roland Garros title to his haul last spring, the 21-year-old Spaniard needs only an Australian title to complete the career Grand Slam. That’s something only eight men have done, and Alcaraz still has three more chances to displace Rafael Nadal (24 years, 102 days) as the youngest to pull it off.

Alcaraz has not had great success in Australia, but it’s probably just a matter of time. The question for 2025 is whether he’ll show improved proficiency on a fast hard court, where his inability to get easy points with the serve has put him at a slight disadvantage in the past. 

Novak Djokovic in the twilight

Djokovic had one major goal last year, and he checked it off the list by winning Olympic gold in an improbable and epic 7-6, 7-6 victory over Alcaraz. But other than that, Djokovic started to show more signs of his age (he’ll be 38 in May and needed surgery for a torn meniscus) and questionable motivation as he pared his schedule almost to the bare minimum. 

The most interesting offseason development for Djokovic was hiring his old rival, the recently retired Andy Murray, to help coach him in Australia and perhaps beyond. But it’s unclear what kind of form Djokovic carries into the major he’s won 10 times. At the warm-up event in Brisbane last week, he won two matches before losing 7-6, 6-3 to American Riley Opelka, who is ranked outside the top 200 after struggling with injuries for the past two years.

It would not be a surprise if this is Djokovic’s last year on tour, but you also can’t completely count him out from the possibility of adding a 25th Slam title. Seeded No. 7, he’ll probably have to do it the hard way here, with Alcaraz (quarterfinals), No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev (semifinals) and defending champion Sinner all in his potential path to the title. 

Doping controversies on center stage 

There’s a chance that Sinner, who is No. 1 by a mile after winning both hardcourt majors and eight titles overall in 2024, has to spend the meat of this season serving a suspension for a banned substance that became public right before the US Open last year. 

The ITIA, tennis’ integrity agency, decided not to suspend Sinner after traces of the steroid clostebal showed up in a drug test at a tournament last spring. Essentially, the ITIA agreed with Sinner’s explanation that the substance entered his system via his physical trainer, who had used a cream containing clostebal that is available over-the-counter in Italy to treat a wound on his hand before working on Sinner’s body. (There is photographic evidence, for what it’s worth, that the trainer had a bandage over his hand at the same tournament where the positive test occurred.)

But the World Anti-Doping Agency has challenged the ITIA’s decision and is seeking a one-year suspension, prompting a hearing before the Court of Arbitration for Sport that will take place in April. If Sinner is suspended even for 90 days, it could take him out of the heart of Grand Slam season. 

Meanwhile, in November, the ITIA announced that Swiatek had tested positive for trimetazidine in August. Swiatek successfully argued that contamination in melatonin supplements was at fault, as she was able to present an unopened and partially opened package from the same batch that tested positive for the contaminants. She served a short provisional ban that forced her to withdraw from a couple of fall tournaments in Asia, but the reason for her absence wasn’t revealed until the ITIA announcement. 

At minimum, it’s not a great look for tennis to have two high profile players under a cloud of suspicion to begin the season. But legend John McEnroe, who will call the tournament for ESPN, told reporters that the positive tests had not been harmful because ‘tennis is cleaner than any other sport … but that doesn’t mean there are not issues.”

New names to watch

Looking for some up-and-comers to track in Australia and throughout the 2025 season? 

∎Start with Joao Fonseca, an 18-year-old from Brazil who will crack the top 100 soon and won the ATP’s “NextGen” event in December. He’s a big-time talent who already has won a couple titles on the Challenger Tour and gets a tasty matchup to open the Australian Open against No. 9 seed Andrey Rublev.

∎Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, a 6-foot-8 Frenchman, might already have the scariest serve on tour at age 21. And it’s not just his first serve – he regularly hits his second in the 120 mph range. He’s already bombed his way to a couple ATP titles and looks primed to make a dent in the Grand Slams soon. 

∎American Nishesh Basavareddy, a 19-year-old from Newport Beach, California, who won the 2022 US Open juniors, made a bunch of Challenger finals late last year to break into the top 150. He’ll get the opportunity of a lifetime in the first round against Djokovic. 

∎On the women’s side, don’t be surprised if Diana Shnaider ends up in a Slam final soon – or maybe even wins one. The 20-year-old Russian, who played one season at NC State, quietly took four WTA titles last season. More impressive, she won them on hard court, clay and grass. She’s up to No. 13 in the rankings and rising fast.

∎Iva Jovic, a 17-year-old American born to Serbian immigrants, won the Aussie and Wimbledon junior titles last year and beat seasoned pro Magda Linette in the US Open main draw. She could face No. 6 seed Elena Rybakina in the second round in Australia.

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He knew the house he was renting in the Pacific Palisades was destroyed in the devastating wildfires that have engulfed the Los Angeles area. But he needed to see the damage firsthand.

“I was not prepared for what I saw,” Redick told reporters Friday. “It’s complete devastation and destruction. I went through most of the village, and it’s all gone. And I don’t think you can ever prepare yourself for something like that. Our home is gone. And look, we were renting for the year to try to figure out where we wanted to be long term. And everything we owned that was of any importance to us almost 20 years together as a couple and 10 years of parenting was in that house.

“And there’s certain things that you can’t replace, that will never be replaced. And it’s like weird. My son did an art project last year at St. Anne’s in Brooklyn. And it was like a charcoal pencil painting of a lighthouse that we had framed above the stairs. And you can’t ever replace stuff like that. You know, memories. Eighteen years together now, Chelsea and I, certain things that were in that house that you can’t replace.”

The NBA postponed the Lakers’ game Thursday against Charlotte, and on Friday, the league announced it postponed Saturday’s San Antonio Spurs-Los Angeles Lakers game in Los Angeles and the Charlotte Hornets-Los Angeles Clippers game in Inglewood, California, “due to the ongoing wildfires in the Los Angeles area.’

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The Lakers practiced Friday and Redick met with reporters.

Redick said his wife, Chelsea, was apprehensive to leave Brooklyn for Southern California and an NBA coaching job.

“She said to me, ‘I was very hesitant to move out here. I was very hesitant for you to go into coaching. I’ve never loved living somewhere more than I’ve loved Brooklyn, and I’ve never loved the community more than I love the community I’ve had in Brooklyn. And then, you know, it’s like, we move out here and the Palisades community has really just been so good to us.’

“And that’s, I think that’s the part for us that we’re really struggling with is just the loss of community. And I recognize that people make up community, and we’re going to rebuild, and we want to help lead on that. But all the churches, the schools, the library, like it’s all gone.”

Redick divulged that he had planned to help coach his sons’ youth basketball team this winter and the Palisades Recreation Center was burned.

Multiple Lakers’ employees have been impacted by the wildfires. Redick said the team’s chief legal counsel, Dan Grigsby, lost his home, and the parents of the team’s videographer lost their home.

“We certainly want to do everything we can within the safety parameters of what’s going on in the city,” Redick said. “We obviously want to give people hope and we want to give … I don’t want to say a distraction, maybe an escape.

“We talked about it as a group before practice. It is our responsibility, everybody in this building, to lead on this and to help people. You never know what that’s going to look like. I think between myself, (executive vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka), I know the Buss family – Jeanie specifically – we’re prepared to do whatever it takes to help Los Angeles.”

Bill McCartney, the Hall of Fame college football coach who won a national championship with Colorado in 1990, died Friday night in Boulder, Colorado. He was 84.

McCartney’s family said in a statement that he died ‘after a courageous journey with dementia.’

McCartney, hired in 1982, is the winningest coach in CU football history with a 93-55-5 record over 13 seasons in Boulder. He led the Buffaloes to the 1990 national championship after beating Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl and won three Big Eight titles.

He coached 1994 Heisman Trophy winner Rashaan Salaam and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2013.

After his coaching career, McCartney co-founded the Christian organization ‘Promise Keepers.’ He had four children with his late wife, Lynne.

The NBA on Friday postponed Saturday’s San Antonio Spurs-Los Angeles Lakers game in Los Angeles and the Charlotte Hornets-Los Angeles Clippers game in Inglewood, California, “due to the ongoing wildfires in the Los Angeles area,” the league announced in a news release.

“The NBA and the Clippers and Lakers organizations have been in communication with local officials in Los Angeles and Inglewood about the ongoing situation in the Los Angeles area and the game postponements ensure no resources will be diverted from the wildfire response efforts,” the league said.

The Lakers’ game scheduled for Thursday against Charlotte was also postponed.

The NBA and National Basketball Players Association announced they are donating $1 million to the American Red Cross, World Central Kitchen and other organizations “to support those affected by this disaster and are working with the Lakers and Clippers on ways to support longer term assistance and rebuilding efforts.”

“I was not prepared for what I saw,” Redick told reporters. “It’s complete devastation and destruction. I went through most of the village and it’s all gone. And I don’t think you can ever prepare yourself for something like that. Our home, our home is gone. And look, we were, we were renting for the year to try to figure out where we wanted to be long term. And everything we, we owned that was of any importance to us almost 20 years together as a couple and 10 years of parenting was in that house.’

Colorado coach Deion Sanders issued another reminder that he will intervene if his quarterback son Shedeur is drafted by an NFL team he doesn’t like and said there are a “couple of teams that I won’t allow him to play for.”

Sanders said this on the Tamron Hall Show Friday as he promotes the new season of his “Coach Prime” documentary series after it debuted this week.

He did not say which teams he had in mind.

“Have you told him privately who you would like for him to play for?” Hall asked Sanders on the show.

“It’s not like that,” Sanders replied. “It’s not like who I would like for him to play for. It’s a couple of teams that I won’t allow him to play for. So it’s not like that. But this is my profession. I know what’s behind the curtain. We ain’t got to get back there for me to understand what’s behind the curtain and what’s not prominent for my son. I’m not doing it.”

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“And if he doesn’t listen to you?” Hall asked.

“Who?” Sanders replied, triggering an eruption of laughter from the studio audience. “Who? No, you must mean (NFL team) owners, not my son.”

Sanders made a similar warning about this previously, when he said that Shedeur could pull “an Eli” if he didn’t like the NFL team that drafted his son – a reference to when quarterback Eli Manning refused to play for the San Diego Chargers after being drafted by them in 2004.

This year, the Colorado quarterback is projected to be a top pick in the NFL draft in April.

The Tennessee Titans have the first pick, followed by the Cleveland Browns, New York Giants and New England Patriots. Shedeur Sanders said on his own podcast this week that he was “happy” with the draft order.

“Whatever happens happens,” he said. “I know at the end of the day God is gonna put me on the right team.”

Before he played in the Alamo Bowl against BYU on Dec. 28, a pair of Giants-colored cleats were photographed near Shedeur’s locker and shown on social media.

“He’s got some Tennessee cleats, too,” Sanders told Hall. “And some Raiders cleats. He got every color cleats.”

“You have said that if the right team does not pick him, that you will…” Hall said before Sanders finished her sentence.

“Intervene,” Sanders said.

He then stated his reason for it.

‘I’m not gonna let my son get down in no foolishness,’ he said.

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com