AP National Sports

By JOSH DUBOW AP Pro Football Writer SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers are optimistic starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo can return this week from a right calf injury but don’t expect backup Trey Lance back for another week. Coach Kyle Shanahan says Garoppolo will be limited at practice after missing one game

By MARYCLAIRE DALE Associated Press PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The NFL has proposed changes to the $1 billion concussion settlement after an outcry over test score adjustments known as “race-norming.” The adjustments make it harder for retired Black players to win dementia awards that average $500,000 or more. The proposed changes come after months of closed-door

BERN, Switzerland (AP) — Villarreal has ended an 11-game winless streak in the Champions League group stage by beating Young Boys 4-1. Headed goals by Yeremi Pino and Gerard Moreno in the first 16 minutes lifted Villarreal to its first win at this stage of the competition since 2008. Defender Alberto Moreno and Samu Chukwueze

SALZBURG, Austria (AP) — Salzburg’s young squad has taken a big step closer to reaching the Champions League knockout stage with a 3-1 win over Wolfsburg. Noah Okafor scored twice after 19-year-old forward Karim Adeyemi netted early to put the Austrian team on course for victory as it bids to reach the knockout round for

LONDON (AP) — Injuries to strikers Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner have marred Chelsea’s impressive 4-0 win over Malmo in the Champions League. Lukaku sustained a twisted right ankle getting fouled for a penalty that was converted by Jorginho for the second goal in the 21st minute. That added to the opener volleyed in by

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo has saved Manchester United again in the Champions League. The greatest scorer in the competition’s history soared to head in an 81st-minute winner as United erased a two-goal halftime deficit to beat Atalanta 3-2 in a wild match at Old Trafford. Ronaldo’s record-extending 138th goal in the Champions League

By The Associated Press SMU is undefeated halfway through its regular-season schedule for the third year in a row. The 6-0 Mustangs have also won six in a row against Tulane, though last year’s overtime win was the fourth game in that span decided by four points or less. The Green Wave have lost their

LISBON (AP) — Bayern Munich has kept up its winning start to the Champions League as Leroy Sané scored twice in a 4-0 win over Benfica. Bayern didn’t open the scoring until the 70th minute after two disallowed goals. Benfica crumbled once Sané had put Bayern in front and the Germany winger finished with two

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — Substitute Dejan Kulusevski scored late as Juventus won 1-0 at Zenit St. Petersburg to preserve its perfect start to the Champions League. Kulusevski headed in the only goal of the match four minutes from time as Juventus added to its wins against Malmo and Chelsea. Juventus remained top of Group

By ANNE M. PETERSON AP Sports Writer National Women’s Soccer League interim CEO Marla Messing has announced an agreement with the players’ association to address demands made in the wake of abuse and harassment scandals that have shaken the league. Messing also said the league would be collaborating with the union to investigate the allegations.

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Newly acquired tight end Zach Ertz has spent the past few days on the Cardinals’ practice field, working to build his connection with quarterback Kyler Murray so Arizona’s offense can keep rolling. The connection initially started on a plane. Ertz was traded to Arizona from

By TOM CANAVAN AP Sports Writer EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Daniel Jones was off to the best start of his brief career as New York Giants quarterback until things took a turn six quarters ago. Jones sustained a concussion just before halftime in a 44-20 loss to Dallas on Oct. 10. He then played

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Jim Boylen has been picked to coach USA Basketball next month in the first window of qualifying for the 2023 Basketball World Cup. Boylen’s team will be composed primarily of G League players. The roster is yet to be finalized. The team will train in Houston for about a week

By JOHN KEKIS AP Sports Writer Buddy Boeheim is ready for his final season playing basketball for his Hall of Fame father and will have big brother Jimmy as a teammate. Syracuse finished 18-10 overall and 9-7 in the Atlantic Coast Conference last season and is picked to finish mid-pack this year. The Orange lost

By NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS Associated Press SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Gonzaga basketball coach Mark Few has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor driving under the influence in Idaho and must pay a fine of $1,000 in lieu of spending four days in jail. He must also perform 24 hours of community service and his driver’s license was

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Andy Haines is out as the Milwaukee Brewers’ hitting coach after they scored a total of six runs in a four-game National League Division Series loss to the Atlanta Braves. The Brewers announced Wednesday they wouldn’t be renewing Haines’ contract and told assistant hitting coach Jacob Cruz he is free to explore

MIAMI (AP) — A former NFL wide receiver and South Florida native has pleaded guilty to stealing identities to fraudulently obtain coronavirus-related unemployment insurance benefits in California. Kenbrell Armod Thompkins pleaded guilty Monday in Miami federal court to unauthorized access device fraud and aggravated identity theft, according to court records. According to a plea agreement,

MOSCOW (AP) — Patson Daka has scored four goals to inspire Leicester’s comeback in a 4-3 win over Spartak Moscow in the Europa League. With Leicester 2-0 down in the Russian capital, the Zambia striker pulled a goal back in the last minute of the first half before netting three more times after the break

By STEVE MEGARGEE AP Sports Writer MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin linebacker Leo Chenal is coming off a career-best performance against Army and leads the Badgers with 42 total tackles despite missing Wisconsin’s first two games due to a positive COVID-19 test. LSU’s Damone Clark is the only player from a Power Five conference averaging

HOUSTON (AP) — The Houston Texans have released veteran defensive end Whitney Mercilus. He was the 26th overall pick in the 2012 draft and has spent his entire career with the Texans. Mercilus was one of the longest-tenured players on the team after most of the team’s stars have been traded or released in recent