Paxten Aaronson hopes to join brother Brenden on US team
CARSON — Paxten Aaronson has yet to move into an apartment in Germany.
“I actually have only been there for like four days,” he said. “I was staying in the hotel, but I walked all around the city. It’s a beautiful city, but I’m looking forward to going back and kind of making it my home with my apartment and everything.”
The 19-year-old midfielder transferred to Eintracht Frankfurt from Major League Soccer’s Philadelphia Union at the start of the year, then went to Dubai with his new club for 10 days of training. The younger brother of Leeds midfielder Brenden Aaronson, Paxten Aaronson then headed to the U.S. to join the American national team for a possible debut in an exhibition against Serbia on Wednesday night under interim coach Anthony Hudson.
“I’m really hungry to get after it and make a really good first impression,” Aaronson said Monday. “It’s a dream of mine to make my senior debut.”
A native of Medford, New Jersey, Aaronson started with the Union academy at the under-13/14 level, debuted for Philadelphia Union II in the second tier United Soccer League on July 23, 2020, and made his MLS debut May 30, 2021. He played in 23 games last season, though just two of them starts.
Aaronson scored seven goals in five matches at the CONCACAF Under-20 Championship, earning top player and goal-scoring leader awards as the Americans qualified for this year’s Under-20 World Cup and the 2024 Olympics.
Aaronson is following the path of 22-year-old brother Brenden, who moved from the Union to RB Salzburg in January 2021 and to Leeds last summer.
“I talk to him on a regular basis,” Aaronson said. “I think I was going to FaceTime him later today.”
Brenden Aaronson made his U.S. debut in January 2020 and has 28 international appearances, including all four U.S. matches at last year’s World Cup. He is not with the team for this week’s games, which are outside FIFA’s international release windows.
The Aaronsons could become the eighth set of brothers to play for the national team following John and Pedro DeBrito, Otto and Rolf Decker, Angelo and Paul DiBernardo, Charlie and Henry McCully, George and Louie Nanchoff, Steve and Ken Snow, Archie and Tom Stark.
Sharpe apologizes for actions during Grizzlies-Lakers game
LOS ANGELES — Hall of Fame football player Shannon Sharpe apologized Monday after getting into a heated courtside conversation
with Memphis Grizzlies players Ja Morant and Dillon Brooks and Morant’s father during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Fox Sports personality issued the apology during the “Undisputed” show with Skip Bayless.
“I’ve preached for the last six and a half years responsibility and accountability, and I take full responsibility for what transpired,” Sharpe said. “I’m never gonna say that wasn’t Shannon Sharpe because that was me. That was just me getting out of character. And I’m sorry for all those that saw my actions and took offense to my actions.”
Sharpe exchanged words with Brooks throughout the first half Friday and then yelled at Morant on the final possession of the second quarter. After the halftime buzzer sounded, Brooks yelled at Sharpe and Sharpe motioned toward Brooks.
Morant walked toward Sharpe at his courtside seat before center Steven Adams stepped in front of him.
Tee Morant, Ja Morant’s father, also got involved in the conversation before security at Crypto.com Arena separated everyone.
Sharpe, 54, yelled “I bet you won’t!” at Tee Morant as security guards tried to break things up.
“It does not matter what Dillon Brooks said or how many times he said it. Me being the responsible person, having the platform that I have, and having so many people look up to me, I was wrong,” Sharpe said. “I should have lowered the temperature in the arena. Instead, I turned the temperature up, and I let it get out of hand.”
Panthers complete interview with Sean Payton
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Carolina Panthers interviewed Sean Payton for their coaching vacancy on Monday.
Panthers owner David Tepper has also interviewed Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Shane Steichen, Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey, New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, former Indianapolis Colts head coach Frank Reich, Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, former Detroit Lions and Colts head coach Jim Caldwell and Steve Wilks, who was the team’s interim head coach this season, for the job.
The 59-year-old Payton is drawing plenty of interest from NFL teams with head coaching openings. including the Denver Broncos.
Payton did not coach this past season, but the New Orleans Saints still hold his rights. It’s unclear what type of draft pick compensation it would take from the Panthers to lure Payton from their division rivals.
Payton won the NFC South seven times with the Saints and the Super Bowl in the 2009 season, amassing a 152-89 record in the regular season and a 9-8 mark in the postseason.
Michigan Stadium tunnel will widen without portable seating
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan Stadium’s lone tunnel — the site of altercations between players as they enter and exit the field — will be a little wider next season.
The school confirmed Monday that it will remove a portable section of seats from the front of the tunnel to give players, coaches and staff members more room to enter and exit the football field.
Previously, fans were close enough to touch coaches and players as one spectator did last season with Michigan State’s Mel Tucker well before the postgame altercation between Spartans and Wolverines players that led to suspensions and criminal charges.
A total of 45 portable seats will be lost and enough standing-room only tickets are expected to be added in the stadium to keep its capacity at 107,601.
“This decision was made after a thorough review for the health and wellness of everyone who uses the tunnel to get on and off the field,” Michigan spokesman Kurt Svoboda said.
The Big Ten fined Michigan State $100,000 for its role in the stadium tunnel altercations and reprimanded Michigan for failing to “provide adequate protection for personnel of both home and visiting teams when entering and leaving playing arenas,” per conference policy.
Lifeguard Luke Shepardson wins Hawaii surfing ‘Super Bowl’
HONOLULU— Luke Shepardson was declared the winner in one of the world’s most prestigious and storied surfing contests held in Hawaii over the weekend for the first time in seven years.
Shepardson was declared the winner Sunday of The Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational, while John John Florence — the winner of the event in 2016, the last time it happened — was named runner-up. Shepardson, a Honolulu Ocean Safety lifeguard, scored 89.1 points out of a possible 90 to edge out defending champion Florence, the Star-Advertiser reported.
Mark Healey took third place and Billy Kemper took fourth.
The competition also featured female surfers for the first time in its 39-year history, and six competed.
Andrea Moller made history as the first female to ride a competitive wave at “The Eddie,” the newspaper reported.
The one-day contest held in Waimea Bay on Oahu’s North Shore goes forward only when the surf is consistently large enough during the winter big-wave surfing season from mid-December through midMarch.
Before this year, it had only been held nine times since the initial competition in 1984.
The competition honors legendary Native Hawaiian waterman Eddie Aikau for his selflessness, courage and sacrifice.
Twins acquire veteran OF Michael A. Taylor from Royals
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Twins acquired veteran Michael A. Taylor from the Kansas City Royals on Monday night, adding depth and defense to their outfield in exchange for two relief pitching prospects, according to a person with knowledge of the trade.
The person confirmed the deal to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the teams had not yet announced it.
Taylor batted .254 with nine home runs and 43 RBIs in 414 at-bats last season for the Royals, his second year with the club after spending his first seven major league seasons with the Washington Nationals. Taylor was a Gold Glove winner in his Royals debut in 2021 and gives the Twins a third outfielder on their roster who has won the award, joining Byron Buxton (2017) and newcomer Joey Gallo (2020 and 2021).