Off the wire
GOLF
Two tied at RSM Classic
Camilo Villegas made a 10-foot birdie putt on his final hole Thursday for a 6-under 64 and a share of the lead with Matt Wallace in the RSM Classic at St. Simons Island, Ga. Villegas and Wallace each finished on the Seaside course at Sea Island with big putts. Villegas capped off a bogey-free round on the ninth hole for his lowest score on the PGA Tour in four years. Wallace hit into a hazard on the 18th and saved par with a 30-foot putt. Villegas is trying to return from a shoulder injury that kept him out all of 2019. Villegas, a 38-year-old from Colombia, is a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, including the last two FedEx Cup playoff events in 2008. He has missed the cut in three of his five events of the PGA Tour season. Andrew Landry (Arkansas Razorbacks) shot a 2-under 68, as did Austin Cook (Jonesboro, Razorbacks) and Sebastian Cappelen (Razorbacks).
Popov grabs two-shot lead
Women’s British Open winner Sophia Popov left top-ranked playing partner Jin Young Ko and everyone else behind Thursday in the Pelican Women’s Championship in Belleair, Fla. Popov shot a 6-under 64 in windy conditions to take a two-stroke lead over Ashleigh Buhai, with Ko eight shots behind after a 72 in her first LPGA Tour start of the year. Popov was the surprise winner at Royal Troon in August. At the tricky Pelican Golf Club, the German birdied the last five holes for a front-nine 29, then cooled off on the back with two birdies and two bogeys. Buhai birdied three of the last four holes. Ko, the No. 1 player in the world for the last 68 weeks, has been home in South Korea since the covid-19 pandemic. Maria Fassi (Arkansas Razorbacks) finished at 3-over 73. Stacy Lewis (Razorbacks) turned in a 6-over 76. Alana Uriell (Razorbacks) shot an 8-over 78.
FOOTBALL
1972 Super Bowl MVP dies
Jake Scott, the star safety who was the most valuable player in the Super Bowl that completed the Miami Dolphins’
1972 perfect season, died Thursday in Atlanta. He was
75. Scott died after a fall down a stairway that left him in a coma, former teammate Dick Anderson sai d.
Scott played i n three consecutive
Super Bowls, won back-to-back championship rings and made the Pro Bowl five years in a row with Miami. He had two interceptions, including a 55-yard return from the end zone, against Billy Kilmer and the Washington Redskins as the ’72 Dolphins won 14-7 to finish 17-0. Scott played with the Dolphins from 1970 to 1976 and remains their career leader in interceptions and punt return yardage.
Holtz positive for virus
Lou Holtz has tested positive for the coronavirus. The 83-yearold former college football coach confirmed the test Thursday to Columbia, S.C., TV station WOLO. Holtz led Notre
Dame to the 1988 national title in a
Hall of Fame career.
Holtz retired from coaching in 2004.
He was 249-132-7 in
33 seasons at William & Mary, North Carolina State, Arkansas, Minnesota,
Notre Dame and
South Carolina.
Bears place Harris on IR
The Chicago Bears placed punt returner Dwayne Harris on injured reserve Thursday because of a triceps injury. Harris, signed to the practice squad late last month, has appeared in three games, averaging 8.1 yards on 10 punt returns. He was injured in Chicago’s loss to Minnesota on Monday night.
Jets’ CB out for season
The New York Jets’ veteran cornerback Brian Poole is having surgery on his injured shoulder, and Coach Adam Gase confirmed Thursday that Poole will be out the rest of the year. Poole, in his second season as the Jets’ nickel back, was placed on injured reserve Tuesday after hurting the shoulder and a knee in New York’s last game against New England on Nov. 9.
Jags place cornerback on IR
The Jacksonville Jaguars placed rookie cornerback CJ Henderson on injured reserve Thursday with a groin injury, creating a huge hole in their secondary days before hosting unbeaten Pittsburgh. The Jaguars (1-8), who have lost eight in a row, could get nickel cornerback D.J. Hayden back against the Steelers (9-0). He was designated for return earlier in the day, but Coach Doug Marrone wants to see how he practices before making a determination on his availability Sunday.
BASKETBALL Pistons trade for Dedmon
The Atlanta Hawks have agreed to trade center Dewayne Dedmon to the Detroit Pistons for guards Tony Snell and Khyri Thomas, a person with knowledge of the situation said Thursday. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the trade needs approval from the NBA before becoming official. The deal allows the Hawks to clear a logjam at center. The Hawks selected center Onyeka Okongwu from Southern Cal with the No. 6 pick of the NBA Draft on Wednesday night. Snell, who turned 29 this month, averaged 8.0 points in 59 games in 2019-20, his first season with Detroit. The 6-6 guard played three seasons for Milwaukee and three for Chicago prior to that. Thomas, a 6-3 guard, has played two seasons with the Pistons since being drafted in the second round in 2018. He appeared in only eight games last season, averaging 7.7 minutes. Dedmon, 31, was acquired for his second stint with the Hawks last season as the team sought to bolster the center position. The 7-foot Dedmon averaged a career-best 10.8 points with 7.5 rebounds for Atlanta in the 2018-19 season.
Clippers add Kennard
The Los Angeles Clippers acquired guard Luke Kennard from Detroit, and sent guards Landry Shamet to Brooklyn and Rodney McGruder to Detroit as they attempt to improve the supporting cast around Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. In addition to Kennard, the Clippers received center Justin Patton from the Pistons in the draft-night deal, as well as the draft rights to junior-college player Jay Scrubb and four second-round picks (2023 via Portland, and 2024, 2025 and 2026 via Detroit). Kennard missed most of last season due to knee tendinitis. Over 28 games, he averaged career highs in points (15.8), assists (4.1) and rebounds (3.5) as a starter for Detroit.
MOTOR SPORTS Trucks returning to The Glen
NASCAR’S Truck Series will return to Watkins Glen International next summer for the first time in just over two decades. The sanctioning body’s schedule announced Thursday that the race will be held Saturday, Aug. 7, and will be part of a doubleheader with the Xfinity Series. The weekend will be capped by the Cup Series race on Sunday. It’s the first time that all three of NASCAR’s national series will compete on a single weekend at The Glen, located in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York.