US Open of Surfing canceled NY Giants K Rosas suspect in crash
The Vans U.S. Open of Surfing, a summer competition that draws thousands each year to Southern California’s Huntington Beach, has been canceled because of the coronavirus.
Organizers announced the cancellation on Monday, citing “continued health concerns and current guidelines surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.” The event will return in 2021, organizers said.
The surfing tournament is also a nine-day festival that packs the sand on the south side of the famed Huntington Beach Pier.
It features skateboarders and BMX bike riders who show off their skills in front of big crowds.
Alcohol is suspected in a hit-and-run crash that led to the arrest of New York Giants kicker Aldrick Rosas in Northern California, authorities said Tuesday.
Rosas, 25, allegedly failed to stop for a red light and plowed his Chevrolet SUV into the side of a pickup truck Monday in the city of Chico, the California Highway Patrol said.
Rosas kept driving and then walked away from the SUV when it broke down, the CHP said in a statement.
He was arrested a short time later on suspicion of hit-and-run and driving on a suspended license. It wasn’t immediately known if he has an attorney.
Witnesses told investigators that shortly before the crash the Chevy SUV was passing traffic over double yellow lines at speeds topping 100 mph, authorities said.
Sabres fire GM
The Buffalo Sabres fired general manager Jason Botterill on Tuesday in a dramatic change-of-course three weeks after co-owner
Kim Pegula said his job was secure.
In announcing the decision, the Sabres promoted senior vice president of business administration Kevyn Adams as Botterill’s successor.
“The decision was made after many candid discussions with Jason during a full review of our hockey operations,” Kim and her husband, Terry Pegula, said in a statement. “We recognized we have philosophical differences regarding how best to put ourselves in a position to compete for a Stanley Cup.”
Botterill’s dismissal represents a major reversal after Kim Pegula backed the GM in May, telling The Associated Press: “He’s our GM. Our plan is to continue with him.”
With a 30-31-8 record, Buffalo finished 13th in the Eastern Conference standings and one spot short of qualifying for the NHL’s expanded 24-team playoff.
Botterill was fired three seasons into his tenure and after the Sabres failed to show any signs of improvement in extending what’s now a nine-year playoff drought.
Gundy apologizes for T-shirt
One day after Oklahoma State running back Chuba Hubbard lashed out at coach Mike Gundy on social media for wearing a T-shirt promoting a far-right news channel, Gundy apologized.
Hubbard, who is black, suggested Monday he may boycott the program after Gundy was photographed wearing a T-shirt promoting the One America News Network, a cable channel and website that has been critical of the Black Lives Matter movement and praised by President Donald Trump.
On Monday evening, Hubbard and Gundy appeared in a video together, with Gundy saying he would make changes.
“Once I learned how that network felt about Black Lives Matter, I was disgusted and knew it was completely unacceptable to me,” Gundy said Tuesday. “I want to apologize to all members of our team, former players and their families for the pain and discomfort that has been caused over the last two days. Black lives matter to me. Our players matter to me.”
Jackson to be on Madden cover
On Tuesday, EA Sports made it official that Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson will be on the cover of “Madden NFL 21” when it is released in two months.