Notre Dame considering ACC
The Atlantic Coast Conference and Notre Dame are considering whether the Fighting Irish will give up their football independence to play as a member of the league this season, the Associated Press reported.
Under one plan being considered, Notre Dame would play a full ACC schedule.
Whether those games would count in the standings and the Irish would be eligible to participate in the ACC championship game — and be eligible for the conference’s guaranteed spot in the Orange Bowl — is still to be determined. The final decision could come down to how revenue is shared.
New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson returned to the NBA bubble after a family emergency and went into quarantine, and Milwaukee’s Eric Bledsoe and Miami’s Bam Adebayo practiced for the first time since testing positive for the coronavirus. Houston’s Austin Rivers (family issue) and Indiana’s Domantas Sabonis (foot injury) left the bubble. In other news related to the pandemic: Kansas City lineman Laurent Duvernay-Tardiff became the first NFL player to opt out of the season, choosing to put his medical degree to use on the front lines of the pandemic . ... Del Mar’s jockey colony returned for the resumption of racing after the track was forced to cancel last weekend when 15 jockeys tested positive . ... Michigan State said all members of its football team will quarantine after another staff member and an athlete tested positive for COVID-19 . ... The Big Sky Conference is delaying the competition start date for fall Olympic sports . ... The Atlanta Braves were without catchers, Tyler Flowers and Travis d’Arnaud, Friday after both showed symptoms of the coronavirus . ... The U.S. GP and Formula One races in Brazil, Canada and Mexico were canceled and three races in Europe were added.
The L.A. County Department of Public Health reported six more coronavirus cases among workers at SoFi Stadium, increasing the total to 55. — Nathan Fenno
USC reported zero positive cases out of the 120 tests this week. It’s the first round of testing to yield zero positives since athletes began returning to campus in June. — Ryan Kartje
An ownership group led by former UCLA star Arron Afflalo is putting together an offer to buy the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Minnesota Vikings signed coach Mike Zimmer to a three-year contract extension through 2023.
Frank de Boer is out as coach of Atlanta United after going 0-3 in the MLS Is Back tournament.
Welterweight boxer Vergil Ortiz Jr. stopped Samuel Vargas in the seventh round in Indio.