Brown returns, files new grievance
College football: Defending national champ Clemson is No. 1 in The AP preseason Top 25 poll for the first time. The Tigers won the program’s second national title in three seasons behind then-freshman QB Trevor Lawrence in January. Alabama, which fell 44-16 to Clemson in the title game, is No. 2. Georgia, Oklahoma and Ohio State round out the top five . ... Oklahoma named graduate transfer Jalen Hurts its starting QB. Hurts spent the last three seasons at Alabama and went 26-2 . ... Sophomore Justin Fields was named starting QB for Ohio State after playing at Georgia last season. Fields transferred and received an NCAA waiver to play immediately. He threw for 328 yards and four TDs in five games with the Bulldogs . ... Wisconsin WR Quintez Cephus is back on the team after being acquitted of sexual assault charges, but it’s not yet known when he may play. Cephus was suspended in August 2018 after being charged with 2nd- and 3rddegree sexual assault. The school’s athletic department said it was “working through eligibility issues before he can participate in a game.” The junior led the Badgers with six TD catches in 2017 . ... Illinois freshman DB Marquez Beason is out for the season with a knee injury. The Texas native was Illini’s top-rated high school recruit in 10 years.
NBA: Former Cavaliers coach David Blatt has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Blatt, now with Greek club Olympiakos, was named the Cavs coach in June 2014 and took the team to the NBA Finals in his first season. The Cavs lost to the Warriors in six games. He was fired in January 2016 despite leading the team to the Eastern Conference’s best record at the time.
Soccer: A trial date for a gender discrimination lawsuit brought against U.S. Soccer by members of the women’s national team has been set, ESPN reported. A district judge in Los Angeles scheduled the trial for May 5, 2020, after mediation attempts failed . ... Paris Saint-Germain is expected to reject a loan offer from Barcelona for Brazilian striker Neymar, ESPN reported. Neymar, who has yet to appear in either of PSG’s two Ligue 1 matches this season, played for Barca from 2013 to 2017 . ... Barca forward Ousmane Dembele is expected to miss five weeks with a hamstring injury, according to ESPN. The club has been without Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, both nursing calf injuries. Messi may be available for Sunday’s match with Real Betis.
Tennis: Sloane Stephens parted ways with coach Sven Groeneveld after just three months and less than a week before the U.S. Open. Stephens, ranked No. 11, won the U.S. Open in 2017. Groeneveld coached Maria Sharapova from 2013-18.
Also: Jim Hardy, the oldest living Southern California and Rams player who was the MVP of the 1945 Rose Bowl, died Friday of natural causes. He was 96.
Star receiver Antonio Brown returned to training camp with the Raiders on Monday, a day after being given an ultimatum by general manager Mike Mayock to be “all in or all out.”
Brown took part in meetings in Napa, Calif., before the team broke camp, The Associated Press reported.
Brown didn’t attend practice Sunday as he works to find a helmet that he’s comfortable using and that meets safety standards set by the NFL and NFLPA. Brown lost a grievance last week seeking to use the Schutt Air Advantage helmet he has used throughout his career because it was too old to be certified as safe.
He had hoped to find a newer version of his preferred helmet that could be approved but the one he submitted failed a safety test conducted by the league and union.
ESPN reported Monday night that Brown filed a new grievance against the league in an attempt to be able to wear the helmet he wants.
Agent Drew Rosenhaus told ESPN earlier Monday that he expects Brown to be back practicing soon.
The Raiders’ next practice will be Tuesday.
“Antonio is very genuine,” Rosenhaus said. “He wants to be there. He wants to be a part of the team. He wants to practice. But he’d also like to do it with the helmet that he’s worn his entire life. He wore this helmet in peewee football, high school football, in college at Central Michigan. And he also wore this helmet his nineyear (NFL) career.
“This is his life. He’s risking everything. He’s got a family. He’s had a concussion before. This helmet has kept him safe. He’s had brutal hits . ... The helmet is the most important piece of equipment and he’s had the same one every single snap he’s played in his football career. This is a major issue for him.”
Brown has yet to take part in a full practice all training camp for the Raiders, missing time because of frost bite on his feet suffered in a cryotherapy accident in France and now over the helmet issue.
Gordon back with Pats: Oft-suspended receiver Josh Gordon returned to Patriots practice without pads and without saying when he might be able to play again.
Gordon was seen stretching on the field during the portion of the team’s workout. In the locker room before practice, he declined a request for an interview.
The Patriots placed Gordon on the non-football injury list Sunday, two days after the league reinstated him from an indefinite suspension that cost him the final three games of the 2018 regular season and the team’s Super Bowl run. Commissioner Roger Goodell said Gordon could participate in team meetings, conditioning and individual workouts while working himself back into shape.
Edelman practices: Receiver Julian Edelman was removed from the non-football injury list and practiced for the first time at Patriots training camp.
Last season’s Super Bowl MVP missed time with a broken thumb.
Edelman caught 74 passes for 850 yards and six touchdowns during the 2018 regular season and had 26 catches for 388 yards (14.9 average) in three postseason games.
— News services