SHERMAN: MEA CULPA FOR MAYFIELD SLAM
CALIF.» Upon further SANTA CLARA, review, it turns out Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield didn’t refuse to shake hands with Richard Sherman and other San Francisco 49ers before Monday night’s game.
Sherman, who accused Mayfield of disrespecting the 49ers by not properly greeting them on the field for the coin toss, admitted he was wrong and intends to apologize to Mayfield.
Shortly after Sherman’s postgame claim about the missing handshake from Mayfield, there was video evidence to contradict the 49ers cornerback’s assertion.
The story making the rounds after the 49ers’ 31-3 romp over the Browns was how Mayfield fired up the 49ers.
“What’s amazing, and annoying, was him not shaking hands at the beginning,” he told the NFL Network’s Mike Silver. “That’s some college (stuff ). It’s ridiculous. We’re all trying to get psyched up, but shaking hands with your opponent — that’s NFL etiquette. And when you pull bush league stuff, that’s disrespectful to the game. And believe me, that’s gonna get us fired up.”
But Sherman went on “The Pat McAfee Show” Wednesday to retract his comments about the brash Browns quarterback.
Florida player dies during practice.
FLA.» Authorities say a LAKE WALES, senior wide receiver for Warner University’s football team died during practice.
School officials said in a statement that Theodore Hammonds collapsed after a noncontact drill Tuesday and was attended to by the team’s staff.
Polk County Emergency Services took Hammonds to a hospital, where he died.
School officials said they don’t know what caused Hammonds to collapse.
The Ledger reports Hammonds had caught 14 passes for 193 yards and had two touchdowns in four games for the NAIA Division II team.
Prep coach arrested after stealing $40 from player.
N.M.» A New CLOVIS,
Mexico football coach has been fired and faces criminal charges after authorities said a student used a cellphone video to capture the coach on video taking money from a player’s wallet.
State Police arrested Gallup’s Miyamura High School coach John D. Roanhaus on Saturday following a review of the footage showing Roanhaus going into the school’s locker room and taking $40 from the wallet, court documents said.
According to an arrest warrant, a police officer was contacted by a student’s mother, who showed the officer the cellphone video. The video showed Roanhaus walking into the school’s locker area, taking two $20 bills from a black wallet and stuffing the money in his sock, Officer Nathaniel Renteria wrote in the arrest warrant.
Russia wins men’s gym team title.
GERMANY» Russia won its STUTTGART, first men’s all-around team gymnastics world title since the end of the Soviet Union after a crucial fall from China.
China went into the high bar — the last rotation for both China and Russia — with a 1.394-point lead but Sun Wei’s fall allowed Russia to snatch the initiative.
Strong high bar routines from Ivan Stretovich, Artur Dalaloyan and Nikita Nagornyy lifted Russia to a total score of 261.726. That was 0.997 ahead of China, which had won the men’s team event at seven of the last eight world championships.
Djokovic debuts with victory.
Novak Djokovic opened his title defense at the Shanghai Masters by beating Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-3.
Djokovic, who had a bye into the second round, improved his career record against the Canadian to 3-0 and has now won 22 straight sets in Asia — dating to his title run in Shanghai last year and also including last week’s Japan Open.