Dolphins firm up coaching staff; CFP tweaks new 12-team format
The Dolphins continue to adjust their coaching staff, with their website now showing changes that hadn’t been announced.
Mathieu Araujo, who spent the last two seasons as an assistant defensive backs coach, has been promoted to cornerbacks coach.
Ryan Slowik, who coached outside linebackers last season, will be defensive backs coach and pass game specialist.
Parks Frazier, Jonathan Krause and Roman Sapolu have been added as offensive assistants. Frazier was the Carolina Panthers’ pass game coordinator last season. Krause was the wide receivers coach at San Diego State. And Sapolu was the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Hawaii.
Miami also added Kynjee Cotton and Matthew O’Donnell as defensive assistants. Cotton was a senior defensive assistant at LSU last season. O’Donnell was an assistant at Brown, most recently serving as defensive line coach. He overlapped with new defensive coordinator
Anthony Weaver during a stint with the Houston Texans; O’Donnell was a defensive assistant when Weaver was defensive coordinator.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Reduction of Pac-12 prompts change: The College Football Playoff expanding to 12 teams for the upcoming season includes an altered format featuring the five highestranked conference champions and the next seven highest-ranked teams.
The CFP Board of Managers voted Tuesday to modify the original plan, which called for the six highest-ranked champions to earn an automatic entry into the field, plus six at-large berths. The switch was necessary with the Pac-12 down to just two teams in 2024 following the defection of 10 programs to other conferences.
There is no limit on the number of teams that can qualify in each conference.
The shift was made with no objection from Washington State president Kirk Schulz, who represents the Pac-12 on the board. Oregon State will be the only other remaining Pac-12 team next season.
ETC.
College basketball: UConn coach Geno Auriemma is now second on the all-time wins list for a Division I college basketball coach, earning No. 1,203 in Monday’s 73-53 home victory over No. 21 Creighton.
Auriemma, who turns 70 next month, was tied with former Duke coach
Mike Krzyzewski and trails only Stanford coach
Tara VanDerveer, who has 1,209 career wins.
In his 39th season at the helm, Auriemma is looking to lead No. 15 UConn (23-5) back to the Final Four after a streak of 14 consecutive appearances was snapped with a Sweet 16 loss to Ohio State last spring.
NBA: Longtime Houston Rockets guard/forward Robert Reid has died at 68 of cancer, the Houston Chronicle reported. After playing his first 10 seasons with Houston (1977-82, 1983-88), Reid finished his 13-year NBA career with Charlotte, Portland and Philadelphia. Reid, 6-foot-8, averaged 11.4 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
NFL: New England special teams captain
Matthew Slater, 38, announced his retirement after 16 seasons. The three-time Super Bowl champion holds the NFL record for special teams players with 10 Pro Bowl selections. He played in 264 games (including playoffs) for the Patriots from 2008-23, second only to Tom Brady (326).
NHL: Detroit signed forward Michael Rasmussen to a four-year contract extension worth $12.8 million. Rasmussen, 24, has 23 points (11 goals, 12 assists) and a plus-11 rating this season.