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Saquon Barkley has become the Shohei Ohtani of the NFL. There's no better home run hitter playing football right now. Barkley had touchdown runs of 72 and 70 yards for the Philadelphia Eagles in a 37-20 victory over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday night. He now has five runs of 50-plus yards this season and is on pace to break Eric Dickerson's single-season record of 2,105 yards set in 1984. Barkley's historic performance against the Rams — his 255 yards set a team record — captivated a national audience and turned him into a fan favorite for the AP NFL MVP award. He's not the betting favorite, however. Josh Allen has the best odds at plus-150, according to Bet MGM Sportsbook. Two-time MVP Lamar Jackson is next at plus-250 followed by Barkley at plus-400. Running backs have won the award 18 times, including three-time winner Jim Brown, who was the AP's first NFL MVP in 1957. Quarterbacks have dominated the award, winning it 45 times. Only three players who weren't QBs or RBs have been MVP. It takes a special season for a non-QB to win it mainly because the offense goes through the signal caller. Quarterbacks handle the ball every offensive snap, run the show and get the credit when things go well and the blame when it doesn't. Adrian Peterson was the most recent non-QB to win it when he ran for 2,097 yards and 12 touchdowns for the Minnesota Vikings in 2012. Playing for a winning team matters, too. Nine of the past 11 winners played for a No. 1 seed with the other two winners on a No. 2 seed. The Vikings earned the sixth seed when Pederson was MVP. Barkley is a major reason why the Eagles (9-2) are leading the NFC East and only trail Detroit (10-1) by one game for the top spot in the conference. Does he have a realistic chance to win the MVP award? Kicker Mark Moseley was the MVP in the strike-shortened 1982 season when he made 20 of 21 field goals and 16 of 19 extra points in nine games for Washington. If voters once selected a kicker, everyone has a chance, especially a game-changer such as Barkley. Defensive tackle Alan Page was the MVP in 1971 and linebacker Lawrence Taylor won it in 1986. Running back Christian McCaffrey finished third in voting last year and wide receiver Justin Jefferson placed fifth in 2022. The Offensive Player of the Year award and Defensive Player of the Year award recognize the best all-around players on both sides of the ball, allowing voters to recognize non-QBs if they choose. Wide receivers and running backs have won the AP OPOY award seven times over the past 11 seasons. McCaffrey was the 2023 winner. The AP's new voting format introduced in 2022 also gives non-QBs a better opportunity to get MVP recognition. Voter submit their top five picks for each award, with a weighted point system. Previously, voters made one choice for each award. A nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the league vote for MVP and seven other awards. The awards are based on regular-season performance. The Chiefs (10-1) and Bills (9-2) already are in position to lock up postseason berths right after Thanksgiving. Kansas City clinches a playoff berth with a win over Las Vegas on Black Friday and a loss by Miami on Thursday night, or a win plus a loss by Denver on Monday night. Buffalo can wrap up a fifth straight AFC East title with a victory over San Francisco on Sunday and a loss by the Dolphins. It's not a given that the Dallas Cowboys will be looking for a new head coach after this season. Owner Jerry Jones said Tuesday on local radio that Mike McCarthy could end up getting a contract extension. "I don't think that's crazy at all. This is a Super Bowl-winning coach. Mike McCarthy has been there and done that. He has great ideas. We got a lot of football left," Jones said. McCarthy led the Cowboys (4-7) to three straight 12-win seasons, but they went 1-3 in the playoffs and haven't reached the NFC championship game since winning the Super Bowl 29 years ago. Injuries have contributed to the team's struggles this season, but Dallas was just 3-5 before Dak Prescott was lost for the rest of the season. The Cowboys upset Washington last week and their next four games are against teams that currently have losing records. If they somehow end up 9-8 or even 8-9, Jones could make a case for keeping McCarthy. Get local news delivered to your inbox!
LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Andrej Jakimovski converted an off-balance layup with 8 seconds left, and Colorado handed No. 2 UConn its second loss in two days at the Maui Invitational, beating the two-time defending national champion 73-72 on Tuesday. A day after a 99-97 overtime loss to Memphis that left Huskies coach Dan Hurley livid about the officiating, UConn (4-2) couldn't shake the unranked Buffaloes (5-1), who shot 62.5% in the second half. With Colorado trailing 72-71 in the closing seconds, Jakimovski drove to his right and absorbed contact from UConn’s Liam McNeeley. He tossed the ball toward the glass and the shot was good as he fell to the floor. Hassan Diarra missed a 3-pointer just ahead of the buzzer for UConn. Elijah Malone and Julian Hammond III scored 16 points each for Colorado, and Jakimovski had 12 points and 10 rebounds. The Huskies led 40-32 at halftime and by nine points early in the second half, but Colorado quickly closed that gap. McNeeley led UConn with 20 points. UConn: Hurley's squad is facing its first adversity in quite a while. The Huskies arrived on Maui with a 17-game winning streak that dated to February. Colorado: The Buffaloes were held to season lows in points (56) and field goal percentage (37%) in a 16-point loss to Michigan State on Monday but shot 51.1% overall and 56.3% (9 of 16) from 3-point range against the Huskies. Hurley called timeout to set up the Huskies' final possession, but the Buffs forced them to take a contested 3. Colorado had a 28-26 rebounding advantage after being out-rebounded 42-29 by Michigan State. Colorado will play the Iowa-Dayton winner in the fifth-place game on Wednesday. UConn will play the loser of that matchup in the seventh-place game. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball .Sabrina Ionescu was thrilled to be part of Unrivaled — the new 3-on-3 league. The Liberty star guard who helped New York win the first championship in franchise history earlier this year signed a historic agreement on Monday with the league. She'll join the Phantom BC that made a trade Saturday night to acquire Natasha Cloud. "It was a huge decision getting me to play or not," Ionescu said in a phone interview Monday night. "I weighed out all my options and decided to do what’s best for me and my career. Being able to take part in a league that is the first of its kind with a historic deal and be on the ownership side of it is important for me.” Ionescu said the league gave her some flexibility in her schedule if she needs to step away for a day or two. The NBA All-Star Game is on Feb. 16, which is in the middle of the Unrivaled season. The league has no team games during the NBA All-Star weekend. There's discussions of her potentially competing in another 3-point contest with Stephen Curry. “I have certain dates that I have to be gone for. They were very accommodating with things I already accepted and have to be gone for before I committed to the league,” Ionescu said. Ionescu will also be playing with Brittney Griner, Marina Mabrey, Katie Lou Samuelson and Satou Sabally. Ionescu was teammates with Sabally at Oregon. “I’m really excited being able to play with her and knowing we’ve wanted to play with each other for a long time since we departed from Oregon,” Ionescu said. The 27-year-old Ionescu is recovering from a procedure she had earlier this month on her right thumb to stabilize the ulnar collateral ligament. She's not cleared yet, but is on target to be able to play at the start of the Unrivaled season. “I should be cleared and ready to go and be able to be there and be a part of it,” Ionescu said. “The first year was something I wanted to experience and have ownership is a big part in that as well.” Ionescu said she hurt the thumb in the final 90 seconds of Game 4 of the WNBA Finals, but there was no way she was going to miss the decisive Finals game which New York won. She went 1 for 19 in the deciding Game 5 against Minnesota but found other ways to help the team win, with eight assists and seven rebounds. “I didn’t know the severity of my injury when I did it. I didn’t care to know and wanted to do whatever I could to play and try to do the best I can for us to win,” she said. “Thankfully I was able to do everything beside shooting which now makes a lot of sense since I couldn’t grip a basketball.” Ionescu took a few weeks to see if the injury would heal on its own after the season was over. She got a few opinions from doctors before deciding that surgery was the best option. This is the first time that Ionescu is taking part in an offseason league. “I’m excited. Obviously it's a great opportunity to be able to play and continue to refine my game in the offseason," she said. “It’s a great opportunity to compete against the best players in the league that are now in Unrivaled.” It has been a busy year for the former Oregon great, who also got married and earned an Olympic gold medal . “It’s been amazing. When I sit back and think about everything that happened this year, it puts a lot in perspective when things aren’t going as well,” she said. “I've had those years where everything was going wrong and then to have a year like this where you stop and smell the roses and everything you prayed and wished for happens.” AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketballBig beef: No space for Bevo at SEC title game - ESPN
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Funmi Ogundare Kora, a major player in Africa’s tech talent development, is amplifying its support for students by enabling participation in the Get Employable Conference ( GEC). This event, which was held virtually recently, was aimed at enhancing job readiness and career progression for young Africans and was powered by Ribara’s employability platform. The conference is crucial for Africa’s rapidly expanding technology sector, with Kora’s CEO, Dickson Nsofor, emphasising the urgent need to close the continent’s growing skills gap. Speaking at the program, Nsofor explained that Africa’s tech economy is experiencing rapid growth, but the supply of skilled tech professionals is not keeping pace. According to him, by 2025, four million new tech jobs will be created, but there will be only enough skilled talent to fill 50 per cent of these positions. The Get Employable Conference, he noted, equips participants with practical tools to enhance their job readiness and better align their skills with the evolving demands of the tech industry, ensuring Africa’s workforce remains competitive as the sector grows. He added that Kora has launched several strategic initiatives, including The Curve program, which provides tech training to underserved talent across the continent. The company has also established a N200 million ($250,000) endowment fund at Covenant University to support Computer Engineering students. Through our partnership with Ribara, Kora reinforces its broader mission to provide essential training resources and empower African youth with the skills needed to compete globally in the job market.” One of the beneficiaries, Chiamaka Nweke, a postgraduate Accounting student at the University of Lagos, said, “Thanks to Kora, I was able to attend the conference. Now, I have the tools to track my career growth and job readiness.” Enoch Oguntoye, a Mechanical Engineering student at Bells University, also expressed gratitude. “Kora’s dedication to growth made it possible for me to attend the conference.” Israel Olayinka, a Computer Science student at Lagos State University, Ojo, noted the transformation in his career perspective. “The support I received from Kora has been invaluable in providing critical career insights.” Dr. Peter, a co-founder at Ribara, emphasised the conference’s core goal, saying, “The main takeaway for participants is a shift from being unaware of market needs to identifying gaps in their skill readiness. The next step is achieving the competence required for specific industry roles.”A Cook County judge is expected to determine members of the Calumet City electoral board after the city clerk, who is challenging Mayor Thaddeus Jones’ eligibility, objected to its makeup. Clerk Nyota Figgs is objecting to Jones’ bid for reelection, saying the mayor’s principal residence is not in the city and that a referendum passed in 2020 prohibits a Calumet City official from also being a state legislator. Jones has been a state representative since 2011. A municipal electoral board normally includes the mayor, clerk and longest serving alderman. However, because both the mayor and clerk are involved in the objection, the electoral board created for these objections has been attorney Tom Jaconetty, as chair, and the two longest serving aldermen, Ramonde Williams and Anthony Smith. Figgs and her attorney, Burt Odelson of Odelson, Murphey, Frazier and McGrath, said both Williams and Smith are biased in their support for Jones, having close political ties to the mayor. Williams, Smith and Jones are among those whose campaigns have received funding raised by the Calumet City Democrats United political party , according to filings on the Illinois State Board of Elections website. “You can’t get a fair and impartial hearing because they raise money with him,” Odelson said Tuesday. “The two aldermen will vote any way that they’re told to vote — it’s as simple as that.” Odelson said he believes Jones will be knocked off the ballot despite an unsuccessful challenge to his candidacy when he first ran for the mayor’s seat in 2021. Odelson said the referendum passed to prohibit candidates from running for mayor if they also hold an elected, paid office created by the state constitution had not been certified when Jones filed his petition for that election. Jones’ attorney, Ed Mullen of Bucktown Law in Chicago, said the Illinois General Assembly passed a bill prohibiting such a restriction on who is allowed to seek local office. “If the state legislature passes a law, it supersedes the referendum,” Mullen said. Ted Slowik / Daily Southtown City Clerk Nyota Figgs, left, and Mayor Thaddeus Jones discuss an item during a Calumet City City Council session Sept. 21, 2021, at Calumet City City Hall. (Ted Slowik/Daily Southtown) But Odelson said the legislature does not have the authority to reverse action taken in a direct vote, and that Jones prompted the change state law. “They can’t retroactively go back and undo the votes of the people,” Odelson said. Figgs, who also is running for reelection, faces a candidacy challenge from city auditor Alyssia Benford. Benford claims Figgs does not reside in Calumet City, but at an address in North Chicago. Figgs also objects to the makeup of the electoral board, and Cook County Judge Maureen Ward Kirby is to rule next week. If she determines Williams and Smith cannot serve on the board, she will appoint new members, Odelson said. The next electoral board meeting with a potentially different board is scheduled for Dec. 6 at City Hall, 204 Pulaski Road, Calumet City. ostevens@chicagotribune.com
( MENAFN - IANS) Guwahati, Dec 25 (IANS) The Assam unit of the BJP was celebrating the birthday of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee with a series of programmes at the party's state headquarters here on Wednesday. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma will be present on the occasion along with senior leaders of the party. The day is observed as the Good Governance Day. The Assam government also conducted 12 days of development programme in December where various schemes were launched in different districts in the state. CM Sarma said,“The present government has been working very dedicatedly to bring about all-round development of the people of the state belonging to every section of the society.” The Chief Minister also said the state government's 12-day development campaign was an initiative to help the targeted people through government interventions. During this period, CM Sarma and the Council of Ministers visited different districts and participated in the development campaign. He said that in the last 12 days, 20 lakh new ration cards were distributed. 48,673 students are covered under the D. Bani Kanta Kakati Merit Scholarship. CM Sarma stated that since the inception of the Bani Kanta Kakati Merit Scholarship, the programme benefitted one lakh nine thousand students. He said that as per NEP 2020, one high school should be located every five kilometres. Considering the provision, the state government is distributing bicycles to every student studying in Class 9. Stating that a new horizon has been created in education, the Chief Minister said that the state government is spending Rs 2,000 crore annually for the benefit of the students. He also said that if the students take education as their vocation, Assam will progress in leaps and bounds. The Chief Minister also said that if the pace of development remains like what it is now, a lot of investments will come to Assam. “Steps have been taken to ensure that in the new Assam, there will be no dearth of employment avenues in the state. In view of Industry 4.0, new disciplines like AI, Robotics, 3D technology etc have been introduced in the academic landscape of the state,” he added. MENAFN24122024000231011071ID1109028686 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.
