Nebraska has landed a commitment from Boston College defensive tackle Owen Stoudmire, a 6-foot-1, 292lb interior defender with one year of eligibility remaining. 

Stoudmire is the fourth defensive line addition the Huskers have made in recent days, joining Iowa Western Community College three-star Andy Burburjia, Pitt transfer Jahsear Whittington and UCLA transfer Anthony Jones. 

The soon-to-be sixth-year senior joined Boston College in 2021, redshirting as a freshman. In 2022 and 2023, he played in 19 games, in reserve action, totaling 17 tackles in those two seasons. In 2024, he played in 13 games, starting twice and totaled career highs in tackles, tackles for loss and sacks, recording 30 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. 

In 2025, Stoudmire stepped into a consistent starting role but after just three starts, suffered a season-ending injury that cost him the rest of the year. He recorded five tackles prior to the injury. 

Stoudmire entered the transfer portal on Jan. 14 and visited Nebraska just one day later. Shortly after his trip to Lincoln, he committed to the Huskers, adding much needed veteran experience, and depth, to the defensive line room. 

Stoudmire will be expected to help strengthen Nebraska’ run defense in the A and B gaps while helping the pass rush. He’ll join an interior linemen group that is set to return Riley Van Poppel, Gabe Moore, David Hoffken, Sua Lefotu, Ashton Murphy, Dylan Parrot Tyson Terry and Malcolm Simpson. The aforementioned Burburjia and Whittington will factor into the interior defensive line rotation as well. The Huskers remain in pursuit of 2026 Monroe (La.) Ouchita Parish four-star defensive lineman Dylan Berymon, who officially visited last weekend. The 6-foot-1.5, 330 pound senior is considering Kentucky and Oklahoma State as well, expected to commit and sign in February.  

Nebraska has seen two interior defensive linemen depart the program this offseason. Elijah Jeudy exhausted his eligibility while Jaylen George transferred to Tulsa. Dylan Parrott also briefly entered the transfer portal, but has since pulled his name out of the portal.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have done a lot of work this offseason, but questions still remain. One of the most burning issues is how they plan to solve the left side of the infield.

Shortstop likely has an in-house solution, with Konnor Griffin to receive every opportunity to make the opening day roster, and is nearly guaranteed to ascend to the bigs early in 2026 if it doesn’t happen immediately after spring training.

Third base is the real conundrum in Pittsburgh. The Pirates would have loved to pencil in Kazuma Okamoto at the hot corner, but they came up short thanks to an 11th-hour push by the Toronto Blue Jays in free agency.

To his credit, Ben Cherington recognizes the issue, and the club has been in contact with free-agent third basemen Eugenio Suarez and Yoan Moncada. Suarez––and his bat––would be the fans’ preference, but his age and salary demands make him a tough fit for Pittsburgh.

That leaves a Moncada signing to platoon with the glove-first Jared Triolo as the most likely outcome, and there are a number of reasons why.

A Yoan Moncada-Jared Triolo platoon at third is the Pirates’ most likely solution for the hot corner

First, a history lesson. A little over a decade ago, the Boston Red Sox gave a then-20-year-old Moncada a record-setting $31.5 million signing bonus as an international free agent and quickly became the No. 1 prospect in all of baseball.

The man at the helm of the Red Sox at the time? None other than Ben Cherington.

Moncada played all of eight games in Boston before he was shipped off to the Chicago White Sox in a trade to land Chris Sale.

There’s an obvious connection there, and while Moncada’s career hasn’t panned out exactly as expected, his 2025 campaign was something of a resurgence. Sort of.

As the White Sox began to disintegrate and many of their young talents stagnated, Moncada hit several bumps in the road. The 2022 saw him post a career-worst 76 wRC+, while 2023 was a bit of a rebound to a league-average mark, and 2024 was nearly wiped out entirely by injury. From 2022 through last season, the Cuban native has averaged just 73 games played per season.

Moncada logged 84 games played in 2025 as a variety of ailments limited his availability, but it was still a vast improvement over the 12 contests he appeared in during the 2024 season.

Moncada’s bat rebounded to a degree, too. His .234/.336/.448 line was 18% better than league average, his .214 ISO was his best power performance since his 2019 breakout, and his 11.1% walk rate helped him get on base at a healthy clip despite the poor batting average and 26% strikeout rate.

Injuries are obviously a concern, but power and patience are two things Pittsburgh’s lineup could still use. While Moncada is a switch-hitter, he’s really become more of a platoon bat at this point in his career. Last season, he posted an .815 OPS against righties and a putrid .477 mark against southpaws.

That’s where Triolo comes in. He’s is a superior defender to Moncada after injuries sapped his athleticism, and the Pirates’ utilityman performed very well against left-handed pitching last season, slashing .275/.339/.459.

In a timeshare with Moncada, Triolo can help keep the 30-year-old healthy, and between the two of them, the Pirates could get a roughly .800 OPS type of performance out of third base. That’s nothing to sneeze at. Moncada will also come much cheaper than Suarez, who brings a lot of the same concerns (aside from health) to the table.

A Moncada-Triolo platoon might not be a ceiling raiser, but it does give the Pirates a higher floor as long as Moncada can stay healthy enough to hold up the strong side of the platoon. And sometimes, raising the floor is all you really need.

A warning from environmental officials to pet owners: It’s coyote mating season, which means coyote-human interactions are likely to increase.

Over the weekend in Ridgefield, a coyote had to be euthanized after biting a local resident. The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) believed, based on initial reports, that the animal was ill.

Attacks on humans by coyotes are extremely rare, but coyotes are common in Connecticut. Officials said it’s important to understand the steps to keep yourself and your pets safe.

At the turn of the new year, you might see or hear the eastern coyote more.

“We heard about the incident in West Hartford about a year and a half ago,” said Bob Goodman, a resident of West Hartford himself.

Goodman is referring to a December 2024 coyote attack on a dog, which left the dog fighting for its life.

Goodman said protecting his dog is always a top priority.

The eastern coyote is common in Connecticut and has been reported in every town and city in the state. January marks the start of mating season for the species, so they naturally become more territorial.

“We will see a kind of behavior that people interpret to be more aggressive because coyotes are acting more boldly,” said Geoff Krukar, a wildlife biologist with DEEP.

Krukar said this aggression is often seen toward other dogs, so keeping your dog on a leash and under control when out is key.

Kurkar also recommends keeping an eye on pets outside, even in your own backyard, and even if they are only out for a moment.

“If your dog or cat is not being watched, there is an opportunity for a negative interaction with a coyote,” he said.

Small dogs are particularly vulnerable because they are seen as prey. There is coyote-preventive gear that owners can purchase for extra protection against predators.

“We bring a flashlight with us, and we scan the backyard to make sure there is no coyote lurking,” said Goodman.

For Goodman, it’s personal; he has known friends and family who have had their pets killed by coyotes. He said he would rather take an extra second to stay with his dog or check his own backyard to prevent anything tragic.

If you are alone and encounter a coyote, DEEP explains it’s best to make your presence known by making noise and then leaving the area.

It’s also around this time of year that coyotes might consider finding a den close to a home, such as under a porch or near a foundation. Krukar said you can take steps to prevent them from choosing a spot near a home, like running a radio near a den to scare them off.

Keeping coyotes away from a home can also mean securing trash and removing any food sources, as with strategies to prevent bears.