San Jose State University is off to the Mountain West final, but it seems like they wish they had earned their place on the court.

The Spartans are off to the championship game after Boise State announced on Thursday that they would be forfeiting their semifinal match amid the controversy surrounding trans player Blaire Fleming.

The Broncos made the announcement shortly after defeating Utah State in the first round of the playoffs. Boise State forfeited both of their regular season matches against SJSU, while Utah State had forfeited its only one.

In response to the Broncos’ forfeit, SJSU said they were “disappointed” by the move.

“In this time of Thanksgiving, we are especially thankful for those who continue to engage in civil and respectful discourse,” San Jose State’s statement said. “We celebrate and support all of our students, including our student-athletes as they compete for our community on this holiday weekend. 

“While we are disappointed in Boise State’s decision, our women’s volleyball team is preparing for Saturday’s match and looks forward to competing for a championship.”

SJSU now awaits the winner of top-seeded Colorado State and No. 5 San Diego State; neither team forfeited against them in the regular season.

Blaire Fleming, #3 of the San Jose State Spartans, waits to serve during the first set against the Air Force Falcons at Falcon Court at East Gym on Oct. 19, 2024 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. (Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)

LIA THOMAS REACTS TO SAN JOSE STATE WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL TRANSGENDER CONTROVERSY

Boise State, Wyoming, Utah State and Nevada were among the conference teams to cancel games against the Spartans amid Fleming’s presence on the team. They were aware the forfeiture would result in a loss on their records, which ultimately helped SJSU secure their high seed. 

Earlier this week, Federal Judge Kato Crews in Colorado, appointed by President Biden in January, denied a motion for injunctive relief in a lawsuit by college volleyball players against the conference, in efforts to have Fleming not play in the tournament and their forfeit losses rescinded.

Blaire Fleming, #3 of the San Jose State Spartans, reacts during the second set against the Air Force Falcons at Falcon Court at East Gym on Oct. 19, 2024 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. (Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)

A dozen women jointly filed the suit against the Mountain West and its commissioner, alleging violations of Title IX and their First Amendment rights. Among the women are SJSU co-volleyball captain Brooke Slusser and two former Spartans as well as athletes from other Mountain West schools. 

Fox News’ Scott Thompson contributed to this report.

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Will Kuntz’s life changed with a letter.

He was a small-college basketball player at Williams College, an even smaller liberal arts college in Massachusetts, when he found himself alone in a dorm room flipping through the school’s alumni directory out of sheer boredom. On that list of former Purple Cows — that’s the school’s mascot, not a description of the alumni — was George Steinbrenner, then owner of the New York Yankees.

A lightbulb went on.

“I wrote this cheesy letter, introduced myself and asked to be considered for an internship,” Kuntz remembered over a cup of tea 22 years later.

By his own admission, it was a bold, brash and possibly stupid move for someone who barely knew the difference between a spitball and a spitwad. Yet five months later, Steinbrenner personally signed off on a summer internship in baseball operations.

“That Purple Cow mafia must work,” Brian Cashman, the Yankees’ longtime general manager, said last week.

If Kuntz was a made man though, it was Cashman who benefited, because once Kuntz got through the door, he never looked back. In 10 seasons with the Yankees, he went from running errands to running the pro scouting department, helping the team win a World Series.

Now, a decade after leaving the Yankees, he’s proven to be an even quicker study as an MLS general manager. In less than 19 months in charge of player personnel for the Galaxy, he’s taken them from near the bottom of the table to the Western Conference final, where a win over the Seattle Sounders on Saturday would give the team its first spot in the MLS Cup since 2014.

“We’re obviously very pleased with where we are but the job’s not done yet. We still have two games ahead of us to reach our ultimate goal,” said Dan Beckerman, the president and CEO of AEG, the Galaxy’s parent company, and the man who hired Kuntz.

“But yeah, it’s been an incredible season. He’s done an outstanding job. Everything that we hoped he could do, he’s done.”

When Kuntz, 40, was hired early last year, the Galaxy were on their way to missing the playoffs for the fifth time in seven years. They would finish with eight wins, matching the franchise low for a full season, and allow 67 goals, matching the franchise high.

This year, with coach Greg Vanney starting nine players signed by Kuntz, the team matched modern-era bests with 19 wins and 69 goals, missing its first regular-season conference title since 2011 on a tie-breaker. It’s one of the most remarkable turnarounds in league history.

“If you look at where we were 12 months ago and where we are today, it is an incredible bounce back. And it was exactly what we had hoped would happen with the changes, the investments that we made in the roster and just a new vision, a new culture,” Beckerman said.

“When things aren’t going well, different is good. There’s a new energy, a new buzz. It’s just a different feel and a different culture.”

Kuntz’s journey from that dorm room at Williams College, where he won an NCAA Division III basketball title, to the general manager’s suite with the Galaxy was a methodical one. While working with the Yankees, he attended law school at night, earning his degree in 2013 before leaving baseball for a three-year stop at MLS headquarters, where he became steeped in the minutiae of the league’s complicated salary structure.

“My first impression of Will was, ‘Boy, he has a lot of confidence,’” said Nelson Rodriguez, a long-time MLS executive who worked alongside Kuntz in the league office. “But the other thing that has struck me about Will is his very clear standard. He has a high standard of integrity, a very high standard or work ethic. And he’s been remarkably consistent.”

Galaxy supporters wave scarves with their team colors before the team’s win over Minnesota United on Nov. 24.

(Etienne Laurent / Associated Press)

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Rodriguez also saw courage in Kuntz’s decision to leave one of the marquee franchises in American sports for a league that was still seeking a foothold.

“He saw an opportunity in soccer and saw the growth of the sport coming, so he was probably on the leading edge of that,” he said. “He’s not afraid. While he has his confidence, he’s not stubborn and he’s not arrogant.”

One of Kuntz’s duties was to represent the league in contentious talks with the players union for a new collective bargaining agreement in 2015. John Thorrington was on the other side of the table, representing the players, and both men came away from the experience with respect for the other. So when LAFC, then an expansion team, chose Thorrington as its first general manager, he chose Kuntz as his top assistant.

“He’s very intelligent,” Thorrington said. “He had unique experience, both in other sports and [in] seeing high-operating organizations like the Yankees. So he would pick up on the learnings and apply his experiences.

“Now, ironically, that benefit is going to our direct rival.”

The Galaxy’s Gabriel Pec, right, kneels and raises his arms to celebrate with teammate Marco Reus, left, after scoring against Minnesota United on Nov. 24.

(Etienne Laurent / Associated Press)

Kuntz spent six years at Thorrington’s side, leaving when his contract ran out weeks after LAFC, the Galaxy’s Southern California neighbor, won the MLS Cup in 2022.

“I wasn’t planning on leaving,” he said. But, he added, he felt “pretty strongly that what I was getting offered was below where I believed my market value to be. It was one of those moments where, if you take this now, after the year we just had, you can never expect anything better. Maybe you should see what else is out there.”

The first feelers came from Austin, he said, which was looking to replace Claudio Reyna as sporting director. But his equally accomplished wife Priscilla Muñoz, executive director and regional controller of West Coast real estate investments for JP Morgan, didn’t want to move to Texas. The Galaxy, meanwhile, were imploding, having lost more games than their had won during the previous six seasons and going eight years without an MLS Cup appearance, the longest drought in its history.

The players didn’t mesh on the field, the front office was dysfunctional and the team’s most loyal fans had begun to boycott home games. Once the league’s model franchise and long its most successful, having hoisted 12 trophies, the Galaxy were a hot mess.

So Beckerman hired Kuntz as senior vice-president of player personnel, though it was clear that was just a temporary position. Because when he sacked longtime president Chris Klein a month later, he handed Kuntz the keys to the sporting side of the franchise.

That was a huge break from normal for the famously loyal Beckerman, who had stood with Klein through 10 mostly challenging seasons. But it worked. Just three teams in MLS won fewer home games than the Galaxy last season; this year they matched a franchise-record with 13 regular-season wins in Carson.

“His resume is pretty incredible,” Beckerman said of Kuntz. “He had experience. He’s a lawyer. He really understands the league and the complexities of Major League Soccer and the intricacies of the rules. That was a huge plus. Having the experience of working for a great organization like the Yankees is certainly appealing. He had MLS experience at the club level.

“He had a very clear vision of what he wanted to execute in terms of assembling a team and a fresh look, which is something that, frankly, we needed. We needed a new direction. We needed a new look. Will checked all of those boxes.”

Galaxy’s Maya Yoshida passes the ball during the team’s win over Minnesota United on Nov. 24.

(Etienne Laurent / Associated Press)

In the midsummer transfer window, his first in charge, Kuntz got about giving the team that new look, adding five players including center back Maya Yoshida, now the team’s captain, and midfielder Edwin Cerrillo. But he worked his real magic last winter, after being promoted to general manager.

He began by signing defender John Nelson and goalkeeper John McCarthy, who had been cut loose by their previous teams, then acquired Japanese defender Miki Yamane for a modest transfer fee. All three have played vital roles in the team’s success this season. However the additions that really transformed the Galaxy came closer to opening day when Kuntz added Brazilian winger Gabriel Pec and Ghanaian forward Joseph Paintsil as designated players.

The players were young — Pec was 22, Paintsil 26 when they signed — and talented, but relatively anonymous in the U.S. They were also expensive, with Pec costing the team a club-record $10-million transfer fee while Paintsil’s transfer was only slightly cheaper at a reported $9 million. But after years of spending money on big-name stars such as Gio dos Santos, Steven Gerrard, Javier “Chicharito” Hernández and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who brought the team little playoff success, Kuntz believed in the new approach and met privately with Beckerman and AEG owner Phil Aunschutz to get their approval.

“This club has a really storied tradition and we had certainly gotten pretty far afield from that. The thinking at the club had gotten stale,” Kuntz said.

“People felt like they had to deliver a huge star that had name recognition because that’s a Galaxy player, right? The league has changed. Let’s try to find the players we really believe will give us the best chance.”

Kuntz didn’t do that alone. Instead, he worked closely with Vanney to identify the profile of player the coach wanted, then tried to deliver that. And the strategy proved transformative, with Pec scoring sharing team highs with 19 goals and 16 assists, including playoff games, while Paintsil has 13 goals and 11 assists.

The Galaxy’s Joseph Paintsil celebrates with Gabriel Pec after scoring against Sporting Kansas City at Dignity Health Sports Park on June 15 in Carson.

(Shaun Clark / Getty Images)

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“I can’t remember when an MLS team hit it out of the park with two DP signings in the same year,” said Paul Kennedy, the Hall of Fame editor of Soccer America. “Pec and Paintsil have been so good for the Galaxy.”

Kuntz also straightened out a front office that had long been underperforming, removing Jovan Kirovski as technical director, expanding the duties of scouting director Michael Stephens and player personnel director Gordon Kljestan and hiring former Danish Superliga executive Mikkel Dencher as technical director.

No one is less surprised at his protege’s success than Cashman.

“People that are successful, first and foremost, have to be able to connect with people and Will is exceptional at that,” Cashman said of the man who got away.

“I tried to convince him you’re making a mistake,” he added. “You have a path here to become a general manager in Major League Baseball. But he had a different dream.”

It’s a dream that hasn’t fully been realized because Kuntz, like many of his players, sees Europe as the ultimate test of his soccer skills. He’s already won championship rings with the Yankees and LAFC and could earn another with the Galaxy next month — and he’s still five months shy of his 41st birthday, leaving him with both the time and ambition to attempt scaling mountains in other continents.

“I still do get romantic thinking about the possibility of putting together a team in Europe that can compete for a Champions League [title,]” he said. “But that’s another level, another jump, and it requires more education.”

Maybe he could start by writing a letter.

LINCOLN, Neb. — Harper Murray is smiling and laughing every day. And she’s playing her best volleyball in two seasons at Nebraska.

This alone lifts spirits among Murray’s teammates. Her happiness matters to them. The Huskers saw Murray spiral last spring amid public struggles with her emotional health. Two legal incidents derailed her offseason after Murray was named the top freshman in the Big Ten and a third-team All-American.

But her path is about more than rejuvenation.

The college volleyball community and Nebraska’s legion of fans have taken notice this fall of Murray’s bond with Nebraska coach John Cook.

“The connection that he has with Harper is extremely special,” senior co-captain Lexi Rodriguez said. “I think anyone can see it, whether you’re on the court or not.”

Murray’s rebound is defined in part by her uncommon relationship with the 68-year coach who stood up for her like the father she lost 13 years ago. Murray, 19, brings out a soft side in Cook that few have seen. He cares for her like a daughter.

“It’s unconditional love,” said Cook, a four-time national champion coach in his 25th season at Nebraska. “That’s really what it is. In this day and age, with this generation, you’ve got to have that if you’re going to coach.”

They star together in TikTok videos. She created an account for him and controls the content, using his phone. He revels in the millions of views.

“He’s always asking what we’re going to do next?” Murray said. “He loves it.”

If the Huskers want to make a request of the coach — maybe it’s an adjustment to their uniforms or a tweak in the schedule — Murray gets nominated. “You ask” teammates tell her, she said, “because he’ll say yes to you.”

Cook doesn’t say that Murray is his favorite. But the Huskers know it to be true. And it’s OK. She needs him in her life.

@coachjohncook1 it aint easy being a cowboy 🤠#nebraskavolleyball #fyp #nebraskatok ♬ original sound – coachjohncook1

No. 2 Nebraska enters the final week of the regular season at 28-1 and perfect in the Big Ten. It has won 54 of 59 sets in league matches and plays at No. 4 Penn State on Friday, followed by a Saturday visit to Maryland. The postseason bracket reveal is on Sunday.

Murray’s 3.29 kills per set and 27 service aces lead the Huskers. She’s the No. 1 attacking option on the most balanced offensive team in the nation. Her defense in the back row as a six-rotation player has progressed more than any area of her game.

But three months ago, Murray was terrified to walk onto the court in front of Nebraska’s fans for the preseason Red-White scrimmage. She wondered what people would think, Cook said. What would they say about her? Would she get booed?

Back up eight months. Last December, Texas swept top-seeded Nebraska in the national championship match. Murray did not play well, especially in receiving the Longhorns’ serves.

At the news conference that followed the loss, she was despondent. A reporter asked her about the future.

“I think we’re going to win three national championships (in) the next three years,” Murray said.

The comment blew up on social media. Murray digested the reactions and buried herself in negativity. She fell into a depression that lasted for months. On April 5, she was cited for DUI in Lincoln. Less than a month later, she got caught on security camera shoplifting $65 of jewelry at a sporting goods store.

ESPN featured the rise and fall of Murray in an hour-long documentary, “No Place Like Nebraska.” It aired in August, tracking the Huskers’ 2023 season and the months after it.

Murray lost her spot on the U.S. women’s U21 team. Family members worried that she might physically harm herself. Her mother, Sarah, feared that Cook would dismiss Harper from the team at Nebraska. Every time Cook talked to Sarah for weeks, she sought reassurance about Harper’s roster status. Public pressure existed for him to dump her.

“The thought crossed my mind,” Harper said. “But I think I knew deep down that he wasn’t going to give up on me that easily.”

Murray was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2023 and her success on the court has continued helped by the support of head coach John Cook. (Courtesy of Nebraska Athletics)

Cook and Nebraska assistant coach Jaylen Reyes began to recruit Murray before she started high school in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She attended the Huskers’ Dream Team camp as an eighth-grader and fell for everything about the Nebraska program

As Murray developed into the No. 1-rated prospect in the 2023 class, her recruiting intensified. She was named the Gatorade Player of the Year and had her choice of top schools. But she valued her initial impressions of Nebraska, and Cook won over her mom, in part, by making sure she knew he would watch over Harper and let Sarah know if her daughter made any poor decisions.

It’s a message that Cook tells the parents of every player he recruits.

“It’s one thing to say that,” Harper said. “It’s another to act on it.”

When her life veered off the rails this year, Cook did not waver.

“I learned a long time ago that you do everything you can before you give up on these kids,” the coach said.

Murray’s struggles strengthened Cook’s commitment to her — not to be construed as going easy on her. In the coach, Harper said, she saw a role model. He supported her, she said, “when other people probably wouldn’t have.”

“I look up to him,” Murray said, “and just the way he approaches every day in life. It’s different than anyone I’ve ever met.”

Cook helped Murray make a checklist of items required to restore her good standing with the Huskers.

She completed extensive community service and more than 100 hours of therapy, which continues in addition to court-ordered probation. Within the team environment, Murray worked to regain trust.

Cook often hears from former athletes and observers that they admire Murray’s growth. He marvels at her resolve. Many athletes in her situation, he said, would have left this year in search of a fresh start.

She couldn’t leave. Not after all that Cook had done to help her.

“He wasn’t happy with me,” Murray said. “But at the same time, he promised my mom that he would be there for me. And that’s exactly what he did. He held me accountable. But he gave me grace.

“I have a lot of love and respect for him. I wouldn’t be the person or the player I am without him. And I know that I owe a lot to him. One of my biggest goals in life is to make him proud, especially because I put our program through a lot. I put us in the gutter at some points.”

Murray’s father, Vada, died when she was 6. He was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2008 and lived three years with the disease until age 43. Vada was a standout safety on the Michigan football team from 1987-90, playing in three Rose Bowls. He graduated to work as a police officer in Ann Arbor.

Harper holds only fragmented memories of Vada. But the absence of her father haunts her. She wears his jersey No. 27, just as her sister, Kendall, did with Michigan volleyball from 2020 to 2023.

The loss that Harper experienced has impacted Cook’s approach to their relationship.

“There’s a coach-player relationship,” Cook said, “but I also think there’s a … I don’t want to call it father-daughter, because I’m not her father. But it’s built on trust.”

Harper has seen their bond grow most in the way they communicate. The TikTok videos allow the public to catch a glimpse. But the roots of their connection run much deeper. On the court, she said, he’s tough on her. Harper asked Cook before this season as she struggled with confidence to ease up and show her more compassion.

He complied. But it was temporary.

“He can make me really mad,” she said. “But I know it’s because he wants what’s best for me.”

The moment last year that triggered Murray’s slide is coming up on its first anniversary. Cook said he’s not worried that she’ll suffer again in a similar way if the Huskers fall short in December. She’s more mature, he said. Her perspective has changed.

Murray said she’s as driven as ever to win a national championship.

“I feel like I have something to prove,” she said.

Murray wears tape on her left hand during matches. She marks the pinky finger with an “8” to honor Rodriguez, a guiding light for Harper, and the ring finger with “27,” the Murray family number. On the index finger, Harper writes “JC,” the initials of her coach.

“He’s the closest thing I have,” she said, “to a father figure.”

(Top photo: Dylan Widger / Imagn Images)