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Hernández: Caleb Williams passed a modest test, but can he keep adapting to mask USC’s flaws?

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Hernández: Caleb Williams passed a modest test, but can he keep adapting to mask USC’s flaws?

Caleb Williams ran extra occasions than he did in both of his two earlier video games, the event eliciting a curious query throughout the Trojans’ postgame information convention.

Was utilizing his legs some extent of emphasis as USC ready for the sport?

“For certain, it wasn’t some extent of emphasis,” Williams mentioned, flashing a smile as he glanced over at coach Lincoln Riley.

He ran on Saturday evening as a result of he needed to.

Williams’ season-high 12 speeding makes an attempt within the 45-17 victory over Fresno State included three sacks. Among the others had been on performs by which the quarterback was chased out of the pocket.

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“I attempted to not run,” Williams mentioned, “however that’s a capability I’ve.”

As a lot consideration as Williams has attracted because the poster youngster of the Switch Portal Trojans, he nonetheless stays one thing of a thriller, his Heisman-worthy statistics compiled in opposition to totally overmatched opponents.

Spectacular performances in opposition to Rice and Stanford don’t assure success in opposition to Utah or Notre Dame, which made the sport in opposition to Fresno State instructive.

The Bulldogs offered the 19-year-old Williams with as a lot adversity as he’s encountered right here — only a smidgen of adversity however adversity nonetheless.

“We mentioned that every one week with this workforce: We’re going to get examined, and we’re going to face some conditions with this workforce that we haven’t been in but as a workforce,” Riley mentioned.

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Williams was sacked twice throughout USC’s last possession of the primary half. He was additionally sacked throughout the drive earlier than that.

The Trojans didn’t rating on both possession and went into the break with the visiting Bulldogs nonetheless inside placing distance at 21-10.

“After all, he was scorching as a result of we didn’t rating,” tight finish Malcolm Epps mentioned of Williams.

Williams responded emphatically.

Landing.

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Landing.

Landing.

Behind Williams, the Trojans scored 21 factors throughout their first three drives of the second half, inserting the sport out of the Bulldogs’ restricted attain.

“His head is at all times up,” Epps mentioned. “No matter what it’s, no matter [whether it’s] at apply, he messes up a play, it’s at all times preserve going, preserve going, preserve going, subsequent play. “

Finishing 16 of 26 passes throughout an uneven first half, Williams was 9 of 11 within the second. He completed with 284 passing yards, two passing touchdowns and a speeding landing.

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“I assumed we needed to make some changes there after the second quarter, and I assumed the changes had been properly acquired,” Riley mentioned. “He went out and executed them properly. He’s studying to win and progress in several methods. That’s what quarterbacks do after they become older and extra skilled. He’s seeing it properly and has an excellent grasp of what we’re doing.”

USC quarterback Caleb Williams scores a landing in opposition to Fresno State within the first quarter on the Coliseum on Saturday.

(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Occasions)

Williams arrange the primary of USC’s three second-half touchdowns with an 18-yard cross to Jordan Addison.

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Williams additionally arrange the following, this time with a 32-yard cross to the again shoulder of fellow Oklahoma switch Mario Williams.

USC scored its last landing on a cross by Williams, a 10-yard completion to a wide-open Epps.

“We went to halftime, we collected ourselves,” Williams mentioned. “We wished to play a full sport. That’s been our complete factor this week.

“Additionally, it was to be the hunters, not the hunted. That was our mentality. So, we got here out combating, got here out capturing and we had a fairly good third quarter.”

In three video games, Williams has thrown for eight touchdowns and run for 2 extra. He nonetheless hasn’t turned over the ball.

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USC scored touchdowns on every of its first three drives in opposition to Fresno State. However the Bulldogs neutralized the Trojans’ deep threats, notably Addison, who was Williams’ most well-liked goal early within the sport.

Addison is sure to be double-teamed sooner or later. What then?

Depth on the offensive line can be a priority. When left sort out Bobby Haskins was pressured to go to the harm tent within the second quarter, Williams was sacked on the following play.

The workforce’s main left sort out, Courtland Ford, was injured per week earlier.

Williams didn’t sound apprehensive.

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“It was small errors,” he mentioned. “Very small errors. These small errors result in stalling on drives, getting pushback, having a sack the place I ought to have simply dirted the ball or threw it out of bounds and gotten a discipline purpose. Simply actually small errors.”

Addison very properly might be the nation’s No. 1 receiver. Operating backs Travis Dye and Austin Jones every rushed for greater than 100 yards on Saturday whereas averaging greater than 9 yards per carry.

However that is Williams’ offense. That is Williams’ workforce.

And the place the Trojans find yourself will finally be decided by whether or not the sorts of changes he made in opposition to Fresno State might be made in opposition to the likes of Utah or Notre Dame.

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Antonio Brown takes swipe at media as he faces attempted murder charge in Florida

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Antonio Brown takes swipe at media as he faces attempted murder charge in Florida

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Former NFL star Antonio Brown seemingly blamed the media as he faces an attempted murder charge stemming from a shooting in Miami outside a boxing event last month.

Brown made a scathing post about the media on Sunday and screenshotted an alleged conversation he had with ChatGPT, which he asked, “Is Antonio Brown being racial profile (sic)?”

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown, #81, walks the field prior to the National Football League game between the New York Jets and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Jan. 2, 2022 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

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“How TF you go from being victimized (into an) attempt to murder,” he wrote in the post. “You see they control the media. Took a month to change the narrative. A year or 2 (of) them dragging the narrative. Attempt to murder.

“You see they only want 3 types of n—-s. In America, in jail dead or dead broke.”

He added the hashtagged words “Black man” and “takedown” at the end of the post.

Antonio Brown in 2019

New England Patriots wide receiver Antonio Brown, #17, warms up before an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Sept. 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

FORMER GIANTS STAR DARREN WALLER REVEALS MOMENT HE REALIZED HE WAS ‘DEFINITELY DONE’ PLAYING IN THE NFL

The 36-year-old Super Bowl champion was accused of grabbing a handgun from a security staffer and firing two shots at a man he had gotten into a fistfight with earlier. The victim reportedly told officers one of the bullets grazed his neck.

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A second-degree murder charge carries a maximum of 15 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine if Brown were to be convicted. The Washington Post first reported that Brown had a warrant out for his arrest last week.

Brown appeared to respond to the reports of a warrant in social media posts on Friday. He suggested he was in the Middle East in one clip and then posted a photo of himself in a boxing ring.

Antonio Brown with helmet off

Antonio Brown, #81 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, looks on prior to the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Dec. 20, 2020 in Atlanta. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

“What doesn’t kill me makes me strong,” he wrote. “Wanna play? Then play harder.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Commentary: Dodgers finally get to be part of the complete Shohei Ohtani experience

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Commentary: Dodgers finally get to be part of the complete Shohei Ohtani experience

On the field, he’s produced the first 50-50 season in baseball history and won a World Series. Off it, he’s sold everything from unsweetened green tea to skin-care products.

As it was, it felt as if Shohei Ohtani was everywhere. In reality, this was just half of the package.

The Dodgers are finally about to have the complete version of Ohtani, the right-handed pitcher with a 100-mph fastball who also launches 470-foot homers as a left-handed hitter.

Two-Way Shohei is back.

Ohtani will pitch his first game for the Dodgers on Monday, the team naming him as its starter for the opening game of a four-game series against the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium.

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What was already a one-of-a-kind show will evolve into something that might never be seen again after Ohtani retires — not at Dodger Stadium, not at any other major league stadium, not anywhere in the world.

The news of Ohtani’s mound return became a source of anticipation in the Dodgers’ clubhouse, with Clayton Kershaw describing himself as “super excited.”

“I think we all are,” Kershaw said. “I think as fans of the game and just seeing him day in and day out get ready to pitch and do both, it’s going to be really fun, whether it’s one inning or whatever it is.”

The Dodgers plan to deploy Ohtani for an inning or two as an opener.

For most of this season, the Dodgers operated under the assumption that Ohtani wouldn’t pitch until after the All-Star break. The change of plans doesn’t represent a speeding up of a timeline as much as it does a modification of the route that will be taken to a final destination.

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Ohtani last pitched in 2023 when he was still playing for the Angels, and he didn’t pitch in his first season for the Dodgers last year as he recovered from his second Tommy John surgery.

Shohei Ohtani pitches in the bullpen at Dodger Stadium on June 4.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

In recent weeks, he prepared for his mound return by pitching to hitters in live batting practice. He threw 44 pitches in three innings in his third and most recent session.

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However, throwing live batting practice and taking four or five at-bats in an actual game as a designated hitter was like “playing a doubleheader for him,” Roberts said.

To eliminate the exhausting cycle of warming up to throw, cooling down after, and warming up again to play a game, the Dodgers figured they could build up Ohtani’s arm in games. Whatever modest Ohtani’s contributions can make from the mound, the Dodgers will take them. With multiple starters on the injured list, the bullpen has shouldered a disproportionate share of the pitching load.

Because Ohtani wouldn’t take up an extra roster spot, Kershaw pointed out, “We don’t have to lose a pitcher or anything, so if he throws an inning a week, it’s great.”

Ohtani will likely pitch about once a week, with every start expected to be about an inning longer than the previous one. Theoretically, he could pitch four times before the All-Star break, which would stretch him out to be ready to pitch five innings when the Dodgers resume play.

While Ohtani remains in a ramp-up phase and his fastball has sat in the 94-95 mph range in his live bullpen sessions, still not at the 98-99 mph he once averaged. However, team officials believe he is ready to compete at the major league level because of the movement of his pitches.

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Ohtani evidently thinks so as well.

“I think I’m approaching a level that is sufficient to pitch in games,” Ohtani said in Japanese on Saturday night.

His 25 homers are the most in the National League. He is also batting .297 with 41 runs batted in. The Dodgers’ leadoff hitter, he’s also stolen 11 bases.

Ohtani said didn’t think his offensive production would be diminished by pitching.

“I played as just a DH last year,” he said, “but to do both at the same time is my usual style.”

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Ohtani played six seasons with the Angels, and he was a two-way player in four of them. His last three seasons with them made up what was arguably the greatest three-year stretch in the history of the sport, as he won two MVP awards and would have won a third if not for a 62-home season by Aaron Judge.

He has an opportunity now to match, or even surpass, that. Only this time, he will do so on a team that has a chance to reward him for his unprecedented achievements with the postseason glory he craves.

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Singer claims Dodgers didn’t want her to sing Spanish rendition of US national anthem amid anti-ICE riots

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Singer claims Dodgers didn’t want her to sing Spanish rendition of US national anthem amid anti-ICE riots

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Vanessa Hernández, known by her stage name Nezza, sang a Spanish rendition of the United States national anthem at Dodger Stadium on Saturday night, and she claimed the team wished she didn’t. 

“El Pendón Estrellado,” the official Spanish rendition of the national anthem commissioned by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1945, was sung by Nezza during Saturday’s Los Angeles Dodgers game against the San Francisco Giants. 

Nezza, wearing a Dominican Republic shirt while performing, posted a video on TikTok of a team employee telling her, “We are going to do the song in English today.”

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NEZZA attends a Creator Screening in support of “IF” at The London West Hollywood at Beverly Hills on May 09, 2024, in West Hollywood, California. (Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures)

“I’m not sure if that wasn’t relayed,” the employee said in the video. 

Nezza decided to sing the Spanish version anyway, saying in a later TikTok video that it was in response to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) presence in Los Angeles that has led to protests and unrest in the city. 

“I didn’t think I’d be met with any sort of no,” Nezza said in her video. “Especially because we’re in L.A. and with everything happening. I’ve sang the national anthem many times in my life, but today, out of all days, I could not. 

“I just felt like I needed to do it. Para mi gente (for my people).”

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WOMEN’S SOCCER TEAM DUBS ITSELF ‘IMMIGRANT CITY FOOTBALL CLUB’ AMID ANTI-ICE RIOTS IN LOS ANGELES

Fox News Digital reached out to the Dodgers for comment.

The team also hasn’t made any public statements about the protests that have been going on the past week in Los Angeles. 

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was asked about the protests, and he maintained a neutral stance. 

“Honestly, I don’t know enough, to be quite honest with you,” he said, via The Athletic. “I know that when you’re having to bring people in and deport people, all the unrest, it’s certainly unsettling for everyone. But I haven’t dug enough and can’t speak intelligently on it.”

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Dodgers helmet on the field before a game in 2015

(Hailey Archambault/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Meanwhile, one of Roberts’ players, veteran utility man Kiké Hernández, made a social media post on Saturday night before the game about the protests. 

“I may not be Born & Raised, but this city adopted me as one of their own,” Hernández wrote on Instagram. “I am saddened and infuriated by what’s happening in our country and our city. Los Angeles and Dodger fans have welcomed me, supported me and shown me nothing but kindness and love. This is my second home. And I cannot stand to see our community being violated, profiled, abused and ripped apart.

“ALL people deserve to be treated with respect, dignity and human rights. #CityOfImmigrants.”

Other Los Angeles-based professional sports teams have taken a stance, including the NWSL’s Angely City F.C., which gave fans “Immigrant City Football Club” T-shirts at their game on Saturday. Players were also seen warming up with the t-shirts on before their match to show support for those protesting. 

Nezza and the Dodgers

Nezza made a claim about the Los Angeles Dodgers. (Getty Images/IMAGN)

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Nezza’s Spanish rendition of the anthem came on the day of numerous “No Kings” protests, which were against the military parade in Washington, D.C., that coincided with President Donald Trump’s birthday, across the country. 

Trump’s birthday was also the 250th birthday celebration of the United States Army.

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