Sports
Patrick Mahomes nearly quit football in high school, mother says

Patrick Mahomes’ mother Randi Mahomes opened up on a period during her son’s high school football career, when he almost quit the sport.
During an Instagram story Q&A on Friday, Randi Mahomes was asked how she kept her son motivated through “challenging times.”
The mother answered by saying she hadn’t had to do much, because the quarterback had been “so determined for himself,” but she also recounted a time when he almost quit football in high school.
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“There were times when he would get a little down, even a moment in high school when he wanted to quit football. Yes, he did,” Randi Mahomes said. “And I encouraged him that sitting out a season of sports and watching the games, it was not going to be fun for him. And so, he stuck to it, fortunately.”
The intervention by Randi Mahomes may have very well changed the course of sports history, and history at large.
Mahomes went on to be a two-year starter at quarterback at Whitehorse High School in East Texas, where he also met his wife, Brittany Mahomes.
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In his senior year, he passed for 4,619 yards and 50 touchdowns, while also rushing for 948 yards and 15 touchdowns. That performance earned him the MaxPreps Male Athlete of the Year.
Mahomes went on to be a three-star college recruit, and committed to Texas Tech. There, he won the Sammy Baugh Trophy as a junior after leading the FBS in passing yards and total touchdowns.
It was enough to convince the Kansas City Chiefs and head coach Andy Reid to execute a trade-up in the 2017 NFL Draft to select Mahomes to be the team’s starting quarterback.
FILE – Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes chews his mouthguard during warmups before an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann, File)
Since then, all Mahomes has done is turn the Chiefs into a dynasty and win two NFL MVP awards.
And it may have never even happen if his mom hadn’t stopped him from quitting high school football.
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Sports
NBA great Shaquille O'Neal floats theory on Blue Origin flight

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Basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal is weighing in on the recent Blue Origin space flight.
Blue Origin was founded by Amazon founder and Executive Chairman Jeff Bezos.
O’Neal mentioned the recent high-profile Blue Origin flight, which featured an all-female crew, during a recent discussion with comedian David Spade.
Former NBA player Shaquille O’Neal attends the unveiling of the Shaq Courts at the Doolittle Complex donated by Icy Hot and the Shaquille O’Neal Foundation in partnership with the City of Las Vegas Oct. 23, 2021, in Las Vegas. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images for Icy Hot)
O’Neal, a four-time NBA champion, suggested the trip to space did not actually occur. O’Neal’s theory seemed to center around his belief that Bezos was never willing to send his fiancée, Lauren Sanchez, into space.
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Sanchez and singer Katy Perry, television personality Gayle King, NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, film producer Kerianne Flynn and civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen all took part in the trip.

This image provided by Blue Origin shows, from left: Jeff Bezos; Kerianne Flynn; Katy Perry; Lauren Sanchez; Aisha Bowe; Gayle King; Amanda Nguyen; Sarah Knights, director of Blue Origin’s astronaut office; and Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp. (Blue Origin via AP Images)
But O’Neal also pointed out what he believed were discrepancies within a video Blue Origin released. From the 51-year-old NBA analyst’s perspective, something in the recording appeared to be off.
“I know Jeff loves Laura. He wouldn’t want anything to happen to her,” O’Neal told Spade during a recent edition of the “The Big Podcast with Shaq.”

Shaquille O’Neal attends Shaq’s Fun House Big Game Weekend at Talking Stick Resort Feb 10, 2023, in Scottsdale, Ariz. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
“So, I think there was some green screen involvement there. That’s one. No. 2, their hair was luxurious in space. Katy Perry’s hair didn’t move. Laura’s hair didn’t move. Nobody’s hair moved. Then I saw when they landed Jeff had the special key, but it was already open. So, I’m going to go Universal Studios green screen on this one.”
Fox News Digital contacted Blue Origin for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Several celebrities attended the event last month, including Oprah, a close friend of King’s. The mission spanned 10 minutes and 21 seconds.
Perry said the experience of going to space was “second to being a mom.”
“That’s why it was hard for me to go because that’s all my love right there. And I have to surrender and trust that the universe is going to take care of me, protect me and also my family and my daughter,” she said.
Fox News’ Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.
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Sports
Jackie Morales hits three home runs in Notre Dame's upset of Orange Lutheran

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame High was supposed to be a year or two away from softball prominence with its collection of six talented freshmen.
Well, the Knights have already arrived after a 9-7 victory over Trinity League champion Orange Lutheran on Thursday in an opening game of the Southern Section Division 1 playoffs in which freshman Jackie Morales hit three home runs.
Notre Dame, the Mission League champion, was leading most of the game until Orange Lutheran scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to take a 7-6 lead. Morales tied the score with a home run in the top of the seventh. Then the Knights scored two more runs on an RBI single from freshman Keira Luderer and an RBI single from junior Ellayne Tellez-Perez.
Orange Lutheran was the Division 1 runner-up last season. For Notre Dame to go on the road and win is quite an accomplishment for coach Justin Siegel and the Knights.
“Big players show up in big situations and Jackie Morales has been a big player for us all season,” Siegel said.
Huntington Beach 8, Charter Oak 7: The Oilers hung on for the Division 1 win. Tea Gutierrez and Maleah Humble each had three hits.
Sports
Reds fans celebrate Pete Rose after MLB's decision: 'He's our Babe Ruth'

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The Cincinnati Reds paid tribute to Pete Rose on Wednesday night – one day after Major League Baseball removed the all-time hits leader and others from the permanently ineligible list.
Reds fans packed the city en route to Great American Ballpark to watch the team celebrate one of the best players in the franchise’s history as he will get a chance to have a plaque in Cooperstown, New York, in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
A Pete Rose sculpture is shown during Pete Rose Night events before a baseball game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, May 14, 2025 in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Chants of “Pete! Pete!” were heard throughout the park. The stadium held a pregame moment of silence and a choir from Rose’s high school in Cincinnati performed the national anthem. Fans wore Rose jerseys and highlights were shown on the video board throughout the game.
“It was awesome,” Pete Rose Jr. said of the ceremony, via MLB.com. “It’s home. These are all friends and family. I drove 15 minutes from home to get to the ballpark. I will drive 15 minutes back. I try to explain to people, they don’t really get the aspect of Dad being here. I try to tell them he’s our Babe Ruth. If you’re from here, he’s our Babe Ruth.”
He added that the family could not have asked “for a better night.”

Andrew Scheidt and his 1-year-old son, Matthew Scheidt, visit the bronze statue of former Cincinnati Reds player Pete Rose outside the Great American Ball Park on Tuesday, May 13, 2025 in Cincinnati before a baseball game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago White Sox. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Pete Rose’s daughter, Fawn Rose, speaks as Reds Hall of Fame players, from left to right, George Foster, Barry Larkin and Eric Davis listen during Pete Rose Night events before a baseball game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, May 14, 2025 in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Rose was placed on the ineligible list after the revelation that he gambled on the Reds to win – both as a player and a manager. After years of claiming innocence, Rose admitted to gambling in 2004. He also faced accusations of sexual misconduct in the years after he retired from the game.
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He lamented in his final interview that he would only get into the Hall of Fame after he died. It is a prophecy that took one step closer to reality on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, however, he was celebrated.

Cincinnati Reds owner Bob Castellini hugs Pete Rose’s daughter Fawn Rose as they meet on the field for Pete Rose Night events before a baseball game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, May 14, 2025 in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
“My dad used to tell me all the stories of how hard he played every time,” Reds reliever Brent Suter said. “You know, never took a play off, always was running hard 90 (feet), sliding headfirst, you know, getting dirty every game. … This was a guy who just embodied toughness, grit.”
Reds manager Terry Francona also spoke of Rose. He was a teammate of Rose’s with Cincinnati and the Montreal Expos.
“He played baseball with as much passion and competitive enjoyment as you ever could,” he said. “You wanted to be on his team.”
Now, the debate begins over whether Rose should be in the Hall of Fame and whether it was right to keep him out for as long as baseball did.

Cincinnatio Reds fans stand during a Pete Rose Night event before a baseball game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, May 14, 2025 in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
“I know I oversimplify things. But what Pete did as a player, if he’s not in, there is no Hall of Fame,” Francona said. “But I get it. There are some things that … I’m glad I don’t have to make (those) decisions.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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