Only two days before the start of the College Football Playoff, another head-coaching job in the sport has come open.

Ohio terminated the contract of first-year head coach Brian Smith for cause, the university announced on Wednesday, Dec. 17.

The move came after an administrative review of allegations that Smith had “violated the terms of his employment agreement by engaging in serious professional misconduct and participating in activities that reflect unfavorably on the University.”

Smith had been placed on administrative leave two weeks earlier for an ‘undetermined period of time.” The school did not specify a reason for the decision.

Rex Elliott, Smith’s attorney, said in a statement on Wednesday that he and Smith ‘vigorously dispute’ Ohio’s grounds for termination for cause and that they will fight the move.

‘He (Smith) is shocked and dismayed by this turn of events, and we plan to fight this wrongful termination to protect his good name,’ Elliott said in the statement. ‘Coach Smith is an ethical man who has done an exemplary job for the University. He wants nothing but the best for the players, coaches, and the entire Bobcat community.’

The 45-year-old Smith had been at Ohio since 2022 and was elevated to head coach after the 2024 season, when then-Bobcats coach Tim Albin left for the same position at Charlotte. Ohio went 8-4 in its lone season under Smith and made the Frisco Bowl, where it will take on UNLV on Dec. 23. John Hauser, who was named the Bobcats’ interim head coach when Smith was placed on leave, will coach the team in that game.

The university said a coach for a permanent replacement will begin immediately.

Earlier this season, Smith had been part of one of the more unusual arrangements in the sport, as he was essentially working without a contract as recently as early October, as USA TODAY reported.

Smith had signed a document with Ohio officials when he was promoted to head coach after Albin’s departure. The document — which was a term sheet, not a formal contract — said Smith’s compensation would have an average annual value of $850,000 per year from Dec. 17, 2024, through Dec. 31, 2029, but it did not say what Smith was to be paid for that, or any other year of his employment. The document also said Smith would have performance incentives, but that they “will be negotiated between the parties, the terms of which will be comparable with other Mid-American Conference institutions.”

In an email to USA TODAY Sports in October, Ohio spokesman Dan Pittman said that “While a contract would typically be finalized ahead of a head coach announcement, Coach Smith’s longstanding relationship with the University and his commitment to leading the (Ohio) football program made it possible to move forward in this unique case while working under the guidance of the term sheet.”

On Oct. 10, one day after USA TODAY Sports reported on Smith’s unique employment situation, Smith had a formal, fully executed agreement with the university. The deal ran through the 2029 season.

The WNBA’s 2026 season gets underway in May next year, and the biggest storyline is the addition of two new franchises — the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo — making them the 14th and 15th teams in the league.

Given how well the Golden State Valkyries performed in their inaugural season, setting the standard for expansion franchises by becoming the first such team to make the playoffs and winning 23 games, the Fire and Tempo have a lot to live up to. They’ll need talent, grit, and a great coaching staff. Thankfully, the Fire just added a Hall of Famer as an assistant coach.

Fowles is well-respected in WNBA circles having won two league championships. She’ll bring her myriad of skills and basketball expertise to the table as the Fire look to shock the world.

Why did Fowles join the Fire?

Per reports, Fowles had numerous coaching opportunities ahead of the upcoming season, but ultimately decided on Portland, assuming it was the best fit for her. She also was in favor of the idea of joining an expansion franchise in its first year, hoping to build a culture with players she currently does not have ties to.

Sylvia Fowles basketball career

Fowles played 15 seasons in the WNBA — seven with the Chicago Sky and eight with the Minnesota Lynx. Fowles is an eight-time WNBA All-Star and was named Defensive Player of the Year four times, the second-most in NBA history (Tamika Catchings, five).

Fowles was obviously a monster defensively, and is currently fourth all-time in blocks. She also retired as the WNBA’s all-time leader in rebounds, but was passed by Tina Charles last season.

Fowles is a two-time WNBA champion (2015, 2017) with the Minnesota Lynx, winning Finals MVP in both victories. She also won league MVP in 2017, finishing top-ten in MVP voting on seven different occasions.

Jake Paul says he’s prepared to pull off ‘the biggest upset in the sport of boxing’ when he meets Anthony Joshua, the former two-time unified heavyweight boxing champion, on Friday night in Miami.

But how he’s going to do it may be the most surprising part. The former YouTube influencer and actor says he plans to use superior boxing skills and strategy to defeat the 2012 Olympic gold medalist, whom the sportsbooks have installed as a massive favorite.

‘On paper, the cards are stacked against me. But really in terms of boxing, I’m a better boxer than AJ, which is hilarious to say, but he’s got two left feet,’ Paul told reporters on Tuesday, Dec. 16.

‘He’s stiff. If I was his coach, I’d put him in a dance class first before trying to box.’

Paul (12-1 as a pro) says he’s brought in several sparring partners who can mimic what he’ll see in the ring.

He faces a tall order in defeating Joshua (28-4). Literally. Joshua stands 6-6 and tips the scales at 245 pounds, ahead of the official weigh-in Thursday. Meanwhile, Paul is listed at 6-1 and 220 pounds.

Paul contends his quickness and nimble footwork will help offset Joshua’s size advantage. However, Paul has only fought once as a heavyweight – his unanimous decision over 58-year-old Mike Tyson.

The bout will be streamed live on Netflix.

When is Jake Paul vs. Anthony Joshua fight?

Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua are set to tangle on Friday, Dec. 19. Paul originally was set to fight Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis.

How to watch Jake Paul vs. Anthony Joshua on Netflix: Time, TV, streaming

• Time: Ring walk not yet announced (Main card begins at 8 p.m. ET)
• Date: Friday, Dec. 19
• TV: Not available on TV
• Streaming: Netflix

The New York Mets have determined that the best way to move on from Edwin Diaz is to Yankee up their bullpen.

Luke Weaver and the Mets agreed to terms on a two-year, $22 million deal Wednesday, Dec. 17, as the right-hander joins Devin Williams and Clay Holmes as former Yankee closers who commuted from the Bronx to Queens the past two offseasons.

Weaver, 32, will surely be deployed in high-leverage spots ahead of Williams, who presumably will lock down the ninth inning. Williams was signed to a three-year, $51 million deal Dec. 1 after a rocky stint as Yankees closer, mixed in with bursts of the form that once made him the National League’s two-time Reliever of the Year for the Milwaukee Brewers.

Weaver, meanwhile, fell into the Yankees’ ninth-inning role by happenstance, taking over for Holmes in the second half of the 2024 season and recording countless huge outs as the Yankees won the American League pennant before succumbing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series.

Holmes began the Yankee Stadium-Citi Field shuffle, signing with the Mets after that season, where he was converted into a starting pitcher, posting a 3.53 ERA in 31 starts.

Weaver found the going a little rougher in 2025, his ERA rising from 2.89 to 3.62 and his innings falling from 84 to 62 ⅔ after a June hamstring strain that sidelined him and impacted the remainder of his season. But other peripherals weren’t so glaring, such as a mild rise in WHIP (0.93 to 1.02) and fielding independent pitching (3.33 to 3.89).

Williams and Weaver will lead the effort to replace Diaz, who departed for a three-year, $69 million deal with the Dodgers after seven seasons with the Mets, the last two particularly dominant. Diaz struck out 14.8 batters per nine innings his last three full seasons.

Weaver is not that guy, though he did punch out a respectable 10.6 batters per nine in his three campaigns with the Yankees.

New York Liberty All-Star forward Breanna Stewart said she would welcome NBA commissioner Adam Silver joining the collective bargaining negotiations with the WNBA because ‘what we’re doing right now isn’t really working.’

Silver said Tuesday night he’s been monitoring the protracted negotiations, and would be willing to join the talks in hopes of getting a deal done that would avoid a lockout or a strike. The WNBA and the players association are at a standoff, and have twice extended the deadline for reaching a new deal after the previous CBA expired Oct. 31.

The current deadline is Jan. 9.

‘More often than not, we’re the ones that are willing to compromise and they still aren’t budging,’ Stewart, who is a vice president on the WNBPA’s executive committee, said of the talks. ‘So if they’re not going to budge, we’re going to get to this point where we’re just going to be at a standoff. That’s kind of where we’re at right now.’

The largest sticking point in the negotiations is money. Specifically, salaries and revenue sharing. While Silver and WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert agree WNBA players deserve a significant increase following several years of skyrocketing growth, players say the league continues to expect them to take less than their worth.

According to The Athletic, the league has offered revenue sharing at 15% while the union has proposed 30%. The sides also differ on how that percentage, as well as the salary cap, would be calculated.

‘We know how important as players it is to play and to be on the court,’ Stewart said. ‘But at the same time, if we’re not going to be valued the way that we know we should be, in the way that every kind of number situation tells us, then we’re just not going to do something that doesn’t make sense for us.’

The relationship between Engelbert and the players was greatly damaged, possibly beyond repair, after Napheesa Collier shared demeaning comments she said Engelbert made during a conversation they had earlier in the year. Collier, who like Stewart is an executive committee vice president, said Engelbert told her ‘players should be on their knees thanking their lucky stars for the media rights deal that I got them.’

Collier also said Engelbert dismissed the greater visibility Caitlin Clark brought to the WNBA, saying the NCAA’s all-time scoring leader ‘wouldn’t make anything’ without the WNBA’s platform.

‘Everybody can agree and get what they want out of this, but there has to be some … things in common happening first,’ Stewart said. ‘So yeah, if Adam wants to come, I would love to have him.’