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Former Maryland guard Rodney Rice is on the move, but will remain in the Big Ten.
Rice, who averaged 13.8 points per game for the Terrapins this past season while helping the program reach the Sweet 16 for the first time in eight years, announced his transfer commitment on Tuesday morning. The 6-foot-4 star is headed to USC.
A former four-star recruit, Rice began his college career at Virginia Tech in 2022-23. However, he was limited to only eight games as a freshman and did not play at all as a sophomore due to injuries.
After transferring to Maryland last offseason, Rice found a home with the Terrapins. He was third on the team in scoring and second in assists while shooting 37.4% from three-point range.
Last month, Rice scored 26 points, including 7-of-9 on three-pointers, in a Big Ten quarterfinal win over Illinois while adding 16 points in Maryland's second round NCAA Tournament victory over Colorado State.
After Kevin Willard left Maryland to become the new head coach at Villanova, Rice entered his name in the transfer portal. He received interest from Villanova, Tennessee and others before picking the Trojans.
According to CBS Sports' Matt Norlander, Rice was "commanding a price tag in the realm of $3 million" before announcing his commitment. He's now part of a USC 2025 recruiting class that includes a whopping seven transfers.
Joining Rice with the Trojans will be Robert Morris transfer guard Amarion Dickerson, forwards Ezra Ausar (Utah), Jaden Brownell (Samford), Keonte Jones (Cal State Northridge) and Jacob Cofie (Virginia), and center Gabe Dynes (Youngstown State).
USC also has a commitment from five-star high school shooting guard Alijah Arenas and has signed four-star guard recruit Jerry Easter.
USC went 17-18 in its first season under Eric Musselman, but the Trojans will be expected to take a leap and make the NCAA Tournament in 2025-26.
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Standout performances from Week 1 of NFL preseason: Rookie, backup QBs shine
The first week of the 2025 NFL preseason is officially in the books. Even though the games and results do not matter, there is still reason to pay attention to standout performances from around the league. Here are some of the best from this week's games. TreVeyon Henderson, RB, New England Patriots The Patriots need some game-changers on offense, and they may have found one in second-round pick TreVeyon Henderson. Henderson put on an immediate show in the Patriots' preseason opener, returning the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, rushing for 18 yards on his only carry and catching three passes. Skylar Thompson, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers Thompson is not likely to make the Steelers roster, but that doesn't mean he can't find a spot on another team. Especially if he puts together a strong preseason performance. He did exactly that on Saturday night against the Jacksonville Jaguars, completing 20-of-28 passes for 233 yards and three touchdowns. With Aaron Rodgers unlikely to play in the preseason and Will Howard injured, Thompson should get plenty of reps to audition for other teams. Tanner McKee, QB, Philadelphia Eagles Following the offseason trade of Kenny Pickett, McKee is now pretty much cemented in as the Eagles' backup, and he had to give them a lot of confidence in his ability following his preseason performance against the Bengals. McKee torched the Bengals defense to the tune of 20-of-25 passing for 252 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. It is a nice continuation for McKee following his promising debut a year ago when he threw for 323 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions in his two appearances. Blake Corum, RB, Los Angeles Rams The Rams already have a starting running back in Kyren Williams, but there is nothing wrong with having a second productive player at the position. Corum didn't make the expected impact in his rookie season, but he had a promising preseason debut this year with two touchdowns in the first quarter against the Dallas Cowboys. Rookie quarterbacks Cleveland's Shedeur Sanders got the week off to a promising start by throwing two touchdowns against Carolina, taking a big step forward in his quest to win the team's starting quarterback job and to silence the critics following his slide in the draft. Jaxson Dart, one of the Giants' first-round picks, also had a strong showing by going 12-of-19 with 154 yards and a very impressive touchdown pass. Tennessee Titans rookie quarterback Cam Ward, the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, also had a strong debut by leading a touchdown drive and developing an instant connection with veteran wide receiver Calvin Ridley. Abdul Carter, DE, New York Giants Carter did not play a ton of snaps for the Giants, but he was a force when he did play. He recorded a quarterback pressure on all three of his pass-rush snaps and showed the type of quickness and speed that made him one of the best players in the 2025 NFL Draft class. Cam Little, K, Jacksonville Jaguars Look, when you kick a 70-yard field goal, you deserve to get some added recognition, whether it counts as an official league record or not. Little made all four field goal attempts, as well as an extra point, in the Jaguars' preseason debut.
Roger Federer Announces Tennis Return For Final Match
20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer will return to the tennis court to play one more match at this year’s Shanghai Masters. Federer, who celebrated his 44th birthday on Friday, played his final match on the professional scene in September 2022 at the Laver Cup. It was an emotionally intoxicating doubles match in which Federer reunited with his great rival, Rafael Nadal. Roger Federer Announces Tennis Return Three years on from his retirement, Federer plans to grace the courts in Shanghai to play a celebrity doubles match. The tournament confirmed on X that the legendary Swiss will return to China at the start of October, when this year’s edition will be up and running. “Roger Federer is coming back to Shanghai. Join us on October 10th for the @rogerfederer and Friends Celebrity Doubles Match!” The tournament relayed the news. While the full schedule of who Federer will partner or play with is unknown for now, that match will take place two days before the singles final of the 2025 Shanghai Masters. In a short video announcing his return for one more doubles match, the two-time Shanghai champion said, “Hello, this is Roger. I’m really happy to be returning to the Qizhong Stadium in Shanghai for the Rolex Shanghai Masters. Shanghai has always been a special place for me, with great fans and unforgettable memories, and a real love for the game. I look forward to seeing you there on October 10th. Shanghai, let’s meet.” Why Shanghai? Shanghai is the penultimate Masters 1000 on the calendar and has previously been voted as the best ATP tournament of the year by players. The tournament represents some of the world’s best brands, including Rolex, which is its title sponsor. The Swiss watchmaker company is one of Federer’s most valuable sponsors. Federer has endorsed Rolex since 2001, and that partnership continues to grow stronger post-retirement. Federer has visited Shanghai in each of the last two years and has toured the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena, which serves as the main court in the tournament. In 2023, he was presented with the Icon Athlete Award by the tournament in honor of his illustrious career in front of a packed stadium. And last year, Federer watched on from the stands as Jannik Sinner defeated one of his former rivals, Novak Djokovic, in the final.
Tottenham ready to meet terms of Premier League giants to pry away headline transfer
Tottenham Hotspur have been looking to bring in a new creative midfielder in the ongoing summer transfer window, and the North Londoners have been subject to links with a move for Liverpool maestro Harvey Elliott. And as per the latest reports coming out of Fichajes, the Lilywhites are ready to match the Reds’ terms to bring the Fulham academy graduate to N17. The 22-year-old is said to be keen to play more regularly after he has had limited starts under Arne Slot at Anfield Stadium, and the chiefs at Hotspur Way see him as an ideal candidate who can be a perfect plug-and-play player to fill the void left by James Maddison, given his long-term knee injury, which is expected to keep him on the sidelines for the majority of the upcoming campaign. Elliott has that creative ability which is difficult to replicate Now with the sharp control that Elliott possesses, complemented by that understanding of passes and the ability to glide between the lines, he would give Thomas Frank’s side the kind of playmaking outlet his system thrives on. And while he has not found a lot of minutes for the Merseysiders given that he has to compete with the likes of Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones for minutes, he has quality, and at Tottenham, he’d have a clearer path to become a regular starter in both the Premier League and Champions League. Tottenham can now speed up possible transfer for Elliott The Merseysiders are willing to sell Elliott, but they have put forward some conditions, and among them is a buyback clause, which is likely to be on the table to safeguard against the 22-year-old reaching his full potential away from L4, or they are to charge a premium fee if the transfer should be concluded without any buyback clause. And now the North Londoners’ willingness to accept the Reds’ terms (either the former or the latter) could speed up negotiations, but Levy still needs to formalise their interest with an official bid. If this happens, the Elliott transfer will be a headline signing in the Premier League and at N17, showing a sense of intent from the Lilywhites.
Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins: The good, the bad and the ugly
Most preseason game are ugly. You take a 90-man roster, mix it up and throw any 22 out on the field with pro experience levels of most players ranging from zero to a dozen games and it's not going to look pretty. For the Bears, add in a new coach, new systems and the fact that they didn't use almost all of their starters, and you have the makings of something no one would want to look at. It can get worse, too, and did. But there also were redeeming aspects to the Bears' preseason opening 24-24 tie. Here's the good, the bad and the ugly for the Bears' effort in their 2025 preseason opener, coach Ben Johnson's draw in his first head coaching experience. The Good The rookies They got 53 yards rushing on 13 carries from their two rookie backs, Kyle Monangai and Deion Hankins. They had the two longest Bears runs, a 13-yarder by Monangai and 12-yarder by Hankins. They also had a 4-yard TD catch by Hankins to go with nine catches by rookies total for 89 yards, including three for 41 and a TD by Jahdae Walker. That's 142 yards of offense and two TDs from rookie players, some drafted like Monangai with his 30 yards on six carries, and some undrafted like Hankins with his 23 yards on seven carries. The defensive front They held Dolphins rushers below 4.0 yards per carry while generating a pass rush that accounted for five of their six sacks. Dominique Robinson and Zacch Pickens added sacks to the three by Austin Booker a total of his that included a strip sack. This would be enough to satisfy any curmudgeon defensive coordinator but when you can push a team back 2 yards on second, third and fourth down from inside the 2-yard line, and get the goal-line stand from Noah Sewell, you've made a statement. But wait, there's more. They made the stand as backups and even some third-stringers against the Dolphins starters. A 67.0 Miami passer rating could be attributed largely to their front seven applying heat. Cairo Santos A 57-yard field goal into the wind stands out for any kicker except possibly Cam Little. Santos often gets tagged with having a weak leg even though set a franchise record last year by making 8-of-9 from 50 yards and out. Bears QBs Except for Tyson Bagent not seeing a wide-open Burden in the end zone on one pass play near the goal line, the Bears QBs had an efficient day combined with the spectacular. They had a 96.5 passer rating between the three. The 26 of 39 doesn't reach Ben Johnson's 70% goal but is a healthy 66.6%. The TD pass Bagent threw to Maurice Alexander and the TD thrown by Case Keenum to Jahdae Walker were on the money and actually in places where only they could make the catch. Jahdae Walker's end zone dance It was so much fun that Case Keenum said he was going to join in, and then realized who he was. The Bad Major Burns He suffered a major burn when he tried to step up and tackle Nick Westbrook-Ikhine in the second quarter and completely whiffed, allowing the catch to go on for 35 yards and set up the second Dolphins TD. Not the kind of instinctive play you'd like to see from a safety candidate. Penalties The seven flags against the Bears for 41 yards is no reason to celebrate, although it sure beat the heck out o the 10 for 68 on Miami. Jordan McFadden what are you thinking? He had a false start penalty with 16 seconds left coming out of a timeout with the ball at the Miami 41 and the Bears needing only about 2 or 3 yards to be in field goal range to win it. Bears kick coverage Richard Hightower has some work to do. The Bears special teams coordinator couldn't be pleased with a 41-yard kick return by Dee Eskridge, a 38-yarder by AJ Henning and a 37-yarder by Erik Ezukcanma. Bears punt coverage But wait, there's more. Eskridge made a 16-yard punt return and Malik Washington had a 19-yard punt return. Bears punting But wait, there's still more. Punter Tory Taylor had a case of the lows. He was hitting line drives that were easily returned. He averaged 34 yards net. The ugly Th final score A 24-24 tie. As ugly as this is, it could be worse. Before 2021, they would have been playing overtime. No one wants an overtime preseason game. Larry Borom He got a presnap penalty for illegal formation on the first play from scrimmage for Miami. Sure this column is supposed to be reserved for Bears plays and not Miami's, but hey, for old time's sake. How many times have we seen that?
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