Jun 1, 2022 4 min read

In college football

The Southeastern Conference’s slogan, “It just means more,” could soon refer to the number of football games the league schedules.

SEC coaches and athletic directors have been meeting this week at a resort on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Atop the agenda is whether the conference schedule should expand from eight to nine games when the league itself grows from 14 to 16 teams with the additions of Texas and Oklahoma.

Whether a decision comes by the time the spring meetings wrap up Friday is still to be determined – and seeming more unlikely at the end of Wednesday’s sessions.

The SEC presidents, who have final say on schedule change, meet Thursday with the ADs.

In the NFL

Marion Barber III, the former Dallas Cowboys running back who scored plenty of touchdowns without recording a 1,000-yard season, has died, the team said Wednesday. He was 38.

Barber played a final season with Chicago in 2011 after spending his first six years with the Cowboys. He had issues with mental health after his career.

Police in the Dallas suburb of Frisco said Wednesday they made a welfare check at an apartment “believed to be leased” by Barber and were investigating an unattended death there.

In golf

The first Saudi-funded LIV Golf Invitational has Dustin Johnson and 12 other PGA Tour members as part of its 48-man field next week outside London. The next move falls to the PGA Tour, which must decide whether to allow them to come back.

The first fallout after the rival league released the names of players who will compete at its inaugural event came Wednesday when the Royal Bank of Canada said it was dropping Johnson and Graeme McDowell as corporate sponsors. Both are playing the LIV event, the same week as the RBC Canadian Open on the PGA Tour.

The PGA Tour’s only comment was to mention a May 10 memo to players in which it denied releases for them to play the first LIV event. “Members who violate the tournament regulations are subject to disciplinary action,” the statement said.

Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford were among the 42 players named on the field list (six other spots are being held for a special invitation and from an Asian Tour series). Neither ever had more attention from media as they practiced Wednesday before and after the pro-am at the Memorial.

In the NHL

Colorado goaltender Darcy Kuemper remains questionable for Game 2. Same with Edmonton’s Mike Smith.

Same with the defense in front of them, for that matter.

To put it kindly, the “D” for the Avalanche and Oilers was shaky in Game 1 of a Western Conference final that produced 14 goals and 84 shots. It was the highest-scoring conference finals game in 37 years.

There could be more fireworks in store on Thursday night (8 p.m. ET, TNT). That’s just the by-product of the fast-paced style both teams like to play even if it may come at a cost on the other end.

“As a group, we can be better defensively,” said Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar, who had a goal and two assists in the 8-6 win. “Definitely not the way you want to play games with these guys.”

The over/under for Game 2 was placed at a respectable 7 1/2 goals, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Betting on adjustments being made?

“I would expect it to tighten up because I’m sure they’re feeling the same way,” Colorado coach Jared Bednar said. “You’re not going to win a lot of playoff games when you give up six or seven.”