“We got a call from Zoran’s agent the night of Al Nassr’s clash with Al Qadisiya in the Saudi league, and the coach’s services were offered to us. We were surprised and didn’t make a move, but the agent asserted that the coach will end his work at Al Nassr after the game for family reasons.”

When I asked Bush that question last week, he ducked. It reminded me of the way Al Gore ducks when he’s asked why he would deprive poor parents of the school-choice prerogatives that he and other affluent parents have. Both know their positions have gaping logical holes, but they are trapped by their parties in old thinking that flunks logic. What’s making this year’s education debate interesting is that each is trying to escape a bit from party orthodoxy....

Hoping to accelerate that growth is Al Horford, a four-time All-Star who left the Hawks this offseason to sign with the Celtics. While not the superstar the Celtics are necessarily looking for to take the leap into title contention, Horford has long been one of the best big men the NBA has to offer. He has developed into a steady force on offense in addition to becoming the sort of anchor an elite defense can be built around....

Democrats have said Trump again made racially-charged remarks about minority members of Congress, this time for claiming that a lawmaker has allowed crime to run rampant in his district and represents a city that’s a “rat and rodent infested mess.” Just hours before Sharpton shot back, Trump accused him of being someone who “Hates Whites & Cops!​” “As for his attacks on me personally, Donald Trump and I have known each other for 25 years,” Sharpton said during a press conference in Baltimore, elaborating that he’s “dealt with” Trump on previous remarks about the Central Park Five and his suggestion using “birtherism” that former President Barack Obama was not born in the U....

Johnson said after the Crimson Tide’s victory over No. 17 Auburn that Harley Barber’s video was “vile” and “abhorrent” and that he was “really disturbed” by it. The university expelled Barber after her video surfaced. She later apologized for her actions. MORE: How Johnson’s Tide outscored Gophers with just three players Johnson then made it a point to discuss the makeup of his team’s roster. “We have a lot people in our organization … our team that are from a lot of different backgrounds,” he said (via AL....

Ty Leo was heading out to fill up his car at the Weiss Mart Marina, when a swarm of what looks like mayflies descended onto the forecourt. The insects covered the walls, windows, floor and all the pumps in incredible scenes, which even Leo himself admitted he had never seen before. Leo shared a clip to TikTok on Monday, saying: “Never in my life have I ever saw this many bugs !...

Only there’s one little problem: they’re not Alabama. Not this Tide team — not now, anyway. “In some ways,” said Alabama offensive tackle Austin Shepherd, “we’re a work in progress.” Don’t let that simple statement fool you. Don’t let this blowout, this part symphony, part slapstick rout of Florida hide what clearly will become significant issues when the SEC West Division comes calling. Alabama can’t run the ball with power like it used to, and can’t protect the quarterback....

The Rev. Mack Morris took a pair of scissors and cut his Nike headband and a wristband in front of a packed church during his weekly Sunday sermon. “I ain’t using that no more,” said Morris, the senior pastor at Woodridge Baptist Church. “I’ve bought my last pair of Nike shoes.” The Nike portion of the sermon starts around the 46-minute mark: People are burning their sneakers after Nike’s Colin Kaepernick ad...

“Wanna wish everybody in 4th precinct a Merry Christmas, especially our captain. Hope you enjoy our homeless quilt! Sincerely, Panhandler patrol,” the original Facebook post read. It has since been preserved in a screen-capture by Eduardo Romero, which has since been shared over 15,000 times as of press time. The picture soon made it to Reddit and went viral, with many posters in the thread accusing the Mobile officers of mocking the homeless, and called the post “tasteless” in light of it having been posted during the holiday season....

Game time is scheduled for 12 p.m., and it will be televised on ESPN. Now in its ninth season, this is just the second time the College Football Playoff will not feature Alabama and Nick Saban. Although the Crimson Tide won’t be competing for a national championship, team leaders Bryce Young and Will Anderson are expected to play. Kansas State (10-3) won the Big 12 championship under fourth-year coach Chris Klieman....

But it’s also unusual territory for the Crimson Tide. This marks just the 11th time Alabama has played against the No. 1 team in the country. Those other 10 games helped shape the legacy of the football program. 1957: No. 1 Auburn 40, Alabama 0 Bad news: The Tigers routed the Crimson Tide at Legion Field en route to a national championship. Good news: Alabama fired Jennings B. Whitworth after a 2-7-1 season and brought in Bear Bryant....

Goal 50 countdown The LA Galaxy forward will arrive in Columbus later Tuesday as a replacement for the injured Jordan Morris, who suffered a hamstring strain during the first half of the Seattle Sounders’ playoff match against FC Dallas on Sunday night. Gordon has made two appearances for the United States. The Hexagonal round of World Cup qualifying begins with the U.S. facing El Tri in Columbus. Four days later, the Americans travel to Costa Rica....

On August 5, a Southeast Aviation de Havilland DC-2 Beaver departed with passengers from the Holland America Line cruise ship Nieuw Amsterdam on a sightseeing flight in southeast Alaska. The plane smashed into a tree in the forests of the Misty Fjords National Monument region at around 10:50 a.m., some 70 minutes after it departed from Ketchikan, killing all on board. It had been the pilot’s second flight of the day, with the earlier one taking place at about 9:39 a....

The adorable video of the siblings was posted to the AWCC’s Facebook and has amassed over 92,000 views. The two brown bears, 17-year-old brother and sister Joe Boxer and Patron have been living at the conservation center since 2004. According to the AWCC website, JB and Patron arrived at the center after their mother was killed by a man when she entered his backyard and killed a moose calf. In this case, the man was afraid the mother bear would attack his dog, and it is actually legal to kill a bear in self defense or in defense of property....

Neymar departed Camp Nou for Paris Saint-Germain in a world-record €222million move in August, breaking up the formidable MSN trident he formed with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez. Blaugrana 13/2 to win CL Ernesto Valverde has moved Barca away from just a three-pronged attack, and Alba has been one of the beneficiaries - his four assists in LaLiga this season is more than any other player at the club....

Bellerin says he won’t answer Barca’s calls It started with David Villa back in 2010. The Spain striker joined Barca for 40 million euros prior to the World Cup in South Africa and spent three seasons with the Blaugrana before moving to Atletico Madrid and then to the United States, where he currently captains New York City FC. Two years later, Jordi Alba was the next to make the move north from the Valencian Community to Catalunya, the left back rejoining his first club in a €12 million transfer during Euro 2012....

All the latest Barca rumours The Spain international made 39 appearances in all competitions in 2016-17 but found his involvement more limited in the latter part of the campaign. Head coach Luis Enrique’s decision to switch to a back three saw Alba left out of a number of key games, including Champions League matches against Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus and Liga fixtures against Atletico Madrid and Sevilla. The defender went public with his frustrations in March, saying he was unhappy with Luis Enrique’s lack of faith in his performances, and he was linked with a possible move away from Camp Nou at the end of the season....

YouTuber Jesús Enrique Rosas, also known as the Body Language Guy, decided to assess Baldwin’s behavior during his interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. During a livestream on YouTube, Rosas criticized a number of actions and comments from Baldwin during the interview. In October 2021, a prop gun Baldwin, 64, was holding discharged, which resulted in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, 42. Recently, an FBI investigation concluded that Baldwin pulled the gun’s trigger....

According to the Kansas City Star , general manager Dayton Moore said he is unsure if Gordon will be 100 percent when the Royals begin spring workouts in February. Gordon, 30, told the Royals before Christmas that he was having wrist discomfort during his offseason workouts. That resulted in a Dec. 30 extensor retinaculum, a minor surgery that binds thumb and finger tendons to reduce pain. Although Gordon may miss some time in spring training, the Royals expect him to be ready for opening day....

Jones appeared in a Connecticut courtroom on Thursday for a trial in which plaintiffs are suing him for damages following his claims the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was a hoax. A jury will consider how much Jones owes in damages to the families of eight Sandy Hook Elementary school victims. The families said that Jones’ conspiracy theories about the shooting being a fake caused them psychological harm. A clip of Jones’ outburst has gone viral on Twitter and has been viewed more than 560,000 times....