TMZ Sports - Page 50

Laya DeLeon Hayes -- the little girl who plays Doc McStuffins on Disney Junior -- could put Colin Kaepernick in an awkward spot.

Our photog got the 12-year-old at the Grove Wednesday, and she told us her dream is to sing the National Anthem at a Lakers game.

She sang part of it for us, and gotta say ... nailed it.

Ex-Baylor head coach Art Briles is apologizing for the way he handled the school's rape scandal ... saying he knows he "did wrong" and vows to be better in the future.

In an interview with ESPN Briles said he's aware "bad things" happened during his tenure in Waco ... and now realizes he failed the school, because the buck stopped with him.

"I understand I made some mistakes, I was wrong. I was the captain of this ship. The captain of the ship goes down with it."

Briles was fired back in May along with several members of the program when an independent investigation found Baylor higher-ups failed to properly address sexual assault allegations against football players.

Briles has said he plans to coach again ... and hired high-powered agent Jimmy Sexton last week in hopes to secure a job in 2017, but is adamant he's not making his apology as part of a job hunt.

Ryan Lochte just got his punishment for his Rio gas station hijinks, and we're told the U.S. Olympic Committee was tough, but not career-ending.

USOC-connected sources tell TMZ Sports ... Lochte has been suspended for 10 months. There are additional sanctions.

We're told the punishment was handed down not just by the USOC but by the IOC and USA Swimming as well.

The punishment is harsher than Michael Phelps' 6 month suspension for his 2 DUIs. The punishment was debated within the USOC, because Phelps put people's lives at risk and Lochte arguably didn't lie about a material fact. We're told some of the USOC decision makers felt Lochte's punishment was too severe.

The other 3 swimmers involved in the Rio incident were also suspended, but for less time. At least one of them got a 4 month suspension.

Texas Tech head football coach Kliff Kingsbury says the wrestling match starring his coaches FIRED UP his players so much they had one of their best practices ever ... before DOMINATING their 1st game.

TMZ Sports talked to Kingsbury about the AWESOME VIRAL video ... showing Texas Tech asst. coach Adam Hymel (as John Cena) and strength coach Scott Salwasswer (as The Miz) ... in a no-holds barred contest.

Kliff touches it all ... from why, to the question everyone wants to know ... was that table real?!

Check out the clips!

Mickey Gall might be new to the UFC, but he can talk trash like a seasoned vet -- firing back at CM Punk with his own promise of a victory in their upcoming bout.

The self-proclaimed "kid from Jersey" was on "TMZ Sports" and immediately blew off CM bragging and guaranteeing a win Saturday night. As Mickey put it ... CM's "gotta say that and maybe to a degree he believes that, probably not."

Mickey also talked about the perception many UFC fighters want him to crush CM Punk ... to prove WWE guys can't just step into the Octagon. Best of all, you gotta see Mickey explain how he's gonna get the job done.

Make sure you check out our full interview with Mickey at 12:30 AM ET on FS1.

There's still someone who believes in LSU football NOT named Les Miles ... Shaq, who says the Tigers are a LOCK to win the national championship ... even though they choked against Wisconsin.

We got the big fella out in NYC (roaming the streets with his enormous Zales Hall of Fame ring) ... and since he's an LSU alumni, we had to pick his brain about the Tigers totally crapping the bed up at Lambeau last Saturday.

Good news, Tigers fans ... someone who never played football thinks your squad is gonna win it all and beat 'Bama ... twice ... yeah, he really said that.

Roy Jones Jr. has a message for the boxing world ... I AIN'T DONE JUST YET!!

Less than a month after tearing his right bicep fighting Rodney Moore -- and saying the injury may end his career -- Jones Jr. tells TMZ Sports he feels great and is eyeing a return to the ring.

"I'm doing much better. My arm feels good."

In fact, Roy felt good enough to catch some big fish in Pensacola, Florida this weekend (Roy says he caught a shark) ... albeit while rockin' a big arm brace.

So, when does 47-year-old RJJ anticipate a return to the squared circle?

Kroy Biermann and Kim Zolciak aren't letting Kroy's release from the Buffalo Bills get them down ... and they're throwing down some casino cash to prove it.

We got pics of the reality TV couple at Harrah's in Murphy, NC on Saturday ... one day after Kroy was cut. It appears he's cashing out, which is probably a good idea -- since his NFL paychecks might be coming to an end.

Great news, Vikings fans, the season ain't totally doomed with Teddy Bridgewater on the shelf, 'cause new QB Sam Bradford's already lightin' it up.

TMZ Sports spoke to Pro Bowl TE Kyle Rudolph, who says only a few practices in, it's already clear, "why [Bradford's] a former Heisman trophy winner and a first overall pick."

So, what's been S.B.'s biggest issue in Minnesota? Learning a fat NFL playbook in such a short time.

"It's a steep learning curve when you come into a new offense and you have a new playbook, so his head was spinning a little early. Each and everyday, things have slowed down for him."

Check out the clip!

Ann Coulter thinks Colin Kaepernick's protest is as offensive as John Rocker's legendary racist rant ... saying both men used their 1st Amendment rights ... but only one was suspended.

If you remember ... Rocker -- a stud reliever for the Braves at the time -- got hit with a 14 game suspension back in 2000 after he launched into a racist and homophobic tirade aimed at New Yorkers.

We got Coulter out in New York and she was pipin' mad that Kaepernick hasn't been suspended for his free speech ... saying if it was okay to slap Rocker with a ban for being offensive ... why not Colin?

Bonus shade? Ann says she's totally on board with Donald Trump's view on Colin's stance ... recommending Kaep get the hell out of America on the first thing smoking if he doesn't like it here.

Colin Kaepernick jersey sales have EXPLODED ... and now he's puttin' his money where his mouth is, again ... by donating 100% of the proceeds he receives from the transactions.

Kaep -- whose #7 San Francisco 49ers jersey is currently the best selling jersey in the NFL -- hit up Instagram and vowed to give every dime of his share of the profit to people in need.

"I wasn't expecting my jersey sales to jump to number one because of this, but it shows the people's belief that we can achieve justice and equality for ALL!"

"The only way I can repay you for the support is to return the favor by donating all the proceeds I receive from my jersey sales back into the communities!"

This is the 2nd time this month Kaepernick has pledged to give away a huge chunk of change. Last week, he announced he'd give $1 MILLION to charity.

It's unclear exactly how much dough Kaep will give away ... but with the jerseys flying off the shelves, it's certain to be another big donation.

Jameis Winston can add "mentor" to his list of football accomplishments, 'cause the former Seminole is sharing his expertise with Florida State's newest QB ... and it seems to be working.

Redshirt freshman Deondre Francois buried Ole Miss with a 22-point comeback win Monday, and comparisons immediately began between the new QB, and the Heisman winning Winston.

TMZ Sports spoke with Francois' former coach, Barry White, who says Winston reached out to Deondre after last year's Peach Bowl ... and has been guiding him since.

“Jameis is very different from Deondre", White says. "He’s outgoing, loves to talk, kid around and he’s not shy at all. He’s encouraging Deondre to be a leader and to be more vocal towards his teammates because Deondre can be timid at times.”

White's been a father figure to Deondre since his days coaching him with the Orlando Outlaws pop warner football team, and says between his and Winston's influence, sky's the limit for the kid.

"There’s no ‘I’ve arrived, I’m the man,’ kind of talk happening now. We’re just getting started. He didn’t get a lot of praise from me for everything he did. I told him the things he needs to improve, but at the end of the day, I told him to have fun.”

Lawrence Taylor wasn't sure what county he was in when he allegedly crashed into a police car while drunk ... this according to cops on the scene.

In the arrest report, obtained by TMZ Sports, Palm Beach County cops say they responded to a crash around 5:22 PM on Friday ... where another officer said he had been hit by a silver sedan driven by LT.

Taylor was waiting on the scene ... and cops say he had all the signs of a drunk person -- stunk of cigars and booze, had bloodshot eyes and was unsteady of his feet.

When police asked him where he was, he responded "Broward" ... which is a different county about an hour south of the crash scene. Cops also said they asked him how much he had to drink and he said "apparently too much."

He was placed under arrest after failing field sobriety tests.

According to the report, LT told police he had just suffered an injury and felt like he was going to throw up, so cops called an ambulance and briefly took him to the hospital before booking him into the jail.

Cops say they took two breath samples five hours after the crash, which registered at .082 and .084.

He's due in court at the end of the month.

Ted Cruz railed on Colin Kaepernick and while he was at it BLASTED President Obama.

We caught up with the senator at Reagan National Airport and asked him about Kaepernick's stand to kneel.

Check out the vid ... Ted wasn't having it. He unloaded on the 49ers QB, calling him rich and spoiled. And in true Republican fashion ... he saved some smack for the prez.

#TedGonnaTed

You could say Lawrence Taylor's the luckiest guy to ever get busted for DUI -- or at the very least he timed it out perfectly.

We found out the NFL Hall of Famer's arrest Friday in Florida came exactly ONE day after his 6 year probation in his sexual misconduct conviction ended.

A rep for the Rockland County DA's office tells us ... LT filed an application to end his probation early a few months ago. The DA's office was against it, but a judge granted the request and ordered his probation terminated on September 1.

24 hours earlier and the DUI arrest could have triggered a probation violation and jail time for Taylor.

It's possible LT was excessively celebrating the judge's decision when he got into the alleged drunken crash.

Monaco's GDP just skyrocketed even higher ... 'cause a bunch of super rich dudes just descended upon the exotic getaway for Magic and Cookie Johnson's 25th wedding anniversary bash.

It went down at the Yacht Club de Monaco where stars like LL Cool J, Smokey Robinson, Steve Harvey, Biz Markie, Cedric the Entertainer and Pat Riley turnt up to celebrate the couples' 25th.

Of course, the whole fam was there including EJ (who slayed) ... and it looked like a good time was had by all.