TMZ Sports - Page 50

Best birthday EVER?!?!

Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown is fresh off a brand new, $115 MILLION deal ... and if that's not sweet enough, the baller got a sick, $20k chain from his good buddy, A$AP Ferg!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the "Floor Seats" rapper wanted to do something extra special for his friend's birthday, so he hit up Big Will at WS Jewelry and the guys collabed to make him a one-of-a-kind piece.

We're told the piece comes with 15 carats of natural green and white diamonds shaped in Ferg's signature logo ... and it's worth around $20k.

The back of the pendant also features Jaylen's jersey number, 7, and his name.

The video is awesome ... Ferg and Big Will were there to celebrate with Brown ... and the dude had a BIG smile on his face when they presented him with the present.

Happy birthday!!

Malcolm Jenkins is clapping back at Orlando Scandrick ... callin' BS on his former teammate's criticism of him -- saying straight-up Scandrick is a "motherf**ker!"

If you missed it, Scandrick was picked up by the Eagles a few weeks ago ... but his tenure crashed and burned this week when Philly cut him after its epic loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

OS went on FS1's "Undisputed" on Friday to explain what went wrong ... and one of Scandrick's biggest gripes with the Eagles was with Jenkins -- a team captain.

Scandrick said Jenkins was a selfish player who had ZERO accountability for when he screwed up big plays ... and ripped him apart on the show with Skip Bayless.

"I think when you wear a 'C' on your jersey, it's your job to bring guys along," Scandrick said of Jenkins. "It's your job."

Scandrick also blasted the team's locker room and called out several other players ... and when media got around to asking Jenkins about the comments -- he was PISSED!!!!

"Look, I really give two s**ts about people that ain't here," Jenkins said.

Malcolm went on to insist he's actually a GREAT teammate ... and added he's glad Scandrick got cut because, "For us to move on as a team, we can't have motherf**kers like that in the room."

DAAAAAAAAAAAMNNNNNNN!!!

Wanna join the Ohio University club rugby team?!? Great, here's whatcha (allegedly) gotta do.

Slam a "mad dog" handle, run around naked, chug a beer and then "tag a car" with your genitals!!! Still want in?!?

It's all part of an alleged hazing incident at OU, according to newly released documents stemming from a University-wide investigation into several clubs, fraternities, sororities and even the marching band!!!

In short, the school believes it has a problem with aggressive hazing after receiving a ton of complaints, according to student outlet The Post.

TMZ Sports obtained the report that was submitted in October about the OU Men's Rugby Organization:

"A friend contacted me after being forced to drink a 'mad dog' handle, which is liquor then forced to run around naked then chug a beer and tag a car with his genitals.

"This is not the first time I’ve heard of forced drinking within the Rugby team. Or coerced drinking I should say."

The school has taken swift action against the rugby team -- ordering them to "cease and desist" from all organizational activities. In other words, they're suspended from operating.

The allegations against the fraternities are pretty bad too ... one complaint said a fraternity made blindfolded pledges sit in a basement while listening to the same song on repeat for hours.

Another allegation says Delta Tau Delta members forced pledges to carry pieces of fruit on their bodies at all times and if an active member saw them, they could smack the fruit out of their possession.

If they successfully knocked the fruit away, the pledge had to replace the piece with a larger fruit item the next day, progressing up to the size of a watermelon.

As for the marching band ... they allegedly forced new members to muddy up their band jackets and then wear them!!! Some people complained new members were pressured to drink alcohol. The allegations against the band are definitely not the worst.

Still, the Marching 110 was also ordered to cease and desist.

University officials have issued a statement saying the school is "committed to a safe and respectful campus environment that aligns with our institutional values of citizenship, civility, character, community, and commitment."

Great news ... Randy Couture is doing REALLY WELL after suffering a heart attack on Wednesday -- and he's already cracking jokes!!!

"Contrary to recent rumors I have not kicked the bucket yet. I am alive and well," the 56-year-old UFC Hall of Famer said in a statement to TMZ Sports.

"Special thanks to the amazing staff at Cedars Sinai Hospital. From the ER to cardiac ICU thanks for taking care of me."

"I’m one of those people that has crazy thick blood and nominally high bad cholesterol. Unfortunately, those 2 factors combined to create a nice clot occluding my Diagonal artery."

Couture continued, "The Cath lab at Cedars got right on it, cleared it out and placed a stint in its place."

Couture is thanking his fans for the love and support -- and dropped these words of wisdom -- "Live your lives to the fullest. You never know when you’ll draw that last breath in!"

As for Randy's health, his rep tells TMZ Sports ... the UFC legend had emergency surgery after being admitted to the hospital.

Here's the whole story ...

"During a workout at Randy’s LA training home Unbreakable Performance in West Hollywood, CA, Randy experienced discomfort in what he initially thought was an offset rib or vertebrae."

"He tried working on a roller to relieve the problem -- but that was not successful.  Incredibly, Randy finished the entire workout while likely having the beginnings of a heart attack. Shortly thereafter, he drove home and attempted to rest. When the radiating chest pain did not cease, he recognized something was wrong."

"He proceeded to walk multiple blocks to a nearby emergency room rather than battle Los Angeles traffic. Upon his arrival, after an EKG, the medical staff informed Randy he had a heart attack, and would require immediate surgery to resolve the issue."

Canelo Alvarez is distancing himself from the sexual assault allegations levied against his promoter, Oscar De La Hoya ... saying, "I don't want to get involved in his business."

TMZ Sports broke the story ... a woman is suing Oscar claiming he violently sexually assaulted her at his Pasadena home in 2017. Oscar vehemently denies the allegation.

And, since Canelo is a client of Oscar's Golden Boy Promotions, he was asked by Univision how he feels about the serious allegations against the boxing legend as he gears up for his big Nov. 2 fight against Sergey Kovalev.

"Listen, everyone has their own issues," Alvarez said (translated from Spanish) ... "He's got his problems, I have mine, and we each take care of our own stuff."

"He knows how to navigate them, and I don't want to get involved in his business."

Alvarez was asked if Oscar's issues affect him as an athlete, to which Canelo replied -- "No. For me, I do things the way I have to do them. It doesn't affect me at all."

Canelo was also asked if he had beef with Oscar over the allegations.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic grabbed a huge handful of his junk and aimed it right at an LAFC fan who was taunting him ... and the whole scene was captured on video!!!

The soccer star and his LA Galaxy squad had just taken a crushing loss to LAFC on Thursday night ... when a fan decided to showboat toward Zlatan on his way to the locker room.

You can see in the video ... the LAFC ride-or-die makes some throat-slashing signs and appears to make a groin choppin' gesture toward the 38-year-old as well.

That's when Ibrahimovic responded by getting a grip of his franks and beans ... and giving a head nod to the fan!!!

Zlatan was asked about the incident after the game, and he downplayed it, making a joke by saying, "How many fans came? 30,000?"

"That was like a training for me. This stadium is too small for me ... I'm used to playing in front of 80,000 people. Come to Inter Milan where 85,000 are whistling at you."

As for if he was irritated by the fans, Zlatan said, "No, no, no. I enjoy it! They give me adrenaline."

Zlatan also took a shot at the MLS -- saying if he doesn't come back to the league next year, NOBODY will watch the games.

"[If I stay], then MLS is good, because the whole world will watch it. If I don't stay, nobody will remember what MLS is."

Zlatan only has 2 months left on his contract, so the playoff exit this might have been his last MLS game ever.

Rest in peace, turnover chains ... SMU just changed the sideline celebration game forever -- straight-up poppin' bottles on their bench after a huge play Thursday night!!!

The Mustangs were taking on the Houston Cougars in a conference matchup ... when in the second quarter, SMU recovered a fumble that swung momentum in the game.

To celebrate, the 'Stangs didn't turn to jewelry or a backpack -- instead, they went for the VIP scene ... reenacting bottle service at a club!!!

The clip is hilarious ... several players hold up signs reading "It's A Party," "SMU" and "Takeaway" -- all while one dude grabs a fake bottle of bubbly.

The funniest part? The bottle explodes on command -- dumping confetti all over his teammates!!!

The rest of the game wasn't quite as fun for SMU ... they won, but they had to sweat it out -- barely beating the Cougars, 34-31.

Worst QB sneak ever?

A 33-year-old man was arrested at the New England Patriots Hall of Fame exhibit Thursday after cops say he tried to smuggle a Tom Brady jersey out under his shirt.

The TB12 jersey was part of a locker room display -- and officials say it's valued around $10,000. There are reports the jersey was signed and game-used, but Patriots officials tell us that's NOT TRUE. It was just a display jersey.

Well, Zanini Cineus apparently wanted it for himself and allegedly tried to stuff the uniform under his shirt -- along with a glove from the exhibit -- and make a break for it.

But, officials say he SLIPPED during the attempted theft ... which alerted cops to his actions ... and they swarmed in to make the bust.

Cops say Cineus was WEARING the stolen jersey under his jacket when they found him.

Cineus was charged with larceny -- but pled not guilty ... although he reportedly admitted taking the jersey to officials and local reporters.

Of course, it's not the first time someone swiped a Tom Brady jersey ... Mauricio Ortega jacked Tom's game-worn jersey after Super Bowl 51 in 2017.

Charles Barkley ain't afraid to tell an NBA star his team is trash -- and Thursday night, he delivered a truth bomb right to Klay Thompson ... and the footage is hilarious.

Klay was joining the guys on TNT's "Inside the NBA" during halftime of the Warriors vs. Clippers game ... where Golden State was getting smacked around by L.A.

Of course, Klay is still out recovering from the torn ACL he suffered during the NBA Finals ... but he told the guys, he's still optimistic the Warriors can get back to dominating the league.

The issue ...  without Klay and Kevin Durant (who left for Brooklyn), Barkley thinks the team is in big trouble.

"Our window to win another championship I think is open for the next 5, 6 years," Klay said.

"Number 1, I hope you get back soon but you're just wrong," Barkley shot back.

"I think their window's shut. I don't think they can score enough."

Barkley also amended a prediction he made before the game -- "I was wrong before the game. I said [the Warriors] were gonna be the 7, 8 seed. They're not gonna make the playoffs."

Kenny Smith asked, "You know after one half of basketball?!"

Barkley responded -- "Yes."

Klay tried to defend his squad and said he has faith in the young player on the Warriors, but it was clear Barkley wasn't convinced.

By the way, the Warriors lost 141 to 122 in their first home game in their new arena.

The MLB umpire who vowed to buy an AR-15 and declare a civil war if President Trump was impeached is now apologizing ... saying he didn't "realize the violence in those words."

Rob Drake -- who's been working MLB games since 1999 -- created a firestorm this week when he tweeted, "I will be buying an AR-15 tomorrow, because if you impeach MY PRESIDENT this way, YOU WILL HAVE ANOTHER CIVAL WAR!!! #MAGA2020."

Drake deleted the tweet ... but it was too late -- people were going crazy over it.

Now, after the MLB Umpires Association condemned the tweet, Drake has issued an apology ... acknowledging he screwed up big time.

"I want to personally apologize to everyone that my words made feel less safe," Drake said.

"I especially want to apologize to every person who has been affected by gun violence in our country."

"I also acknowledge and apologize for the controversy this has brought to Major League Baseball, my fellow umpires and my family. I never intended to diminish the threat of violence from assault weapons, or violence of any kind."

Drake continued, "I'm going to learn from this. Once I read what I had tweeted I realized the violence in those words and have since deleted it. I know that I cannot unsay the words, but please accept my sincerest apologies."

WWE star Jimmy Uso swerved all over the road while speeding before he was arrested for DUI ... and TMZ Sports has obtained the police footage that shows the scary scene.

The 34-year-old wrestler was busted back on July 25 in Escambia County, Florida after cops say they noticed Uso driving recklessly throughout the night in his Cadillac Escalade.

New police video shows the moment when an officer catches Uso -- real name Jonathan Fatu -- in the act ... and it's frightening.

Uso is all over the road ... bouncing from side to side in his lane -- even at one point crossing the double yellow line -- all while the cop clocks him at 86 MPH in a 45.

Eventually, the officer was able to pull him over ... and, you can see in the video, Uso looks trashed.

The 6'3", 251-pound wrestler was stumbling as he walked to the back of his car ... and when the cop tried to take him to a nearby parking lot to complete field sobriety tests, Uso talked in circles.

Jimmy kept questioning what was happening ... and aggressively asked the officer several times why he couldn't have his lawyer present during the stop.

Eventually, the cop got fed up with Uso and arrested him for DUI. And, in fact, in the police report, the cop says Uso reeked so much of alcohol, he had to roll down his window on the ride to county jail.

Jimmy was eventually hit with misdemeanor DUI ... and he's been fighting the charge in court over the last few months -- with his next hearing set for next week.

Of course, this is the SECOND time Uso's had issues with law enforcement this year -- remember, back in February, he was arrested in Michigan after cops say he tried to fight them during a traffic stop.

In that case, Uso struck a plea deal and was ordered to pay $450 in fines.

Uso is a big deal in the pro wrestling world -- his father is WWE legend Rikishi and his cousins are The Rock and Roman Reigns.

UFC stud Walt Harris' 19-year-old daughter is missing in Alabama ... and the heavyweight fighter is pleading for the public's help to find her.

According to the Auburn Police Department ... Aniah Haley Blanchard was reported missing on Thursday after she was last heard from just before midnight on Wednesday.

The police say they're currently investigating, but add they do not believe foul play is involved.

According to the cops, she was last seen in a black dress, tan boots and black stockings ... and her black 2017 Honda CR-V is missing as well.

"Please help!!!!" Harris wrote on his social media pages Thursday. "Any info message me on here or call the Auburn police (334) 501-3140 Please!!!"

36-year-old Harris is one of the top UFC contenders in the heavyweight division ... having just beaten Aleksei Oleinik back in July.

Wanna see the coolest Frisbee trick ever?!?!

Wakeboarding star Steel Lafferty threw up a disc about a hundred feet in the air ... got it to come back to him -- and caught it after doing a backflip!!!

The insane throw took place down in Nicaragua ... where Lafferty is vacationing with skateboarding legend Ryan Sheckler and some other buds.

And, fortunately for all of us, one of them was smart enough to grab the camera when Lafferty went down to the beach with a Frisbee.

The 27-year-old's toss was insane -- seriously, watch the thing boomerang -- but his backflip before the catch really topped it off!!

"No matter where I am, You all know I have to do something WILD !" Lafferty said of the throw.

Of course, the 5'7", 160-pound badass is no stranger to wild stunts ... he kills it on the water -- and even earned Wakeboarder Of The Year honors back in 2017.

UFC rising star Maycee Barber says Paige VanZant needs to put up or shut up ... because if Paige REALLY wants to fight, Barber's ready to sign a contract RIGHT NOW.

Barber is 8-0 and destroying people in the Octagon -- and she clearly wants a crack at Paige.

What's interesting ... VanZant recently appeared on TMZ Sports and said she's been begging Dana White and the UFC to find her an opponent. Paige also posted on IG and tagged essentially every woman in the 115 and 125 division asking to bring it on ... except Maycee.

But, in this brand new video, Barber spells it all out for Paige -- she's ready, willing and able to fight ... unless PVZ is just too scared to accept the challenge.

There are reports VanZant has refused to fight Barber because she feels Maycee has disrespected her in the past ... and Paige doesn't want to reward bad behavior with a big money fight.

But, Barber says it's the fight game -- not the friend game -- and they need to settle things with their fists.

"Listen Paige, I'm not looking to go out there and fight you out of respect. I'm looking to go out there and sign a contact with another girl and have her actually show up."

"I saw your thing on TMZ about begging Dana for a fight, and listen ... Dana White, TMZ, Paige VanZant ... I'm right here. I've been waiting."

"So, either sign the contract or show up, otherwise gimme a contract with someone [else] with the last name of VanZant."

And, just for clarification ... that last dig seems to be a reference to rumors that Maycee slid into Paige's husband's DMs.

The Houston Astros just fired their assistant GM Brandon Taubman -- saying an investigation revealed he did, in fact, direct inappropriate comments toward female reporters during a locker room celebration.

As we previously reported, several journalists claimed Taubman screamed, "I’m so f*cking glad we got Osuna!'" at a group of women in what was interpreted as a verbal taunt.

The backstory ... the Astros traded for Osuna after he was accused of domestic violence while he was a member of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Houston had received backlash for acquiring the all-star closer ... and after he helped the 'Stros earn a trip to the World Series last week -- Taubman's comments were interpreted as a middle finger to his critics.

But, the reporters didn't find the comments appropriate at all ... and despite initially defending Taubman, the Astros say a probe revealed their top-ranking exec was in the wrong.

"Our initial investigation led us to believe that Brandon Taubman's inappropriate comments were not directed toward any reporter. We were wrong," the team said in a statement.

"We sincerely apologize to Stephanie Apstein, Sports Illustrated and to all individuals who witnessed this incident or were offended by the inappropriate conduct. The Astros in no way intended to minimize the issues related to domestic violence."

The team added, "Our initial belief was based on witness statements about the incident. Subsequent interviews have revealed that Taubman's inappropriate comments were, in fact, directed toward one or more reporters."

"Accordingly we have terminated Brandon Taubman's employment with the Houston Astros. His conduct does not reflect the values of our organization and we believe this is the most appropriate course of action."

NY Congressman Peter King says MLB ump Rob Drake was WRONG to tweet about buying an AR-15 and threatening a civil war ... telling TMZ Sports free speech goes out the window when you start inciting violence.

Drake tweeted and deleted the controversial message Tuesday, saying "I will be buying an AR-15 tomorrow, because if you impeach MY PRESIDENT this way, YOU WILL HAVE ANOTHER CIVAL WAR!!! #MAGA2020”

The MLB has launched an investigation into the matter ... and Drake has since gone radio silent.

We spoke with Rep. King about the issue on Thursday ... and while he says he fully supports free speech, King thinks Drake crossed a line.

"I think people should have a very wide range of what they can say. There is free speech," King told us while pointing out he fully supports Rockets GM Daryl Morey and Shaquille O'Neal speaking out in support of the Hong Kong protests

"But, I think if you're talking about anything that comes close to inciting violence, that's where I draw the line. Nobody should be talking about AR-15s. Not in a democracy."

While the MLB investigates, the MLB Umpires Union released a statement on Drake's tweet, saying "He chose the wrong way to convey his opinion about our great country. His posting does not represent the view of the MLBUA or reflect those of the umpires we represent."