TMZ Sports - Page 50

Another standout college football player has decided to forgo the 2020 season ... this time, it's Minnesota wide receiver Rashod Bateman.

As we previously reported, Virginia Tech star Caleb Farley -- one of the best cornerbacks in college ball -- became the highest NFL prospect to "opt out" of the season to focus on training for the next level.

Bateman -- the 2019 Big Ten Receiver of the Year -- announced his decision to move on from his college career on Tuesday ... calling it the "hardest decision" of his life.

"Unfortunately, in light of the uncertainty around health and safety in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, I have to set my wishes aside for the wellness of my family, community, and beyond," Bateman said on Twitter.

"Because of this, I have decided to opt-out of the 2020 college football season. I will be taking the next steps in my journey by declaring for the 2021 NFL Draft."

BTW -- Bateman played a huge role in the Golden Gophers' offense for 2 seasons ... racking up 1,923 yards and 17 touchdowns and making him a potential first-round pick next year.

Head coach P.J. Fleck released a statement on Bateman's decision ... praising the player for his time with the team.

"Our program will always support a teammate who makes a decision that he feels is best for him and his family. I love Rashod and will always be there for him."

Bateman added ... "Minnesota will forever be a place I am lucky enough to call home. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I love you all. Bateman out."

Is this really happening?!?

J. Cole is getting his first shot at making his NBA dream come true ... with the Detroit Pistons offering the rapper a tryout!!!

As we previously reported, rap legend Master P says the 35-year-old North Carolina native is training like crazy to get a shot at the league ... and even asked P for advice on how to turn from MC to baller while working on a Puma commercial together.

Considering P landed 2 NBA contracts in the '90s with the Raptors and Hornets, it wouldn't be the first time a rapper has hit the hardwood as a pro ... and Cole is known for being a legit threat with his game.

The Pistons got wind of our interview with P ... and used their official Twitter account to let Jermaine know they'd love to be the team to give him a legit shot at making it to the NBA -- and even used his own lyrics in the offer.

"We see you out here. You said they only got 12 slots on the Pistons," the team said, referencing his song, "FRIENDS."

"Hit us up for that tryout. This is for all the dreamers."

Look ... this could very well all be for publicity. But, then again, stranger things have happened.

After all, the Pistons went 20-46 last season ... so they can use all the help they can get.

You know what to do now, J. -- pick up the phone!!!

Tyler Seguin -- one of the NHL's biggest stars -- knelt for the national anthem before Dallas' game against Las Vegas on Monday ... joining three others on the ice for the protest.

It all went down at Rogers Place in Edmonton ... where Seguin, his Star teammate Jason Dickinson, and Golden Knights players Ryan Reaves and Robin Lehner all dropped to one knee in the pregame ceremony.

The two Dallas players were flanked by the two Golden Knights at one of the ice's blue lines -- and the quartet stayed kneeling for the Canadian national anthem as well.

After the game, all four players said they did it for one reason -- to raise awareness for social injustice.

"Everyone should have the same chance in society. Everyone should be treated the same," Lehner said. "At the end of the day, I love America. But, there are a bunch of things that need to be corrected, and it's just about willingness to do something about it."

Added Seguin, "It's a big issue that needs to be addressed."

Players and coaches from both sides said after the demonstration they supported the four players' decisions.

The kneeling protest came just 2 days after Minnesota Wild defenseman Matthew Dumba became the first NHL player to kneel for the anthem.

The kneeling Stars and Golden Knights said Dumba's actions opened the door for their protest on Monday.

"We still were going to come together and talk about it, but Dums leading the way, you don't want to leave him out to dry," Reaves said. "That's the whole point of this."

UFC boss Dana White LOVES that his pal, The Rock, just bought the XFL -- but says he needs to get it up and running FAST while there's still a huge appetite for live sports!

"If I was The Rock, I would try to get that rolling as fast as I could. I'd try to get that on television ASAP. I guarantee you there’s a ton of networks that would do it."

White is essentially saying with COVID threatening the NFL, college football and other major sports ... there's a HUGE opportunity for the XFL to thrive in 2020 if The Rock and his partners can move quickly.

"You have all these multi-millionaire athletes that don’t wanna play right now. All these guys that don’t wanna play, They wanna sit out … don’t wanna stay in the bubble, don’t wanna do what it takes. Don’t be surprised if The Rock slides right into that slot with some great programming. 'Cause let me tell you what, people are dying to watch live sports right now."

In fact, Dana -- who's been successfully hosting UFC fights during the pandemic -- says he's offering to serve as Rock's COVID adviser.

"I'm actually gonna call him today and walk him through what I think he needs to do on the COVID side of this thing. And, I have some ideas for him. "

Meanwhile, Dana is getting ready to launch a new season of the Dana White's Contender Series on Tuesday night -- where top contenders face off for a chance at a UFC contract.

Dana says the whole thing is going down in Las Vegas where the UFC has created a "bubble environment" just like Fight Island ... where fighters are quarantined and tested on a daily basis.

"These guys are in a bubble here. We literally have a hotel, our own hotel ... and you get here and you are literally stuck in your room just getting tested all the time."

The Denver Broncos have installed a special "misting booth" at the team facility -- which sprays a disinfectant on players to and from practice in hopes of killing the COVID virus.

The Broncos posted footage of the machine on Monday -- saying, "Time for work. But first, we sanitize."

We're told the booth is spraying a product called "MicroSURE" -- which is touted as a powerful nontoxic disinfectant that kills viruses like E.Coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Coronavirus upon contact.

A rep for the Broncos tells us, "We want to go above and beyond to protect the players."

"The misting booth is an additional safety measure that sprays a safe, medical-grade disinfectant on players and their equipment when entering and exiting the practice field."

The Broncos have already had a serious COVID scare this off-season when star linebacker Von Miller tested positive for coronavirus back in April.

Miller was symptomatic -- but has since recovered. He's called on others to take the virus seriously.

OKC Thunder guard Dennis Schroder -- a frontrunner for the 6th Man of the Year Award -- has left the NBA's bubble in Orlando to be with his wife for the birth of their second child.

Schroder has been playing a huge role off the bench for OKC this season ... averaging nearly 19 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists per game.

But, Thunder coach Billy Donovan confirmed DS left the team early Monday morning to be with his family ... as his wife, Ellen, prepares for the new arrival.

Of course, players are able to leave the bubble for family emergencies and other significant reasons ... and will be required to quarantine once they return to the Disney World campus.

OKC is currently in 6th in the Western Conference as the playoffs near ... but Schroder made it crystal clear he was not about to miss out on the moment.

"I love my teammates, I love basketball, but family comes first all the time," he said last month.

Mick Foley is praising the hell out of The Rock for buying the XFL with his ex-wife ... telling TMZ Sports his business relationship with Dany Garcia is just another example of why the former WWE star is an awesome person.

"The greatest part of this announcement is that one of his partners in this venture is his former wife, Dany Garcia," Foley says.

"The Rock not only sets an example on how to conduct yourself as a human being, an actor, a philanthropist but as a former husband."

FYI -- The Rock married Garcia way back in 1997, but they divorced in 2007 while promising at the time to continue to stay in each other's lives as "best friends."

Mick says the way Dwayne has kept up that commitment with Garcia despite the separation is powerful ... and Foley claims it tells a lot about the 48-year-old movie star's character.

"Of all the stories I tell about The Rock, I think my favorite one is he was actually at his ex-wife's wedding," says Foley, who wrestled with Dwayne for years in the WWE.

"I think that's a great lesson for everyone to learn for the fact that they can stay amazing friends, be amazing parents to Simone, and then take on these business ventures."

As we previously reported, Rock teamed up with Garcia and partners at RedBird Capital (led by Gerry Cardinale) to scoop up the XFL for $15 million on Monday.

The Rock's promising to build a good product on the field for fans ... and Foley says there's no doubt in his mind his former coworker is going to crush it.

"It's got a really good shot to succeed because of the intensity and the effort that he and Dany and their partners put into it," Foley says.

By the way, Mick is already lobbying his old pal for a role in the league ... but he tells us he doesn't want a suit-and-tie front office job -- he wants to strap on a helmet!!

"That's what I'd like to do," Foley says.

The mess continues for the St. Louis Cardinals -- 13 members of the organization have tested positive for the coronavirus ... and the team's upcoming 4-game series with the Detroit Tigers has been postponed.

MLB confirmed ... 7 players and 6 staffers returned positive COVID-19 tests within the past week.

The team will remain in Milwaukee -- where they have been quarantined since Thursday -- until medical officials clear them to travel.

The Cards were supposed to play the Tigers at Comerica Park in Detroit beginning August 4th -- but now, that has been pushed.

The plan, according to MLB, is for the Cardinals to "resume its regular schedule on Friday against the Chicago Cubs in St. Louis."

And, in unrelated bad news, the highly-anticipated Field of Dreams game between the Cards and White Sox in Iowa -- scheduled for August 13 -- has also been canceled due to a "logistical problem," according to the Athletic's Ken Rosenthal.

Got Milk Amazing Feat Of Athleticism?!?!

Katie Ledecky just swam the entire length of a pool while balancing a glass of milk on her head ... and she didn't spill a single drop the whole time!!!

The 5-time Olympic gold medalist posted the insane swim on her social media page as part of an ad for milk ... and the footage is straight-up mind-blowing.

Ledecky, sporting snorkel gear, hopped into the pool and put the glass of chocolate goodness right on the back of her head.

What happened next was amazing ... she cruised through the pool no problem, with not one ounce of milk wasted!!!

In fact, to prove it all was real, after she got up for air -- she took the glass off her head and chugged down a sip!!!

"Possibly one of the best swims of my career! (~open for debate~)," Ledecky said.

Odell Beckham is publicly calling for the NFL to cancel the 2020 season ... saying it's just too dangerous to play with COVID still wreaking havoc.

"I just feel like the season shouldn’t happen," the Cleveland Browns star told WSJ. Magazine ... "and I’m prepared for it to not happen and I wouldn’t mind not having it."

It's important to note the WSJ interview took place just before the NFLPA reached an agreement with the league about COVID protocol on July 24 -- and Odell reported to training camp on July 28.

Beckham is reportedly not considering opting out often 2020 season -- and feels more comfortable and confident about things after seeing the COVID protocols at the Browns facility, according to Cleveland.com.

Still, Odell's concerns to the WSJ seem pretty valid ... he explains why the NFL has much bigger challenges than other pro leagues like the NBA.

"Obviously with everything that’s going on, it doesn’t make sense why we’re trying to do this. I can understand basketball was already in the playoffs."

"Five-on-five basketball in an arena is going to be more intense than regular-season games. Hooping is different than playing an eleven-on-eleven contact sport where there's 80 people in a locker room."

"We’re not ready for football season. So why are we trying to push forward?"

Beckham suggested the owners are leading the charge to play ... because they don't want to lose money.

"It’s obviously for their money. And that bothers me because there’s always been this -- and I hate saying it like that -- but the owners’ [attitude is], Oh we own you guys, and just kind of that unfairness going on that they don’t see us as human."

Forget Johnny Football ... just call him Johnny Daredevil now!!!

Here's footage of former Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel leaping off a rooftop and doing a front flip into a pool ... and it's INSANE!!!

Unclear where the debauchery went down ... but Manziel posted the video Sunday -- showing a slow-mo shot of him soaring roughly 20 feet through the air before splashing down.

It's pretty scary ... the pool ain't exactly huge, and he appears to be just feet away from the shallow end!!!

Of course, jumping off high things into water is becoming old hat for the recently retired football player ... it was just a few weeks ago when he posted vid of him throwing himself off a cliff.

Don't worry, John's still alive and well ... and hey, the video is pretty cool.

FINALLY, THE ROCK HAS COME BACK TO ... PRO FOOTBALL!?

The WWE legend just teamed up with an investment group to snatch up Vince McMahon's XFL league for $15 million, the league confirms in a statement.

The league had filed for bankruptcy after being resurrected for the 2020 season -- and was supposed to be auctioned off to highest bidder on Monday.

But, Dwayne Johnson and his partners -- Dany Garcia (Rock's business partner and ex-wife) and partners at RedBird Capital (led by Gerry Cardinale) -- swooped in and bought it up this weekend before it hit the auction block.

The deal must now be approved in bankruptcy court on Friday -- and if everything goes smoothly, it could close by August 21.

The Rock (along with Dany) and RedBird are reportedly 50/50 partners in the deal.

Remember, the XFL got off to a pretty decent start in 2020 -- but COVID essentially served as a death sentence to the league, forcing it to shut down in March.

The league filed for chapter 11 in April -- listing $10 to $50 million in debts.

The Rock issued a statement saying, "The acquisition of the XFL with my talented partners, Dany Garcia and Gerry Cardinale, is an investment for me that’s rooted deeply in two things - my passion for the game and my desire to always take care of the fans."

"With pride and gratitude for all that I’ve built with my own two hands, I plan to apply these callouses to the XFL, and look forward to creating something special for the players, fans, and everyone involved for the love of football."

The plan is to relaunch the league -- but so far, no timetable has been set.

As for The Rock, he famously played college football at the University of Miami back in the day before becoming a global pro wrestling superstar with Vince McMahon's WWE.

The last man to fight Mike Tyson says he's down to run it back -- with Kevin McBride telling TMZ Sports, "Let's get it on!"

Of course, McBride is the man who sent Tyson into retirement when the Irishman dominated Iron Mike so badly in their 2005 matchup, Tyson quit on his stool before the 7th round.

After the fight, a then 38-year-old Tyson told the media he lost his passion for boxing and wanted to move on with his life.

McBride continued fighting professionally until 2011 and now works as a laborer at a tree company -- primarily doing heavy lifting.

Now, Mike is 54 and coming out of retirement for an exhibition with Roy Jones Jr. ... and McBride says once that's done, HE WANTS NEXT!

"Let's get it on! Definitely would love to fight him again," 47-year-old McBride tells us.

"Nobody can rule out anything in this world because that's life. It would be explosive to fight Mike Tyson again and I'm sure Mike would love to rectify his loss and I would just love to jump in the ring again with him."

Plus, McBride says the payday would be awesome -- he could use the cash to help put his kids through college.

In fact, Kevin says his boss at the Brendan Hoarty Tree Services company is fully supportive of rematch with Mike -- and already promised him time off so he could properly train again.

There's more ... we also spoke with Kevin about how that victory over the baddest man on the planet changed his life forever.

Emmitt Smith and his beauty queen wife, Pat, have announced they're separating -- just months after celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary.

"We are publicly sharing that after much contemplation and prayer, we have decided to separate," the 51-year-old Hall of Famer announced in a joint statement with Pat.

"We will continue to move forward with love and compassion for one another, as co-parents and friends."

"We will work together in the best interests of our children, our family, community and businesses."

The Dallas Cowboys legend married Pat -- a former Miss Virginia USA beauty queen -- back in April 2000. They have 3 children together.

the breakup is shocking considering Pat had just written a pretty emotional love letter to Emmitt for their 20th anniversary ... saying, "Hubby, I love you so dearly and I'm extremely grateful for all that we have built together and for the love that we share together."

Jonathan Isaac -- the Magic player who stood for the national anthem and did not wear a BLM shirt before Orlando's game last Friday -- has torn his ACL and will miss the rest of the season, the team announced Sunday.

Isaac gained national attention just 3 days ago ... when he became the league's first player in the NBA bubble restart to stand for the anthem.

Wearing his Magic jersey and warmup sweats ... Isaac stood with his hands behind his back and bowed his head during the song -- and after the game, he explained he didn't participate in the demonstration with his teammates for religious reasons.

But, Isaac, playing in just his second game since the Friday gesture ... drove the lane against the Sacramento Kings on Sunday and blew out his knee.

The video is tough to watch ... Isaac's leg buckled -- and afterward, the Magic said the 22-year-old is now "out indefinitely and his return to the court will depend on how he responds to treatment and rehabilitation."

Isaac had started 32 games for Orlando this season ... and averaged 11.9 points per game and 6.8 rebounds per game.

Only one other player, meanwhile, followed in Isaac's anthem-standing footsteps in the NBA's restart this past weekend ... Miami Heat's Meyers Leonard also stood for the song before his game Saturday.

After the move, Leonard -- who said he supports the BLM movement -- told ESPN, "Our world right now is black and white. There is a line in the sand, and it says if I don't kneel, then I'm not with Black Lives Matter. That is not true."

Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich also chose to stand for the anthem before San Antonio's game Friday night as well.