The University of Kansas apologized for its risque Late Night in the Phog event in which rapper Snoop Dogg performed, stripper poles were wheeled onto the Allen Fieldhouse floor, and fake money was shot over the heads of prospective recruits. Athletic director Jeff Long said Friday night ‘‘we expected a clean version of the show.’’ The Jayhawks instead got an R-rated performance for their annual basketball kickoff in Lawrence and another big headache as they deal with a high-level NCAA infractions case tied to recruiting. ‘‘We made it clear to the entertainers’ managers that we expected a clean version of the show and took additional steps to communicate to our fans, including moving the artist to the final act of the evening, to ensure that no basketball activities would be missed if anyone did not want to stay for his show,’’ Long said in a statement. ‘‘I take full responsibility for not thoroughly vetting all the details of the performance and offer my personal apology to those who were offended. We strive to create a family atmosphere at Kansas and fell short of that this evening.’’ The school even promoted Snoop Dogg’s appearance with a social media video of Hall of Fame coach Bill Self wearing a gaudy chain and Adidas shirt — the focus of the NCAA inquiry has been on the apparel company’s dealings with recruits, including whether officials paid them to steer them to its schools. Self said he wasn’t feeling well and spent most of the performance in the locker room. He later told the Kansas City Star he expected a ‘‘radio edited’’ version of the songs, adding, “That’s not the direction anybody at our school would want that to go at all, regardless of any entertainment that it provided many, it was still not the right way to provide the entertainment.’’
NFL
Beckham says he’ll appeal $14,037 fine
Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was fined $14,037 by the NFL for unsportsmanlike conduct after he fought with Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey last week. Beckham and Humphrey were flagged after they tangled in the third quarter of Cleveland’s 40-25 win. Humphrey, who played Beckham aggressively the entire game, was assessed the same $14,037 fine. The league decided not to levy fines for fighting on both players. First-time offenders are fined $35,096, according to the league’s fine schedule. Humphrey and Beckham began shoving on a running play before grabbing each other’s face masks and going to the ground. Humphrey pinned Beckham and appeared to choke him before being pulled off. Beckham said he will appeal the fine. He'd been fined previously for a fight with ex-Carolina cornerback Josh Norman and could have been fined up to $100,000 for a second offense. Browns center JC Tretter was also fined $14,037 for unsportsmanlike conduct after coming to Beckham’s rescue. He’s appealing . . . Bills quarterback Josh Allen has been cleared from the NFL’s concussion protocol and is expected to play against the Titans on Sunday. The Bills also say fullback Patrick DiMarco and safety Dean Marlowe have been cleared to play after spending the week in the protocol. Allen was hurt following a hit by Jonathan Jones early in the fourth quarter of Buffalo’s 16-10 loss to the Patriots last weekend.
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Track and Field
US 4x100 men’s relay team strikes gold
The United States ended a 12-year wait for a gold medal in the men’s 4x100-meter relay at the world track and field championships in Doha, Qatar. The defending champion American women had to settle for bronze behind Jamaica. The all-star US men’s squad started with individual 100-meter world champion Christian Coleman and ended with 200 champ Noah Lyles, with Justin Gatlin and Michael Rodgers in between. Gatlin said he was thankful to his teammates after winning the first major-championship relay gold, 15 years after his Olympic debut. The time of 37.10 seconds was the third fastest in history. Britain, the champion in 2017, took silver ahead of Japan. Jamaica won the women’s race as Shelley-Ann Fraser-Pryce earned her ninth career world championship gold medal. That’s the second highest of any woman in history behind Allyson Felix, who has 12 and could win a 13th in the 4x400 on Sunday. Jamaica won in 41.44 seconds, 0.41 ahead of second-placed Britain. American Joe Kovacs won the shot put with the biggest throw in 29 years in a contest decided by just a single centimeter. Kovacs threw 22.91 meters in the final round to overtake the mark of 22.90 set by both Ryan Crouser of the United States and New Zealander Tomas Walsh. Two-time Boston Marathon winner Lelisa Desisa won the men’s race in 2:10:40, narrowly beating fellow Ethiopian Mosinet Geremew by four seconds.
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MISCELLANY
BU hockey opens season with victory
Boston University opened its men’s hockey season with a 7-3 victory over Union in Schenectady, N.Y. Patrick Curry and Matthew Quercia scored two goals apiece for the Terriers, who also received goals from David Farrance, Gabriel Chabot, and Robert Mastrosimone . . . Cayla Barnes had two goals and an assist, Lindsay Agnew and Hannah Bilka each had a goal, and the unbeaten Boston College women’s hockey team (4-0) edged host Syracuse, 4-3 . . . James Milner scored a penalty in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time to give Liverpool a dramatic 2-1 win over Leicester, extending the club’s winning run to 17 Premier League soccer matches and ruining Brendan Rodgers’s return to Anfield. Four years and a day since he was fired by Liverpool, Rodgers hoped to become the first manager since his predecessor at Leicester, Claude Puel, in January to prevent the Reds from winning at home . . . Top seeds Dominic Thiem and Ash Barty advanced to the finals at the China Open in Beijing. Austrian Thiem will face Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas in the men’s final. Tsitsipas beat second-seeded Alexander Zverev, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4. Thiem beat Karen Khachanov, 2-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-5. In the women’s event, Barty will meet two-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka, who beat defending champion Caroline Wozniacki, 6-4, 6-2, in the semifinals. Barty advanced with a 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (9-7) win over Kiki Bertens.
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Retiring US women’s soccer team coach Jill Ellis already knows she'll be emotional on Sunday at Soldier Field in Chicago. The two-time FIFA women’s coach of the year will lead the World Cup champions in the finale of their six-game victory tour when they face South Korea. The Americans’ 2-0 win against South Korea on Thursday in Charlotte, N.C., was Ellis’s record 106th, passing former coach Tony DiCicco for most team wins.
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Horse Racing
Agreement made to keep Preakness Stakes at Pimlico
Baltimore officials and the owners of the historic racetrack that hosts the Preakness Stakes reached an agreement to keep the Triple Crown series’ middle jewel in the city. The agreement, which is subject to approval of the General Assembly during its next session, ends a bitter dispute between owner The Stronach Group and the city over the future of historic Pimlico Race Course. The second-oldest track in America has been home to the famed annual race since 1909, but it is in need of a major overhaul, which has previously been estimated at nearly half a billion dollars. Under the plan, The Stronach Group would donate the site to the city for community development in and around the track and an area hospital. The company would also build a new clubhouse, and the track would be rotated 30 degrees to the northeast to create parcels of land that could be sold for private development. The grandstand, whose dilapidated state forced the closure of 6,670 seats before this year’s Preakness, would be demolished . . . Omaha Beach rallied to beat 1-5 favorite Shancelot by a head in the $300,000 Santa Anita Sprint Championship in Arcadia, Calif., winning after a six-month layoff for the former Kentucky Derby favorite.
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