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Northwestern State University has canceled its football team's season following a player's tragic death.

The school announced the move on Thursday ... just 14 days after junior safety Ronnie Caldwell was shot and killed near NSU's campus in Louisiana.

The university said in a statement "the mental health and wellbeing of its student-athletes" was the "primary reason" for the decision.

"While our instinct was to return to the field of play following [Caldwell's] death," NSU President Dr. Marcus Jones said, "we've since learned that the hurt on our team was too deep. Now it is in the best interest of our players, coaches, and staff to pause and to take this time to mourn, to heal, and to support Ronnie's family."

The team canceled its Oct. 14 game against Nicholls State immediately after Caldwell's death, but it suited up for its game against Southeastern Louisiana a week later. It lost the contest, 37-20, but players and coaches all honored Caldwell during the matchup.

The team had four more games remaining on its schedule before Thursday's decision to forego the rest of the year was made.

Meanwhile, NSU head coach Brad Laird revealed he was resigning from his position after holding it for the past six years ... saying he was heartbroken over Caldwell's passing.

"Due to the loss of Ronnie and the emotional burden it has caused me, I don't feel I can give my all to these players or this program," Laird said. "Any coach will tell you that their players become like family, so the loss of Ronnie was like losing a son. I love this program and this university and I know it will persevere and move forward with the competitive spirit that is at the core of our DNA."

Caldwell had appeared in 11 games last season for NSU, but hadn't suited up this season due to a preseason injury.

Drake can now claim he's a King too -- à la Michael Jackson or Elvis -- because he's hit a milestone ... the Recording Industry Association of America says he's sold more single units than anyone. Ever. In history.

Mr. Morgan, Drake's OVO Sound President, made the surprise reveal amid Drizzy's 37th birthday celebrations ... the Canadian rapper is the first artist in RIAA history to surpass 200 million units, and he did it convincingly -- his tally now stands at 220 mil!!!

Some of the biggest wins on his leger include the 2011 album "Take Care," and 2013 smash hit "Started From the Bottom" ... as both inch toward diamond plaques at 8x platinum.

BTW ... RIAA single units include purchases of records, permanent downloads and streams -- all categories Drake regularly crushes with every new release. OIder acts like Elvis, The Beatles and even MJ sold millions upon millions of records ... but Drake tends to beat them by a country mile on digital downloads and streams.

Translation: It's good to be the King.

Another cool stat ... his alt-left dance album, "Honestly, Nevermind" officially cements that all his studio releases have sold at least one million units.

Two tracks from his new album, the J. Cole-featured, "First Person Shooter" and Yeat-featured, "IDGAF" currently sit in the Billboard Hot 100's Top 10 also.

With a catalog this prosperous, it's no wonder Drake is comfortable entering a hiatus from music soon ... to deal with the stomach issues he says are causing him grief.

6:11 AM PT -- We're told Jaidyn Alexis is signed to BuVision for a single through a joint venture with Columbia Records ... in other words, expect her biggest record yet.

Blueface's fiancée Jaidyn Alexis is now in a position to make her own splash in the music biz ... inking a record deal.

The newly engaged couple popped champagne Tuesday and toasted the immediate future -- Jaidyn signed a deal with Columbia Records.

The rookie rapper signed several pages of contracts with Blue by her side. A rep for the label also confirmed with TMZ Hip Hop the move was no publicity stunt.

Jaidyn just started hitting the booth this year but has remained dedicated to the craft.

Following BF's Vegas arrest last year, Jaidyn bailed him out and was ordered straight to the studio to get her skills up.

Her last string of music videos have amassed several million views each ... just the type of motion a record label like Columbia is looking for in this social media era.

BF's other baby mom, Chrisean Rock has been making waves herself on the indie circuit, most notably with her viral "Mr. Take Ya B*tch" collab with Lil Mabu.

Congrats to Jaidyn.

Georgetown women's basketball head coach Tasha Butts has tragically died following a battle with breast cancer, the school announced Monday.

She was just 41 years old.

In revealing the heartbreaking news, school president John J. DeGioia called her death "a devastating loss."

"She was extraordinary," DeGioia said. "Tasha was a person of character, determination, vision, and kindness. She will be deeply missed by our community and by so many people around the country who have been inspired by her life."

Butts starred on the court at Tennessee from 2000 to 2004 -- playing forward for Pat Summit ... before she was picked by the Minnesota Lynx in the second round of the 2004 WNBA Draft.

She eventually got into coaching following her one season in the league, beginning as an assistant with Duquesne in 2007. She later coached for LSU and UCLA, before landing a promotion to the associate head coach role at Georgia Tech in 2021.

She found a ton of success as the leader of the Yellow Jackets, this despite being diagnosed with breast cancer during the 2021 season ... and in April, she was named Georgetown's head coach.

She stepped away from the team last month, however, to continue her fight with cancer.

"When I met Tasha, I knew she was a winner on the court, and an incredible person whose drive, passion and determination was second to none," Georgetown AD Lee Reed said. "She exhibited these qualities both as a leader and in her fight against breast cancer. This is a difficult time for the entire Georgetown community, and we will come together to honor her memory."

The school announced Darnell Haney will be the interim head coach for this upcoming season. It also said Monday it and the Big East will continue to raise funds and breast cancer awareness through her "Tasha Tough" initiative.

Jay-Z is advising all Twitter philosophers out there to take the proverbial "$500,000" over having dinner with him ... he's saying all the "jewels" they think they'll get are in his old albums!!!

HOV weighed in on the viral social media question Monday with Gayle King on "CBS Mornings," where he finally gave fans the answer key ... well, his, at least.

In case you’re not hip, fans have been having a field day with the topic for YEARS ... debating if having just ONE dinner with Jay is worth more than $500K cash upfront.

Clearly an obvious choice for many, but some have argued that Jay will bless them with the missing link to create their own billion-dollar empire!!!

Jay’s not exactly disagreeing with them, but he’s saying there’s a $499,989.01 discount just for listening to one of his old albums!!!

He touted cash-saving tactics on his last released album “4:44” back in 2017, and way back in 2009, he infamously rapped the lines ... "HOV on that new s**t, n****s like "How come?" N****s want my old s**t, buy my old albums."

Jay says he didn't name a batch of his albums "The Blueprint" just because ... he says the songs contain his life's work and everything he rapped about became true.

Scores of Israeli citizens who were kidnapped by Hamas terrorists during their deadly terrorist attack are still alive, according to the Israeli military.

As many as 200+ people were kidnapped by Hamas in the October 7 attack. More than 20 of those captured are under the age of 18, while another 10 to 20 hostages are over 60.

Israeli military officials would not say precisely how many they believe are still alive -- only that a majority have survived over the past 2 weeks.

At least 2 hostages have been confirmed dead ... a 13-year-old Israeli girl, and her 80-year-old grandmother.

Megan Thee Stallion le dijo recientemente a sus fans que su próximo álbum sería un esfuerzo indie, y no estaba mintiendo... Su batalla de años con su sello discográfico 1501 Certified y su jefe Carl Crawford, ¡se ha terminado!

Billboard informó el jueves que tanto Megan como 1501 acordaron "separarse amistosamente", poniendo fin a tres años de ida y venidas en las redes sociales.

Las dos partes comenzaron a tener problemas en 2020, cuando la rapera citó repetidos intentos del sello de bloquear el lanzamiento de nueva música y no cumplir su contrato.

No se sabe si alguna de las partes pagó dinero para poner fin al acuerdo, pero Crawford suavizó su postura sobre Meg a principios de este año después de conocer el veredicto de culpabilidad de Tory Lanez por dispararle.

Crawford estuvo conversando junto a Kai "Verse" Tyler, presidente del sello entonces, en TMZ Hip Hop en febrero, revelando que estaba arrepentido por su rol en las rencillas con Meg, las que incluyeron hablar mal de su jefe Roc Nation Jay-Z.

La fanfarria no duró mucho ... Desde entonces, Kai ha abandonado el barco, al igual que la otra creadora de éxitos de 1501, Erica Banks, que recientemente lanzó una canción disidente dirigida a 1501 con las mismas quejas que Megan: "Me importa una m*** esa discográfica, me ven, y me deben dinero, son codiciosos".

Megan Thee Stallion recently told fans her next album will be an indie effort, and that's no cap -- her years-long battle with her record label 1501 Certified, and its boss Carl Crawford, is now over!

Billboard reported on Thursday that both Megan and 1501 will "amicably part ways" ... ending 3 years of back-and-forth swipes on social media.

The two parties started going at it in 2020 ... the "WAP" rapper cited repeated attempts by the Houston-based label blocking her from releasing music and fulfilling her contract.

No word if either party paid out any money to end the deal, but Crawford softened his stance on Meg earlier this year after the Tory Lanez guilty verdict for shooting her.

He debuted his new label president Kai "Verse" Tyler to TMZ Hip Hop back in Feb. ... revealing he was sorry for his part in the Meg wars, which included bad mouthing her Roc Nation boss Jay-Z.

The fanfare didn't last long ... Kai's no longer a part of the machine and 1501's other hitmaker, Erica Banks, recently dropped a diss song aimed at 1501 with the same gripes as Megan -- "Give a f*** about that label they see me/And they owe me some money, they greedy" ... but we're told cooler heads have prevailed.

Carl's a former MLB All-Star, so it's time to draw on that "team-building" expertise.

Chandler Jones was just released from jail ... and apparently one of his first orders of business was to take a selfie video outside the station.

"Fresh out of jail again," Jones said in the clip. "Ya'll Pray For me."

Chandler Jones has been arrested in Las Vegas again.

The former Raiders star was locked up on Tuesday, according to jail records ... the second time in less than three weeks that police have placed the football player into custody.

Records show he was booked on a charge of violating a domestic violence temporary protection order ... and as of Wednesday morning, he remained behind bars.

No further details surrounding the arrest were made immediately available.

Jones was previously arrested for two counts of the same offense on Sept. 29 ... after authorities claimed he went to a woman's home, grabbed some of her items from her backyard, and then appeared to burn the stuff while "completely nude inside of his own backyard."

Jones was released by the Raiders shortly after the initial arrest.

The 33-year-old, however, appeared to be in good spirits following it ... smiling and laughing with artists while at a local tattoo shop in early October.

College football player Ronnie Caldwell -- a junior safety at Northwestern State University -- was shot and killed on Thursday morning in Louisiana, police said.

He was just 21 years old.

According to the Natchitoches Police Department, the tragic incident happened near NSU's campus -- which is about three hours away from New Orleans -- at around 1:08 a.m.

Police say they were dispatched to a street near the university after 911 callers reported gunshots in the area. When officers arrived, they say they found Caldwell suffering from gunshot wounds ... and he was later pronounced deceased.

Cops say an investigation into the shooting is still ongoing.

The Northwestern State football team, meanwhile, canceled its Saturday game against Nicholls State after learning of the heartbreaking news.

"Ronnie Caldwell was a young man who had a bright future ahead of him on or off the football field," Demons head coach Brad Laird said on Thursday. "He was our voice in the locker room."

"Our hearts are broken and ache for Ronnie's family and friends. His loss will be felt here at Northwestern State, in Natchitoches and in his home."

Caldwell -- who transferred from Tyler Junior College after the 2021 season -- appeared in 11 games last season and finished seventh on the team in tackles. He did not play yet this season due to an injury he suffered in the preseason.

The Texas native was also a business administration major who helped coach a local youth baseball team over the summer.

Police are looking to charge three men who they say played a role in an altercation at a Patriots game last month that ended in the death of one fan.

The Foxborough Police Department tells TMZ Sports ... it has submitted criminal complaints to prosecutors seeking assault and battery and disorderly conduct charges against a trio of Rhode Island men.

While cops did not reveal the names of the men nor any further details of the evidence ... they did say they believe the men were somehow involved in the altercation that resulted in Dale Mooney's death at the Pats vs. Dolphins game at Gillette Stadium.

According to the FPD, officers came to the conclusion after interviewing witnesses at the game as well as reviewing videos of the incident.

As we reported, Mooney was involved in the scuffle at some point during the Sept. 16 contest ... and he collapsed and later died. Officials did say, however, that they believe a medical issue -- not a traumatic injury -- led to the death.

A medical examiner's investigation into the final cause and manner of death remains ongoing.

La policía está buscando acusar a tres hombres, que según ellos, jugaron un papel en el partido de los Patriotas el mes pasado que terminó con la muerte de un fan.

El Departamento de Policía de Foxborough le dice a TMZ Sports que ha presentado denuncias penales a los fiscales por asalto y agresión y cargos de conducta desordenada contra un trío de hombres de Rhode Island.

Aunque no revelaron los nombres ni mayores detalles de las pruebas, dijeron que piensan que estos estuvieron involucrados en el altercado que resultó en la muerte de Dale Mooney en el partido contra los Dolphins en el Gillette Stadium.

Los oficiales llegaron a esa conclusión luego de entrevistar a diversos asistentes al juego y de revisar videos del incidente, según cuenta el departamento de Policía.

Como informamos, Mooney estuvo involucrado en la pelea en algún momento durante el encuentro del 16 de septiembre, y se derrumbó y falleció minutos más tarde. Las autoridades dijeron, sin embargo, que creían que su muerte se había debido a un problema médico y no a una lesión traumática.

La investigación del médico forense sobre la causa final sigue en curso.

Barry Melrose -- considered by many to be the best NHL analyst on television -- has sadly been diagnosed with Parkinson's ... and he'll now be stepping away from his role at ESPN while he battles the disease.

Longtime ESPN personality John Buccigross just made the heartbreaking announcement minutes ago on X ... revealing Melrose will be off camera and spending time with his family for the foreseeable future.

"I've worked with Barry at ESPN for over a quarter century," Buccigross said. "Cold beers and hearty laughs in smokey cigar bars. A razor sharp wit, he was always early & looked like a million bucks. I love him. I'll miss him."

"Wayne Gretzky on a life dedicated to hockey," he added.

Melrose both played and coached in the NHL for years ... before he began breaking down games for ESPN beginning in 1996. He took a brief hiatus from the network to coach the Lightning, but returned a short time later.

He's since become a mainstay on NHL broadcasts -- so much so, commissioner Gary Bettman said Tuesday, "Hockey on ESPN won't be the same without him."

"Barry's gigantic personality and trademark style have made our game bigger, more exciting and more entertaining," Bettman said.

"His love for hockey is obvious and infectious. And it is impossible to have a conversation with him without a smile on your face."

Barry Melrose —considerado por muchos como el mejor analista de la NHL en la televisión— ha sido tristemente diagnosticado con Parkinson y se alejará de ESPN mientras lucha contra la enfermedad.

John Buccigross, personalidad de ESPN desde hace mucho tiempo, acaba de hacer el desgarrador anuncio hace unos minutos en X, revelando que Melrose estará fuera de las cámaras y pasará tiempo con su familia en el futuro inmediato.

"He trabajado con Barry en ESPN durante más de un cuarto de siglo", dijo Buccigross. "Cervezas frías y carcajadas en bares llenos de humo. Ingenioso, siempre llegaba a tiempo y es sin duda un gran tipo. Lo quiero y lo voy a extrañar".

"Wayne Gretzky en una vida dedicada al hockey", añadió.

Melrose jugó y entrenó en la NHL durante años, antes de empezar a desglosar partidos para ESPN a partir de 1996. Hizo una breve pausa en la cadena para entrenar a los Lightning, pero regresó poco después.

Desde entonces se ha convertido en un pilar de las transmisiones de la NHL, tanto así, que el comisionado Gary Bettman dijo el martes: "Hockey en ESPN no será lo mismo sin él".

"La gigantesca personalidad de Barry y su estilo característico han hecho nuestro juego más grande, más emocionante y más entretenido", dijo Bettman.

"Su amor por el hockey es obvio y contagioso. Y es imposible mantener una conversación con él sin una sonrisa en la cara".

Soak up his new album, "For All the Dogs," because Drake is dropping the mic -- he says he's walking away from music to deal with a health issue that's plagued him for a long time.

He made the bombshell announcement Friday morning on his SiriusXM show "Table for One" ... saying, "I need to focus on my health, first and foremost." Apparently, he's been battling a gastrointestinal issue ... he says, "I've been having the craziest problems for years with my stomach."

He didn't get any more specific about the ailment, but says it's gonna require enough of his time that "I'ma lock the door on the studio for a little bit. Maybe a year or something ... maybe a little longer."

It's a huge revelation, and not just for his fans, but for the music industry as a whole. Quite frankly, Drake's thing has been quantity -- the guy cranks out records very regularly.

He's dropped 9 studio projects in the last 13 years, most of them packed with #1 hits that dominate radio play and streaming services.

But, just hours after releasing his latest, he's making it clear he's got more important things to deal with now -- "I need to focus on my health, and I need to get right."

Disfruten mucho el nuevo álbum de Drake, "For All the Dogs", porque el rapero planea alejarse de los escenarios y de la música por un tiempo, para hacer frente a un problema de salud que lleva arrastrando desde hace años.

El cantante lanzó la bomba el viernes por la mañana en su programa de SiriusXM, "Table for One", diciendo: "Tengo que enfocarme en mi salud, en primer lugar y principalmente". Al parecer, Drake ha estado luchando contra un problema gastrointestinal que describe así: "He estado teniendo los problemas más locos con mi estómago por años".

El rapero no especificó mucho más sobre su dolencia, pero dijo que va a requerir una buena parte de su tiempo, por lo que cerraría la puerta a los estudios por un tiempo. "Quizá un año o quizá un poco más".

Se trata de una gran revelación, y no solo para sus fans, sino que para la industria musical completa. Francamente, lo de Drake ha sido la cantidad: saca discos con mucha regularidad.

Ha lanzado nueve proyectos de estudio en los últimos trece años, la mayoría de ellos repletos de éxitos que dominan la radio y los servicios de streaming.