TMZ Sports - Page 50

Ohio State defensive end Chase Young -- one of the top college football players in 2019 -- has officially declared for the 2020 NFL Draft.

Of course, back in December, the superstar told TMZ Sports "the plan" was to return to Ohio State for his senior year.

Hey, like we said at the time ... plans change. We get it. Go be a millionaire!!

After our clip about his future intentions made headlines, Young clarified his comments, saying, "That moment was just a real spontaneous moment, caught me off-guard,"

Now, the 20-year-old made his next move official in an announcement on Twitter Friday ... saying, "After an amazing three years at Ohio State, it's time for me to begin the next chapter."

"I am extremely grateful to everyone who helped me make it to this point. I give thanks and praise to God for blessing me with the ability to play football and the opportunity to be part of something bigger than myself."

Despite missing a few games due to suspension in 2019, Young was a Heisman Trophy finalist and led the country with 16.5 sacks. He is projected to be the 2nd overall pick to the Washington Redskins in the draft in April.

"To me, Alabama was the best team but they aren't gonna be playing in the championship."

That's legendary college football coach Lou Holtz telling TMZ Sports he believes the BEST team in the country will NOT be playing on Jan. 13 ... and it all comes down to luck.

Unclear why Holtz believes The Tide got unlucky during the 2019 season, but it seems pretty clear he thinks they're the most talented squad.

Bama finished the season with an 11-2 record ... losing to LSU and Auburn.

When they played LSU, star QB Tua Tagovailoa was playing with a banged-up ankle, but the team as a whole simply got outplayed.

As for the Auburn game, Tua had suffered a season-ending hip injury before that game ... and Bama was playing with their #2 QB Mac Jones. They lost 48-45.

Bama went on to crush Michigan in the Citrus Bowl in a 35-16 shellacking.

So, is Holtz saying a healthy Tua gets Bama to the Natty? Maybe ... since Bama played in the National Championship game last season and won the title with Tua the year before.

There's more ... Holtz also talks about why he thinks Joe Burrow will go #1 in the NFL Draft and reflects on why his former Notre Dame star WR Rocket Ismail could be considered the greatest college football player he's ever seen.

Barack Obama might be a little grayer on top these days ... but his bod's looking as fit as it did before he took office way back in the 2000s.

The former Prez is still living it up in Hawaii in the new year, and he's moved from the golf course to the ocean for some paddleboarding fun ... which looks like quite a workout too.

The shirtless shots of 44 might not be as jaw-dropping as buff Barack in the Aloha State back in 2008 -- shortly before he became President -- but still ... pretty impressive.

Obama has some work to do before he becomes a pro on the paddleboard, but the important thing is ... he keeps getting back up after he takes a spill.

As we reported ... both Barack and President Trump are tied as the most admired man of 2019 according to Gallup's annual poll, but they're both on very different paths to start 2020.

There were 12 presents waiting for Olivia Culpo under the tree this year ...

Well, 13 if you're counting NFL hunk Christian McCaffrey ... who threw on a Santa hat and put on a belated Christmas extravaganza for his gorgeous model girlfriend!!

The super-attractive couple reconnected on Thursday after spending time with their fams for the holidays ... and the Carolina Panthers stud pulled out all the stops with a bunch of gifts.

"It's never too late for Christmas and Santa's here!!!!!!!!!!," Culpo captioned the shot of McCaffrey under the tree while playing with a toy train.

The 23-year-old Pro Bowler kept the yuletide cheer going while rocking out to a rendition of "Feliz Navidad."

It's been one action-packed year for the duo since they started linking up back in May ... and they ended 2019 by celebrating McCaffrey becoming the 3rd player to ever rush AND receive 1,000 yards in one season.

BTW -- Culpo was there to personally congratulate her mans right after the game ... so yeah, the dude is winning on and off the field for sure.

'Tis the season ... and shouts out to the beautiful couple for keeping the Christmas spirit alive for just a bit longer.

It's gone from REALLY bad to MUCH MUCH WORSE for ex-NFL QB Trevone Boykin -- who's now facing shocking new criminal charges even though he's been locked up since November.

As we previously reported, the former TCU superstar has been in SERIOUS trouble with the law after he allegedly broke his girlfriend's jaw in an altercation in March 2018.

Boykin was out on bond while he was fighting the case in court ... but he was thrown back in jail in November after cops say he failed to charge his electronic monitoring device.

But, while the 2015 2nd Team All-American has been in custody ... investigators have been working on other cases involving the 26-year-old, which have now resulted in MORE criminal charges.

Here's a brief summary of what Boykin is now accused of:

Lou Williams' son is now the owner of the best name EVER ... the L.A. Clippers star says he's callin' his newborn baby "Syx" -- and it's all 'cause of his famous NBA awards!!

"I always said if I had a son I was going to give him a unique name," Williams said.

Lou is a 3-time winner of the Association's Sixth Man of the Year honors ... and he confirmed in a postgame interview Thursday night his boy's name is a nod to those trophies.

"Nothing was coming to me, so I just said, 'You know what, I'm going to name him Syx, spell it a little different' and we just had some fun with it."

Seems the new kid is already a great luck charm for Williams ... after the point guard missed the Clippers' game Tuesday for the birth of Syx, he came back to pile up 22 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in L.A.'s win over the Pistons on Thursday.

As for when Lou will start training Syx to follow in Dad's footsteps ... Williams says it won't be long.

"A couple weeks," he said.

He's 55-years-old ... but Jose Canseco ain't afraid to get into a dude's face when he feels disrespected -- and that's exactly what happened at Top Golf in Vegas.

Jose was swinging away with friends when a random man at the range came over to him and used his finger to signal Canseco to come out of his Swing Suite so they could talk.

Canseco felt the move was SUPER OFFENSIVE -- and proceeded to chew the guy out ... on camera.

"Wasn’t sure if he was trying to 'pick me up' or get an autograph," Canseco said about the encounter.

"If you see me in public, DO NOT call me over with a finger like I’m your small child in trouble or a chick at the bar!"

"If you see me in public and want a photo, an autograph, or just too meet me, you come over to me. I’m more than willing to and enjoy meeting you guys."

"You show me respect & I will show you respect. It’s really that simple."

For his part, the other man stayed cool, calm and collected when confronted by the former MLB superstar ... and even told Jose it was "nice" to meet him.

Hey, maybe Jose is sensitive about the finger wag ... since he accidentally shot off his own finger in a gun cleaning accident back in 2014.

The first big breakup of 2020 has gone down -- YouTube stars Jake Paul and Tana Mongeau have split less than 6 months after getting fake married.

Both Jake and Tana announced they're calling it quits -- at least for now -- on social media ... claiming they were sitting next to each other as they typed their captions.

Jake says ... "we're literally laughing at how crazy and stupid the past couple months have been and cracking jokes at how silly this all seems."

Tana echoed the sentiment, adding that it's "weird as f**k" and confirming the 2 are taking a break to focus on their own lives.

They also both claim that since they tied the knot back in July, Tana's getting Jake's Lamborghini in the split ... but he's keeping their dog, Thor.

"My parents taught me to help out wherever I can, so this is my way of helping out."

LaMelo Ball is reaching into his pockets to aid Australia wildfire victims ... pledging to donate one month of his National Basketball League salary to people in the region who need it.

Of course, Australia is home to the youngest Ball brother these days ... he signed on to play in the NBL this season before he enters the NBA Draft later this year.

As for how much 1 month's salary is for the 18-year-old, the NBL is reportedly paying him around $70,000 this season ... so it's a pretty good chunk of change for LaVar's kid.

Australia can certainly use the cash ... at least 17 people have been killed by fires that have raged since October, and at least 17 more people are still missing.

More than 1,000 homes and businesses have reportedly been destroyed by the blazes... and there are fears things could get worse before they get better.

"It’s sad to see what is happening on the South Coast of Australia," Ball said Thursday. "People have lost their homes and everything they own. My parents taught me to help out wherever I can, so this is my way of helping out."

Sorry everyone, the tale of Eli Manning's secret network of "beer guys" who hooked him up on every road trip is simply BS ... so says Eli's ex-teammate, Rashad Jennings.

Jennings would know ... he was the Giants' starting running back from 2014 to 2016 and says he sat with Eli on the team bus during road trips.

So, when we saw RJ out in NYC this week, we had to ask about the claim made by ex-Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes that Eli "always drank beer on the team bus."

Tynes told ESPN ... Manning would find someone on the road to buy him beer, which he would share with some veterans while they discussed the game on the ride to the airport.

"It was unbelievable," Tynes said ... "He had a guy in every f**king stadium in the league to get him that beer."

But, Jennings says that just didn't happen during his 3-year run with the Giants -- telling TMZ Sports straight-up, "That's not a true story."

"You can't listen to everything that comes out of people's [mouths]," Jennings says ... "Especially when it's by pen."

"Did he have a beer guy at every single [stadium]? I don't know. I can tell that he wasn't on the plane or in the bus after every game because I sat beside him."

Jennings says he wouldn't have a problem with the story -- if it were true -- explaining that he likes the idea of Manning kicking back some brews with the boys. But, Jennings says that just didn't happen.

Jennings even made a joke that he wished Eli handed out gluten-free beer -- because Rashad keeps a strict gluten-free diet.

There is one possible explanation ... Tynes and Jennings never played on the same team. Tynes kicked for the Giants from 2007 to 2012. Is it possible Manning DID have a beer guy but stopped the tradition before 2014???

Isaac Bruce is a Hall of Fame finalist ... again ... making the Final 15 for modern-era players and it just so happens we spoke with the WR recently about why he belongs in Canton.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame just released the 2020 Finalist list ... which includes stars like Troy Polamalu, Edgerrin James, Zach Thomas, John Lynch, Torry Holt, Reggie Wayne, LeRoy Butler, Steve Atwater, Richard Seymour, Bryant Young, Alan Faneca, Tony Boselli, Steve Hutchinson and Sam Mills.

As for Bruce, the ex-Rams superstar was a finalist in 2019 as well ... but didn't make the final HoF cut.

We just spoke with Isaac in October and he was candid about how badly he wants to be enshrined ... telling us he thinks his numbers are as competitive as any WR who ever played.

FYI, Bruce has a 16-YEAR career in the pros ... with 1,024 receptions (13th all-time), 15,208 receiving yards (5th all-time) and 91 TDs (12th all-time).

NOT BAD AT ALL!

The son of the woman who created "Weeds" and "Orange Is the New Black" tragically died after crashing into a sign on the ski slopes ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Charlie Noxon was skiing down the intermediate run in Park City when he came upon a fork. We're told Noxon had two choices -- left or right. Our sources say Noxon was unable to successfully navigate the move and instead slammed into a direction sign.

We're told Noxon was wearing a helmet at the time of the collision. Our sources say there were no witnesses and no surveillance video. Our law enforcement sources say they based their findings on where the body was found. Noxon was skiing alone at the time of the accident. His family was ahead of him on the ski run.

NBA fans LOVE Tacko Fall ... 'cause despite the 7'6" center only logging 3 games this season -- THEY WANNA SEE HIM IN THE ALL-STAR GAME!!!

The Association announced its top vote-getters so far for the annual classic ... and Fall currently sits at No. 6 in the Eastern Conference frontcourt standings with 110,269 votes.

It's an impressive number, considering Timberwolves superstar Karl Anthony-Towns has just 173,129 votes over on the Western Conference side.

Of course, it's hilarious because Fall has only played MINUTES this season -- he hasn't spent too much time on the Celtics' active roster because of mediocre play and a concussion he suffered for being too tall (seriously, that story is wild).

But, all the love is a testament to how much people really dig Fall -- who's been an Internet sensation for his giant size ever since he killed it in college at UCF.

Fall ain't the only quirky name on the NBA's fan vote list ... Lakers bench player Alex Caruso also notched nearly 100,000 votes, mostly because he's a hilarious internet meme too!!

As for if the NBA will actually let the guys play in the game despite not really doing much in this season ... don't count on it -- the fan vote only makes up 50 percent of the total voting players need to make the game.

Ex-Bengals head coach Sam Wyche -- who led Cincinnati to the Super Bowl in 1989 -- has died at age 74, the team announced Thursday.

Wyche -- who also played QB for the Bengals back in the day -- was battling melanoma and reportedly went into hospice in Pickens, South Carolina on December 30.

"Sam was a wonderful guy," Bengals president Mike Brown said in a statement. "We got to know him as both a player and a coach. As our coach, he had great success and took us to the Super Bowl."

"He was friends with everyone here, both during his tenure as head coach and afterwards. We not only liked him, we admired him as a man."

"He had a great generosity of spirit and lived his life trying to help others."

Of course, Wyche also famously gave a powerful speech to Bengals fans throwing debris on the field back in 1989 ... saying, "You don't live in Cleveland, you live in Cincinnati."

Wyche played professionally from 1968-76 ... and went on to coach the Bengals from 1984-1991. He's the second-winningest coach in franchise history.

New York Yankees pitcher Domingo German was just hit with an 81-game suspension ... this after the MLB concluded its investigation into allegations he committed domestic violence.

German was placed on administrative leave back in September after Major League Baseball was notified the 27-year-old had allegedly been involved in an altercation with his significant other.

Details of the allegations are unclear -- no police report was ever filed -- but what is known is the MLB clearly found the accusations to be credible.

"Having reviewed all of the available evidence," commissioner Rob Manfred said Thursday, "I have concluded that Mr. German violated our Policy and that discipline is appropriate."

According to the MLB, German will NOT appeal the punishment ... and has agreed to make a contribution to "Sanctuary for Families" -- a New York-area charity helping victims of domestic violence -- in addition to serving the ban.

Per multiple reports, the 81-game suspension is one of the most aggressive penalties EVER levied against an MLB player for dom. violence.

The suspension is retroactive ... meaning since German missed 18 games for the alleged incident in 2019, he'll only be required to sit the first 63 games of next season.

"Domestic violence — in any form — is a gravely serious matter that affects every segment of our society," the Yankees said in a statement. "Major League Baseball has taken the lead in our industry to make domestic violence awareness and prevention a priority, and we will continue to back those efforts."

"We are encouraged by Domingo’s acceptance of his discipline, and we sincerely hope this indicates a commitment to making a meaningful and positive change in his personal conduct."

International soccer superstar Franck Ribery is ringing in the new year in style ... by rockin' a sick, new Rolex from his wife ... and it's got a price tag of a whoppin' $120k!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the French baller has been talking for a while about getting a nice timepiece ... so his wife, Wahiba, decided to hook her hubby up with the one-of-a-kind Rolly!!

We're told Wahiba hit up Franck's longtime friend, Gabriel the Jeweler, to come up with the fancy Sky Dweller ... which features 35 carats of VVS diamonds.

On top of that, Gabriel hooked it up with Franck's jersey number right below the Rolex crown!!

We're told this is the only watch of its kind ... and is worth a total of $120,000!!!