The Rock Chalkboard

3rd down defense again an issue for KU football in 5th straight loss | KUsports.com
As head coach Lance Leipold summed it up after his Kansas football team’s 41-14 loss to Texas Tech on Saturday, “a lot of different things in a lot of different areas” didn’t go as planned for the Jayhawks.

Kansas men's basketball program lands at No. 3 in Associated Press preseason Top 25 | KUsports.com
The Jayhawks, who finished last season ranked No. 12 in the poll, came in behind No. 1 Gonzaga and No. 2 UCLA, a pair of teams that played each other at last season’s Final Four.

3-star DB Dewuan Mack exits KU football's 2022 recruiting class | KUsports.com
While declaring his new direction, Mack also thanked the KU coaching staff for believing in him. In particular, Mack thanked former head coach Les Miles, who was in charge of the program when Mack committed nearly a year ago. The prospect also thanked current KU support staffers Jordan Peterson (senior defensive analyst) and Travis Partridge (offensive quality control). Peterson was KU’s safeties coach when Mack committed and helped recruit him to KU.

KU's Remy Martin named to Bob Cousy Award watch list | KUsports.com
A few days after being named the Big 12 Conference’s Preseason Player of the Year, Kansas senior Remy Martin was added to the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award watch list.

Bits o Chalk

Washington State fires football coach Nick Rolovich, 4 assistants for refusing state-mandated COVID-19 vaccine
PULLMAN, Wash. -- Washington State fired football coach Nick Rolovich and four of his assistants on Monday after they refused to comply with a mandate that all state employees be vaccinated against COVID-19.

San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane suspended 21 games by NHL for 'established violation' of COVID-19 protocol
Sources confirmed earlier this month that Kane was being investigated over allegations that he submitted a fake COVID-19 vaccination card to the NHL and the Sharks. While the NHL and the NHLPA do not have a vaccine mandate for the 2021-22 season, vaccinated players have far fewer restrictions on them than do unvaccinated players -- including the ability to play games in Canada without a mandatory quarantine.

Lakers' LeBron James adamant limiting workload won't shield body from injury - 'Feel worse when I play low minutes'
"I don't play the game thinking about injuries," James said Monday, ahead of L.A.'s regular-season opener against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday. "And I also feel worse when I play low minutes."

NBA commissioner Adam Silver wanted vaccine mandate, says Kyrie Irving's status is issue with New York City
"I won't try to speak for [the NBPA], other than the view that some players had, I think -- including maybe some players who are vaccinated -- that it should be an individual choice among the players," Silver said during his annual preseason news conference, which was conducted virtually because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eraser Dust

San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane suspended 21 games by NHL for 'established violation' of COVID-19 protocol
Sources confirmed earlier this month that Kane was being investigated over allegations that he submitted a fake COVID-19 vaccination card to the NHL and the Sharks. While the NHL and the NHLPA do not have a vaccine mandate for the 2021-22 season, vaccinated players have far fewer restrictions on them than do unvaccinated players -- including the ability to play games in Canada without a mandatory quarantine.

Jewish Southlake residents on Holocaust remark: 'There are not two sides'
And many parents defended a district administrator who told teachers to offer students books showing “opposing” perspectives on the Holocaust, saying she was trying to follow a problematic new state law, while also condemning her interpretation of that law.

Scuba diver finds 900-year-old Crusader sword off the coast of Israel | CNN Travel
He was diving on October 9 when he spotted the sword, which boasts a foot-long hilt, along with stone anchors, metal anchors and pottery fragments.

Did Taco Bell discontinue the Crispy Chicken Sandwich Taco?
Say it ain’t so! Eat This, Not That is reporting that the new Taco Bell Crispy Chicken Sandwich Taco (try typing that three times fast) appears to have stealthily been removed from Taco Bell’s online menu. If you recall, we loved it for its soft pillowy flatbread and for the fact that it was a manageable size. Hey, I was a fan too, so if it’s gone, I will cry tears of ultimate sadness.

Kalispell marijuana rules up for final decision | Daily Inter Lake
The vote was decided narrowly, with Mayor Mark Johnson and council members Kari Gabriel, Tim Kluesner and Sandy Carlson in favor of the more restrictive approach. Meanwhile, Ryan Hunter, Sid Daoud and Kyle Waterman opposed the ordinance, preferring to allow marijuana businesses to operate in business zones as well as industrial zones.

'Brown recovery' wipes out hopes that pandemic stimulus would drive climate spending - POLITICO
Governments in rich countries pledged last year to spend trillions of dollars to rescue their economies from the trough of the pandemic — and to channel that gusher of cash in ways that would aid the fight against climate change.

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