Gruff, pioneering and unfiltered, Mike Leach was one of the most influential football coaches of this or any generation. His boundless curiosity and fascination for people, places and things made him famous beyond the field, a unique character in sports. Leach, who was in his third year at Mississippi State after helping revolutionize the game…

Mississippi State coach Mike Leach was hospitalized in critical condition Monday, the day after what the university called “a personal health issue” at his home in Starkville forced him to be airlifted to a medical facility in Jackson. Leach was admitted Sunday to the University of Mississippi Medical Center, about 125 miles from the Mississippi…

DOHA, Qatar—Luis Enrique was replaced by Luis de la Fuente as Spain’s coach on Thursday, two days after the national team was eliminated in the round of 16 at the World Cup. Spain lost to Morocco 3–0 in a penalty shootout after a scoreless draw in regular and extra time. The Spanish soccer federation thanked…

DENVER—Deion Sanders sauntered into the Arrow Touchdown Club for what felt more like an old-fashioned tent revival than a news conference to introduce the University of Colorado’s splashy new hire of “Coach Prime” as its head football coach. At that very moment Sunday afternoon, the Denver Broncos were predictably blowing another late lead in their…

Nick Bollettieri, the Hall of Fame tennis coach who worked with some of the sport’s biggest stars, including Andre Agassi and Monica Seles, and founded an academy that revolutionized the development of young athletes, has died. He was 91. Bollettieri died Sunday night at home in Florida after a series of health issues, his manager,…

Zach LaVine scored 20 of his season-high 29 points in the fourth quarter as the Chicago Bulls rallied down the stretch for a 108–99 victory over the struggling Brooklyn Nets in New York. The Nets, playing hours after parting ways with coach Steve Nash, lost for the sixth time in eight games this season. The…

NEW YORK—The Brooklyn Nets refused to fire Steve Nash over the summer, no matter what Kevin Durant wanted. But with the Nets off to a disappointing start amid more controversy surrounding Kyrie Irving, the team and coach both decided the change needed to happen now. “We both felt this was time,” general manager Sean Marks…

ATLANTA—Vince Dooley, the football coach who carried himself like a professor and guided Georgia for a quarter-century of success that included the 1980 national championship, died Friday. He was 90. The school announced that Dooley died peacefully at his Athens home in the presence of his wife, Barbara, and their four children, including former Tennessee…

BOSTON—The Boston Celtics have suspended Ime Udoka for a full year, banning the coach who led them to the NBA Finals last spring for the entire 2022–23 season over what two people with knowledge of the matter said was an improper relationship with a member of the organization. The people spoke to The Associated Press…

BOSTON—The Boston Celtics have suspended Ime Udoka for a full year, banning the coach who led them to the NBA Finals last spring for the entire 2022–2023 season. In a statement issued Thursday night after a full day of wrangling over the terms of the punishment, the Celtics said Udoka violated team policies and left…