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    The NBA's Dallas Mavericks and NHL's Dallas Stars are deeper in the playoffs together than they've ever been. That's since the Stars moved south from Minnesota 31 years ago.

      The last day of school has never been like this at Birmingham-Southern. The school officially closed on Friday after more than 160 years as its baseball team opened played in the Division III World Series. The Panthers have overcome obstacles in becoming one of eight teams to compete for a national championship. They open the double-elimination tournament against Salve Regina. Since the school announced in March that it's last day would be May 31, the Panthers have gone 19-4 and advanced to the World Series last week by winning their Super Regional despite the team being overrun by a stomach virus.

        The debate within the Southeastern Conference about whether to play eight or nine league games is not over, it's just on hold. The SEC locked in a short-term solution to the eight or nine question by agreeing to go with eight games for this season and next, the first two with Texas and Oklahoma in the conference. No decision has been made for 2026 and beyond. Commissioner Greg Sankey says how the first season of an expanded 12-team College Football Playoff could influence which way the conferences goes. The SEC also announced a team that reaches the CFP championship game will receive $14.25 million.

          Schools in basketball-centric leagues face the challenge of generating revenue to pay future players without the lucrative revenues from football. The NCAA and major college conferences approved the settlement of a federal class-action lawsuit on paying athletes. That includes paying $2.77 billion to former athletes over 10 years. But leagues like the Big East, Atlantic 10 and West Coast Conferences depend on basketball, which lags behind football in terms of generating revenue. That could create challenges in keeping up with teams in the power conferences when it comes to the ability to pay future players.

          With plans of grandeur, Rick Hartzell returned to his alma mater as the director of athletics in 1999. Determined to jumpstart an athletics renaissance at Northern Iowa, Hartzell's first step required finding the right baseball coach.

          The last day of school has never been like this at Birmingham-Southern. The school officially closed on Friday after more than 160 years as its baseball team opened played in the Division III World Series. The Panthers have overcome obstacles in becoming one of eight teams to compete for a national championship. They open the double-elimination tournament against Salve Regina. Since the school announced in March that it's last day would be May 31, the Panthers have gone 19-4 and advanced to the World Series last week by winning their Super Regional despite the team being overrun by a stomach virus.

          The debate within the Southeastern Conference about whether to play eight or nine league games is not over, it's just on hold. The SEC locked in a short-term solution to the eight or nine question by agreeing to go with eight games for this season and next, the first two with Texas and Oklahoma in the conference. No decision has been made for 2026 and beyond. Commissioner Greg Sankey says how the first season of an expanded 12-team College Football Playoff could influence which way the conferences goes. The SEC also announced a team that reaches the CFP championship game will receive $14.25 million.

          Schools in basketball-centric leagues face the challenge of generating revenue to pay future players without the lucrative revenues from football. The NCAA and major college conferences approved the settlement of a federal class-action lawsuit on paying athletes. That includes paying $2.77 billion to former athletes over 10 years. But leagues like the Big East, Atlantic 10 and West Coast Conferences depend on basketball, which lags behind football in terms of generating revenue. That could create challenges in keeping up with teams in the power conferences when it comes to the ability to pay future players.

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