Sports

NFL investigators interviewed some massage therapists who have accused Ravens’ Tucker, report says

Feb. 22, 2025

NFL investigators have been interviewing massage therapists who have accused Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker of inappropriate sexual behavior, the Baltimore Banner reported Friday. The news website cited three women who participated in the inquiry. The Banner has reported accusations from 16 massage therapists from eight Baltimore-area spas and wellness centers. The NFL previously said it would look into the matter.

Sports

Tennessee AD ‘disappointed’ Nebraska cancels home-and-home series in 2026-27 on short notice

Feb. 22, 2025

Nebraska canceled two nonconference games against Tennessee as part of a plan to recoup lost revenue from reduced seating capacity during major renovations of Memorial Stadium in 2027, athletic director Troy Dannen announced Friday. The Cornhuskers and Volunteers had been scheduled to meet in Lincoln on Sept. 12, 2026, and in Knoxville on Sept. 11, 2027. “Tennessee is not canceling this series. Nebraska did. We are very disappointed that they didn’t want to play these games, especially this close to 2026,” Tennessee athletic director Danny White said on social media.

Sports

Jaguars hire Rams’ James Gladstone as GM, reuniting him with coach Liam Coen

Feb. 22, 2025

The Jacksonville Jaguars hired Los Angeles Rams executive James Gladstone as their general manager Friday, reuniting him with new coach Liam Coen. Gladstone, 34, held the position of director of scouting strategy in LA since 2019, working alongside Rams general manager Les Snead during the draft process. He’s been with the Rams since 2016 and was viewed as a key member of the scouting department.

Sports

Biyendolo and Cooper score as United States beats Australia 2-1 in SheBelieves Cup

Feb. 22, 2025

Lynn Biyendolo scored 42 seconds into the match and the United States beat Australia 2-1 on Sunday in the SheBelieves Cup. Michelle Cooper scored her first international goal in her second appearance for the U.S., which improved to 2-0 in the four-team round-robin tournament. Biyendolo’s goal was the fastest by a U.S. player since Ashley Hatch scored 24 seconds into a match in November 2021, also against Australia.

Weather

Gulf Coast low soaks Louisiana to Florida with heavy rain, thunderstorms

Feb. 22, 2025

t was a wet and miserable end to the weekend for millions of people living along the Gulf Coast. An area of low pressure brought widespread rain and even some thunderstorms, which will continue into the start of the upcoming workweek. Light rain began to impact communities in Texas and Louisiana earlier in the weekend, but on Sunday, the bulk of the precipitation moved into southern Louisiana and Mississippi. Even portions of southern Alabama and communities in the western Florida Panhandle saw rain on Sunday.

Science & Tech

World’s oldest rune stone has more pieces that contain mysterious messages, researchers say

Feb. 22, 2025

The world’s oldest dated rune stone, a landmark discovery revealed in 2023, is just one piece of a larger, nearly 2,000-year-old slab, new research has found. Now, scientists in Norway are working to reassemble the ancient puzzle, a process that’s starting to shed light on who carved the mysterious runic writing and what the words mean. Runes were the building blocks of the first Germanic writing within the first few centuries AD and remained in use in Scandinavia until the late Middle Ages, according to the University of Oslo’s Museum of Cultural History. It’s believed Germanic people drew inspiration from the Roman alphabet to create the characters, according to the museum, but the exact origins of runes and how they were used has remained murky.

Health

Judge extends temporary block to huge cuts in National Institutes of Health research funding

Feb. 22, 2025

A federal judge on Friday again blocked the Trump administration’s drastic cuts in medical research funding that many scientists say will endanger patients and delay new lifesaving studies. The new National Institutes of Health policy would strip research groups of hundreds of millions of dollars to cover so-called indirect expenses of studying Alzheimer’s, cancer, heart disease and a host of other illnesses — anything from clinical trials of new treatments to basic lab research that is the foundation for discoveries.

Weather

‘No legitimate rationale’: Lawmakers raise concerns over what NASA won’t say about DOGE

Feb. 22, 2025

Some House Democratic lawmakers are raising “deep alarm” over Department of Government Efficiency’s interactions with NASA and potential conflicts of interest in a new letter released Friday. “The lack of transparency surrounding DOGE’s presence and activities within NASA is ominous and unacceptable,” reads the letter, which is signed by three Democrats in leadership positions within the House Science, Space and Technology Committee and dated February 21.

Science & Tech

Should adults get a booster shot of measles and other childhood vaccines?

Feb. 22, 2025

In Texas, at least 90 cases of measles have been reported in recent weeks across the northwest part of that state. Among those cases are five people who say they’ve been vaccinated. It’s not known whether those five cases were fully vaccinated. Whether you’re watching this unfold from Texas or elsewhere, you might be wondering: Should you look into getting a booster shot for measles or other infectious diseases?

International News

Indian teenager alleges rape over five years by nearly 60 schoolmates, neighbors, relatives and strangers

Feb. 22, 2025

Five years ago, a 13-year-old girl, the daughter of poor wage laborers from one of India’s most marginalized communities, was allegedly sexually abused by one of her neighbors in the village where she lived. Her alleged abuser filmed it and police are investigating whether he used the images to blackmail and manipulate the girl into being raped and sexually abused by dozens of other men and boys over the next five years. Police say the allegations only came to light after the girl, now 18, spoke to a counselor visiting her college in Kerala state and detailed the years of horrific abuse.