AP Sports SummaryBrief at 9:38 p.m. EST

By The Associated Press

LPGA and USGA to require players to be assigned female at birth or transition before male puberty

The LPGA and the USGA have updated gender policies that will require players to be assigned female at birth or to have transitioned to female before going through male puberty. The policies begin in 2025 and follow more than a year of study. The groups concluded that going through male puberty allows for competitive advantages in golf. The USGA has seven championships for females next year. The new policies rule out eligibility for Hailey Davidson. She missed U.S. Women’s Open qualifying by one shot this year and tried LPGA Q-school. Davidson began hormone treatments when she was in her early 20s in 2015 and in 2021 underwent gender-affirming surgery, which was required under the LPGA’s previous gender policy.

Miami’s playoff hopes nosedive as Alabama rises in the latest College Football Playoff rankings

Miami’s playoff hopes took a nosedive while Alabama’s got a boost in the last rankings before the College Football Playoff bracket is set next weekend. The Hurricanes moved down six spots to No. 12 after suffering their second loss of the season. They are one spot behind the Crimson Tide, who won won last week and moved up two spots to No. 11. Alabama is projected as the last team in and the fourth from the Southeastern Conference. Oregon stayed at No. 1 for the fifth straight week and will head into Saturday’s Big Ten title game as the only undefeated team in big-time college football.

SEC and Big Ten powers lead the way on signing day as prospects finalize their college selections

Georgia, Texas, Alabama, Oregon and Ohio State are bringing in the nation’s top recruiting class as high school prospects across the country finalize their college plans. The identity of the No. 1 class according to composite rankings of recruiting sites compiled by 247Sports may not be determined until Friday because of the uncertainty surrounding a couple of top-10 prospects. But most top recruits already committed to a school well before the signing period arrived Wednesday.

The CFP rankings — and ‘data points’ — have left Miami, Ole Miss and South Carolina puzzled

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — Miami wants things reconsidered. So does South Carolina. The Big 12 is puzzled. And Mississippi coach Lane Kiffin turned toward social media to ask the College Football Playoff committee a question. “You guys actually meet for days and come up with these rankings??” Kiffin wrote. The fallout and, for some, anger stemming from the release of the latest CFP ranking — one that almost certainly means Miami (10-2), South Carolina (9-3) and Ole Miss (9-3) all have no chance of getting into the 12-team field — continued Wednesday as the schools on the outside looking in continued making their case, even though all hope for them seems to be gone.

League upholds 3-game suspension for Houston LB Azeez Al-Shaair following hit on Trevor Lawrence

NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL and the NFL players association are upholding Houston linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair’s three-game suspension without pay for repeated violations of player safety rules. Al-Shaair’s violent hit to the head of Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence left the quarterback with a concussion and on injured reserve. Hearing officer Ramon Foster, jointly appointed by the league and the players’ union, ruled a day after Al-Shaair’s punishment was announced. NFL vice president of football operations Jon Runyan handed down the punishment and said Al-Shaair had multiple offenses for personal fouls and sportsmanship-related rules violations in recent seasons. His most egregious one came in a 23-20 win at Jacksonville on Sunday.

Michigan flipped QB Bryce Underwood with some help from Oracle founder Larry Ellison and Tom Brady

BELLEVILLE, Mich. (AP) — Bryce Underwood was relieved to make his commitment to Michigan official with his signature as signing day in college football kicked off on Wednesday. Underwood says it’s time for the next level. There are certainly levels to recruiting highly touted players in this era and Underwood made the most of his opportunities. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound quarterback played at Belleville High School and told LSU nearly a year ago that he intended to play there. Michigan never stopped pursuing him. He flipped after Oracle founder Larry Ellison and seven-time Super Bowl Tom Brady got involved in the recruitment.

Falcons QB Cousins is looking to avoid interceptions, have bounce-back game in Minnesota homecoming

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — Kirk Cousins is set for his return on Sunday to Minnesota, his NFL home from 2018 through 2023. The homecoming comes as he is hearing speculation about his job security in Atlanta. Cousins has thrown six interceptions with no touchdowns in the Falcons’ three-game losing streak. That includes four picks in last week’s 17-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, his most in a decade. A vote of confidence from coach Raheem Morris can’t silence suggestions that it’s time to give rookie first-round pick Michael Penix Jr. a chance to jump-start the Falcons’ struggling offense.

McNeeley scores 17 points as No. 25 UConn rallies to a 76-72 win over No. 15 Baylor

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Liam McNeeley scored 17 points and No. 25 UConn came back from an early deficit to beat No. 15 Baylor 76-72 in the Big 12-Big East Battle. Solo Ball made two late free throws and finished with 11 points as the Huskies iced the game from the foul line. Samson Johnson had 13 points for UConn, the two-time defending national champion. Robert Wright III had 22 points, Langston Love scored 16 and Norchad Omier finished with 14 for Baylor, the 2021 NCAA champion.

Lindsey Vonn to make her comeback to downhill racing at age 40 this weekend

Lindsey Vonn is going to enter an official ski race for the first time in nearly six years this weekend at age 40. Vonn announced last month that she was coming out of retirement and she will race lower-level FIS downhills and super-Gs on Saturday and Sunday in Copper Mountain, Colorado. Vonn needs some decent results to improve her long-dormant ranking so she can enter World Cup races this season under a new wild card rule. U.S. Ski Team head coach Paul Kristofic says that “obviously her history speaks for itself and she’s definitely the most decorated speed skier out there.” He adds that “it will be really, really fun and interesting to see what she can do.”

Aaron Rodgers says it’s ‘ridiculous’ to think he needs the final 5 games to prove his value to Jets

Aaron Rodgers figures his football resume speaks for itself. So the New York Jets’ quarterback doesn’t feel the need to use the final stretch of this season to prove his value to the team and that he should be back next season. In fact, it’s a notion the four-time NFL MVP finds “ridiculous.” Rodgers says the Jets should know what he brings to the table by now. He added he hopes to play great in the last five games and will see what the future holds for his playing career.