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The Stephen F. Austin club baseball team may not be allowed to leave St. Louis if the Cardinals continue feeding off the energy the group has brought to Busch Stadium over the past 48 hours.

After saying “screw it” and moving to an empty section and taking their shirts off to fire up the Cardinals during their extra-innings win over the Kansas City Royals on Friday night, the boys were back and the tarps remained off for Saturday’s afternoon game, which resulted in a third straight victory.

Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol made sure the energy that Busch Stadium saw on Friday returned on Saturday. He bought out the entire right-field section that the SFA team sat in and the team distributed those tickets free of charge for this weekend’s game.

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“Easily the most hyped I’ve ever been for a day game — probably any game — in my life,” Marmol said afterward.

After the Cardinals’ 4-2 win on Saturday, the SFA team, which was playing in the nearby National Club Baseball Association DII World Series this week, made it inside the clubhouse where shirts were obviously banned.

"We came here after our game to have a great time,” said SFA player Bryce Bradford, via Brandon Kiley of 101 ESPN, during Friday’s game. “It got close and we were like, 'Screw it, let's go to an empty section and take off our shirts.' Everyone was kind of scared at first. I was like, 'Screw it, I'll do it' and took off my shirt."

The trend spread in St. Louis as during Saturday's UFL game between the St. Louis Battlehawks and Houston Gambler the tarps were also off.

Marmol was so impressed by what he saw Friday night, he started his postgame press conference by saying he would do whatever he needed to make sure they were at every game. “Because that was awesome. Not only them, but everybody that showed up today. That was a fun environment,” he said.

The atmosphere in the stadium was infectious and Marmol wanted to make sure his team had every bit of home-field advantage it could get.

“It creates an environment where, it’s not only filling this place up, it’s making it a tough place for other teams to come in and play,” Marmol said. “That was pretty damn cool. I’ll sign up for that any day.”

Marmol joked on Saturday that he was willing to go broke if buying tickets led to more wins. The Cardinals have four more home games during this six-game homestand. No word if the SFA team will remain in town when the Pittsburgh Pirates come to visit.

Yohel Pozo's walk-off single in the bottom of the 11th innning helped the St. Louis Cardinals top the Kansas City Royals 5-4 on Friday night. The hit was the culmination of a rise in energy inside Busch Stadium, powered by a group of shirtless fans in right field.

The group, which grew as the game went on, helped build an atmosphere that stuck with Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol after the game.

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“Whoever started that in right field, I'll do whatever I need to do to make sure they come to every game,” Marmol said before taking questions from reporters. “Because that was awesome. Not only them, but everybody that showed up today. That was a fun environment.”

Marmol stressed that he believed the energy helped his team during their extra-innings win.

“It creates an environment where, it’s not only filling this place up, it’s making it a tough place for other teams to come in and play,” Marmol said. “That was pretty damn cool. I’ll sign up for that, any day.”

The group that started the shirtless situation in the Busch Stadium outfield were members of the Stephen F. Austin club baseball team who were playing in the nearby National Club Baseball Association DII World Series this week.

They lost to Grand Valley in the afternoon and then headed to St. Louis for the Cardinals game where they made their voices heard and their chests seen.

"We came here after our game to have a great time,” said SFA player Bryce Bradford, via Brandon Kiley of 101 ESPN. “It got close and we were like, 'Screw it, let's go to an empty section and take off our shirts.' Everyone was kind of scared at first. I was like, 'screw it, I'll do it' and took off my shirt."

Bradford added that there was no plan and they were happy to see that what they started ended up spreading in the stadium.

The win helped the Cardinals improve to 26-18 on the season as they sit 2.5 games behind the Central Division leading Chicago Cubs and remain in a NL wild card spot.

How did Deion Sanders view the pre-draft process for his son Shedeur before the Cleveland Browns ultimately selected the quarterback in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft?

"When he takes off his shirt, I see the scars on his back that he's been through hell, but he's made it through hell," Deion Sanders told Garrett Bush of “The Barbershop” podcast this week. “He kept going and he matured, not like he was a child, but he matured spiritually. … You can't force this. If it ain't your time, it ain't your time."

The former Colorado Buffalo drew plenty of attention leading up to the draft with speculation swirling about where he might land. Reports that Shedeur did not interview well with teams added to the intrigued behind his fall to the third day.

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Deion Sanders spoke out against such reports, backing up his son’s pre-NFL success with how he readies himself to play.

"It was some ignorant things came out about him pre-draft and all that, and that was a lie," Deion said. "Like, he would never go into a meeting with headphones on. He would never go into a meeting unprepared. Like, that's just not who he is. There's no way he could accomplish the things he accomplished without being prepared."

Once the NFL season kicked off, the focus on Shedeur was when he would play. The Browns began the 2025 season with Joe Flacco as the starter and Sanders third on the depth chart behind fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel.

After not taking first-team reps during training camp, Shedeur moved up the depth chart to second after Flacco was dealt to the Cincinnati Bengals before Week 6. Sanders did not take a snap until the second half of Week 11 after Gabriel was concussed against the Baltimore Ravens.

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Shedeur would start the Browns' final seven games of the season with the team going 3-4. Head coach Kevin Stefanski was fired and former Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken was hired.

Shedeur finished his rookie year with 1,400 passing yards, 7 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in eight games.

When Shedeur and Monken finally met in late January, the new Browns head coach reminded his young quarterback that the Ravens were interested in drafting him, but Sanders reportedly told Baltimore he did not want to have to sit behind Lamar Jackson.

Deion Sanders said he is a fan of Monken's directness. "He keeps it a buck."

Deion added that he wants to meet with Monken as “Deion Sanders the coach,” not “Deion Sanders the dad,” in order to allow the new coach to better understand his potential starting quarterback.

“Even a guy like Travis Hunter being drafted to Jacksonville and I've had him for the last three [years], don't you think you would want to talk to me to ask me what gets him going and what backs him off?,” Deion said. “You would want to know that.

"So, I anticipate, and I can't wait to have that conversation with Coach Monken."

As training camp approaches, Deshaun Watson was reportedly leading the race to be the Browns’ No. 1 quarterback. Monken said earlier this month that he’s “not there yet” on the decision, but Sanders will have his opportunity to make his case for the job.

Basketball legend Lisa Leslie announced on Thursday that she will be immortalized outside of Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles with a statue, which will be unveiled before the Sparks’ Sept. 20 game against the Portland Fire.

During an appearance on “Good Morning America,” Leslie told host Robin Roberts that she is humbled by the honor and that she was happy she was able to continue her basketball career in Los Angeles after playing four years at USC.

"It has been a pleasure to play my whole career there in Los Angeles, to be a role model to the community," Leslie told GMA host Robin Roberts.

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Leslie played all 12 of her WNBA seasons with the Los Angeles Sparks, helping the franchise to back-to-back WNBA titles. The center was a two-time WNBA Finals MVP, three-time WNBA MVP, eight-time All-Star and All-WNBA First Teamer, and two-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year, among numerous other honors. She was also the first player in league history to dunk.

In 2010, Leslie's No. 9 jersey was retired by the Sparks. Five years later, she was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Honoring Leslie with a statue has been a idea discussed by the organization since 2019. Now that it’s finally coming to fruition, she will join Sue Bird as the only WNBA players to be honored with statues by their franchises.

Leslie’s statue will be a part of Star Plaza, which features Los Angeles sports legends including Wayne Gretzky, Kobe and Gigi Bryant, Pat Riley, Shaquille O'Neal, Magic Johnson, Oscar De La Hoya, Jerry West, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, among others.

“More than an athlete, she is a pioneer, a cultural icon and a force who elevated women’s basketball to new heights,” said Johnson in a statement. “This statue celebrates her excellence, her leadership and the future she helped create, and it ensures her impact will forever be part of the fabric of this city.”

The 2026 World Cup final will feature the first halftime show in the competition's history.

Madonna, Shakira and BTS will co-headline the Super Bowl-style performance during the July 19 match at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

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Announced by FIFA president Gianni Infantino in March 2025, the halftime show, which will air on Fox, was put together by Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin. According to Global Citizen, the show will raise money for the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund, which looks to help expand education services worldwide.

Normal halftime breaks in soccer are 15 minutes, as per the Laws of the Game. FIFA has already drawn up plans to allow the normal break time to be extended in order for the on-field setup and breakdown process to be completed.

FIFA hosted a halftime show during last summer's Club World Cup final, which was also at MetLife Stadium, featuring Doja Cat, J Balvin and Tems. A stage was constructed in the stands so as to not risk damage to the playing surface.