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Kentucky defensive lineman Nic Smith dies at age 20. School says no foul play suspected

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky defensive lineman Nic Smith has died at age 20, the school announced Monday.

School spokesman Jay Blanton said the University of Kentucky Police Department received a call Monday at 10:03 a.m. reporting that a student had been found dead in a residence hall. The university announced Smith’s death in a statement later in the day.

Blanton said the police department was working with the Lexington-Fayette County Coroner, and an initial investigation did not indicate that foul play was involved.

“Today our hearts are broken,” Kentucky coach Will Stein said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with Nic’s family, friends, teammates and everyone who knew and loved him. This is a tremendous loss for our program and university community. We will continue to support one another and honor his memory.”

Smith, who redshirted last season, was a sophomore in the community leadership and development program in the Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment. His nicknames were “Happy” and “Big Happ,” according to his biography page on the Kentucky athletic department’s website.

He played football and basketball at Walnut Grove High School in Loganville, Georgia.

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Texas Tech defends playing QB Brendan Sorsby amid gambling addiction, says ‘it’s not murder’

HOUSTON (AP) — Top leadership at Texas Tech on Wednesday defended their plan to play quarterback Brendan Sorsby next season while he treats his gambling addiction, insisting they are not trying to “engineer his eligibility” through the courts and dismissing widespread criticism of the Red Raiders that includes school discussions of boycotting their teams. Speaking to fans and boosters at the Houston Touchdown Club, coach Joey McGuire acknowledged the “rage” surrounding the situation, with athletic directors across college football saying that the NCAA ban on players who gamble should remain sacrosanct and a court order won this week by Sorsby to restore his eligibility crossed a line that should never be crossed. “For some reason, as a society, we’ve been OK with other things that happen and allowing players to play, and this has been the one thing that has united people, that they were against,” McGuire said. “It’s crazy because it’s not murder, it’s not beating somebody -- so there’s a lot of things that we’re working through. None of this is OK.” Texas Tech officials canceled a news conference that was scheduled for before the luncheon. After his speech, McGuire said he'd only take questions from “Red Raider fans” and answered them for about 10 minutes.
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