Saturday's Report: Bacon, Mercer/FPD grad golfer, Joe DeFore obit; Braves, UGA/SEC/Kearis Jackson; MLB, college FB/SEC, golf, NASCAR, more

Saturday's Report: Bacon, Mercer/FPD grad golfer, Joe DeFore obit; Braves, UGA/SEC/Kearis Jackson; MLB, college FB/SEC, golf, NASCAR, more

News and notes of interest to Central Georgia, compiled from staff reports, email reports, the web, and social media.

Coming Saturday: The Central Georgia Sports Report was your area home to the best - OK, really, any - media days coverage. Go back and check the several dozen SEC and ACC stories, and get ready for even more, coming Saturday afternoon. 

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Coastal Plain

Savannah 4, Macon 2

Pro

MLB

Atlanta 8, LA Angels 1

 

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College Realignment

How the Big 12 can be No. 3 behind SEC and Big Ten

Memphis left out of realignment mess

Would the ACC want UConn?

Column: Pac-12/Big 12 merger was never in the cards

Swinney: ‘doesn’t matter what I think’ about realignment

Is ACC readying for its swan song?

UNC’s Brown worried about changing the game

Column: A look at SEC options

WVU fans should be happy with ACC’s indecisions

 

Honor Roll

Georgia College adds to Peach Belt honor roll

Around/About Central Georgia

Services Saturday for Lanier grad, South Carolina standout DeFore

          Joe DeFore, a two-sport standout in high school and college, died Wednesday.

          Services are Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Chapel of Macon Memorial Park Funeral Home on Mercer University Drive.

          DeFore, 89, was an all-state and all-Southern football player in 1951 at Lanier, playing on the line under legendary head coach Selby Buck. Lanier went 9-3 in DeFore’s junior season and reached the GHSA Class AA final, a year after going to the semifinals.

          He helped the Poets to two state track titles with his performances in the shot, which included an individual championship in 1952.

          He played football and competed in track at South Carolina, lettering twice in both sports.

          DeFore was a longtime member of the Macon Touchdown Club, as well as 2007 inductee to the Macon Sports Hall of Fame. He is the brother of former Macon city councilman and Macon-Bibb commissioner and longtime Central Georgia sports booster Ed DeFore, a 2001 inductee to the Macon Sports Hall of Fame.

 

Savannah continues ownership of Macon

          A three-run fifth put Savannah on top for good en route to a 4-2 win over visiting Macon.

          West Laurens grad Nolan Daniel got the save with two shutout innings, after getting the win earlier this week against Macon.

          Jake Larson had three of Macon’s hits with Cameron Crosby adding two hits.

          The teams play Saturday in Macon, Wednesday in Savannah and Thursday in Macon, for the final time in the regular season. Macon hosts Lexington County on Sunday and Forest City on Friday.

 

Mercer golfer, FPD grad qualifies for U.S. Amateur

 

Around/About Georgia/Southeast

Morton sharp, Atlanta finally gets to Ohtani

Not too close, the SEC East picks

Obit: Former Brave Dwight Smith

Peach County’s Jackson among UGA’s All-SEC picks

 

College Sports

Future of college sports now at Texas Tech

Iowa hires two diversity-focused staffers

College Football/South

Alabama and Georgia top All-SEC teams, polls

And Alabama is predicted to do it again at the end

SEC polls and teams

Tennessee gets notes of allegations from the Pruitt era, again

Jackson State star recruit in boot at media day

Column: A&M right to expect more from Fisher

MLB/Baseball

HOF ceremony a living history lesson on minorities in MLB

Inside-the-park slam lifts Toronto over Boston

MLB trying to get numbers back to pre-pandemic levels

Marlins ended 37-inning scoreless streak

Golf

Piercy takes lead in 3M Open

Auto Racing

Kyle Busch contract talks not going well

And he hints at retirement

Red Bull boss calls for zero tolerance in abuse from fans

Track & Field

Felix postpones retirement for relay at worlds

US men, women reach relay final

Around the nation/world

McMahon announces retirement from WWE

Top moments from the ESPYs

MLB scores/games

WNBA scores/games