Sports Perspectives

Maryland football coach DJ Durkin needs to go

Head football coach DJ Durkin is under fire at Maryland after a player died following a heatstroke at a practice in May. <br>Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post

A player died on head coach DJ Durkin's watch. Amazingly, though, if details in a blistering ESPN report Friday are to be believed — and they should be — that's not the worst part.

Former San Francisco Giant star Barry Bonds is all smiles after throwing out the ceremonial first pitch to a standing ovation prior to action against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 3 of the NLCS in San Francisco, California, on Tuesday, October 19, 2010.<br>Jose Luis Villegas/Sacramento Bee/TNS

Column

There’s no good reason to object to Barry Bonds’ number retirement

Barry Bonds is immortalized in too many places to count in the Giants’ venerable home. Clearly, the team is proud of their association with Bonds. So why wouldn’t his number be formally retired?

NASCAR drivers bunch up as they make turn 2 during the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., on Sunday, June 24, 2018.<br>Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group/TNS

Column

NASCAR season ending soon, which stars are at risk of missing the playoffs?

There are only four races left in the 2018 Cup Series regular season. Some of the sport’s recognizable names won’t be joining in on the postseason festivities.

Alabama head coach Nick Saban holds his SEC Media Days press conference at the College Football Hall of Fame on Wednesday, July 18, 2018, in Atlanta, Ga.<br>Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution/TNS

Does college football have an answer for how to beat Alabama?

The same predicament arises every summer. With a new season approaching, college football must once again ask: How do we beat Alabama? The Crimson Tide dynasty has now stretched nearly a decade with five national championships and counting.

Benin starting pitcher Benoit grips the ball while warming up before a Little League baseball game against Hopkins in the annual Robbinsdale Wood Bat tournament Saturday, Aug. 4, 2018, at Lakeview Terrace in Robbinsdale, Minn. <br>David Joles/Star Tribune via AP

Column

The problem isn’t the Little League World Series, it’s that we watch it

All youth sports have gone off the rails to a certain degree, with travel teams and academy programs and $100 per hour “privates” and pre-pubescent specialization and overuse injuries and burnout.

Golden State guard Steph Curry is guarded by Washington's John Wall during a February 2017 game. <br>John McDonnell/The Washington Post

COLUMN

2016 salary cap spike helped Warriors and hurt NBA. Worse, nobody saw that coming.

A month into the NBA's annual free agency period, many available players have had to scrounge for whatever they can get or opt into existing deals. After teams' wild spending in 2016, there simply isn't enough money to go around.

Terrell Owens looks back at his former coaches while giving a speech to commemorate his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at Mckenzie Arena at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. <br>Kevin D. Liles/For The Washington Post

Pro Football Hall of Fame reportedly considering a 'show up or else' rule

The Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony was Saturday night, and Terrell Owens wasn't there, choosing to hold an induction ceremony of his very own in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It was, he said, an act of protest.