by Zak Drapeau and Joel Piton Sportz Nation - 4/24/2026 Photo Credit: Nico Martinez/FW The Western Conference is full of icons. From dynasties in Los Angeles and Golden State to individual legends who put smaller markets on the map, the West is loaded with names that shaped the game. In terms of impact, who affected the game, and the way fans remember a team, the West have the East beat. So after breaking down every Eastern Conference team’s Mount Rushmore, we’re shifting ove

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 4/24/2026 Graphic and Photo Credit to UFC via UFC.com In our Fight Night Burns vs Malott Predictions which you can find here, Zak went 3-3 in picks with 2 method for 5 points. Matt went 4-2 in picks with 3 methods for 7 points. Points To Date: Zak: 71 (48-27) Matt: 68 (46-29) *All odds courtesy of Caesar's Sportsbook on 4/24 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 5Aljamain Sterling vs 7Youssef Zalal (Zalal - 130) Zak Drapeau - This f

by Joel Piton Sportz Nation - 4/24/2026 Photo Credit: Marcus Ship/AP It's no secret that when a player steps to the podium early on draft night, lofty expectations are guaranteed. Teams are investing millions of dollar into a kid that just might take their franchise to the promised land, putting hope, pressure, and expectation that one name can change everything. Over the years, the draft has produced stars, superstars and Hall of Famers that reshaped the league. But for ever

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/24/2026 Photo by Kirby Lee/ Imagn Imgaes via CNN 1. Fernando Mendoza - LV Grade: A- The right pick. Mendoza isn't the perfect QB prospect but he's very good and the best of the class. He'll be under no pressure to start until he's ready with Kirk Cousins on the roster and is already surrounded by Jeanty and Bowers. 2. David Bailey - NYJ Grade: A I had Bailey as the 2nd pick all along and a much better fit for the Jets than Reese so I love the

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/23/2026 My Final Mock of the year will come with no trades. While I expect there to be more than a few trades going down today, today's exercise is all about rumors I've heard, team expectations and player evaluations. While I wouldn't make all of these picks myself, this is the full mock draft I expect to actually happen tonight. You can also check out: my What I Would Do Mock Draft here and my Top-150 Prospect Big Board. Happy Draft Day! -Z.

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/21/2026 Photo by Kirby Lee/ Imagn Images *Click For Final Top-150 Big Board *Click For Final Positional Rankings _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 1. Fernando Mendoza QB Las Vegas Raiders The Raiders need a Quarterback and Mendoza is the easy pick. Mendoza will get to sit behind Cousins for a few games before taking the reigns and becoming their Franchise guy for the next decade. 2. Arvell Reese Edge New York Jets The Jets have been linked to Bailey a

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 4/21/2026 Photo by Simon Fearn/ Imagn Images Mike Malott vs LOSER Joaquin Buckley/Sean Brady Matt Hylen - Mike Malott looked fantastic in his first career UFC event. He was patient, but once he found his shot, it was over for Gilbert Burns. With Malott now in the top-15, I think a challenge is on the horizon for the Canadian native. With the loser of Joaquin Buckley and Sean Brady needing a fight down, I think it could make for a

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/21/2026 Graphic by NFL For Full Top-150 Prospect Big Board click Here, Quarterback 1. Fernando Mendoza 2. Ty Simpson 3. Drew Allar 4. Carson Beck 5. Garrett Nussmeier Running Back 1. Jeremiyah Love 2. Mike Washington Jr. 3. Jadarian Price 4. Jonah Coleman 5. Roman Hemby 6. Emmett Johnson 7. Seth McGowan 8. Nicholas Singleton 9. Jadyn Ott 10. Le'Veon Moss 11. Kaytron Allen 12. Kaelon Black Wide Receiver 1. Jordyn Tyson 2. Makai Lemon 3. Carnell

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/21/2026 Graphic by ESPN Click here for Full Positional Rankings 1. Caleb Downs Safety Ohio St Best Safety Prospect I've scouted either in the box or in deep zone. The only knock on him is that he's not 6'4" like Kyle Hamilton but to me, his instincts and fearlessness are even better. 2. Jeremiyah Love Running Back Notre Dame The biggest home run hitter in the class both on the ground or through the air. Love may not be the biggest back like

by Joel Piton Sportz Nation - 4/21/2026 Photo Credit: Danielle Parhizkaran/TBG Boston did exactly what they needed to do in Game 1, overwhelming Philadelphia 123-91 and grabbing an early 1-0 series lead. But nobody in Boston should sleep on this matchup or expect things to stay simple. The 76ers were without Joel Embiid in the opener, and while the Celtics took full advantage, this series could take on a completely different shape if Embiid comes back. A healthy or even limit

by Zak Drapeau and Joel Piton Sportz Nation - 4/19/2026 Graphic by Comet Sports via cometonline.com Every franchise has its icons, and legacy in the NBA is a brutal conversation. Great stats are nice. All-Star appearances help. But Mount Rushmore status? That’s different. That’s reserved for the players who literally became the franchise—the ones who switched up the culture, won over cities, made themselves impossible to erase from team history, and actually compelled you boo

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 4/15/2026 Photo Credits to @UFCCanada on Instagram In our UFC 327 Predictions which you can find here , Zak went 2-5 in picks with 1 method for 3 points. Matt went 5-2 in picks with 3 methods for 8 points. Points To Date: Zak: 66 (45-24) Matt: 61 (42-27)) *All odds courtesy of Caesar's Sportsbook on 4/15 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11 Gilbert Burns vs Mike Malott (Malott -320) Zak Drapeau - In an interesting main event th

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/17/2026 Photo by Chris O'Meara/ Associated Press The Boston Bruins are back in the Playoffs as the 1st Wild Card team in Eastern Conference. In the first round, the Bruins will face off with the Buffalo Sabres in a Best-of-7 series, a team in which they won the season series by a 3-1 record in the 2025/26 season. The Sabres finished the season with the 2nd best record in the conference at 50-23-9 for 109 points and the Bruins finished in 5th w

by Joel Piton Sportz Nation - 4/17/2026 Photo: GettyImages The 2025-26 NBA season has been a hard one to predict. From breakout campaigns and MVP-level dominance to injury battles and late-season pushes to meet eligibility requirements, this year’s award races have been filled with drama at every turn. In a season defined by injuries, recovery, controversy, and nonstop debate, narrowing down the winners is no easy task. Some picks feel like clear favorites, others could go a

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/14/2026 Photo by Ryan Kang/ Getty Images 1. Caleb Downs 6'0" - 206 lbs. Ohio State Big Board Rank: 1 Pro Comparison: Ed Reed Look, there are a few cant miss prospects in draft every year and I am more than comfortable saying Caleb Downs is the ONLY prospect in the 2026 NFL Draft that has zero chance in not becoming a Pro Bowler in this year's class. An extremely intelligent and fearless Safety, Downs is brilliant in coverage in a generational

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/16/2026 After last night's play-in game, we now know that the Celtics will start the 2026 NBA Playoffs in a 7 game series against the 76ers, starting Sunday afternoon from TD Garden. Photo by Winslow Townson/ Imagn Images Celtics Roster The Celtics 56-35 record this season was good enough for the 2nd seed in the East and the team is the clear favorite to make it to the NBA Finals. The team has actually been 15-5 since the return of star forwa

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/15/2026 Currently sitting at 6-11 in 5th place in the AL East, the Red Sox have had an up and down couple of weeks. After back-to-back 2-1 series wins over the Cardinals and Brewers, the Sox have lost two straight in Minnesota in horrendous fashion. Photo by Michael Thomas/ Associated Press Hitting The top hitters so far of this season have definitely been Willson Contreras, Wilyer Abreu and Cedanne Rafaela who have a .941, .935 and .748 OPS r

by Zak Drapeau Sportz Nation - 4/14/2026 Photo by Kate Luffman/ Tennessee Athletics 1. Jermod McCoy 6'1" - 188 lbs Tennessee Big Board Rank: 10 Pro Comparison: Stephon Gilmore McCoy is a very elite ball hawking corner with intense man coverage WHEN HEALTHY. And that's really the only knock on him is that he hasn't played real football since January of 2025 after tearing his ACL in an offseason workout. After his Tennessee Pro Day where he got back on the field and had good mo

by Joel Piton Sportz Nation - 4/14/2026 Photo: Sarah Stier/Getty The 2025 draft class came into the NBA with some serious hype and the massive expectation to exceed the group before it—it's safe to say this crop of first-year players are doing just that. From polished scorers to pure shooters and defensive pests, this class has already produced a handful of young talents who look more than capable of becoming long term prospects. More importantly, these rookies have given fan

by Zak Drapeau and Matt Hylen Sportz Nation - 4/13/2026 Photo by Ed Mulholland/ Getty Images Carlos Ulberg vs WINNER of Prochazka vs Ankalaev Zak Drapeau - What a performance we saw from Carlos Ulberg in his first title fight. After tearing his ACL, he STILL knocked Jiri Prochazka into next week and became the new Light Heavyweight Champion. Unfortunately, because of the injury, Ulberg will be out close to a year and may even have to vacate his title. Whether he vacates or no