A year after making the cut to successfully resume his football career following a near-death experience, Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin reached a new plateau in his comeback in being selected a season-opening starter on Wednesday.

Coach Sean McDermott announced the news by saying Hamlin will be paired with Taylor Rapp when the Bills take the field in hosting the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.

“What else can’t this young man do?” McDermott said, proudly.

“It’s one thing to come back off of an ACL or a broken bone. It’s another thing to come back off of what he came back off of, right, let alone just decide to play contact football. … I mean, it’s incredible,” he added. “We’re just extremely proud and full of gratitude to watch him go through what he’s went through and where he is now.”

The fourth-year player was hardly assured of winning a starting job, even with both spots being open after Buffalo released Jordan Poyer in March and with Micah Hyde still unsigned and contemplating retirement. The Bills signed fifth-year player Mike Edwards in free agency and then used a second-round pick to draft Cole Bishop.

Edwards and Bishop, however, have missed significant time because of injuries, and McDermott credited Hamlin for showing consistency and building an on-field rapport with Rapp.

WNBA

Clark fastest player to reach 100 3s in league

Caitlin Clark became the fastest player in WNBA history to reach 100 3-pointers in a season and finished with 24 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for her second career triple-double as the playoff-bound Indiana Fever beat the Los Angeles Sparks 93-86.

Clark connected on her second 3 of the game and 100th of the season midway through the third quarter and added two more to reach 102 and finish 4 of 10 from long range. The No. 1 overall draft pick is the first rookie with 100 3s.

She also became the first rookie and fifth WNBA player with multiple triple-doubles in a season, joining Alyssa Thomas, Courtney Williams, Sabrina Ionescu and Candace Parker.

“Of course I knew, but honestly, like, we were just trying to get stops,” Clark said in a courtside interview.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Gophers net first of ’25 class, Pennsylvania guard

The Gophers men’s basketball team has picked up a commitment from Kai Shinholster, a 6-foot-5 combo guard from Philadelphia.

“Beyond blessed to announce my commitment to the University of Minnesota!!!” Shinholster wrote on X. “I want to thank all the coaches and people in my life that have helped me get to this point. I want to give a special thanks to my family for sticking by my side. Go Gophers!!”

Shinholster is considered a three-star prospect and had scholarship offers from James Madison, Mississippi State, St. Louis, Temple, Rhode Island and other programs, per 247sports.

Shinholster, who attends William Penn Charter School, is the first commitment in the U’s 2025 recruiting class.

— Andy Greder

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Hard-luck LSU RB sidelined again for ACL

LSU running back John Emery has a torn anterior cruciate ligament that will sideline him for the rest of what is his sixth season with the No. 18 Tigers, a person familiar with the situation told the Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because LSU has not announced the injury, which occurred during practice in Baton Rouge on Tuesday and was first reported by The Advocate of Baton Rouge.

Emery, whose career has been marked by absences caused either by injuries or academic ineligibility, was LSU’s most productive running back in the Tigers’ season-opening, 27-20 loss to Southern California in Las Vegas on Sunday night.

NHL

Gaudreau remembered in evening vigils

Fans and Columbus Blue Jackets players gathered for an emotional candlelight vigil outside the team’s arena Wednesday night to remember Johnny Gaudreau and brother Matthew, who died last week when they were struck by a suspected drunken driver while riding bicycles in their home state of New Jersey.

The crowd of of roughly 1,000 outside Nationwide Arena was encouraged at 7:49 p.m. to light their candles. For the next 13:21 — for Johnny’s jersey No. 13 and Matthew’s No. 21 — they stood in silent remembrance watching a slideshow of the brothers from childhood, through their teenage years and into college hockey, the pros, and lives filled with joy and love.

Players including captain Boone Jenner, defenseman Erik Gudbranson and forward Cole Sillinger shared memories and inspiration from knowing Johnny Gaudreau.

When the timer finished and candle wax and tears commingled on the bricks outside the arena, chants began: “Johnny Hockey, Johnny Hockey, Johnny Hockey.”

At 8:08, the players moved back inside the building as one. A similar vigil took place in Calgary, where Johnny Gaudreau played for nearly a decade.

Briefly

NWSL >> Washington Spirit rookie midfielder Croix Bethune will miss the rest of the season for the National Women’s Soccer League club after apparently suffering a knee injury while throwing the ceremonial first pitch at a Washington Nationals game last week.

NFL >> The Washington Commanders have suspended an employee pending an internal investigation after he was shown making derogatory comments about players and fans in undercover video posted on social media.

NFL >> Denver Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II signed a four-year contract extension worth $96 million with $77.5 million guaranteed. The new deal begins in 2026 and would keep Surtain in Denver through the 2029 season.

NFL >> A circuit court judge in Florida has dismissed a lawsuit two women filed against former NFL kicker Brandon McManus and the Jacksonville Jaguars that accused McManus of sexually assaulting them on the team’s overseas flight to London in 2023.

— From news services