College Football
Florida State gets coaches’ preseason vote for No. 1
Defending national champion Florida State is ranked No. 1 in the preseason Amway coaches’ poll.
Florida State received 1,543 overall points and earned 56 of a possible 62 first-place votes in the poll, which was released Thursday. Alabama was second in the poll despite not receiving any first-place votes. Rounding out the top five were Oklahoma, Oregon and Auburn with the first-ever playoff looming at the end of this season.
Ohio State was sixth, UCLA seventh, Michigan State eighth, South Carolina ninth and Baylor 10th.
The Southeastern Conference had five of the top 13 teams in the poll, with No. 12 Georgia and No. 13 LSU joining Alabama, Auburn and South Carolina.
Oklahoma received three first-place votes. Oregon, Ohio State and South Carolina received one first-place vote each.
Golf
Leishman’s 64 leads Day 1, while Woods shoots a 68
AKRON, Ohio – Tiger Woods made six birdies Thursday to account for his mistakes and opened with a 2-under 68 at the Bridgestone Invitational. He still was four shots behind Marc Leishman of Australia, who shot 64 on a perfect day for scoring at Firestone.
Justin Rose was among five players at 65, while 27 players in the 76-man field at this World Golf Championship broke par.
British Open champion Rory McIlroy made a late double bogey in his round of 69.
Johnson excuses himself for ‘personal challenges’
AKRON, Ohio – Dustin Johnson is taking a leave of absence from golf to seek help for what he said were “personal challenges.”
While the statement he released through his management company offered no details, Johnson would not be at the PGA Championship next week at Valhalla Golf Club and will miss the Ryder Cup.
Johnson said by committing resources and time to improve his life he will be better equipped to fulfill his potential.
The 30-year-old Johnson is fourth in the FedEx Cup rankings and fifth in the Ryder Cup standings and would appear to have locked up one of the nine spots. If he doesn’t play, that means the player at No. 10 would earn a place on the U.S. team.
Soccer
Ebola virus essentially bans Sierra Leone from qualifier
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone – The Sierra Leone soccer team was banned from traveling to the Seychelles for an African Cup of Nations qualifier because of fears over the deadly Ebola virus.
Officials and players were barred from boarding a plane Thursday in Nairobi, Kenya, that would have taken them to the Seychelles capital of Victoria for Saturday’s game.
The BBC reported that Seychelles immigration authorities decided not to allow the Sierra Leone party to travel to the Indian Ocean island because of Ebola. The virus has killed more than 700 people in the West African countries of Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.
The BBC also said Seychelles forfeited Saturday’s game and a place in next year’s African Cup.
Tennis
A knee injury forces Li Na from the U.S. Open
NEW YORK – Two-time major champion Li Na pulled out of the U.S. Open on Thursday because of a knee injury she said has bothered her for several months.
The only tennis player from China to win a Grand Slam singles title also withdrew from hard-court tournaments in Cincinnati and Montreal over the next two weeks.
Li did not specify which knee, but she played with her right knee taped up at Wimbledon, her most recent tournament.
The U.S. Open will begin Aug. 25.
On Wednesday, 14-time major champion Rafael Nadal announced he hurt his right wrist in practice but holds out hope of defending his title at the U.S. Open.
Associated Press
