Dan Wolken

Bill Belichick's failings at UNC underline one thing: He thinks he's bigger than the job Bill Belichick has failed on almost every account at UNC and they have reached the midway point of the season as one of the biggest laughingstocks in the sport. How long will the school put up with hi...

Bill Belichick is failing at North Carolina because he thinks he’s bigger than the job. He’s wrong. My column for @yahoosports.bsky.social sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

Misery Index: Penn State's woes worsen with embarrassing loss to UCLA On a revealing Saturday of college football, there were plenty of losers. But nobody took a bigger 'L' than the Nittany Lions, who dropped their second straight game.

The James Franklin dilemma, nepotism at UNC, wasteful spending at Texas, a potentially ugly divorce at Kentucky - nobody was spared in this week’s Misery Index for @yahoosports.bsky.social

sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

Inside Vanderbilt's athletic awakening: From SEC doormat to darling, here's how the mindset shifted in Nashville Vanderbilt is relevant in sports now and it goes well beyond Diego Pavia and the football team's success. But it took a serious attitude adjustment and plenty of investment to get to this point.

Vandy’s breakthrough is about more than Diego Pavia. After decades of apathy, the school aligned behind a sports-loving chancellor who gave permission to finally act like an SEC member.

“We have no tolerance for mediocrity anywhere”

My latest for Yahoo Sports

sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

Arkansas going back to Bobby Petrino as next head football coach would be a disaster lying in wait The next two months in Arkansas will be all about one man and the desire to reach for past glory, no matter the cost or the risk. But with Petrino, it always ends badly.

Bobby Petrino? Don’t do it, Arkansas. Just don’t. sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

Misery Index: Who's to blame for Auburn's glaring offensive woes? After being subjected to such a ridiculous process with predictably bad results, while also wasting a truly elite defense, Auburn reigns as America’s most miserable fan base in Week 5.

Who’s actually calling the bad plays for Auburn? Is it OK to ask Brian Kelly about his offense now? Why is Penn State’s record against top-10 teams so bad? Did Florida St get screwed? Wake Forest definitely did. It’s all in the Week 5 Misery Index sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

Here's the real question after Oklahoma State's firing of Mike Gundy: Can they do better? Nobody else could have made the Cowboys nationally relevant for two decades the way Gundy did.

College programs only get one run like Mike Gundy’s. It was fun, it was frustrating and it was unique in so many ways. Now it’s over. My column for Yahoo Sports sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

What's wrong with UCLA football? How can a school that sits in one of America’s most desirable zip codes, with one of the most well-regarded brands in college athletics, struggle so badly to get it right in football?

A deep dive with @danwolken.bsky.social on one of college sports' most puzzling mysteries: Why does UCLA struggle so badly to get it right in football?

sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

Misery Index: After Arkansas AD’s brutal reality check about program, Hogs show it’s actually worse with stunning collapse A contentious week at Arkansas got even worse for Sam Pittman and Co. after a loss to Memphis. Who else had a bad Saturday?

Arkansas fans were already mad about comments their AD made last week. Then they lost to Memphis. Easy trip to No. 1 in this week’s Misery Index sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

After Clemson's latest stunning loss, Dabo Swinney's bold talk is ringing more hollow than ever Rather than insisting fans should be grateful about Clemson's past success, Swinney should spend more time figuring out why his program has fallen so far from that standard.

@danwolken.bsky.social back doing his thing with yahoo with a quick read on Dabo and Clemson.

Boos and bad throws: After another ugly outing, Arch Manning needs to show something ... and quick Though the preseason expectations for Manning were obviously way too high, one would think he'd look a little bit against lesser competition like UTEP.

“Go ahead and remove any Heisman references from the conversation. Manning is light years from playing at that level. The question now is whether he’s even good enough to get Texas to the CFP.” @danwolken.bsky.social:

NCAA's sports betting conundrum: Should players be allowed to bet on pro sports? After two straight days of college basketball betting scandals, it's clear the sport has a gambling issue. Would allowing athletes to bet on other sports alleviate the NCAA's problems, or only make ma...

Should the NCAA allow college athletes to bet on pro sports? They’re considering it at the same time their enforcement staff is investigating a load of match fixing cases in college basketball. I’m not sure it’s a good idea. Column for @yahoosports.bsky.social sports.yahoo.com/mens-college...

With 4-game gauntlet ahead, what can Billy Napier do to salvage his job at Florida? Sitting at just 20-20 in his Florida tenure, Napier hasn't exactly delivered for the Gators. With the string of opponents it must navigate in the coming weeks, Napier's seat could get even hotter.

Florida heads into a four-game stretch that will determine whether Billy Napier shoukd keep his job. The good news? It should be crystal clear by mid-October whether his disappointing tenure needs to end. sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

I’ve had the same question

U.S. Open: Carlos Alcaraz is an all-time great at just 22 ... but can he become the greatest? After his win at the U.S. Open, Carlos Alcaraz is the youngest player ever to win six major championships.

Carlos Alcaraz is an all-time great st age 22. Can he become the greatest ever? After Grand Slam title No. 6, the chase is on. My column for @yahoosports.bsky.social sports.yahoo.com/tennis/artic...

US Open: Carlos Alcaraz vs. Jannik Sinner already an all-time duel, and it's pushing tennis to new heights Alcaraz and Sinner are meeting in their third straight Grand Slam final. This is already comparable to some of the sport's most memorable rivalries.

Ahead of today’s US Open final, I wrote about how the Carlos Alcaraz-Jannik Sinner rivalry is pushing the sport of tennis to places it’s never been before. sports.yahoo.com/tennis/artic...

Misery Index: Florida's loyalty to Billy Napier looks like a terrible mistake After a ghastly loss to South Florida, it's clear everyone involved in Florida's charade of a football program is just wasting time and, more importantly, wasting money.

Here’s the Misery Index for Week 2. Led, of course, by the disaster in Gainesville sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

Not at this time outside of possible guest appearances here and there

Why tennis needs Andre Agassi in the broadcast booth Agassi made television magic in his broadcast debut, leaving little doubt that tennis could use more of him.

Also, why tennis needs more Andre Agassi in the broadcast booth sports.yahoo.com/tennis/artic...

The Big Ten has won college football's last 2 national championships. Here's why the SEC still lords over the sport The Big Ten's latest misstep with the 28-team playoff leak shows just how far the conference has fallen off in comparison to the SEC. Commissioner Tony Petitti and Co. need to figure out a better appr...

First column for Yahoo Sports: How the Big Ten lost the narrative war to the SEC sports.yahoo.com/college-foot...

Thrilled to announce that I’m joining the great team over at Yahoo! Sports as a senior writer. Let’s get started!

An announcement from me, and a heartfelt thank you.

Why Ben Shelton will break the American men's tennis Grand Slam drought Ben Shelton has what it takes to finally end a 22-year drought for U.S. men that dates back to Andy Roddick.

COLUMN: Ben Shelton is the one who’s going to end the 22-year Grand Slam drought for American men. Here’s why I think it’s going to happen soon. www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

Deboned chicken thigh poached in soy and sake, served over somen noodle and the cooled broth. So good.

Former Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley has new goal of Georgia Senate race Derek Dooley didn't make it as college football coach at Tennessee, but he's got his sights set on a different goal - a Senate seat in Georgia.

COLUMN: Derek Dooley was always far more fit to be in politics than on a sideline in the SEC. But in Georgia, being known as the guy who out-mangled Les Miles at the end of a game probably won’t help his Senate bid. www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

Congrats Sally on both the new gig and the legendary run at the WaPo

Thank you Mike! Hope you’re enjoying retirement

Honored to be selected for induction into the Vanderbilt Student Media Hall of Fame class of 2025. My time there was invaluable in learning how to be a journalist and launching me to the career I am blessed to have now.

news.vanderbilt.edu/2025/07/30/a...

Calling Scottie Scheffler 'boring' slights star's complete dominance Scottie Scheffler's latest major, a thorough four-stroke win at the Open Championship, is another reminder that he's mastered golf like few have.

COLUMN: Scottie Scheffler’s dominance over the golf world is anything but boring. www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

NCAA settlement for college sports already facing challenges. Was this the plan all along? The settlement restructuring college athletics is already dealing with issues. Did the NCAA and power conferences get duped or build it to fail?

COLUMN: After years of legal wrangling and $2.8 billion in damages, how the (expletive) did the NCAA and Kessler leave room for interpretation on whether booster collectives can operate as they did before? www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

Strawberry Pasta? How to make tennis star Iga Swiatek's viral recipe USA TODAY Sports' Dan Wolken puts his chef's hat on to whip up some strawberry pasta, the dish that went viral thanks to tennis star Iga Swiatek

I did a cooking video on Iga Swiatek’s strawberry pasta. It wasn’t bad! www.usatoday.com/videos/sport...