Lady Raiders drop final game of Gulf Coast Classic

Stanford guard Andrej Stojakovic will move across the San Francisco Bay with a transfer to Cal, ESPN reported Saturday. Stojakovic, the son of 13-year NBA standout and 2003 All-Star Peja Stojakovic, averaged 7.8 points with 3.4 rebounds in 32 games (10 starts) for Stanford as a freshman last season. With transfer options like Kentucky, North Carolina and Michigan reportedly available, Stojakovic opted to remain in California after growing up in Sacramento where his father played his first 7 1/2 seasons. --Field Level Media

NFL draft: Broncos trade up in fourth round, pick Oregon WR Troy Franklin

Jerry Jones, Cowboys 'keenly interested' in Ezekiel Elliott

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones expressed interest in the team welcoming back Ezekiel Elliott. Jones addressed reporters on Friday after the completion of the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft. The Cowboys did not select a running back in the first two days of the three-day event. "First of all, the draft's not over and that's a thought," Jones said, after being asked if the team's decision against selecting a running back thus far was about how the draft has progressed or if the team is comfortable with its ground attack. "And it was a long time before a running back was taken in today's draft. But we also are keenly interested in seeing what the future might look like with Zeke." Elliott played for Dallas from 2016-22 after the team selected him with the No. 4 overall section of the 2016 NFL Draft. He spent last season with the New England Patriots. While no public agreement is in place, the Cowboys met with Elliott and his agent earlier this week. Jones also said that Elliott's days as a starter are not behind him. "I know this, I saw as recent as the end of the year, I saw Zeke play," Jones said. "And I will tell you he's good enough to be a starter." The Cowboys appear to be in need of help in the backfield after letting running back Tony Pollard leave in free agency. Dallas' current running back room consists of Rico Dowdle, Royce Freeman, Deuce Vaughn, Malik Davis and Snoop Conner. Elliott, who turns 29 on July 22, stepped up last season after Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson was sidelined with a high-ankle sprain. Elliott finished with a team-best 642 yards and three touchdowns to go along with 51 catches for 313 yards and two scores in 17 games (five starts) last season. Elliott led the NFL in rushing in 2016 and 2018 and posted four 1,000-yard seasons with Dallas. He ranks third in Cowboys history in rushing yards (8,262) and rushing touchdowns (68) behind Hall of Fame members Emmitt Smith and Tony Dorsett. --Field Level Media

The Los Angeles Chargers are picking up the fifth-year option on left tackle Rashawn Slater, ESPN reported Saturday. Slater was the No. 13 overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Chargers, who used the No. 5 overall pick on Notre Dame left tackle Joe Alt in this year's draft on Thursday. Alt is expected to move to right tackle. Since his hiring this offseason, Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh has emphasized the need to protect franchise quarterback Justin Herbert. "First of all, the quarterback that we have, protect him, protect his environment on the field," Harbaugh said Feb. 1 at his introductory news conference. "Protect him. Also, beef up the run game." Slater will play the final season of his four-year, $16.63 million rookie deal in 2024, and he is slated to earn $19 million next season. If he doesn't sign a contract extension, Slater could become an unrestricted free agent in 2026. --Field Level Media

Teams took a pass on quarterbacks and turned toward the trenches during the second day of the NFL Draft on Friday night in Detroit. In Rounds 2 and 3, teams combined to select 16 offensive linemen, 10 interior defensive linemen and four edge rushers. The picks might have lacked the pizzazz of Round 1, when six quarterbacks were taken among the top 12 players, but coaches and front-office staff preached the importance of winning the line of scrimmage. The biggest example -- literally one of the biggest at 6-foot-2 and 366 pounds -- was Texas defensive lineman T'Vondre Sweat, who went to the Tennessee Titans with the sixth pick of the second round at No. 38 overall. Sweat, who plans to shed some weight, believes he can be a steal of the draft. "I'm going to go down more," Sweat told reporters when asked about his weight. "I can play good at 366. My coach said this past season, ‘Yeah, you played great, but you could have played better at 355 or 350.' ... If I go to 355, 350, most likely I'll be a Hall of Famer." Most teams would be pleased with productive starters coming from Rounds 2 and 3. Before the run on big men, the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers opened the second day of the draft with back-to-back selections of wide receivers. The Bills used the first pick of Round 2 to select Florida State's Keon Coleman, who could provide quarterback Josh Allen with a deep threat after the team traded Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans this offseason. The Chargers picked Georgia wide receiver Ladd McConkey moments later with the 34th overall pick. McConkey also could fill a void after Los Angeles sent veteran Keenan Allen to the Chicago Bears last month. Four of the next five picks were defensive linemen. The Atlanta Falcons took Clemson's Ruke Orhorhoro, the Washington Commanders selected Illinois' Johnny Newton, the Tennessee Titans selected Sweat and the Los Angeles Rams nabbed Florida State's Braden Fiske. The only team that did not beef up its defensive line in that five-pick stretch was the New England Patriots, who drafted Washington wide receiver Ja'Lynn Polk. The 6-foot-2, 204-pound receiver will team up with rookie quarterback Drake Maye, whom the Patriots took at No. 3 overall on Friday night. "He's a guy that we had our eyes on for a while," Patriots scouting director Eliot Wolf said. "Really good fit in our offense. He's really tough, he's strong, he can run all the routes. ... (He's) really just kind of a versatile, do-everything type guy." Four straight cornerbacks went off the board from picks No. 40-43. The Philadelphia Eagles started the run by drafting Cooper DeJean, an All-American out of Iowa whom many had projected as a first-round pick. The next three picks included Alabama cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry to the New Orleans Saints, Georgia cornerback Kamari Lassiter to the Texans and Rutgers cornerback Max Melton to the Arizona Cardinals. Texas' Jonathon Brooks was the first running back to be selected this year. The Carolina Panthers picked Brooks at No. 46 overall after he rushed for 1,139 yards and 10 touchdowns in 11 games with the Longhorns in 2023. In the third round, Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh reunited with one of his top defensive players from Michigan when the team drafted Wolverines linebacker Junior Colson at No. 69 overall. Cameras showed Harbaugh singing Michigan's fight song in the Chargers' war room. Three more Michigan players were drafted back-to-back-to-back later in the round. The Rams selected running back Blake Corum at No. 83, the Pittsburgh Steelers took wide receiver Roman Wilson at No. 84 and the Cleveland Browns zeroed in on offensive lineman Zak Zinter at No. 85. No quarterbacks were selected on the draft's second day. Prospects including Spencer Rattler of South Carolina and Michael Pratt of Tulane will hope to hear their names called Saturday as the draft concludes with Rounds 4-7. --Field Level Media

Teams focus on linemen in Rounds 2 and 3 of draft