Tag: ESPYs

Flau’Jae Johnson mentions Angel Reese and Joe Burrow during ESPYs performance

Flau’Jae Johnson name-dropped a couple of LSU stars during her performance at the ESPYs.

[autotag]Flau’Jae Johnson[/autotag] has the chance to emerge as LSU women’s basketball’s biggest star on the court this season, but she’s already a star off the court.

Johnson has a budding rap career and recently released her debut EP, “The Best of Both Worlds,” which features collaborations with Lil Wayne. With her profile growing, she had the tremendous opportunity to perform her music at the ESPYs on Thursday night.

She took the stage to perform her song “Came Out A Beast” from her debut album, and the song features a couple of references LSU fans may have picked up on as she name-drops both [autotag]Angel Reese[/autotag] and [autotag]Joe Burrow[/autotag].

The Savannah native has been a big part of the Tigers’ success in her first two seasons in Baton Rouge, and now that Reese has moved on, she could be the face of this team as it looks to return to the Final Four in Year 4 under [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag].

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Notre Dame men’s athletics win third Capital One Cup

Congrats, Notre Dame!

The Capital One Cup demonstrates greatness of a university’s athletic department. Each year, it is given out on both the men’s and women’s side. Notre Dame has captured the men’s award for the second time in three years and third time overall. Former lacrosse player [autotag]Pat Kavanaugh[/autotag] was on hand at this year’s ESPYS to acknowledge the victory:

At 103 points, Notre Dame finished well ahead of second-place Michigan (90 points) in the men’s standings. The national-championship lacrosse team got the most points with 60. The soccer team, the College Cup runner-up, earned 30 points, and the fencing team, another national-championship runner-up, got six points. Rounding out the scoring was the swimming and diving team, which earned a single point for playing 10th at the national meet.

This should serve as a reminder that although football is Notre Dame’s biggest sport by far, the university strives for athletic success across the board. Congratulations to the programs that made this honor possible.

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Flau’jae Johnson gave Angel Reese a shoutout during her jaw-dropping performance at the ESPYs

Best of Both Worlds is the most accurate way to describe Flau’jae

We’ve seen plenty of athletes who’ve moonlighted as rappers and entertainers before. Deion Sanders, Shaquille O’Neal, Metta World Peace, Damian Lillard. Some of them are actually pretty good, too.

It might be a little early to say this, considering that she’s only just beginning her young career, but Flau’Jae Johnson might be the one to top all of them.

LSU’s star guard has been doing big things on the court and in the booth for years now. She’s been one of LSU’s star basketball players for years and played a huge part in the team’s national title.

While doing all of that, though, she’s carved out her own niche in the music world. She just dropped her debut album, “Best of Both Worlds,” and it even has a track with Lil Wayne on it.

That’s the exact song she performed at the ESPYs and she completely dominated the stage.

She even had a bar shouting out her former teammate, Angel Reese. “Keep me a double, I feel like I’m Reese.”

Flau’Jae is such a star, on and off the court. And she’s only getting better at both.

ESPYs: Drew Brees introduces Steve Gleason for Arthur Ashe Award for Courage

Drew Brees introduced Steve Gleason as the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage recipient at the ESPYs on Thursday night. Both Saints legends shared powerful words:

Steve Gleason was recognized at the ESPYs on Thursday night as the recipient of the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage, and he was introduced to the audience and viewers at home by another New Orleans Saints legend: Drew Brees.

Brees and Gleason were only teammates for two years in 2006 and 2007, but they’ve remained close over the many years since, and it’s clear he thinks the world of No. 37. Brees spoke about Gleason’s impact on the iconic “Rebirth” game after Hurricane Katrina, his character, and the struggle he has experiencing in the face of a debilitating illness.

“When I think about Steve as a teammate, and a friend, I think of a guy who has always taken the idea of living to the next level,” Brees said. “Steve has always been interested in having a deeper conversation, going on a bigger adventure, finding ways to experience the wonders of the world in every possible way. Always curious to explore both the seen and the unseen of human emotion and connection. Experiencing plenty of fear along the way but never shying away. From challenging himself and those around him.”

Gleason was joined onstage by his son Rivers, at which he point he shared a speech of his own. While he has lost his voice and the use of his limbs to ALS, Gleason is able to communicate with text-to-speech software that allows him to write with his eyes, and he used this opportunity to reflect on what courage means, and how the support of those around him have allowed him to outlive a fatal diagnosis by more than a decade. His words were powerful, but we’ll let Gleason speak for himself. Take some time to watch it:

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Prince Harry delivered an emotional ESPYs speech while accepting the Pat Tillman Award for Service

Prince Harry did a wonderful job with his ESPYs award speech.

During Thursday night’s 2024 ESPYs ceremony, Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, gave an incredibly moving acceptance speech after he was awarded the Pat Tillman Award for Service.

Honored for his work with the Invictus Games, Prince Harry talked about how much the charity means to him, one that supports wounded, injured and sick servicemen and women, whether they’re on active duty or are veterans.

He was joined by three Invictus Games participants, who all discussed how much the organization meant to them.

This was just such a cool moment at this year’s ESPYs, as Prince Harry brought plenty of emotion into the room while accepting this deserving honor.

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Dawn Staley delivered a powerful ESPYs speech and fans were in awe

Dawn Staley delivered a powerful speech during the 2024 ESPYs.

South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley delivered a powerful speech on Thursday night during the 2024 ESPYs.

Accepting the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance for her work as an advocate for those battling cancer, Staley talked about how much the honor meant to her and praised those who were fighting the horrid disease.

Staley’s speech inspired plenty in the crowd and watching at home, as it’s yet another strong reminder of why she’s such a beloved figure in the sporting world.

The ESPYs always feature plenty of amazing moments that highlight the best of sports, and this wonderful speech from Staley definitely qualified.

Fans were in awe of Staley’s moving speech during the ceremony.

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Serena Williams and Quinta Brunson savagely roasted Harrison Butker during the 2024 ESPYs while he was most likely in the room

Harrison Butker didn’t have a fun night at the ESPYs, thanks to this brutal dig on his commencement controversy.

During Thursday night’s 2024 ESPYs ceremony, show host Serena Williams and Abbott Elementary mastermind Quinta Brunson absolutely roasted Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker while he was in the room.

Butker attended this year’s ESPYs show in Los Angeles, where his deeply controversial commencement speech featuring misogynistic and homophobic sentiments ignited the sports world.

As Venus Williams talked about how fans can enjoy women’s sports without reservation, Serena Williams chimed in that Butker isn’t needed in this important push. Brunson quickly agreed.

This was particularly devastating since Butker was most likely in the room since he was on the event’s red carpet.

Here’s proof that Butker, indeed, was at this year’s ESPYs and most likely took this burn from Serena Williams and Brunson from his seat in real time.

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Whew. That’s absolutely brutal. We’re sure Butker wasn’t thrilled about that very pointed dig, but then again, airing your feelings in a public space is how Butker landed in this situation.

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Watch Serena Williams deliver her very enjoyable 2024 ESPYs opening monologue

Serena Williams did a really nice job with her 2024 ESPYs opening monologue.

Tennis legend Serena Williams swapped out a tennis racket for a microphone on Thursday night as this year’s ESPYs host.

Williams delivered a very funny opening monologue at the ESPY ceremony, where she touched on everything from the rise of Caitlin Clark to the Kendrick Lamar and Drake rap beef.

She also joked about Will Smith winning an Oscar for playing her father in the film King Richard right after his infamous Chris Rock slap.

The opening segment accomplished exactly what it needed to, setting a fun tone for the night for all of the athletes in attendance.

Williams did very fine work with her opening monologue, which you can watch in full below.

Feature image courtesy of ESPN. 

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Caitlin Clark took focus at the ESPYs with a very funny joke from show host Serena Williams

Caitlin Clark was the center of a very funny joke during Serena Williams’ 2024 ESPY monologue.

During Thursday night’s 2024 ESPY Awards, show host and tennis legend Serena Williams delivered a very funny joke about Indiana Fever rookie guard Caitlin Clark.

Her opening monologue covered a lot of subjects, and Clark’s impressive rise to prominence in the sporting world took focus when Williams talked about her impact on basketball.

Williams compared Clark to NBA legend Larry Bird, and her reasoning was pretty hysterical.

“You are the Larry Bird in that you are an amazing player, you have ties to Indiana and white people are really crazy about you,” Williams joked during the ceremony, which got big laughs from the crowd. 

Clark is one of the biggest athletes in any sport right now, and Williams did a splendid job of summing up why with this excellent explanation.

We’re sure Clark and Bird both got a kick out of this, as it was one of the best jokes of Williams’ opening monologue.

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LSU basketball star Flau’Jae Johnson to perform at ESPYs

LSU star Flau’Jae Johnson will take the stage at the ESPYs on Thursday night.

LSU basketball star [autotag]Flau’Jae Johnson[/autotag] has made a name for herself on and off the court. She’s played a pivotal role in LSU’s tournament success the last two years, while also building a career as a musician.

Johnson’s rap career has become more than just a side hustle and she’ll take another step on Thursday night, performing live at ESPN’s ESPY Awards.

Flau’Jae took to social media to announce the news on Wednesday. The performance comes on the heel of Johnson’s recent album release titled “Best of Both Worlds.”

The record was nine tracks and featured a collaboration with Lil Wayne with Johnson adding to her list of impressive collaborators that already included NLE Choppa.

With [autotag]Angel Reese[/autotag] gone, Johnson is ready to step into the spotlight for LSU. Her talents away from the court will continue to provide LSU women’s basketball with social media exposure.

A hoist of stars left college basketball this year. That leaves room for Johnson to take the next step.

On the court, Johnson averaged 14.9 points per game last year. That was up from the 11 she averaged as a freshman.

LSU will count on her next year as the Tigers look to make a return to the Final Four under [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag].

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