SportsBeat KC

A long regular season begins its final chapter on Saturday when Sporting Kansas City plays host to the Vancouver Whitecaps in the MLS Playoffs. Sporting went 9-3-5 in regular-season games at home this season and scored the second-most goals in Major League Soccer (58). But now it’s one and done in the single-elimination tournament. On today’s episode of The Star’s daily SportsBeat KC podcast, socc...

The biggest NFL game of the weekend is in Kansas City on Sunday when the Chiefs play host to the Dallas Cowboys. Both teams lead their divisions and this first-time matchup between quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Dak Prescott is a pretty good storyline. On today’s episode of the daily SportsBeat KC podcast, Chiefs beat writers Herbie Teope and Sam McDowell and columnists Sam Mellinger and Vahe Gr...

Regular season games don’t come more anticipated than Dallas Cowboys at Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. Dak Prescott vs. Patrick Mahomes, division leaders, Super Bowl preview? On today’s SportsBeat KC, Cowboys’ beat writer and columnist Clarence E. Hill Jr., of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram brings us the Dallas perspective with host Blair Kerkhoff. How will the Cowboys’ high flying offense plan to at...

After weeks of “what’s wrong” with Missouri and Kansas State football, some good fortune has returned to both programs. Missouri has won two of three and, at 5-5, is one victory away from bowl eligibility. It won’t be easy, with a visit from Florida this weekend and a trip to Arkansas to end the regular season. Kansas State already has its bowl ticket and awaits its destination. The Wildcats face...

Why would anyone have anticipated Kansas, a 31-point underdog last weekend at Texas, ending its 56-game conference losing streak in Austin? The last time KU won a league game, Missouri, Nebraska, Colorado and Texas A&M were in the conference. West Virginia and TCU weren’t. But it happened. Kansas prevailed 57-56 in overtime with the winning two-point conversation scored on a reception from Jal...

The Chiefs started Sunday in last place in a tight AFC West race. After their 41-14 victory at the Las Vegas Raiders, they’re in first. Patrick Mahomes passed for 406 yards and five touchdowns and the defense was solid for the third straight game. They’ve now won three straight, too. There was much to discuss after the game, and Star columnists Sam Mellinger and Vahe Gregorian, beat writer Sam McD...

The Chiefs, at 5-4, are one of nine AFC teams that have played nine games. The first half of Kansas City’s season has been a disappointment, but the Chiefs still have eight games remaining, including five against division foes — starting with a Sunday Night Football trip to Las Vegas to take on the Raiders. On today’s episode of The Star’s daily podcast, SportsBeat KC, beat writers Herbie Teope an...

Kansas State quarterback Skylar Thompson is on a roll. In leading the Wildcats to three straight victories, the senior who played at Fort Osage High has averaged 260 passing yards and has tossed a touchdown pass in each game. But now, K-State on Saturday plays an opponent it hasn’t been able to solve since 2015: West Virginia. Meanwhile, Missouri quickly put last weekend’s loss at Georgia in its r...

The Kansas Jayhawks opened the 2021-22 college basketball season with an impressive 87-74 victory over Michigan State at the Champions Classic in New York on Tuesday and the best player on the floor was KU’s Ochai Agbaji. He scored a career best 29 points to help Kansas win in this event for the fifth time in six years. There was plenty more for Bill Self to like, including the play of his freshma...

Sporting Kansas City concluded its regular season on Sunday with a 1-0 home loss to Real Salt Lake that dropped SKC to third place in the MLS Western Conference standings. Sporting opens the playoffs against sixth-seeded Vancouver on Nov. 20 in KCK. A disappointing loss to be sure for Sporting, which would have finished in first with a victory. But it was the post-game news conference that made he...

The Chiefs took down the Green Bay Packers 13-7 on Sunday, and if you’d offered that outcome to Chiefs fans before the season they’d have grabbed it in a heartbeat. That it happened without Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers on the field doesn’t matter in the standings. The Chiefs improved to 5-4 with the victory. Star columnists Vahe Gregorian and Sam Mellinger along with beat writers Herbie Teope...

Kansas and Missouri face tall tasks on college football Saturday. The Jayhawks play host to Kansas State in the Sunflower Showdown and are 24-point underdogs. Missouri is coming off its first SEC victory and to keep that momentum going the Tigers have to win at top-ranked Georgia, where they’re 38-point underdog. Beat writers Kellis Robinett, Jesse Newell and Lila Bromberg break down the action on...

It’s been a week when the Chiefs welcomed Melvin Ingram, bid farewell to Laurent Duvernay-Tardif and sent well wishes to Aaron Rodgers, and we discuss it all on SportsBeat KC, The Star’s daily sports podcast. Sam McDowell, Vahe Gregorian, Sam Mellinger and Herbie Teope broke down the news and how it impacts the Chiefs heading into Sunday’s game against the Rodgers-less Green Bay Packers. The show...

Even with a short week, it’s been busy times for the Chiefs. They acquired defensive end Melvin Ingram in a trade and learned that this week’s opponent, the Green Bay Packers, will be without starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers on Sunday. He tested positive for COVID-19 this week and must now quarantine for 10 days. On today’s episode of SportsBeat KC, The Star’s daily podcast, we hear what the Chi...

File it under, the Chiefs will take any victory in any fashion this season. The Chiefs outlasted the New York Giants 20-17 at Arrowhead Stadium in an outcome that didn’t exactly inspire confidence in the fan base. Once again, the offense was off, and turnovers were a problem. The Chiefs’ two giveaways increased their NFL-leading total to 19 this season. The defense came up big in the beginning and...

Kansas City’s women’s pro-soccer franchise has a new team name. The Kansas City Current was introduced Saturday night at halftime of the final game of the NWSL team’s inaugural season. What do you think of the new moniker? Soccer reporter Shaun Goodwin discusses the new name, plans for a new stadium and shares some general thoughts about the team’s first season on today’s episode of SportsBeat KC,...

Kansas State claimed its first conference victory last week. Missouri looks to break into the victory column on Sunday. The Wildcats rallied from a two touchdown deficit to win at Texas Tech, and a defensive play sparked the comeback when Felix Anudike-Uzomah, from Lee’s Summit, produced a safety. Beat writer Kellis Robinett discusses all things Wildcats on today’s SportsBeat KC. Mizzou is coming...

The Chiefs have to hope they bottomed out in last week’s lost at Tennessee. Patrick Mahomes had probably his worst game as a pro — his first in the regular season in which his team didn’t score a single touchdown. On today’s episode of our daily sports podcast, SportsBeat KC, we focus on the Chiefs and Mahomes with Kansas City Star columnists Vahe Gregorian and Sam Mellinger and beat writers Herbi...

Kansas lost its 17th straight football game against Oklahoma last weekend, but none of them played out quite like this one. The Sooners won 35-23 but trailed by 10 late in the third quarter. It was easily the most encouraging showing by coach Lance Leipold’s first KU team. So what wan we take from the outcome? Here at the daily SportsBeat KC podcast, we posed that question to Kansas beat writers J...

Sporting Kansas City picked up a huge victory at Seattle on Saturday, a game so intense there was a body slam—and no red card. On today’s SportsBeat KC, Star soccer reporter Shaun Goodwin breaks down the game that was decided on a goal by Johnny Russell. After a break, we talk KC NWSL. Although the team will finish in last place in its inaugural season, Woso turned Legends Park into a true home fi...

It’s not always going to be rainbows and flowers, Patrick Mahomes said after the Chiefs’ 27-3 loss at the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. No, it was more like dark skies and weeds during this one. The Chiefs got positively drilled on Sunday. The output was the lowest for a Chiefs team in the Andy Reid era. The defeat was Patrick Mahomes’ most lopsided in a Kansas City uniform. What went wrong? We coun...

Derrick Henry is going to get his yards, there’s no doubting that. But can the Chiefs slow the NFL’s leading rusher enough to get by in Tennessee? On this episode of The Star’s daily podcast, SportsBeat KC, beat writers Herbie Teope and Sam McDowell and columnist Sam Mellinger break down Sunday’s Chiefs-Titans game. It promises to be a high-scoring affair with Henry and Patrick Mahomes, who leads...

Kansas City’s day to present itself to FIFA officials arrived Thursday, with meetings, tours and, in true Kansas City spirit, a barbecue lunch. So how did we do? We’ll know in early 2022. That’s when FIFA will announce the 11 winning U.S. cities among the 17 currently bidding to host World Cup games across North America in 2026. On today’s episode of The Star’s daily sports podcast, SportsBeat KC,...

The Big 12 basketball media days made their annual appearances in Kansas City this week, with women’s coaches and players in town on Tuesday and the men here Wednesday. On today’s episode of SportsBeat KC, The Star’s daily sports podcast, you’ll hear from men’s coaches Bill Self of Kansas, Bruce Weber of Kansas State and Scott Drew of Baylor. The Jayhawks are picked to win the Big 12, again. Self...

Sporting KC is in the thick of the Western Conference race, and KC NWSL has turned Legends Field into a fortress. But the biggest soccer news in Kansas City this week is a site visit by FIFA officials. Kansas City wants a piece of the 2026 World Cup, and now is the time to shine. On today’s episode of SportsBeat KC, The Star’s daily podcast, soccer reporter Shaun Goodwin discusses Kansas City’s bi...