Monday's Sports in Brief
PRO FOOTBALL
LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (AP) President Donald Trump has taken a swipe at controversial NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick at a campaign-style rally.
Kaepernick, who played for the San Francisco 49ers but now is a free agent, hasn't yet been signed to another team.
Trump told the crowd he read an article reporting that NFL owners don't want to pick Kaepernick up ''because they don't want to get a nasty tweet from Donald Trump.''
''Do you believe that?'' he asked the enthusiastic crowd.
Kaepernick refused to stand during the national anthem at the start of NFL games last season to protest police treatment of minorities.
Trump says of the people of Kentucky, ''They like it when people actually stand for the American flag.''
BOSTON (AP) - Tom Brady's missing Super Bowl jersey has been found in Mexico six weeks after it vanished from the Patriots' locker room - but the mystery isn't over.
The NFL said the jersey was found in ''possession of a credentialed member of the international media,'' and authorities were investigating whether a former Mexican tabloid newspaper executive played a role in the theft.
It wasn't the only piece of memorabilia recovered: Authorities found a Brady jersey that had gone missing after the Patriots' 2015 Super Bowl win over the Seattle Seahawks. A helmet belonging to a Denver Broncos player was also discovered, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said.
The stolen jersey - and the investigation that stretched from Boston to the border - captivated Patriots fans and social media for several days after the Patriots' 34-28 overtime win over the Atlanta Falcons.
PRO BASKETBALL
MIAMI (AP) - NBA Commissioner Adam Silver sent a memo to the league's board of governors, calling the way teams are choosing to rest starters in some games ''an extremely significant issue for our league'' and pressing owners to be more involved in the decision-making process.
Silver also told the owners that the matter will be discussed at league meetings next month after nationally televised games on back-to-back Saturday nights were diluted by decisions to rest star players.
''Decisions of this kind ... can affect fans and business partners, impact our reputation and damage the perception of our game,'' Silver wrote in the memo, which was obtained by The Associated Press. ''With so much at stake, it is simply not acceptable for governors to be uninvolved or to defer decision-making authority on these matters to others in their organizations.''
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Three Minnesota football players were cleared of sexual harassment allegations while another's punishment was upheld in the final round of appeals at the school.
Attorney Ryan Pacyga says defensive back Antoine Winfield Jr., running back Kobe McCrary and quarterback Mark Williams will likely return to spring practice on Tuesday after they were pulled from the field by the university while the appeals process played out. Defensive back KiAnte Hardin's expulsion after a woman accused him of sexual assault was upheld.
Provost Karen Hanson conducted the final round of appeals stemming from an alleged incident on Sept. 2 that included allegations against 10 Golden Gophers players. Hanson upheld the decision to remove one-year suspensions for Winfield and McCrary. She also reversed a decision by a previous panel on Williams, lifting a one-year suspension for him.
PENN STATE ABUSE
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Prosecutors preparing to lay out their case against Penn State's former president say two of his ex-top lieutenants are among those who could take the stand.
Opening statements are scheduled to get underway Tuesday in the long-delayed criminal trial, in which Graham Spanier faces charges of child endangerment and conspiracy for how he handled child sex abuse complaints about Jerry Sandusky more than 15 years ago.
The two sides will make their openings after four alternates are chosen for the jury. On Monday, seven women and five men were chosen for the main jury panel after questioning of prospective jurors was done in secret.
HOCKEY
USA Hockey and the women's national team say their marathon meeting was productive and they hope to have an agreement this week that will end their ongoing wage dispute and avoid a boycott of the upcoming world championships.
The sides met for more than 10 hours in Philadelphia and will continue discussions later this week. Players announced last week they'd boycott the upcoming world championships in Plymouth, Michigan, unless significant progress was made toward a labor agreement.
USA Hockey and players released statements saying they hoped a deal would be reached in time for the tournament, which begins March 31.
MIXED MARTIAL ARTS
LAS VEGAS (AP) - The former mixed martial arts fighter known as War Machine was found guilty of kidnapping, beating and sexually assaulting his porn actress ex-girlfriend over several months in 2014, and of beating her male friend when he found them together in her bedroom.
Nevada jurors deadlocked on two attempted-murder counts against Jonathan Paul Koppenhaver but convicted him of 29 felonies stemming from attacks on Christy Mack and Corey Thomas.
The Associated Press normally does not identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault, but Mack gave AP permission to use her name.
Neither she nor Thomas was in the courtroom while Koppenhaver, 35, stood flanked by his lawyers. He folded his arms across his chest as the verdicts were read.
SOCCER
GENEVA (AP) - FIFA has banned for life the referee who awarded a disputed penalty for South Africa against Senegal in a World Cup qualifying match.
Referee Joseph Lamptey of Ghana gave a penalty for a non-existent handball against Senegal defender Kalidou Koulibaly. Replays clearly showed the ball struck Koulibaly's knee and then dropped to the ground.
Lamptey was found guilty of breaching the rule relating to ''unlawfully influencing match results,'' FIFA said. His assistant was cleared.
FIFA declined to give more details of why its disciplinary panel imposed a life ban on the referee.