BASKETBALL

UO men land 5-star recruit — C.J. Walker, a five-star recruit from Sanford, Florida, has signed a National Letter of Intent with Oregon, head coach Dana Altman announced Wednesday. “We are really fortunate to add C.J. to this class,” said Altman. “He is a highly skilled player from a great basketball family. Coach Tony Stubblefield developed a strong relationship with C.J. and his family and we are really excited to have them join our program.” Walker, a 6-foot-8, 198-pound forward, joins the Ducks’ 2019 recruiting class that now ranks ninth nationally, according to Rivals.com.

football

Miami removes leading receiver — Jeff Thomas was dismissed from Miami’s football team Wednesday, the latest blow in a turbulent season for the Hurricanes. Thomas led Miami with 35 catches and 563 receiving yards this season. He was a standout kickoff and punt returner for the Hurricanes, and became the first Miami player in more than two years to run back a punt for a touchdown when he took one in from 51 yards during last week’s win. A few days removed from that, he was gone. Thomas was not happy about not starting the Virginia Tech game at receiver, missed some practice time this week and coach Mark Richt ultimately made the call to end his tenure at Miami. The specifics about what went wrong were not released Wednesday. In fact, the school and Thomas couldn’t agree on what really happened — Miami’s release said he was dismissed, and the receiver put out a statement saying he and Richt simply agreed he needed to leave. Thomas insisted he “did not get kicked off the team.” Thomas, a sophomore from East St. Louis, Missouri, will have two years of eligibility remaining. He would likely have to sit out the 2019 season if he transfers somewhere, though the NCAA could waive that if he presents some sort of case compelling enough for him to merit getting a hardship waiver.

— From wire reports