U.S. Soccer Federation president Cindy Parlow Cone said a recently repealed policy requiring national team players to stand for the national anthem had "missed the point completely."

- Stream the full interview on ESPN FC's YouTube page
- Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)

Speaking with ESPN FC Daily, Parlow Cone said the USSF board of directors' original discussion in 2017 about the policy centered on "the perceived disrespect for the flag."

Parlow Cone's comments come two days after the board of directors voted to repeal the policy requiring its players to stand for the anthem.

"We missed the point completely -- it was never about the flag," Parlow Cone said. "It was and is about fighting police brutality and the racial injustices in our society."

Parlow Cone also apologized to women's national team star Megan Rapinoe, who kneeled during the anthem before the USWNT's 2016 match against Thailand and several times at her club, the Seattle Reign. Rapinoe did so in a show of solidarity with San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and other NFL players, who kneeled during the anthem prior to their games to protest racial inequality and police brutality.

George Floyd, who was black, died May 25 in Minneapolis after Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes. Since then, protests have taken place around the world in response to Floyd's death -- and the issues Kaepernick and Rapinoe were trying to draw attention to. Some of the recent demonstrations have included protesters and even police officers kneeling. This led the USSF to reconsider its policy.

"I personally apologized to [Rapinoe] for putting this policy into place," Parlow Cone added. "... While I personally choose to continue to stand for the national anthem and use my voice in other ways, I feel others have the right to kneel."

Parlow Cone took over as USSF president following the resignation of Carlos Cordeiro in March. She had previously served as vice president for the federation and was a former player for the women's national team.

Parlow Cone added that three players from either side of the anthem issue presented their views to the board prior to its decision to repeal, with Rapinoe being one of them. Parlow Cone did not identify the others.

Parlow Cone also addressed the current legal dispute between the USSF and the women's team. In May, a California judge threw out the players' claims that they were underpaid in comparison with the men's team. However, the court allowed complaints of unfair travel, medical staffing and training to proceed to trial, which is scheduled to begin June 16.

"I want to resolve it ... as partners, as teammates with our players ... it is still my hope we can resolve this before it goes to trial," she said.

Running back James White said Thursday that he expects New England Patriots players to protest during the 2020 NFL season.

"I'm sure we'll figure something out as a team. I'm not sure exactly what that will be, but I'm sure guys will peacefully protest in some type of form or fashion," White told reporters during a video conference.

White was among 17 Patriots players who kneeled during the national anthem for one game in September 2017 in support of former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick. All Patriots players stood on the sideline and locked arms during the national anthem for the remainder of the season.

White, who has served as a captain the past two years, said the decision to kneel at the time was "difficult" but that "we wanted to stand with Kap. Being black people in America, we understood exactly what he was talking about."

In 2016, his final season with the San Francisco 49ers, Kaepernick kneeled during the pregame national anthem to protest racial inequality and police brutality.

White said Thursday that with more people now speaking out after George Floyd's death, things feel different to him than in 2017.

"I think people's awareness wasn't as heightened back then," he said.

Floyd, who was black, died May 25 in Minneapolis after Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes.

Patriots cornerback Jason McCourty echoed his teammate's thoughts, noting that there seems to be more support for protests now. McCourty was with the Cleveland Browns in 2017.

"Back in [2017], it was clear as day that they weren't on board with anything Kap was trying to say and it was more about, 'Hey, how do we get guys to stand up for the national anthem? How do we get guys to not have fans booing us? How do we get guys to stand up so we don't lose sponsors?' It was all from a business standpoint," he said in the most recent edition of his "Double Coverage" podcast.

"I think everything that has gone on since then will push the envelope. Only time will tell what their actionable reaction will be, as opposed to just words. I think what's going to be special is that there are going to be a lot of players that are willing to do things and change those words into action."

The Patriots, like other NFL teams, talked about Floyd's death during their video conferences. Rahsaan Hall, the director of the racial justice program at the Massachusetts American Civil Liberties Union, was part of one discussion.

"It was cool to speak with him," White said, noting Devin McCourty's prior connection with Hall. "You educate yourself so the world has a better understanding, so that can we make change in a positive light. It's not going to change in one day.

"I think everybody is trying to speak out a little bit more, a lot more people being more comfortable letting everybody know how they feel. I think that's important because some people might not understand that racism and things of that nature still exist, but it does. The color of your skin unfortunately comes with different things in America.

"So just trying to raise people's awareness, trying to make changes. It's sad that things like that the George Floyd situation have been going on for year after year and time after time. People have to be held accountable for things like that. Some laws need to be changed. It all starts with a conversation. All these people speaking up is only going to help."

In the wake of several controversies, including a recent acknowledgment of an assistant coach using a racist epithet during practice, Clemson football players have rallied to defend coach Dabo Swinney on social media. And on Thursday, four Tigers who are organizing a protest for racial justice on campus offered more insight into the behind-the-scenes discussions in the program.

Trevor Lawrence, Darien Rencher, Cornell Powell and Mike Jones Jr. spoke about the march they've organized at Clemson scheduled for Saturday, but questions inevitably turned to Swinney, who has drawn criticism for not firing assistant Danny Pearman after he used a racial slur during practice in 2017 and for wearing a "Football Matters" T-shirt while posing for a photo at a South Carolina country club last Saturday, during the height of the Black Lives Matter protests.

"I think we're all in a position to be educated and learn how to better handle situations," said Rencher, a senior running back. "That's everybody. We're in new territory here and figuring the best way about it."

In a 14-minute statement issued Monday, Swinney offered explanations about why he didn't fire Pearman and said the T-shirt was simply an unfortunate coincidence.

Still, Swinney's comments in the wake of the death of George Floyd while in police custody have been tempered in comparison with his strong take in 2016 that some people kneeling during the national anthem should leave the country.

Rencher suggested Swinney's own upbringing in Alabama -- where his family was poor and, at one point during his college career he was forced to share a room with his mother to make ends meet -- may have played into Swinney's perception of the current Black Lives Matter movement.

"Coach Swinney came from a hard background," Rencher said. "But at the same time, being black isn't circumstantial. You don't choose it. For him to acknowledge that even though you come from a hard place, if you're black, it's still harder -- that's something that just to have that conversation, to tune himself in to that reality. We shed tears as a team. For him to say he understands us and that black lives do matter and to rally around us ... he's doing everything he can to educate himself."

Similarly, former Clemson star Christian Wilkins, whose grandfather was killed by police in what was deemed a "mistake" shooting in 2011, offered more support for Swinney, while acknowledging his former coach hasn't necessarily said all the right things.

"I see a lot of different things being said about him that I don't necessarily agree with because I know him personally," Wilkins, who now plays for the Miami Dolphins, said Thursday. "I know his intentions and I know his heart and I know he's a great coach, and he's passionate about developing young men on and off the field.

"Granted, he might not have said all the right things, he might have done some things that people disagree with and that maybe I disagree with. But that just shows where someone like me could really be a help to Coach Swinney too, just as someone who's close with him and as someone who loves him, continue to help educate him, just have those conversations with him about things going on with him and the media as well."

Clemson's seniors met with Swinney to discuss issues of race, including the incident with Pearman, and Rencher called it the most profound meeting of his four years with the Tigers, while Powell said players were emotional in explaining the significance of the moment happening around the world since Floyd's death.

"It's good to know that he's trying to understand certain things that are different between me and him," said Jones, one of the primary organizers of Saturday's protest, who has marched at other rallies in recent weeks. "Knowing he wants to understand. He identifies we need change, and he's asking how we can do change."

Lawrence was among the first high-profile college players to speak out against racial injustice when he tweeted support for the movement on May 29, and he said he's taken the time to try to listen to his black teammates, just as Swinney has. That's what brought him to want to organize Saturday's march on campus.

"I've had a lot to learn and it's been cool to learn from these guys," Lawrence said. "I think with Coach Swinney, it's easy to judge some things he does. But the biggest testament to who he is are the people around him every day and the glowing views we have of the person he is."

Clemson's player-led protest is expected to start at 6 p.m. Saturday and run through two miles of campus. This will follow former Clemson stars Deshaun Watson, now with the Houston Texans, and DeAndre Hopkins, with the Arizona Cardinals, making public demands for the school to remove the names of slave owners, particularly John Calhoun, from campus buildings.

On Wednesday, Hopkins defended Swinney in a tweet, writing: "One thing I do know Coach Swinney has never been a racist or had any ill will toward any player. Best coach I've ever been around from a football perspective and personal perspective. He helped me become a man and grow from being a kid from Central South Carolina."

One thing I do know Coach Swinney has never been a racist or had any ill will towards any player. Best coach I've ever been around from a football perspective and personal perspective. He helped me become a man and grow from being a kid from Central South Carolina.

— Deandre Hopkins (@DeAndreHopkins) June 10, 2020

Lawrence said he's aware of some backlash from fans who don't believe players should be speaking up on political or social issues, but he was quick to negate that argument.

"As humans, we're entitled to what we believe and what we think is right." Lawrence said. "Even though what we do is entertainment, the sport we play, we still have values and beliefs, and any human should want to do what's right when they see something that's not right."

ESPN's Cameron Wolfe contributed to this report.

The Texas Collegiate League, a wood-bat summer circuit for college players, is being expanded to include several minor league franchises, the league announced Thursday.

Five affiliated minor league teams will host newly created teams in the in a 30-game season that begins July 3. While the league is an amateur circuit, the news marks some of the first tangible plans for a return to professional baseball venues since the sport was largely shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The minor league organizations that will host TCL teams include two Triple-A clubs (San Antonio and Round Rock) and three from Double-A (Amarillo, Frisco and Tulsa). All but the Tulsa team is based in Texas, where current guidelines allow for outdoor stadiums to operate at 50% capacity.

The news release issued by San Antonio included a 25-page document detailing coronavirus procedures that will be in place at its home park, Wolff Stadium. The guidelines include:

• The hiring of a supplementary cleaning crew to sanitize Wolff Stadium before, during and after events, with a particular focus on "high-touch" areas.

• All stadium personnel will be required to wear masks at all times. Cleaning and concessions employees will wear gloves.

• Hand sanitizing and washing stations will be created throughout the facility.

• All transactions, including ticket purchasing, will be cashless.

• All concession lines will be socially distanced, and fans will be able to order from their seats via text messaging.

• Fan groups will be conducted to their seats by ushers, and seat assignments will be distributed in a pattern to ensure all groups are socially distanced from each other. At least two seats will separate all fan groups, and no fans from other parties will be seated directly in front of or behind anyone not among their group.

• Face masks for fans will be "suggested" and anyone who fails to follow social distancing guidelines is subject to ejection.

• Players and staff will arrive at the stadium in uniform and will not shower at the venue after the game.

• Autographs will not be allowed.

• Players and staff will have their temperatures taken upon arrival at the venue.

• Anyone registering a temperature over 100 degrees will be sent home and will be tested for the coronavirus the next day

San Antonio president Burl Yarbrough said additional protocols are being developed, including what happens if a positive test is registered. An initial template was created by the recent College Summer Baseball Invitational, which was staged last week in College Station, Texas, and for which TCL president Uri Geva served as one of the organizers.

"We're still working out and figuring out what we're going to do," Yarbrough said. "It was great that [Geva] hosted that and we're in the process of getting with him and finalizing our plan. He had four teams of college kids flying in from all over the United States, and operated that tournament last week. Everything went well."

The announcement comes at a time when teams throughout the minor leagues are scrambling to find new revenue sources even as they hold out hope that at least some of the minor league season can be salvaged.

"We're all sitting here with these beautiful ballparks, ready to play some baseball," Yarbrough said. "We don't know when that might have happened. This opportunity is one that we felt was good for all of our cities. And we realize that college players didn't get their seasons in, so we wanted to offer them a chance to come play in some really nice ballparks."

Former Red Sox manager and Astros bench coach Alex Cora is taking responsibility for his role in the sign-stealing saga, but he isn't ready to shoulder all the blame.

Cora received a one-year suspension after the commissioner's office found he played a pivotal role in the Astros' illegal sign-stealing scheme the year they won the World Series in 2017. He then lost his job with the Red Sox.

Cora told ESPN that he deserved his punishment for his role in the Astros' scheme, but he took umbrage with suggestions that he and Carlos Beltrán, the Astros' designated hitter in his final season in the majors in 2017, were the driving forces behind it.

"There has been a narrative out there of what happened. Ever since mid-November until the commissioner announced the results of the Red Sox investigation, I have read many things that are true and many others that are not," he said. "Out of this whole process, if there is one thing that I completely reject and disagree with is people within the Astros' organization singling me out, particularly [former general manager] Jeff Luhnow, as if I were the sole mastermind. The commissioner's report sort of explained, in its own way, what happened. But the [Astros players] have spoken up and refuted any allegations that I was solely responsible."

He added: "If there is one thing I am absolutely sure of, it is that it was not a two-man show. We all did it. And let me be very clear that I am not denying my responsibility, because we were all responsible."

Cora has kept a low profile since the commissioner concluded his reports on the Astros and allegations that the Red Sox also had a sign-stealing operation during their 2018 title season -- when Cora was manager.

"Out of respect for the investigation, I decided to stay out of the spotlight. Talking about it wasn't going to change anything," Cora said. "I deserve my suspension and I'm paying the price for my actions. And I am not proud of what happened. We made a mistake as a group, the entire [Astros] team. What happened was something that, if you ask anyone involved, no one is proud of it. We're all at fault. Everybody. We're all responsible. Everyone who was part of the team from around mid-May until the end of the season, we are all responsible."

As for MLB suspending Red Sox video replay system operator J.T. Watkins and stripping the team of its second-round draft pick this year, Cora stated that the report "speaks for itself."

The league determined Boston's replay room was used illegally, but without the manager's knowledge. Although Cora will be eligible to return in 2021, that's not his focus at this time.

"Right now, all I care about is my personal life and my family. This has not been an easy time for us, and it's my fault," he said. "Do I want to return the game? Absolutely. That's why I worked so hard for so many years before being named Red Sox manager. But right now, all of that is secondary. My focus is on much more important things."

Cora, who spoke to ESPN after a charity event to provide financial support for sanitation workers in his hometown of Caguas, Puerto Rico, acknowledges that many people will continue to believe that the Astros' 2017 World Series title is tainted.

"I understand why people think that our championship is not valid, and it's our fault that they think that. I am being honest and I apologize for what happened and for the mistakes we made as a group," he said. "I understand why people are disappointed. I am disappointed in myself. At the time, one doesn't think about the consequences. It was something that kept growing and growing, and in the end, it was wrong. We made a mistake and I must pay for the consequences of my actions."

Edinburgh and Glasgow Warriors players have been invited to return to training on 22 June, Scottish Rugby chief executive Mark Dodson has confirmed.

If the Scottish government's route map out of lockdown moves from phase one to two on 18 June, players will be given the option to resume fitness work.

All professional players in Scotland are currently on the government furlough scheme.

Both squads will be based at Murrayfield.

Dodson said the players had been "invited to voluntary fitness sessions, making sure that we keep players fit for a presumed return to contact rugby at the end of August, early September".

The Pro14 is expected to return on 22 August with a series of derby matches. That would involve Edinburgh and Glasgow meeting at Murrayfield behind closed doors, possibly for a double-header on consecutive weekends.

'Presumption autumn Tests will be behind closed doors'

The future of the international game is far more uncertain. Scotland's summer tour to South Africa and New Zealand was cancelled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The All Blacks, Argentina and Japan are scheduled to visit Murrayfield in November.

Matchday revenue accounts for a huge chunk of Scottish Rugby's income, so even if the autumn internationals go ahead, the prospect of playing them behind closed doors presents a financial problem for the union.

"The issue around the autumn Tests is crucial to us," Dodson said. "The reason everyone is talking about social distancing from 2m/1.5m/1m to zero is that it has a significant impact on how many tickets we can sell, how many people can come through the door and enjoy whatever Test schedule we can put forward.

"From where we stand at the moment, our presumption is that those Tests will go ahead behind closed doors until we're told different from government."

The salary and bonuses awarded to Dodson and other Scottish Rugby executives in recent times has been fiercely criticised, and the chief executive says the business operation is "under review" amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"We are looking at all methods to deal with this," he said. "We're modelling every impact on the business and looking across the sport and entertainment spectrums."

Dodson also confirmed talks have taken place with Hearts and Hibernian about the capital clubs using Murrayfield as a 'bio-bubble' when football returns, though stressed those talks were at an early stage.

Discussions around a new global rugby calendar, which would align the seasons of northern and southern hemisphere rugby, have been taking place throughout the shutdown brought about by the pandemic.

And Dodson added: "We're very happy with summer rugby. We think it's good for participation at grassroots level. The most crucial thing about this is the global alignment not only releases revenue opportunities, is that it works for everyone.

"From where I sit there's more co-operation than ever before and people are looking to make sure the emerging nations are catered for."

SELINSGROVE, Pa. – With the season now resuming, Selinsgrove and Williams Grove Speedways have renewed their plans to present the Civil War Super Late Model Series – North vs. South, presented by Modern Heritage of Mifflinburg, Pa., and RBS Auto & Trailer Sales of Eldersburg and McHenry, Md.

The revised inaugural series schedule will consist of four races at Selinsgrove Speedway and two at Williams Grove Speedway, spanning late June through early September, carrying points for feature finishes that will award a premium to the champion at series’ end and contingency prizes for finishers second through fifth in points.

Hooser Tire and Lias Tire American Racer will sponsor the series as well, joining forces with Modern Heritage and RBS Auto & Trailer Sales.

The Civil War Super Late Model Series, North vs. South, will kickoff on Saturday, June 20, in the North, at Selinsgrove Speedway when the oval spins off the 22nd annual Late Model National Open.

Action will return to Selinsgrove on July 25 for a Summer Championship, for the Aug. 15 Ultimate Northeast Showdown on Sand Hill and the series finale will now take place at Selinsgrove in conjunction with the ULMS Late Models program on Sept. 6.

In the South, Williams Grove dates will take place on Friday, Aug. 7 and again on Friday, Aug. 21 in conjunction with the World of Outlaws Late Models program.

Teams will receive North vs. South Series appearance points only for the Aug. 21 program at Williams Grove.  All other series races will divvy out full feature points.

MT. PLEASANT, Mich. – In mid-March when social distancing measures were enacted in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Beard Motorsports was already well versed in the practice.

The NASCAR Cup Series team employs just one full-time person – crew chief Darren Shaw – and has since its debut in the 2017 Daytona 500 when driver Brendan Gaughan finished 11th.

“Literally, the team has one employee, and it’s the crew chief, Darren Shaw,” said Gaughan, who currently has 63 NASCAR Cup Series starts dating back to his rookie season in 2004. “He’s the only guy that works on the racecar. That’s it. We don’t have a fulltime team. We don’t have a crew coming in. We have one guy who comes in as the car chief who is an industrial plumber and, when he gets off work or has down time, he comes in and helps there. That’s it. We’ve been social distancing since 2017.”

In an industry filled with multicar teams with headcounts in the hundreds, how in the world does Beard Motorsports do it?

“At a very young age, Mark Beard, our team owner, had ambition to run the Daytona 500 and some other Cup races,” Shaw said. “We were racing super late models and ARCA and we gave Cup a shot back in 2012 where we tried to build our own engines, but it didn’t work out. So we stepped back and decided that if we were going to give this a serious go, we needed to rent an engine from a legit place and get a little bit of technical support. That’s what we did and it’s been really good since then.”

Beard Motorsports has proven to be the little team that could, a modern-day David competing against the Goliaths of the NASCAR Cup Series. Owned by Mark Beard Sr., president of Beard Motorsports and various family businesses, Beard Motorsports has taken a strategic approach to its racing endeavors, forming a technical partnership with Richard Childress Racing (RCR) and running only the superspeedway races at Daytona (Fla.) Int’l Speedway and Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. With cars constructed by RCR and powered by ECR-built engines, Beard Motorsports has scored three top-10 finishes, the most recent coming in February with a seventh-place drive in the season-opening Daytona 500.

“We were, obviously, pretty ecstatic walking out of Daytona with such a good finish,” Shaw said. “Brendan does a really good job of just minding his own business until the end of the race, so we usually have a really good car when it matters. We’ve got good equipment, so we can get up there and run if we need to, but Brendan stays smart and positions himself well to contend and get a good finish.”

This was evident in last year’s April race at Talladega where Gaughan led five laps before finishing eighth.

“Everybody loves to say it’s a crapshoot racing at Talladega and Daytona, but it’s not a crapshoot,” said Gaughan, driver of the No. 62 Beard Oil Distributing/South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet Camaro. “There is thought that goes into it and, if you look at my record with the Beards, go to five laps or less or 10 laps or less in the 13 races I’ve had with them, and in nine of those races, I’ve been in the top-five with 10 laps or less to go.

“To put yourself in that position is an art, and I love doing that. These races are fun. It is an equalizer. It is a chance for a team like the Beards to show up and have a chance to win, and we’ve proven that time and time again. I just really enjoy it.”

Gaughan will get to enjoy it again when the NASCAR Cup Series rolls into Talladega on June 21 for the GEICO 500. But unlike past races where the 44-year-old racer from Las Vegas has been able to qualify for a spot in the 40-car field, Gaughan will line up by points, provided Beard Motorsports stays among the top-four independent teams.

That’s because 36 teams own a charter, thereby guaranteeing a starting spot in the GEICO 500. Currently, there are six independent teams, including Beard Motorsports. The highest non-chartered team is Gaunt Brothers Racing, currently 31st in points. Next up is MBM Motorsports, 36th in points. Beard Motorsports is third among independent teams, with a six-point buffer over its nearest competitor, Kaulig Racing. That team, however, hasn’t competed since the Daytona 500 and isn’t slated to compete in any of the races prior to Talladega. The two teams behind it – B.J. McLeod Motorsports and Tommy Baldwin Racing – have been racing since NASCAR returned to action May 17 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, accumulating points all the while. B.J. McLeod Motorsports is 11 points behind Beard and five points behind Kaulig. Tommy Baldwin Racing is 12 points behind Beard and six points behind Kaulig.

Fall outside of that top-four due to the rise of the McLeod and Baldwin teams, and the GEICO 500 happens without you.

“Bristol was a bad race for us even though we didn’t even compete in it,” Shaw explained. “Two cars we need to stay in front of had pretty decent finishes because there were so many wrecks. They were a bunch of laps down, but still, when there are only 25 cars left running, you’re no worse than 25th. That cut their deficit to us. I think we’re still good, though, because we didn’t see that kind of attrition at Atlanta, and we don’t typically see it at Martinsville and Homestead either. So, fingers crossed.”

Talladega is the second of Gaughan’s final, four-race stretch of races before he retires as a NASCAR driver. He is slated to race again Aug. 29 at Daytona and Oct. 4 at Talladega.

“We’re going to need a really good finish again at Talladega,” Shaw said. “I’d like to think we’ll be qualifying again by the time we go back to Daytona, but there’s no guarantee of that. So, running like we did in the Daytona 500 and coming out of Talladega with another strong finish is our goal. We’ve proven that we’re capable of it – a couple of times, in fact.”

FORT WORTH, Texas – Much of what the PGA Tour tried to do in the run-up to this week’s Charles Schwab Challenge can best be described as a fundamental behavior shift.

Among the changes outlined in the Tour’s return-to-competition plan, players were advised to remove and replace golf clubs from their bag and caddies “should” remove, tend and replace flagsticks and clean the flagsticks before replacing.

If early action on Thursday at Colonial was any indication, players and caddies will need some time to adjust to the new COVID-19 golf etiquette.

“I'm always going to pull the club out, and I'm always going to hand it [back] to [caddie James Edmondson]. You're going to see it every day,” said Ryan Palmer, who hit the day’s first tee shot. “That's just the way the game is. We're all taking risks playing golf, obviously. Being back out here, everybody leaves the club, they're going out to dinner and doing things, so everybody is taking that risk to be here. Everybody is pretty confident that we're going to all be safe.”

The Tour has been careful throughout its plan to return to competition in reminding players that they will need to adhere to the guidelines and that the sports world will be watching closely for the next few weeks.

On Wednesday, the Tour sent a mass text message to players and caddies reminding them of the need to maintain social distancing guidelines and even extended the space required between player and swing coach to 10 feet.