TMZ Sports - Page 50

L.A. Galaxy stud Robbie Rogers -- the first active openly gay male athlete in major U.S. team sports -- has got himself a boyfriend ... and the guy is a pretty powerful Hollywood producer.

TMZ Sports has learned ... Robbie is dating Greg Berlanti -- the guy who created "Arrow," "Everwood" and "No Ordinary Family." He also wrote and produced the Ryan Reynolds disaster "The Green Lantern," but hey, no one's perfect.

Sources tell us Robbie and Greg began dating sometime around May ... roughly 3 months after Robbie went public with his sexuality for the first time.

The two haven't exactly tried to keep their relationship a secret -- they've been spotted at several major events together over the past few months.

The question everyone's been asking: Why did the Jameis Winston sexual assault investigation drag on for almost ONE YEAR?? Now there are strong signs cops tried to cover it up. Do you think they were protecting FSU football?

Plus, Rob Gronkowski's racist joke about an Asian fan ... wasn't perceived as racist by the fan himself. Why not? The butt of Gronk's "fried rice" crack joined us to defend the Patriots star and reveal who's really to blame.

And has Notre Dame officially forgiven Manti Te'o for that whole catfishing disaster? Time for confession with Father John Jenkins ... ND's prez, if ya didn't know.

Here's another reason it's awesome to be Detroit Tigers superstar Miguel Cabrera -- HE GOT A PS4 AN ENTIRE DAY BEFORE THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO COME OUT!!!!

The 3rd baseman just tweeted a photo of the super-highly anticipated video game console Thursday along with the caption, "Look what came in the mail – I know what I'll be doing today. #PS4."

But it's not your average PS4 package -- it appears Miguel got some kind of suped-up custom Playstation case that came with a DualShock 4 controller and 2 games -- "Killzone: Shadow Fall" and "Knack."

It also looks like the case comes with a built-in screen.

So how did Miguel get a special set before everyone else? We're guessing it has something to do with the fact he's going to be on the cover of the upcoming PS4 game, "MLB The Show 14."

Joel Silver -- producer of bad-ass action flicks like "Die Hard," "Lethal Weapon," and "The Matrix" – tells TMZ the rumors are true ... he really did invent Ultimate Frisbee … and he’s damn proud of it.

Silver was leaving Matsuhisa Restaurant in Beverly Hills … and we asked the obscure sports innovator about his greatest non-movie production.

Joel says he created “Ultimate” at Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey … and went on to form the first collegiate team at Lafayette College … paving the way for hippies to finally have a sport of their own.

New England Patriots star Rob Gronkowski did NOT offend an Asian fan with his fried rice joke earlier this week ... so says the Asian fan himself, who tells TMZ Sports, he laughed along with the rest of the crowd.

The 41-year-old (who wished to be identified only by his first name Joe) tells us, when Gronk poked fun at him at Sunday's Q&A event in Foxborough, MA -- saying, "They told me he could only cook fried rice!" -- he wasn't bothered by it ... in fact, he thought it was funny.

Joe says he's been buddies with Gronk for more than a year and a fan for more than 15, so a little teasing here and there is all in good fun.

He says he knows Gronk meant no harm by the jokes, which also included calling Joe "Leslie Chow" ... aka Ken Jeong's character from "The Hangover."

Joe tells us, he feels partly responsible for the firestorm around the fried rice joke because he hammed up his dance moves for the camera, and generally acted silly when he probably shouldn't have.

There's evidence Tallahassee cops tried to sweep the sexual assault investigation targeting Florida State University QB Jameis Winston under the rug to protect the team and its star player ... and ONLY took aggressive steps after TMZ Sports started asking questions.

Sources in the State Attorney's Office tell us they never even knew about the investigation until Tuesday ... JUST ONE DAY AFTER TMZ Sports began making calls to cops about the alleged assault.

Our sources in the State Attorney's Office say ... it was highly unusual cops wouldn't have filled them in about the case until this week. The sources say cops would have typically notified them when the investigation was completed, and Winston's lawyer reportedly says cops told him it was completed in February.

Now get this ... TMZ Sports started calling police about the case on Monday. We were told someone would get back to us later that day, but there was radio silence for 2 days ... we made repeated calls Tuesday and Wednesday and no one got back to us until late Wednesday afternoon.

Sources in the State Attorney's Office tell us ... the timing -- getting notified about the case months after it supposedly was closed and just a day after TMZ started calling -- is suspicious.

The State Attorney has now re-activated the case and sent it back to cops for further investigation.

And there's a twist -- guess what would happen if Winston was even CHARGED with felony sexual assault -- under FSU's rules ... he would be AUTOMATICALLY BENCHED ... killing the team's national championship hopes and his Heisman Trophy chances.

Harlem Globetrotter rookie Corey “Thunder" Law just broke the world record for longest basketball shot in history … draining a RIDICULOUS bucket from wayyy off the other side of the court.

It all went down at US Airways Center in Phoenix today … Thunder SWOOSHED a heave from 109 ft. 9 in. like it was nothing … and a rep from Guinness was there to make it official.

Law smashed the old record – 104 ft. 7 in. – set almost three years ago by Elan Buller outside the Campbell Hall Elementary School in North Hollywood, where he works as a teacher.

We spoke to Buller ... who tells TMZ, he's 100% confident he'll reclaim the record ... and says he purposefully left room on his shot, knowing one day the record would be broken.

Buller -- a former basketball player at Pepperdine -- says his students persuaded him to attempt the original shot ... and he has NO DOUBT he can break it again ... if his students ask him to.

The ex-NFL cheerleader who allegedly tried to perform oral sex on a 12-year-old boy back in February was finally sentenced ... and TMZ Sports has learned she's NOT going to prison.

Elizabeth Garner -- who cheered for the Tennessee Titans until 2009 -- was arrested in Tennessee back in March for allegedly following the 12-year-old to a bathroom during a party in February hosted by the boy's mother.

Garner allegedly then grabbed the boy's penis over his shorts ... and attempted to remove them in order to perform oral sex on him. According to police, the boy said Garner asked if he'd ever been with a woman. Garner later told police she thought the boy was someone else (a grown man).

Garner -- who is married -- was subsequently charged with aggravated sexual battery and solicitation of a minor for rape of a child, but those charges were reduced to a single felony charge of reckless endangerment.

Now, TMZ Sports has learned Garner pled no contest back in October and was sentenced to 18 months probation, during which she must stay away from the boy and his family. She also has to submit to drug testing and attend AA sessions twice a week.

If Garner keeps her nose clean, the D.A. tells us her case will be expunged.

It doesn't matter that his phoney, dead (but not really dead) girlfriend embarrassed his school on a national level, Notre Dame still loves Manti Te'o ... so says the guy who runs the joint.

Father John I Jenkins -- the President of the University -- was strolling through Washington D.C. yesterday when we asked him if he was still proud of the former ND football captain ... even after the infamous catfishing scandal.

"He's a fine young man," Jenkins said ... "He'll do well and I'm proud of him. Not for his football playing but for the kind of person he is."

Of course, Te'o's reputation took a massive hit when it was revealed that his longtime girlfriend Lennay Kekua (who Manti had told the media had died following a car accident) ... was really a fat male imposter named Ronaiah Tuiasosopo.

But despite the public humiliation, Jenkins is making it clear ... ND and Touchdown Jesus will always have Manti's back.

Hollywood celebrities are abandoning the Lakers in droves ... and they're defecting to the rival L.A. Clippers ... so says MTV star Chris "Drama" Pfaff.

Pfaff -- who stars on a slew of MTV shows including "Fantasy Factory" and "Ridiculousness" -- was out in NYC yesterday when he admitted he's hitching a ride on the Clippers bandwagon.

"Clippers games used to be empty," Drama said ... but that was before Blake Griffin, CP3 and company began dominating.

Now, according to Pfaff, Lob City games are packed with celebrities and floor seats are nearly impossible to lock up.

Los Angeles Lakers star Steve Nash tells TMZ ... his back is pretty messed up, but he's putting serious pressure on himself to come back and play this season.

Nash was walking (gingerly) to his car at Gjelina restaurant in Venice, CA last night when we asked him about the injury that's been plaguing the 39-year-old.

"It's rough," Nash said ... "but I'm gonna keep pushing and try to get better."

FSU's star QB Jameis Winston ... under investigation for sexual assault. TMZ Sports broke the story, and we know what allegedly went down a year ago, and why the Heisman Trophy front-runner's name hasn't been cleared yet.

Plus, Trent Richardson's having a sub-par season on the field -- but off the field the Indianapolis Colts running back is starring in a sex tape that's being shopped. Question is: will it go public?

And NFL, MLB, and Tecmo legend Bo Jackson joined us to talk about the sudden death of Todd Christensen. Bo knows some awesome stories about their Raiders days ... and shared 'em with us.

Todd Christensen wasn't your stereotypical football meathead -- he was a gentle soul who loved poetry ... this according to his former Raiders teammate Bo Jackson.

Bo just called TMZ Sports and told us all of Raider Nation is mourning the loss of the legendary tight end, who passed away this morning while undergoing liver surgery.

Jackson played with Christensen for four years and said the guy ALWAYS had a smile on his face.

So, what kind of poetry was Todd into? Check out the clip and find out.

Todd was 57.

NFL legend Jim Plunkett also called in to TMZ Sports to give us his thoughts on Todd Christensen. Check out the audio.

4:11 PM PT -- A rep for Florida State University has issued a statement saying, "We are aware of a matter that was investigated by the Tallahassee Police Department almost a year ago.

Because the investigation has not been closed by TPD, we cannot comment further at this time.

We look forward to a speedy resolution of the issue. There is no change in Jameis Winston's status."

Florida State QB Jameis Winston -- frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy -- is being investigated for felony sexual assault, TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement and other sources tell TMZ ... a woman filed a sexual assault complaint with the Tallahassee PD on December 7, 2012. She claims the alleged sexual assault was committed with the use of "physical force."

According to the police report, the motive for the alleged crime was "sexual gratification." The alleged victim says drinking was involved before the incident.

The police report says on the day in question, someone called the cops at 4:01 AM. When police arrived, we're told there were photos taken of the alleged victim's injuries as well as physical evidence collected.

According to the police report, the incident occurred in an apartment.

Winston is described in the police report as "muscular" and his demeanor as "polite."

Our sources say cops have already interviewed Winston.

As for the alleged offense, it requires proof that the perpetrator penetrated the victim orally, anally, or vaginally.

The investigation is "ongoing" with the police and the Florida State Attorney.

BTW ... the initial police reports lists the suspect's height at 5'11'' max ... Winston is 6'4.' That report also says the suspect has straight hair. Discrepancies aside, we have confirmed with law enforcement sources Winston is indeed the suspect.

M.I.A. doesn't give two craps about the NFL's $1.5 million lawsuit against her for flashing a middle finger during last year's Super Bowl halftime show -- in fact, she tells TMZ, she's going back to the Super Bowl ... to support Bruno Mars.

M.I.A. was leaving an L.A. sushi joint when we asked about the lawsuit, and the singer laughed it all off like it was a joke -- but said she would attend the 2014 Super Bowl to support Bruno's halftime show.

Pretty safe bet she won't actually be on stage, but check the clip.

NFL star Rob Gronkowski is goin' Hollywood ... TMZ has learned Gronk is about to become a real-life movie star ... 'cause dude just signed on to a monster Hollywood film.

We got word from Gronkowski's theatrical manager Henry Penzi ... the NE Patriots' stud is going to be hugging it out with Jeremy Piven, Adrian Grenier and the rest of the boys from "Entourage" in their upcoming feature film.

The movie starts shooting in January ... we're told Gronkowski won't have to stretch his acting abilities too far ... 'cause he's going to play himself (spoiler?)

So far ... no word on what kind of scene he'll shoot ... but given his history ... we wouldn't be surprised to see Gronk partying it up with a bunch of hot babes.