Push it! | Sports Daily Newsletter

He’s an international man of mystery. No, not Austin Powers.

Richie Gray doesn’t like to discuss the NFL teams he works with as an “unwritten rule of integrity.” But his cover was blown when Jason Kelce mentioned a “Scottish guy” the Eagles had worked with on their quarterback sneak.

That work has paid off. You know it, you love it, and, whether you call it the Tush Push or Brotherly Shove, it has worked 84% of the time this season for the Birds. And a rugby coach helped nudge them along, even if it’s “nowhere near a rugby play.”

Olivia Reiner goes inside the scrum to tell the story of the play making waves across the NFL.

— Maria McIlwain, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com.

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❓ Do you think the Tush Push gives the Eagles an unfair advantage? Email us back for a chance to be featured in the newsletter.

As the 76ers continue to wait for Kelly Oubre Jr. to return to the team, Philadelphia police continue to look into the hit-and-run accident that left him with a broken rib and injuries to his hip and leg. Surveillance footage recovered so far in the investigation has returned no evidence that a crash occurred at the Center City intersection where Oubre reported being hit on Saturday night, police told The Inquirer. A separate source familiar with the situation said Oubre was shaken up when he gave his account to the Philadelphia Police Department.

Coach Nick Nurse also weighed in on the incident, saying he was “going to believe him at his word.”

Jayson Tatum’s three-pointer with 71 seconds to play proved to be the dagger as the Celtics beat the Sixers, 117-107.

Next: After a long stint at the Wells Fargo Center, the Sixers will take off for Atlanta to play the Hawks at 7:30 p.m. Friday (NBCSP).

Taylor Swift’s dad, Scott, is a lifelong Eagles fan, having grown up in Bryn Mawr.

But that looks and sounds like it has changed with Taylor now dating Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce. Scott was on the latest episode of the New Heights podcast with the Kelce brothers to set the record straight. Spoiler alert: Jason Kelce wasn’t happy with Scott’s answers ...

Next: The Eagles face the Chiefs in a Super Bowl rematch on Monday Night Football (8:15 p.m., 6abc).

Don’t look now but the feisty Flyers have won three straight and are now above .500 at 8-7-1 on the season.

The Orange and Black made the Carolina Hurricanes their latest victim on Wednesday, Owen Tippett and Travis Konecny scoring first-period goals in a hard-fought 3-1 win.

The Flyers finish their four-game road trip with an impressive 3-1-0 record, with wins over a pair of Cup contenders in Carolina and Los Angeles. Not too shabby.

Next: The Flyers return home to the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday to play reigning Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights (1 p.m. NBCSP).

The United States men’s national team is in Austin, Texas, this week, but it must feel a bit like home for the Aaronson brothers, Brenden and Paxten, who are on the same U.S. squad for the first time.

“The first thing that comes to mind is that it’s really cool, it’s amazing — but it’s also sometimes weird really seeing him,” Brenden told The Inquirer on Wednesday.

The moment is a special one not for the family, but for local soccer, as the Medford natives are just the latest to break through in the global game. One day, they may even get a chance to play together on home soil as the World Cup comes to the U.S. and Philadelphia in 2026.

“I think humbling is the first thing that comes to mind for the both of us,” Paxten added. “Just being two kids that grew up in New Jersey, but had the opportunity to go play for Philadelphia in the academy, and just worked our way up through everything.”

Next: The USMNT will play Trinidad and Tobago in the Concacaf Nations League on Thursday at Q2 Stadium in Austin (9 p.m., TNT/HBO Max).

We asked you: If you were in charge of college sports, what’s the first thing you would do? Among your responses:

Get rid of the portal! If you make a commitment to a college, no transferring. It would eliminate the portal! — Mel G.

I was going to say fire Mark Emmert, but see that he did finally step down. Other than that reestablish the student athlete to replace the present semi-professional athlete, stop the school to school transfers, and cut the grossly overpaid coaches salaries in half. — Everett S.

The NIL has been good for the athletes as it gives them an opportunity to make some money while playing for their school. However, there needs to be more restrictions put on how much the athletes can make, and how much the schools can promise the athletes will make from the NIL. When schools like Ohio State, Michigan, Alabama and Georgia, just to name a few, make promises of big money to the kids, it is almost impossible for other schools to compete on the recruiting trail. The playing field needs to be leveled so that the other schools have a legitimate shot at recruiting the four and five star players! — Bill R.

First I would change the rule in football where a runner who falls down without being touched can get up and continue running, as in the NFL. I don’t buy the argument that it would result on more injuries. — Jack H.

Buy a Rand McNally Map of the United States and reposition all the college athletic programs to their appropriate geographic athletic conference. — Mike P.

We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Olivia Reiner, Scott Lauber, Alex Coffey, Gina Mizell, Jackie Spiegel, Jonathan Tannenwald, Anders Pryor, Jeff Neiburg, Joseph Santoliquito, and Aaron Carter.

That’s it from me! Jim will be back tomorrow as we ramp up to another Eagles game!

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