Three Serie A soccer matches scheduled for Sunday in the northern regions of Lombardy and Veneto were suspended late Saturday after the deaths of two people infected with the coronavirus from China.

On orders from the government, the Italian league games called off were: Inter Milan vs. Sampdoria, Atalanta vs. Sassuolo and Hellas Verona vs. Cagliari.

"The government is working on urgent measures to decisively confront and contain the cases of coronavirus contagion,'' read a letter from Sports Minister Vincenzo Spadafora to Italian Olympic Committee president Giovanni Malago shortly before midnight local time on Saturday. "Those measures also include the sports world in order to prevent risks and to better take care of the health of those involved in the events and competition.

"Following measures taken by the cabinet for protective reasons and maximum precaution, on orders of the government I'm asking you to suspend all sports events of every level and discipline planned for the Lombardy and Veneto regions on Sunday."

Inter, who are atop the league, confirmed on Saturday night that their match at 17th-placed Sampdoria would not be played.

"The club can confirm that Inter vs. Sampdoria, which was due to take place at 20:45 CET on Sunday 23 February, has been postponed to a later date" the brief statement read.

Three other matches in Genoa, Turin and Rome on Sunday are going ahead as scheduled.

A dozen towns in northern Italy effectively went into lockdown on Saturday after the deaths of two people infected with the coronavirus from China, and a growing cluster of cases with no direct links to the origin of the outbreak abroad.

The secondary contagions prompted local authorities in the Lombardy and Veneto regions to close schools, businesses and restaurants and to cancel sporting events and Masses.

The mayor of Milan, Italy's business capital and the regional capital of Lombardy, shuttered public offices.

A 78-year-old man infected with the virus died in Veneto. A postmortem on a 77-year-old woman in Lombardy came back positive, though it wasn't clear if illness from the virus caused her death.

- Watch live Serie A football on ESPN+

A Serie B match between Ascoli and Cremonese was called off on Saturday around one hour before the scheduled kickoff because of fears over the coronavirus.

The Italian news agency ANSA said that the match was postponed because the visiting side are from the Lombardy region in the north of Italy where 30 cases have been reported so far.

Lega Serie B later confirmed the decision in a statement, saying: "Following an insurgence of coronavirus cases in the north of Italy, it has made the suspension of the match, projected for this afternoon, inevitable due to public health reasons."

The Gazzetta dello Sport said that both teams were already at the stadium when they were told of the postponement and that a coach load of Cremonese fans were turned back.

A third tier Serie C match between Piacenza and Sambenedettese was also called off as were several dozen youth team and amateur matches in the Lombardy region.

Information from The Associated Press and Reuters was used in this report.

February 23: T20 World Cup - England v South Africa, Perth

Our XI: Amy Jones, Lizelle Lee, Danielle Wyatt, Marizanne Kapp (capt), Dane van Niekerk, Natalie Sciver, Heather Knight, Sune Luus, Katherine Brunt, Shabnim Ismail, Anya Shrubsole

Captain: Marizanne Kapp

Kapp is one of the premier allrounders in women's cricket at the moment. She can be a match-winner with both bat and ball. She usually bats at No. 3, anchors the innings, then tees off. Bowling is probably Kapp's stronger suit though. She is fresh off a four-for in the warm-up game against Australia.

Vice-captain: Natalie Sciver

Sciver is another fine all-round option. She generally bats in the top four and opens the bowling for England which means she can get you points with both bat and ball. In T20Is, she averages 23.51 and has a strike rate of 111.48 with the bat, and she has 56 wickets at an economy of 6.44.

Hot Picks

Amy Jones

Jones is an opener who doesn't like wasting too many balls in the powerplay if she can help it. If she gets going, England will be in a great position. She can get you points for wicketkeeping as well, so she is a must-have. She has scored 200 runs in her last seven T20I innings and has a career strike rate of 113.13 in the format.

Dane van Niekerk

A proper legspinner-cum-top order batter. Her ability to keep things tight makes her effective - she has an economy of 5.46 in T20Is, especially impressive given she bowls legspin. She warmed up for the tournament with a 51-ball 62 against Australia.

Heather Knight

Yet another allrounder who usually bats in the top four and bowls a bit. She is more of a batting allrounder, so she may not be the best choice for captain or vice-captain, but you cannot leave her out. She is 54 short of 1000 runs in T20Is and has a career strike rate of 116.21.

Value Picks

Sune Luus

Luus can play the role of finisher, and contribute with a bit of legspin. She picked up four wickets in the first warm-up game against Sri Lanka, and could trouble the England batters.

Points to note

• South Africa have won only two out of their last 10 T20s against England

• England have scored at 7.07 against legspinners in the format since 2017, and South Africa have two legspinners in their squad

Heavyweight world titleholder Deontay Wilder puts his WBC belt on the line against lineal champion Tyson Fury in a rematch of their controversial split draw in 2018, when Fury outboxed Wilder for long periods of the fight but suffered two knockdowns, including one in the 12th and final round.

In 2019, Wilder scored a first-round KO of Dominic Breazeale in May and in November, Wilder stopped Luis Ortiz in Round 7 in a rematch of Wilder's 10th-round TKO victory in 2018.

Fury also scored two victories since the first fight with Wilder, a stoppage over Tom Schwarz in two rounds in June and a hard-fought unanimous decision win against Otto Wallin in September, where Fury suffered a bad cut in the right eyelid in the third round.

Ahead of the anticipated rematch, the only question worth asking is: Who will win?

Dan Rafael
ESPN.com

Wilder by KO
As Wilder often says, his opponent needs to be perfect for the entire fight and he only needs to be perfect for two seconds -- the time it takes for him to land his massive right hand that is the best in boxing and maybe the best in history. Wilder surely will be outboxed for stretches against Fury, who has great skills, but at some point Wilder is going to find a home for the big shot. He did in the first fight, dropping Fury twice. Fury miraculously survived a thunderous knockdown in the 12th round, but this time when Wilder floors him it will be for good. Wilder by highlight-reel KO in the later rounds.

Timothy Bradley Jr.
ESPN boxing analyst/former champion

Wilder by KO
Many will say Fury, being the pure boxer, should win this fight. But I don't think so. Wilder may not have the technical skills of a Larry Holmes, but his unorthodox style and ring IQ are above average. If Fury is the boxer, why did Wilder out-jab him in the first fight 248 to Fury's 224? Also Tyson being a defensive genius was hit the most in his most recent fight against Wallin, according to CompuBox. In that fight Fury got hit 127 times over the course of 12 rounds. In conclusion, I have Wilder earning a spot on the SportsCenter top 10 plays of the day with a devastating KO.

Julio Cesar Chavez
ESPN Deportes/Golpe a Golpe

Wilder by KO
Fury will outbox Wilder to start the fight while the American will look for his power shots. I pick Wilder to win by KO late in the fight.

Juan Manuel Marquez
ESPN Deportes/Golpe a Golpe

Fury by decision
It will be important that Fury shows up in the best condition for his technique and combinations to work to earn a decision victory.

Josh Taylor
Unified junior welterweight world titlist

Fury by decision
I think Fury will do it and outbox Wilder. Fury will try to stay away from Wilder's right hand. If he stays on his two feet, on his toes, it's his fight to lose. Fury has been saying he's going to come out and knock him out, but that's a dangerous game for him.

Nick Parkinson
ESPN UK

Wilder by KO/TKO
Hopefully, Fury's skin around his right eye, where he needed 47 stitches last September to close a nasty cut, will not betray him. If it doesn't, this fight will most likely be determined by the wrecking ball that is Wilder's right fist. Fury can outbox Wilder for 12 rounds, as he did in their first encounter, only to get nailed by one of the American's big shots. Wilder only needs one punch. Fury beat the count last time, but Wilder has finished his last two opponents in devastating fashion and wins by KO or on cuts.

Teddy Atlas
ESPN boxing analyst

Wilder by KO8
In their first encounter, Fury fought about as well as possible and he still had to get off the floor twice. Add to the equation that since then, Wilder has improved his delivery system for that brick of a right hand.

Nigel Collins
ESPN.com

Wilder by TKO
If switching trainers from Ben Davison to Javan Hill really does increase Fury's punching power, the "Gypsy King" has a legitimate chance of beating Wilder. But at this stage of Fury's career, that's probably not possible. He is what he is. Moreover, it's difficult to imagine Fury boxing better than he did in the first fight, which would mean totally avoiding Wilder's bombs. This time the referee saves a groggy Fury after he gets up wobbly from a knockdown.

Steve Kim
ESPN.com

Wilder by KO8
The rematch will look like their first bout. I expect Fury to outbox and outmaneuver Wilder for long stretches, but until someone shows that they can evade Wilder's right hand, I'm not inclined to pick against him for the time being. Yeah, Wilder has his flaws, but he's also got the ultimate eraser. I like Wilder to eventually land his preferred weapon and score an eighth-round knockout.

Eric Raskin
Showtime Boxing

Wilder by KO9
There are no wrong answers for this fight (except maybe Fury by KO). It's truly a fight that can go either way. But Fury, as skilled and smart as he is in the ring, makes the occasional mistake, and Wilder is quite possibly the most dangerous heavyweight in history to make a single mistake against. Can Fury get through 36 minutes without getting clipped? I think it's slightly more likely the answer is no than yes.

Doug Kezirian
ESPN Betting Analyst

Wilder by KO
Fury is approaching the rematch with Wilder much differently than he did their first fight that went the distance. He added 20 pounds, which may slow down his top-notch elusive skills. Fury also changed trainers and is reportedly focusing on a more offensive-minded game plan. Both adjustments lend themselves to a fight under 10.5 rounds. On top of that, given Fury was knocked down twice in the first fight, I am skeptical of his ability to continue to absorb Wilder's impressive punching power. Forty-one of Wilder's 42 bouts have ended via the knockout. I do not expect a lengthy fight. Pick: Under 10.5 rounds (+110)

Delvin Rodriguez
ESPN Deportes

Wilder by KO
This time Wilder is gonna take his time, settle down more, put his punches together and get the KO in the later rounds.

Charles Moynihan
ESPN bureau producer

Fury by unanimous decision
Fury's road map to victory is simple: Control the distance and circle away from Wilder's devastating right hand. This fight will lack the sizzle of Act I.

Salvador Rodriguez
ESPNdeportes.com

Wilder by late KO
I think it will be an intriguing fight. Fury's ring intelligence is something that we have rarely seen in the heavyweight division and that should give him an advantage against anyone, but not against the fierce power of Wilder. I think Wilder will send Fury to the canvas late in the fight, and unlike the first encounter, this time Fury will not be able to get up in time.

Claudia Trejos
DAZN

Wilder by KO
I believe Wilder will take the win by KO after the seventh round. Wilder possesses devastating power that can cancel Fury's boxing skills and movement abilities. Fury's attributes will diminish as the fight goes into the later rounds, and that will open the opportunity for Wilder to land his right hand and finish the fight before the final bell.

David Faitelson
ESPN Deportes

Wilder by KO
Wilder's devastating power will be the difference again. Wilder will have to work hard against Fury's mobility and boxing skills, but in the end, he will find the punch he needs to end the fight.

Jorge Eduardo Sánchez
ESPN Deportes boxing host

Fury by decision
Fury should win. He's the better fighter, has more weapons and he's smarter than Wilder in the ring. But Fury will have to be alert all the time, because Wilder could solve the fight with just one blow.

Bernardo Pilatti
Boxing analyst

Wilder by TKO
The rematch promises to be similar to their first showdown in 2018 -- a clear clash of styles. Fury will control the fight with his technical superiority, and Wilder will be betting on hurting Fury with his power shots. To pick a winner is difficult; however, I expect Wilder to make the appropriate adjustments, that is, increase his punch volume. We already know that Wilder can hurt Fury with a single shot. In the case of Fury, he changed his coach after not showing much improvement in his recent fights. His unpredictable personality along with possible fatigue late in the fight could lead to defensive errors that Wilder will definitely take advantage of.

Your take:

Tough conditions face Scottish runners in Falkirk, while the Welsh Champs and Northern Ireland Champs also see exciting battles on testing courses

On a busy day of national cross-country championships, while the English National took place in Nottingham there were similar events in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Lindsays Scottish Cross Country Champs, Falkirk

Mhairi Maclennan (pictured above) claimed her second Scottish cross-country title as she won the women’s crown while Jamie Crowe took the men’s title in gruelling conditions on a Falkirk course that was waterlogged in places, Peter Jardine reports.

Maclennan, who last won this title in 2018 and now runs for Preston, beat Annabel Simpson of Fife AC and Moira Stewart of Cambuslang as Fife won the team crown.

Crowe of Central AC justified his status as favourite for the men’s race with a fine win from Jonny Glen of Inverclyde AC and Kevin Wood of Fife AC. The winner also led Central to their 10th men’s team win on the trot.

“It was great to win gold for the second time in my career and especially after being fourth last year,” said Maclennan. “The conditions with wind, mud and sleet were so tough and really everybody who was out there and competed deserves a medal. It was a big field again for the senior women’s race and it is wonderful being part of that.”

Crowe said: “I felt nervous all week because people were saying I was probably the favourite. Those nerves worsened when the snow started in the first lap and at that stage you just want to get over the mud and get around. “But I managed to get away from Jonny, although not as early as I had hoped.”

Megan Keith took the under-20 women’s gold while Freddie Carcas won the under-20 men’s title – both juniors having won at the event 12 months earlier.

Carcas returned from a recent knee injury to beat Hamish Hickey and Tom Graham-Marr, while Keith beat Cera Gemmell and Holly Paige.

Welsh Cross Country Champs, Pembrey Country Park

James Hunt and Mel Wilkins took Welsh cross-country senior titles at Pembrey near Llanelli, Alex Donald reports.

Hunt, the 2018 champion, had been a pre-race favourite, targeting the 116th edition of the event to regain the title from seven-time winner Dewi Griffiths. Hunt knew he was in great shape following a sub-14-minute clocking over 5km just over a week earlier and his game plan was to go of hard and maintain a pace that he hoped would burn off his rivals.

Battling gale force winds, Hunt beat Ciaran Lewis into second with Dan Nash third and Griffiths fourth as Cardiff took the team honours.

“Conditions were tough but I went off quite hard at the start and I saw the boys trying to tuck in so I started to push hard in different parts of the course,” said Hunt. “Dewi finally dropped off the group and I never looked back so I’m really happy with that.”

Wilkins was a convincing women’s winner, going one better than her runner-up spot from 12 months ago as she beat Lauren Cooper by half a minute.

“It was extremely windy out there but it was brilliant to come back,” said Wilkins. “Last year I came second so to come back and win today was a big aim for me.

“My long-term aim is to qualify Commonwealth Games marathon for Wales but I’m going to stay pretty chilled until then and see how I get on.”

Dominic Smith ran solidly to claim the under-20 men’s title ahead of Sam Roberts. There was a brave attempt by Lloyd Sheppard to run away from Osian Perrin in the under-17 men’s race but Perrin timed his bid for glory perfectly to retain his title.

Samia Jones overcame last year’s under-17 champion Ashleigh Willis to win the combined under-20/17 women’s race outright.

Northern Ireland & Ulster Cross Country Champs, Coleraine, Feb 22

A cold biting wind made life difficult for competitors at the Northern Ireland & Ulster Senior Cross Country Championships held on the Ulster University Playing Fields in Coleraine, Malcolm McCausland reports.

Apart from hail and rain, those winds also brought change as three of the four titles on offer went to different new winners as Neil Johnston and Emma Mitchell picked up their first provincial senior cross-country crowns.

An understrength North Down squad retained the women’s team championship to maintain the status quo but an impressive Newcastle AC halted City of Derry Spartans who were going for a four-in-a-row in the men’s race.

ARLINGTON, Texas – Adam Cianciarulo was ruled out of Saturday night’s Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, event at AT&T Stadium after an injury suffered during the first timed qualifying session.

The Monster Energy Kawasaki young gun went down in the session and suffered a broken left collarbone, confirmed by Kawasaki officials on social media just before 4:30 p.m. ET.

As a result, the 23-year-old Cianciarulo will not race in the second of three Triple Crown events on the Supercross schedule this season.

“(It) sucks, but it is what it is,” Cianciarulo noted on social media. “My fault.”

The two-time 250SX Class championship runner-up sat fifth in points entering Saturday’s race in Arlington, 28 behind teammate and championship leader Eli Tomac.

Jon Rahm began his Moving Day at the WGC-Mexico Championship a ways down the leaderboard, but quickly made up ground thanks to four consecutive birdies to begin his day.

The exciting action didn't stop there, though, as Rahm collected two more as part of his outward-nine 30 to shoot up into contention.

By the time Rahm had reached the par-3 17th, he had carded three more birdies to get to 8 under on the day and 9 under on the week. As if his day hadn't already been exciting enough, this happened next.

The reaction says it all for the newly-minted European Tour Player of the Year. He carded a third-round 61 and became the fifth player to shoot 61 in a WGC event.

But he wasn't the first one to card a one on the scorecard Saturday at Chapultapec Golf Club.

Earlier in the day, at the par-3 seventh, Chez Reavie's tee shot found the bottom of the cup for his fifth career hole-in-one. It marks his second ace on the PGA Tour in as many months. He also notched one in August at the Tour Championship.

MEXICO CITY – Jon Rahm started his day at the WGC-Mexico Championship with three consecutive tap-ins for birdie and added a fourth from 12 feet at No. 4. It was a sign of things to come but not even close to the highlight of the Spaniard’s round.

That moment came at the par-3 17th hole when he one-hopped his tee shot into the hole for his second hole in one on the PGA Tour. By that time he was 10 under par for the day on the par-71 Club de Golf Chapultepec and poised to set a new course record (61).

“I'm just really happy that after the first two days I'm going to have a legitimate chance tomorrow without needing to shoot 59 or something like that,” said Rahm, who started the week with rounds of 72-69. “Luckily I took care of that today and hopefully tomorrow I can just put a solid round together and have a chance.”

Rahm had a similar round at the 2018 American Express when he began the week with a 62 at La Quinta and had no problems following that up with rounds of 67-70-67 to win the event.

“The main thing I just need to stay focused on what I have to do, know that I'm not going to get as lucky as I did today, and maybe know that I'm not going to make every putt I look at,” Rahm said of Sunday’s final round. “Just stay confident that I'm under control of my golf swing and keep hitting the right shots and hopefully get a decent start and give the leaders something to think about.”

Real Madrid dropped to second place in La Liga with a 1-0 defeat at 10th-placed Levante in a match that saw Eden Hazard limp off with an injury on Saturday.

The result puts the Bernabeu side, who entered the day with a point cushion atop the table, two points behind new leaders Barcelona who won 5-0 earlier in the day.

With Hazard making consecutive starts for the first time since November, Real were unlucky not to convert a pair of gilt-edged chances in the first half.

Hazard missed Real's best chance after a Marcelo through ball played him behind the Levante back line in the 53rd minute -- his mis-hit left-footed shot tumbling tamely at Aitor Fernandez in goal.

Zinedine Zidane was forced to bring on the youthful Vinicius Junior for a hobbling Hazard in the 67th minute, then it was Levante who scored the breakthrough on 79 minutes, with Jose Luis Morales sensationally beating Thibaut Courtois with a sweetly hit left-footed shot from a difficult angle outside of the box.

Madrid will face Manchester City in a Champions League round-of-16 first-leg tie next week and could be without Hazard if tests on Monday show he has picked up a serious injury.

"It's bad, it doesn't look good because he hurt himself where he was injured. It's a knock, not more than a knock, but we'll see if it's not much," Zidane said of the injury after the match. "Right now it hurts him, and we'll see tomorrow when we do more tests."

The Belgium international has played in just nine of Real's 25 league games this season but in five of their six Champions League matches. Hazard, who joined Los Blancos from Chelsea for £88.5 million plus bonuses last summer, has scored just once in all competitions.

Manchester City will have to maintain a very delicate balance for the rest of the Premier League season. The games themselves and the results, mean absolutely nothing: they're not going to win the title, and they're not going to drop out of the top four, even if that actually held any significance given their ban from next season's Champions League.

On the evidence of their 1-0 win over Leicester City on Saturday, there's absolutely no chance they will drop below second place either, so Pep Guardiola's side could essentially pop a pair of slippers on and cruise through the remainder of the season, for all the difference it will make. "Today we are 19 points [behind], so maybe we have a chance," joked -- yes, joked -- Guardiola afterwards.

But aside from the obvious yet intangible motivations of pride and obligation to the rest of the Premier League, the purpose of City's remaining domestic games are essentially as extended training sessions for the fixtures that actually do mean something.

Eyebrows might have been raised at Guardiola's team selection for this one, with Wednesday's Champions League game against Real Madrid in mind: many managers might have given some/all of Kevin De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Aymeric Laporte or Sergio Aguero the weekend off. But Guardiola knows that there's a fine line between making sure his players are resting up and maintaining some sort of momentum, particularly since they've just had a 12-day break.

We've seen with clubs like Celtic and Rangers in the past and PSG more recently, that uncompetitive league games do not make for good Champions League preparation. In those previous cases it's been because the aforementioned clubs are too good for the rest of the league, but the same principle applies to City this season.

This seemed like an ideal performance under the circumstances. They beat a theoretical rival by an ostensibly narrow margin but in reality with some comfort, while playing within themselves, and at the same time giving Aguero and Laporte some rest ahead of midweek. "The preparation after 12 days off was good," Guardiola said. "We have played two good games, and it's good to prepare for Madrid with these good opponents." Good.

At some points in recent months it feels like City have been relying on De Bruyne for inspiration, as if they have slightly lost their confidence and need him to take control of things and make something happen. Which he has done, his goal against West Ham in midweek being a case in point, almost barging a colleague out of the way to score in a manner that seemed to scream "stop messing around, I'll take care of this."

There were times in this game when that sensation was clear too, as if the other 10 players were waiting for the grown-up to sort things out. It will have ultimately provided some comfort, therefore, that the goal came from a terrific run by Riyad Mahrez and expert finish from Gabriel Jesus.

For Leicester, on paper this might not seem like the most calamitous result. But their form has been patchy at best for nearly three months now: they've only won three of their last 11 in the league, stretching back to early December, and those victories were against West Ham (twice) and at Newcastle. They're still 10 points ahead of fifth (and sixth) place, but there's a growing cluster of teams with their eye on the Champions League places: they could get dragged into a scrap yet.

They looked sluggish in this game, and it might be of some concern that Brendan Rodgers admitted afterwards that his side were "feeling" their legs in the closing stages. For a team that recently had a two-week break, that seems odd.

All of that made Manchester City's win relatively simple, but they did have moments of high fortune, and might've conceded two penalties. De Bruyne could easily have been penalised when the ball hit his arm from James Maddison's free kick, while Ederson was also lucky to avoid conceding a spot-kick after barrelling out of his goal and smashing into Kelechi Iheanacho in the second half. It might have been a genuine attempt to get the ball, but if two outfielders go into a challenge like that and one gets there just before the other, it will always be given as a foul. Why everything changes when a goalkeeper is involved is entirely baffling. Both decision went in City's favour, VAR David Coote -- who had earlier in the day overseen Chelsea's controversial win over Tottenham -- deciding neither warranted a penalty.

And then there's their issue with penalties. Kasper Schmeichel's save from Aguero's effort was the fourth penalty in a row City have missed, and the fifth out of 10 they haven't converted this season. Those last four were all by different takers, Aguero following in the footsteps of Ilkay Gundogan, Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus.

Perhaps this is just a weird variation, the sort of odd sequence of events that football throws up sometimes. But perhaps it is part of a wider problem, part of an issue with focus, or maybe even technique. It feels like something Guardiola needs to take seriously -- or give the people what they want and put Ederson on spot-kick duty -- but he doesn't seem especially concerned. "We have missed four penalties in a row, but maybe we will shoot a penalty when we need it to win something. The keepers are good too, but the next one we are going to score."

The penalties issue is one of a few ragged edges that City have this season, which feels like an obvious thing to say about a team that were expected to win the title but have just cut the deficit to top spot to a mere 19 points. They will have to smooth down those edges if they are to succeed in the Champions League, the competition that means the most to them now, if for no other reason than they can stick a middle finger up, high and proud, to UEFA.

That will be their prime motivation for the rest of the campaign, and these games will serve as mere tune-ups. In that regard, this one went perfectly.

Miami Dolphins assistant head coach Karl Dorrell will become the new head coach at the University of Colorado, a source told ESPN, confirming multiple reports.

Dorrell, who coached the Dolphins' receivers, will succeed Mel Tucker, who left the Buffaloes to become the head coach at Michigan State.

Dorrell was the head coach at UCLA from 2003-07, where he led the Bruins to five bowl appearances and amassed a record of 35-27. He was fired at the end of the '07 season, despite the Bruins reaching a bowl game.

Earlier this week, Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, a star running back at Colorado from 1987-90, withdrew his name from consideration for the job, ESPN confirmed.

Steve Sarkisian also withdrew his name from consideration and instead plans to remain at Alabama as offensive coordinator, sources told ESPN

Dorrell, 56, returns to college after spending the last five seasons as receivers coach for the Jets (2015-2018) and Dolphins (2019). His last college coaching job was in 2014, when he served as Vanderbilt's offensive coordinator.

The Dolphins gave Dorrell a promotion this week adding assistant head coach to his title, but Dorrell has been looking for an opportunity to return to being a head coach.

Dorrell quickly earned the respect of his Dolphins receivers last season and played a key role in DeVante Parker's breakout 2019 season.

Parker, who finished in the top-5 among NFL players with 1,202 receiving yards last season, credited Dorrell for teaching him how to watch film better, learning subtleties of the position and trusting him to succeed.

It's a return to Boulder for Dorrell, who was CU's offensive coordinator and wide receiver coach from 1995-98 and the receiver coach from 1992-93.

Colorado's search focused on coaches with NFL ties. After reaching out to Bienemy, the school also spoke with New York Giants assistant Bret Bielema, the former Arkansas and Wisconsin coach, and had significant interest in Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Greg Roman, a source told ESPN's Adam Rittenberg.

The school also spoke with Sarkisian and Air Force coach Troy Calhoun, both of whom spent time in the NFL.

Darrin Chiaverini had been serving as Colorado's interim head coach.