NEW YORK (AP) — Quarterbacks Stetson Bennett of Georgia, Max Duggan of TCU, C.J. Stroud of Ohio State and Caleb Williams of Southern California were announced as finalists for the Heisman Trophy.

The award given to the outstanding player in college football, determined by a vote of more than 900 sports journalists and past winners, will be presented Saturday at the Lincoln Center in New York.

Conspicuously absent from the list of finalists is Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker, who was the leader of the nation’s No. 1 offense before his season ended Nov. 19 because of a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

Bennett had been a bit under the radar as a Heisman candidate and perhaps a mild surprise to be one of the top four vote-getters for no reason other than that his statistics don’t jump off the page.

VERLANDER TO SIGN WITH METS

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Justin Verlander agreed to an $86.7 million, two-year contract with the New York Mets, reuniting the AL Cy Young Award winner with Max Scherzer and giving the team a high-profile replacement for Jacob deGrom.

The contract is worth $43,333,333 per season and includes a vesting player option for 2025 at $35 million, according to a person familiar with the negotiations who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because there was no immediate announcement.

Verlander, who turns 40 in February, leaves World Series champion Houston to step in for deGrom, who left New York after nine seasons when he agreed to a $185 million, five-year contract with Texas last week. It also puts Verlander on the same team as Scherzer after they played together with the Detroit Tigers from 2010-14.

Depending on the final details, it appears Verlander’s deal matches Scherzer’s for baseball’s record for highest average annual salary. Scherzer finalized a $130 million, three-year deal with New York a year ago.

BUCS RALLY LATE FOR 17-16 WIN

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tom Brady threw a pair of touchdown passes in the final three minutes, helping the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rally from a 13-point deficit to beat the New Orleans Saints 17-16 and tighten their grip on first place in the weak NFC South.

The seven-time Super Bowl champion tossed a one-yard TD pass to rookie Cade Otton, finishing a 91-yard drive to pull within 16-10 with exactly three minutes remaining. He got the ball back with 2:29 to go, then won it with a 6-yard throw to another rookie, Rachaad White, with 3 seconds left.

Andy Dalton threw for 225 yards and a touchdown without an interception for New Orleans, but the Saints ultimately paid for having to settle for three field goals by Wil Lutz on drives deep into Bucs territory.

The Bucs (6-6) extended their division lead over the Atlanta Falcons to 1 1/2 games. The last-place Saints (4-9) missed out on opportunity to pull into a tie for second with the Falcons. None of the four teams in the NFC South has a winning record.

IRVING, NIKE CALL IT QUITS

BROOKLYN, NY (AP) — Kyrie Irving’s relationship with Nike is officially over, the shoe and athletic apparel maker said, a move that came a month after the company suspended the Brooklyn guard as part of the fallout over his tweeting a link to a film containing antisemitic material.

It was not a surprise breakup, especially after Nike co-founder Phil Knight said in the days after the company suspended Irving that he had doubts there would be any reconciliation.

Irving’s agent and stepmother, Shetellia Riley Irving, told The New York Times that the sides “mutually decided to part ways and we just wish Nike all the best.” Irving, without mentioning Nike by name, appeared to address the matter on his Twitter account Monday afternoon.