making news in america this morning, super scandal. surround deflated footballs. the patriots quarterback, tom brady and the coach, bill belichick talking about the controversy. extreme weather. a massive storm sweeping across the country leaving nearly a foot of snow in some places. the latest track showing where it's headed next. high drama on the high seas. a helicopter pushing fishermen to their rescue with the ship sinking fast. a dad losing his cool on the sidelines, smashing the glass. what set him off? hey there, good morning, everybody. the clock is ticking toward next sunday's super bowl.

the patriots getting their defense together but their defense against deflate-gate, not the seahawks right now. this whole scandal is till going on and basically comes down to three words, their defense does i don't know. >> that's what we heard from quarterback tom brady as well as the patriots head coach, bill belichick saying he's learned more about inflating footballs since the scandal broke than he did in his first 40 years in the nfl. more from abc's susan saulny. >> reporter: this morning the latest controversy continues to rock the sports world. who let some of the air out of the new england patriots' footballs during their championship victory over the indianapolis colts in violation of league rules. from superstar quarterback tom brady, a three-time super bowl champ who handled the ball over 40 times in the first half a full denial. >> i have no idea. i just wasn't obviously aware, have no explanation for it. >> reporter: their coach also denied any involvement basically throwing the ball back to brady. >> tom's personal preferences on

his footballs are something that he can talk about in much better detail. >> reporter: the scandal now known as deflate-gate comes just as the patriots were hoping to spend the week before the super bowl concentrating on the seattle seahawks. many sports analysts respect buying their denials. >> i didn't believe what tom brady had to say. >> i thought this was a perfect opportunity for tom brady to go and say, you know what i made a mistake, i blew it. it's on me. i'll take the blame here and this will go away. he didn't do that. >> reporter: experts say the only time balls could have been deflated was in the final minutes before kickoff or during the game on the sidelines. some quarterbacks say deflated balls offer more accuracy and control. but brady says he's as confused as anyone. >> obviously i'd like to know what happened. >> reporter: nfl officials are investigating whether the patriots treated but the league hasn't asked him anything.

>> okay well parts of new mexico and texas panhandle are digging out. >> more than a foot of know in the area forcing many schools to shut down in both states. drivers had to cope with whiteout conditions and even thunder snow east of albuquerque. the storm broke records in the amarillo area leaving every inch of the city covered in white but the plows quickly cleaned things up. the same system on the move and it could be a dangerous weekend in the northeast. accuweather's justin povick has the latest. good morning, justin. >> thank you. the southeast looking to end the work p workweek on wet and in some cases stormy note. interstate 10 expecting a couple thunderstorms. low pressure strengthens as it heads east/northeast. upstate of north carolina and as rain eventually encounters colder air over the middle atlantic states expecting it to mix and change over to some wet snow. mountains of west virginia

especially northbound into maryland and southern pennsylvania looking at the potential for a couple to several inches of snow and potentially even more getting in toward boston and then the cold returns after the storm departs to close out the month of january. reena and t.j. back to you. >> the mother of one of the japanese hostages held by isis is making a last-minute plea for his life. she pleaded with the japanese government to save her son. the two would be killed unless a ransom was met. japan has been trying to reach those holding the hostages. well, there is a new leader in saudi arabia this morning following the death of close u.s. ally king abdullah. the king's half brother has already taken over at the palace. abdullah who was 90 is being remembered for his efforts to modernize saudi arabia. also a key figure in the u.s. fight against al qaeda. abdullah's led to a 2

in oil prices. the president of yemen quit under pressure sending the country into deeper chaos. the resignation complicate american efforts in the fight against al qaeda. rebels who control the capital had been holding him captive in his home. the u.s. embassy there is open but staffing has been cut. historic talks between the use and cuban officials wrapped up in havana. progress made but roberta jake gyllenhaalson, a top u.s. diplomat says the issue of human rights remains a major sticking point. >> we do have differences in that subject, profound differences with the cuban government and it was part of the conversation today. >> however, moments after she said that in a separate news conference jacobson's cuban counterpart said the issue of human rights was discussed during the meeting. meantime exiled cubans living in south florida staged a

protest over the thaw in u.s./cuban relations. hoping to expand his message to a wider audience president obama turned to youtube's most popular stars. things got kind of awkward at times including a moment with glozell green, best known for eating a ladle full of cinnamon. green did ask a few serious policy questions then she offered the president a gift of a trademark the women in his life. >> one for your wife. >> do you know something i don't. >> i'll ask michelle to try it on maybe tonight. >> okay. >> oops. the president did enjoy a good laugh and as of this morning those interviews have garnered more than 600,000 hits and counting. the white house may have the last laugh on that one. >> i bet they got a lot of hits. 23409 every day the president

interviewed by someone with green lipstick on. the phone scam the irs wants you to look out for. >> the drug mule for the techie the future of smuggling revealed after a crash landing near the border. fists flying in a basketball brawl but it wasn't the fellows. it was the ladies going at it. we'll explain.

hasina muhammad. . it took three weeks but stocks are surging and are now above where they started the year. all three major averages climbed after a plan to revive europe's economy was announced. the dow up 259, nasdaq up 82.

with tax season upon us the irs is warning of a scam that victimize ed victimized people in every state. they're demanding payments and threatening jail time even deportation. nearly 3,000 victims have already been scammed out of more than $14 million. the irs says it never calls people demanding payment. the movie studio behind "shrek" and "kung fu panda" is downsizing. dreamworks will cut 500 jobs by the end of the year planning to reduce the number of films it produces from three to twoablely. one will be an original the other a sequel. and on the movie kick now, the final numbers are in and "the hunger games: mockingjay part 1" pulled in $331.8 million slightly more than "guardians of the galaxy."

well with super bowl sunday just over a little bit over a week away chicken wing sales are going through the roof. americans are expected to eat 1.25 billion chicken wings this year. if that many were laid out from where the seahawks play to where new england plays, they would stretch back and forth 28 times. >> you always get the good stories. >> i know. plucked from the sea with no time to spare, dramatic new video just in to us of fishermen pulled to safety with their boat quickly sinking. the million dollar kid who's the 16-year-old who just signed a huge deal with a professional sports team. check it out! i'm sending a tweet. tweet! that's not how it works, grandpa. you think i am out of touch. i saved 15 percent on car insurance in just 15 minutes. you could've saved money in half that time with esurance. (wings flapping) ah, a reply...

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shutting down schools and city offices and this morning, it's making its way to the east coast. expected to unleash more heavy sleet, snow and rain. >> morning road condition, a slick start to the day for most of the southeast and gulf coast. snow showers will make for a slippery ride at types an the great lakes. wet and foggy commute in the pacific northwest. if you're flying airport delays possible in atlanta, new orleans, charlotte and seattle. well britain's prince andrew is publicly denying allegations he had sex with an underaged teenager. >> the comments came as he arrived in switzerland and abc's terry moran is there. >> reporter: an embattled prince andrew under tremendous pressure finally speaking out publicly about the sex scandal engulfing him. >> i think i must for the record refer to the events that have taken place in the last few weeks. >> reporter: those events allegations in u.s. federal court by virginia roberts, she says she was coerced into having sex with the prince three times starting when she was 17 all

denied by palace officials. >> i just wish to reiterate and to reaffirm the statements which have already been made on my behalf by buckingham palace. my focus is on my work. >> reporter: but the public focus now inevitably this he said/she said dispute and her evidence there's this photo from 2001 in london roberts, 17 at the time with prince andrew she says they had sex that night. flight logs that list roberts as a passenger on private flights to the three locations where she says her sexual encounters with andrew happened and prince andrew's admitted former friendship with the man roberts says recruited her for sex with andrew and others billionaire jeffrey epstein a convicted sex offender who plea, baened to one year in jail that roberts wants overturned. for virginia roberts a wife and mom of three in colorado this is far from over. in court documents she issued a

stark challenge to prince andrew swear on your oath that you're innocent. terry moran, abc news davos, switzerland. two people remain unaccounted for in that mansion fire in maryland. two more bodied were removed from what's left of the house yesterday. investigators would not say whether the bodies found were those of adults or children pending identification from the medical examiner. four children ranging in age from 6 to 8 and their grandparents are believed to have died in that fire. that other huge fire we were covering raged through an apartment complex in new jersey. it's been labeled an accident. investigators say it was ignited by building maintenance workers who were doing plumbing repairs. a thousand people are now displaced. everyone made it out of that building safely though. the fire was still smoldering a day and a half after it started. police if salt lake city say claims by a bank robbery suspect that he was wearing an exploding vest are bogus. the s.w.a.t. team and bomb squad

moved in. first evacuating the area then sending in robots to defuse the fake bomb. after a tense three-hour operation, the man was arrested. police in texas have released new surveillance video of a robbery and kidnapping at an atm near dallas last week. the new images show the moment when the victim was forced out of the driver's seat and into the trunk of her own car. their hoping this new video will help them identify the man responsible and make an arrest. police in mexico say a drone carrying six pounds of meth crashed into the parking lot of a tijuana supermarket. investigators believe the smuggles may have been too greedy taping more drugs to the drone than it was capable of handling still tracking down who was at the controls. so a dramatic rescue captured on camera. take a look at this. off the waters of scotland here. the coast guard save ago an entire crew from a sinking boat after it started taking on water. the boat is on its side getting

tossed around through this rough sea. the fishermen falling into the water but the rescue chopper plucked all five men to safety. well here's another example of parents taking things a little too far at their kids' sporting events. it happened in pennsylvania. >> you see the dad there. yes, he didn't like the ref's call. just gave the glass there a little tap. breaks it. not easy to do actually. apparently his titanium wedding ring hit it just right. the guy was asked to leave. he had has to pay for the glass and his kid's team was asked to forfeit the game. more behaving badly. you see this here. did you see the punch. wild scene from last night's auburn/alabama women's game. >> a foul shot and a referee knocked to the floor. three players ejected from the game. alabama went on to win by one point. a couple of big named sports personalities to tell you about starting with nascar's most

recognizable driver jeff gordon. he says he has one more season left in him. >> gordon who is that famous number 24 says it will be his last year in nascar. he won't say he's retiring. he's been nascar champion four times. credited with helping expand their appeal to a wider audience. roger federer is out after failing in the third round. >> i ya, he was taking on italian andreas seppi. got beat. he beat him ten straight times till today. racked up an unusual number of errors including nine double fall. >> first time in 14 years he failed to reach the fourth round. up next in "the pulse," it's an awkward post-tennis match twirl sparking controversy's australian open. most kids his age are a sophomore or junior in high school. he just signed a multimillion dollar deal with one of the

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chewy inside, crunchy outside. new flintstones dino eggs. ♪ time for "the pulse" on this friday morning. we start back at the australian open at an incident that has a lot of people screaming sexism. >> at the center eugenie bouchard. here it is. >> last night you tweeted that you love serena's outfit. she was kind enough to give us a twirl. can you give us a twirl and tell us about your outfit? >> a twirl like -- >> a twirl. a pirouette. here we go. >> all right. you saw it there. bouchard giving the crowd that twirl. she was asked about it. she seemed to shrug it off.

>> i mean yeah i don't know just an old guy asking you to twirl is funny. >> an old guy asking you to twirl. awkward. those claims of sexism claiming whether a male player would be asked to do the same thing after a match. >> serena williams is staying away from the sexism issue saying whether i twirl or not is not the end of the world. a huge get for one of the most powerful soccer clubs in europe snagging a superstar. >> real madrid signed martin odegaard reportedly eyed by almost every major european club before settling on the spanish champions. >> odegaard signed for a reported $2.8 million. if he becomes successful he'll earn much more than that. already debuted for the national team. he says his goal is to become the best player possible. calling all tiny dancers. it appears pop singer and songwriter sia may want another

prodigy for her new hit "elastic heart." >> it features this mini. a young girl named maddie ziegler but it appears maddie may be replaced. >> that's because of a new tweet from sia that reads, if you have an l.a.-based 8 to 12-year-old who wants to be on tv with me tweet me videos of them lip-syncing "elastic heart." >> you age out of that role. how old is this young lady. >> so funny you should ask. i don't think i could pass for an 8 to 12-year-old. not that i would want that but it does require dance moves, it seems. >> it does? >> to sing to ad lib. >> that's your thing. you don't know. we have a multitalented young lady here in reena ninan. >> thank you. >> she does it all. >> thank you. >> not just a fantastic journalist. stick around for some of these commercial breaks. you wouldn't believe what happens. >> but i don't twirl. for some of you, your little news is next. >> for everybody else we'll be

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pacific northwest. snow showers around the great lakes and expect some heavy rain for the gulf coast and southeast. finally from us the late night comics focused on two big story, deflate-gate and the state of the union. >> here now your "friday funnies." >> to be honest i'm a little

over it with the promising and the clapping and wait is that one of the -- hold on a second. is that -- is that one of the actual founding fathers? what! huh! >> another one of the guests was a ceo of cvs which explains why this year obama's speech was printed on one long csv receipt. there you go. all i bought was some gum. why i'm holding half a free this my hand. >> president obama shot down republicans who cheered when he said he had no more campaigns to run by saying i won both of them. damn i hope obamacare covers burns. >> the reports that the league is investigating new england for allegedly deflating footballs during the game coach bill belichick was very clear, he said there's no tampering, he said all the needles they have are used strictly for injecting

steroids into the players and that is it so -- >> the patriots deny it but i think there is some evidence they've been using deflated balls for quite a while now. take a look. ♪ >> when asked about it tom brady said -- i mean that is ridiculous. the stuff these guys come up with. i'm done. forget it. >> he basically the same answer over and over again for 30 minutes. >> i'm not sure. i'm not sure. i'm not sure. i'm not sure. i'm not quite sure. i don't know. i don't know. you know -- i wouldn't know. i have no idea. i have no idea. if i don't know something i don't know something. >> i don't know what i don't know. the unknowns. >> remind you of some political scandals. >> the unknowns. that's what's making news in america. >> see you on "good morning america," folks. have a good one.

>> good morning breaking news this morning out of philadelphia tacony section where police are investigating two suspicious car fires we're live with the very latest. >> a philadelphia teenager is on the mend after a vicious assault on a septa trolley. >> tracking the storm a nor'easter is heading our way what can we expect? >> i know we'll get snow, let's talk about that on this friday morning. let's talk to david and karen. >> reporter: we have a