This Past Weekend in Sports

College Football

A Couple Top 10 Teams Fall, Others Struggle

College Football is the best sport of all. On a weekend that looked preposterously boring on paper (not a single matchup between ranked teams), fans of the sport were treated to several heart-pounding, exhilarating contests that had significant implications in the race to the College Football Playoff.

Eighth-ranked Oklahoma State (a surprising 7-point underdog according to Vegas) dropped a tough game on the road to Iowa State, who was led by QB Brock Purdy's 307 passing yards and 2 touchdowns. The contest, with a final score of 24-21, provided us with one of the most egregious unsportsmanlike penalties in the history of sports against the Cyclones, but ISU held on to notch a signature win over a likely over-ranked (because of record, so I won't argue) Cowboys team. I recognize that our prison system is allegedly overcrowded in some capacity, but I feel as if we should find some room for the Big 12 referees who oversaw this game (I jest, but...).

#7 Penn State took this week's home game against 2-5 Illinois to prove, once and for all, that if Sean Clifford would have played the remainder of the game against Iowa, the final result would have been no different. Clifford's injury clearly hampered him a full two weeks after he suffered it, and Penn State still cannot run the ball. Combine this with a phenomenal showing from Illinois' Chase Brown (223 rushing yards), and Saturday's game in Happy Valley was ripe for an upset. It may have taken a little while (an NCAA-record nine overtimes, largely due to a stupid format change for the overtime periods), but the Illini eventually came up with a conversion to snatch a 20-18 victory over the fighting James Franklins. Next up for Penn State: a 40-point loss to Ohio State.

No other truly significant upset happened on Saturday, but a couple were in the works. The most relevant was #2 Cincinnati's struggles to put away a bad Navy team on the road, eventually pulling out a 27-20 victory. As a team playing outside of a power conference, the Bearcats' playoff hopes are highly-dependent on style points for the remainder of the year to impress the playoff selection committee. Saturday's struggles (as silly as it may seem since they still won) were a major blow to their resume, and may prove costly down the stretch.

#3 Oklahoma spotted Kansas a 10-point lead heading into halftime before rallying in the second half for a 35-23 victory (Oklahoma scored a touchdown with 30 seconds left to make the score look a little nicer). I'll give the Sooners credit for being consistent. They consistently prove each week that they're one half-step above the rest of the Big 12, and that they will lose by 200 points in the playoffs if they play Alabama, Georgia, or Ohio State.

Tenth-ranked Oregon gutted out a win against UCLA on the road in front of crowd at the Rose Bowl that filled about 75% of the open seats (which is relatively high for Bruin fans). They (Oregon) are okay. Kayvon Thibodeux (4.5 TFLs; 2 sacks on Saturday) is a revelation at defensive end, but the Ducks are a tier or two below the true contenders at this point.

Ohio State Is Trending UP

Disclaimer: The Indiana team they played against was essentially a JV version of the Indiana team that started the season in the top 20.

Ohio State is back to the undisputed favorite to win the Big Ten this year. Freshman QB CJ Stroud is improving each week, and the defense, while not elite by any measure, is improving since the demotion of former defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs.

The Buckeyes jumped on the Hoosiers immediately in Bloomington and never looked back, building a 44-7 halftime advantage that eventually turned into a 54-7 final score. Freshman tailback TreVeyon Henderson (an absolute monster) racked up three total touchdowns for Ohio State, who out-gained Indiana by 411 yards.

The win was expected, but the dominance Ohio State is showing suggests that this team is primed to make the national title run that many expected at the beginning of the season. The offense is so obscenely talented (their WR corps is the best in the country by a considerable margin) that the defense just needs to be adequate for this team to challenge the best of the best. All signs point to the defense, a young unit that is only getting better with more experience, living up to the challenge going forward.

Clemson Is Bad

It's been a nightmare season for the Tiggers (unintentional, but hilariously-relevant typo). There's no getting around it. Injuries have piled up, and to be completely honest, they don't seem like they would have been that good at full-strength at this point. Following a resounding 27-17 road defeat to a good Pittsburgh team that included a mid-game benching of disappointing sophomore QB D.J. Uiagaleilei, Clemson fans are left wondering what the program's status on the national stage looks like when they don't have insane quarterback play. The Tigers might be best off tanking for draft picks at this point. Oh, wait...

Alabama Jumps Oklahoma In AP Poll, Ohio State Doesn't

I won't spend much time on this, but I just think it is ridiculous that Alabama would garner enough votes to pass Oklahoma (which, in a vacuum, is debatable) while the Buckeyes didn't. Either put both teams ahead of Oklahoma (and Cincinnati at this point) or stay true to valuing the Sooners' undefeated record over teams with a loss. The only reason you would rank the Tide above Oklahoma is because you think they're the better team (which they are). Be consistent and extend that logic to Ohio State (who I think is clearly a better team right now than Oklahoma). Figure it out, AP voters, or I'll drop out of medical school and come take one of your votes away.

Iowa Avoids A Second Loss

Survive and advance. This week proves that you can't overlook a single week in college football. The Hawks remain undefeated against bye weeks in October under Kirk Ferentz.

NFL

Cincinnati Claims AFC Supremacy With Major Victory Over Baltimore

We're getting to the point where I might have to raise my hand and say that I was wrong when I criticized the Bengals' selection of wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase instead of an offensive tackle in the most recent NFL Draft. The Bengals rookie torched a good Ravens secondary to the tune of 201 yards, and in the process bolstered a dominant 41-17 road win for Cincinnati. I still question whether Joe Burrow will hold up over a 17-game season with the protection issues the Bengals' line still show each week, but they just keep winning. They now, shockingly, hold the #1 seed in a very hectic AFC, and even if they falter somewhat down the line, they look to be a relative lock for the playoffs. Bravo, Cincinnati.

The Chiefs Are Broken (Maybe)

The question has to be asked: Did Ryan Pace actually make the right pick in the 2017 Draft when he selected Mitchell Trubisky over Patrick Mahomes? The answer may surprise you.

I'm just kidding, but the Chiefs have stumbled significantly out of the gate this season (now holding a 3-4 record), and the problem isn't just with the defense. To put it bluntly: Mahomes is trying too hard to make spectacular plays (and he still makes plenty of them), and the league has caught up enough to the Chiefs' offense that they can't play the free-flowing, out-of-structure style that they've thrived on for the better part of three seasons. They're still mega-talented as a squad, but they have to regain some discipline and grit if they want to turn this around.

They could realistically miss the playoffs at this point, but I wouldn't count them out yet. The league has collectively punched them in the mouth since the start of last season's Super Bowl. Let's see if Kansas City is up to the task down the stretch. Keep your eyes on this team in the coming weeks.

The NFC Has Five Good Teams and A Bunch of NOTHING

After a lackluster slate of games yesterday afternoon, there is a clear hierarchy being established in the NFC playoff race. The top 5 teams in the standings at this moment are tiers above the rest of the conference. Those five teams are: Arizona, Tampa Bay, Green Bay, Los Angeles (the Rams), and Dallas. None of those teams have more than one loss, and I'd be stunned if any of them finish the season without a playoff berth. While the top-to-bottom depth of the AFC may seem a little stronger this year, the top five teams in the NFC are all legit Super Bowl contenders. Barring major injuries, the NFC playoff run going to be must-see television.

Formula One Racing

Verstappen Edges Hamilton In Austin, Solidifying His Status as the Best F1 Driver Ever

No exaggeration here at all. As a lifelong (three month) fan of the world's classiest motorsport, I've staked my fandom in the camp of Red Bull's Max Verstappen in his pursuit of the throne long held by Mercedes driver and seven-time (!) champion Lewis Hamilton. The back-and-forth battle for the 2021 title has been absolutely enthralling, and Sunday's race in Austin, Texas lived up to any and all expectations.

I won't give you a play-by-play of a car race because I'm not a nerd, but Verstappen won by mere seconds over Hamilton, extending his current lead over Hamilton in the individual season championship race to a minuscule 12 points (essentially the difference between a first-place and a fourth-place finish in just one race). With 5 races to go, now might be a good time for you to look into the sport for the first time if you haven't already. This is set to be one of the greatest stretch runs in the sport's history.

P.S. Watch Netflix's Formula One: Drive to Survive if you need any extra push to check the sport out. It's phenomenal.

NBA Rapid-Fire

Lakers, Nets Flounder Out of the Gate

Kyrie Irving is missing, but the Nets have looked anemic as a squad to start the season with a 1-2 record. It's early, but Brooklyn doesn't quite look like the world-beaters we expected them to be. Same goes for the 1-2 Lakers, who needed a big game from 87 year-old Carmelo Anthony to eke out a home win over Memphis last night. The gap between these two teams and the field might be a bit narrower than we expected at the start of the season.

Barnes, Mobley, and Duarte Shine

Much was made of the Raptors' decision to select Florida State wing Scottie Barnes over Gonzaga guard Jalen Suggs, but the Raptors GM Masai Ujiri looks like a genius at the moment. The big knock on Barnes' game was his lack of scoring ability at the collegiate level, but he's been significantly ahead of schedule on that end already. 2nd overall pick Evan Mobley is flashing the tantalizing two-way potential as an uber-skilled big man on the Cavs, and old man (24 years-old) Chris Duarte is plugging right into the Indiana offense and performing like the seasoned wing player NBA scouts dreamed he would be. These are your current front-runners for Rookie of the Year.

Chicago Looks the Part

I wrote about this here.

MLB (I guess)

Something Happened, and Now the World Series Is Coming Up

And that's your baseball update for the week.