📰🏟️ 61 days of football
Plus: Rivals charging $499 per HS recruit...
Good afternoon. The top sports stories of the day are at your fingertips. Let’s get you up to speed.
—Kyle
1) White Sox, Yanks, Padres advance to Divisional Round
Both AL Wild Card series ended in 2-game sweeps yesterday, with the White Sox closing out the Astros and the Yankees trouncing the Red Sox once again.
- In the NL, the Padres eliminated the Cubs and punched their ticket to the Division Series, while the Phillies forced a deciding Game 3 against the Braves tonight (7 pm CT).
- The Division Round begins on Saturday with the White Sox at Guardians, Yankees at Rays, Padres at Brewers, and PHI/ATL at Dodgers.
Wild Card reactions and updates
📣 FULL-COURT PRESS
Headlines across the sports world
- 🏀 Dallas Wings G Arike Ogunbowale drops WNBA playoff-record 45 points in an OT victory over the Golden State Valkyries to force a deciding Game 3; see the full WNBA playoff picture.
- 🏈 CFP leaders met yesterday to discuss potential expansion, with analysts saying a 24-team college football playoff is likely on the horizon.
- 🏒 Arizona State places men’s hockey coach Greg Powers on paid administrative leave three days before its opener, as sophomore Matthew Mayich remains on life support after collapsing during an Aug. 20 school workout.
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2) Steelers trade star CB to Cowboys for 2nd, 6th
Dallas acquired Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. late last night for a 2027 6th-round pick and 2028 2nd rounder, ending a contract standoff that had kept Porter off the field in Pittsburgh.
- Porter, who’s started 41 games and made 3 INTs across 3 Pittsburgh seasons, is entering the final year of his rookie deal and asking for an extension.
- Porter had sat out the first 3 weeks of the season amid a contract dispute in Pittsburgh, though he reportedly won’t seek a new deal right away in Dallas.
- He'll join first-year Cowboys DC Christian Parker, whose unit is 30th in total defense.
🌐 Web Gems
Cool things to click
📉 Storm brews in New England: Drake Maye looked like Tom Brady’s heir—but now he’s a disaster.
🔥🏀 NBA hot seat rankings: Five coaches facing the most pressure to win.
💰 Smart business, or money grab?...Rivals is charging high school football players $499 to be evaluated. It’s causing an uproar.
3) Football will be on TV for 61 days straight
Starting tonight, when Western Kentucky visits New Mexico State, there’ll be at least one college football or NFL game every single day for 2 full months straight.
- The streak will end on Nov. 30, when the Carolina Panthers visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for “Monday Night Football.”
- Every fall has a similar stretch—but it’s especially longer this year thanks to the NFL's ever-expanding mid-week schedule, which now covers the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.