[Posted Sunday p.m. before late NFL action.]
Brief Add-on up top by noon, Tuesday.
NFL / Denver Broncos Quiz (someone has to do it): 1) Name the only five to throw for 10000 yards in a Broncos uniform. 2) Name the only five to rush for 3500 yards. Answers below.
College Football Review
—Some big games Friday after Thanksgiving….
7 Ole Miss (11-1) is playoff bound after a 38-19 win over Mississippi State (5-7), as Trinidad Chambliss threw for 359 yards and four touchdowns. The Rebels’ Kewan Lacy added 143 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries. The college football world then waited on coach Lane Kiffin’s decision.
[And Sunday, Kiffin opted for LSU, he wanted to coach Ole Miss in the CFP, the administration was adamant he didn’t, and Pete Golding, the defensive coordinator, was named both interim and permanent head coach. More, as warranted, in my Add-on…]
13 Utah (10-2) stays in the conversation, 31-21 over Kansas (5-7) behind Devon Dampier’s three TD passes. The Jayhawks’ Jaylon Daniels threw three interceptions.
4 Georgia (11-1) beat rival 23 Georgia Tech (9-3) 16-9 in a yawner, the Bulldogs’ D holding Tech’s Haynes King to 220 total yards.
2 Indiana (12-0) is headed to the Big Ten title game, 56-3 over Purdue (2-10), the Hoosiers with 355 yards on the ground.
And 25 Arizona (9-3) won its big rivalry game vs. 20 Arizona State (8-4) 23-7.
But then we had a huge upset, some would say…16 Texas (9-3) beating 3 Texas A&M (11-1) 27-17, not only handing the Aggies their first loss, but no doubt knocking them out of the ‘bye’ in the playoffs (at least for the next rankings) and its shot at the SEC title game.
Quintrevion Wisner had 155 yards on 19 carries for the Longhorns, but it was Arch Manning, who did nothing through the air, with the decisive 35-yard touchdown run to put the game away.
In other games of note…
Oklahoma State hired North Texas coach Eric Morris to replace Mike Gundy, Morris one of the hottest names these days after coaching the Mean Green to a 11-1 season and a shot at the College Football Playoff, which put him in the mix for other jobs like Arkansas.
North Texas, which beat Temple (5-7) on Friday night, 52-25, was set to play Tulane or Navy* for the American Conference championship and a probable berth in the CFP.
*Navy (9-2) defeated Memphis (8-4) Thanksgiving night 28-17.
Morris said he is coaching until the season is over, even if NT was snubbed for the CFP and gets a minor bowl game. We’ll see.
I just have to mention Mean Green freshman running back Caleb Hawkins, who had another monster game, 186 yards and four touchdowns Friday; his third 186+ yards game in his last four, with a whopping 16 touchdowns on the ground in the four.
—On to Saturday….
In the cold and snow of Ann Arbor, No. 1 Ohio State (12-0) and coach Ryan Day finally broke a four-game losing streak against archrival 15 Michigan (10-2) 27-9. After a slow start, quarterback and Heisman contender Julian Sayin went 19/26, 233, 3-1 and Bo Jackson (no relation) rushed for 117 yards on 22 carries, outgaining the Wolverines 419-163.
In the battle of defensive coordinators, and former NFL coaches, Matt Patricia beat Wink Martindale.
5 Texas Tech (11-1) will be ranked in the top four Tuesday night after blasting West Virginia (4-8) 49-0, outgaining the Mountaineers 572-180.
6 Oregon (10-2) is playoff bound, 26-14 at Washington (8-4).
8 Oklahoma (10-2) defeated LSU (7-5) in unimpressive fashion, 17-13, as John Mateer threw three interceptions for the Sooners.
Oklahoma hasn’t been very impressive all season, but they have a big road win at Alabama.
Meanwhile, 10 Alabama (10-2) is in line to make the playoffs (maybe), 27-20 over Auburn (5-7) in the Iron Bowl. The Tigers actually outgained Bama 411-280, but a gutty fourth down call by coach Kalen DeBoer with 3:54 remaining and the scored tied 20-20 was the difference for the Crimson Tide, quarterback Ty Simpson finding Isaiah Horton in the end zone from six yards out for the decider.
11 BYU (11-1) is very much in contention for a playoff spot, 41-21 over UCF (5-7), the Cougars only loss to Texas Tech (29-7) and now there will be a rematch.
12 Miami (10-2) staked its claim to a playoff berth with a 38-7 win at 22 Pitt (8-4), as Carson Beck continued his fine late-season play, 23/29, 267, 3-1, giving Beck 11 touchdown passes and just one interception in his last four games. Malachi Toney caught 13 passes for 126 yards and a score, plus he threw a touchdown pass himself.
But Miami hasn’t done enough to get into the ACC title game, and in the end, they are likely to get shut out, even though they beat Notre Dame and beat mutual opponent Pitt by a wider margin.
9 Notre Dame locked up its 10-2 season with a 49-20 win at Stanford (4-8), surviving an injury scare from stud running back Jeremiah Love, who left the game in the first quarter but returned in the second half and said he’s good.
14 Vanderbilt (10-2) stayed alive in the playoff hunt, 45-24 over 19 Tennessee (8-4). It was 21-21 at the half and then Heisman contender Diego Pavia took over as he has all season, throwing for 268 yards (but with two interceptions) while rushing for 165 and a touchdown on 20 carries.
17 USC (9-3) will get a nice bowl game, 29-10 over UCLA (3-9).
18 Virginia (10-2) beat Virginia Tech (3-9) 27-7.
21 SMU (8-4) failed in its bid to get back to the playoffs for a second season, falling to California (7-5) 38-35 on a late Golden Bears TD. The Mustangs had fallen behind 31-14, rallied back to take a 35-31 lead, and then the defense came up short.
24 Tulane (10-2) has its playoff hopes firmly intact, 27-0 over Charlotte (1-11).
In other games of note, Rutgers (5-7) suffered a devastating 40-36 loss to Penn State (6-6). The Scarlet Knights have had a solid offense all season with some terrific individual play from the likes of quarterback Athan Kaliamanis, running back Antwan Raymond and receiver KJ Duff, but RU has a historically bad defense.
Saturday, however, the Nittany Lions returned a fumble for the deciding touchdown.
And North Carolina State (7-5) put North Carolina (4-8) out of its misery, 42-19. No way Bill Belichick returns, but no doubt there will be more drama.
Lastly, we had Wake Forest at Duke, the Deacs getting off to a miserable start, Duke taking a 21-10 lead solely because of four critical Wake penalties for 60 yards on Duke’s first two drives, and then the Blue Devils cashing in on a failed fourth-down attempt at the Deacs’ own 36 yard line.
In the end, Duke (7-5) beat Wake (8-4) 49-32, though the Deacs outgained the Blue Devils 466-378.
What made this game so significant, though, is that with SMU’s loss at Cal, Duke (6-2 in ACC play) is headed to the ACC title game against Virginia with a shot at a CFP bid! Unreal. Duke gets the slot in the championship due to a better conference opponent winning percentage than Miami (also 6-2 in conference). And we all know there is no way the ACC is getting two CFP bids.
The other conference championship matchups next weekend are:
Ohio State vs. Indiana.
Texas Tech vs. Brigham Young.
Georgia vs. Alabama.
And in the American Conference for the Group of Five bid, North Texas vs. Tulane.
Brigham Young and Alabama really need to win their contests, with Georgia and Texas Tech getting bids regardless of the outcomes.
And next Selection Sunday, Miami fans are going to be furious seeing Notre Dame get the bid over them.
–And now the new AP Poll!
- Ohio State (61) 12-0
2. Indiana (5-0) 12-0
3. Georgia 11-1
4. Oregon 11-1
5. Texas Tech 11-1
6. Ole Miss 11-1
7. Texas A&M 11-1
8. Oklahoma 10-2
9. Notre Dame 10-2
10. Alabama 10-2
11. BYU 11-1
12. Miami 10-2
13. Vanderbilt 10-2
14. Texas 9-3
15. Utah 10-2
16. Virginia 10-2
17. USC 9-3
18. Michigan 9-3
19. James Madison 11-1
20. North Texas 11-1
21. Tulane 10-2…not how the CFP views the Group of Five race….
22. Arizona 9-3
23. Navy 9-2
24. Georgia Tech 9-3
25. Missouri 8-4
Tulane coach Jon Sumrall will continue coaching for the Green Wave the rest of the season (if they get a CFP bid), even though he is set to become the new head coach at Florida!
—Heisman Trophy ballots are distributed Monday and must be returned by Dec. 8 at 5:00 p.m. ET, so no doubt many of the voters will wait to see what transpires in the conference championship games, i.e., Fernando Mendoza vs. Julian Sayin.
Then again, Diego Pavia and Jeremiah Love supporters will have no reason to wait.
NFL
—Thanksgiving Day, the Packers (8-3-1) had a big 31-24 win at Detroit (7-5), Jordan Love with four touchdown passes for Green Bay. Jared Goff was solid for the Lions, 20/26, 256, 2-0, 132.9, but the defense couldn’t get the stops when they needed to, while the Packers stopped the Lions twice on fourth down.
Micah Parsons also had a huge game for Green Bay – eight tackles and 2.5 sacks. Ditto receiver George Pickens, with six receptions for 88 yards and the biggest plays of the second half.
The Chiefs (6-6) need a miracle to make the playoffs, falling 31-28 to the Cowboys (6-5-1) who stay alive. Dak Prescott was 27/39, 320, 2-1 for Dallas, who beat the Eagles and Chiefs in four days and face the Lions next.
Patrick Mahomes threw four touchdown passes in defeat in one of his better games of the year.
Joe Burrow made his return for the Bengals (4-8) who beat the Ravens (6-6) in Baltimore 32-14, ending the Ravens’ 5-game winning streak.
Burrow threw for two touchdowns but Baltimore turned it over five times, Lamar Jackson with another lousy effort, 17/32, 246, 0-1, 65.4 and two fumbles.
Jackson, in his last four games has one touchdown pass and three interceptions, and nothing on the ground.
In the Black Friday game, the shocking Bears are 9-3, 24-15 over the Eagles (8-4) as former Rutgers running back Kyle Monangai had 130 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries, D’Andre Swift adding 125 on 18 carries and a score.
Bears coach Ben Johnson came through on a bet with famous Chicago hot-dog establishment “The Wiener’s Circle” that said it would give away free hot dogs the Tuesday after a victory if Johnson took his shift off.
—Today…the Colts (8-4) lost a biggie to the hot Texans (7-5), 20-16, as Summit’s Michael Badgley missed an extra point early for Indy and that proved costly. Indianapolis was stopped late in the game, needing a TD, not the tying field goal.
But the Colts were totally robbed three separate times on the Texans’ deciding TD drive early in the fourth quarter that made it 20-13, with awful officiating, including missing that Houston’s Ka’imi Fairbairn missed his own extra point that would have made it 19-16, Badgley kicks the short tying field goal near the end and we’re in OT. Oh, the life of a kicker.
In a big upset the Panthers (7-6) beat the Rams (9-3) 31-28 in Carolina, Bryce Young outplaying Matthew Stafford, Young 15/20, 206. 3-0, 147.1.
Stafford, who after last week was on his way to league MVP, had three turnovers, including a pick-six.
It’s why you ‘play the game…’
The Bucs (7-5) got enough from Baker Mayfield to beat the Cardinals (3-9) 20-17.
The 49ers (9-4) beat the Browns (3-9) 26-8.
The Jaguars (8-4) took care of business, 25-3 over the pathetic Titans (1-11).
And my Jets are 3-9 after a Nick Folk 56-yard field goal that barely cleared the uprights as time expired, 27-24 over the Falcons (4-8). The Jets had taken an early 7-0 lead and had been 0-10 when scoring first. J-E-T-S Jets Jets Jets!!!
Watch out in 2026! Cough cough….cough….
College Basketball
It was a big week with all the tournaments and there will be a shakeup in the AP poll on Monday.
Going back to last Tuesday, 17 Tennessee upset 3 Houston in Las Vegas, 76-73.
7 Michigan annihilated 21 Auburn 102-72.
14 St. John’s beat Baylor 96-81.
Notre Dame defeated Rutgers 68-63.
And Wake Forest blasted Campbell 99-51.
Wednesday…21 Auburn beat 14 St. John’s 85-74. The Johnnies can’t lose too many more of these as they already have.
Kansas had an important win, 81-76 over 17 Tennessee.
Thursday…TCU upset 10 Florida 84-80.
11 Michigan State handed 16 North Carolina its first loss, 74-58.
And 4 Duke beat 22 Arkansas 80-71.
Friday…as I pick up the records….5 UConn (6-1) beat 13 Illinois (6-2) 74-61.
9 BYU (6-1) edged Dayton (6-2) 83-79.
24 Vanderbilt (8-0) had a nice 96-71 win over Saint Mary’s (8-1).
Pitt (5-3) nipped Ohio State (6-1) 67-66.
Wake Forest (6-2) beat Northeastern (3-4) 86-73.
And Oklahoma (5-2) edged Marquette (4-4) 75-74. I mention the Sooners because Wake hosts them on Tuesday in a must-win, as I see it, for the Deacs, looking ahead to March and Selection Sunday.
We then had no biggies Saturday or Sunday as the kids got to go home from all the tournaments and get some home cooking.
NBA
–The Knicks, sans Landry Shamet (out at least a month with a sprained shoulder) and OG Anunoby (out another week or so with a hamstring injury), beat the Hornets in Charlotte, Wednesday, 129-101 hitting 13 of 25 three-point attempts.
And then in a Friday night NBA Cup game at the Garden, the Knicks (12-6) beat the Bucks (8-12), 118-109, to move on to the quarterfinals of the competition, Jalen Brunson with 37 for New York.
I know the Cup idea has been disparaged, but there is more intensity in these games and players earn like $53,000 for making it to the quarters, which for the bench players is big.
—Oklahoma City, 123-119 winners over the Suns (12-8) in another NBA Cup contest, is a staggering 19-1 on the season.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 37 for the defending champion Thunder, the 92nd consecutive game he’s had at least 20 points, matching Wilt Chamberlain for the second-longest streak in NBA history. Chamberlain is also first with 126 straight.
–The Lakers (14-4) won their Friday Cup game, 129-119 over the Mavericks (5-15). Luka Doncic had 35 points and 11 assists for L.A., Austin Reaves with 38 points on 12 of 15 shooting from the field.
–So the NBA Cup quarterfinal matchups, commencing Dec. 9, knockout round, are Toronto-New York, Orlando-Miami, Oklahoma City-Phoenix, L.A. Lakers-San Antonio.
The Knicks are hosting the Raptors on Sunday night in a regular season game, but the Cup quarterfinal Dec. 9 is in Toronto.
Saturday, the Mavs (6-15) beat the Clippers (5-15) 114-110 as Cooper Flagg became the youngest at age 18 to score 35 points, Flagg doing so on 13 of 22 from the field, beating LeBron James’ previous mark by five days.
MLB
–The Blue Jays are signing pitcher Dylan Cease to a seven-year, $210 million contract. Cease, who turns 30 on Dec. 28, has been a model of durability…five straight seasons of 32 or 33 starts, and five consecutive years of 200+ strikeouts. But he can be hit hard on occasion and is 65-58, 3.88 ERA for his career. He was arguably the top arm on the market
–The Red Sox traded for pitcher Sonny Gray, 36, sending some prospects to the Cardinals. Gray has also been durable and was 14-8, 4.28 for St. Louis last season. He is 125-102, 3.58, for his career and has become a terrific control pitcher, 38 walks in 180 2/3 for the Cards in 2025, with 201 strikeouts.
Premier League
In PL action this weekend….
Saturday, Manchester City edged lowly Leeds 3-2; Sunderland beat Bournemouth, 3-2; and Tottenham had a bad home loss, 2-1, to Fulham. My Spurs blow.
Sunday, Liverpool beat West Ham on the road, 2-0; Aston Villa defeated the Wolves 1-0; Manchester United beat Crystal Palace on the road 2-1; and in the biggie, Arsenal and Chelsea played to a 1-1 draw, though Chelsea played with just 10 men for over 50 minutes.
Table…13 of 38 played…points
Arsenal 30
Man City 25
Chelsea 24
Aston Villa 24
Brighton 22
Sunderland 22
Man U 21
Liverpool 21…stays relevant, and still a long way to go.
The Premier League is entering its heavy holiday schedule, which is normally great stuff, festive atmospheres, good viewing for those of us in the States. Of course it helps if your favorite is playing well and mine isn’t. Which as they say in the ‘burbs, sucks.
Stuff
–We note the passing of golfer Fuzzy Zoeller, 74. Zoeller, a gallery favorite for his happy-go-lucky demeanor, was the last player to win the Masters on his first attempt, a three-man playoff in 1979, and the 1984 U.S. Open winner in an 18-hole playoff with Greg Norman. Fuzzy won eight other PGA Tour events.
At the Masters, Zoeller was assigned caddie Jariah (Jerry) Beard, who, starting in 1957, would loop there for a quarter century. Beard coached the rookie shot by shot. “He led me around like a seeing-eye dog,” Zoeller used to say. His faith was such that he never bent down to read a putt.
I love the story because years ago, a friend from Wake Forest, Todd B., came to my club at the time in New Jersey that was hosting a U.S. Mid-Am qualifier. I set Todd up with my caddie, Bobby, and I told Todd, just trust Bobby the whole way.
On the first hole, I was in the gallery with one of Todd’s friends and told the guy, ‘Todd needs to trust Bobby’s read’ on what was a tough 10-footer to save par. Todd did, sank the putt, and he and Bobby were off and running to a 68 as Todd was the medalist. It was a very cool moment for me, as well as Todd.
Back to Fuzzy, unfortunately it was the 1997 Masters that changed his popularity.
Tiger Woods was on his way to a watershed moment in golf with the most dominant victory in Augusta National history. Zoeller had finished his round and had a drink in hand under the oak tree by the clubhouse when he was stopped by CNN and asked for his thoughts on the 21-year-old Woods on his way to the most dominant win ever at Augusta National.
“That little boy is driving well and he’s putting well. He’s doing everything it takes to win. So, you know what you guys do when he gets in here? You pat him on the back and say congratulations and enjoy it and tell him not to serve fried chicken next year. Got it?” Zoeller said.
He smiled and snapped his fingers, and as he was walking away he turned and said, “Or collard greens or whatever the hell they serve.”
It was a moment that haunted Zoeller the rest of his career. He apologized. Woods was traveling and it took two weeks for him to comment as the controversy festered. Zoeller later said he received death threats for years after that moment.
Writing for Golf Digest in 2008, he said it was “the worst thing I’ve gone through in my entire life.”
“I’ve cried many times. I’ve apologized countless times for words said in jest that just aren’t a reflection of who I am. I have hundreds of friends, including people of color, who will attest to that.”
Just a sad story.
–In World Cup alpine action this weekend at Colorado’s Cooper Mountain, Sunday, Mikaela Shiffrin did it again, her third win in three starts in the slalom this season. You go, Girl! I’d say she’s in form for the Olympics.
The men also raced at Copper Mountain, Thursday and Friday, and through five races this season, no American has hit the podium.
—Max Verstappen won the Qatar Grand Prix today to send a tense F1 title fight to a season finale in Abu Dhabi next weekend.
It’s been an incredible comeback late this season for Verstappen, who is seeking his fifth straight F1 title, while McLaren teammates Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are chasing their first.
Equally amazing, all three have now won seven races this season.
So Verstappen goes to the final race 12 points behind Norris, with Piastri 16 behind, dropping to third overall.
It will be exciting, but hopefully not controversial, as so many F1 races end up being for one reason or another.
—A shark killed a woman and seriously wounded a man taking an early morning swim with her at a national park beach on Australia’s east coast Thursday, police said.
Experts say a shark rarely attacks more than one person.
The attack occurred at Crowdy Bay National Park, which is known for beach camping, fishing spots and hiking trails, 224 miles north of Sydney.
The police chief declined to detail the injuries or the circumstances of the attack.
A bystander helped the pair on the beach before ambulance paramedics arrived, but the woman died at the scene.
The man’s condition was later described as serious but stable.
An official said the bystander’s first aid might have prevented a double fatality.
A shark fatally mauled a man in his 50s off a Sydney beach in September.
Top 3 songs for the week 12/7/68: #1 “Love Child” (Diana Ross and the Supremes) #2 “Hey Jude” (The Beatles) #3 “For Once In My Life” (Stevie Wonder)…and…#4 “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” (Marvin Gaye) #5 “Who’s Making Love” (Johnnie Taylor) #6 “Magic Carpet Ride” (Steppenwolf) #7 “Abraham, Martin And John” (Dion) #8 “Wichita Lineman” (Glen Campbell) #9 “Stormy” (Classics IV featuring Dennis Yost) #10 “Those Were The Days” (Mary Hopkins…outstanding week…an ‘A’….)
NFL / Denver Broncos Quiz Answers: 1) Only five to throw for 10000 yards….
John Elway (1983-98)…51475
Peyton Manning (2012-15)…17112
Craig Morton (1977-82)…11895
Brian Griese (1998-2002)…11763
Jake Plummer (2003-06)…11631
2) Only five to rush for 3500 yards….
Terrell Davis (1995-2001)…7607
Floyd Little (1967-75)…6323
Sammy Winder (1982-90)…5427
Otis Armstrong (1973-80)…4453
Mike Anderson (2000-05)…3822
Brief Add-on up top by noon, Tues.
