[Posted Sunday p.m. before late NFL games and baseball.]
Very brief Add-on up top by noon, Tuesday. I said I wasn’t doing one last time, but I did, and it had the AP preseason Men’s hoops poll, so if you missed it, check it out.
NFL Quiz: As I discuss below, Cincinnati’s Ja’Marr Chase set a Bengals franchise record for most receptions in a game, 16, in Thursday night’s win over Pittsburgh. Only seven different players in NFL history have had 17 or more, one doing it twice. Five of the seven did it in the 2000s, one in the 1980s, and one in the 1950s. You get the initials…A.B., C.G., T.F., B.M., J.W., K.A., T.O. Answer below.
MLB Playoffs
–In the ALCS, the Blue Jays beat the Mariners 13-4 and 8-4 in Seattle, Wednesday and Thursday, to even their series at 2-2. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had four hits, two doubles and a homer, in Wednesday’s blowout, with Shane Bieber going six strong, just two runs for Toronto, while Thursday, Max Scherzer gave the Blue Jays 5 2/3 innings of 2-run ball in a gutty performance, while Andres Gimenez, who had a disappointing season at the plate, went 2-for-3, a home run and 4 RBIs.
On to Game 5, Mariners fans duly concerned, the home team having lost the first four games in this series, and it was 2-1 Toronto heading to the bottom of the eighth when Cal Raleigh tied it with a solo moonshot home run, and Eugenio Suarez then slammed a grand slam to right, five runs in the inning, Seattle winning it 6-2, Suarez having also homered for the Mariners’ first run.
On to Toronto for Game 6 Sunday night, Seattle up 3-2 as they attempt to get to their first World Series for a franchise that started play in 1977.
–And in the NLCS, it’s over…the Dodgers with a commanding 4-game sweep behind their outstanding starting pitching, the scores 2-1, 5-1, 3-1 and Friday night’s clincher, 5-1. Dodgers starters Blake Snell (eight innings, one hit), Yoshinobu Yamamoto (complete game, one run), Tyler Glasnow (5 2/3, one run) and then Shohei Ohtani Friday, six innings, two hits, no runs, 10 strikeouts, dominated.
Of course you’re reading this and thinking…is that it? The editor isn’t going to bring up the other thing that happened Friday as Dodgers fans celebrated their team’s rousing success?
Yup, Ohtani had a two-way performance for the ages, what is being called the greatest performance in baseball history and who can argue?
Aside from Ohtani’s brilliance on the mound, he hit three mammoth homers, becoming the first player in baseball history to strikeout 10, pitch six innings and hit three home runs in the same game.
“That was probably the greatest postseason performance of all time,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “There’s been a lot of postseason games. And there’s a reason why he’s the greatest player on the planet.”
“What we witnessed,” Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy said, “was the single greatest game by a baseball player in the history of baseball.”
Gushed outfielder Teoscar Hernandez: “It was the greatest game by a human.”
Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman: “It’ll probably be remembered as The Shohei Ohtani Game.”
The Dodgers now have a chance to become baseball’s first repeat World Series champions in a quarter-century after Ohtani’s mind-blowing night. Ironically, it had been a quiet postseason for him up to that point, just 6-for-38 at the plate.
Ohtani’s three homers traveled a combined 1,342 feet, including a 469-foot drive in the fourth that cleared a pavilion in right-center.
L.A. is now 9-1 this postseason as they await the winner of Seattle-Toronto.
College Football Review
This weekend’s fun and games started Friday night, as Louisville (5-1) took on No. 2 Miami and handed the Hurricanes (5-1) their first loss, 24-21; Miami’s Carson Beck throwing four interceptions, No. 4 a terrific pick by T.J. Capers to seal the win late.
Saturday, No. 1 Ohio State (7-0) whipped Wisconsin (2-5) 34-0 as Julian Sayin was rather spectacular…36/42, 393, 4-0 for the Buckeyes. OSU’s defense held the Badgers to just 144 yards.
3 Indiana (7-0) stayed undefeated, 38-13 over Michigan State (3-4), as Heisman frontrunner Fernando Mendoza was a cool 24/28, 332, 4-0.
4 Texas A&M (7-0) barely held off pesky Arkansas (2-5), 45-42, despite the Razorbacks’ 527 yards of offense, Arkansas QB Tayleen Green passing for three touchdowns and rushing for two more.
In a huge contest, 5 Ole Miss (6-1) was handed its first loss by 9 Georgia (6-1), a terrific game, 43-35, the Bulldogs with 17 points in the fourth quarter. Georgia’s Gunner Stockton was 26/31, 289, 4-0 through the air, and 10-59-1 rushing.
6 Alabama (6-1) continues to roll after their opening week loss, 37-20 over Tennessee (5-2) in Tuscaloosa. The other Heisman frontrunner, Bama QB Ty Simpson didn’t hurt his chances against a top opponent, 19/29, 253, 2-0, though he did lose a fumble.
7 Texas Tech (6-1) suffered its first loss at Arizona State (5-2), 26-22. The Red Raiders were without their starting QB Behren Morton due to a knee injury.
8 Oregon (6-1) totally embarrassed Rutgers (3-4) 56-10, racking up 750 yards of offense in the process.
This one was 42-3 at the half, RU’s defense yielding 446 yards on 34 plays at the intermission. As one of the New Jersey writers put it, when the Ducks “got bored of moving the ball normally against a secondary that bickered with each before multiple snaps, they threw out unorthodox formations and double flea-flickers for fun.” Overall, Oregon had 15 gains of at least 20 yards.
17 Vanderbilt (6-1) is off to its best start since 1950, with a big 31-24 win over 10 LSU (5-2). Commodores quarterback Diego Pavia passed for 160 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 86 yards and two scores as he worked his way into the Heisman conversation.
12 Georgia Tech (7-0) is top ten bound after a 27-18 win over Duke (4-3) in Durham; Haynes King passing for 205 yards and rushing for 120 for the Yellow Jackets, who also got a school-record 95-yard fumble return for a score by Omar Daniels. It’s the first time Georgia Tech is 7-0 since 1966. Duke was done in by special teams and poor red zone performance.
13 Notre Dame (5-2) is still on a roll, 34-24 over 20 USC (5-2), with running backs Jeremiyah Love (24 carries for 228 yards and a TD) and Jadarian Price (13-87-1) leading the way, Price adding a 100-yard kickoff return. Mark R’s Fighting Irish are playoff bound.
14 Oklahoma (6-1) beat South Carolina (3-4) 26-7.
In a huge intrastate clash, 15 BYU (7-0) stayed undefeated with a 24-21 win over 23 Utah (5-2).
16 Missouri (6-1) beat Auburn (3-4) 23-17.
18 Virginia (6-1) needed a late safety to beat Washington State (3-4) 22-20 in Charlottesville.
19 South Florida (6-1) blasted Florida Atlantic (3-4) 48-13.
21 Texas (5-2) needed overtime to beat Kentucky (2-4), 16-13, as once again Arch Manning was downright mediocre (at best), 12/27, 132, 0-0; the Wildcats outgaining the Longhorns an inexplicable 395-179. Punt returner Ryan Niblett helped Texas immensely with two big returns.
22 Memphis (6-1) was embarrassed by UAB (3-4) 31-24, the Blazers winning for interim coach Alex Mortensen in his debut, Alex the son of the late ESPN reporter Chris Mortensen.
24 Cincinnati (6-1) had its way with Oklahoma State (1-6), 49-17.
And Friday night, Nebraska (5-2) lost an important one on the road to Minnesota (5-2) 24-6.
In other games of note, Bill Belichick’s Bad Adventure continued, the Tar Heels falling to Cal (5-2) Friday night, 21-18.
Pitt is 5-2, 30-13 over Syracuse (3-4).
And Clemson is a stunning 3-4 after falling to SMU (5-2) at home, 35-24. Cade Klubnik was out with an ankle injury for the Tigers.
Wake Forest had a bye week and plays SMU next.
—Indiana coach Curt Cignetti is a Pittsburgh native, and so with the Penn State job open, it was thought this would be a natural move for the rising star coach.
But Cignetti isn’t going anywhere, agreeing to a new eight-year contract through 2033 with IU that raises his annual salary to an average of $11.6 million, which would be the third highest nationally.
“I couldn’t be more proud to be a Hoosier, and I plan on retiring as a Hoosier,” Cignetti said in a video. “The way this state has embraced us and our success in football has meant more to me than anything else. I just wanted to get on camera and let you that Curt Cignetti is going to work daily to make Indiana the best they can be.”
Cignetti’s $11.6 million average would be behind only Georgia’s Kirby Smart ($13.3 million) and Ohio State’s Ryan Day ($12.6 million).
Penn State is going to have a tough time finding the right person, and for all of James Franklin’s problems against top-10 teams (4-21) and a 1-10 record against Ohio State, he still put them in New Year’s Six bowl games most seasons.
In his first comments since his firing, Franklin said on ESPN’s “College GameDay” that he “can’t wait” to coach again.
“I don’t know anything else. I’ve been doing this for 30 years. I don’t have hobbies. I don’t golf. I don’t fish. This has been such a big part of my identity, such a big part of my family. We love it.”
Franklin added: “I thought we were going to win a national championship there. We were close. That goal hasn’t changed. We’re just going to go win a national championship somewhere else now.”
—And now the new AP Poll! Vanderbilt is an AP top-10 team for the first time since 1947! Save for Ohio State, there was a total makeover in the poll this week after nine ranked teams lost.
- Ohio State (60) 7-0
2. Indiana (6) 7-0…program-best ranking
3. Texas A&M 7-0…highest since 1995
4. Alabama 6-1
5. Georgia 6-1
6. Oregon 6-1…quack quack…
7. Georgia Tech 7-0
8. Ole Miss 6-1
9. Miami 5-1
10. Vanderbilt 6-1
11. BYU 7-0
12. Notre Dame 5-2
13. Oklahoma 6-1
14. Texas Tech 6-1
15. Missouri 6-1
16. Virginia 6-1…highest since 2007…
17. Tennessee 5-2
18. South Florida 6-1
19. Louisville 5-1
20. LSU 5-2…down 10…
21. Cincinnati 6-1
22. Texas 5-2
23. Illinois 5-2
24. Arizona State 5-2
25. Michigan 5-2
Not a great weekend coming up…3 Texas A&M at 20 LSU doesn’t excite me. 15 Mizzou at 10 Vandy will be huge for the Commodores and further validity.
—Florida fired coach Billy Napier after a 3-4 start. The Gators went 6-7, 5-7, 8-5 and 3-4 during his tenure.
NFL
–For one week at least, the Cincinnati Bengals’ management team looks brilliant for bringing in Joe Flacco after Joe Burrow’s backups failed to come through in Burrow’s absence. Cincy traded a late draft pick to get the 40-year-old Flacco from the Browns, knowing no one has the ability to learn a new system on the fly better than him. And it helps he still has a terrific arm, and the Bengals have two great wide receivers in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
So it was only appropriate that on Thursday night, just 10 days after being obtained, Flacco beat Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers, 33-31, in a thriller in Cincinnati that was called the Unc Bowl; Flacco have put the Bengals in position on the final drive for Evan McPherson’s 36-yard game-winning field goal.
Flacco went 31/47, 342, 3-0, 108.6, with Chase catching a franchise-record 16 passes for 161 yards and a touchdown, and Higgins catching six for 96 yards and a score.
For his part, Rodgers, 41 years old, went 23/34, 249, 4-2, 103.7, the Steelers falling to 4-2, while the Bengals, 3-4, gave their fans some hope until a possible Burrow return in December.
—Sunday morning across the pond in London (Wembley Stadium), the Rams (5-2) blitzed Steve G.’s Jaguars (4-3) 35-7, as Matthew Stafford threw five touchdown passes, three to Davante Adams. Kind of comical, the TD passes to Adams were all of 2, 1 and 1 yards.
The Jags were penalized 13 times for 119 yards.
—Sunday afternoon, the Eagles moved to 5-2, 28-22 over the Vikings (3-3), Jalen Hurts with literally a perfect day, 19/23, 326, 3-0, 158.3 (perfect passer rating), as DeVonta Smith caught nine for 183 yards and a score, and A.J. Brown was 4-121-2.
But Saquon Barkley had just 44 yards on 18 carries…what a downer of a season for him and Philadelphia’s running game. They better figure it out before long. No repeat without it.
The Chiefs are 4-3, 31-0 over the Raiders (2-5), Patrick Mahomes good again, 26/35, 286, 3-0, 126.6. Vegas was held to 95 yards! Eegads.
The Patriots are 5-2…good lord…31-13 over the overmatched Titans (1-6), New England’s Drake Maye 21/23, 222, 2-0, 135.9. A rather efficient performance.
The Bears (4-2) beat the Saints (1-6) 26-14, as D’Andre Swift rushed for 124 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown, while Rutgers’ Kyle Monangai had 81 yards on 13 carries and a score.
And the surging Browns (2-5)…cough cough…beat the Dolphins (1-6) 31-6 in Cleveland despite generating a whopping 206 yards of offense. For Miami, Tua threw three interceptions, including a pick-six.
Miami coach Mike McDaniel will be fired on the flight home…or I guess tomorrow morning back in the owner’s office. Book it.
Oh, and us Jets fans, those living in the New York metro area, of course spent our afternoon watching our beloved team, still yearning for the days of Joe Namath, Don Maynard, George Sauer, Pete Lammons, Matt Snell, Emerson Boozer and Weeb Ewbank, and the Jets are 0-7, following a depressing 13-6 loss to the Panthers (4-3).
Tyrod Taylor came into the game in the second half to replace the ineffective Justin Fields, and Taylor provided a bit of a spark to the moribund Jets offense, but Tyrod also underthrew some surefire huge gains/touchdowns and in the end he was a putrid 10/22, 126, 0-2, 25.9. Yup, 25.9.
It doesn’t help when the Jets offensive line makes the defensive front on the other side of the ball, week after week, look like the Fearsome Foursome or Steel Curtain!
Jets fans go into a catatonic state watching this shitshow, and some of us find ourselves opening up windows from the third floor or higher…before waking up and realizing there are easier ways to end the pain…it’s called BEER!
Premier League
In weekend action…Saturday, Chelsea beat Nottingham 3-0, Arsenal edged Fulham on the road 1-0, and Manchester City beat Everton 2-0; Erling Haaland with both goals for City, giving him 23 in 13 matches, all competitions, this season, and 11 in 8 PL games. Understand, second in the league has six.
Today, Tottenham lost at home to Aston Villa 2-1, while Liverpool shockingly lost its third straight, and to Manchester United at home, 2-1.
Stuff
–Former Auburn men’s hoops coach Bruce Pearl is going to be working for TNT and CBS Sports. He will be on TNT’s studio team with Jalen Rose, Jamal Mashburn, Chris Webber and Adam Lefkoe during its first season of doing Big East and Big 12 games. Pearl will also be a game and studio analyst for CBS during the regular season.
Pearl will them move to the studio for CBS and TNT during their joint coverage of the NCAA Basketball Tournament.
I can’t say I’ve been a big Bruce Pearl fan, but he is a natural for this position.
Pearl and St. John’s Rick Pitino last season shared the Associated Press men’s college basketball coach of the year award; the first time in the 58-year history of the award.
–We note the passing of Paul Daniel “Ace” Frehley, founding guitarist for the rock band KISS. He died at the age of 74 in nearby Morristown, N.J. Evidently, he suffered a recent bad fall and was on life support.
At first an announcement came that he was hospitalized for what was characterized as a “minor fall” in his studio.
The guitarist was known for his “Spaceman” persona, from the days when KISS was founded with the original line-up of Paul Stanley on vocals and rhythm guitar, Gene Simmons on vocals and bass guitar, Frehley on lead guitar and vocals, and Peter Criss on drums and vocals.
They applied black and white face paint to create four enduring characters – Demon, Starchild, Spaceman and Catman.
In a joint statement, Stanley and Simmons said, “We are devastated by the passing of Ace Frehley. He was an essential and irreplaceable rock soldier during some of the most formative foundational chapters of the band and its history. He is and will always be a part of KISS’s legacy.”
KISS first formed in 1973. The band produced hits such as “Rock and Roll All Nite” and “God of Thunder”. The band had sold 100 million records by 2024, Frehley often playing a guitar that emitted smoke in a display of rock ‘n’ roll flamboyance previously unseen in live shows.
In 1983, they appeared without face paint for the first time and enjoyed something of a resurgence. It was known as their “unmasking.” They later re-masked in the late 1990s.
In 1982, Frehley quit the group, which continued with different musicians. He returned for the band’s 1996 reunion tour and stayed on until 2002. The original members were inducted into the Rock and Hall of Fame in 2014.
My own KISS favorite was “Calling Dr. Love.”
Top 3 songs for the week 10/16/82: #1 “Jack & Diane” (John Cougar) #2 “Who Can It Be Now?” (Men at Work) #3 “Eye In The Sky” (The Alan Parsons Project)…and…#4 “Hard To Say I’m Sorry” (Chicago) #5 “Abracadabra” (The Steve Miller Band) #6 “I Keep Forgettin’ (Every Time You’re Near)” (Michael McDonald) #7 “Somebody’s Baby” (Jackson Browne) #8 “You Can Do Magic” (America) #9 “Heart Attack” (Olivia Newton-John) #10 “I Ran (So Far Away)” (A Flock Of Seagulls…C- week…back to the 60s…)
NFL Quiz Answer: Seventeen or more receptions in a game…
Brandon Marshall, Denver (2009): 21
Terrell Owens, San Francisco (2000): 20
Keenan Allen, L.A. Chargers (2023): 18
Jason Witten, Dallas (2018): 18
Brandon Marshall, Denver (2008): 18
Tom Fears, L.A. Rams (1950): 18
Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh (2015): 17
Clark Gaines, N.Y. Jets (1980): 17
Bazooka Joe says: “Clark went to Wake Forest!”
It was Sept. 21, 1980, third game of the season, San Francisco at the Jets in Shea Stadium, Richard Todd of New York 42 of 60 passing, 447 yards, three touchdowns, one INT. Gaines caught 17 out of the backfield for 160 yards.
Over his five-year career with the Jets, 1976-80, Gaines rushed 582 times for 2,552 yards. He also had 166 receptions for 1,438 yards; Gaines playing briefly for the Chiefs 1981-82.
Brief Add-on up top by noon, Tuesday.
