Weekly Update – Week of October 12, 2020 (COVID Week 31)

Baseball: NLCS and ALCS are on! Joe Morgan and Whitney Ford pass away. Yankees broadcaster had COVID.

Basketball: Lakers are NBA Champs – in honor of Kobe! James MVP 4th time.

Football-NCAAF: 6 losses in Top 25. Florida falls to the Aggies. LSU loses again. OU TX 4OT thriller. Mad Hatter has COVID. FAU and Baylor have break outs. K St Thompson out indefinitely.

Football-NFL: Texans get 1st win. Seahawks, Titans and Steelers are undefeated. Jets and Falcons winless. Dak’s terrible ankle break. The return of Alex Smith. Falcons hire HC. Thomas ruled out.

Golf: Laird wins in 3 man playoff. Kim wins first LPGA major.

Olympic Sports: Dowsett wins 2nd Giro. FIS Lewis out of presidential run. Shiffrin, Chock and Bates skip. Tokyo marathon delayed.

Tennis: King of the Clay reigns. Iga takes her first and POL’s first GS title.

Baseball:

• The division championship games have begun! The Rays, Astros, Braves and Dodgers are still in. Vegas thinks the Dodgers still have the best chance of taking the pennant.
  • The Dodgers are hosting drive in viewing parties at their stadium parking lots at $75/car. No food will be sold and fans must stay in their vehicles but that’s not stopping the 56k fans that are expected from celebrating together in this COVID time.
  • The Rays have made it clear that it has to rely on the depth of its pitching bullpen to take the American League. They have added LHP Jose Alvarado back to their roster after he was on the IL for 45 days with shoulder inflammation. The Rays won game 1 of the ALCS against the Astros yesterday.

• Another 2 baseball legends have passed away. These 2 are adding to the lost of greats lost this year including Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, Tom Seaver and Al Kaline.
  • Joe Morgan who was a 2xs World Series champ, 10x All-Star and 5x Gold Glove winner has died at age 77 of a nerve condition. He is arguably one of the best Reds of all time, leading the Big Red Machine to back-to-back World Series titles.
  • Whitney Ford, Yankees all-time wins leader and HoF, died at the age of 91 on Thursday – he had Alzheimer’s. The team wore a #16 patch on their sleeves during their Game 5 loss to the Rays on Friday night in his honor. Ford helped the team win 6 World Series in his 16 seasons playing for the team. He still holds the Yankees record for most wins 236-106 – that’s a win percentage of .690, which is the best of any pitcher with over 300 games decided. Ford also won the Cy Young Award in 1961.

• Yankees postseason sounded differently this year. That’s because the famous YES broadcaster Jack Curry had COVID and therefore was not the voice of the Yankees during their loss to the Rays. He has held the position since 2010. He is feeling much better after testing positive on 9/27.

Basketball:

• Its poetic really. The Lakers won 17^th NBA Championship title in Game 6 106-93 over the Heat last night the same year the arguably the most notable Laker dies. RIP Kobe! A crazy stat, the last 3 decades have all started with a Lakers championship. This was the Lakers’ first championship title since 2010.
  • LeBron James was named MVP of the NBA Finals. This is LeBron’s 4^th NBA title (2012 Heat, 2013 Heat, 2016 Cavaliers, 2020 Lakers) and he has received the MVP award in all 4 of those. James has played in the league for 17 seasons. This moves James into 2^nd all time for the most Finals MVP behind none other than MJ, who has 6. Let the debate commence.
  • Celebrations in LA got rowdy last night with crowds causing ramp shutdowns near the Staples Center. But nothing too drastic happened and what can you say? LA needed something to celebrate this year.

• The NBA season was scheduled to start its 2020/2021 season on October 21^st however with the COVID delay, the earliest start date is 12/26 but more likely January 2021.

Football – NCAAF:

• There were 6 losses in the Top 25 this past weekend including 2 in the top 10: #4 Florida in an upset to #21 Texas A&M and #7 Miami dominated (not surprisingly by #1 Clemson). #17 LSU keeps adding nightmares to their season by losing again to Mizzou and with 4 attempts to get into the endzone on the 2 yrd line. LSU has dropped out of the ranking for the first time since 2017 and it’s the first time a defending national champion has dropped from the Top 25 in 9 years. #22 Texas lost to unranked Oklahoma in a 4OT thriller that took years of my life. This makes Tom Herman’s loses to unranked teams up to 7 schools. Texas is no longer ranked although it hasn’t had a season where they were ranked the entire seasons since 2009. #19 VTech, after surviving games without double-digit players due to COVID, finally loses but to a worthy opponent #8 UNC.
  • Kansas HC Les Mills has tested positive for COVID and thus their game this past weekend was scheduled. Miles has since come out to say he feels pretty good. TBD if more games will be rescheduled.
  • Baylor cannot catch a break. Another game of theirs was rescheduled. The OSU/Baylor game which was supposed to be played this week will be played December 12. This was thought to be the Big 12 championship game however that is not finalized yet (for this exact reason according to the conference). This is the 2^nd OSU game to be postponed and they remain the only Big 12 team to be undefeated.
  • Kansas St QB Skylar Thompson was out for the Wildcat’s game against TCU on Saturday after he had surgery on an ‘upper-body injury.’ He will miss the rest of the season. This is some disappointing news as Kansas St enters the rankings this week.
• FAU is having a COVID outbreak after 18 players and 9 staffers tested positive last week which led to their game vs Southern Mississippi to be postponed. They have only played 1 game since 3 of their others have been postponed (2 bc of them and 1 was due to Notre Dame break out). They do not play this week.

Football – NFL:

• This week was crazy as usual. 4 games were decided within a TD score including 2 games that were won by 1 point. The Texans got their first win of the season. The Cowboys beat the Giants with a last second FG after their star QB got hurt (see next bullet). The Seahawks move to a franchise record start of 5-0 making them, the Titans and the Steelers the only undefeated teams left. The Chiefs for beat by the Raiders. The Browns are 4-1 for the first time since 1994 (when Belichick was HC). The Jets and the Falcons still have no wins. The Titans play on Tuesday after their COVID issues.
  • During the hard-fought Cowboys game on Sunday, Cowboys QB Dak Prescott ran the ball on a QB draw in the 3^rd As he was being tackles, his foot got caught under the defender and came out turned the opposite direction than what it was supposed to be. It took fans a second to realize what happened and camera crew a like before they stopped showing a replay. Do not watch if you’re squeamish. Dak went in the surgery the same night and has a compound fracture. Supposedly he will be out for the rest of the season. This couldn’t come at a worse time as he is currently playing under a franchise tag in Dallas, having failed to negotiate a deal the last 2 seasons.
  • Speaking of injuries, Alex Smith (back-up QB for Washington) took his first snap in 2 years on Sunday after a horrific leg injury, where he had to relearn how to walk. His family was in attendance and was rightfully-so very nervous. He went in when Washington was down 20-7 and was sacked 6xs. I think everyone’s heart stopped every time he got hit but he took it well! Smith went in when their starting QB Kyle Allen got injured, although Allen is expected to return as starter next week. Look familiar?  Again do not watch if you’re squeamish.

• Falcons fired their HC Dan Quinn after their 0-5 start to the season. For now, DC Raheem Morris is interim HC. Morris has already been a HC before coaching the Bucs from 2009-2011 with a 17-31 record. The Falcons are the first team in NFL history to blow 15+ point leads in the 4^th quarter multiple times in one season. Not a good stat to have.
• Fantasy peeps are pissed as Saints WR Michael Thomas who was questionable for the Chargers game, has been moved to Out. However the demotion in status does not come due to his ankle injury that has put him on the sidelines since week 1. Apparently, there was an altercation during practice with CJ Gardner-Johnson which caused Thomas to Out status. No further details were given.
• The Patriots and the Titans both have not had anymore positive COVID tests after this new round. This means that the Titans/Bills game will be played on Tuesday. The Patriots/Broncos game has been scheduled for 10/18 after 4 players tested positive including starting QB Cam Newton.

Golf:

• Martin Laird started to have deja-vu when he bogeyed the 18^th to go into a 3-way playoff at the Shriners on Sunday. That’s because he was in a playoff in the same tournament in 2010 when Jonathan Byrd made a hole-in-one to win. Laird however is not a stranger to winning; this is his 4^th win on the PGA Tour but he’s been on Tour since 2008. He has never lost his PGA Tour card but has been through some injuries including a knee injury this year. Knowing him personally, he’s wonderful and I’m so happy for him and his family!
• Sei Young Kim can wake up today saying she is a major champion! She won the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship yesterday. She was the winningest player on the LPGA Tour without a major with 10 wins. She had finished 2^nd at the 2015 KPMG PGA Championship and T-2^nd at the 2018 Evian Championship. It was about time and congrats Kim!

Olympic Sports:

• Team Israel Star-up Nation, Alex Dowsett, took his 2^nd win after he won the 8^th stage during the Giro d’Italia. This is 7 years after his first win! Briton Simon Yates is a WD after testing positive for COVID.
• The FIS has removed Sarah Lewis, their top admin, and was expected to be a candidate for the FIS presidential election. The FIS president, Gian Kasper, announced that he will step down after taking office in 1998 however those elections have been postponed twice due to the pandemic. What we do know is that it wont be Sarah Lewis due to the ‘complete loss of confidence’ in her.
• Mikaela Shiffrin is skipping the season opener of the World Cup skiing season in Austria due to a back issue. Madison Chock and Evan Bates have also withdrawn from Skate America.
• The Tokyo 2021 marathon has been postponed until after the Olympics (Oct 17) when it was originally scheduled for March 7. The Tokyo marathon is one of the 6 World Marathon Majors with the Boston, Berlin, Chicago, NY and London marathons.

Tennis:

• The French Open has been decided.
  • Nadal remains King of the Clay by winning his 13^th French Open and his 20^th Grand Slam title of his career. He did so in impressive fashion not even dropped a single set and he beat #1 Djokovic in the final. He is now tied with Federer with the most Grand Slam titles in men’s singles history. He won 4 GS titles without losing a single set.

• • The 19 year-old POL Iga Swiatek beat American Sofia Kenin in straight sets. She is the first Polish tennis player to win a Grand Slam title. She only lost 28 games and did not drop a set during the tournament.

What to watch this week

Baseball:

• Mon 10/12
  • ALCS Game 2: Astros at Rays @ 3:07pm on TBS
    • TB leads 1-0
    • McCullers vs Morton
  • NLCS Game 1: Braves at Dodgers @ 7:08pm on FOX
    • Fried vs Buehler
• Tues 10/13
  • ALCS Game 3: Rays at Astros @ TBD on TBS
  • NLCS Game 2: Braves at Dodgers @ TBD on FS1
    • Anderson vs Kershaw
• Wed 10/14
  • ALCS Game 4: Rays at Astros @ TBD on TBS
  • NLCS Game 3: Dodgers at Braves @ TBD on TBD
• Thurs 10/15
  • ALCS Game 5: Rays at Astros @ TBD on TBS
    • If necessary
  • NLCS Game 4: Dodgers at Braves @ TBD on TBD
• Fri 10/16
  • ALCS Game 6: Astros at Rays @ TBD on TBS
    • If necessary
  • NLCS Game 5: Dodgers at Braves @ TBD on TBD
    • If necessary
• Sat 10/17
  • ALCS Game 7: Astros at Rays @ TBD on TBS
    • If necessary
  • NLCS Game 6: Braves at Dodgers @ TBD on TBD
    • If necessary
• Sun 10/18
  • NLCS Game 7: Braves at Dodgers @ TBD on TBD
    • If necessary

Football-NCAAF:

Top 25
Week 7
Top 25 Games
Visitor	Home	Day	Time (CT)	TV
15. BYU	Houston	Fri 10/16	8:30 PM	ESPN
Pitt	13. Miami	Sat 10/17	11:00 AM	ACC
LSU	10. Florida	Sat 10/17	2:30 PM	ESPN
3. Georgia	2. Alabama	Sat 10/17	7:00 PM	CBS
*GameDay indicated in bold*

Football – NFL:

• Mon 10/12
  • Chargers at Saints @ 7:15pm on ESPN
• Tues 10/13
  • Bills at Titans @ 6pm on CBS
• Sun 10/18
  • 9 games @ 12pm on CBS/FOX depending on your geographical location
    • Texans at Titans
    • Bengals at Colts
    • Falcons at Vikings
    • Broncos at Patriots
    • Washington at Giants
    • Ravens at Eagles
    • Browns at Steelers
    • Bears at Panthers
    • Lions at Jaguars
  • Jets at Dolphins @ 3:05pm on CBS
  • Packers at Bucs @ 3:25 on Fox
  • Rams at 49ers @ 7:20pm on NBC
• Mon 10/19
  • Chiefs at Bills @ 4pm on FOX
  • Cardinals at Cowboys @ 7:15pm on ESPN

Golf:

• Thurs 10/15
  • CJ Cup @ Shadow Creek – Round 1 @ 4pm on Golf Channel
• Fri 10/16
  • CJ Cup @ Shadow Creek – Round 2 @ 4pm on Golf Channel
• Sat 10/17
  • CJ Cup @ Shadow Creek – Round 3 @ 4pm on Golf Channel
• Sun 10/18
  • CJ Cup @ Shadow Creek – Round 4 @ 4pm on Golf Channel

Motorsports:

• Sun 10/18
  • NASCAR: Hollywood Casino 400 @ 1:30pm on NBC
  • MotoGP: Aragon Race @ 5:30pm on NBCSN

Olympic Sports:

• Sun 10/18
  • Marathon: World Athletics Half Marathon World Championships @ 9:30pm on NBCSN

Soccer:

• Tues 10/13
  • UEFA Nations : GER vs SUI @ 1 :45pm on ESPN2
  • NCAAW: Auburn vs Ole Miss @ 4pm on SEC
  • NCAAM: Clemson vs Wake Forest @ 6pm on ACC
• Wed 10/14
  • UEFA Nations: ITA vs NED @ 1 :45pm on ESPN2
• Thurs 10/15
  • NCAAW: UVA vs Louisville @ 7pm on ACC
• Fri 10/16
  • NCAAM: UVA bs Pitt @ 6pm on ACC
  • NCAAW: Texas A&M vs Mississippi St @ 6pm on SEC
  • NCAAM: Clemson vs Duke @ 7pm on ACC
  • NCAAW: Arkansas vs South Carolina @ 7pm om SEC
  • NCAAW: Mizzou vs LSU @ 7pm on SEC
• Sat 10/17
  • Premier League: Everton vs Liverpool @ 6:25am on NBCSN
  • Premier League: Chelsea at Southampton @ 8:55am on NBCSN
• Sun 10/18
  • Premier League: Tottenham Hotspur vs West Ham United @ 10:25am on NBCSN
  • NCAAW: Alabama vs Ole Miss @ 2pm on SEC
  • NCAAW: UVA vs Florida St @ 2pm on ESPNU
  • NCAAW: Kentucky vs Tennessee @ 4pm on ESPNU
  • NCAAW: Florida vs Vanderbilt @ 5pm on SEC
  • NCAAW: Georgia vs Auburn @ 5pm on SEC