Armadillo Sports

September’s Too……..is a good bar
1165 Central Avenue in Colonie, just west of Osborne Road

Wednesday- 25-cent wings; its a great deal……..
Thursday- Open Mike Night, 7:00
Friday- Karaoke at 8:00
Saturday- Live music at 8:00…….
Sunday- 25-cent wings; open at 4:00, NFL games on TV

You can order food from them via Door Dash
There’s a pool table, only 25 cents/game.

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Monday night NFL info is posted

Monday’s 6-pack:
Interesting spreads for NFL Week 9 games:
— Jaguars (-8.5) @ Baltimore
— Bengals (-3) vs Falcons (@ Madrid, Spain)
— Browns @ New Orleans (-3)
— Cowboys (-6) @ Indianapolis
— Broncos (-3) @ Carolina
— Lions (-7) @ Miami

Quote of the Day:
“I’m going to evaluate everything, every position going forward.”
Colts coach Shane Steichen

Monday’s quiz
Who was the Jets’ coach, last time they made the playoffs? 

Sunday’s quiz
Kevin Ollie was the basketball coach at UConn before Dan Hurley.

Saturday’s quiz
Draymond Green played his college basketball at Michigan State. 

— Bengals 43, Titans 36, OT
Bengals drove 81 yards, forced OT with a TD with 1:17 left.
QB Burrow threw for 462 yards, with 5 TD’s, 3 INTs.
Tennessee led 13-0 after the first quarter.
Five of Bengals’ seven games were decided by 7 or fewer points.

QB Ward threw for 304 yards, two TD’s.
Tennessee has five losses by 7 or fewer points.
Titans scored 26-24-36 points in their last three games.
Tennessee ran ball 28 times for 158 yards. 

— Lions 19, Vikings 15
Lions ran the ball 39 times for 230 yards.
Lions drove 69 yards, scored game-winning TD with 4:35 left.
Detroit is 4-0 at home, winning by 1-7-3-5 points.
That was first 4th quarter TD Vikings allowed this season. 

Lions’ first five drives: 31 plays, 58 yards, 3 points.
Lions rest of game: 37 plays, 326 yards, 16 points.
Detroit outgained the Vikings, 384-266.
Vikings are 1-5 SU/ATS in last six visits to Detroit.

— Cardinals 33, Cowboys 30
K Ryland kicked walk-off 42-yard field goal in OT.
Down 30-24, Cardinals scored with 0:06 left- Ryland missed PAT.
QB Minshew came off bench, threw for 188 yards, 3 TD’s.
Arizona is 13-6 ATS last 19 games as a road underdog.

Cardinals outgained Dallas, 467-261.
Under Schottenheimer, Cowboys are 2-6 ATS as a home favorite.
Under Schottenheimer, Cowboys are 3-8 ATS in games coming off a win.
Opponents have converted 54 of 105 third down plays.

— Broncos 28, Chiefs 24
Chiefs had ball on 1-yard line in last 0:10, but didn’t score.
Denver won its 15th straight one-score game (decided by 8 or fewer points)
Overall, Broncos won four in row, six of their last seven games.
Broncos are 7-2 ATS in last nine AFC West home games.   

Sean Payton got his 200th win as an NFL head coach.
Chiefs are 2-9 in last 11 games as a road favorite.
KC is 0-6-1 ATS in last seven AFC West road games.
Chiefs outgained Denver 399-294, but had 105 penalty yards. 

— Buccaneers 16, Falcons 0
Game was played in a rainy quagmire, a soaking wet field.
Tampa Bay won despite not completing a pass (0-3) all day.
Buccaneers ran ball 56 times for 324 yards.
Tampa Bay kicked field goals on three of its first five drives.

Falcons turned ball over on four of first seven drives.
Tampa Bay was 4-13 on third down, Atlanta 0-12.
3-5 Atlanta scored 35-45-29 points in wins, 23 or less in losses.
Falcons are 1-5 when they gain less than 400 yards.

— Bills 36, Ravens 10
QB Jackson hurt his thumb on first play, is probably out for year.
#2 QB Huntley hurt his toe in 2nd quarter, left the game.
#3 QB Fagnano went 10-21/91 passing with 2 turnovers in his NFL debut.
Last three games, Ravens were outscored 68-3 in the second half.

Bills outgained the Ravens, 426-144.
Buffalo was only 4-14 on 3rd down, but 4-5 on 4th down.
RB Cook ran the ball 21 times for 80 yards and a TD.
AFC East non-divisional favorites are 7-2 ATS.

— Raiders 38, Jets 33
Jets led 30-21 with 5:00 left in third quarter.
Raiders’ first 3 drives of 2nd half: 29 plays, 227 yards, 21 points.
Raiders ran a kickoff back 95 yards for TD in 2nd quarter.
Last six Raider games went over the total.  

Jets ran the ball 27 times for 166 yards.
Jets lost six of their last seven games.
Jets are 2-6, with five losses by 7 or fewer points.
Aaron Glenn is 5-20 as a head coach.

Famous birthdays, November 2nd:
Jim Bakken, 86
Stefanie Powers, 84
Ron Reed, 84
Larry Little, 81

Tom Paciorek, 80
Ron Lee, 74
Willie McGee, 68
Mark May, 67

David Schwimmer, 60
Danny Amendola, 41
Jimmy Garoppolo, 35
Parker Meadows, 27

— Rams 24, Chargers 9
Rams’ first five drives: 16 plays, 4 yards, no first downs, 3 points.
Rams’ next four drives: 21 plays, 180 yards, 21 points.
Rams are 25-15-1 ATS in last 41 games as a favorite.
Rams are 10-2 ATS in last dozen games vs AFC teams.

Chargers outgained Rams 229-70 in first half.
Bolts in second half: 22 plays, 93 yards, no points.
Chargers lost first seven games, giving up 25.0 ppg
Last four games, Chargers are minus-6 in turnovers.

— Steelers 27, Browns 6
Pittsburgh ran the ball 33 times for 200 yards.
Cleveland ran the ball 15 times for 34 yards.
Steelers won five of their last six games.
Browns are 0-6 SU/ATS last six visits to Pittsburgh.

Cleveland didn’t score a TD, had five 3/outs on 11 drives.
Browns are 4-9 ATS in last 13 games coming off a win. 
Browns are 10-21 ATS last 31 games as a road underdog.
Browns scored 10-12-6 points in losses, 23-21-27-13-27 in wins.

— Jaguars 42, Colts 7
During week, Colts threw in the towel, trading two good linemen.
In this game, Colts threw in the towel again, trailing 28-0 at the half.
Jaguars ran ball 33 times for 183 yards.
First three Jacksonville drives: 31 plays, 261 yards, 21 points.

RB Tuten ran ball 16 times for 104 yards and a TD.
Colts in first half: 28 plays, 102 yards, no points.
Colts are minus-11 in turnovers this season.
Jaguars are 14-5-1 ATS last 20 AFC South games.

— Patriots 24, Dolphins 19
Miami led this game 13-3 at halftime.
Patriots in 2nd half: 29 plays, 199 yards, 21 points.
Miami in second half: 30 plays, 116 yards, 6 points.
NE ran for 109 or fewer yards in its losses, 131+ in wins.

Patriots held six of eight opponents under 100 yards rushing.
Dolphins’ last four games were all decided by 7 or fewer points.
Miami averaged only 5.3 yards/pass attempt.
Miami is 6-3 ATS last nine games as a home underdog.

— Commanders 27, Eagles 10
Last six weeks, Eagles were outscored 90-17 in second half.
Philly lost its last six games, four of them by 11+ points.
Washington is 2-0-1 at home: 33-31 Seattle/27-27 Giants/27-10 Phil
Commanders are +8 in turnovers in their last five games.

Commanders are 9-4 ATS last 13 games as a home favorite.
Eagles are 24 for their last 83 on third down.
Over is 7-1 in their opponents’ team total.
Under Sirianni, Eagles are 10-18 ATS in games coming off a loss.

— Notre Dame 73, Villanova 71
Villanova led by 10 with 10:24 left in the game.
Notre Dame was +9 in turnovers (20-11).
Notre Dame had 17 offensive rebounds.
This game was played in Italy. 

Hope you remembered to turn your clocks back an hour……..

— Indiana 23, Minnesota 16 OT
Gophers kicked a 61-yard FG with 0:19 left to lead 16-13.
Indiana kicked a 60-yard FG at the gun to force OT
Hoosiers outgained Minnesota, 419-215.
8-1 Indiana’s last four games were decided by 3-4-7-7 points.

— Boise State 46, Texas State 45
This game ended after 2am……weird game.
Boise State led 28-3 at halftime.
Boise drove 75 yards, scored game-winning TD with 2:40 left.
Texas State scored 42 points in the second half…….and LOST!!!! 

— Miami 38, North Carolina 35
Miami improved to 8-0, holding off the 4-4 Tar Heels.
Miami QB Mensah threw for 274 yards, three TD’s.
UNC QB Edwards threw for 341 yards, four TD’s.

— Iowa State 51, Oklahoma State 49
OSU scored a TD with 0:53 left to take a 49-48 lead.
Cyclones kicked a 34-yard FG at the gun for the upset win.
Total yards: Iowa State 581, Oklahoma State 533

— USC 30, Ohio State 18
Trojans threw a 69-yard TD pass in first minute of the game.
Frosh backup QB Fahey threw for 260 yards in his first college start.
Buckeyes outgained USC 464-338 on a rainy day in Los Angeles.

— Utah 49, Cincinnati 25
Utah’s first four drives: 35 plays, 333 yards, 28 points.
Utes led Cincinnati 42-6 at halftime.
Utah is 8-0; they play rival BYU next week.

— Oregon 34, Northwestern 26
QB Raiola threw for 336 yards, three TD’s.
Northwestern led 20-6 late in the first half.
Northwestern QB Chiles threw for 281 yards, ran for 93 more.

— NC State 31, California 10
There are rumors swirling that Philip Rivers is going to be NC State’s next football coach; he played for the Wolfpack, before his excellent NFL career. His son has already committed to play QB for NC State next year. Philip Rivers is his son’s high school coach.

— Upsets of the Day:
Troy State (+17.5) 24, James Madison 21
Syracuse (+10) 30, SMU 27
Sacramento State (+10) 31, Kent State 10

Iowa State (+9.5) 51, Oklahoma State 49
Coastal Carolina (+6.5) 31, Georgia Southern 20
Washington (+7.5) 17, Nebraska 10

USC (+6.5) 30, Ohio State 18
Clemson (+6) 36, Florida State 24
South Carolina (+5.5) 42, Oklahoma 25

— Famous birthdays, November 1st:
Tom Mack, 83
Miguel Dilone, 72
Kent Graham, 58

Coco Crisp, 47
Stephen Vogt, 42
Anthony Ramos, 35

Brent Rooker, 32
Payton Tolle, 24
Stephon Castle, 22

— Syracuse 30, SMU 27
Syracuse drove 68 yards, scored game-winning TD with 0:17 left.
SMU QB Jennings threw for 351 yards, two TD’s.
Orange even their record at 4-4; SMU slips to 6-2.

— South Carolina 42, Oklahoma 25
Carolina QB Sellers threw for 301 yards, three TD’s.
Sellers also ran ball for 96 yards, two TD’s.
Oklahoma falls to 4-4; they lost their last two home games.

— BYU 27, Arizona State 20
BYU blew 17-3 halftime lead, but outscored ASU 10-3 in 4th quarter.
Cougars won despite running ball 30 times for only 47 yards.
Arizona State is 0-4 when they allow more than 17 points.

— Washington 17, Nebraska 10
Nebraska led 7-3 after three quarters.
Huskies scored two TD’s in a 0:15 span of the 4th quarter to win the game.
Cornhuskers were minus-3 in turnovers; they outgained Huskies, 387-267.

— Texas Tech 34, Arizona 26
Arizona led 17-10 at halftime, throwing a 94-yard TD pass.
Transfer QB Castellanos threw two TD’s in his first start for Tech.
RB Williams ran ball 14 times for 175 yards and a TD.

— Michigan 28, Rutgers 21
Michigan drove 75 yards, scored winning TD with 4:24 left.
Wolverines ran for 161 yards, outgained Rutgers 427-249.
Michigan is 5-3, with only one win by more than seven points.

— Villanova-Notre Dame are playing a basketball game in Italy 9:30 Sunday morning, which tips off the 2026-27 season, before a marathon of games that starts Sunday night at midnight. The marathon games will be shown on YouTube all day Monday. 

September’s Too……..is a good bar
1165 Central Avenue in Colonie, just west of Osborne Road

Wednesday- 25-cent wings; its a great deal……..
Thursday- Open Mike Night, 7:00
Friday- Karaoke at 8:00
Saturday- Live music at 8:00…….
Sunday- 25-cent wings; open at 4:00, NFL games on TV

You can order food from them via Door Dash
There’s a pool table, only 25 cents/game.

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Week 8 college football info is posted
Week 8 NFL info is posted

Saturday’s 6-pack:
Most passing yards in the NFL:
2,246— Jordan Love, GB
1,989— Matthew Stafford, Rams
1,921— Bryce Young, Car
1,877— Kirk Cousins, LV
1,867— CJ Stroud, Hous
1,851— Dak Prescott, Dal

Quote of the Day:
“For me and my teammates, this has been the most special day of our lives — you guys showing up here and cheering us on. This is better than anything we could ever imagine.”
Brewers P Aaron Ashby

Saturday’s quiz
Where did Draymond Green play his college basketball? 

Friday’s quiz
When Richard Nixon was elected president in 1972, he beat George McGovern in the election.  

Tuesday’s quiz
John Fox was the Carolina Panthers’ coach, first time they were in the Super Bowl. 

— NBA Cup tournament started Friday night; every member of the winning team banks an extra $600,000, which is a big deal for the subs, maybe not so much for the stars who make $20-30M a year, or more.

— There is an NBA ref Tony Brothers who is in his 32nd season as an NBA ref- he’s worked over 1,800 regular season games, 215 playoff games. This is a guy who should write a book.

— Warriors 112, Lakers 95
Lakers led by 25 points in the first quarter.
Golden State outscored the Lakers 38-15 in second quarter.
Warriors’ bench outscored the Lakers’ subs, 48-5.

— 76ers 98, Knicks 93
Lebron James scored 20 points, had 9 rebounds, 8 assists.
76ers are 5-1, have beaten the Knicks twice already.
Anfernee Simons scored 21 points in 31:00 off the bench.

— Mavericks 116, Rockets 111
Dallas outscored Houston 40-27 in the fourth quarter.
Kyrie Irving scored 35 points, Cooper Flagg 33.
Mavericks shot 52% from the floor, Houston 42%

— Magic 121, Raptors 114
Franz Wagner scored 26 points, had 11 assists.
Orlando made 18 of their 34 three-point shots.
Orlando starters were a combined +68, their subs minus-33.

— Celtics 125, Bulls 111
Boston led 78-49 at halftime.
Payton Pritchard scored 30 points in 35:00 off the bench.
Chicago shot only 38% from the floor.

— Memphis Grizzlies are 5-0 for the first time since 2015.

— Famous birthdays, October 31st:
Brian Doyle-Murray, 81
John Lucas, 73
Mike Gallego, 66
Fred McGriff, 63

Antonio Davis, 58
Steve Trachsel, 56
Piper Perabo, 50
Tony Kemp, 35

— These are the umpires who worked the World Series; umps get a lot of grief, so it s good to give credit to the six guys who earned their way to the World Series:

Dan Bellino, Vic Carapazza, Tripp Gibson, Nic Lentz, Gabe Morales and Jim Wolf.

— Mets 3B Bo Bichette opted into the second year of his three-year contract that pays him $42M a year; he knows no one else is stupid enough to pay him that much. Bichette hit .260 last year, with a .702 OPS; he was much better in the second half of the season than the first.

— Tampa Bay P Nick Martinez opted out of his $20M deal for next year; he banks $4M for opting out, and figures to make more than $16M on whatever deal he signs this winter.

— Brewers OF Jackson Chourio is the only player ever to have two hits and a stolen base in the same inning of a World Series game.

— Houston Astros hired Randy Flores as their new GM; he had been working as the Cardinals’ assistant general manager. Flores pitched in the major leagues for eight years from 2002-10.

— Oklahoma City Thunder has serious injury issues:
Chet Holmgren is out 8-10 weeks mall patellar tendon tear in his right knee.

Jalen Williams has a broken and dislocated ankle, might be out for the year.

Cason Wallace has a torn labrum in his left shoulder, might be out for the year.

— UConn basketball coach Danny Hurley signed a two-year contract extension; he is now signed on through the 2031-32 season.

— Villanova-Notre Dame are playing a basketball game in Italy 9:30 Sunday morning, which tips off the 2026-27 season, before a marathon of games that starts Sunday night at midnight. The marathon games will be shown on YouTube all day Monday. 

— Packers 27, Panthers 19
Packers in first half: 37 plays, 238 yards, 20 points.
Green Bay led 20-10 at halftime.
QB Love threw for 288 yards, three TD’s.
Packers are 13-9 ATS last 22 games as a home favorite.

Green Bay was 9-16 on third down, Carolina 5-18.
Carolina opponents converted 22 of last 43 third down plays.
Packers still have run ball for only 59 yards/game this year.
Total yardage: Green Bay 354, Carolina 258.

— Carolina, by the way, is the only NFL team that has both:
won a game by 30+ points this year, and
lost a game by 30+ points this year

— Big trade in the NFL; Chicago Bears went all-in on this season, trading two first round draft picks to Tennessee for DT Jeffrey Simmons. Simmons is the first defensive tackle since at least 1967 to be traded for multiple first-round picks.

— North Texas 48, Florida Atlantic 38
North Texas in 2nd half: 41 plays, 245 yards, 24 points.
Game was 24-24 at halftime.
North Texas QB Jackson threw for 390 yards, four TD’s. 

— Troy 24, James Madison 21 OT
17.5-point underdog Trojans pull off a very big upset.
James Madison scored TD’s on their first three drives.
James Madison turned ball over on five of next 13 drives.

— Hawks 114, Cavaliers 111
Onyeka Okongwu scored 29 points, had 12 rebounds.
Cleveland led by 12 points after the first quarter.
Hawks were +17 in the 24:00 Aaron Wiggins played.

— Pelicans 132, Kings 120
Jeremiah Fears had 22 points, 13 assists, 8 rebounds.
1-4 Pelicans get their first win; Sacramento is 0-5.
New Orleans shot 60% from the floor.

— Famous birthdays, October 30th
Henry Winkler, 81
Harry Hamlin, 75
Kevin Pollak, 69
Danny Tartabull, 64
Darryl Henley, 60

Ty Detmer, 59
Marco Scutaro, 51
Trent Edwards, 43
Marcus Mariota, 34
Devin Booker, 30

— The great TV studio host Ernie Johnson announced this week that this will be his last year hosting Inside the NBA with Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, Shaquille O’Neal. Johnson is 72 and is going to cut back his schedule, after 37 years of working the NBA studio show.

What was so cool is the reverence his famous broadcast partners have for him; the love/respect they show him is excellent.

— I’m still waiting for most of my college basketball reference stuff to come in the mail; all these eligibility questions for players have delayed the books from getting printed. College hoop starts Monday; we need the books.

Memphis played Arkansas in an exhibition game the other night; Memphis has a good big man, Namanja Popovic, but he may be ineligible for the first six games- that hasn’t been decided yet. Tigers definitely need him as soon as they can get him.

— Glad to see that former UCLA/St John’s coach Steve Lavin is going to be on ESPN’s airwaves for college basketball games this winter; he is terrific on TV, always learn from him.

— Arizona P Corbin Burnes didn’t opt out of the four years, $140M left on his contract; Astros P Tatsuya Imai exercised his $18M player option for next year and will return to the Astros.

— Red Sox traded OF Nate Eaton to the Sacramento/Las Vegas A’s, in exchange for a minor league pitcher. Eaton probably wouldn’t have been kept on Boston’s 40-man roster next year.

— Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams has been fined $34,823 by the NFL for wearing Caddix cleats; only Nike, Adidas and Under Armour have partnerships with the NFL- if a player wears another type of shoe, he has to cover up the logo or get fined. Williams won’t do that, so either he or the show company has to pay the fine.

— Utah Utes are 7-0 in football for the first time since 2010.

— RIP June Jones, longtime football coach who ran the run-and-shoot offense for several teams in both college/pro football. He was 73 years old. Jones led Hawai’i to the Sugar Bowl in 2007, a huge accomplishment; his teams were great fun to watch. 

RIP, coach. 

— Brewers 4, Rays 1
Brewers win their first-ever World Series title.
Cooper Pratt had two hits, two RBI.
Jacob Misiorowski gave up two hits in 5.2 IP.
Milwaukee wins its second World Series, 4-1.

— Milwaukee had won a World Series before, back in 1957 when the Braves played there, nine years before they moved to Atlanta.

— Now we wait, wait for the labor negotiations to start; the current deal between players and owners ends December 1st. Could be a long winter as we wait and see if all these rich people will kill the golden goose, or if players/owners can negotiate a good agreement.

I’m hoping my baseball consumption next spring isn’t going to be Korean baseball at 5am every day, like it was during the pandemic.

— Indianapolis Colts traded two offensive linemen Tuesday; on Wednesday, WR Josh Downs, who is in the final year of his rookie contract, requested a trade out of Indianapolis. Can’t be a fun time for Colts’ coach Shane Steichen, who figures to get fired after the season.

— Kansas City Chiefs signed five-time All-Pro kicker Justin Tucker, who has been out of the NFL for two years after he had off-field issues with several massage therapists.

— Kennesaw State 44, Middle Tennessee 28
Kennesaw led 19-17 at halftime.
Owls broke game open with a 59-yard pick-6 early in 3rd quarter.
Blue Raiders were 11-20 on third down, Kennesaw 2-10.

— Jacksonville State 24, New Mexico State 0
Gamecocks outgained New Mexico State, 433-221
Jax State ran ball 46 times for 324 yards.
Jax State is 6-2 now, and bowl-eligible; New Mexico State is 3-5. 

— Famous birthdays, October 29th:
Richard Dreyfuss, 79
Kate Jackson, 78
Danny Vranes, 68
Winona Ryder, 55

Gabrielle Union, 54
RA Dickey, 52
Andy Dalton, 39
Ender Inciarte, 36

— 76ers 114, Pacers 109
Sixers outscored Indiana 39-21 in fourth quarter.
Tyrese Maxey scored 27 points, had four assists.
Indiana shot only 9-36 behind the arc.

— Knicks 133, Bulls 127
Jalen Brunson scored 38 points, had seven assists.
Knicks outscored Chicago 43-31 in 4th quarter.
Knicks were +15 in 17:00 with Clarkson on the court.

— Warriors 119, Timberwolves 114
Steph Curry scored 44 points (16-16 on foul line)
Rookie Yaxel Lendeborg scored 26 points, had nine rebounds.
Minnesota is playing without injured star Anthony Edwards.

— Nuggets 104, Pelicans 91
Nikola Jokic logged his 200th career triple-double.
Denver led 37-18 after the first quarter.
New Orleans slips to an 0-4 start.

— Heat 129, Hawks 117
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 24 points, 18 rebounds.
Miami wins for the first time in five games.
Heat out-rebounded Atlanta 52-40.

— Spurs 117, Jazz 111 OT
Victor Wembanyama scored 36 points, had 14 rebounds.
Jazz led by 10 points after the first quarter.
Stephon Castle scored 14 points, had 8 assists.

— Pistons 97, Hornets 89
Detroit outscored Charlotte 32-19 in third quarter.
Cade Cunningham scored 30 points, had 7 assists.
Pistons were +23 in 21:00 that Javonte Green played. 

— Rays 4, Brewers 3 (12)
Cooper Pratt homered in top of the 12th inning.
Rays scored twice in bottom of 12th, without making an out.
Milwaukee used eight pitchers, Tampa Bay used seven.
Brewers lead series, 3-1; Game 5 is Wednesday.

— Celtics 125, Nets 124 OT
Jayson Tatum hit a buzzer-beater for the walk-off win.
Tatum scored 40 points, going 18-22 on the foul line.
Whole Brooklyn team shot a combined 17-22 on the line.

— Knicks 111, Pistons 97
Knicks outscored Detroit 37-13 in third quarter.
Pistons shot 9 for 37 behind the arc.
Knicks get their first win in four games this year.

— Spurs 130, Kings 103
San Antonio led 80-54 at halftime.
Wembanyama scored 29 points, had 10 rebounds.
Spurs shot 60.3% inside the arc.

— Delaware 35, Western Kentucky 21
4-4 Blue Hens led 28-21 at halftime.
Delaware QB Minicucci threw for 414 yards, four TD’s.
Hilltoppers ran ball 34 times for 232 yards.

— Missouri State 24, Sam Houston State 3
Missouri State scored two TD’s in 4th quarter to salt game away.
Sam Houston ran the ball 25 times for 26 yards.
1-7 Bearkats are 0-7 vs I-A teams, scoring 3-3-24-3 last four games.

— Maryland’s football team has lost five games in a row; they already fired the coach. This week, any student who stays until the 4th quarter of their game with Illinois gets put in a raffle, with the winner of the raffle getting free in-state tuition ($5,507.50) for the spring semester.

— Famous birthdays, October 28th:
Dennis Franz, 82
Annie Potts, 74
Randy Wittman, 67
Bob Melvin, 65
Jami Gertz, 61

Julia Roberts, 59
Terrell Davis, 54
Jarrett Jack, 43
Spencer Strider, 28
Stetson Bennett, 29

— NFL trade deadline is November 10th, 13 days away.

— Tuesday, the Colts traded three-time All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson to Seattle, for a 3rd round pick and a fifth round pick. Nelson has made the Pro Bowl all eight years he’s played in the NFL. Nelson is in the last year of his contract.

— Colts then dealt three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle DeForest Buckner to the 49ers, for a 4th-round draft pick. Originally drafted by the 49ers, Buckner will become an unrestricted free agent after the season.

— Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards will have an arthroscopic procedure on his ailing right knee Thursday that will sideline him for up to two months. Edwards scored 47 points in Minnesota’s game Monday night.

— I’m not sure how to take these college basketball exhibition games; how much do they matter?

North Carolina has lost 87% of its scoring from last year, they have a new coach, so they’re really an expansion team of sorts. Coach Malone won an NBA title with Denver, so eventually UNC will be a winning team, but how long does the process take?

Carolina has a senior guard, Angelo Brizzi, who has had an interesting journey rhru college hoop.

2022-23- Villanova
2023-24- Davidson
2024-25- Longwood
2025-26- Buffalo
2026-27- North Carolina

Need to hear an interview with this guy; odd assortment of teams to play for.

— Mississippi State QB Kamario Taylor is out for the year after having surgery on an injured toe.  He finished the season with 17 passing TD’s, 1,460 passing yards.

— RIP to actress Susan St James, who passed away at age 80. She was very popular when I was a kid; she was Rock Hudson’s wife in McMillan & Wife and was also in Kate & Allie. 

— I voted early today; were a decent amount of people there. One less thing on the to-do list for next week. Get out and vote!!!

— Cowboys 38, Eagles 21
First seven Dallas drives: 60 plays, 414 yards, 3 TD’s, 3 FG’s.
Cowboys ran ball 38 times for 204 yards.
Williams ran ball 25 times for 155 yards.
Dallas converted 8 of 13 third down plays.

Eagles lost their last five games, scoring 15.8 ppg.
In those games, Eagles were outscored 76-17 in second half.
Over is 6-1 in their opponents’ team total.
Under Sirianni, Eagles are 10-17 ATS in games coming off a loss.

— Brewers 10, Rays 1
Milwaukee scored eight runs in the fifth inning.
Chourio had four hits, scored two runs.
Gasser allowed one hit in six shutout IP.
Game 4 is tonight; leading 3-0, Milwaukee goes for a sweep.

— Oregon QB Dante Moore (concussion) isn’t expected to play again this season

— Baylor fired football coach Dave Aranda, who was 40-40 in seven years in Waco.

— NFL divisional trends (non-divisional games)
NFC East: 3-5 ATS away from home
NFC North: away favorites 6-2 ATS
NFC South: home teams 2-9 ATS. road underdogs 5-2
NFC West: home favorites 4-1 ATS. road favorites 2-5

AFC East: home teams 7-1 ATS. road underdogs 3-6
AFC North: favorites 8-5 ATS
AFC South: home teams 3-7 ATS
AFC West: home teams 5-3 ATS, 1-4 road underdogs

— Famous birthdays, October 27th:
John Cleese, 87
Pete Vuckovich, 74
Rick Carlisle, 67
Timm Rosenbach, 60

John Kasay, 57
Brad Radke, 54
Jim Leonhard, 44
Jon Niese, 40

Lou Williams, 40
Mark Barron, 37
Francisco Mejia, 31
Lonzo Ball, 29

Missed a birthday yesterday; Pat Sajak turned 80 years old. 

— College football trends (conference games)
AAC- home teams 14-12 ATS
ACC- home favorites 6-11 ATS, home underdogs 12-6. Underdogs: 23-12
Big 18: home favorites 5-14 ATS, home underdogs 11-8
Big X: home favorites 12-9 ATS, home underdogs 5-3
C-USA: home favorites 7-2 ATS

MAC: home favorites 13-6 ATS
MW: home teams 9-7 ATS
Pac-8: home favorites 5-3 ATS
SEC: home teams 20-19 ATS
Sun Belt: favorites 14-12 ATS

— This past weekend, Miami Hurricanes had a reunion of their 2001 national title team; that team had 38 players who were drafted by NFL teams, 17 of them in the first round!!!!

— Why does the quarterback at BYU wear number 47?

— Michigan Wolverines lost in overtime to Indiana Saturday; they’re record in overtime games falls to an impressive 15-4. 

— In the NBA, Oklahoma City star Jalen Williams will have surgery after he fractured his fibula and dislocated his left ankle. It could be a season-ending injury.

Another Thunder player, Cason Wallace torn a labrum in his shoulder and will be operated on. This could also be a season-ending injury.

— Thunder 125, Suns 114
Ajay Mitchell scored a career-high 30 points.
Thunder was +18 in the 25:00 Mitchell played.
Shea Gilgeous-Alexander scored 26 for Oklahoma City.

— Cavaliers 127, Timberwolves 125 OT
Minnesota led 60-50 at halftime.
Anthony Edwards scored 47 points for Minnesota.
Timberwolves were minus-13 in the 12:00 he sat out.
Cleveland’s four subs were a combined +23. 

Lions 20, Packers 17
Detroit drove 71 yards, kicked walk-off field goal for the win.
Lions are 3-0 at home (31-30 Saints/31-24 Jets/20-17 Packers)
Detroit is 4-2 when they run ball for 100+ yards.
Lions outgained Green Bay, 415-324.

Packers’ K Trey Smack was first kicker since 2019 to miss two FG’s of 35 or fewer yards in the same game.
Green Bay ran ball 19 times for only 60 yards.
Packers have run ball for only 58 yards/game this year.
There were six drives in this game where a team got into the red zone, but didn’t score any points. Bad beat if you bet the over. 

Bengals 35, Ravens 13
Baltimore led this game 13-0 at halftime.
Ravens in first half: 43 plays, 218 yards, only 13 points.
Bengals in first half: 19 plays, 59 yards, no punts.
Bengals in second half: 32 plays, 356 yards, 35 punts.

Ravens were outscored 114-51 in second half of first six games. 
Baltimore scored 41-34-24-30 points in their wins, 17-10-23 in losses.
Bengals are 7-2 ATS last nine visits to Baltimore.
Last 13 times Ravens were an underdog, road team was 12-1 ATS. 

Browns 27, Titans 24
Tennessee led 14-0 with 8:35 left in first quarter.
Cleveland ran ball 29 times for 183 yards.
Browns drove 55 yards, kicked 32-yard field goal to win at the gun.
Cleveland is 5-2, with wins are by 4-4-3-3-3 points.

Browns outgained Tennessee, 491-322.
Titans are 5-9 ATS last 14 games as a home underdog.
Tennessee’s 322 total yards were their most this year.
QB Ward is 4-20 as an NFL starter.

Vikings 16, Colts 10
Vikings won their first six games, four of them by 6-7-5-6 points.
Colts led 10-6 after the third quarter.
Vikings’ last five drives: 50 plays, 235 yards, 16 points.
Minnesota is 11-0 SU/8-2-1 ATS in its last eleven games.

In their last 11 games, Vikings haven’t allowed a 4th quarter TD.
Under Steichen, Colts are 12-7 ATS as a road underdog.
Colts were 8-15 on third down, Minnesota 3-11.
Vikings held last five opponents to 297-243-198-142-218 total yards.

Dolphins 28, Jets 25
Miami gets its first win; they’ve covered three in a row.
Dolphins led 21-7 at halftime.
Miami in first half: 39 plays, 235 yards, 21 points.
Dolphins ran ball times for 156 yards.

Jets lost five of their last six games.
Jets gave up 10-12 points in wins, 20-31-23-26-28 in losses. 
Miami won 11 of last 13 series games.
Dolphins are 6-2 ATS in last eight visits to New Jersey.

Rams 35, Raiders 21
Rams ran ball for a season-high 199 yards.
Rams in first half: 35 plays, 269 yards, led 28-6 at half.
Rams are 14-5 ATS in last 19 games as a road favorite.
Stafford threw his 145h TD pass as a Ram, most in team history

Raiders’ first eight drives: 47 plays, 214 cards, six points.
Raiders lost last four games, giving up 30-45-33-35 points.
Last five Raider games went over the total. 
Opponents went over their team total in last five games.

Seahawks 20, Chiefs 3
Chiefs didn’t get into the red zone on any of their drives.
Former Seahawk Walker was held to 36 yards on 14 carries.
Seahawks outgained Kansas City, 410-213
Seattle were 11-16 on third down, Chiefs 3-11.

Seattle led 10-0 at half, ran ball 41 times for 153 yards.
Seattle’s first three drives: 34 plays, 170 yards, 10 points.
Seahawks has held six of seven opponents under 280 total yards.
MacDonald is 31-13 as a head coach

Giants 27, Texans 21 OT
Devin Singletary ran 30 yards for the walk off TD in OT.
Last four games, Giants scored 36-26-27-27 points.
Giants are 40-84 on 3rd down this season.
Giants last three games went over the total.

Game was 14-14 at halftime.
Texans drove 48 yards, tied game on TD with 0:52 left.
Giants outgained Houston, 420-237.
Giants are 4-2-1, with three QB’s starting the seven games.

Steelers 16, Saints 10
Steelers ran ball for 148 yards, their most this year.
Pittsburgh is 5-0 when they gain 300+ total yards.
Steelers won four of their last five games.
Pittsburgh converted 10-16 third down plays.

New Orleans lost four of its last five games.
Pittsburgh led 13-10 at halftime.
Saints in second half: 29 plays, 121 yards, no points.
Saints ran ball 17 times for only 18 yards. 

Broncos 30, Cardinals 16
Broncos’ first two TD’s were running plays of 62-52 yards.
Denver ran ball 26 times for 159 yards.
Broncos are 11-3 ATS in last 14 games vs NFC teams.
QB Nix is 30-13 as an NFL starter.

Denver won five of its last six games.
Cardinals are 0-3 at home, losing 31-7/45-21/30-16.
Opponents scored 23 TD’s on their last 58 drives.
Arizona is 1-8 ATS last nine games as a home underdog.

Falcons 29, 49ers 20
Michael Penix Jr threw for 218 yards, three TD’s.
Falcons’ first six drives: 51 plays, 293 yards, 26 points.
49ers outgained Atlanta 400-295.
First loss of the season for SF after their 6-0 start. 

49ers’ first three drives: 18 plays, 140 yards, 14 points.
San Francisco turned ball over four times (minus-4)
49ers rest of game: 47 plays, 260 yards, six points.
49ers are 8-15-1 ATS in last 24 games coming off a win.

Buccaneers 43, Panthers 13
Tampa Bay led 33-6 at halftime.
Buccaneers’ first five drives: 40 plays, 218 yards, 24 points.
Tampa Bay ran the ball 49 times for 258 yards.
RB Irving ran ball 24 times for 106 yards, two TDs.

Buccaneers were +4 in turnovers.
Under Canales, Panthers are 2-5 ATS as a favorite.
Tampa Bay won 12 of last 14 series games.
Bucs are 6-2 SU/5-3 ATS in last eight visits to Charlotte.

— Brewers 5, Rays 4
Tampa Bay led 4-2 after the first inning.
Milwaukee’s bullpen got 18 outs, allowed five baserunners.
Sal Frelick hit his first home run in his last 104 at-bats.
Game 3 is Monday night in St Pete.

— There were no home runs in Game 1 of the World Series, first time since 2000 there wasn’t a home run in a Game 1.

— Indiana 13, Michigan 6 OT
Defenses dominated this game.
Total yardage: Indiana 224, Michigan 212
Michigan had two turnovers, missed a 32-yard FG.
Hoosiers won in Ann Arbor for first time since 1967.

— Central Florida 39, BYU 31 OT
Letdown spot for BYU after they beat Notre Dame last week.
Knights outgained BYU, 463-373.
#2 QB Jenkins threw for 293 yards, three TD’s.

— South Carolina 27, Tennessee 24
Gamecocks scored 10 points in last 1:17 to win the game.
Tennessee QB McIntyre lost a fumble with 0:33 left to play.
Vols ran ball 50 times for 184 yards, but had 90 yards in penalties.
Teams combined to convert five of seven 4th down plays.

— Texas 34, Ole Miss 27
Longhorns led this game 24-3 at halftime.
Ole Miss scored a defensive TD on second play of third quarter. 
Rebels tied the game 24-24 early in fourth quarter.
Down 34-27, Ole Miss had ball at the Texas 24, but didn’t score. 

— Upsets of the Week:
Louisiana-Monroe (+13) 21, Troy State 14
Illinois (+12) 21, Oregon 10
Cincinnati (+11.5) 37, Texas Tech 24

Southern Miss (+11) 35, Louisiana 31
Middle Tennessee (+10.5) 26, FIU 23
Appalachian State (+10.5) 34, James Madison 31 OT

Central Florida (+7.5) 39, BYU 31 OT
Wyoming (+7) 28, Air Force 14
West Virginia (+7) 24, TCU 20

— Famous birthdays, October 25th:
Marion Ross, 98
Dan Issel, 78
Gifford Nielsen, 72
Danny Darwin, 71
Tracy Nelson, 63

Marc Vlasic, 63
Pat Swilling, 62
Terrell Lowery, 56
Pedro Martinez, 55
Juan Soto, 28

— Florida Atlantic 51, Rice 49
There were nine TD’s of 30+ yards in this game.
FAU QB Veltkamp threw for 339 yards, three TD’s.
Rice QB Ochoa ran for 259 yards, 4 TD’s, threw for 80 yards and a TD.

— Alabama 31, Texas A&M 20
Alabama outscored the Aggies 14-0 in fourth quarter.
QB Russell threw for 311 yards, three TD’s.
Crimson Tide avoided their first three game losing skid since 2007.

— Wisconsin 24, USC 7
Badgers led 10-7 at halftime.
USC in second half: 43 plays, 149 yards, two missed FG’s, no points.
Trojans ran ball 25 times for a total of minus-17 yards.

— Minnesota 13, Iowa 10
Gophers drove 44 yards, kicked a 46-yard FG as time expired.
Hawkeyes outgained Minnesota 288-209 but had four turnovers/
Both teams are 5-2. 

— Kansas 25, Baylor 24
Jayhawks blocked a 45-yard FG in the last minute.
Baylor led 21-10 after the third quarter.
Kansas ran ball 56 times for 109 yards.

— Colorado State 56, San Diego State 49
CSU QB Hejny threw for 333 yards, 3 TD’s, ran for 85 yards, 2 more TD’s.
Colorado State led 35-24 at halftime.
Teams combined to convert 17 of 25 third down plays. 

— Kentucky 34, Vanderbilt 17
Vandy led 10-0 midway thru second quarter.
Kentucky outscored Commodores 24-7 in second half.
Wildcats ran ball 39 times for 173 yards.

— NC State fired football coach Dave Doeren Saturday; he was 95-70 in 14 years coaching the Wolfpack. He had three years left on his contract; he gets $10.3M in severance pay. 

— Brewers 3, Rays 2
Misiorowski allowed four hits and a run in 5 IP.
Yelich had RBI triple in first inning, then scored the second run.
Rays had runners on 2nd/3rd when they made the last out.
Game 2 is Saturday (Rasmussen vs Henderson)

— Army 38, Tulsa 35
Army scored 10 points in last 1:50 for the comeback win.
Dawson Jones kicked a walk-off 50-yard FG for the Cadets.
Army QB Hellums ran for 121 yards, three TD’s.
Army ran the ball 51 times for 275 yards.

— Duke 19, Virginia 16
Duke drove 75 yards, threw 28-yard TD pass with 1:14 left.
Virginia led 13-7 at halftime.
Virginia ran ball 53 times for 195 yards.
Blue Devils snap two-game losing skid, improve to 5-2.

— UConn 35, Mass 16
4-3 Huskies led 21-3 at halftime.
UConn ran ball 46 times for 265 yards.
Huskies outgained UMass, 438-303
Both teams had 100 penalty yards.

— Wyoming 28, Air Force 14
Tyler Hughes ran 68 yards for TD in first minute of game.
Air Force ran ball for 304 yards, but lost three fumbles.
Air Force was 8-15 on third down, Wyoming 2-6.
Cowboys led 21-6 at halftime.

— Tampa Bay QB Baker Mayfield is now expected to start Sunday at Carolina.

— RIP to Lawrence McCutcheon, who passed away at age 76. McCutcheon made five Pro Bowls; he threw a TD pass in Super Bowl XIV for the Rams. He ran for 6,578 yards in his career, scored 39 touchdowns. RIP, sir.

— Famous birthdays, October 24th:
Kevin Kline, 79
Chester Marcol, 77
Omar Moreno, 74
Ron Gardenhire, 69

Mark Grant, 63
Corey Dillon, 52
Eric Hosmer, 37
Jalen Ramsey, 32

Jaylen Brown, 30
Rafael Devers, 30
Amon-Ra St Brown, 27
Konata Mumpfield, 24

— Celtics 107, Knicks 103
Jayson Tatum scored 25 of his 36 points in 2nd half.
Celtics outscored New York 33-24 in third quarter.
Defending champ Knicks are off to an 0-2 start.

— Lakers 125, Clippers 117
Austin Reaves had 28 points, nine assists.
Game was 64-64 at halftime.
Lakers outscored Clippers 39-26 in third quarter.

— Rockets 114, Spurs 110
Alperen Sengun had 29 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists.
Amen Thompson had 20 points, 10 rebounds.
Victor Wembanyama had 25 points, 13 rebounds.

— Jazz 120, Pelicans 119
Darryn Peterson made the go-ahead foul shot with 0:50 left.
Utah led 62-52 at halftime.
Utah’s subs were +21, the starters minus-17. 

— Grizzlies 111, Warriors 108
Memphis outscored Warriors 27-18 in fourth quarter.
Grizzlies were +25 in 22:00 Zach Edey played.
Memphis won despite turning ball over 25 times.

— Raptors 112, Wizards 102
Scottie Barnes had 28 points, 14 rebounds.
Raptors out-rebounded Washington, 53-40.
Toronto was +21 in 18:00 Murray-Boyles played.

— Bulls 132, Bucks 125
Rookie Caleb Wilson had 21 points, six rebounds.
Bucks outscored Chicago 42-41 in a busy third quarter.
Bulls were +24 in 24:00 Tre Jones played. 

— Bears 30, Patriots 24
Both teams scored a TD in last 0:15 of first half.
Chicago led 20-14 at halftime.
QB Williams threw for 289 yards, two TD’s.
Chicago scored 59-27-23-31-30 points in their wins; 3-7 in losses.

Patriots’ first three drives: 12 plays, 30 yards, no points.
Bears’ first six drives: 41 plays, 288 yards, 27 points.
New England converted only 2 of 7 third down plays.
Patriots are minus-7 in turnovers this season.

— 76ers 114, Cavaliers 106
Cleveland led by 29 in first half; it was 69-45 at halftime.
Tyrese Maxey scored 32 points, had six assists.
Four subs who played for Philly were a combined minus-40.

— Liberty 34, Kennesaw State 6
6-1 Liberty led 14-3 at halftime.
Flames ran ball 41 times for 215 yards.
Liberty outgained Kennesaw, 402-297

— Memphis 41, East Carolina 34 OT
East Carolina led 16-3 at halftime.
ECU threw an INT in the end zone in OT.
Memphis QB Stokes threw for 320 yards, three TD’s.

— Appalachian State 34, James Madison 31 OT
App State QB Singleton threw for 271 yards, two TD’s.
JMU drove 71 yards, scored TD with 0:03 left to force OT.
JMU converted 2-15 on 3rd down, 3-3 on 4th down.

— Famous birthdays, October 23
Weird Al Yankovic, 67
Mike Tomczak, 64
Doug Flutie, 64

Al Leiter, 61
Keith Van Horn, 51
Ryan Reynolds, 50

John Lackey, 48
Kyle Gibson, 39
Jordan Crawford, 38

— NBA’s Washington Wizards are 1-0, first time they’ve been over .500 since November 28, 2022.

— Shooting is marketable:

Duncan Robinson plays for the NBA’s Detroit Pistons; when he came out of high school, he went to Williams College, which plays Division III basketball. In other words, Robinson was paying to go to college at Williams.

John Beilein was coaching Michigan; he needed shooters, so he poached Robinson from the small college, and he shot 41.9% behind the arc in his three years at Michigan. 

Robinson landed with the NBA’s Miami Heat; this is his ninth year in the NBA. He is a career 40% shooter behind the NBA’s arc. After this year, Robinson will have banked $106M in salary.

Like we said, shooting is marketable.

— There are 27 players on NBA rosters who played for John Calipari in college; no other college coach has more than 12 of his players on NBA rosters.

— Maryland fired football coach Mike Locksley, who was 39-54in nine years coaching the Terrapins. Locksley had previously been 2-26 in three years coaching New Mexico. 

— Teams with highest %age of their drives ending in punts:

51.6%- Eagles
49.1%- Titans
48.5%- Broncos
44.6%- Vikings

— Rams signed K Brandon McManus, who was with Denver when they won the Super Bowl McManus will be the Rams’ third kicker in three weeks. 

In college football this week:
— Hawai’i-Northern Illinois play football this week; for whatever reason, they’re in the same league, despite the fact that the two schools are 4,200 miles.

— Houston visits Utah for the first time since 1977.

— Indiana is favored to win at Michigan this week; they haven’t beaten the Wolverines in Ann Arbor since 1967.

— Virginia Tech visits Clemson for the first time since 2012; they’ve been in ACC together since 2004.

— Oklahoma-Mississippi State are playing each other for the first time ever. 

— Iowa State plays at Arizona for the first time since 1966. 

— Lakers 127, Warriors 105
Lakers outscored Golden State 36-16 in third quarter.
Luka Doncic scored 28 points, with 8 rebounds, 7 assists.
Walker Kessler scored 26 points; he was 12-12 from the floor.

— Hawks 132, Magic 125
Atlanta outscored the Magic 44-29 in second quarter.
Alexabnder-Walker scored 31 points for the Hawks.
Paolo Banchero scored 35 points, had 10 assists, 7 rebounds.

— Pacers 123, Pelicans 120
New Orleans led 66-56 at halftime.
Indiana outscored the Pelicans 37-28 in fourth quarter.
Pascal Siakam scored 30 points, had eight rebounds.

— Trail Blazers 124, Suns 83
Portland led 43-12 after the first quarter.
Blazers were 19-47 on the arc, Phoenix 6-31.
Damian Lillard scored 25 points in 24:00.

— Timberwolves 131, Heat 106
Anthony Edwards scored 45 points, had 10 rebounds.
Minnesota shot 21-50 behind the arc.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 35 in his Miami debut.

— Wizards 128, Bucks 116
Anthony Davis had 34 points, 12 rebounds in his Washington debut.
Wizards outscored Milwaukee 38-23 in fourth quarter.
Washington was 32-41 on foul line, the Bucks 19-23.

— New Mexico State 30, Sam Houston State 24
Sam Houston scored TD on a blocked punt 2:20 into game.
Aggies outgained Sam Houston, 363-246.
New Mexico State ran ball 42 times for 203 yards.

— Famous birthdays, October 22
Christopher Lloyd, 88
Catherine Deneuve, 83
Jeff Goldblum, 74
Jamie Quirk, 72

Luis Zendejas, 65
Carmen Ejogo, 53
Ichiro Suzuki, 53
Jeff McInnis, 52

Jannero Pargo, 47
Robinson Cano, 44
Corbin Burnes, 32
Geraldo Perdomo, 27

October 22, 1972 was a great day for 12-year old me; Oakland A’s beat the Reds in Game 7 of the World Series, won the first of three consecutive World Series titles. Rams also won that day, kicking a 54-yard field goal on the last play of the game. Good times.

— Lebron James has now played 35 NBA games in Madison Square Garden; his team is 25-10 in those games.

Lebron’s younger son Bryce is a starter for the Arizona Wildcats this season. He is a 6-5 guard who red-shirted last year.

— Billy Donovan is a great basketball coach; he led Florida to back/back national titles in college, then coached in the NBA for 11 years, five with Oklahoma City, six with the Bulls.

This year, Donovan is the lead assistant with the San Antonio Spurs.

— New Jersey Giants are starting JJ McCarthy at QB this week in Houston; McCarthy came off the bench and threw for 243 yards in the Giants’ 34-27 home loss to New Orleans.

McCarthy will be the third QB to start for the Giants in the season’s first seven games.

— Do the Washington Commanders have a problem with QB Jayden Daniels?

Two weeks ago, he cost them a chance to kick a last-second field goal when he didn’t spike the ball to the kill the clock at the end, which he obviously should have.

Then Monday night, Washington had a 4th down play and Daniels just threw the ball out of bounds, instead of trying to complete a pass to get a first down. Daniels wound up passing for 300 yards, but his seeming lack of football IQ is hurting the Commanders.

— Los Angeles Angels have new ownership now; they released manager Kurt Suzuki Wednesday and will hire both a new general manager and field manager. Suzuki led the Angels to a 62-100 record this season, first time the Halos ever lost 100+ games in a season.

— Bronx Bombers are bringing back manager Aaron Boone next year; they also gave GM Brian Cashman a new contract, even though they haven’t won a World Series since 2009.

Boone has a career record of 790-565 in regular season, 27-30 in playoff games. 

— Pistons 121, Celtics 113
Boston led 58-45 at halftime.
Javonte Green scored 19 points; he didn’t play in first half.
Pistons were +21 in the 18:00 that Green played.

— 76ers 106, Knicks 100
New York led 58-54 at half, after they raised their championship banner.
76ers outscored the Knicks 29-18 in third quarter.
Lebron James had 14 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists in his Sixers’ debut.
Tyrese Maxey led the 76ers with 28 points.

— Thunder 116, Spurs 104
Oklahoma City made 7 of first 8 3-point shots, led 65-44 at half.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points.
Jared McCain scored 20 points in 22:00; Thunder was +20 with him on court.
Wembanyama was 1-13 from floor, scored 12 points. 

— Middle Tennessee 26, Florida International 23
Blue Raiders ran ball 39 times for 248 times.
MTSU led 13-8 at halftime.
Total yardage: MTSU 448, FIU 347

— Delaware 61, Missouri State 38
Missouri State led this game 28-24 at halftime.
Delaware in 2nd half: 6 drives: 34 plays, 179 yards, 5 TDs and a FG
Blue Hens ran ball 42 times for 232 yards.

— Marshall 20, South Alabama 13
Game was tied 6-6 at halftime.
Marshall drove 75 yards, scored game-winning TD with 1:49 left.
Marshall’s win snaps their two-game losing streak.  

— QB Andy Dalton signed on with the Atlanta Falcons; the 38-year old Dalton started this season as a backup with the Eagles, who probably regret cutting him now.

Dalton is 84-87-2 as an NFL starter; he’s only started six games since 2023.

— Famous birthdays, October 21st:
Bill Russell, 78 (Dodgers’ SS)
Johnny Davis, 71
John Flaherty, 59
Joey Harrington, 48

Gabe Gross, 47
Zack Greinke, 43
Ricky Rubio, 36
Davis Mills, 28

— This year’s World Series will be first one since 1980 (Phillies-Royals) when neither team has won a World Series title.

— Cleveland Browns are 4-2, but they haven’t started games well. Their first drive of a game:
25 plays, 76 yards, no points (5 punts/INT)

Browns have given up four TD’s and a FG on their opponents’ first drives. 

— Last three games, Dallas opponents’ first three drives:
37 plays, 248 yards, 21 points.

— Denver Broncos on first drive of a half:
12 drives: 51 plays, 142 yards, 3 points.

— In six games, Ravens’ opponents have kicked five FG’s on the first drive of the second half.

— In six games, Green Bay opponents have four punts, two turnovers on first drive of the game.

— Last five games, Chargers first drive of second half: 54 plays, 357 yards, 3 TD’s, 2 FG’s.