Josh Heupel’s peak at Tennessee resides behind him. Might be time to look ahead, to Penn State.
Tennessee fans are hot under collar after loss to Oklahoma eliminated it from CFP contention.
Hot-seat talk premature now, but doesn’t take long to warm up in college football’s current landscape.

Because, the natives are getting restless in Tennessee, in case you haven’t noticed. Here’s Heupel’s chance to stay one step ahead of the Tennessee posse.

That’s Heupel’s theme music!

For a time, Heupel’s theme music sounded like the second-sweetest tune in all of East Tennessee. (Can’t top “Rocky Top,” of course.) Now, the tune is off-key.

Former Vols quarterback turned podcaster Jonathan Crompton recently dubbed Heupel as Tennessee’s James Franklin. He’s not the first to make that comparison. Fans are hot under the collar after Tennessee’s loss to Oklahoma that eliminated the Vols from playoff contention.

Of course it’s absurd, but when media mouthpieces insist a coach isn’t on the hot seat, that’s a canary in the coal mine. Franklin went from not on the hot seat to fired in the span of two weeks at Penn State. Same for LSU’s Brian Kelly.

A coach either stays one step ahead of the posse, or the posse catches him and treats him like the ribbon-bullies treated Kramer. Or, win a national championship. Those are the options. The only options.

Tennessee’s not a bad job. Penn State is not a distinctly better one. They’re two sides of the same coin. Good jobs, both of them. High expectations, each of them. If I’m a coach like Heupel who’s never won a playoff game, I’d feel a whole lot more comfortable in Year 1 or Year 2 than I would in Year 6, as Heupel would be entering at Tennessee next season.

Has Josh Heupel reached his Tennessee ceiling? If so, time to leave

Heupel raised the bar too high, too quickly. He’ll struggle to ever surpass 2022. That magical season became coffee table book material. Literally.

At Penn State, he’d reset the clock and chart a fresh course. Maybe create some new literature.

Heupel owes the Vols no loyalty pledge. Tennessee is indebted to him. Heupel stepped in at Tennessee’s dire hour after Jeremy Pruitt. Pruitt, dubbed ‘Cornbread’ by Vols fans, soaked the program in kerosene.

Tennessee’s administration and a toothless NCAA made sure a match never ignited the fuel and toasted Pruitt instead. Heupel took care of the rest. He pulled the Vols back from the abyss.

By Heupel’s second season, with Hendon Hooker slinging touchdown passes, and the Neyland Stadium goal posts swimming in the river while Nick Saban left town a loser, the phrase “Feels like ‘98” stopped being sarcasm. Then, Heupel broke through the playoff padlock last season. It’s a what-have-you-done-for-me lately business, though.

The Big Orange ache for a national championship as badly as any fan base. This team, in Heupel’s fifth season, won’t sniff one.

Tennessee slinked out of the playoff picture on the first day of November. No one with reasonable expectations should be shocked. Heupel had tepidly restocked his roster with just a handful of transfers. Then, the starting quarterback called it quits at Tennessee and packed up for the left coast in April. That development did not portend a playoff pursuit. But, rabid fans with reasonable expectations is sort of contradictory, you know?

If Heupel loses to either Florida or Vanderbilt this month — let’s face it, the Vols could lose both rivalry games — and if next season looks similar to this one, well, I don’t need to tell you where this ends.

Josh Heupel would be a treasure for Penn State, as he once was for Vols

As Heupel’s stock absorbs a hit in Tennessee, candidates with his credentials remain in short supply within this wild coaching carousel. He’d be a boon for Penn State. Now’s his time to strike, while his resume remains catchy.

Before Heupel’s Tennessee revival, Franklin staged one at Penn State. Franklin stayed too long. The posse got him.

Exiting Tennessee for Penn State would be a lateral move, but it’s a move with an easier path to the playoff. That’s what this sport is now, for programs like Penn State or Tennessee: Playoff or bust.

I can’t fault fans’ demands, either, not when they must pay a “talent fee” for the right to watch games in Neyland Stadium. That’s money well spent if watching the home team rumble toward the playoff. When the Vols commit three turnovers in a whimpering loss to Oklahoma, it must feel like a con.

Heupel’s offense consistently ranks among the SEC’s best, but it’s not the novelty it used to be. Other SEC teams like Mississippi and Mississippi State run a similar system.

Take that offense up North, and it would be a revelation inside the Big Ten. Imagine Purdue or Rutgers or Maryland trying to defend Heupel’s track meet. He’d be the Big Ten’s sharpest edge of offense east of Curt Cignetti. For all of Franklin’s accomplishments, nobody accused him of being a savant of offense.

In fact, the Heupel-Franklin comparison misses the mark. Heupel is better against Top 25 opponents. He beat Saban in his second attempt and beat Saban’s successor, Kalen DeBoer, in his first try. Franklin never beat Ryan Day.

And yet those comparisons are being made in Tennessee, and the good vibes from 2022 have turned to mist.

Up in Pennsylvania, they know what to do when the canary begins coughing in the coal mine. Get out before it’s too late. Head to Penn State.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s senior national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.

ESPN and DraftKings Inc. have announced an exclusive agreement that will make DraftKings the sole official sportsbook and odds provider of ESPN starting in December, marking an end to ESPN Bet and the partnership with Penn Entertainment, according to an ESPN press release.

DraftKings, a digital sports entertainment and gaming company, offers daily fantasy sports, regulated gaming and digital media. This partnership will enable fans to access betting features through DraftKings’ sportsbook, daily fantasy platform and the upcoming DraftKings Pick6. Additionally, DraftKings will provide the betting tab within the ESPN app, offering a wide array of gaming experiences.

‘Our betting strategy emphasizes providing a seamless experience within our products,’ Chairman of ESPN Jimmy Pitaro said in the press release. ‘Partnering with DraftKings, a leader in the industry, will enable us to enhance that foundation, better serve passionate sports fans, and expand our direct-to-consumer business. We are excited about this new collaboration with DraftKings.’

DraftKings operates in 28 states and in Washington D.C. and Ontario, Canada, and has more than 10 million customers across its products.

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LeBron James remains an active member of the Los Angeles Lakers roster for his 23rd NBA season.

The four-time NBA champion has not made his season debut while dealing with a right sciatica injury. He is expected to be re-evaluated this week.

Charles Barkley, a Hall of Famer, spoke on “The Jim Rome Show” this week and shared his thoughts on James.

“I hope he leaves sooner than later, ’cause I hate to see great players out there struggling,” Barkley said about James. “I really struggled my last year, probably my last two years. It was very frustrating and humiliating for me. Obviously, LeBron is a better player than me, but I don’t want to see great players just hanging on.”

While it remains to be seen how James will fare this season, he did have a 2024-25 season in which he was named second-team All-NBA and finished sixth in the MVP voting.

James averaged 24.4 points, 8.2 assists and 7.8 rebounds per game in 70 games played last season. He averages 27 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists during his career.

“I would love to see him have a farewell tour, then just walk away because he’s one of the three greatest players I’ve ever seen after Michael and Kobe,’ Barkley said. ‘So, I don’t want to see him hanging on just for the heck of it. But father time is always gonna win.”

Will LeBron James retire after this season?

James has not said that he will retire after this season, but did acknowledge during the Lakers’ media day in late September that the end of his career is near. He also said he doesn’t plan to wait around for Bryce James to make the NBA, compared to the public comments made about wanting to play in the NBA alongside his son, Bronny, years before.

James’ firstborn son currently plays for the Lakers.

The league will have the opportunity to honor LeBron on Feb. 15 with the NBA All-Star Game taking place at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California.

Spoelstra, who was recently named Team USA men’s basketball coach through the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, was spotted on video outside the scene surveying the damage after the team’s plane arrived in the Miami area.

‘We found a fire that was as tall as the trees,’ Miami-Dade fire Battalion Chief Victoria Byrd told reporters.

Here’s a breakdown of what happened according to officials on the scene in Coral Gables, Florida, as well as what impact this could have on Spoelstra and the Miami Heat:

Erik Spoelstra house fire aftermath

As of about 9 a.m. on Thursday crews remained on scene monitoring for hot spots, a fire dispatcher told USA TODAY, and no injuries had been reported. Byrd said arriving crews found two structures on the property fully engulfed in flames and it was difficult to access the scene due to privacy walls. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

The house was unoccupied at the time of the fire, officials added, but images circulating on social media and released by the Miami-Dade Fire Department indicate Spoelstra’s residence was mostly destroyed by the fire.

Erik Spoelstra Miami Heat coach impact

Spoelstra’s unfortunate house fire is another obstacle for the Heat to confront early on this season. The team has started the 2025-26 NBA season without guard Tyler Herro due to injury and lost guard Terry Rozier after he was arrested as part of the federal indictments announced in the NBA’s ongoing gambling scandal.

The Heat (4-4) are next scheduled to play at home on Friday, Nov. 7 against the Charlotte Hornets in an NBA Cup game. Spoelstra’s status for the game has not changed, although the team did not immediately respond to a USA TODAY request for comment on the situation.

Spoelstra, 55, is the longest-tenured coach in the NBA, beginning his 18th season leading the Heat. He’s won two NBA championships and made six NBA Finals appearances.

Apparently, no suck luck.

The Carolina Panthers running back indicated on social media Wednesday that the NFL will indeed dock him for his two (but not three) pumps in the end zone after celebrating his second touchdown Sunday against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field in a game eventually won 16-13 by the Panthers.

‘Starting a go fund me,’ Dowdle wrote on X, interspersing a few good-spirited emojis.

‘(T)hey got me.’

By NFL standards, the Panthers’ breakout star is vastly underpaid, his one-year deal with Carolina set to pay him $2.75 million … less the cut the NFL is taking for the 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty Dowdle incurred for his impersonation of McCringleberry, the central character of a ‘Key & Peele’ sketch that mocked the league’s historic tendencies to suppress player celebrations.

Dowdle, who ran for nearly 1,100 yards with the Dallas Cowboys in 2024 and currently ranks third in the NFL with 735 rushing yards − despite starting just three games since he took over the lead role from Chuba Hubbard − punctuated his fourth TD of the season while surrounded by teammates. He thrusted two pumps, a la McCringleberry, whose propensity to test a fictional rule that didn’t permit three pumps would draw the ire of officials.

Dowdle was surprised when he was penalized, holding up two fingers as he left the field for the sideline amid a mistake that contributed to a missed extra point by Ryan Fitzgerald. While realizing the gravity of his goof, Dowdle subsequently made up for it − rumbling for a 19-yard gain on the Panthers’ final possession to set Fitzgerald up for a game-winning 49-yard field goal as time expired.

‘From my understanding and everything I’ve learned, we go over stuff like this every week in the meeting room. I definitely think you’re supposed to get two pumps,’ Dowdle said following the game.

‘Hopefully, I don’t get a fine.’

Oops.

Dowdle’s infraction comes at a time when the league has emphasized good sportsmanship. However the entire episode has generally been met with good fun, actor and comedian Keegan-Michael Key, who portrayed McCringleberry, expressing faux outrage on Instagram on Sunday night.

‘Rico! Man, you got robbed − you only did two pumps,’ said a flabbergasted Key, tongue firmly placed in cheek.

‘I’m sorry, man. Now I’m gonna have to write a new sketch.’

‘We’ve got to be smarter in that situation,’ said Panthers coach Dave Canales while in a forgiving mood Monday.

‘We’ve got to make sure that we understand the rules. I might have to call up Keegan-Michael Key to get clarification on that part of it, but from what I understand, any kind of movement that way, any weapons, or all that stuff is going to get flagged. We’ve got to be smarter about that.’

Now Dowdle has learned a lesson McCringleberry never did. Not yet anyway.

Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin, the top NHL goal scorer of all time, is now the first to 900 goals.

He achieved the milestone on Nov. 5 against the St. Louis Blues. Every goal he scores adds to his record and makes it more difficult for someone to catch him.

But where does the Capitals’ 2004 No. 1 overall pick rank among the players taken first since 2000?

We’re using the opportunity of Ovechkin’s latest milestone to rank the NHL No. 1 overall picks since the start of this century.

The last five No. 1 picks (Owen Power, Juraj Slafkovsky, Connor Bedard, Macklin Celebrini and Matthew Schaefer) aren’t included in the rankings because it’s too early in their careers, but we’ll talk about them below.

Only two, maybe three, No. 1 picks could be considered disappointments. The rest is a matter of rankings.

Here is our list:

21. Nail Yakupov, Edmonton Oilers (2012)

The Oilers had three No. 1 picks in a row and Yakupov was the last – and least. He’s famous for an enthusiastic sliding goal celebration but little else. He lasted only four seasons in Edmonton with a career best of 33 points negated by a minus-35 plus-minus rating. Yakupov played a season each in St. Louis and Colorado before heading to Russia.

Best from 2012 draft: No. 19 overall Andrei Vasilevskiy

20. Rick DiPietro, New York Islanders (2000)

The Islanders traded future Hall of Fame goalie Roberto Luongo after selecting DiPietro. He was given a 15-year contract averaging $4.5 million in 2006.

But DiPietro never really established himself because of multiple injuries. He made the All-Star Game in 2008 but was injured at the game and eventually needed season-ending hip surgery.

The Islanders used a compliance buyout on him in 2013 and will pay him $1.5 million a year until 2029.

Best from 2000 draft: No. 205 overall Henrik Lundqvist

19. Alexis Lafreniere, New York Rangers (2020)

The 2020 draft year was a strange one because of COVID. A lot was expected of Lafreniere after two 100-point seasons in junior hockey, but he hasn’t had a breakthrough in the NHL yet. He appeared poised to in 2023-24 with 57 points in the regular season and nearly a point a game in the playoffs. But he, like the rest of the team, took a step back last season. He finished with 45 points in 2024-25 and is off to a slow start in 2025-26.

Best from 2020 draft: No. 13 overall Seth Jarvis

18. Erik Johnson, St. Louis Blues (2006)

The defenseman recently retired and had won a Stanley Cup with the Avalanche in 2022. He dealt with injuries, including knee surgery that cost him his second season. He was solid though not flashy.

Best from 2006 draft: No. 3 overall Jonathan Toews

17. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Edmonton Oilers (2011)

He was the middle of the Oilers’ three consecutive No. 1 overall picks and is the only one left with the team. He had a 100-point season but otherwise is a 50- to 60-point player. He’s overshadowed on the Oilers by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl but he’s valued for his versatility. He can play any forward position and is on the power play and penalty kill.

Best from 2011 draft: No. 58 overall Nikita Kucherov

16. Rick Nash, Columbus Blue Jackets (2002)

He became the face of the Blue Jackets, scored some stellar goals, was their captain and had his number retired. He won a share of the goal title in his second season and had three 40-goal seasons.

Best from 2002 draft: Nash

15. Taylor Hall, Edmonton Oilers (2010)

He won the Hart Trophy in 2017-18 with the Devils with a 39-goal, 93-point season. But that was his lone season topping 80 points and he’s had only two topping 70. He was limited to two goals in a partial season with the Sabres (2021) – one of the seven teams for which he has played.

Best from 2010 draft: No. 2 overall Tyler Seguin

14. Ilya Kovalchuk, Atlanta Thrashers (2001)

Two 50-goal seasons and four others with 40 or more. When the Thrashers made him available, the hockey world waited breathlessly for where he would be traded. His 17-year, $102 million contract with the Devils was the richest at the time. But it was structured so obviously as a cap circumvention that the NHL ordered it redone and punished the Devils. Kovalchuk returned to Russia in 2013 and attempted an NHL comeback from 2018-20.

Best from 2001 draft: Kovalchuk

13. Nico Hischier, New Jersey Devils (2017)

He has developed into a solid two-way center who was a Selke Trophy runner-up in 2022-23 and had 35 goals last season. Could he win the Selke this season with Florida’s Aleksander Barkov injured? Hischier has been the Devils’ captain since 2021-22.

Best from 2017 draft: No. 4 overall Cale Makar

12. Aaron Ekblad, Florida Panthers (2014)

The defenseman has won the last two Stanley Cup titles and has had eight seasons of double-digit goals. He was suspended for 20 games last season for a PED violation and another two games in the playoffs for elbowing.

Best from 2014 draft: No. 3 overall Leon Draisaitl

11. Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres (2018)

He has become a franchise defenseman for the Sabres. If he weren’t playing for a team with a 14-year playoff drought, he might have a chance for a Norris Trophy. The best he has finished is sixth in voting.

Best from 2018 draft: No. 7 overall Quinn Hughes

10. Jack Hughes, New Jersey Devils (2019)

Based on skill, Hughes is a franchise player, but he needs to stay healthy. He scored a franchise-record 99 points in 2022-23 when he played 78 games. But he missed 20 games in each of the last two seasons. He’s off to another fast start this season.

Best from 2019 draft: Hughes

9. John Tavares, New York Islanders (2009)

The six-time All-Star recently scored his 500th career goal. He has topped 500 points with both the Islanders and the Maple Leafs, only the fourth NHL player to do that with two franchises. Tavares has been captain of both of his teams.

Best from 2009 draft: Tavares

8. Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning (2008)

He won two goal titles early in his career, with 51- and 60-goal seasons. He’s had five 40-goal seasons, including at age 33. He won Stanley Cup titles in 2020 and 2021 and went to the final in 2015 and 2022. He was Lightning captain from 2014-24, when the team let him go to free agency. Stamkos hasn’t found his footing yet after signing with the Nashville Predators.

Best from 2008 draft: Stamkos

7. Marc-Andre Fleury, Pittsburgh Penguins (2003)

Fleury recently retired after a 21-year career in which he finished with the second-most wins in NHL history (575), three Stanley Cup titles and two other trips to the final, plus a Vezina Trophy. He was taken by the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2017 expansion draft and gave that team instant credibility. He was known for his competitiveness, never giving up on a puck, poke checks, thanking the goal posts and his pranks.

Best from 2003 draft: Fleury and No. 45 overall Patrice Bergeron will be Hall of Famers

6. Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs (2016)

A pure scorer who had four goals in his NHL debut and has three goal titles, including two 60-goal seasons, and a Hart Trophy. He flirted with 70 goals in 2023-24 before falling one short. He is in his second season as Maple Leafs captain. A drawback: He has never been past the second round.

Best from 2016 draft: Matthews

5. Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks (2007)

Kane was taken first the year after Jonathan Toews was drafted third overall, and the two played key roles in the Blackhawks winning three championships from 2010-15. Kane ranks third in all-time scoring by U.S.-born players and second in assists. He won the scoring title and Hart Trophy in 2015-16 and was playoff MVP in 2013.

Best from 2007 draft: Kane

4. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche (2013)

His size and powerful skating make him hard to defend. He developed into a consistent 90-point scorer and more recently morphed into 100 points or more a season. His best was 140 points in 2023-24, when he won the Hart Trophy. He led the league with 84 assists last season. He won a Stanley Cup in 2022 with a league-best 13 goals in the playoffs.

Best from 2013 draft: MacKinnon

3. Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers (2015)

Since he joined the league in 2015, no one has topped his average of 1.52 points per game. That ranks third all-time behind Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky (1.92) and Mario Lemieux (1.88). McDavid’s speed makes him hard to stop. He has won three Hart trophies, highlighted by scoring 105 points in the 56-game COVID-shortened 2021 season and 64 goals and 153 points in 2022-23. He has five point titles. The only thing missing is a Stanley Cup, but he has been to the final the past two seasons and accepted a team-friendly extension to make sure the Oilers have the salary cap flexibility to get over the top.

Best from 2015 draft: McDavid

2. Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals (2004)

It’s more than the stunning volume of goals. He was a bull on the ice, delivering big checks and scoring spectacular goals. Everyone knows he’ll be set up for a one-timer on the power play, but he is hard to stop. He has nine goal titles, one Stanley Cup, three Hart trophies and scored 44 goals at age 39 to break Gretzky’s record.

Best from 2004 draft: Ovechkin

1. Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins (2005)

The NHL had to set up special draft lottery rules for the generational prospect because the 2004-05 season was lost to a lockout. The Penguins won and it changed the franchise. They reached the Stanley Cup Final in his third season and won a championship in his fourth, plus back-to-back titles in 2016 and 2017 in which he was playoff MVP. The three titles (plus two Olympic gold medals) give him an edge over Ovechkin. Crosby, a two-time MVP, is still putting up big numbers and recently scored his 1,700th point, a number that would be higher if he hadn’t had concussion problems earlier in his career.

Best from 2005 draft: Crosby

The last five No. 1 overall draft picks

Bedard (2023) and Celebrini (2024) are already stars. Bedard was rookie of the year in 2023-24, got off to a slow start the following season, but recently scored his first hat trick. Celebrini was a Calder Trophy finalist last season and is among the NHL’s early scoring leaders this season.

Power (2021), who returned for a final season at Michigan, was a Calder finalist in 2022-23, but it’s too early to judge his long-term impact. Slafkovsky (2022) also needs more time for evaluation. He followed a 10-point rookie year with two 50-point seasons.

Schaefer (2025) is off to a torrid start. He had points in his first six NHL games on the way to being named rookie of the month for October. He had a two-goal game in November.

The Week 11 slate in college football features key contests in all the power conferences, which should give our panel of expert prognosticators a lot to consider.

The headliner is in the Big 12, a top-10 clash between No. 8 Brigham Young and No. 9 Texas Tech. There’s also a rather important ranked pairing in the Big Ten, as No. 6 Oregon visits No. 24 Iowa with both teams at one loss in the league and still in the race for the conference title game.

Of course, the SEC gets in on the act as well. No. 3 Texas A&M hits the road to No. 17 Missouri, and No. 4 Alabama hosts LSU. In other contests involving playoff contenders, No. 10 Notre Dame hosts its annual showdown with Navy, and No. 23 Memphis takes on Tulane in a key Friday night tilt in the American.

Will our staff pickers have differing opinions on those contests, and does anybody sniff a possible upset elsewhere? Read on to find out, and have a look at our season standings to date if you’re curious.

College football picks for Week 11