The Atlanta Falcons are looking to bounce back in Week 8 after a loss on ‘Sunday Night Football’ against the San Francisco 49ers. They will have to do so with their backup quarterback, Kirk Cousins, starting.

Cousins is getting his first start for the Falcons since he was benched in favor of Michael Penix Jr. for the final three games of the 2024 NFL season. The 37-year-old has played sparingly in 2025, completing 5 of 7 passes for 29 yards at the end of a blowout loss to the Carolina Panthers in Week 3.

So, why is Cousins starting? The 14-year veteran drew into the lineup as Penix deals with an injury.

Here’s what to know about the Falcons’ quarterback situation as they face the Miami Dolphins in NFL Week 8.

What happened to Michael Penix Jr.?

Penix is dealing with a bone bruise in his left knee. He suffered the injury in the Falcons’ Week 7 loss to the 49ers but managed to finish the game in spite of it.

Penix was limited at Falcons practice in the lead-up to Week 8. He was originally ruled ‘questionable’ for the Oct. 26 clash with the Dolphins but reports on Oct. 25 indicated Atlanta would start Cousins to allow Penix to recover from his injury.

Sure enough, Penix was rendered inactive for the Week 8 game, allowing Cousins to make his first start of the season.

Falcons QB depth chart

The Falcons have just two quarterbacks available for Sundays’ game with Penix out of action. Below is the pecking order in the quarterback room.

Kirk Cousins
Easton Stick

Penix will not be eligible to be the Falcons’ emergency third quarterback, as Stick was elevated to the active roster from the practice squad. An emergency quarterback can only be designated if all three quarterbacks are on a team’s 53-man roster.

As such, Penix will not be in action at any point during Sunday’s game.

Mississippi coach Lane Kiffin wasn’t phased by the noise in the Rebels’ big 34-26 road victory over Oklahoma.
North Carolina and Missouri both lost their games by a matter of inches on final plays.
Oregon and Miami showcased unique uniforms with varying degrees of reactions.

Even with all the noise surrounding Lane Kiffin, it’s not fazing him.

The Mississippi coach has been at the center of coaching rumors as it’s been speculated he’ll be persuaded to leave Oxford. Sooner fans sure had fun taunting him with a Gator chomp as Florida is rumored to heavily pursue him.

After hearing all the jabs, Kiffin dished it right back. He and Mississippi faced the music and walked out of Norman with a 34-26 win to move to 7-1 and keep those College Football Playoff hopes alive.

Not only did Kiffin get to shut up the Oklahoma fans, but also the Sooners themselves after this beauty of a postgame interview.

‘A little quieter now than before,’ Kiffin told an Oklahoma player. ‘This guy yelled at me during the game like five times how great they were and we can’t score on them.’

Kiffin couldn’t hide that smirk, knowing he’s on top of all the haters. He’s got the last laugh, and his swagger leads the best and worst things of Week 9 in college football.

Worst: Game of inches

Football is played on a 120-yard long field, but sometimes it comes down to inches. Unfortunately, North Carolina and Missouri were on the wrong end of it.

Bill Belichick’s team went for the win against Virginia in overtime, only for Benjamin Hall to get stopped right before the goal line.

For Missouri, a Hail Mary was answered when Matt Zollers found Kevin Coleman Jr. for a 36-yard catch. The only problem was the Tigers needed 37 yards to score a touchdown and send the game to overtime.

Two ‘what ifs’ that will haunt Missouri and North Carolina for a while.

Best: Oregon (Grateful) Ducks

It’s Grateful Dead weekend in Eugene with the ‘Grateful Ducks’ theme, and Oregon made sure to go all out with special uniforms and a fantastic entrance from The Duck.

Worst: Miami camo uniforms

Not only did it really blend onto the field at Hard Rock Stadium, but it was causing issues on the television broadcast with players appearing to be wearing green screen uniforms.

Great idea, bad execution.

Best: Wisconsin scores

Stop the presses. For the first time in three games, Wisconsin put up points, getting a fourth quarter touchdown in the 21-7 loss to Oregon.

It sounds silly, but it’s been hard to score for the Badgers. It hadn’t scored a point since the fourth quarter against Michigan on Oct. 4. Since then, Wisconsin gave up 92 consecutive points. It took 12 quarters for Wisconsin to score, or two hours and 54 minutes of game time.

For reference, you could nearly watch all three hours of ‘Oppenheimer’ in that same time.

Wisconsin did lose sixth consecutive game, but you got to celebrate the little things.

Worst: Iowa State’s punt mistake

One play can truly change an entire game. Iowa State found that out the hard way.

The Cyclones were going toe-to-toe with Brigham Young and were looking at good field position after forcing a punt late in the third quarter. However, it quickly went wrong when Iowa State’s Eli Green inadvertedly touched the rolling ball. The Cougars recovered in Iowa State territory in a sudden change of momentum.

How consequential was it? BYU scored a touchdown three plays later and shutout Iowa State the rest of the way for a 41-27 win to remain undefeated.

Best: Curt Cignetti lookalike

The Indiana coach has been the most famous man in Bloomington, so of course Hoosier fans can’t help but dress like their hero.

Worst: Kansas rivalry skid

Is it a rivalry if it’s one-sided?

That’s been the sory in the Sunflower Showdown, where Kansas State entered Saturday with 16 consecutive wins over rival Kansas. This year marked the best chance for the Jayhawks to break the streak, entering the 2025 matchup at home as favorites. After Kansas forced a fumble on the opening kickoff, it looked like a sign of fortunes changing.

It actually was far from good as the Wildcats put a 42-17 beatdown for their 17th consecutive win over Kansas. Who knows if Kansas will ever get the best of its rival again?

Just to show how bad the losing streak is, Kansas hasn’t won since Nov. 1, 2008, before Barack Obama was elected president and two years before the iPad came out.

Worst: San Diego State coach’s hat tan

Nothing beats the California sun, but San Diego State coach Sean Lewis’ head doesn’t get much of it. Turns out he’s sporting a hat quite frequently.

Best: Wake Forest wins on field goal from downtown

Something special may be brewing in Winston-Salem as Wake Forest beat Southern Methodist to move to 5-2. How did the Demon Deacons do it?

By kicker Connor Calvert barely getting over the crossbar on a 50-yard field goal, the longest Wake Forest made kick in the past decade.

Worst: fourth-and-17 fake field goal?

It’s been a season to forget for Nevada, but on Friday, Oct. 24, the 1-6 Wolfpack were hanging around with Boise State. Tied at three in the second quarter, Nevada had a chance to take the lead on a field goal after it was pushed to fourth-and-17.

Rather that kick it, the Wolfpack tried a fake field goal that went absolutely nowhere in a bizzare play call.

Nevada wouldn’t score again in a 24-3 loss to move to 1-7.

Best: A Greg Jennings-like TD

We all know the legendary Madden video game clip of Greg Jennings putting the team on his back, and we saw it happen in an actually game.

North Carolina State receiver Justin Joly was wide open when he hauled in a catch on a trick play ran by the Wolfpack. A touchdown was in sight, but with 25 yards left to go, he suddenly appeared to hurt his leg. Even though he was hampered, Joly put the team on his back and used everything we had to cross the goal line to complete the score, even if it meant being injured.

Even better, Jennings himself took notice of art imitating life.

Worst: QB catch failure

Quarterbacks have to think on the fly when a batted pass ends up in their hands. Do they catch and try to make it something? Or just bat it down to accept the lost play?

Unfortunately for Purdue’s Ryan Browne, he saw how bad these plays could be. He caught a batted pass, but his reception eventually turned into a fumble that fell into Rutgers’ hands with just over a minute to play.

Three plays later, the Scarlet Knights kicked the game-winning field goal and Purdue is now 2-6 with five losses in a row with the start Big Ten play.

Best: First win in 51 years

This year marked the first season for Division III New England College in 51 years with the Pilgrams returning to varsity status. So far, it hasn’t been a great first campaign with an 0-6 start that includes three shutout defeats and losing an average losing margin of 42.3 points.

But Saturday was a day the college has waited five decades for, as the Pilgrims beat Maine Maritime Academy 14-10 for their first win since the program’s revival. A glorious result as football comes back to New England College.

As the San Antonio Spurs played their home opener of the 2025-26 season on Sunday, Oct. 26, fans noticed some new decor in Frost Bank Center: a banner honoring former head coach Gregg Popovich as the winningest coach in NBA history.

There was no ceremony, no fanfare, no announcement. It truly honored the legacy that Popovich left behind.

Popovich still works within the Spurs’ organization, taking on the President of Basketball Operations role in May of this year. However, his greatness came courtside, coaching the Spurs to five NBA championships. His name is now hung alongside many of his best players, including Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker.

Gregg Popovich career accolades

Popovich coached the Spurs for 29 seasons, amassing an NBA-record 1,390 regular season wins. That 1,390 figure is honored on Popovich’s banner.

Popovich won five championships with the Spurs and boasted an impressive 170-114 record in the playoffs as well.

He is still held in high esteem by players and coaches across the league and was a media darling, earning Coach of the Year honors on three occasions (2003, 2012, 2014).

Spurs 2025-26 record

The Spurs have opened the 2025-26 season with a two-game winning streak. At the time of writing this, they also have a large halftime lead over the Brooklyn Nets in their home opener.

Statements from Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson

Mitch Johnson has enormous shoes to fill in San Antonio. He expressed gratitude toward Popovich before Sunday’s game, stating ‘I’ve been blessed to have [Popovich’s leadership] now for years in a lot of different roles.’ He continued, ‘[Popovich has] been that for so many people in so many moments and times and situations. It’s one of his special powers for sure.’

The LSU-Brian Kelly marriage never seemed like a good fit. And some Tigers fans were asking for a divorce Saturday night. Elsewhere in the SEC, a few desperate teams had ranked foes wriggle off the hook, while Purdue and North Carolina found new ways to lose games.

Here’s the worst from Week 9 of college football in our Flop 10:

Brian Kelly

Only one place to start.

In college football, no coach is safe. Not even one with a $54 million buyout. If Penn State was willing to fire James Franklin, who was one win away from the national championship game, don’t think for a second LSU won’t fire Brian Kelly for achieving less. LSU entered this season with one of the nation’s most-expensive rosters and national title expectations. When November hits, the Tigers will be under .500 in the SEC and unranked. That’s why LSU fans were booing and chanting ‘Fire Kelly’ during Saturday’s 49-25 loss to No. 3 Texas A&M. Aggies fans dancing in Death Valley only added salt in the wound — especially if you’ve seen Aggies fans dance. Kelly left Notre Dame to compete for national titles. His replacement, Marcus Freeman, will have the Fighting Irish in the College Football Playoff back-to-back years. Go figure.

Mississippi State

Steve Sarkisian was ticketed for this spot. Was tough to follow those leaked NFL rumors with laying an egg in Starkville… Then, Mississippi State, WYD?

The Bulldogs led by 17 in the fourth quarter, but Jeff Lebby’s puzzling play calling and a 79-yard punt return by Ryan Niblett tied it for Texas with 1:47 left. In the final minute, MSU had a first down in Longhorns territory but couldn’t get in field goal range after a sack on 3rd down. It got worse in overtime. Texas scored with its backup QB, while the Bulldogs’ final plays looked like this:

incompletion
incompletion
false start penalty
false start penalty
fumble, sack, loss of 31 yards

‘That might be the worst overtime possession ever,’ USA TODAY’s Erick Smith said.

Game over. Texas survives 45-38.

South Carolina

Let’s stick with SEC teams blowing a chance at home to knock off a ranked team. South Carolina had No. 4 Alabama on the ropes. The Gamecocks led by eight with under 3 minutes left… and lost by seven.

‘I’m thinking we need to finish in the fourth quarter,’ USC coach Shane Beamer said postgame. ‘When you got an eight-point lead at home and you got a team on the ropes you gotta put ’em away, and we didn’t. We had an eight-point lead and we allowed them to go, whatever it was, 80 yards down the field and convert some third downs, and we did not play well on offense, defense or special teams in the fourth quarter.’

Other than that…

UCLA

This year’s feel-good story met last year’s feel-good story Saturday, and it was no contest. UCLA was a trendy upset pick (despite the 24.5-point spread) as some people resist the notion Indiana just might be really good. (I’m an alum and still can’t believe it.) IU went up 28-0, led 35-3 at halftime and ended up winning 56-6. It was the Hoosiers’ third-largest Big Ten win in their history. UCLA had won three straight and its offense was humming under Jerry Neuheisel’s direction. Not on this day as the Bruins failed to score a touchdown for the first time this season.

Fox noon games

The Big Ten may have some of the nation’s best teams (Ohio State, Indiana, Oregon), but its way too top-heavy. The SEC and even the Big 12 are probably deeper, more competitive. That provides more intriguing matchups. Fox went with UCLA at Indiana for its noon game Saturday and even sent their Big Noon Kickoff show to Bloomington. It was 35-3 at halftime. There’s a reason ABC/ESPN’s ratings are dominating Fox and CBS’ numbers. It’s all about inventory, and the Big Ten just doesn’t provide enough compelling TV week in, week out. Next week? Tail-spinning Penn State at Ohio State. Mercy.

Deion Sanders and Colorado

(via USA TODAY’s Brent Schrotenboer)

With less than two minutes remaining in Saturday’s game at Utah, Deion Sanders put both hands on his knees and bent over on the sideline.

If it looked like he was getting ready to vomit, pardon him for how he felt. He had never experienced anything quite like this — a 53-7 loss against the Utes on a night when almost everything seemed to go freakishly wrong for Colorado.

“This is bad,” Sanders said afterward. “It’s probably the worst beating I’ve ever had since my mama whooped me as a kid.”

He’s right, at least in terms of his college coaching career. It was the worst loss under Sanders in three seasons at Colorado — a span of 33 games. It also was the worst loss in Sanders’ college coaching career overall, including his tenure at Jackson State.

How bad was it? Here’s a stat for you:

Total yards in the first half: Utah 398, Colorado minus-18.

Purdue

Reddit thread r/purduefootball: ‘You can’t be serious… Unbelievable. How bad can it get?’

Apparently pretty bad. The Boilermakers — now losers of six straight — found a new way to lose Saturday. Up by three points with a minute to play, Purdue held Rutgers to a tying 20-yard field goal on 4th-and-goal from the 2-yard line.

On the first play of the next drive, Boilermakers QB Ryan Browne had his pass batted in the air, he caught it, went to make a move and fumbled. After two running plays, Rutgers hit a game-winning 30-yard field goal as time expired, pushing Purdue’s losing streak to Power conference teams to 17, worst in the nation for a Power Four program.

“That’s a hard way to lose one,” Purdue coach Barry Odom said afterward.

North Carolina

Speaking of finding inventive ways to lose… UNC is getting so close they’re making Hugh Freeze proud. Last week, the Tar Heels lost after a receiver fumbled the ball just short of the goal line in a 21-18 loss at Cal. On Saturday, Bill Belichick went for two and the win in overtime over No. 16 Virginia. Credit for the guts to go for it, but UNC came up inches short and remain winless in the ACC. In true Belichick fashion, he offered insightful analysis on his decision after the game: “Trying to win the game,” Belichick said. “I don’t know what else you want me to tell you.”

South Florida’s CFP hopes

The highest-ranked Group of Five contender for the College Football Playoff, No. 20 South Florida led Memphis by 14 going into the fourth quarter… Then Memphis scored the game’s final 17 points, including a 10-yard catch and 2-point conversion to give the Tigers a three-point lead with a minute left. USF drove to the Memphis 24-yard line with 11 seconds left and well within Nico Gramatica’s range to send it to OT. (Gramatica beat Florida in The Swamp earlier this season). But instead of clocking the ball with 3 seconds left and kick, coach Alex Golesh got greedy, clocked it immediately and decided to run another play. You know how this story ends: Byrum Brown’s deep shot was incomplete, and accompanied with a back-breaking holding penalty, pushing the FG to a 52-yard try, which Gramatica pushed wide. Now Memphis has life as a potential CFP entrant. It’s the margins.

Minnesota

The Gophers were rowing the boat… upstream, and to no avail, eventually going over the waterfall Saturday vs. Iowa. The Hawkeyes got an interception return for a score and returned a punt for a touchdown in this 41-3 rout.

‘I want to make sure that I give credit where credit’s due,’ Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck said postgame. ‘So starting with that, so nothing ever sounds like an excuse. There’s reasons, there’s no excuses. I mean, they absolutely dominated the football game from start to finish… Three hours of bad football, and that 100% falls on me, because that is unacceptable.’

IndyStar Purdue reporter Nathan Baird contributed to this story.

This story was updated to change a video.

After a thrilling 90 minutes, Real Madrid ended its four-game losing streak against Barcelona in an El Clasico matchup at Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid.

Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappé opened the scoring in the 24th minute, following a previous opening goal that had been ruled offside. This gave Real Madrid an early advantage in the first half. However, the lead was short-lived as Fermín López capitalized on an opportunity set up by Marcus Rashford, leveling the score at 1-1.

Jude Bellingham’s goal, scored just before the end of the first half, ultimately led to Real Madrid’s victory.

Real Madrid 2, Barcelona 1: Players from both sides converge after hard foul

Barcelona’s Pedri received his second yellow card, for sliding into real Madrid’s Aurélien Tchouaméni in the closing minutes – which caused players from both teams to confront each other by the benches and midfield at the final whistle. 

The players eventually separated: Barcelona’s players went to the locker room, while Real Madrid’s danced on the pitch to celebrate the victory.

Real Madrid 2, Barcelona 1: Mbappe, Bellingham come off (90’)

Mbappe and Bellingham came off in the 90th minute, despite 11 minutes of stoppage time added to the clock. They were replaced by Dani Ceballos and Gonzalo García.

Real Madrid 2, Barcelona 1: Vinicius Jr. gets subbed off (72’)

Vinicius Junior was substituted off in the 72nd minute, and demonstratively upset at the substitution going straight to the locker room. He was replaced by Rodryo in the lineup.

Real Madrid 2, Barcelona 1: Bellingham denied goal

Jude Bellingham attempts to find the back of the net from outside the box, but is blocked in the 70th minute.

Real Madrid 2, Barcelona 1: Mbappé misses penalty

Mbappé missed a penalty shot in the 52nd minute, spoiling a chance to take a two-goal lead shortly before halftime.

Real Madrid 2, Barcelona 1: Halftime

At halftime, after an exciting first half, Real Madrid is leading Barcelona 2-1.

Real Madrid 2, Barcelona 1: Bellingham scores goal

Jude Bellingham has reclaimed the lead for Real Madrid, scoring after a setup by Éder Militão. Bellingham’s right-footed shot from close range found the bottom corner of the left side of the goal. Real Madrid now leads Barcelona 2-1 in the first half. —Elizabeth Flores

Real Madrid 1, Barcelona 1: Fermín López levels the score

Fermín López capitalizes on an assist from Marcus Rashford and takes a right-footed shot from the center of the box, scoring in the upper center of the goal to level the score at 1-1 against Barcelona in the first half.

Real Madrid 1, Barcelona 0: Mbappe redeems goal

Kylian Mbappé gave Real Madrid the lead against Barcelona in the 24th minute, converting a right-footed shot from the center of the box into the bottom left corner. The assist came from Jude Bellingham. Real Madrid now leads 1-0.

Real Madrid 0, Barcelona 0: Real Madrid goal ruled offside

Kylian Mbappe took advantage with a right-footed shot from outside the box to the bottom of the right corner, but it was ruled offside. Real Madrid and Barcelona are scoreless in the 14th minute. —Elizabeth Flores

What time is El Clasico Barcelona vs Real Madrid?

Sunday’s Real Madrid-Barcelona game kicks off at 11:15 a.m. ET.

How to watch El Clasico: Barcelona-Real Madrid TV channel, stream

The match will air on ESPN2 and can be streamed on Fubo.

Watch El Clasico LIVE on Fubo

Lamine Yamal stirs up El Clasico

Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso declined to comment on Saturday after Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal suggested the capital club ‘cheat’ and ‘complain’ in a televised interview on Friday.

Alonso faced repeated questions from reporters regarding Yamal’s remarks, made during an appearance on a Kings League program alongside former Barcelona defender Gerard Pique.

The 18-year-old Barca forward compared Real to Porcinos, a Kings League team, stating: ‘Of course! Yes, they cheat, they complain …’ The comments, which Pique supported, stirred debate in the build-up to one of soccer’s most iconic fixtures. — Reuters

Texas quarterback Arch Manning suffered a concussion in the Longhorns’ overtime win against Mississippi State on Oct. 25, according to ESPN.

Manning, who led a 17-point comeback in the fourth quarter, passed for 346 yards with three touchdowns to an interception while rushing for another score. Manning exited the game after taking a hard hit on a 13-yard scramble in the overtime period.

Manning dove for extra yards and was hit by two Mississippi State defenders, one being defensive lineman Kedrick Bingley-Jones. Manning then went into the medical tent.

Texas backup Matthew Caldwell entered the game and threw a game-winning touchdown pass to Emmett Mosley V to finish the comeback.

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian didn’t offer an update on Manning after the game and said they’d find out more after returning home.

It’s a tough break for Manning, whose status for Texas’ upcoming home game against Vanderbilt could be in jeopardy. The former five-star quarterback is coming off perhaps his best performance with the Longhorns.

Texas’ offense has mostly struggled in 2025, but Manning came through in the fourth quarter against the Bulldogs. He completed 12-of-20 passes for 166 yards and two touchdowns in the final period before overtime.

Manning has completed 143 of 235 passing (60.9%) for 1,795 yards with 15 touchdowns to six interceptions this season, while rushing for 199 yards and six scores on 68 carries.

This story was updated to change a video.

If Lane Kiffin stays at Ole Miss, Florida search becomes more complicated.
Louisville’s Jeff Brohm profiles as interesting Plan B for Gators.
If no Kiffin or Brohm for Florida, search gets muddy.

Here’s the stark truth about Florida’s coaching search: If Lane Kiffin stays at Mississippi, the Gators lack a slam dunk choice.

And Kiffin moved a step toward staying put Saturday after Ole Miss beat Oklahoma 34-26. With every Rebels win, they move a step closer to a quality College Football Playoff seed, and a playoff run would erect roadblocks to Kiffin exiting.

“This was a big win,” Kiffin said after his first win against a ranked SEC opponent at Ole Miss.

For so many reasons, was it big.

The Gators still could make a good hire not named Kiffin. Look at Texas A&M. The Aggies backed their way into their choice of Mike Elko after flirting with hiring Mark Stoops.

So, yes, Plan B could work, but, for so many reasons, Kiffin had to be Plan A. He fits Florida like sunshine and a Tommy Bahama chair. His coaching style is an homage to Steve Spurrier.

Kiffin would offer Florida the assurance of a high floor and the potential of an untapped ceiling. He’s not the only candidate who could thrive in Gainesville. He’s just the only one who offers guaranteed success — or, as close as a guarantee exists in coaching hires.

If Florida misses on Lane Kiffin, eye Jeff Brohm

If Florida can’t land Kiffin, the Gators should target Louisville’s Jeff Brohm. This guy’s a winner.

You might recall Brohm led Purdue to a blowout win over Ohio State in 2018. If you’d forgotten that, surely you recall his Cardinals beating Miami just a week ago.

He’s a proven quarterback developer, a sharp offensive mind, and he’s got some swagger, though not as overt as Kiffin. At Louisville, he’s coaching in his hometown. He lacks SEC experience. I’d still make him Plan B. He’s not a slam dunk for success at Florida, inside a conference where he’s never coached, but he’s a high-percentage jumper.

If the search must go past Kiffin and Brohm, then the waters really start to get boggy.

Florida coaching search becomes roll of dice if no Kiffin, Brohm

Eli Drinkwitz’s record the past three seasons is nearly identical to Kiffin’s, but he presents as such a Natty Light version of the good stuff. He’s like if Kiffin had a goofy cousin. If Kiffin could be Spurrier 2.0, then Drinkwitz could be Dan Mullen 2.0, in personality and fit.

You see it, don’t you? Mullen wears a visor, and he could try to be funny (and come off goofy), and he had a good history with quarterbacks, and he knows X’s and O’s, but it just never came as naturally to Mullen as it did to the Head Ball Coach — or, like it does for Kiffin.

Think Gators fans watched Missouri score 10 points in a loss to Vanderbilt and got hyped about a Drinkwitz candidacy? Steady though he’s been, Drinkwitz’s record in marquee games lingers as a concern.

So, too, is James Franklin’s.

Franklin had a big game problem at Penn State. Well, look around the SEC. Big games happen a lot more frequently in the South than they do in the Big Ten. Franklin would be the definition of a conservative choice, designed to avoid a repeat of Billy Napier’s 22-23 record, with the acceptance of a ceiling that’s short of a national championship.

I could make an elevator pitch for Alex Golesh, even after his South Florida Bulls lost to Memphis. It goes like this: His offense is potent and fun. He’s on the rise. He’s already established inroads in Florida recruiting.

But, after whiffing on Sun Belt Billy, Florida surely will want to avoid hiring again from the Group of Five ranks. Also, Golesh’s loss to Memphis complicates selling this hire to Gators fans, who set their sights set on a big fish.

Speaking of fish, Washington’s Jedd Fisch would amount to a shot in the dark. Maybe, it could work with this Florida alumnus. Maybe, he’d go bust. He’s not coached in the SEC since he was a grad assistant for Spurrier. He had one really good year coaching Arizona. Does that portend future greatness? Who knows. A roll of the dice, this one.

Georgia Tech’s Brent Key looks better all the time. If only he could bring sixth-year senior Haynes King with him, and if only his exit wasn’t complicated by playoff contention. The ACC is so flimsy, but the Yellow Jackets’ rise nonetheless inspires belief in Key. File this option under the maybe-it-would-work heading.

Or, as they say in the South, might could. Would Key thrive at Florida? Might could.

That’s the reality of Florida’s search, if Kiffin stays put. There’s the high-percentage jumper in Louisville who’d need to leave his alma mater. There’s few might coulds. There’s the Missouri imitation who’s got a big-game problem. There’s the conservative choice from Penn State’s scrapyard who’s also got a big-game problem.

There’s one slam dunk. He becomes more inaccessible with every Ole Miss victory.

Colorado suffered a 53-7 loss to Utah, the worst defeat of Deion Sanders’ college coaching career.
Utah outgained Colorado by a margin of 587-140 in total yards, dropping the Buffaloes to 3-5 on the season.
Coach Deion Sanders took responsibility for the loss, stating the assessment of what went wrong ‘starts with me.’

SALT LAKE CITY – With less than two minutes remaining in Saturday night’s game at Utah, Colorado football coach Deion Sanders put both hands on his knees and bent over on the sideline.

If it looked like he was getting ready to vomit, pardon him for how he felt. He had never experienced anything quite like this — a 53-7 loss against the Utes on a night when almost everything seemed to go freakishly wrong for Colorado.

“This is bad,” Sanders said afterward. “It’s probably the worst beating I’ve ever had since my mama whooped me as a kid.”

He’s right, at least in terms of his college coaching career. It was the worst loss under Sanders in three seasons at Colorado — a span of 33 games. It also was the worst loss in Sanders’ college coaching career overall, including his tenure at Jackson State.

But why?

Colorado was coming off a bye week and its best win of the season in its previous game on Oct. 11- a 24-17 win against Iowa State. Sanders even praised his team’s physical week of practice before the game.

Deion Sanders had the same question: ‘Why?’

Utah outgained the Buffaloes by a margin of 587-140 in total yards, helping drop Colorado to 3-5 this season and 1-3 in the Big 12 Conference. To become eligible for a postseason bowl game, the Buffs now need to win three of their final four regular-season games.

“Let’s identify the why first,” Sanders said. “You know, that’s what I want to know — why? OK, what about this play — why? Who was that? What about that play — why? Why can’t we get the ball off? Why? You know? Why? I need to know all these whys before we can move on and even think about something down the street.”

The simple answer to the question is the Buffs got whipped up front on both sides of the ball and even added some bad miscues on special teams.

Utah freshman quarterback Byrd Ficklin also outplayed Colorado senior Kaidon Salter as a result. Salter had just 37 yards passing and minus-4 yards rushing after getting sacked five times.

By contrast, Ficklin rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown and passed for 140 yards and two touchdowns in place of regular starter Devon Dampier, who injured his leg last week in a loss at BYU. It was Ficklin’s first career start for Utah, which improved to 6-2 overall and 2-2 in the Big 12 on a cool, breezy night in front of 51,949 at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Deion Sanders blamed himself

After the game, a reporter basically asked Sanders what he needs to do now.

“I’m trying to figure that out,” said Sanders, who signed a new contract earlier this year worth more than $10 million per year. “I really am.”

Sanders also said the assessment of what went wrong “starts with me.”

He expressed urgency about it, too.

“We gotta figure this out, like, now,” he said. “Now.”

Salter, the transfer quarterback from Liberty, said what happened “definitely blindsided me.” It was the second time he’s been beaten by an opposing freshman quarterback, including a 24-21 loss last month against BYU and its freshman quarterback, Bear Bachmeirer.

“We practiced real hard this week,” Salter said.  He even said he watched over 10 hours of film to prepare.

And then it all blew up right from the start, when Ficklin broke loose for a 63-yard touchdown run on the second play of the game.

How bad was it for Colorado and Deion Sanders?

Before halftime, the statistical comparison between the two teams looked like a batch of computer errors instead of a game between peers in a major college football conference.

∎ Total yards in the first half: Utah 398, Colorado minus-18.

∎ Rushing yards in the first half: Utah 260, Colorado minus-41.

∎ First downs in the first half: Utah 16, Colorado 3.

If that wasn’t freakish enough, Colorado even tossed in a few other bizarre gaffes before halftime — an intentional grounding call against Salter in the end zone for a Utah safety, a shanked punt into the crowd and a punt that was blocked by Utah.

By the time the first half was over after midnight ET, Utah led 43-0, eclipsing the point differential of the previous worst loss in Sanders’ three seasons in Colorado — a 42-point loss at Washington State on Nov. 17, 2023.

“We just didn’t play fast,” Colorado linebacker Jeremiah Brown said. “We didn’t show up. It’s just as simple as it is. We didn’t come to play. We had a great week of practice. We (were) physical all week in practice. And I guess we got complacent.”

Deion Sanders also said it boiled down to coaching

Sanders was going up against Utah coach Kyle Whittingham, now in his 21st season in charge of the Utes.

“He kicked my butt today,” Sanders said. ‘It was 1-on-1 with me and him, and he won by a significant margin.”

Salter said what he saw from the Utah defense was “nowhere to be found” on the game film he studied before the game.

“I feel like today they schemed up this… pressure just for us, for this game,” Salter said.

Now the Buffs need to regroup to play Arizona at home on Nov. 1.

“We just can’t quit,” Salter said.

Sanders’ record in three seasons at Colorado is now 16-17, including 4-8 in 2023 and 9-4 in 2024.

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

Major League Soccer suspended two players for a ‘potential violation of league rules’ before their opening matches in the MLS Cup Playoffs this week.

Los Angeles FC’s Yaw Yeboah and Columbus Crew’s Derrick Jones were placed on administrative leave pending review, the league said in a Saturday, Oct. 25 statement.

MLS declined comment when contact by USA TODAY Sports about why the players were suspended.

Yeboah, 28, has played in 23 games across all competitions with a goal for LAFC in 2025. He signed a two-year deal in January 2025, making $550,000 in guaranteed compensation.

LAFC acquired Yeboah from San Diego FC, which selected him in the 2024 MLS Re-Entry draft after Columbus did not re-sign him. He played 93 total games with Columbus from 2022-24.

Yeboah started his career in Europe with England’s Manchester City in 2014, but did not play with the club. He made stops at French club Lille (2015-16), Dutch club Twente (2016-17), and Spanish clubs Real Oviedo (2017-18), Numancia (2018-2020) and Celta Fortuna (2019-2020). He also played Wisła Kraków in Poland (2020-22) before joining MLS. Yeboah played with Ghana’s Under-20, Under-23 and Senior Team during his career.

Jones, 28, has only played three matches for Columbus in 2025, making $387,500 in guaranteed compensation.

Jones has played with five different MLS clubs in his career, including the Philadelphia Union’s first and second team (2016-19), Nashville SC (2019-20), Houston Dynamo (2021-22), Charlotte FC (2022-23) and Columbus since 2024. He also played with United States Under-20 team in 2017, and the Under-23 team in 2019.

Columbus Crew will face FC Cincinnati in Game 1 of their first-round, best-of-three series on Monday, Oct. 27, while LAFC hosts Austin FC in Game 1 on Wednesday.

Jordan Gumberg has secured his DP World Tour card on Sunday, Oct. 26, by finishing his season with an impressive final shot. He made an eagle on the 18th hole at the Genesis Championship in South Korea, held at the Woo Jeong Hills Country Club.

The American golfer, who began the competition in 127th place, needed a strong performance to move into the top 115 of the Race to Dubai, a season-long competition. Despite challenging weather conditions, Gumberg made a crucial shot by hitting an eagle from 58 yards out on the 18th hole, which secured his tour card for the next season. Gumberg aimed to finish at least 14th in what was his 34th event of the season in order to earn the points necessary to improve his standing.

After Gumberg’s impressive shot on the 18th hole, the joy and celebration were palpable. He was seen jumping with excitement and celebrating with his caddie.