Christian McCaffrey was listed as questionable for the 49ers’ Week 1 game against the Seahawks.
The running back’s practice participation decreased throughout the week due to a calf injury.

The star running back had an interesting week of practice, to say the least. After being a full participant on Wednesday, he was limited on Thursday and missed practice entirely on Friday.

McCaffrey spent time on the shelf in 2024 as he nursed an Achilles injury, and unfortunately, his 2025 season is off to similar start.

That all paints a murky picture for his availability on Sunday in San Francisco’s 2025 debut vs. divisional rival Seattle.

Here’s the latest on McCaffrey, his calf injury and his status ahead of Sunday’s matchup:

Is Christian McCaffrey playing today?

The 49ers running back was a ‘big part’ of Saturday’s walkthrough, potentially signaling that he could play on Sunday.

McCaffrey is officially listed as ‘questionable’ ahead of the San Francisco 49ers’ matchup vs. the Seattle Seahawks. NFL Network reported Saturday that McCaffrey is likely to play.

McCaffrey told reporters Friday that he feels ‘great’ and that he plans to play. He also acknowledged his lengthy injury history and how that played into the abundance of caution in holding him out of practice on Friday.

The running back is, unfortunately, no stranger to injury reports and IR stints. He spent time on the sidelines in 2025 while he dealt with Achilles tendinitis and a PCL injury, ultimately playing in just four games last season.

This story will be updated.

No. 1 Jannik Sinner and No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz have competed against one another on 14 other occasions during their careers.

The US Open men’s singles final will between the 15th meeting between the two competitors on Saturday.

Alcaraz has a 9-5 record against Sinner, including three wins in the last four matches in 2025. Sinner managed to get the best of Alcaraz, winning the Wimbledon final in July.

Sinner earned a spot in the final, following a victory over No. 25 Felix Auger-Aliassime on Friday. No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz is coming off a victory against highly decorated player Novak Djokovic in the semifinals.

Here is everything you need to know to watch the US Open men’s final with TV, time, streaming and odds. And check back as USA TODAY Sports will also have live coverage of the event:

What time is US Open men’s final?

The 2025 U.S. Open men’s final between No. 1 Jannik Sinner and No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 7 at 2 p.m. ET.

What TV channel is US Open men’s final on?

ABC is televising the 2025 US Open men’s final between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz at 2 p.m. ET with coverage starting at 1 p.m. ET.

How to stream US Open men’s final?

Jannik Sinner vs. Carlos Alcaraz can be streamed on Fubo (with a free trial).

Watch the US Open men’s final on Fubo

Odds to win 2025 US Open men’s final

All odds according to BetMGM on Saturday evening.

Jannik Sinner: -125
Carlos Alcaraz: +105

Looking for a College Football Playoff sleeper? Consider Oklahoma, after its takedown of Michigan.
Oklahoma’s defense delivers an effort reminiscent of how Brent Venables’ defenses played at Clemson.
John Mateer helps revive Sooners’ offense with daring throws and dogged runs.

NORMAN, OK – Here inside the Palace on the Prairie, where the wind comes sweepin’ down the plain, takes place one of college football’s most iconic traditions.

Two gorgeous white ponies, named “Boomer” and “Sooner,” pull a prairie schooner across the field whenever the home team scores. And in Oklahoma’s heyday, when the points came aplenty, those ponies better have been well fed and hydrated, because they cruised that wagon across the field like it was their personal play pen.

Then, the points dried up, the losses mounted, and the Sooner Schooner could have had a broken axle for as little as it moved last season, and the ponies might as well have been out to pasture.

The wagon’s rolling again, after an offseason overhaul inside Oklahoma’s program came to fruition in the Sooners’ first showdown with a ranked opponent.

Oklahoma’s offense showed just enough punch, and the No. 24 Sooners defense packed a haymaker in a 24-13 smothering of No. 13 Michigan. The dominating performance announced Oklahoma’s presence as a worthy College Football Playoff sleeper.

The Sooners had Michigan in a vise all night. If not for one 75-yard run, the Wolverines never would’ve crossed the goal line. One of Michigan’s field goals came after Oklahoma muffed a punt.

Coach Brent Venables grabbed the dial and turned down the heat on his hot seat with this complete performance, in what felt like a must-win game for a coach who’d produced two losing records within his first three seasons at this blue blood.

After this performance, give that man another raise and contract extension! Just kidding, but, seriously, the Sooners played like an improved team.

Oklahoma defense a throwback showing for Brent Venables

This must have been the type of defensive performance Oklahoma envisioned when it hired Venables. When Kendal Daniels destroyed Michigan’s Justice Haynes on a screen pass, it would have counted as the stiffest hit of the entire Lincoln Riley era. BOOM-er, Sooner.

Who can say how good Michigan’s offense will prove to be? It looked a mess last season. True freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood offers promise, but he lacked the polish to handle a defense of this caliber, in his first road start. The Sooners never allowed Underwood to find a rhythm, and he misfired among the few times he had open targets.

As well as Oklahoma’s defense played, it needed its offense to hold up its end of the bargain. In a reverse of last season, it did.

If Oklahoma’s 24 points don’t sound like an outburst, consider the opponent. Michigan’s defense has ranked among the nation’s best for years. Also, consider the rut out of which this offense crawled. Oklahoma failed to produce more than 20 points in six games last season.

Venables aimed to rectify that by hiring a new offensive coordinator and landing a coveted transfer quarterback, John Mateer, along with a few other playmakers.

Venables also decided he’d call the defense himself after that unit failed to meet his standard last year.

In a make-or-break season, if Venables was going to go down, he’d go down doing what he does best – orchestrating the defense. That defense kept Underwood under duress, with a performance that evoked memories of Venables’ destructive defenses at Clemson.

John Mateer shows off big-play abilities

Venables earned some goodwill, or at least seeded some optimism, with how he handled the offseason, but preseason vibes can evaporate within just a few hours of a single Saturday. Ask Billy Napier about that.

Oklahoma’s performance should breed confidence. It showed that the preseason narrative about the Sooners possessing enough talent to pursue a playoff bid might have merit.

Oklahoma’s offense didn’t ignite a barrage of fireworks like the teams from yesteryear that gave “Boomer” and “Sooner” a workout. But, it made enough plays to complement the defense.

Mateer showed his elusiveness while leading the team in rushing, and he slipped away from a pass rusher before firing an arrow up the sideline to transfer wideout Isaiah Sategna III to set up a second-half touchdown that Oklahoma desperately needed.

Mateer missed some throws, and he was fortunate to only be intercepted once. In one brutal sequence, Mateer couldn’t connect with an open target on a flea-flicker, and after throwing two more incompletions while harassed by pass rushers, Oklahoma missed a field goal that would’ve made this win more comfortable.

But, Mateer also made some daring completions and dogged runs. The man’s got big-play capabilities, just as he showed quarterbacking Washington State. Pair Mateer with a healthy Deion Burks and the versatile Sategna, and Oklahoma has the ingredients of an offense that went M.I.A. all throughout 2024.

Mateer led Oklahoma on an impressive 8-minute march late in the fourth quarter that ended in a field goal, allowing Sooners fans to exhale.

Those final Oklahoma points sent the white ponies onto the field once more, pulling a wagon that’s cruising through the Palace again, revived by a transfer quarterback and a menacing defense.

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.

(This story was updated to change a video.)

Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto lost a no-hitter with two outs in the ninth inning.
The Dodgers’ bullpen then surrendered the lead, resulting in a 4-3 walk-off victory for the Orioles.
The loss marked the Dodgers’ fifth consecutive defeat and came on a night honoring Cal Ripken Jr.

One minute, ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto was an out away from throwing a no-hitter against the Baltimore Orioles – only to yield a two-out home run to Jackson Holliday. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts sauntered to the mound and, before lifting Yamamoto, told him to tip his cap to a large throng of visiting Dodgers fans at Camden Yards after throwing 112 mostly devastating pitches at opposing hitters.

The next, top reliever Blake Treinen, entrusted to protect what was still a two-run lead, was spraying the ball almost everywhere but the strike zone, giving up a double, walking a batter, hitting another, walking in a run and handing a now one-run lead to the Dodgers’ embattled $72 million man, Tanner Scott.

Finally, the new low plumbed by the defending World Series champions: A two-run, walk-off single that Emmanuel Rivera parachuted into shallow center field. A sure Dodgers victory turned into a stunning, 4-3 Orioles conquest before a delirious, announced sellout crowd of 42,612.

And so on a night designed by the Orioles to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Cal Ripken Jr.’s ultimate feat of longevity, Yamamoto came tantalizingly close to the greatest single-game act of staying power – only for his team’s miseries to somehow worsen.

‘There’s really no words,’ said a stunned Treinen, who had not allowed an earned run in his last 10 appearances. ‘I just need to throw strikes and I didn’t do that and it cost one of the better outings I’ve ever seen in my career with Yama. He deserved better than that. The offense deserved better than that.

‘I had to get one flippin’ out. I didn’t do it.’

Yamamoto fell just two strikes shy of Major League Baseball’s first no-hitter this season. Instead, the Dodgers suffered their fifth consecutive loss to a last-place team, and sixth overall, this by far the biggest gut punch in that stretch.

Especially given how great Yamamoto was.

He struck out 10 in 8 2/3 innings. Walked just two. Flashed a devastating three-pitch mix, his blazing 96.7 mph average fastball the battering ram to set up his knee-buckling splitter, his slider and curveball.

And then it all unraveled, setting the stage for Scott to give up his second walk-off hit in as many nights and the Dodgers to once again end up on the wrong side of history.

It was just the second time since 1961 the Dodgers had a no-hit bid broken up with two outs in the ninth or later; lefty Rich Hill last suffered such an indignity, pitching nine hitless innings before giving up a 10th-inning walk-off home run to Josh Harrison at Pittsburgh on Aug. 23, 2017.

And Holliday, the Orioles’ promising second-year second baseman, grabbed his own piece of history. According to MLB.com, Holliday became the eighth player since such records were kept to break up a no-hitter with a home run with two outs in the ninth inning.

A sweet twist for the kid: Holliday’s team is the only one to go on to victory. As Yamamoto dominated, Holliday could only imagine a different sort of history, where he was posterized as the final out of Yamamoto’s gem.

“I was like, ‘Oh man, it’s going to come down to me,’ says Holliday, who hit his 17th home run this season and 22nd of his career. ‘I was definitely thinking about it, and kind of nervous because it’s kind of a big thing.

‘It was fun to be able to break it up. He threw the ball really great.”

And Yamamoto said he did not regret the placement of the 2-1 cutter he threw Holliday. Nonetheless, it was the Dodgers – now 78-64 but rapidly sinking in the National League playoff pantheon – ruing the result.

‘It’s hard to recount a game like this,’ says Roberts, ‘where there’s so many things you feel like you can get a little bit of momentum, build off a great outing by Yoshinobu and take that into tomorrow.

‘And obviously it completely flipped.’

On this night, Scott was hardly to blame; he simply could not finish off Rivera, who dumped the ball into center as Camden Yards roared. All Scott could do was retrieve the ball thrown in from the outfield and spike it at the mound in disgust.

Yamamoto, 27, stretched himself to 112 pitches, beyond his highs of 110 throws and seven innings in his two seasons with the Dodgers. Yamamoto did throw 138 pitches to win Game 6 of the 2023 Japan Series for the Orix Buffaloes, before signing a 12-year, $325 million contract to come to L.A.

While he had plenty of star turns during their 2024 run to the World Series title – most notably five shutout innings against San Diego in the decisive Game 5 of the NLDS, and a one-run conquest of the New York Yankees in the Fall Classic’s Game 2 – never before had it all come together like this.

Yamamoto’s effort picked up steam in the fifth inning, right after former Orioles Bobby Bonilla and Rafael Palmeiro shoved Ripken back out on the field, reprising the night of Sept. 6, 1995, when they insisted he celebrate when his 2,131st consecutive game went official, breaking Lou Gehrig’s all-time mark.

The field was empty for several minutes as the maneuver unfolded, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts came out and had a lively conversation with the umpires as it dragged on.

Yet Yamamoto only seemed to further lock in.

He needed just 12 pitches each to complete the fifth and sixth innings and 11 pitches to get through the seventh, along the way punching out Colton Cowser, Dylan Beavers, Holliday and Jeremiah Jackson, the latter two on nasty 94-mph splitters.

He fanned Beavers again in the eighth – another splitter – in a nine-pitch eighth, keeping his pitch count at a manageable 104 to set him up for what seemed to be a historic ninth.  

It looked like he’d achieve the feat in short order: Yamamoto induced three swings and misses from Alex Jackson for the first out, on a slider, fastball and slider, as if to show off. Coby Mayo then flew out to center on the first pitch.

Yet on his 112th pitch, Holliday smacked a 2-1 cutter to right field, and it tucked just to the left of the high wall and past the reach of Andy Pages.

Roberts lifted him after that, only for Treinen to implode and the Orioles to reclaim the glory on a night they honored their Ironman.

‘I felt he deserved the chance to get a no-hitter,’ says Roberts. ‘The guys were feeling it for him, pulling for him, and I wanted it bad for him. I did.’

Instead, the bitterest disappointment in a September full of them for the Dodgers.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders played three different quarterbacks in the team’s win against Delaware.
Staub outplayed presumed starter Kaidon Salter and highly-touted freshman Julian ‘JuJu’ Lewis.
Sanders has not publicly named a starting quarterback for the team’s next game against Houston.

BOULDER, CO. – Deion Sanders’ quarterback controversy at Colorado has taken a shocking new turn.

After starting the season with Liberty transfer quarterback Kaidon Salter, the Colorado head football coach decided to give freshman quarterback Julian “JuJu” Lewis some playing time in the second quarter of Saturday’s game against Delaware.

But then came the big surprise. Sanders also put in his No. 3 quarterback, Ryan Staub, who promptly stole the show and led the team to three touchdowns in four possessions in a 31-7 win at Folsom Field.

So what now for the Buffaloes (1-1)?

Who’s their quarterback when they open Big 12 Conference play Friday at Houston?

“I know exactly how I’m going to handle the quarterback situation,” Deion Sanders said afterward. “I’m not going to say it. But yeah, I’m not lost for direction.”

Why did Deion Sanders play three quarterbacks?

This development is wild on many levels. Salter and Lewis got all the attention before the season as they competed to replace Deion’s quarterback son, Shedeur Sanders, now with the NFL’s Cleveland Browns.  

Could it be that the answer to replace Shedeur is the quarterback who’s been there all along?

Staub was Shedeur’s backup at quarterback in 2023 and 2024. He hardly ever played and only started one game, in the 2023 season finale at Utah, a 23-17 loss.

Deion Sanders planned before the game to give each of the three quarterbacks two series of play to start the game against Delaware. The fact that Staub outplayed the other two to earn more playing time is the twist that hardly anyone saw coming.

“I decided that two days ago,” Sanders said. “And I prayed a lot about it. I wanted it to tell its own story.  Instead of me telling a story, I wanted it tell its own story. So the plan was each quarterback was going to get two series apiece. And that’s what they did. And somebody was going to come out of the pack.”

Staub, a sophomore from Stevenson Ranch, California, said he didn’t even know he’d play until Friday. He could have transferred away after not getting much playing time his first two years. But he said he decided to stay in part because he “fell in love with the process” at Colorado and had a dream. He said he ‘stuck my head down and decided to keep working.’

‘It’s crazy to be rewarded this way,’ Staub said. ‘It doesn’t really feel real. But I’m also looking forward to next week. We need to get back to work.’

How did each quarterback do for Colorado?

Staub entered the game Saturday with 45 seconds left in the first half, with Colorado leading 10-7. He left the game early in the fourth quarter with Colorado leading 31-7.

∎ Staub played four series and completed 7 of 10 passes for 157 yards and two touchdowns for a passer rating of 267.9.

∎ Salter, who is playing his final season of college eligibility, also played four series and completed 13 of 16 passes for 102 yards and no touchdowns for a passer rating of 134.8. He started the game’s first two series, which ended with a 9-yard touchdown run by him, a 28-yard field goal and a 10-0 lead. He didn’t return until after Staub’s four-series flourish in the second and third quarters. Both of Salter’s final two series ended in punts.

∎ Lewis, the heralded 17-year-old recruit, played three series and completed 2 of 4 passes for 8 yards and a passer rating of 66.8. His only series after the second quarter came on the final possession, when his job was to kneel down and kill the clock. His only two series in the second quarter ended with punts.

‘We’re crossing some bridges to find out who our best guys are still,’ Colorado offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur said.

Regarding Lewis, Sanders noted his youth and said that the team didn’t want to throw too much at him.

He had more to say about Staub, calling him ‘unflappable’ after his star turn in front of an announced crowd of 50,341.

‘Staub don’t trip, man,’ Sanders said.

Ryan Staub flashed Shedeur Sanders’ wrist move

Staub started his performance with two incomplete passes at the Colorado 25-yard line. Then on third down, Colorado running back DeKalon Taylor burst free for a 23-yard gain, bringing the Buffs to midfield with less than 30 seconds left in the half.

Staub then hit receiver Joseph Williams upfield for a 31-yard completion before spiking the ball on the next play to stop the clock at 16 seconds left before halftime. On the next play, Staub found Taylor open for a 21-yard touchdown pass.

“We got that big run on third down, kind of got things rolling, and then yean, I got that big play, and we were marching from there,” Staub said. “I had good confidence, and we were rolling.”

It kept rolling after halftime when Staub led Colorado on a three-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a 71-yard touchdown pass on the right side of the field to receiver Sincere Brown. Afterward, Staub flexed his wrist to celebrate, much like Shedeur did at Colorado before him.

“I’ve been blessed to be able to sit behind him for two years, and I got to see everything that he did and the way he does things, day in and day out, the way he sees stuff in the film room,” Staub said. “I’ve been right there behind it, and I’ve tried to take as much as I can from him, because he’s going to have an amazing career. He’s an amazing quarterback. And yeah, just the past couple years sitting behind him has really helped me.”

The Colorado student section even chanted Staub’s name.

‘I was just hoping for an opportunity,’ Staub said. ‘To be honest, this whole week I wasn’t really expected to play… Friday I kind of got the call.’

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

To assist with your most difficult lineup decisions, you’ll find complete Week 1 fantasy football rankings below. Toggle between standard, half PPR (point per reception), and full PPR to see where players rank in your league’s format.

Our team at the USA TODAY Sports Network also has you covered for all your fantasy football needs. Looking for up-to-date player news? We’ve got it. Need to know who the best starts and sits of the week are for every position? We have an article for that. We also have a complete fantasy injury report.

Given the volatility of this league and fantasy football in particular, these rankings will be updated up until a half hour before the Sunday afternoon games kick off. Let’s get to it.

Week 1 fantasy football rankings: PPR and non-PPR

Oregon defeated Oklahoma State 69-3 in a dominant performance at Autzen Stadium.
Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy’s comments earlier in the week about Oregon’s spending only fueled the fire for the Ducks.
Oregon coach Dan Lanning encouraged his team to ‘break the scoreboard’ in 66-point win.

EUGENE, OR — It was expected No. 5 Oregon would have little trouble against Oklahoma State, evident in their 69-3 drubbing of the Cowboys inside Autzen Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 6.

But if we’re being honest, this game was over way before the Ducks put the game out of reach in the first quarter. In fact, it was well decided five days prior.

When playing a team that is clearly on another level than you, a coach’s job is to bring belief that their team can pull off the unbelievable. When you’re a 27.5-point underdog, you have to inspire your squad to show up in the stadium.

So what did a renowned coach like Mike Gundy do? Try to reason why his team was no match for the Ducks.   

The longtime Cowboys coach alleged Oregon spent in one year more than five times the amount of money his team spent in three years, adding that maybe teams spending that much dough on its roster should be playing non-conference games against similarly constructed teams.

That’s as close as you can get without directly admitting you are going to lose. Is that how Gundy meant it? Maybe not, but he sealed his fate, giving Oregon coach Dan Lanning motivation like dangling a chunk of tuna in front of a great white shark. 

“I told our team right before the game that it never requires extra motivation for an opportunity to go out and kick ass,” Lanning said. “But it never hurts when somebody pours gasoline on the fire.”

If there’s one thing we’ve learned about Lanning in his four seasons in Eugene, you better not test him. Remember that infamous pregame speech against Colorado and what his team did? It was almost as if Gundy dared Lanning to see how badly he could dispose of his team. 

Not one to shy away from any shots directed at his squad, there wasn’t anything spicy said ahead of the contest. Lanning gave nothing but love to Gundy in the pregame conversation. 

But once that ball was kicked, he sure showed how invested he was in putting a straight beatdown on the Cowboys.

On the second play of the game, running back Noah Whittington sprinted right through a wide open gap for a 59-yard touchdown. On the first play of the second drive after the Ducks defense forced a three-and-out, quarterback Dante Moore rolled to his left and placed the ball perfectly into Dakorien Moore’s hands, who finished off a 65-yard touchdown score for a 13-0 lead just 96 seconds into the game. 

The torture didn’t stop there. Lanning and offensive coordinator Will Stein had their foot planted on the gas pedal for the entirety of the first half. Reverses, trick plays, going for it on fourth down. Nothing was off limits as Oregon had seven plays gain at least 25 yards en route to a 41-3 halftime lead.

You’d think Oregon would lay off the pressure in the second half? Think again. 

As if Gundy didn’t give Oregon enough bait, he served up another delicious platter by saying he wasn’t sure if his quarterback, Zane Flores, making his first college start, would be affected much by the Autzen Stadium crowd.

The crowd clearly rattled the redshirt freshman; he finished 6-of-18 with 61 yards, 35 of which came on a play where the Ducks’ coverage collapsed. When the game was well wrapped up in the third quarter, he threw back-to-back Pick-6s to add more misery. 

Oregon scored all 69 points in the first three quarters before finally pressing the brakes for the fourth quarter. The Ducks finished with 631 yards to Oklahoma State’s 211, and Oregon had more touchdowns (10) than the Cowboys had first downs (nine).

‘Obviously, some things were said, some things were brought up,’ said Oregon linebacker Bryce Boettcher. ‘Throw a little fuel on the fire. You love that.’

Moore said Gundy’s comments “hit close to home” since they were directed at Lanning and the program, likening it to attacking his dad. As a result, he took it personally and the team used it “to make sure that we push ourselves and score 69 points.”

It helps when your coach is telling you not to let up.

“Coach Lanning said, ‘We keep the foot on the neck, make sure you score as many points and try to break the scoreboard,’” Moore said. 

Coming off a horrid 3-9 season and having a team that clearly doesn’t look like it will have a rebound year, it’s worth pondering if this week is the beginning of the end of Gundy’s time in Stillwater. That fiery nature that helped make the Cowboys relevant seems like it’s fading, and he couldn’t bring it to what was by far his program’s biggest game of the season. All he did was aid the Ducks in handing Oklahoma State its worst loss since 1907 when it lost to Oklahoma 67-0.

While Gundy did his team no favors, he did prove his point. Maybe teams that spend like Oregon should play against those that do the same, because the talent discrepancy was easy to see.

But let this blowout be a warning: if you’re going to give Lanning extra motivation – especially in his home stadium where he’s now 21-1 – that raging fire is only going to get bigger.

It took one weekend for Chase Briscoe to equal his regular season win total in the playoffs.

Briscoe dominated the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs opener at Darlington in leading 309 of 367 laps and sealing his spot in the Round of 12. The fourth win of his Cup Series career came by 0.408 seconds over Tyler Reddick and a second over Erik Jones.

Briscoe earned his playoff spot by winning in Pocono back in June. Three months later, he’s secured his best finish in the Cup Series since 2022 when he finished ninth.

This week, NASCAR heads to World Wide Technology Raceway – known as Gateway – for the Cup Series’ first playoff race at the venue. The event has only been on the calendar since 2022 with different winners in each race.

A new winner could emerge again this weekend as the playoff field marches closer to the first stage of elimination. Here’s everything you need to know to get ready for the Enjoy Illinois 300 presented by TicketSmarter on Sunday, Sept. 7:

What time does the NASCAR Cup race at Gateway start?

The Enjoy Illinois 300 presented by TicketSmarter is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, Sept. 7 at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois.

What TV channel is the NASCAR Cup race at Gateway on?

The Enjoy Illinois 300 presented by TicketSmarter will be broadcast on USA Network, the channel for most of the Cup Series playoffs. Pre-race coverage will start at 2:30 p.m. ET.

Will there be a live stream of the NASCAR Cup race at Gateway?

Yes, the Enjoy Illinois 300 presented by TicketSmarter will be streamed on Peacock, HBO Max, Sling TV and Fubo, which is offering a free trial to new subscribers.

Stream the NASCAR playoff race at Gateway on Fubo

How many laps is the NASCAR Cup race at Gateway?

The Enjoy Illinois 300 presented by TicketSmarter is 240 laps around the 1.25-mile track for a total of 300 miles. The race will have three segments (laps per stage) — Stage 1: 45 laps; Stage 2: 95 laps; Stage 3: 100 laps.

NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings

Here’s how things look after the playoff opener at Darlington with the gap to the leader in parentheses. The bottom four drivers will be eliminated after the first round of the playoffs.

Chase Briscoe
Denny Hamlin (+3)
Kyle Larson (+8)
Tyler Reddick (+11)
Bubba Wallace (+21)
William Byron (+21)
Ryan Blaney (+24)
Ross Chastain (+25)
Austin Cindric (+34)
Christopher Bell (+35)
Chase Elliott (+37)
Shane van Gisbergen (+43)
Joey Logano (+46)
Austin Dillon (+51)
Alex Bowman (+62)
Josh Berry (+62)

Who won the NASCAR Cup race at Gateway last year?

Last year’s race came down to the final laps in a battle between Team Penske teammates as Austin Cindric earned his first win of the season. Teammate Ryan Blaney led heading to the start/finish line for the final lap but his No. 12 Ford ran out of gas and he slowed as Cindric soared past and into the lead and his first win since the 2022 Daytona 500. Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Tyler Reddick and Joey Logano rounded out the top five.

NASCAR Cup race at Gateway starting lineup

Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford
Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Chris Buescher, No. 17 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford
Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Brad Keselowski, No. 6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford
Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Ford
Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Justin Haley, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford
Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 HYAK Motorsports Chevrolet
Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are often overlooked as Super Bowl contenders despite winning four straight NFC South titles.
General Manager Jason Licht and players like Mike Evans embrace an underdog mentality, fueled by a perceived lack of respect.
The team returns key offensive players, including quarterback Baker Mayfield, who had a career year in 2024.

Quick. Raise your hand if you see the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a Super Bowl contender.

I didn’t think you’d go there.

No, Tom Brady isn’t coming out of retirement again. If the Bucs are going to make a legitimate run at another championship, it’ll happen with Baker Mayfield having another career year. With Mike Evans and Lavonte David. With Vita Vea, Tristin Wirfs and Bucky Irving. With low-key coach Todd Bowles flanked by underrated GM Jason Licht.

Not convinced?

Understood. There’s a healthy, worthy discussion going on about the Eagles maybe repeating as Super Bowl champs. The Lions gagged in their last two playoff exits, so perhaps it’s Amon-Ra’s time. If, with all due respect, Micah Parsons doesn’t morph into the second coming of Reggie White and lead the Packers to the promised land.

In the NFC field, there’s noise about the Commanders and a 49ers revival, too.

But the Bucs? They’ve got 30-to-1 odds to make it to Santa Clara for Super Bowl 60.

Never mind that Tampa Bay has won four consecutive NFC South titles and with the best five-year stretch in franchise history, is the only team in the NFC to make the playoffs in each of the past five seasons. Usually, that’s a track record that leaves a team poised to take the next step. Until it’s not.

“We’re in witness protection,” Licht told USA TODAY Sports before a training camp practice. “Nobody cares. We’re down here in Tampa. Nobody realizes that we’ve quietly built – Todd, myself, our staffs – a really good team.”

In some ways, like when it’s convenient, they can roll with a Rodney Dangerfield complex and grumble about a lack of respect.

“It’s the market,” said Evans, the Hall of Fame-credentialed receiver who was Licht’s first draft pick for the Bucs in 2014, standing in a hallway at One Buc Place. ‘But it don’t matter.”

Until it can be used to make a point. Are they underdogs again?

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“I hope so,” Licht replied. “Our quarterback likes a chip on his shoulder. Our GM likes a chip on his shoulder. We all like a chip on our shoulder. Seems like everybody wants the Falcons and the Panthers…”

Licht stopped himself right there. But he knows. There’s buzz about division-rival Carolina (5-12 in ’24) progressing with young quarterback Bryce Young. Atlanta, meanwhile, is loaded with weapons around its young quarterback, Michael Penix Jr., and used its two first-round picks in the NFL draft to address its weak pass rush.

Then again, there was talk about the Falcons (8-9 in ’24) overtaking the Bucs last year behind new quarterback Kirk Cousins. The Bucs won with division by two games with a 10-7 record but something was just a bit off as they were swept by Atlanta as Cousins passed for a combined 8 TDs in the two contests and threw for a career-high 509 yards in Week 5.

That sets up an intriguing subplot for the regular-season opener at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Cousins was benched last season as the Falcons faded after a 6-2 start, but he sure lit up the Bucs.

“If we played Tampa Bay every week last year, he’d be in the Hall of Fame now,” Falcons owner Arthur Blank quipped during the NFL owners meetings in March.

Ouch. As if the Bucs need any bulletin-board material.  

Typically, Bowles, prompted from defensive coordinator in succeeding the retired Bruce Arians in 2022, smiled and shrugged when presented with the chance to claim a headline with some bold statement about disrespect. Jimmy Johnson, he is not. Denny Green, hardly. And he won’t be compared with the Tuna

“We feel like we should win every ballgame and we don’t really care who we play,” Bowles told USA TODAY Sports after a camp practice.

This optimism has substance. The Bucs had the only offense in the NFL last season to rank in the top five in rushing (fourth) and passing (third) and were the first team in NFL history (est. 1920) to complete 70% of its passes while averaging 5 yards per carry. All the key contributors return, including Evans (who shares an NFL record with Jerry Rice with 11 consecutive 1,000-yard seasons) and Mayfield, who in 2024 posted career highs for passing yards (4,500) and TDs (41) and set the franchise mark with a 106.8 passer rating.

Bowles’ defense, meanwhile, has impact players at every level, including Vea, the nose tackle, David, a 14th-year linebacker, and safety Antoine Winfield, Jr. And it will be interesting to see whether Haason Reddick regains the form that allowed him to post 50 ½ sacks over a four-year span beginning in 2020, when he compiled double-digit sacks for four consecutive seasons.

After Brady retired in 2023, having led the Bucs to a Super Bowl 55 crown that capped the 2020 campaign, it seemed natural to expect a drop-off. After all, they won the division in Brady’s final season in 2022 with a losing record (8-9), then was blown out at home – by the Cowboys, of all unlikely teams – in the NFC playoff opener was Brady’s last game. There was no viable succession plan at quarterback. And after breaking the salary cap bank in chasing championships with TB12, they were cap-dry. Enter Mayfield, to go with shrewd cap management (take a bow, cap guru Jackie Davidson) and the typically deft draft stockpiles provided by Licht & Co.

“I thought we would still be a team that competed,” Evans told USA TODAY Sports, reflecting on Brady’s departure. “Obviously, we needed to figure out the quarterback situation. Luckily, Baker was available. I knew that if I played with Baker, we would get the respect that he deserves. Because quarterbacks need good skilled players and a good offensive line.”

Evans points to another factor, too. Culture.

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“I think it’s everything,” he said. “The front office. The coaching staff. The veteran leadership is really top tier. It’s way better than it was earlier in my career. Not trying to knock my guys back then, but…we’re all about playing for each other.”

Mayfield: “I think it starts with the two franchise guys, Mike Evans and Lavonte David, that have been criminally underrated for a long time. They just work their tails off and lead the way. I think everybody kind of follows that.”

Still, championship DNA or not, nobody’s picking the Bucs to get to the Super Bowl. I mean, according to USA TODAY Sports soothsayer Nate Davis, the ceiling for Bowles’ team is a 9-8 finish that’s good enough to win the weak NFC South again and claim the No. 4 seed in the NFC playoffs.

“We make our own projections and predictions,” Bowles said, maybe tapping his inner Nate vibe. “And our projection is to try to win the division and try to win the Super Bowl. Whatever else everybody has to say, if we listen to that, we’d be in last (place) every year. So, we don’t, and we’ve been in first every year.

“That’s how we treat it. At this point, it’s kind of a running joke, so we don’t care.”

Which leaves the Bucs flying under the radar as a team that just might emerge as a legit championship contender. In other words, Shh!

Contact Jarrett Bell at jbell@usatoday.com or follow on social media: On X: @JarrettBell

On Bluesky: jarrettbell.bsky.social