Kansas State football running back Dylan Edwards will miss the rest of the Wildcats’ game against Iowa State on Saturday, Aug. 23 with an apparent ankle injury.

Edwards, K-State’s starting running back, left the Aer Lingus College Football Classic in Dublin, Ireland, early in the first quarter after appearing to injure his ankle after receiving a punt. Wildcats coach Chris Klieman told the ESPN broadcast at halftime that Edwards will miss the remainder of the game.

Losing the second-year transfer from Colorado is a big blow for K-State, as the 5-foot-9 speedster had 546 rushing yards with five touchdowns last season behind now-Indianapolis Colts running back DJ Giddens. He also provides quarterback Avery Johnson with a strong option in the passing game.

Edwards had a standout freshman season at Colorado, scoring four touchdowns in the Buffaloes’ 2023 season opener against TCU.

Here’s what to know of Edwards’ injury against the Cyclones on Aug. 23.

Dylan Edwards injury update

Edwards only played one snap and didn’t see the field on offense before exiting the game against Iowa State, as he muffed a punt that led to an apparent ankle injury. His ankle was taped on the sideline before he exited the field to the locker room.

Edwards later returned to the sideline, although it was without his helmet and with a towel over his head. He didn’t appear the rest of the first half before Klieman confirmed he will miss the remainder of the game.

It’s unclear the severity of Edwards’ injury, although it’s certainly a big blow to Kansas State’s offense in the top-25 Big 12 matchup.

When Harvard — credited with playing a substantial role in the growth of college football — played McGill University in an 1874 road game in Montreal, Quebec, it didn’t know it’d be setting the roadmap for future teams in the sport.

Iowa State and Kansas State will open the 2025 season with a Big 12 conference game in Dublin, Ireland, as part of the annual Aer Lingus College Football Classic, in Week 0 on Saturday, Aug. 23. It’s one of a surprising number of college football games that have taken place in other countries, dating back to Harvard’s 3-0 win over McGill in 1874.

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Division I college football game have been played anywhere from Canada to Mexico to even Cuba, Japan and now Ireland, which has hosted multiple games at Aviva Stadium in recent years.

Indeed, one of the greatest players ever even accepted his Heisman Trophy win via satellite while playing in the Coca-Cola Classic bowl game in Tokyo.

With that, here’s a look at the history of college football games played in other countries, ahead of ‘Farmageddon’ in Week 0.

History of international college football games

This lookback only includes games with current Division I teams.

College football in Canada

Before American and Canadian football fully separated, it wasn’t uncommon for teams from the United States to travel to or host Canadian universities. In all, 29 American college football games have been played in Canada, including the first 12 international games.

The International Bowl was introduced for the 2006 season, when two teams met at Rogers Centre in Toronto. Cincinnati-Western Michigan, Rutgers-Ball State, Connecticut-Buffalo and South Florida-Northern Illinois met in consecutive years until 2009.

College football in Cuba

It wasn’t until 1907 when LSU defeated the University of Havana 56-0 in Havana, that a team crossed an ocean for a game. LSU-Havana marked the first Bacardi Bowl, which was played from 1907-1946, although there was a 16-year hiatus from 1921 to 1937.

The Bacardi Bowl placed college programs from the deep south against a Cuban university, although one Bacardi Bowl was played between two American schools in Villanova and Auburn, who tied 7-7 on New Year’s Day in 1937.

College football in Japan

One of the most interesting international college football series started in 1976, when Grambling State and Morgan State met in the Pioneer Bowl in Tokyo. Grambling State then played in Tokyo again in 1977, when it took on Temple in the Mirage Bowl.

There were three games played in Tokyo in 1978, as Utah State and Idaho State played their season opener in Japan before BYU and UNLV played the Yokohama Bowl and Temple and Boston College played the Mirage Bowl.

College football bowl games were played in Japan from 1976 to 1993, with the Mirage Bowl changing its name to the Coca-Cola Classic. A plethora of power conference teams played in the bowl game, including USC, Oregon, Nebraska, Kansas State, Wisconsin, Clemson and Stanford.

While the games in Tokyo were called bowl games, they were instead a relocation of regular season games and were not considered postseason games — thus why many conference foes faced off in the series. Barry Sanders, the 1988 Heisman Trophy winner, even accepted the prestigious trophy from Tokyo, as Oklahoma State was preparing to play Texas Tech in the Coca-Cola Classic.

College football games have also been played in Nishinomiya and Yokohama, both in 1978, and Osaka.

College football in Europe, Australia

The first college football game in Australia was played between WAC opponents Wyoming and Texas-El Paso in 1985. Brigham Young and Colorado State later also played in Australia in 1987. College football returned to the continent nearly 30 years later, when California and Hawaii played in Syndey in 2016 before Stanford and Rice did the same in 2017.

American college football has been played in Europe as early as 1976, when Texas A&I – now known as Texas A&M-Kingsville, went 5-0 against Henderson State in five games played in West Berlin, Vienna and Paris. However, the first major college football game in Europe was played in 1988, between Boston College and Army, in Dublin.

The series was then called the Emerald Isle Classic, later called the Shamrock Classic, and has since evolved into today’s name of Aer-Lingus College Football Classic. Notre Dame-Navy in 2012, Penn State-Central Florida in 2014 and Georgia Tech-Boston College in 2016 were also editions of the college football series in Dublin.

The Aer Lingus College Football Classic is the current top series played internationally in college football, with Iowa State and Kansas State set to play in 2025. Florida State and Georgia Tech occupied the slot in 2024, after Notre Dame-Navy in 2023 and Northwestern-Nebraska in 2022.

College football in the Bahamas

Lastly, there’s the Bahamas Bowl, which has hosted college football games as early as 1991 and has hosted games 10 times from 2014-25. The Bahamas Bowl is the first major FBS bowl series between two American teams outside of the United States or Canada since the Bacardi Bowl in 1937.

Top international college football games all time

1988: Oklahoma State 45, Texas Tech 42 (Tokyo)
1979: Notre Dame 40, Miami 15 (Tokyo)
1985: Southern California 20, Oregon 6 (Tokyo)
2025: Kansas State-Iowa State (Dublin)
1993: Wisconsin 41, Michigan State 20 (Tokyo)
2024: Georgia Tech 24, Florida State 21 (Dublin)
1907: LSU 56, Havana 0 (Havana)
1985: Wyoming 24, Texas-El Paso 21 (Melbourne)
1874: Harvard 3, McGill 0 (Montreal, Canada)

The Mirage Bowl, later renamed the Coca-Cola Classic, dominated the top 10 list of best college football matchups outside of the United States, as the series put conference foes against one another on foreign ground.

Oklahoma State lands the top spot after winning a thrilling game over Texas Tech in 45-42. Cowboys running back Barry Sanders, one of the greatest running backs in football history, was awarded the 1988 Heisman Trophy remotely while the Cowboys were in Tokyo preparing for the game.

LSU was the first team to play an international game outside of Canada, defeating University of Havana 56-0, whereas Harvard was the first team to ever play a team in a different country, defeating McGill 3-0 in 1874. Wyoming and Texas-El Paso were the first two teams to ever play in Australia.

The 2025 matchup between ranked conference rivals Kansas State and Iowa State in Ireland should be one of the most-anticipated international games ever, given the College Football Playoff implications.

The American champion of the Little League World Series will be crowned today in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, with the winner advancing to play the International bracket champion in the 2025 title game.

Connecticut, representing the Metro region, takes on Nevada of the Mountain region on Saturday, Aug. 23 for the United States bracket championship.

Connecticut was the top team in the entire 2025 tournament, going 4-0 in U.S. bracket play. Nevada went 4-1, with its only loss coming at the hands of the Metro region champion. Fairfield National Little League beat Summerlin South Little League from Las Vegas, 7-3 on Wednesday, Aug. 20.

The winner of today’s rematch will play the winner of the International bracket game between Aruba and Chinese Taipei in the 2025 championship game, on Sunday, Aug. 24.

USA TODAY Sports will have full coverage of the U.S. bracket championship. Follow along for scores, updates and highlights.

How to watch 2025 Little League World Series

The 2025 Little League World Series will be broadcast on ESPN platforms, with the championship game airing on ABC. Games will also be available to stream on ESPN+ and Fubo, which is offering a free trial to new subscribers.

Date: Saturday, Aug. 23
Times: US championship at 3:30 p.m. ET; International championship at 12:30 p.m. ET
TV: ABC
Stream: Fubo
Location: South Williamsport, Pennsylvania

Stream the Little League World Series on Fubo

2025 Little League World Series bracket: Scores, schedule

All times Eastern. For a full list of results, click here.

Saturday, Aug 23

International bracket championship

Chinese Taipei (Asia-Pacific) vs. Aruba (Caribbean), 12:30 p.m. | ABC

United States bracket championship

Connecticut (Metro) vs. Nevada (Mountain), 3:30 p.m. | ABC

Sunday, Aug. 24

Third-place game

International bracket loser vs. U.S. bracket loser, 10 a.m. | ESPN

Championship game

International bracket winner vs. U.S. bracket winner, 3 p.m. | ABC

No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward got one more shot at NFL action ahead of the regular season Friday night against the Minnesota Vikings.

Tennessee hosted the Vikings for their final tune-up with days to go until final roster cuts. Ward, a lock to make the final 53-man roster, saw limited time in the final preseason game.

Ward started the game and played two drives over 16 total plays. That’s compared to two drives in the Titans’ preseason opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and three in the Titans’ second preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons.

In all, Ward’s had 22 dropbacks combined over the three preseason games. He’ll likely experience more than that in the Titans’ regular season opener on the road against the Denver Broncos.

Still, there’s a lot to glean from the Miami product’s performance. Here’s how we grade Ward’s final preseason game:

Cam Ward grades: Rookie leads scoring drive

Ward’s first drive ended with a punt, something the Titans offense has done in the opening drive of each preseason game. His first pass went incomplete when Tyler Lockett dropped a screen pass.

He bailed out of the pocket on 3rd and 6 and scrambled to the sideline to avoid a sack.

Ward had an easier go of it on his second drive, starting on his first pass. The rookie quarterback placed the ball perfectly for Van Jefferson to get both feet inbounds for a first down.

Two plays later, rookie wideout Elic Ayomanor found a hole in the zone and Ward found him for a 13-yard gain. The Vikings got to Ward on his next drop back for a sack and a three-yard loss.

Ward rolled out to his right on his next pass and threw over the short middle to running back Julius Chestnut to bring the Titans inside the Vikings’ 10-yard line. One play later, Ward found Ayomanor on a short pass to get the Titans to the goal line and Chestnut punched it in for a touchdown on the next play.

Ward ended the night 3 of 4 passing for 36 yards with one rushing attempt for one yard. It was limited action but Ward continues to show flashes that made him the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft.

Grade: B

Ward continues to make good throws even in limited action during the preseason. The touch he showed on his completion to Jefferson bodes well for regular season action. The Vikings are notoriously one of the tougher defenses schematically, even in the preseason, and Ward handled it.

After 215 long days, college football will be played again, with the 2025 season kicking off in Dublin, Ireland.

And it will feature a matchup that could heavily impact what happens in four months.

No. 20 Kansas State and No. 21 Iowa State will play in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic on Aug. 30, and it won’t just celebrate the return of college football or an international version of the famed “Farmageddon’; it may instantly determine a College Football Playoff frontrunner – all before Week 1 officially starts.

Even though it’s one of the oldest rivalries in the sport, it hasn’t been close for much the 21st century. Kansas State won 24 of 28 in the series from 1990-2017, as the Wildcats constantly competed for conference titles while the Cyclones struggled to find consistent success.

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But Matt Campbell’s turnaround in Ames has resulted in a 5-2 advantage for the Cyclones in the past seven meetings. For a series typically played late in the season, this will be the first time in its 109 years it will be played in August.

Yet it still has major implications for when December rolls around.

“That’s what makes this a terrific football game,” said Kansas State coach Chris Klieman. “In the stage that it’s on, it’s not Oct. 7 or Nov. 1 or anything. It’s two programs that know each other really well, that respect each other really well.”

The importance of the Week 0 contest speaks to how open the Big 12 is. Last season, both teams were in race all the way up to their meeting in the season finale, and both could have qualified for the Big 12 championship game with a win and some help.

The same expectations are on both side for this season opener.

“We did play this game not too long ago, and it’s gonna be good for us to play them again and right away,” said Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht.

Arizona State enters the season as the defending Big 12 champion and was the conference’s lone College Football Playoff participant last year. The 11th-ranked Sun Devils are the early favorite from the league to reach the playoff again.

But if last season proved something, it’s that anything can happen in the wild Big 12. Arizona State split its first four games before stringing together six consecutive wins through the conference title game. Beyond contenders Kansas State and Iowa State, there’s also Texas Tech, Baylor, Utah and Brigham Young. There could even be another team that defies expections, like Arizona State did after being picked last in the league’s preseason pol.

It’s such a wide open race that the Big 12 – fearful of hurting its reputation – opted to do away with this year’s preseason poll. 

However, Kansas State and Iowa State are of solider bets. In the USA TODAY Sports Big 12 preseason power rankings, they were second and fourth, respectively, among the 16 teams. 

It’s no coincidence both teams also feature some of the best quarterbacks in the conference. Becht is the most experienced signal-caller in the league with 27 career starts and has thrown for 48 touchdowns in the past two seasons. Kansas State has Avery Johnson, who is expected a significant jump in his second year as starter. The dual-threat quarterback is one of the favorites to win Big 12 player of the year.

Johnson is joined by running back Dylan Edwards, leading a running game that was 11th in yards per game (215.5) and second in yards per carry (6.1). Iowa State still has pieces from 2024, but it will have to replace production from last season’s stellar receiving core and secondary.

“We’ve got a lot to prove to ourselves,” Campbell said. “We’ve got a lot of questions we have to answer. No matter what they do or how they do it, or what environment or what continent we’re on.”

Klieman won’t be fooled into thinking it’s not as good of a team. He said Campbell has developed a program that forces mistakes and consistently capitalizes on those opportunities. 

Given the rivalry and possible ramifications, it could end up being one of the most important games of the season. 

However, it won’t mean everything.

Yes, both teams want – and need – to win this game. But there’s 11 more waiting for them when they come back to the U.S. Both coaches are trying to stress to their teams they can’t put everything into a season opener.

“It’s different when you have to play it so early and there’s so much emotion and there’s so much season left to play that you can get caught up and all of a sudden make a lot of mistakes, and those mistakes can be debilitating early,” Campbell said.

But there’s just something about “Farmageddon.” Of the past five seasons, three times the winner of this game wound up making it to conference title game.

A win could setsthe stage for a magical run when they return to American soil, especially when the whole college football world will see the first statement of the season. It shouldn’t be the peak of the campaign, either.

“This is not a one-game season. This is a 12 game season, and this is a really, really important game for the conference race. It’s a really important game for both programs,” Klieman said. “It is the first game, and it’s a conference game. It’s a valuable, important game, and then you’ve got to come back and reset for the journey.”

No. 20 Kansas State will take on No. 21 Iowa State in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic on Saturday, Aug. 23 at Aviva Stadium in Dublin to start the new season. The game is a Week 0 matchup to give fans a small taste of college football action before Week 1 kicks off the following week.

It will be the second-ever international game for Kansas State, as they previously played in the 1992 Coca-Cola Classic against Nebraska in Tokyo; meanwhile, the Dublin matchup with the Wildcats will mark the international debut for Iowa State.

Watch Kansas State-Iowa State with Fubo (free trial)

USA TODAY will provide live updates, scores and highlights from the Aer Lingus College Football Classic between Iowa State and Kansas State below:

Aer Lingus College Football Classic live score

This section will be updated.

Aer Lingus College Football Classic live updates

What to know about Aviva Stadium

Location: Dublin
Capacity: 49,000
Opened: 2010

What is ‘Farmageddon’? Kansas State-Iowa State football rivalry nickname, explained

Iowa State and Kansas State have played each other every year since 1917 in a battle that has been more recently dubbed ‘Farmageddon.’ Here’s what you need to know about the history of the nickname and its origin:

Read more here from USA TODAY Network writer Ehsan Kassim.

What time does Aer Lingus College Football Classic start?  

Date: Saturday, Aug. 23
Time: Noon ET  
Where: Aviva Stadium in Dublin

The Aer Lingus College Football Classic is scheduled to start at noon ET on Saturday, Aug. 23 from Dublin, Ireland.

What TV channel is Aer Lingus College Football Classic on today?  

TV: ESPN
Streaming: ESPN app | ESPN+ | Fubo (free trial)

The Aer Lingus College Football Classic will air nationally on ESPN. Streaming options include the ESPN app (with a cable login), ESPN+ and Fubo, the last of which offers a free trial to potential subscribers.

Watch Aer Lingus Classic live with Fubo (free trial)

Aer Lingus College Football Classic predictions

Ehsan Kassim, USA TODAY Sports: Kansas State 28, Iowa State 24:

Avery Johnson accounts for a four-touchdown performance as the Wildcats snap a two-game Farmageddon losing streak.

Wyatt D. Wheeler, Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State 27, Iowa State 23
Travis Hines, Des Moines Register: Iowa State 31, Kansas State 21

Aer Lingus College Football Classic injury updates

This section will be updated.

Iowa State football schedule 2025

Here is Iowa State’s schedule for the 2025 season:

Saturday, Aug. 23: vs. No. 20 Kansas State* (in Dublin) | Noon | ESPN (ESPN+)
Saturday, Aug. 30: vs. South Dakota | 3:30 p.m. | Fox (Fubo)
Saturday, Sept. 6: vs. Iowa | Noon | Fox (Fubo)
Saturday, Sept. 13: at Arkansas State | 4 p.m. | ESPN2 (ESPN+)
Saturday, Sept. 20: BYE
Saturday, Sept. 27: vs. Arizona*
Saturday, Oct. 4: at Cincinnati*
Saturday, Oct. 11: at Colorado*
Saturday, Oct. 18: BYE
Saturday, Oct. 25: vs. BYU*
Saturday, Nov. 1: vs. No. 11 Arizona State*
Saturday, Nov. 8: at TCU*
Saturday, Nov. 15: BYE
Saturday, Nov. 22: vs. Kansas*
Saturday, Nov. 29: at Oklahoma State*

*Denotes Big 12 Conference game

Kansas State football schedule 2025

Here is Kansas State’s schedule and results.

Saturday, Aug. 23: vs. No. 21 Iowa State* (in Dublin) | Noon | ESPN (ESPN+)
Saturday, Aug. 30: vs. North Dakota | 7 p.m. | ESPN+
Saturday, Sept. 6: vs. Army | 7 p.m. | ESPN (ESPN+)
Friday, Sept. 12: at Arizona | 9 p.m. | Fox (Fubo)
Saturday, Sept. 20: BYE
Saturday, Sept. 27: vs. UCF*
Saturday, Oct. 4: at Baylor*
Saturday, Oct. 11: vs. TCU*
Saturday, Oct. 18: BYE
Saturday, Oct. 25: at Kansas*
Saturday, Nov. 1: vs. No. 24 Texas Tech*
Saturday, Nov. 8: BYE
Saturday, Nov. 15: at Oklahoma State*
Saturday, Nov. 22: at Utah*
Saturday, Nov. 29: vs. Colorado*

*Denotes Big 12 Conference game

South Carolina football defensive line coach Travian Robertson has been hospitalized and is in stable condition after being involved in a car accident on Aug. 22, the school announced in an email.

Robertson, 36, is in his third year as a coach on Shane Beamer and the Gamecocks’ coaching staff. According to ESPN, he was taken to a local hospital with a significant lower leg injury.

“Travian Robertson was involved in a car accident this morning,’ Beamer wrote in the statement. ‘He is currently in the hospital in stable condition. We expect him to make a full recovery and be back out on the field soon. Please keep the families of those involved in the accident in your prayers and respect the Robertson family’s privacy during this time.”

Robertson played for Steve Spurrier at South Carolina from 2007-11, serving as a team captain in 2011. He was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the seventh round of the 2012 NFL Draft. Robertson played for the Falcons, Seattle Seahawks and Washington Commanders in a three-year career between 2012 and 2014.

Before coming to South Carolina in 2023, Robertson started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Georgia State in 2017, as a defensive line coach at Albany in 2018 and in the same position with Georgia State from 2019-22.

South Carolina opens the 2025 season on Sunday, Aug. 31 against Virginia Tech.

Serena Williams’ recent weight loss and comments about GLP-1 drugs raise questions about their potential use as performance enhancers in sports.
While not currently banned by WADA, semaglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, is being monitored for potential performance-enhancing effects.
USADA has not found widespread GLP-1 use among athletes, but anecdotal reports suggest potential use in weight-sensitive endurance sports.

But something else she said may cause ripples in the sports world.

The legendary tennis player who won 23 Grand Slam titles suggested she might have fared even better if she’d been taking the injectable weight-loss medication that includes brand names such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Zebound.

‘I had a lot of knee issues,’ Williams, 43, told Today.com ‘Especially after I had my kid (and) was never able to get to my normal levels of weight. And that, quite frankly, definitely had an effect on maybe some wins that I could have had in my career.’

That raises a question: is GLP-1 a performance-enhancing drug?

The weight-loss drugs are not banned by World Anti-Doping Agency, which creates and enforces anti-doping rules for the Olympics. But semaglutide, a GLP-1 androgen receptor, is in WADA’s monitoring program.

The goal is to “track patterns of use in and out of competition,’’ James Fitzgerald, head of media relations for WADA, told USA TODAY Sports.

“Everyone is using GLP-1s!’’ Oliver Catlin, president of Anti-Doping Sciences Institute & Banned Substances Control Group, told USA TODAY Sports by email. “Of course athletes are using them.’’

Matthew Fedoruk, the Chief Science Officer at the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, said there are reports that GLP-1 androgen receptors have been used in weight-sensitive endurance sports like the triathlon. But not at the elite level, he added.

The potential drawback

Photos of Williams after her weight loss show she’s still muscular. But USADA’s Fedoruk said a side effect of GLP-1 androgen receptors is loss of muscle mass.

“So obviously that’s not a great a great outcome for an elite level athlete,’’ he said.

A couple of clinical trials show muscle loss can be prevented when GLP-1s are paired with substances such as Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs), according to Fedoruk. But he pointed out those substances are banned by WADA.

He also said more research to understand the potential risks in healthy individuals such as athletes “would be worthwhile.’’

USADA, the national anti-doping organization, has seen no evidence of rampant use of GLP-1s by athletes, according to Fedoruk. He said of the thousands of sample collections USADA has taken over the past five years, only 29 athletes have acknowledged through declarations they were taking the drug.

He also said the statistics didn’t show any increase in detection for athletes in specific sports.

But as the use of GLP-1s has exploded in popularity, Fedoruk said, USADA has heard anecdotal reports of the drug being used for weight-sensitive endurance sports.

“I don’t know if that’s going to be mean that they’ll find their way into the elite level,’’ he said, adding that he’s concerned about the side effect of the loss of muscle mass.

Athletes are really using GLP-1s?

Current Olympians could not be immediately reached to address whether GLP-1s – designed primarily to treat type 2 diabetes — are being used to enhance athletic performance.

Gary Hall Jr., the retired Olympic swimmer who won 10 medals while competing in the 1996, 2000 and 2004 Games, told USA TODAY Sports, “This is the first I’m hearing of it, and I follow both diabetes and swimming.’’ But he also said, “If it provides an advantage, there are bad players who will abuse it.’’

Kara Goucher, an American long-distance runner who competed at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, said she has not heard about the use of GLP-1s by athletes. But she said she does know a couple of people taking it who were not elite athletes – and they both suffered from lightheadedness and stomach distress.

“So I don’t know how you could do that and train as an elite,’’ Goucher said by text message.

But when it comes to the potential benefits of the medication, USADA’s Fedoruk said, “The jury is still out. It hasn’t been monitored for that long, so I think it’s worth continuing to monitor.’’