NCAAF

• SMU 40 Navy 34
  • The Midshipmen were outmatched for most of this game, but they’ve made some big strides since dropping their first two games of the year to Delaware and Memphis. The progress has probably been good enough to keep Ken Niumatalolo off the hot seat.

MLB

• Guardians 4 Yankees 2
  • Cleveland’s bats haven’t exactly been alive this postseason, but the struggles of a few Yankees yesterday, particularly Aaron Judge, opened the door for the Guardians. Shane Bieber is always steady as a starter, and Emmanuel Clase, per usual, was lockdown as Cleveland’s closer. Unfortunately, Clase may not be available tomorrow, as he garnered seven outs on 33 pitches in this contest.
  • The Yankees are fine — they’ll probably still win this series, but Aaron Judge needs to get going. In the regular season, players are afforded ample time to pull out of slumps. That isn’t the case in October. Game 3 promises a fantastic pitching matchup between Luis Severino and Triston McKenzie.
• Phillies 9 Braves 1
  • 87-75 and now one victory away from the NLCS. It’s crazy how baseball works. Bryce Harper wasn’t the best version of himself after returning from a thumb injury earlier this year, but he’s been incredible in this series.
  • Spencer Strider basically came out of nowhere to have a phenomenal rookie season for Atlanta, but he got bombed yesterday, putting the Braves in a perilous spot. It would help matters if Austin Riley got going. With all that said, I still believe in the Braves. The club won 101 games for a reason.
• Padres 2 Dodgers 1
  • Baseball’s postseason is a crapshoot, but wow. The Padres have been chasing the Dodgers ever since the 2019 season ended, and the club may finally reach its goal of defeating goliath. Still, it won’t be easy to win one of the next two games. The Dodgers are a monster.
  • The Dodgers are of course in trouble, and it didn’t help that Dave Roberts opted to go with Tony Gonsolin in Game 3. Gonsolin, coming off the IL, clearly isn’t himself yet. For Game 4 tonight, Los Angeles needs Mookie Betts, Tre Turner, and Freddie Freeman to show why they’re stars.