Tag: Schedule

Texas projected to face Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl

ESPN is projecting Texas to face Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl. It would be the first time they would play since the rivalry ended in 2011.

In ESPN’s latest bowl projection, Mark Schlabach projects one of the country’s best rivalry not only to come back but to be played in Houston, TX. Schlabach thinks the Longhorns will face off against former in-state rival Texas A&M in the Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl on Dec. 27.

A historic matchup that has been played 118 times, Texas has double the number of wins the Aggies do, leading the series 76-37-5. It was played for the final time in 2011 when Texas A&M decided to join the SEC. In the final game, Justin Tucker hit a game-winning field goal to give Texas a classic 27-25 win.

Since that moment, there have been continuous questions of when these two teams will play again. Either in a bowl game or scheduling a home and home series, the fans agree the Longhorns and Aggies need to play each other.

“Us not playing Texas A&M is not good for college football,” Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte said. “We’d love to play A&M.”

There were reports that Texas reached out to Texas A&M to renew the series with a home and home series in 2022 and 2023, but the Aggies “were already booked,” said Texas A&M athletic director Scott Woodward said.

Since being in the SEC in 2012, the Aggies have only had less than four losses once. Before leaving the Big 12, it had been since 1998 since they only had three losses. They agreed to play against Kansas State in the 2016 Texas Bowl but lost to the Wildcats 33-28.

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While the basketball teams will play each other on Dec. 8, this rivalry will remain all talk until the two meet again on the football field. With both teams expected to end their season 7-5, the opportunity for the two schools will be there to play in the Texas Bowl. While there have been rumors that the Aggies would turn down that opportunity, the two schools need to find a way to face off against each other.

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Saints favored by almost a touchdown over Falcons on Thanksgiving

The opening Week 13 NFL odds favor the visiting New Orleans Saints over the hosting Atlanta Falcons on Thanksgiving, but that means little.

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The New Orleans Saints are headlining the NFL’s scheduled games for Thanksgiving with a rematch against the NFC South-rival Atlanta Falcons in prime-time, at 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC. That tense matchup follows earlier games hosted by the Detroit Lions (against the Chicago Bears at 11:30 a.m. CT) and Dallas Cowboys (with the Buffalo Bills at 3:30 p.m. CT). And according to the opening line from BetMGM, the Saints-Falcons kickoff is expected to be the day’s barn-burner, with the highest over/under of the day.

The Saints-Falcons game has a projected over/under of 49.5, with New Orleans favored by 6.5 points — nearly a full touchdown. That’s higher than what the Cowboys-Bills game is expected to put up (44.5) as well as what the Lions-Bears tilt (39.5). That over/under also projects a final score of Saints 29, Falcons 21.

Saints fans learned that the projected odds mean little the last time these two teams squared off. The Saints were 11.5-point favorites over the Falcons coming out of their bye week, but Atlanta shocked the Saints by sacking Drew Brees six times and holding the New Orleans offense without a touchdown on the day. The Saints have had time to improve since then, but this will obviously be a big test no matter what each team’s record looks like.

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But it’s unclear what incentives will …

But it’s unclear what incentives will be in the final proposal; virtually any idea you can imagine has been discussed and debated during meetings. Clarity will come soon—there are only five months to go before the Board of Governors meeting in April, when votes will take place. Sources confirmed a high-ranking source who told ESPN that there’s been “no real pushback” from teams and players for the tournament. But there’s certainly concern about whether it could be a flop financially or struggle to draw ratings. Still, multiple front-office executives have gone as far as to say change is inevitable—it’s just a matter of the form it takes.

Two hurdles that could prevent any of …

The NBA could also change locations of …

The NBA could also change locations of the tournament each year, like the NCAA does for March Madness or the NFL does with the Super Bowl. “The in-season tournament can be the way to bring competitive basketball to cities without a team like Seattle or Mexico City or even London,” one front-office executive said. The NBA already plays annual regular-season games in Mexico and Europe; additionally, in January 2020, the Bucks will face the Hornets in Paris. Without a neutral site, scheduling would become a nightmarish task. Arenas are already frustrated with having to hold so many open dates for potential postseason games; adding two tournaments would require them to have even more open dates, league sources said.

Mark Cuban: IMHO, Key reason I’m not …

NFL won’t flex Week 14’s Saints-49ers game

The NFL won’t flex its Week 14 game between the New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers despite implications for the NFC playoff picture.

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The NFL will not flex Week 14’s game between the New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers despite the matchup’s big playoff implications, the Saints announced Monday. Right now, the 49ers are the projected top seed in the NFC playoff picture, while the Saints trail them by a game. A head-to-head win would give the Saints a tiebreaker should both teams finish the season with the same record, guaranteeing the road to Super Bowl LIV runs through New Orleans.

It’s a shame that the NFL is keeping the game in its early afternoon time slot, which means a noon kickoff in the central time zone. The game won’t reach as many viewers as it would in more prominent time slots. CBS is likely to feature the Kansas City Chiefs’ visit with the New England Patriots in the late afternoon slot, while Sunday Night Football is scheduled to show the Seattle Seahawks’ road game against the Los Angeles Rams.

Keeping the Rams in prime-time is a puzzling decision to say the least. They’re a distant third-place in their own division at 6-4, and could very well see their season end against the Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football. In three night games this season, Rams quarterback Jared Goff has completed a combined 61% of his throws while scoring three touchdown passes against four interceptions. If he continues to play poorly, L.A. is at real risk of missing the playoffs after losing last year’s Super Bowl.

All of that said, it benefits the Saints to host the 49ers earlier in the day. West Coast teams have to adjust to an abbreviated schedule on game days when moving out east, forcing them to wake up earlier or risk having fewer hours with which to prepare. Considering how dominantly San Francisco is playing right now, Saints fans should hope for any advantage they can get.

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Texas still unranked in AP poll

Texas remains unranked in the AP poll after losing to Baylor. With rivalry week this week, a lot of ranked matchups are on the schedule.

The Longhorns remain unranked in the AP poll after Saturday’s 24-10 loss on the road to Baylor. The Bears moved up two spots to No. 11, just missing out on the top 10 by three points.

Here is the new top 25:

1) LSU

2) Ohio State

3) Clemson

4) Georgia

5) Alabama

6) Utah

7) Oklahoma

8) Florida

9) Minnesota

10) Michigan

11) Baylor

12) Penn State

13) Wisconsin

14) Oregon

15) Notre Dame

16) Auburn

17) Memphis

18) Cincinnati

19) Iowa

20) Boise State

21) Oklahoma State

22) Appalachian State

23) Virginia Tech

24) Navy

25) USC

Others receiving votes:

Iowa State 74, Virginia 38, Texas A&M 27, Air Force 22, SMU 9, Arizona State 4, Louisiana-Lafayette 1

The team that fell the most was No. 14 Oregon. Losing on the road to Arizona State, the Ducks’ playoff hopes are finished as they pick up their second loss of the season.

With rivalry week ahead of us, there are a few ranked matchups that set up for a great weekend. The biggest one will be No. 2 Ohio State traveling to the Big House to face No. 10 Michigan. The Wolverines have not beaten the Buckeyes since 2011.

Other games include the Iron Bowl, with No. 5 Alabama facing No. 16 Auburn, No. 9 Minnesota hosts No. 13 Wisconsin for the right to go to the Big 10 championship, and No. 7 Oklahoma goes to Stillwater to play No. 21 Oklahoma State in Bedlam.

Unranked Texas will face unranked Texas Tech on Friday at 11:00 a.m.

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Amway Coaches Poll: Texas remains unranked

Texas remains unranked after losing on the road to Baylor. Oklahoma and Baylor are the other Big 12 teams ranked and are inside the top 10.

Texas remains unranked in the Amway Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports after a disappointing loss to Baylor on Saturday. The 24-10 loss was the Longhorns’ second loss in a row and moved Texas to 2-4 in their last six games.

The top five remain the same, but Utah takes over at No. 6 as No. 13 Oregon suffered a loss on the road to Arizona State. The Utes are the PAC 12’s remaining hope for the College Football Playoff.

Fellow Big 12 members Oklahoma stay at No. 7, Baylor moves up three spots to No. 10, and Oklahoma State moves up two spots to No. 21.

Below is the latest Amway Coaches Poll in its entirety, voted on by 65 FBS head coaches.

1) Louisiana State

2) Ohio State

3) Clemson

4) Georgia

5) Alabama

6) Utah

7) Oklahoma

8) Florida

9) Minnesota

10) Baylor

11) Michigan

12) Penn State

13) Oregon

14) Wisconsin

15) Notre Dame

16) Auburn

17) Cincinnati

18) Memphis

19) Boise State

20) Iowa

21) Oklahoma State

22) Appalachian State

23) Virginia Tech

24) Navy

25) Southern California

Schools dropped out

No. 21 Southern Methodist; No. 24 Texas A&M; No. 25 San Diego State.

Others receiving votes

Air Force 74; Iowa State 55; Virginia 32; Texas A&M 26; UL Lafayette 18; Southern Methodist 18; Wake Forest 5; San Diego State 4; Indiana 2; Hawaii 2; Temple 1.

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