Sleeper hitters for Week 27 (Sept. 21-27)
Sports
Fantasy baseball Week 27 hitters: Sleepers, waiver targets and best matchups
Scott White highlights 10 Week 27 sleeper hitters, with the Diamondbacks, Blue Jays and White Sox boasting the best matchups
Whether you’re in need of an injury fill-in or just a hot-hand play, Scott White has you covered with 10 sleeper hitters for the upcoming scoring period, all rostered in less than 80 percent of CBS Sports leagues. They’re not must-starts by any estimation, but they’re often the best you’ll find off the waiver wire.
All information is up to date as of Sunday evening.
Best hitter matchups for Week 27
1. Diamondbacks @COL3, @SD3
2. Blue Jays @BAL3, CIN3
3. White Sox @KC3, COL3
4. Rockies ARI3, @CHW3
5. Mets @TEX3, @WAS3
Worst hitter matchups for Week 27
1. Phillies MIL3, TB3
2. Giants MIN3, LAD3
3. Orioles TOR3, @NYY3
4. Rays @NYY4, @PHI3
5. Guardians @BOS3, @KC3
Sports
Shaun Edwards: Red Roses bring in famed defence coach for WXV Global Series
On the appointment of Edwards, England head coach John Mitchell said: “Since his time with France ended, we have had a conversation about our game, and he expressed an interest in working in an international women’s set-up for the first time.
“He has a huge amount of respect for the Red Roses and what we stand for; he sees it as a privilege to join our environment.
“His coaching credentials are exceptional and his experience at the highest level of the game speaks for itself.
“Defensively, Sarah Hunter is relishing the opportunity to learn from him, alongside the rest of our coaching group, as we head into another exciting Test match against New Zealand.”
Last week, Edwards expressed his desire to return to coaching and be a part of next year’s men’s Six Nations.
“I’m definitely open to offers now, until I sort out a full-time role,” he told the Daily Mail., external
“I’m a proud Englishman and everybody loves to represent their country, don’t they? I’m no different.”
Sports
Todd Monken fires back at Mike Tomlin’s ‘Browns is the Browns’ diss after win
Todd Monken initially brushed off former Steelers coach Mike Tomlin’s recent “Browns is the Browns” diss. He had a much different response, however, following the Browns’ Week 2 win over the Buccaneers, Monken’s first win as an NFL head coach.
“Browns are gonna Browns. F–k that! The guys took that to heart,” Monken said.
Cleveland certainly played inspired football on Sunday. The Browns’ defense had their way with former Cleveland quarterback Baker Mayfield, sacking him three times and holding him to 182 yards and an interception. Offensively, Cleveland received a vintage performance from Deshaun Watson, who had his best game as a Brown. Watson, a three-time Pro Bowler during his time with the Texans, went 24 of 30 for 238 yards with two touchdowns and no picks. He also finished the game as Cleveland’s leading rusher.
Monken’s initial months as the Browns coach were tumultuous. He watched GM Andrew Berry trade away Myles Garrett and, in recent weeks, has had to defend his decision to start Watson over Shedeur Sanders. Monken then endured a forgettable head coaching debut as the Browns were walloped by the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 1.
But on Sunday, Monken and the Browns finally had a reason to celebrate. For Monken, the celebration included a spirited response to Tomlin and an emphatic defense of a once-proud franchise.
Tomlin, to his credit, laughed off Monken’s response to his initial comments.
“I’m glad that I can still motivate, although I’m not coaching anymore,” he said.
The origin of Tomlin’s initial comments dates to January 2021, when then-Steelers receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster uttered, “The Browns is the Browns” ahead of Pittsburgh’s wild card playoff game against Cleveland. Smith-Schuster and his teammates then watched as the Browns came to Pittsburgh and left with a 48-37 win.
Ironically, Tomlin’s former team looked like the modern day version of the Browns on Sunday against the Patriots. The Steelers scored just three points and were outscored by New England’s defense during an eventual 20-3 loss that evened their record at 1-1.
Monken has his own unique history against Tomlin and the Steelers. From 2023-25, he faced Tomlin’s Steelers seven times as the Ravens‘ offensive coordinator. After being swept by Pittsburgh in 2023, Monken helped the Ravens defeat the Steelers twice late in the 2024 season that included a decisive win in the AFC wild card round. Monken’s tenure in Baltimore ended, however, a year later in Pittsburgh after the Ravens missed a field goal on the final play of the regular season.
Monken will get his first chance to face the Steelers as the Browns coach in Week 4, when Cleveland hosts Pittsburgh on Thursday night. The Browns have won four straight home games against the Steelers that include two wins on primetime.
Sports
Search for the Needle Clans guide
Search for the Needle includes a Clan system where players can create their own groups and complete tasks for unique rewards. The Clan system functions like the Guild system seen in various Roblox RPGs, where players can perform certain actions to improve their group’s position on the leaderboard. Players can either create Clans of their own using Gems or join existing ones through invites or join requests.
Here’s how Clans work in Search for the Needle.
An overview of Clans in Search for the Needle


The Clan system can be accessed from the lobby using the button on the HUD. When first viewing this menu, you will be able to access the Clan, Quests, Chest, and Top Clans tabs. The final tab, the Chat tab, is only functional when you become a member or the owner of a Clan.
You can create a Clan of your own using 500 Gems. This entails entering the Clan name and using a Clan Tag of your choosing, after which you can press the “Create” button to finalize the process. Once you create a Clan, you can either allow any player to send a join request to your faction or set it to invite-only. The latter is useful if you only wish to have your friends in the group.
If you wish to become part of another player’s Clan instead, visit the Top Clans tab to find an open slot in an established Clan. Alternatively, if a Clan owner has sent you an invite, you can view it from the Clan tab as well.
Once you are a Clan member, you can start completing Quests to earn Tokens. Clan Chests are rewarded to members of a Clan at the end of a week for every 10 Tokens they earn. Below, you can find the rewards that you may obtain upon opening a Clan Chest:
- 50 to 75 Gems: 65% drop chance
- 100 to 225 Gems: 27.3% drop chance
- Clan Pitchfork: 1.5% drop chance
- Clan Dynamite: 1.5% drop chance
- Clan Vacuum: 1.5% drop chance
- Viking Hat: 2.7% drop chance
- Spartan Hat: 0.5% drop chance
You can also chat with your Clan members in the Chat tab, should you wish to communicate quickly with your Clan mates only.
Also read: Unique Roblox username ideas for new players
FAQs on Search for the Needle
What are Clans in Search for the Needle?
Clans are player-created factions that allow Robloxians to band together and complete quests, earning Tokens in the process.
What are Tokens used for in Search for the Needle?
Tokens are a tally count that keep track of the quests a Clan member completes, rewarding them with Clan Chests for every 10 Tokens they earn.
What is the rarest reward available in the Clan Chest?
The rarest reward in the Clan Chest is the Spartan Hat, which has a drop chance of 0.5%.
Edited by Swapnil Joshi
Sports
Man United and Slovenia on potential Benjamin Sekso collision course amid fresh injury concern
Benjamin Sesko is experiencing pain in his shin again and he is being tested by Man Utd this morning ahead of a decision on whether he misses the international break.
Manchester United are set to make a decision on whether to withdraw Benjamin Sesko from international duty, with the striker undergoing another assessment on his shin injury on Monday morning.
Sesko missed United’s draw at Fulham on Sunday after complaining of pain after the defeat to Brighton in the Carabao Cup in midweek.
Michael Carrick was unable to put a timeframe on how long Sesko could be out, but at the moment he remains in the Slovenia squad for Nations League games against North Macedonia, Switzerland, and a double-header with Scotland.
Sesko is being assessed by United medics on Monday and it is likely he will withdraw from Bostjan Cesar’s squad as concerns over his shin problem grow.
The 23-year-old missed the international fixtures in March as the problem was being managed, but then also missed the end of the club season after aggravating the problem against Liverpool at Old Trafford. Sesko was absent for the whole of pre-season but returned to action at the start of the Premier League campaign.
After almost four months out, the £73million striker has reported discomfort again in the same shin and that is likely to lead to another spell of rest as United try and manage the problem.
“We’re not sure with Ben yet,” Carrick said after the game against Fulham. “He felt a bit of pain after the game, we’re assessing him.
“At the moment, he definitely wasn’t ready for today, so I haven’t really got any more news to give you at this point. We’ll have to see what that brings.”
There has been tension between United and the Slovenian FA over Sesko’s fitness in recent months and Cesar has previously complained about the striker being withdrawn from international camps, only to then play for his club side soon after.
Last week the Slovenia boss struck a more conciliatory tone, but the latest blow could inflame tensions once again. Sesko hasn’t played for his country since October 2025 and if he withdraws from this camp he will have missed Slovenia’s last 10 fixtures.
Speaking last week, Cesar said: “I’m very happy that he’s back in a competitive rhythm and the injury is finally repaired. I have spoken to him and I believe Benjamin Sesko will come to the camp.”
“I’ve been (aware of the) situation with his injury since March. It was quite a serious injury, and I think they handled it altogether in the right way to get him into the training process so slowly.”
Kobbie Mainoo and Marcus Rashford are also likely to withdraw from England duty as United assess their fitness. Carrick didn’t mention an injury when he was questioned about the decision to take Mainoo off 10 minutes from the end of the draw with Fulham but the 21-year-old is now expected to pull out of England’s Nations League fixtures.
Rashford has been managing a hip injury he sustained during England’s World Cup win over DR Congo in the round of 32 stage in North America.
Sports
APL expects revenue to cover operating costs by third season: Kamineni | Other Sports News
The Archery Premier League (APL) expects to reach break-even by its second or third season and sees media rights becoming a meaningful revenue stream from around its third or fourth edition, as the franchise-based competition prepares to return with an expanded international field in October.
The Indian roster will include newly crowned Archery World Cup champion Dhiraj Bommadevara, who became the first Indian male archer to win an individual title at the season-ending competition.
Sponsorship currently contributes the bulk of the league’s revenue, APL Director Anil Kamineni told Business Standard. Season two will focus on expanding viewership and watch time while attracting more sponsors and strengthening revenue, he said.
“Season two is about building on the momentum of the inaugural season and achieving growth across all these parameters — higher viewership and watch time, more sponsors and stronger revenues,” Kamineni said. “We want to deepen audience engagement while continuing to build a sustainable commercial ecosystem around the league.”
APL targets break-even by third season
Kamineni did not disclose the cost of staging and broadcasting the inaugural edition or provide a detailed revenue split. He described the first season as an investment in establishing the league, its audience and the wider ecosystem.
“We expect to reach break-even around the second or third season as the league scales its commercial opportunities,” he said.
While sponsorship remains the primary source of income, the league expects other commercial streams to become more significant as its audience and value expand. Media rights, however, may take another few seasons to develop into a substantial source of revenue.
“We expect media rights to become a meaningful revenue stream from around the third or fourth season,” Kamineni said.
Broadcast format creates advertising inventory
One of the challenges in monetising archery is creating sufficient advertising inventory because contests are relatively short and have fewer natural breaks than sports such as cricket. According to Kamineni, the league’s two-hour broadcast window provides room for advertising without disrupting the competition.
Each two-hour event features three matches, with every match offering three to four commercial breaks of 90 seconds each. These are placed at intervals of around five to six minutes, creating approximately 10-13 commercial breaks across the broadcast.
“The APL format offers sufficient commercial inventory while keeping the viewing experience seamless,” he said.
Live matches drive APL viewership
The league’s confidence in developing archery as an annual commercial property is also based on audience data from its inaugural season.
Nearly 88 per cent of Sony LIV video views came from live matches, while live broadcasts generated almost 97 per cent of the total watch time. Viewers spent more than 3.15 million minutes watching the league, with an average viewing duration of 29 minutes.
The league’s YouTube Live broadcasts recorded 103,527 views from 63,600 unique viewers and generated 6,334 hours of watch time. The average viewing duration was 13 minutes and five seconds.
“These numbers are very encouraging. They demonstrate the keen interest audiences have in watching archery live and give us confidence that the sport can be developed as an appointment-viewing property beyond the Olympics,” Kamineni said.
More than 30 per cent of APL viewers watched through connected televisions, according to Kamineni, indicating that a section of the audience chose to follow the competition on larger screens rather than consume it primarily through mobile devices.
More than 60 per cent of Sony LIV viewers were aged between 26 and 45. YouTube data showed that viewers aged 25-44 accounted for nearly 60 per cent of the audience. India generated between 78 per cent and 89 per cent of YouTube views across the reported match days, with smaller audiences coming from the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and Mexico.
APL Season 2 brings 48 archers to Hyderabad
The second season will feature 36 Indian archers and 12 international competitors from 10 countries. It will be held at People’s Plaza on Hyderabad’s Necklace Road from October 8 to 18, with matches scheduled between 7.30 pm and 9.30 pm.
Dhiraj enters APL as World Cup Final champion
Dhiraj will enter the league after defeating Japan’s Nakanishi Junya 6-5 in the men’s individual recurve final in Saltillo, Mexico. With the scores tied at 5-5, Dhiraj hit a 10 in the shoot-off against Nakanishi’s nine to secure the title.
The 25-year-old became only the second Indian to win an individual crown at the World Cup Final after Dola Banerjee, who claimed the women’s recurve title in Dubai in 2007.
India’s lone representative at the 2026 World Cup Final, Dhiraj defeated Olympic medallist Berkim Tümer of Türkiye 7-1 in the quarter-finals and two-time Olympic silver medallist Jean-Charles Valladont of France by the same score in the semi-finals.
The triumph capped an impressive World Cup season for Dhiraj. He qualified for the final by winning the individual recurve title at the Antalya stage, where he also claimed mixed-team gold alongside Kumkum Mohod. Both archers will compete in the second APL season.
International stars bolster six-franchise league
The six-franchise competition will continue to feature mixed-gender teams across the recurve and compound categories. Its 15-second shot clock, five seconds shorter than the standard Olympic limit, has been retained to increase pressure on the archers and quicken the pace of the broadcast.
Alongside Dhiraj, four-time Olympian Deepika Kumari and Atanu Das are among the leading Indian recurve archers in the field. The compound roster includes Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Abhishek Verma and former world champion Ojas Pravin Deotale. All 12 members of India’s Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games squad are part of the APL ecosystem.
The overseas field includes Tokyo Olympic champion Mete Gazoz of Türkiye, Paris Olympic bronze medallist Casey Kaufhold of the United States, world No. 1 Marcus D’Almeida of Brazil and world No. 2 Ella Gibson of Great Britain. Former world champion Mike Schloesser of the Netherlands will also compete.
The Indian roster has been selected using World Archery and national rankings. Twenty-one Indian archers will return from the inaugural season, while 15 will make their APL debuts. The debutants include World Championship silver medallist Rajat Chauhan, World Cup stage winner Ridhi, World University Games gold medallist Kushal Dalal and junior national champion Kirti Sharma.
South Korean and Chinese archers on APL radar
Kamineni said the presence of international athletes would allow Indian archers to compete alongside and learn from some of the sport’s leading names. The league also wants to bring more archers from South Korea and China into future editions.
Domestic competition calendars in the two countries overlapped with the APL schedule this season, according to Kamineni.
“We are keen to see greater participation from leading archers from South Korea and China in future editions,” he said. “As the league grows, we hope to create opportunities for more athletes from these leading archery nations to participate.”
Rajputana Royals won the inaugural competition. Kamineni said the combination of franchise rivalries, international competitors, leading Indian athletes and a compact broadcast format could help transform archery from an Olympics-led sport into an annual sporting and commercial property.
Sports
Brewers set franchise win record with victory over Orioles
BALTIMORE — The Milwaukee Brewers haven’t won more than five in a row all year. It hasn’t stopped them from setting a single-season franchise record for victories.
Milwaukee broke the mark it set last season on Sunday night, smothering the Baltimore Orioles 3-0 to improve to 98-58.
“We haven’t had these streaks of greatness,” manager Pat Murphy said. “We haven’t put it all together.”
Even without rattling off an extended run, the Brewers have the best record in the majors. They’ve already clinched their fourth consecutive NL Central title and will make their eighth postseason appearance in nine years. Twice in that span they’ve advanced to the NLCS, including last year, but they have not reached the World Series since 1982.
Milwaukee completed its ninth series sweep of the season while receiving help from all over the roster. The Brewers stole four bases, got a stellar diving catch from center fielder Garrett Mitchell in the seventh inning and had seven pitchers combine on a four-hit shutout for the record-setting victory with six games left.
“It means a lot,” said pitcher Jacob Misiorowski (15-5, 1.86 ERA), who gave up a hit and struck out four in three innings in an abbreviated start designed to manage his workload.
“It’s always a big deal to set a new record, a franchise record at that. Hopefully, we get a few more and get to a little bigger number.”
Milwaukee enters the final week of the season two games ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers for the best record in the NL and needs only one more victory or an Atlanta loss to lock up a bye into the division series.
“It’s hard to be in this spot to begin with, and I don’t think it’s appreciated enough,” Murphy said. “I think people don’t realize how hard it is for any of the 30 teams to put themselves in this position, and that’s what makes me proud of these guys. We’re not the oldest team, we’re not the most experienced, we’re not the most talented. We’re not the most a lot of things, but for sure they’ve proven they’re a team.”
Sports
Cole Palmer headlines three players set to withdraw from latest England squad
Cole Palmer is set to withdraw from the England squad, with Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo also in doubt.
Palmer, who was recalled by Thomas Tuchel last week after he was left out of England’s squad for the World Cup, is reportedly dealing with a small muscle injury, though he completed Chelsea’s 3-0 defeat to Brentford on Friday night.
The 24-year-old has featured in all five of Chelsea’s Premier League matches this term but struggled with injuries in a disrupted campaign last season, recently saying during a Twitch stream that he “had one leg for 10 months”.
Manchester United manager Michael Carrick confirmed Rashford picked up an “issue” during the 1-1 draw at Fulham on Sunday, with the forward substituted while appearing to be struggling with his hip – which was a persistent issue over the summer.
Midfielder Mainoo, who travelled to this summer’s World Cup but did not play a single minute of the tournament under Tuchel, was also substituted during the closing stages of the draw at Craven Cottage.
England will play four matches over the newly expanded three-week international break, kicking off against World Cup winners Spain at Wembley on Saturday 26 September. That is followed by trips to Czech Republic and Croatia, before concluding the set of Nations League games against the Czech Republic at Wembley on Tuesday 6 October.
Palmer has started the season in excellent form, with four goals and two assists in seven appearances in all competitions while establishing a dangerous partnership with Morgan Rogers and Joao Pedro, who has withdrawn from Brazil’s squad due to injury.
Chelsea do not return to Premier League action until Saturday 10 October with a home game against Bournemouth, giving Xabi Alonso’s side three weeks to manage Palmer’s injury over the international window.
Sports
Peter Fury delivers final verdict on Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua: “He could clean him out”
An announcement for Tyson Fury’s long-awaited showdown with Anthony Joshua is hoped to be around the corner. Now, Peter Fury, uncle and former trainer of ‘The Gypsy King’, has offered his final verdict on the much-debated contest.
Formal confirmation of the clash was anticipated following Fury and Joshua’s success in their respective ‘warm-ups’ against Mariusz Wach and Kristian Prenga back in July, but it soon became clear that talks had stalled.
That is because the organisers of the event had designs on staging the all-British affair in New York City, despite the fact that ‘AJ’ had signed a contract for a fight in the United Kingdom.
After prolonged negotiations, the latest rumours suggest that Fury-Joshua is back on the cards and will likely head to the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, this December.
Although, it remains unclear whether the main event will be permitted to take place in the early hours of the morning in order to appease Netflix’s US audience or not.
Speaking on the ‘Fight Your Corner’ podcast, in partnership with Midnite, Peter Fury declared that he can only see two possible outcomes in the match-up; either Fury outboxing Joshua or Joshua handing his nephew the first stoppage defeat of his career.
“I haven’t really thought about it [Fury-Joshua] to be honest. He [Fury] is either going to outbox [him] and he will get to Joshua or Joshua is gonna find the target and he will clean him out. So, it is one or the other, isn’t it? So, we will see which one.
“I think it all comes down to what game plans they are going to do.”
Fans are eagerly awaiting news regarding Fury-Joshua, but it seems as though a deal is now nearing finalisation for one of the biggest events of the 2026 boxing calendar.
Sports
Nigerian Stars Shine Across Europe as Iheanacho, Orban and Arokodare Find the Net
Several Nigerian footballers were in action across Europe over the weekend, with Kelechi Iheanacho, Gift Orban and Tolu Arokodare among the standout performers after finding the back of the net.
Iheanacho Continues Scoring Run in Turkey
Kelechi Iheanacho continued his impressive form in Turkey, scoring twice to help Bursaspor come from behind to beat Batman Petrolspor 2-1 away from home.
Bursaspor fell behind before Iheanacho equalised from the penalty spot in the 60th minute. The Nigeria international then completed the comeback five minutes from full time.
The brace means Iheanacho has now scored in eight straight league games for Bursaspor. He has 11 goals and two assists for the club this season.
Orban Scores and Assists Against Beşiktaş
Gift Orban also made a big impact in Turkey, scoring and providing an assist as Amedspor defeated Beşiktaş 3-2 in the Turkish Süper Lig on Sunday.
Orban opened the scoring in the 13th minute with a powerful long-range effort from about 25 metres before setting up Dia Saba for Amedspor’s second goal nine minutes later.
The 24-year-old now has seven goals and two assists in six league appearances this season. He has also scored in each of his last four league games for Amedspor.
Onuachu Features in Trabzonspor Victory
Paul Onuachu came off the bench as Trabzonspor recorded an impressive 4-0 home win over Galatasaray.
The Nigerian striker was introduced in the 59th minute as Trabzonspor secured all three points.
His fellow Super Eagles forward Victor Osimhen missed the game for Galatasaray because of injury.
Arokodare Rescues Point for Ajax
In the Netherlands, Tolu Arokodare came off the bench to rescue a point for Ajax in their Eredivisie meeting with Excelsior on Saturday.
Ajax were trailing 2-1 when Arokodare was introduced in the 62nd minute. Just two minutes later, the Nigerian striker scored to level the game at 2-2.
It was Arokodare’s sixth goal across all competitions for Ajax this season.
Bassey, Iwobi Feature in Fulham Draw
Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi both featured for Fulham in their 1-1 Premier League draw with Manchester United on Sunday.
Bassey played the full match, while Iwobi was on the pitch for 71 minutes as Fulham picked up a point.
Fernandez Plays 90 Minutes in Rangers Win
Emmanuel Fernandez played the full 90 minutes for Rangers in their 1-0 Old Firm derby victory over Celtic in Scotland.
The Nigerian defender helped Rangers keep a clean sheet as they claimed victory over their city rivals.
Ejuke Features Against Barcelona
In Spain, Chidera Ejuke came off the bench for Sevilla in their 3-1 La Liga defeat to Barcelona on Saturday.
Ejuke was introduced in the 59th minute but could not help Sevilla avoid defeat. It was his sixth appearance of the campaign.
Lookman Features in Madrid Derby
Ademola Lookman also saw action in Spain as Atlético Madrid defeated Real Madrid 2-1 in the Madrid derby on Sunday.
The Nigerian forward came on in the 67th minute as Atlético secured victory over their city rivals.
Chukwueze Starts in AC Milan Win
Samuel Chukwueze started for AC Milan in their 3-0 victory over Lecce on Sunday.
The Nigerian winger played for 87 minutes before being substituted as Milan secured a comfortable home win.
Moffi Features for Hamburg
In Germany, Terem Moffi featured for Hamburg in their 2-1 Bundesliga victory over Köln on Saturday.
The Nigerian forward played 45 minutes as Hamburg secured an important three points.
Sports
2026 Week 4 Power Rankings for CFB Teams in the West

By Dane Miller, SuperWest Sports
The season is one-fourth of the way over.
That’s enough data points to rework the metrics.
The Big Ten has not lived up to its hype. Oregon has underperformed. USC has underperformed. And even Ohio State lost to Texas.
The following Non-Conference Records Against Power 4 Teams, as compiled by On3’s Brett McMurphy, are illuminating:
- SEC: 10-2
- Big 12: 5-7
- ACC: 6-9
- Big Ten: 4-9
- Mountain West: 0-7
- Pac-12: 0-11
Not to be the bearer of bad news, but these numbers are jet fuel for ESPN’s SEC propaganda machine.
Yet, what these results really underline are the Big Ten’s struggles and the Pac-12/MWC cannibalism that harmed both conferences.
So, with all that in mind, there’s a new pecking order out West this week. Here’s My Power Ranking for Week 4.
1. BYU (1-0, 3-0) ▲1
BYU dominated Colorado State. The margin of victory was appropriate for a Power 4 program over a Group of 6 foe.
The Cougars have emerged as the dominant power out West this season.
Already in the Playoff discussion, securing the Big 12’s auto-bid is the clearest path.
Yet, a single defeat could derail the entire resume.
2. Utah (0-0, 3-0) ▲1
The Utes look like one of the top teams in the country.
Devon Dampier runs Morgan Scalley’s offense efficiently, and the defense is stout.
The shutout of Utah State proved that Utah is a favorite to win the Big 12.
There is a reason for optimism in Salt Lake City. A playoff appearance is becoming more likely.
3. USC (1-0, 4-0) ▼2
USC played itself out of the top spot.
The Trojans were supposed to dominate Rutgers. Instead, the game magnified the team’s flaws.
It might be easy to attribute the result to the cross-country travel. But that’s a cop out.
The outlook on SC has turned from optimistic to questionable.
4. UCLA (1-0, 3-0) ◄►
Bob Chesney has one of the country’s top rushing offenses. Teams that run the ball effectively can control games.
But the defense gave up too many points to Purdue. The offense shouldn’t need to score 50-plus to win a Conference game.
Even so, the Bruins are 3-0 for the first time since 2023 and are 1-0 in the Big Ten for the first time in program history.
5. Oregon (0-0, 2-1) ◄►
The Ducks responded to the embarrassing defeat against Oklahoma State.
The 84-to-0 win was a step in the right direction. But further blowout victories are needed to restore their reputation.
Oregon is now oddly tied to the performance of the Cowboys in the Big 12.
That loss in Stillwater will follow UO until the end of the season.
6. Boise State (0-0, 2-1) ◄►
A win is a win.
The margin of victory over South Dakota was closer than expected. But the result doesn’t change anything.
Boise State remains in contention to make the Playoff.
The Broncos can’t afford any defeats in Pac-12 play and are dependent on Oregon’s performance in the Big Ten.
7. Washington (0-0, 3-0) ◄►
The comparative results for Washington are not good.
The close victory over Utah State looks terrible compared to Utah’s 33-to-0 win.
Realistically, the Dawgs are nowhere close to a Playoff-caliber team. This Husky squad could struggle in the Big Ten.
Buckle up, it’s about to get ugly in Seattle.
8. Arizona (0-1, 2-1) ◄►
The Wildcats did not start the game well and did not finish the game well.
The final score may look appropriate, but the ugly 1st Quarter was concerning.
Arizona is 0-3 against the spread this season. That’s the definition of underperforming.
Still, playmakers are starting to emerge from the receiving corps after the injury to Gio Richardson.
9. Arizona State (1-0, 2-1) ◄►
Call it a mulligan and move on. Arizona State should have handled Kansas more comfortably.
But it was a game played on a soccer field in a foreign country. In the rain. Don’t read too much into it.
Still, Cutter Boley’s performances are coming under more scrutiny.
It’s no wonder it took Kenny Dillingham so long to name him the starter in fall camp.
10. New Mexico (0-0, 2-1) ◄►
New Mexico gained respect against Oklahoma. The game was much closer than anyone was expecting.
The close result shows the strength of UNM’s program under Jason Eck.
But with success comes attention. Many power programs will be interested in hiring Eck for next season.
Enjoy it while you can, Lobos.
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