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From the show

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AS Monaco beat Olympique de Marseille 2–0 thanks to their new rising star, Paris Brunner. With this victory, Monaco (6 points) are the sole leaders of Ligue 1 after two matchdays.

It was only Week Zero, and the Mountain West’s Playoff hopes are already cooked.

UNLV was the lone program in the conference viewed as a playoff contender. Losing to Memphis at home underlines a hierarchy: The American > Mountain West.

The American is coming off a strong 2025 season and has now further distanced itself from the revamped MWC.

So how does that affect teams out West?

For Week One, there are no Mountain West teams in the Top 10.

Here’s how they stack up.

Miller covers College Basketball and College Football as well as Formula 1 racing as a Senior Writer and Assistant Editor for SuperWest Sports.

Latest posts by Dane Miller (see all)

Filip Hrgovic has assessed the power of Moses Itauma after absorbing his best shots, round after round, and eventually securing a remarkable come-from-behind stoppage.

The Croatian became his country’s first-ever world heavyweight champion last Saturday, pulling off a major upset to outlast home favourite Itauma at London’s O2 Arena.

Hrgovic had lost every round, almost to the point where he was becoming a human punching bag, while Itauma looked set to become the second-youngest world heavyweight champion in history.

After going for the stoppage in round eight, though, it seemed the 21-year-old had emptied his gas tank and no longer had the energy to dominate their contest.

This allowed Hrgovic to capitalise in the following round, initially wobbling Itauma with a right hand before his sustained onslaught inspired referee Howard Foster to draw a halt.

As a result, the 34-year-old claimed the vacant IBF title which had previously belonged to Oleksandr Usyk, who vacated his three belts in June.

Offering his immediate reaction to DAZN, Hrgovic hailed the speed of Itauma but insisted a lack of experience, and indeed his amateur-like style, meant the precocious talent never put a dent in him. As for Itauma’s power, Hrgovic believes his past knockouts are perhaps more down to speed than raw power.

“He’s amazing. I didn’t know it was going to be so hard. He’s so fast – you don’t see his punches coming.

“He don’t hit so hard, but he’s fast. He still boxes like an amateur and he’s inexperienced. I saw he was gassing out and I knew my only chance was to stay there, keep coming, make him [more] tired and maybe stop him in the later rounds.”

While having expressed his interest in unification matches with Agit Kabayel or Daniel Dubois, Hrgovic will be immediately ordered to defend his title against mandatory challenger Frank Sanchez.

Archer, Tongue and Atkinson are all capable of high speed, while Robinson often operates below 80mph with the wicketkeeper standing up. His accuracy and ability to extract movement have seen him take 23 wickets this summer at a remarkable average of 8.3.

“We’ve got a good contrast in what we’re trying to do at the moment,” said former opener Trescothick.

“What we do have is three guys bowling at 92 miles an hour, which is really nice to have in your armoury and to have the potency in what you’re trying to do.

“And the more that they play together and the more experience that everyone gets together, then it fits into place to how you want it to be.”

Writing for the Telegraph on Monday, England’s captain in 2005 Michael Vaughan said the current attack can only be compared to his bowlers when they win a major series.

But Vaughan added: “They are certainly capable of doing something really special, and winning back the Ashes for England next summer.”

England will aim for a 3-0 clean sweep of Pakistan in the third Test at Edgbaston, beginning on 9 September.

The home side will confirm a squad for the series finale in Birmingham in the coming days.

There were seven pace bowlers in the squad for Lord’s. Brydon Carse was originally included, only to be removed following an incident outside a nightclub in Derby. He is not expected to be considered for England again until the conclusion of investigations by the police and Cricket Regulator.

In Carse’s absence, England’s back-up seamers are Sam Cook, Sonny Baker and Matthew Fisher.

The trio have only four Test caps between them, yet Trescothick hinted England are likely to resist the temptation to give the reserves more Test experience.

“First and foremost I want to win the series 3-0, and I think if you’re going to do that you want to play the most consistent team possible,” said the 50-year-old.

“We’ve got to see how they all pull up from this game, and they’ve got four or five days now of break which they’ve not had for a good period of time because the schedule has been so busy.

“Once we know that then we’ll be able to make that decision, but emphasis massively on winning the series 3-0.”

Former world No.1 Novak Djokovic’s US Open has ended with this earliest Grand Slam exit in two decades as he fell to Mariano Navone 7-6 (7/5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 on Sunday.

The defeat scuppered the Serbian tennis legend’s latest bid for a 25th Grand Slam title, and ended a streak of 78 Grand Slam first-round victories, which began at the 2006 French Open.

Considering the obvious discomfort the 39-year-old Djokovic began feeling early in the match, it was truly impressive that he managed to take Navone, 25, the distance.

After battling through more than four and a half hours in the Arthur Ashe Arena, Djokovic gracefully congratulated his opponent.

“I don’t want to take too much out of his win. Congrats to him. He’s a nice guy, a fighter,” Djokovic said of the 25-year-old Argentine, currently 48th in the men’s rankings.

“It’s unbelievable,” Navone said after triumphing in his first meeting with his childhood idol.

 “It was a tough match, a battle. Playing against Novak the first time in the biggest stage we have in the world of tennis right now… I mean, it’s crazy.”

I ‘despised’ every minute

Throughout most of the match, Djokovic looked physically spent, repeatedly throwing up into a courtside bucket and regularly doubling over in pain. 

Unsurprisingly, Djokovic said he had “despised” every moment of the ordeal at Flushing Meadows.

“I think it was obvious that it was an awful feeling on the court for me,” he said.

“It’s something that I’ve been carrying, unfortunately, pretty much every match this year. You know, vomiting, throwing up, a serious issue there.

“Then my whole body, you know, starts to collapse, basically cramping and pain. Yeah, the back just gave up in the end and shoulder, and I couldn’t close it out?”

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Long-term ‘health issue’

His last tournament, in Cincinnati two weeks ago, where Djokovic threw up into a towel, first revealed that he had been struggling with a “health issue” that affects him in hot, humid conditions for “many years.”

Despite the unspecified medical condition he suffers from, Djokovic reached the final of the Australian Open in January and the semifinals of Wimbledon in June. However, he said following his exit in New York that he’s now simply not physically capable of going deep into tournaments.

This mystery ailment, coupled with his age, will have many asking whether Djokovic, who remarkably still sits at No. 5 in the men’s rankings, could be approaching the end.

Perhaps more alarming than the ailment itself is the fact that he simply doesn’t know how to correct the problem. Still, he appears determined to battle on — at least for now.

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“Can the issue be fixed? I don’t know,” he said. 

“I’m trying, man. I’m trying. Let’s see.”

Edited by: 

Originally, the plan was to show third-year offensive lineman Walter Rouse the door via waivers. Instead, the Vikings pulled a u-turn, doing so to recoup value via trade.

Consider the update that arrives courtesy of Ben Goessling of The Star Tribune: “Source confirms the #Vikings are trading Walter Rouse to the Patriots. They’ll send a 7th-round pick to New England with Rouse, in exchange for a 6th from the Pats.”

The team itself has since confirmed the news. An official social media post reads, “The #Vikings have traded T Walter Rouse and a 2027 7th-round pick to the Patriots in exchange for a 2027 6th-round pick.”

Vikings Pull a U-Turn
OL Walter Rouse Is Being Traded

Nobody in the Twin Cities is going to be doing cartwheels. Still, Nolan Teasley did an okay job on this one.

Losing a young fella for nothing isn’t the desired outcome. Finding a taker in a trade is better even if the overall draft capital increase appears negligible.

Seeing the news get out into the NFL headlines that a waiver was upcoming functioned as a billboard.

The Vikings allowed the news to get out of TCO Performance Center. All of the NFL could see that somebody who once demanded a 6th-Round selection was going to be put through the waiver process.

Apparently, the Patriots didn’t love their chances of getting Mr. Rouse for free, leading to a trade call before Minnesota could officially submit the paperwork to complete the cut.

Again, not a total game-changer but a better outcome than losing someone for nothing.

Of course, there’s going to be some temptation to take cynical view of things. Last year, the Vikings suffered a pile of injuries up front and still didn’t turn to Mr. Rouse for help. The coaching staff must have had a low view of what he offered the team despite demanding a draft selection in the 2024 haul.

Teasley, though, wasn’t part of the crew that sunk a pick into Rouse. The new GM’s task is to work with the ingredients available to him to make the best possible meal in 2026.

Provided health cooperates, the Vikings’ offensive line will consist of the following starters: Christian Darrisaw, Donovan Jackson, Blake Brandel, Will Fries, and Brian O’Neill. Four of those five are homegrown talents. The left side, in particular, should become tremendous, but the Fries/O’Neill duo has the capacity to bully a lot of defenders.

Some combination of Ryan Van Demark, Caleb Tiernan, and/or Michael Jurgens appear ready to function as the main depth options. Does Joe Huber make it? Henry Byrd?

Walter Rouse has been gunning for a depth job. Instead, he’ll look to fortify the protection in front of Drake Maye.

New England is coming off a Super Bowl appearance but then had a nightmare offseason due to Mike Vrabel’s involvement with Dianna Russini. Rouse’s task is to block out whatever external distractions linger by blocking for Maye.

Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.

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BCB president Tamim Iqbal (Image credit: BCB)

Bangladesh Cricket Board president Tamim Iqbal has expressed optimism about the white-ball series against India, while admitting that Bangladesh could have handled the controversy surrounding their withdrawal from the 2026 T20 World Cup more carefully.The India tour, featuring three ODIs and as many T20Is, was originally scheduled for August-September. However, with India set to play a T20 series against Afghanistan from September 13, the series against Bangladesh will not take place in the previously discussed window.Tamim, however, insisted that the series has not been scrapped and said both boards are actively looking for a suitable window amid their crowded schedules.

Tamim hopeful of India series

“That it (the series against India) won’t happen hasn’t been decided yet. Still, let me give a quick piece of information. Both boards are very sincere that this thing happens. Both the BCCI and the BCB, and we are looking at windows as well, to see what can be done at that time.“Roughly a date, around which we are also thinking whether it can be done at this time or not. If I saw the intention was negative, then today I wouldn’t even have said this word to you, ‘Let’s see what happens, we’re hopeful.’ I wouldn’t have even said this word. Intentions are very positive,” Tamim told popular YouTube channel Not Out Noman.He said both boards remain in regular communication despite their busy schedules.“There are certain things that are beyond our control. And I never want to cross that line as BCB president, okay? But intentions are good, we are continuously communicating. Dates are also being figured out, because Bangladesh is also busy, they are also busy. Bangladesh has three series in between. They also, India, BCCI stay very busy with their matches. But we are having a regular discussion regarding this,” he said.The proposed series comes against the backdrop of strained relations between the two boards earlier this year, before Bangladesh eventually withdrew from the 2026 T20 World Cup in India, citing security concerns.

‘We should have definitely played the World Cup’

Tamim also reflected on the events surrounding Bangladesh’s decision to skip the tournament, particularly after fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman was released from his IPL 2026 contract with Kolkata Knight Riders.He acknowledged that the situation could have been handled differently, while reiterating that he believed Mustafizur’s release was wrong.“I feel that we could have negotiated the thing much better. Look, Mustafizur’s issue was obviously something that the whole country was disappointed with. And I say today as well; I said that day too, it should never have happened. This was in no way the right thing to do; this should never have been done.“At that time I endorsed this; I am saying it even now. But we are going to play a World Cup. Every single person in Bangladesh celebrated like anything when we first qualified for the World Cup. It may be that now every two years a T20 World Cup happens, or every four years it happens, but it is a World Cup Bangladesh is going to represent, right?“So, I feel we probably could have dealt with it better. We went to a point of no return right from the beginning. If you go to a point of no return on the very first day, then that (solution) won’t happen. And I feel in some cases, sports should remain as sports.”Tamim said there were aspects of the negotiations that he could not reveal publicly, but maintained that Bangladesh should have found a way to participate.“I am saying this, I am in the ICC now, I am an ICC member because of BCB. There were a lot of things said and done during those negotiations, which, if I make public, you will be surprised. I won’t be able to do it (revealing those incidents). I won’t be able to do it because I come back to that fact, I need to maintain that respect. You will be surprised at what things were said, but let’s not go into that discussion,” he said.Tamim also argued that sporting events should, where possible, be kept separate from political disputes.“My point is, whatever it is, whatever is going on, who is going to which country, in which country the match should be played, I am not going into that detail. I feel that in some cases, we should treat sports as sports. Unfortunately, we sometimes might not be staying within this line. We often drag sports with other aspects as well,” he said.“So whenever this topic comes up, I say the same thing again, that we should have definitely played the World Cup. We should have definitely done the negotiation in a better way. And that’s it, I cannot say many things even though I know them,” he added.

Tyson Fury has offered his thoughts on the “shocking” outcome of Moses Itauma getting stopped in nine rounds by veteran Filip Hrgovic.

The pair collided at London’s O2 Arena on Saturday, with Itauma looking set to become the youngest world heavyweight champion since Mike Tyson dethroned Trevor Berbick in 1986.

He had, after all, built a considerable lead after scoring a second-round knockdown and dominating practically all of their exchanges.

The 21-year-old was clearly becoming increasingly fatigued, though, and after attempting to get his man out of there in round eight, he was seemingly running on empty.

Taking advantage of this, Hrgovic found a sudden surge of energy and delivered a sustained onslaught, eventually urging referee Howard Foster to draw a halt in round nine.

As a result, the Croatian became his country’s first-ever world heavyweight champion by claiming the IBF title, which was vacated by Oleksandr Usyk in June.

With it coming as a major upset, however, Fury has highlighted the drama of heavyweight boxing by reminding us of Anthony Joshua’s surprising two-round battle with Kristian Prenga.

Speaking with ESNEWS, ‘The Gypsy King’ reflected on how Prenga was able to score two knockdowns, only to get stopped in the second round of their July encounter.

“It’s heavyweight boxing; anything can happen. Just because a guy got put down by a bum [Prenga] doesn’t mean it couldn’t happen to any one of us. Of course it can – it’s boxing.

“Take a look at the next future world champion tonight – he got beat. Moses Itauma – he got stopped in nine rounds. It can happen to anyone … It was shocking.”

While Joshua’s experience with Prenga proved vastly different to that of Itauma’s with Hrgovic, both fights nonetheless reflect the uncertainty of boxing.

Well, that was a wild day for news.

The Minnesota Vikings are now down to 53 players. The focus can shift toward that Week 1 Packers game. Who is going to be in the Vikings’ starting lineup? Glad you asked. Consider what things could plausibly look like rolling into the NFC North battle on Sunday, September 13th.

Oh, and for the record, neither of Kevin O’Connell nor Nolan Teasley asked for my opinion. They know how to reach me if they’re interested in my advice.

Projecting the Vikings’ Starting Lineup

The Vikings’ Offense

— READ MORE: Vikings Cuts Start Piling Up as Deadline Nears —
— READ MORE: A Kevin O’Connell Sounds Like the Kiss of Death for 1 QB —
— READ MORE: A Final Vikings 53-Man Roster Projection —

Part of what makes the Vikings compelling is the promise to be more multiple than in the past.

TE2 Josh Oliver is going to demand playing time (rightfully so; he’s awesome). So is rookie FB Max Bredeson (rightfully so; he’s awesome). Seeing Oliver, Bredeson, and Jennings all blocking on a Mason run is going to be a good football moment. Could Chaz Chambliss somehow get worked into the mix?

Coach O’Connell would be wise to figure out how to run the ball.

The Vikings’ Defense

Similar to the offense, the Vikings’ defense is going to be multiple.

Expect rookie DT Domonique Orange and LB Jake Golday to earn significant workloads. Likewise, S Jacob Thomas is on an upward trajectory, but we’ll see what that means as a rookie. After all, he’s an undrafted talent who has already done much to overcome the odds.

Questions: who gets to start alongside Metellus? What does 2026 look like for Caleb Banks?

The Vikings’ Special Teams

Nothing to see here, folks.

Where there’s some mystery is at returner. Myles Price will be the PR1. Does Tai Felton get leaned on as the PR2 if there’s an injury?

As for kickoff return, the candidates consist of Price, Felton, Demond Claiborne, Dillon Bell, and maybe some others. A job to watch.

Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.