December 9, 2020 3:48 am
UNDATED (AP) – Alabama, Notre Dame, Clemson and Ohio State hold the top four spots in the College Football Playoff rankings for the third straight week. The selection committee’s second-from-last rankings had only a little movement in the top 10. Texas A&M is still fifth and Florida held at sixth. Iowa State moved up a couple of spots to seventh after earning a spot in the Big 12 title game. Cincinnati slipped a spot to eighth after an idle week because of COVID-19 issues in the program.
December 8, 2020 3:51 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers are perfect no more. The Washington Football Team erased a 14-3 halftime deficit and beat the Steelers, 23-17. Dustin Hopkins broke a deadlock by drilling a 45-yard field goal with 2:04 remaining. Montez Sweat clinched it by deflecting a Ben Roethlisberger pass into the hands of Jon Bostic for an interception that set up another Hopkins field goal. Alex Smith was 31 of 46 for 296 yards, including game-tying, 15-yard scoring strike to Logan Thomas with 9:08 to play. J.D. McKissic grabbed 10 passes for 70 yards, and Thomas gained 98 yards with nine receptions. Roethlisberger completed 33 of his 53 passes for 305 yards and two touchdowns for the Steelers, who fell to 11-1. The outcome leaves Washington in a virtual tie with the New York Giants for first place in the NFC East at 5-7. However, the Giants own the tiebreaker based on their season sweep of Washington.
December 8, 2020 3:52 am
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) – The Buffalo Bills are another step closer to ending the New England Patriots’ string of 11 consecutive AFC East titles. Josh Allen was sharp in the Bills’ 34-24 win over the 49ers, completing 32 of 40 passes for 375 yards and four touchdowns. Cole Beasley caught nine passes for 130 yards and a touchdown to help the 9-3 Bills stay one game ahead of Miami and three in front of the Pats. Dawson Knox, Isaiah McKenzie and Gabriel Davis also grabbed scoring passes from Allen, who tied a single game career high for TD throws. Nick Mullens threw for 316 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions as the 49ers fell to 5-7, keeping them at the bottom of the NFC West.
December 8, 2020 3:54 am
UNDATED (AP) – Gonzaga and Baylor remain atop the AP Top 25 men’s basketball poll after their hotly anticipated game in Indianapolis was called off about 90 minutes before tipoff last week because of positive COVID-19 tests and contact tracing within the Bulldogs program. Gonzaga received 54 of 61 first-place votes from a national media panel while the Bears had the other seven.
Iowa, Michigan State and Kansas round out the top five.
December 8, 2020 3:49 am
Dick Allen, a fearsome hitter who was a seven-time All-Star and the 1972 American League MVP, has died. He was 78. Allen’s No. 15 was retired by the Philadelphia Phillies in September, an honor that was considered long overdue by many for one of the franchise’s greatest players who fought against racism during a tumultuous period with the team in the 1960s. Phillies managing partner John Middleton broke from the team’s longstanding “unwritten” policy of only retiring the number of players who are in the Hall of Fame to honor Allen.
December 7, 2020 3:50 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The unbeaten Pittsburgh Steelers will try to become the 10th team to start a season 12-0 when they host Washington. The Steelers are coming off an uneven 19-14 victory over Baltimore in a game that was rescheduled three times because of a COVID-19 outbreak among the Ravens. Pittsburgh guard David DeCastro says the daily concerns of trying to play the season amid a pandemic have outweighed any hype surrounding his team’s torrid start. Washington has won two straight to get back in the race in the underachieving NFC East.
December 7, 2020 3:52 am
UNDATED (AP) – Patrick Mahomes threw for 318 yards and a touchdown, Harrison Butker was perfect on five field goals, and the Kansas City Chiefs overcame some red-zone woes and major mistakes that cost them two more scores to hold off the Denver Broncos 22-16. Travis Kelce had eight receptions for 136 yards and the go-ahead TD grab late in the third quarter, and Tyrann Mathieu twice picked off Broncos quarterback Drew Lock – the second with 24 seconds left to seal the win. The Chiefs clinched a playoff berth by improving to 11-1 for the second time in franchise history.
December 7, 2020 3:55 am
UNDATED (AP) – Alabama is No. 1 for the fifth week in a row and has extended its streak of consecutive poll appearances to 210, the third longest in the history of The Associated Press college football poll. The Crimson Tide are the unanimous No. 1 for the third straight week and the top seven teams are unchanged for a fifth consecutive poll. Notre Dame, Ohio State, Clemson and Texas A&M round out the top five. No. 6 Florida and No. 7 Cincinnati also held their spots. No. 24 Buffalo is ranked for the first time in school history.
December 6, 2020 7:29 am
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — After the worst start in school history, Penn State is starting to play like the Nittany Lions of old. Sean Clifford threw a 29-yard touchdown and Penn State’s defense set up three scores with stops or takeaways on Saturday in a 23-7 victory over Rutgers that gave the program its 900th win. Penn State (2-5, 2-5 Big Ten) dominated both sides of the ball, outgained Rutgers 381-204 and held the Scarlet Knights to a season-low for points. The win was the second straight for the Nittany Lions and their 14th in a row over the Scarlet Knights (2-5, 2-5). Clifford opened the scoring with a 29-yard touchdown pass to true freshman Parker Washington with 3:32 left in the first quarter. It came after the Nittany Lions stuffed Johnny Langan on a fourth-and-1 from the Rutgers 45 on the Scarlet Knights’ opening possession. A second stop on a fourth-and-1 from the Rutgers 45 in the second quarter led to a 7-yard touchdown run by Devyn Ford for a 17-0 halftime lead. Coach James Franklin has seen improvement the past two weeks, especially from his defense, particularly in short yard situations.
December 6, 2020 7:30 am
AMES, Iowa — Moments after No. 12 Iowa State finished a 42-6 rout of West Virginia on Saturday, Cyclones coach Matt Campbell said he walked into a subdued locker room. The Cyclones (8-2, 8-1, No. 9 in the CFP) will make their first appearance in the Big 12 championship game Dec. 19 after finishing the regular season alone in first place. They’ll play No. 13 Oklahoma, which secured its spot with a 27-14 win over Baylor. Brock Purdy completed 20 of 23 passes for 247 yards and three touchdowns and was the catalyst for an Iowa State offense that finished with 483 total yards against the Big 12’s top defense. The Cyclones scored touchdowns on their first three possessions. West Virginia (5-4, 4-4) didn’t score until Tyler Sumpter made a 32-yard field goal with 12 minutes left. Big 12 rushing leader Breece Hall outplayed No. 2 rusher Leddie Brown. Hall scored twice, ran for 97 yards on 22 carries and caught three passes for 56. Brown had just 48 yards on 14 carries and caught four balls for 18.
