Geno always wins

The GIST: Week 8 of college football served upsets and tight finishes galore, leaving just 10 teams undefeated out of the FBS’ 134 squads — led by new No. 1 Oregon, who claimed yesterday’s top poll spot for the first time since 2012. Not happy with where your team ended up in the poll? Some say throwing trash can help change an unwanted outcome…

Georgia, Tennessee shake up the standings: Unlike their 2019 mascot meeting, Saturday’s underdog Georgia asserted their dominance over the then–No. 1 Texas Longhorns, forcing four turnovers to bag the 30–15 win. The dub sent the ’Horns to No. 5 and boosted the Bulldogs to No. 2.

• Elsewhere, the No. 15 Alabama Crimson Tide isn’t exactly rolling in their post-Saban era, falling 24–17 to No. 7 Tennessee’s field-stormers on Saturday. The last time Bama lost twice before November? In 2007, when Beyoncé’s “Irreplaceable” topped the charts.

Ranked teams survive upset bids: Still-undefeated No. 6 Miami outlasted Louisville 52–45 behind quarterback (QB) Cam Ward’s four touchdown (TD) passes, setting a school record of seven straight games with at least 300 passing yards. Ward’s case for the Heisman just keeps getting stronger.

• The Big 12 brought big drama this weekend, from unbeaten No. 10 Iowa State’s 38–35 comeback win over UCF to No. 21 Missouri’s Hollywood-style finish: After a mid-game MRI, QB Brady Cook scored a fourth-quarter TD to secure Mizzou’s 21–17 victory over Auburn. Unreal.

Big Ten baddies show out: Rumor has it that Indiana is a football school now: The No. 13 Hoosiers are out to their best start in 57 years (!!!) after dominating Nebraska 56–7 in front of Saturday’s sold-out home crowd. Looks like HC Curt Cignetti’s email campaign is working.

• With the aforementioned Oregon Ducks flying high, mark your cal for next Saturday’s matchup with No. 20 Illinois, who’s feeling good after blasting defending national champ Michigan 21–7 on Saturday.

The GIST: Late October means three things: daily PSLs, Halloween costume stress, and autumn sports teams, ahem, falling into place as they race toward the postseason. In the last few days, three NCAA selection committees released their Top 16 lists (aka the official natty frontrunner rankings), so let’s dive into what to expect for the playoffs.

⚽ Women’s soccer: The golazo gals are roaring into the regular season’s final week, with most teams scheduled for just one or two more matches before conference tournaments begin. Thursday’s Top 16 list offered NCAA tourney insights, but with this much talent in the league, a lot can happen before November 15th’s first round.

• Nearly every major conference has a tie atop their standings, but like their aforementioned football teams, the Big 12’s fútbol gals are extra dramatic: Four teams are in striking distance of the regular-season title and, therefore, the conference tourney’s top seed. Buckle TF up.

⚽ Men’s soccer: With just two regular-season weeks remaining, the fellas aren’t far behind. One surprise in their Top 16 drop yesterday? Ohio State — who are ranked No. 5 in the coaches’ poll — snagged the committee’s top spot over legacy programs like No. 2 Stanford and No. 4 Pitt. Fascinating.

🏐 Women’s volleyball: Because it’s stacked with a bunch of overachievers, volleyball’s committee also dropped their Top 16 list yesterday — six weeks before the sport’s postseason. No such thing as too much information, right?

• Notably, the committee put a premium on strength of schedule — that’s how No. 2 Nebraska and their seven Top-25 wins snagged the first spot over nearly flawless No. 1 Pitt, who swept No. 5 Stanford for their sixth ranked win mere minutes after the list dropped.

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