“This is the best day of my life”
From The GIST College Sports (hi@thegistsports.com)
Hey, sports fans!
Whether your team made a bowl game or not, you can still get in on the action with our College Football Playoff (CFP) bracket challenge. Today’s newsletter has all the deets on the CFP 12-team field to help you make your picks — plus basketball, volleyball, and soccer news (oh my!).
— Utah volleyball fifth-year Amelia Van Der Werff, in a text to her younger sister, College of Charleston junior Olivia Mae, ahead of their NCAA volleyball tournament first-round showdown. Amelia and Utah won the sisterly battle before losing to Marquette in the second round.
- In more tourney news, the Sweet 16 begins later this week on the heels of second-round chaos that saw No. 7 Missouri upset top contenders No. 2 SMU. How sweet is that?
Football
🏈 The pick(s) are in
The GIST: The wait is over. An exhilarating regular season wrapped up on Saturday, as conference champions were crowned and teams punched their tickets to the inaugural 12-team CFP field. From auto bids, to at-large selections, to those left on the outside looking in, here’s how it all shook out:
Who’s in: The top ducks — uh, dogs — since late October, undefeated No. 1 Oregon outfire-powered Penn State 45–37 to win the Big Ten title and secure a first-round bye, along with three other conference champs: No. 2 Georgia (SEC), No. 3 Boise State (Mountain West), and No. 4 Arizona State (Big 12).
- As a refresher, the five highest-ranked conference winners received automatic bids, with the top four earning byes.
- Rounding out the field are SEC runners-up No. 5 Texas, No. 6 Penn State, No. 7 Notre Dame, No. 8 Ohio State, No. 9 Tennessee, No. 10 Indiana, No. 11 SMU, and ACC champs No. 12 Clemson.
Who’s out: Alabama (more on them below) and Miami were the first teams to miss the 12-team field, followed by Ole Miss and South Carolina. Miami finished the season 10-2 but didn’t play for the ACC title, while the other three ended their seasons with three losses in the competitive SEC.
The controversy: Any college football postseason that doesn’t feature 18-time national champion Alabama is bound to have people talking. The Crimson Tide just missed out, despite having a stronger strength of schedule and more ranked wins than SMU. What’s the playoffs without a little drama?
Soccer
⚽ The beautiful game
The GIST: While the men’s College Cup final four was set over the weekend, the women’s field of 64 is down to two, with ACC foes No. 2 seed North Carolina and No. 2 seed Wake Forest facing off for the title tonight at 7 p.m. ET on ESPNU. Let’s kick it.
Rematch for the championship: As ACC rivals, UNC and Wake Forest have already clashed once this season. The Tar Heels were victorious in their September 12th matchup, but it was a nail-biter as UNC needed a lone goal in the 1–0 shutout dub.
Storied UNC program hungry for more: The Tar Heels advanced to the title game by defeating archrival and No. 1 seed Duke 3–0 on Friday thanks to a shutout from fifth-year goalie Clare Gagne.
- Now, they’re chasing their 22nd national championship, adding to the Tar Heels’ already unparalleled record of 21 titles — yes, that’s half of all championships in NCAA women’s soccer history. Time will tell if they’re feeling 22, but watch for junior Kate Faasse and her nation-leading 20 goals to make a difference.
Wake Forest seeking first-ever natty: The Demon Deacons are looking to make history of their own and are in pursuit of the program’s first title. They made it one step closer with a 1–0 semis win over No. 3 Stanford thanks to a goal from senior midfielder Emily Morris.
- Junior Caiya Hanks, Wake Forest’s leader in both goals and assists, is another player to watch. Both she and UNC’s Faasse are MAC Hermann Trophy semifinalists, meaning tonight’s winner might end up taking home two trophies. Go time.
Together With The GIST
🤯 Did you know?
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* Data from Nielsen** Data from CNBC🐓 No. 3 South Carolina picks up big road win against No. 9 TCU
The defending champ Gamecocks handed TCU its first loss of the season in dominant fashion, pulling away in an 85–52 win. South Carolina held the Horned Frogs to just 33% shooting and forced 20 turnovers, proving that defense really does win games.
- As for the offense though, sophomore guard MiLaysia Fulwiley led South Carolina with 20 points, while the rest of the Gamecocks took care of things on the defensive end. That’s a slam dunk…literally.
🐺 No. 2 UConn women dominate No. 22 Louisville 85–52
The undefeated Huskies cruised to their eighth win of the season on Saturday behind a 21-point, eight-rebound effort from freshman Sarah Strong — strong, indeed — and 18 points from senior sharpshooter Azzi Fudd.
- But the blowout win was hampered by a potential injury to oft-injured Fudd, who exited the game in the third quarter and went to the locker room before later returning to the bench. Wishing her the best.
🦅 No. 5 Marquette men defeat No. 11 Wisconsin 88–74
The Golden Eagles rebounded from last week’s loss to No. 6 Iowa State with a major win over in-state rival and fellow top-25 team Wisconsin. Senior guard Cam Jones tied his season-high of 32 points, while three other Marquette players finished in double figures.
- Wisconsin was led by senior guard Max Klesmit, who scored 22 points in the loss, his team’s second in a row. Now the Badgers, who will almost certainly fall in today’s rankings drop, are the ones who’ll need a bounce-back win.
😼 No. 4 Kentucky men complete comeback to beat No. 7 Gonzaga in overtime (OT)
The Wildcats were down by 16 at the half before outscoring Gonzaga 45–29 in the second half to force OT. And the thrilling action continued from there — Kentucky led by as many as seven points in OT before pulling off the one-point win.
- Senior forward Andrew Carr powered Kentucky with 19 points, while senior center Graham Ike had a game-high 28 to lead the ’Zags in the L.
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Recs from our roster!
🏀 Who to root for
Toronto Tempo. ICYMI Canada’s first WNBA team name has been announced. Inspired by the rhythm of Toronto, the new franchise is set to make waves.
🎁 What to gift
A personalized leather toiletry bag. Who wouldn’t love to pack all their necessities in a bag sporting their favorite team? Adds to cart.
🏎️ What to build
Your favorite F1 cars with LEGO’s new Formula 1 collection launching in 2025. From team drivers to pit-stop details, you can bring the racetrack to life.
Today’s email was brought to you by Eden Laase and Briana Ekanem. Editing by Lindsay Jost. Fact checking by Mikaela Perez. Ops by Marga Sison and Elisha Gunaratnam. Ads by Katie Kehoe Foster, Alessandra Puccio, and Lisa Minutillo. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula. Head of Content Ellen Hyslop.