>>Illinois Knocked Off By Wake Forest
(Winston Salem, NC) — Illinois is unbeaten no more after an 80-73 loss at Wake Forest in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Aaron Jordan went 4-of-6 from three en route to 20 points for the Fighting Illini, who slipped to 6-and-1 on the season. Illinois plays its first Big Ten game of the season Saturday at Northwestern.
>>Clemson, Auburn, OU, Wisconsin Top-Four In Latest CFP Rankings
(Undated) — Reigning national champion Clemson is the new number-one in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings. The Tigers are followed by Auburn, which jumped from sixth to second after beating previously top-ranked Alabama. Oklahoma is third with undefeated Wisconsin fourth. The first two teams out of the playoff picture are the Crimson Tide at number-five and Georgia at number-six.
>>Preds Top Blackhawks
(Nashville, TN) — The Blackhawks rally fell short in a 3-2 loss to the Predators in Nashville. Lance Bouma cut the lead to one midway through the third period, but Chicago never got the equalizer. Tommy Wingels also hit the back of the net. It was the second goal of the season for both players. Anton Forsberg gave up all three scores on 31 attempts. The Hawks are 12-9-and-3 and host the Stars tomorrow night.
>>Giants Bench Eli, Name Geno Smith Starting QB
(East Rutherford, NJ) — The New York Giants are benching two-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Eli Manning. Head coach Ben McAdoo announced that Geno Smith will start at quarterback this Sunday against the Raiders in Oakland. The move will end a streak of 210 consecutive regular-season starts for Manning, which ranks second in NFL history.
>>49ers To Start Garoppolo Sunday Against Bears
(Santa Clara, CA) — The Jimmy Garoppolo era is about to start in San Francisco. He will make his first start at quarterback for the 49ers Sunday in Chicago. Garoppolo takes over for C.J. Beathard, who is dealing with knee and hip injuries. The 26-year-old replaced the injured Beathard in this past Sunday’s game against Seattle. Garoppolo was acquired from New England before last month’s trade deadline.
>>Mississippi State Hires Moorhead To Be Next Head Coach
(Starkville, MS) — It didn’t take long for Mississippi State to find a replacement for Dan Mullen. According to multiple outlets, Penn State offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead will be the next head coach for the Bulldogs. Mullen is staying in the SEC and taking over at Florida. The Nittany Lions average the seventh-most points in the country this season at 41.6 per game. Tennessee, Arkansas and Texas A&M are still open jobs in the SEC.
>>Suns Hold Off Bulls
(Chicago, IL) — Another big night from Devin Booker lifted the Suns to a 104-99 win against the Bulls at the United Center. Kris Dunn went for 24 points and eight assists and Justin Holiday added 25 and six threes in the defeat. The Bulls have lost six straight. They’re at the Nuggets tomorrow night.
>>LeBron James Ejected For First Time In His Career
(Cleveland, OH) — Cavaliers star LeBron James wasn’t able to see the end of their 108-97 win against the Heat in Cleveland. James was ejected for the first time in his career with 1:39 left in the third quarter. He received one technical and was tossed for arguing with referee Kane Fitzgerald. James finished with 21 points, 12 rebounds and six assists as the Cavs won their ninth straight.