Clemson continues to hold the top spot in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings. Alabama has moved up two spots to second, Ohio State is holding steady at three, while Notre Dame is now fourth. The top-four teams in the final rankings meet in the semifinals on New Year’s Eve.
Andrew Luck’s injury-plagued season continues. The Colts’ quarterback will be out of action for two-to-six weeks with a abdominal muscle tear and lacerated kidney. Luck suffered the injuries in Sunday’s win over the Broncos.
A pair of Bears have been suspended four games apiece for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing substance. Offensive tackle Tayo Fabuluje and wide receiver Jalen Saunders have both been hit with the penalty. Meanwhile, the Bears have elevated wide out Deonte Thompson from the practice squad to the active roster and signed tackle Martin Wallace to the practice squad. The Bears visit the Rams on Sunday.
Jake Allen made 24 saves for his second straight shutout, as the Blues blanked the Devils 2-0 at the Prudential Center. It’s Allen’s third shutout of the season and eighth of his career. Martin Havlat [[ HAVE-lat ]] opened the scoring in his season debut, while Magnus Paajarvi [[ pay-ARE-vee ]] added his first of the year for St. Louis, which won for the sixth time in seven games. The Blues play the Rangers tomorrow night at Madison Square Garden.
A trio of Cubs are finalists for National League awards by the Baseball Writers Association of America. Pitcher Jake Arrieta is up for the Cy Young Award, Kris Bryant is the heavy favorite for Rookie of the Year, while Joe Maddon is a finalist for Manager of the Year.
Former Cubs manager Rick Renteria is the new bench coach for the White Sox. Renteria led the Cubs to 73 wins in his first and only season with the team in 2014. He was replaced by Joe Maddon. Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer admitted Tuesday that Renteria wasn’t treated “entirely fairly”.
The Cardinals will play without pitcher Lance Lynn in 2016. He had Tommy John surgery on his pitching elbow this week and will miss all of next season. The 28-year-old right-hander went 12-and-11 with a 3.44 ERA in 31 starts this past season. Lynn is signed through 2017.
St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Famer Lou Brock is recovering after the partial amputation of his left leg. The “Post-Dispatch” reports the 76-year-old has begun therapy after losing the lower portion of the leg due to a diabetes-related infection. Hospitalized a few weeks ago, the family says he’s already using a walker and is expected to be fitted with a prosthetic.
New York’s attorney general is pulling the plug on the two biggest daily fantasy sports companies. New York’s AG has deemed the fantasy games to be illegal gambling and ordered FanDuel and DraftKings to stop accepting bets from state residents.
Coming up Saturday afternoon, it’s Millikin University football on Talk 101 as The Big Blue are home for the season finale against Augustana. The Pepsi Pregame Show gets underway at 12:30p.m. and the kickoff follows at 1:00p.m. Join Scott Busboom and Kevin Hale this Saturday afternoon from Frank M Lindsey Field in Decatur with all the action. You can also listen to the game online at www.decaturradio.com. Then Saturday Night on Talk 101 it’s the tipoff of the College Basketball Season as the Millikin Men host the Engineers of Rose Hulman. The Pepsi Pregame Show gets underway at 7:00p.m. and the tipoff follows at 7:30p.m. It’s a day night college sports doubleheader this Saturday on Talk 101!