The Sportsletter - Week Zero 🏈

BY JEFF YODER

AUG. 26, 2022  |  SUBSCRIBE  |  REFER  |  WEB VIEW

Happy Friday 🙌

It's a great weekend to be a football fan. Week 0 is on the horizon for the 2022 college football season. It's the appetizer before next weekend's main dish. Plus, we crown a PGA champion this weekend alongside WNBA playoffs, Little League World Series and a trip to Daytona. It's football time once again...

Letter Rip!

CFB

CFB Kickoff: Week Zero

Photo: Scott Cunningham / Getty Images

Previewing the College Football Season Before Week Zero

The big kickoff to the 2022 College Football season isn’t until next weekend, but ‘Week 0’ kicks off this Saturday with a handful of matchups to quench your football thirst. Today, I’ll take a look at 2022 season, including Heisman Trophy favorites, preseason rankings and the notable games to watch this weekend. Its’ regular season football, and it’s finally here.

2022 Heisman Trophy Favorites

QB C.J. Stroud (OSU): +220 Odds

QB Bryce Young (ALA): +380 Odds

QB Caleb Williams (USC): +700 Odds

RB Will Anderson Jr. (ALA): +1600 Odds

RB Bijan Robinson (TEX): +2200 Odds

Full Heisman Odds

Preseason AP Poll

1. Alabama

2. Ohio State

3. Georgia

4. Clemson

5. Notre Dame

6. Texas A&M

7. Utah

8. Michigan

9. Oklahoma

10. Baylor

Week Zero (Notable Games)

Nebraska at Northwestern (Sat. 12:30 pm ET)
Wyoming at Illinois (Sat. 4:00 pm ET)
Florida A&M at North Carolina (Sat. 8:15 pm ET)
Vanderbilt at Hawaii (Sat. 10:30 pm ET)

Full Schedule

Additional Storylines

Fansided: 5 Bold Predictions for Week 0 of the 2022 Season

SI: Preseason Projections for All 41 College Football Bowl Games

CBS Sports: SEC Expert Picks: Most Overrated & Underrated Teams & Bold Predictions

PGA

Scheffler In Charge at East Lake

Photo: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images

Scottie Scheffler Extends Lead to 5 Strokes After Round 1 at TOUR Championship

The year of Scottie Scheffler continued in the opening round at East Lake on Thursday. Scheffler — who began the PGA Tour finale with 10-under in starting strokes — extended his lead from two to five after a blistering 65 that including three straight birdies on 16, 17 and 18. Xander Schauffele fired a 4-under 66 to get to 10-under, but it was Matt Fitzpatrick (-9) and Joaquin Niemann (-8) who climbed the leaderboard with a pair of 64s. Only two golfers ended Round 1 above par, so there’s plenty of firepower behind Scheffler if he falters this weekend. Let’s go to Day 2!

Leaderboard (Round 1)

S. Scheffler (-15)

X. Schauffele (-10)

M. Fitzpatrick (-9)

J. Niemann (-8)

P. Cantlay (-8)

S. Im (-7)

R. McIlroy (-7)

C. Smith (-7)

Other Notable Scorecards: J. Thomas (-6), J. Rahm (-6), C. Morikawa (-5), J. Spieth (-4) | Full Leaderboard

Watch: TOUR Championship Round 1 Highlights

Additional Storylines

Golf Channel: Scottie Scheffler Shoots 65, Reveals ‘Weird’ Injury That is ‘Probably TMI’

ESPN: Scottie Scheffler Finishes Round 1 With 3 Straight Birdies to Lead TOUR Championship by 5 Strokes

NBA

Thunder Struck

Photo: Alex Goodlett / Getty Images

Thunder Rookie Chet Holmgren Out for Season With Lisfranc Injury in Pickup Game

We’re two months out from the start of the 2022-23 NBA season, but the Oklahoma City Thunder have already taken a loss. Rookie Chet Holmgren, the No. 2 overall pick, suffered a foot injury two days again during a pickup game in Seattle. He was defending LeBron James when he came down awkwardly. A later diagnosis revealed a Lisfranc injury — or a ligament tear.

"Certainly, we are disappointed for Chet, especially given the excitement he had about getting on the floor with his teammates this season. We know Chet has a long career ahead of him within our organization and the Oklahoma City community.” — Thunder GM Sam Presti

The injury — which occurred two minutes into a pro-am game — raised discussions about NBA players participating in offseason pickup games. Former NBA player Jamal Crawford, who hosted the event, canceled the game at halftime due to floor conditions. However, stars have participated in recreational games throughout league history. Holmgren’s injury could lead to more teams cracking down on offseason player activity.

Additional Storylines

Yahoo! Sports: What Chet Holmgren’s Injury Means for the Thunder This Season

SI: Chet Holmgren’s Injury Proves Why NBA Players Shouldn’t Play in Pro-Am Leagues

🎥 THE HIGHLIGHTS

⚾️ MLB: Nola Throws CG Shutout

The Phillies found out they lost Zack Wheeler for two weeks, but Aaron Nola brought good news later in the evening. Nola tossed a complete-game shutout against the Reds (4-0) that included 11 strikeouts and five hits allowed. Philly has won four straight.

THE DRAWS

🎾 U.S. Open Women’s Draw

When talking about the 2022 US Open women's field, there was one dominant storyline going into Thursday's draw ceremony: Where would Serena Williams fall? Williams will open her 21st US Open against a player she’s never faced before. (USO)

🎾 U.S. Open Men’s Draw

The 2022 US Open men's draw was revealed in full on Thursday, headlined by world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev and world No. 3 Rafael Nadal as the top two seeds. A constellation of rising stars will be in pursuit of a maiden Grand Slam title. (USO)

⚽️ Champions League Draw

The 2022-23 UEFA Champions League group stage pairings are set with plenty of noteworthy reunions and high-octane matchups. Thursday’s draw revealed Bayern Munich and Inter in the group of death while Erling Haaland and Manchester City face off against Borussia Dortmund. (CBS Sports)

📰 THE HEADLINES

• Cowboys Pro Bowl LT Tyron Smith Out Indefinitely With Knee Fracture (Yahoo! Sports)

• Unvaccinated Novak Djokovic Withdraws From U.S. Open (ESPN)

• Bills Punter Matt Araiza & 2 College Teammates Accused of Rape (B/R)

• Vanessa Bryant Awarded $16 Million in Trial Over Kobe Crash Photos (SI)
• Kurt Busch Pulls Out of NASCAR Playoffs Because of Head Injury (USA Today)
• Browns Center & NFLPA President JC Tretter Announces Retirement After 8 Seasons (CBS Sports)

• Brawl Ends Rams-Bengals Joint Practice Early (ESPN)

• Frustrated Jets WR Denzel Mims Requests Trade From Team (NBC Sports)

🗓️ WEEKEND SCHEDULE

The Must-Watch List

PGA Tour (FedEx Cup Playoffs)

TOUR Championship (All Weekend)

WNBA Playoffs (Semifinals)

Gm 1: Storm at Aces (Sun. 4:00 pm)

Gm 1: Sun at Sky (Sun. 8:00 pm)

Little League World Series

Home Run Derby (Fri. 7:00 pm)

LLWS Final (Sun. 3:00 pm)

Full Schedule

MLB

Rays-Red Sox Series

Giants-Twins Series

Braves-Cardinals Series

Full MLB Schedule

College Football (Notable Games)

Nebraska at Northwestern (Sat. 12:30 pm ET)
Wyoming at Illinois (Sat. 4:00 pm ET)
Florida A&M at North Carolina (Sat. 8:15 pm ET)
Vanderbilt at Hawaii (Sat. 10:30 pm ET)

Full Schedule

NASCAR

Coke Zero Sugar 400 @ Daytona (Sat. 7:00 pm)

*All Times ET

Do you think NBA players should be allowed to play in offseason pickup leagues? 🤔 Hoopers gotta' hoop. -- Jeff Yoder

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