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6A — BAKER CITY HERALD SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2020 Pac-12, Mountain West plan fall football ■ Pac-12 schools, including Oregon and Oregon State will kick off Nov. 6, with Boise State and its conference starting Oct. 24 By Ralph D. Russo AP College Football Writer A major college football season that was in peril six weeks ago as conferences succumbed to concerns about COVID-19 is reconstituting. The West Coast got back in the game Thursday night. The Pac-12 set Nov. 6 to start a seven-game season, joining the Big Ten in overturning August decisions to punt on fall football. The Mountain West followed up a few hours later by announcing it is aiming to kick off Oct. 24. Nine of the 10 FBS conferences are now ready to have their seasons completed by Dec. 20, the day the College Football Playoff selection committee is scheduled to pick teams to play for the national champion- ship and in the most lucrative bowls. As soon as Friday, the Mid-Ameri- can Conference, the fi rst FBS league to postpone, could make it 10 out of 10. All that talk about playing football in the winter and spring, about whether it was a good idea to play during a pandemic at all? Out the window. Not even a pandemic could stop college football at the schools basketball seasons can start Nov. 25, in line with the NCAA’s recently announced opening date. The football championship game is set for Dec. 18, putting the conference back in play for the biggest postseason games — and the multimillion dollar payouts that come with them. It was Aug. 11 when the Big Ten and Pac-12 announced they were postponing their football seasons, a dark day in college sports that came six months after the pandemic canceled March Madness. Six leagues forged ahead, includ- ing the powerful Southeastern Conference, which begins play this Randy L. Rasmussen / The Oregonian-OregonLive weekend. The Big 12, Atlantic Coast Oregon State defenders John McCartan (6) and Hamilcar Rashed Jr. Conference and three others have (9) celebrate a tackle of Utah’s Devin Brumfi eld on Oct. 12, 2019. been up and running since Labor Day weekend. that play it at the highest level. greater than the benefi ts of starting This every-conference-for-itself col- “The discussion among the presi- in the ... winter.” lege football season looks like it will dents and chancellors was largely With the Pac-12 having secured have fi ve different start dates. about the benefi ts as well as the cons daily COVID-19 testing for its ath- Some teams could play as many as of starting in the fall versus start- letes and been given the green light 12 games while others get in only six. ing in January,” said University of from state and local health offi cials, And that’s not even counting what Oregon President Michael Schill, the CEOs voted unanimously to seems like the inevitable disruptions the head of the Pac-12’s CEO Group. lift a Jan. 1 moratorium on athletic still to come. There have already “The consensus opinion was the ben- competition. been 21 games postponed or canceled efi ts of starting in the fall were much The Pac-12’s men’s and women’s since Aug. 26 because of teams bat- tling various levels of COVID-19-re- lated issues, including four this week that were wiped off today’s schedule. As for the bowl season, it could conceivably start before the confer- ence champions are crowned. The NCAA football oversight committee on Thursday recommended that bowl games can be played as soon as Dec. 1 and minimum require- ments for bowl eligibility (.500 record against FBS opposition) should be waived for 2020. The Pac-12 will try squeeze seven games into seven weeks, borrowing an idea from the Big Ten and al- lowing all its teams to play an extra cross-division game on championship weekend. The turning point for the return of sports in the Pac-12 came Sept. 3 when it entered an agreement with diagnostic testing company Quidel that will give each school the capac- ity to conduct daily antigen tests on their athletes. Still, it took three weeks for the conference to reverse course on fall football, leaving it starting later and scheduled to play fewer games than its Power Five peers. Predicting the NFL: Week 3 Lakers lead Nuggets 3-1 Last week’s record: 10-5 Titans will defeat the Vikings, 28-14. San Francisco 49ers (1-1) vs. New York Giants (0-1) This game is going to be interesting because both of these teams are hurting. The 49ers defense will be shuffl ed around with the losses of Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas. The Giants are going to fi gure out how to work their offense without star running back Saquon Barkley. As for the remaining talent, the Giants can’t touch what the Niners have. The 49ers will defeat the Giants, 21-3. COREY KIRK Washington Football Team (1-1) vs. Cleveland Browns (0-2) This game is bound to be high scoring with signal callers Dwayne Haskins and Baker Mayfi eld. The key, then, is defense. Though Cleveland has some exciting pieces, I believe that Washington will edge out a victory, but barely, 27-24. New York Jets (0-2) vs. Indianapolis Colts (1-1) The Jets are coming in with multiple inju- ries and they’re bound to struggle. Jamison Crowder is Sam Darnold’s favorite target, and if he sits out again this week, it would be hard to pinpoint exactly who the Jets will rely on for offensive production. The Colts will defeat the Jets, 14-3. Cincinnati Bengals (0-2) vs. Philadelphia Eagles (0-2) After the fi rst two weeks of the season, it is fair to say that Joe Burrow is a competitor, and that will fi nally result in a win for the reign- ing Heisman Trophy winner. The Bengals will defeat the Philadelphia Eagles, 17-14. Las Vegas Raiders (2-0) vs. New England Patriots (1-1) The Raiders shocked the NFL Monday by upsetting New Orleans, and now they head to Gillette Stadium to take on the Patriots. It is tough to argue against Patriots’ quarterback Cam Newton as the early favorite for most improved player. The Patriots will defeat the Raiders, 20-17. Chicago Bears (2-0) vs. Atlanta Falcons (0-2) After such a disastrous end to their game against the Cowboys, the Falcons are looking to rebound against the Bears. Though starting with back-to-back wins, the Bears fi nally get to face a tougher opponent, and I struggle to see them control Julio Jones and the other Atlanta wide receivers. The Falcons will defeat the Bears, 27-17. Los Angeles Rams (2-0) vs. Buffalo Bills (2-0) This game has a lot of appeal to me. The Rams have such strong pieces all around, but they will have to work for it because the Bills have looked good so far. The Rams will defeat the Bills, 21-20. Carolina Panthers (0-2) vs. Los Angeles Chargers (1-1) The Panthers lost their best offensive weapon in Christian McCaf- frey to an ankle injury, and the Chargers’ rookie quarterback Justin Herbert shined in a losing effort against the reigning champs in the Chiefs. The Panthers offense is going to struggle, and the Chargers will capitalize. The Chargers will defeat the Panthers, 21-7. Dallas Cowboys (1-1) vs. Seattle Seahawks (2-0) After a miraculous rally to beat the Falcons, the Cowboys are up against a tougher opponent in the Seahawks. Russell Wilson has looked stellar in the fi rst two week throwing the ball, and with Jamal Adams anchoring the second- ary of an already stellar defense, the Cowboys are going to be overwhelmed. The Seahawks will defeat the Cowboys, 21-10. Detroit Lions (0-2) vs. Arizona Cardinals (2-0) The Cardinals are the biggest surprise in the league so far with their explosive offensive. The trade for Deandre Hopkins has become the biggest offseason steal. Detroit is going to struggle against this offense, and the Cardinals will defeat the Lions, 28-7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-1) vs. Denver Broncos (0-2) Another team hit with the injury bug was the men from the Mile High City, as quarter- back Drew Lock is sidelined for an extended time, and wide receiver Courtland Sutton is out for the year with a torn ACL. They are going to struggle against Tom Brady and that Bucs offense. The Buccaneers will defeat the Broncos, 24-7. Green Bay Packers (2-0) vs. New Orleans Saints (1-1) Wow, talk about an incredible Sunday Night Football game. We are going to see two of the top passers in the game in Drew Brees and Houston Texans (0-2) vs. Aaron Rodgers, so this game will be high scor- Pittsburgh Steelers (2-0) ing. They key is whether Saints wide receiver After facing arguably the two toughest teams Michael Thomas is able to return. I’m giving in the league, the Texans are back on the road the edge to the Packers but not with much to face the Steelers. Though Pittsburgh is un- confi dence. The Packers will defeat the Saints, beaten, they will fi nd themselves overwhelmed 38-31. by the Texans offense led by Deshaun Watson. Kansas City Chiefs (2-0) vs. The Texans will defeat the Steelers, 28-21. Baltimore Ravens (2-0) Tennessee Titans (2-0) vs. Minnesota Couldn’t ask for a better game to conclude Vikings (0-2) the week as the Chiefs face Baltimore on the I can’t read exactly what the Vikings’ general road, with Patrick Mahomes facing reigning direction might be, but they face another tough MVP Lamar Jackson. Kansas City is carry- opponent in the Titans, who have a strong and ing momentum from its overtime win against well-rounded offense. Though Minnesota’s the Chargers, and the Chiefs will defeat the offense is productive, they’re weak on defense. Ravens, 35-31. LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — The Los Angeles Lakers are a victory away from returning to the NBA Finals — and only another comeback from 3-1 down by the Denver Nuggets can stop them. Anthony Davis scored 34 points, LeBron James had 26 and the Lakers beat the Nuggets 114-108 on Thursday night in Game 4 of the Western Conference fi nals. “We played great down the stretch, we played great overall,” Davis said. “Still some things that we can fi x if we want to put this thing away.” Davis got the Lakers off to a fast start with his scoring and James helped them fi nish it with his defense, forcing Jamal Murray into some late misses after the guard had kept the Nuggets in it with an array of high-diffi culty baskets. James added nine rebounds and eight assists, and the Lakers had 12 offensive rebounds for a whopping 25-6 advantage in second-chance points. Game 5 is tonight, when the Lakers can reach the NBA Finals for the fi rst time in a decade. TREASURE VALLEY STEEL, INC. 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