Sports and candy
From The GIST College Sports (hi@thegistsports.com)
Happy Monday!
Hope you had a spooktacular weekend, whether it was spent at Halloween parties or watching sports and eating candy on the couch (or both!).
- Some housekeeping: there’ll be no newsletter on Wednesday, as our staff will be off for a meetup in Chicago. But no need to panic — we’ll be back delivering college sports news to your inbox on Friday, and there’s plenty of sweet stuff in this one to hold you over.
— Colorado football head coach Deion Sanders, on the lack of Heisman Trophy hype around his son, Shedeur Sanders. The senior Buffs quarterback (QB) threw for 323 yards in Saturday’s 34–23 win over Cincinnati and set a school record by completing 15 straight passes.
NCAA Football
🏈 Winners stay winning
The GIST: Down-to-the-wire escapes, favorites rolling, and backups doing work — Week 9 had a little bit of everything. Let’s hut, hut, hike into the latest as the gridiron action charges on.
🐱 BYU remains undefeated: BYU is sitting pretty atop the Big 12 standings after beating UCF 37–24 on Saturday. That victory bumped the previously No. 11 Cougars up to No. 9 in the latest AP top-25 poll, a massive jump considering they didn’t receive any votes in week one and went 5-7 last season. Me-ow.
🐂 Texas, 🌰 Ohio State narrowly avoid losses: No. 6 Texas, who was ranked No. 1 as recently as Week 8, needed a late-game field goal to beat Vanderbilt 27–24, narrowly avoiding a second-consecutive L while only dropping one spot in the rankings.
- Elsewhere, No. 4 Ohio State sealed their 21–17 win over Nebraska with a fourth quarter touchdown catch by junior running back Quinshon Judkins. And exhale.
🦆 Oregon dominates, 🦁 Penn State roars back: The undefeated No. 1 Ducks continue to look scary good, securing their lopsided 38–9 win over No. 24 Illinois without needing any late-game heroics.
- But the No. 3 Nittany Lions sure did. They outscored Wisconsin 21-3 in the second half to ultimately win 28–13, thanks in large part to backup QB Beau Pribula, who completed 11 of his 13 passes in the second half.
🤠 Texas A&M holds it down for the underdogs: What would a college football weekend be without at least one upset? Enter No. 14 Texas A&M, who stunned then–No. 8 now–No. 16 LSU 38–23, putting the Aggies atop their conference with a 5-0 record in SEC play for the first time in school history. It also earned them the No. 10 ranking in this week’s poll. Gig ’Em, indeed.
NCAA volleyball
🏐 Bumpin’ that
The GIST: No. 8 Wisconsin had a tough start to the season, losing three of their first four matches, but the Badgers are back, baby. They’ve won nine straight, punctuating the streak with a Saturday sweep of No. 10 Purdue. Let’s claw through the latest with this program on the rise.
An unprecedented sweep: Wisconsin and Purdue have met 42 times in West Lafayette, splitting the series right down the middle at 21 wins apiece. And evenly matched is an understatement, as neither team had recorded a straight sets sweep since 2021… well, until Saturday that is, when Wisconsin won 3-0. Squeaky clean.
- ICYMI: HC Kelly Sheffield became the winningest coach in Wisconsin volleyball history with Thursday’s victory over Indiana. Sheffield’s been at the helm since 2013, notching 306 wins and a 2021 national title along the way.
Why it matters: Wisconsin is a volleyball powerhouse, but they sure didn’t look like it at the start of the season. Now that the Badgers are back on track, a deep tournament run seems inevitable, especially considering their nine-game win streak includes victories over three ranked teams.
- And a massive matchup is fast approaching: a date with No. 2 Nebraska Friday at 9 p.m. ET. Can’t wait.
⚽ Division III Christopher Newport University women’s soccer on 83-game unbeaten streak
The Captains set a DIII record with Saturday’s 4-1 win over Salisbury, recording 83 straight games without a loss. The streak dates back four seasons and includes a 41-game unbeaten streak at home.
- That means the squad’s four seniors, who were celebrated during Saturday’s final regular-season game, never lost a game together. Unreal.
⚽ Women's college soccer thriving in North Carolina
Virginia is for lovers and North Carolina is for women’s soccer, apparently. No. 1 Duke, No. 2 Wake Forest, and No. 4 UNC are all based in the Tar Heel State and ranked in the top-25.
- That made for a thrilling intra-state clash last night, as the Blue Devils improved to 13-1-1 after defeating Wake Forest 2-0 yesterday, further cementing themselves as the top team in the country.
🏑 No. 16 Iowa field hockey upsets No. 3 Ohio State in penultimate regular-season weekend
The Hawkeyes soared to a stunner yesterday, taking down the top-three Buckeyes 3–0. The game was locked at 0–0 heading into the third quarter, where grad student Alex Wesneski notched the game’s first goal.
- Sophomores Lieve van Kessel and Dionne van Aalsum added to the scoring from there, giving Iowa a massive win and plenty of momentum before they face No. 7 Michigan on Friday.
Giveaway Alert
With spooky season behind us and the holiday season looming, it’s time to treat yourself to a little adventure. How does a four-night cruise to the Bahamas sound? Anchors away.
After departing from Port Canaveral, Florida, on the Royal Caribbean’s brand-new Utopia of the Seas ship, you and a pal will spend four nights in a swanky balcony stateroom and enjoy the beauty of Nassau and CocoCay in the Bahamas before circling back to the Sunshine State — all for free.
Ready to board? Enter to win today.
Here’s what has GIST HQ buzzing:
🍀 What to eat
Lucky Charms. Team USA Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles just landed her dream gig as the cereal’s new box star. Move over, Wheaties.
🎤 Who to know
Pepper Persley, the 13-year-old sports reporter who’s been making waves as the youngest person to ever call games for the NBA, WNBA, and MLB. Plus, her podcast Dish with Pepper features interviews with sports’ biggest stars. Impressive.
🏔️ Where to travel to
The Swiss Alps. Actor Zendaya hit Zurich, Switzerland, for a tennis match against legend Roger Federer and to show off On’s new collection. The perfect mix of sport and luxury.
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 and Alessandra Puccio. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula. Head of Content Ellen Hyslop.