GIVE ME MORRIS: After an impressive performance against the Cowboys on Monday Night Football, Alfred Morris will look to run wild against the Vikings in Week 9.

In sports, it is common to predict the underdog will succumb to the mightier force, but this stereotype was shattered this past weekend in the realm of college football. If fans learned anything this past weekend, it’s that attempting to predict outcomes may be a complete waste of time. Five of the top eight teams lost during week six – something that has never happened in the history of college football. Now only four teams remain undefeated: Florida State, Auburn, Mississippi State and Ole Miss. Essentially, it was a good weekend for football fans in the state of Mississippi, but everywhere else was met with shock and likely anger (especially for those from the Los Angeles region).

While accomplished teams such as Oregon and Alabama started off the season strong, they lost their stride this past weekend. No. 2 Oregon, No. 3 Alabama, No. 4 Oklahoma, No. 6 Texas A&M and No. 8 UCLA all lost to lower-ranked teams. Other heavy-hitters such as No. 16 USC, No. 17 Wisconsin and No. 18 BYU also took tumbles. Mississippi State outplayed Texas A&M, Arizona State trumped Oregon, Utah State beat BYU, Ole Miss outlasted Alabama, TCU outdid Oklahoma, Utah State beat UCLA, Arizona State smothered USC and Northwestern dominated Wisconsin. However, for some teams, the shock was not as great. UCLA, for example, might have seen this defeat coming. Their only impressive game this season was against Arizona State, and their three other wins were by margins of eight points or fewer.  

The four undefeated teams have looked very strong and are certainly looking like possible post-season contenders. Florida State trampled Wake Forest similarly to how Auburn smothered LSU this past weekend. Keep in mind, however, that these tasks were not too challenging. The major teams from Mississippi, Ole Miss and Mississippi State, outlasted Texas A&M and Alabama, respectively. Mississippi and Ole Miss, two of the strongest competitors from 2013, are predicted to finish the season strongly and for the first time in history, they will both move into the top 10 ranking during the same weekend.

One of the most memorable moments of the weekend came when Arizona State’s second string quarterback, Mike Bercovici, connected with Jaelen Stong, a wide receiver, for a 46 yard Hail Mary pass that allowed them to win the game against USC. The Trojans defense stood flat-footed as Strong snuck in to make the catch. After the memorable game, Bercovici commented, “I’ll be honest, it was a little bit of a prayer...[after] I just immediately fell to the floor. All I wanted to do was run upstairs to my mom and give her a big hug.”

While some major teams took steps backward this past weekend, many analysts still favor one of the losers, the Alabama Crimson Tide, to win the championship this season. Auburn and Oklahoma State are predicted to be right behind the tide. However, this past week has changed many others’ opinions, including the Associated Press Top 25 rankings. As a result of Saturday’s games, Auburn is now ranked second in the nation, Ole Miss jumped from No. 11 to No. 4, and TCU made the biggest move of all, going from No. 25 to No. 9 in the nation.

However, midway through the season is not enough time to make lasting predictions. One loss does not define a team. After Oklahoma’s loss to the lesser TCU, Sooners’ quarterback Trevor Knight echoed words that many mighty teams who lost this past weekend would agree with. “This isn’t the defining moment of our season. There’s a lot of football left. Who knows what’s down the road. It’s early in the season, a one-loss team can still make it.”

While this season of college football has produced rankings similar to those in previous years, this past weekend proves that powerhouse teams can always lose to spirited underdogs if they’re not careful, keeping alive the notion in sports that any competitor has a chance at victory. Whether the teams that fell this weekend bounce back or not, opinions will always change from week to week as the unpredictability of college football continues its strong tradition. 

This Friday marks the start of the 40th Ryder Cup in golf history. Team U.S.A. and Team Europe will square off in the sport’s ultimate bid for international supremacy when they take to the links on European soil at Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, Scotland. Team U.S.A. leads the all-time series 25-12-2 but are 1-5 in the last six events.

The Americans are led by Tom Watson, who will serve as the team’s captain for the second consecutive competition. Team U.S.A., though certainly young, doesn’t lack in talent. Fan favorite Bubba Watson led all U.S. players in the 2014 points standings. Arguably the most consistent player of 2014 and a staple of this year’s team is Rickie Fowler, who posted top-five finishes in each major championship this year. 

Another key member of Team U.S.A. is Phil Mickelson. Although he had one of his worst seasons on tour this year, look for Phil to bring his A-game as well as some valuable experience to Gleneagles this weekend. Budding stars Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed and Jimmy Walker, each playing in their first Ryder Cup, need to play exceptionally well for the Americans to pull off the upset. Perennial staples of Team U.S.A. Jim Fuyrk, Matt Kuchar and Zach Johnson round out the top nine players who automatically qualified for the team. Captain selections Hunter Mahan, Keegan Bradley and Webb Simpson were each selected by Watson largely as a result of their 2012 Ryder Cup competition experience. 

Team U.S.A. will be without super-star and 14-time major champion Tiger Woods. After being named the PGA Player of the Year in 2013, Woods went through a year filled with injury and lackluster performances on the course. Tiger removed himself from Ryder Cup considerations after missing the 2014 Fed-Ex Cup Playoffs because of his poor play and a nagging back injury. He says he will sideline himself from all competition until December when he will host the Hero World Challenge. Tiger’s experience will surely be missed, as he has participated in six Ryder Cups throughout his illustrious career.

The resounding favorite, Team Europe, is led by captain Paul McGinley, who hopes to help his squad defend home soil to win their third cup in a row. The team features the world’s number one ranked player and 2014 PGA Player of the Year, Rory McIlroy, who is coming off two major championships this season and will be able to

provide young leadership to the talented lineup. 

Team Europe’s core includes Sergio Garcia of Spain, Henrik Stenson of Sweden and Justin Rose of England, all of whom are ranked in the top six of the world golf rankings. Jamie Donaldson and Victor Dubuisson, although lacking experience in Ryder Cup competition, add some exciting talent for the Europeans. Martin Kaymer and Graeme McDowell, the 2014 and 2010 US Open champions respectively, and Thomas Bjorn are the other three who automatically qualified.

McGinley’s three wildcard picks are Englishmen Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter, who will be major components of the Europeans’ bid to win their 13th Ryder Cup, and Stephen Gallacher, who grew up just an hour South of Gleneagles in the the Scottish village

of Dechmont. 

My prediction is that the U.S. will fair much better than the experts think they will. In 2012, the United States held a commanding lead going into Sunday singles and were defeated 14.5-13.5 late in the day as they watched the Europeans pop champagne on their home soil. Though seeing the Americans get their revenge in Scotland would be excellent, the firepower that the Europeans boast is too deadly for me to pick against them. With Rory McIlroy firing on all cylinders and the U.S. lacking significant experience, look for the Europeans to retain the cup by a comfortable margin on Sunday. 

When it comes to women’s soccer, the spotlight has been on U.S. Women’s National Team goalkeeper Hope Solo — but not necessarily for the right reasons. Fans and the media have been praising Solo for her major role in the team’s recent wins and for setting a new U.S. record for most career shutouts. What’s wrong about that? She was arrested and charged with two counts of domestic abuse against extended family members three months ago, and the issue seems to have blown over entirely with the U.S. Soccer Federation. Solo has a trial date set in November — not until after the Women’s National Team has the opportunity to secure a spot in the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, conveniently enough — and until her legal situation is sorted out, she is set to remain in goal.  

It’s undoubtedly disturbing when an athlete is involved in a domestic violence case and the association merely looks the other way, but this concept is all too familiar in American sports leagues. This has been a prominent issue of the past, especially in the NFL, but upset fans have turned the spotlight toward these issues and ignited some change; many current cases involving professional football players have resulted in serious consequences. Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was found guilty of domestic violence and was subsequently released from the Ravens and suspended from the NFL. Both Carolina Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy and Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson were recently convicted of similar charges and have now been placed on the commissioner’s exempt list. Neither is going to see the field before his trial date. NFL spectators are finally seeing some punishment, and they’re pretty satisfied with it.

Why, then, does Solo remain in the net for U.S. Soccer? She remains an idolized figure in the eyes of the public, still portrayed as an inspiration for young female athletes across the country. According to the league’s head of communications, Solo should keep playing regardless of any issues in her personal life because of her hard work and strong abilities as an athlete. While this may seem fair, Americans, particularly football fans, have made it clear that they don’t want to stand behind athletes who are guilty of domestic abuse.  

It’s therefore somewhat unsettling that Solo’s case is being handled differently, and that the U.S. Soccer Federation seems to be getting away with it thus far. There’s some discussion about this being an issue of double standards, and that perhaps if the incident involved a male soccer player the consequences would be different. There’s also speculation that playing without Solo is too detrimental to the team’s chances of qualifying for the 2015 Women’s World Cup, and that the league likely would have suspended her if she were a less valuable player.

It’s hard to find satisfying justification, however. The big issue with this case is the low public awareness. Maybe something would change if soccer fans cared about this problem, or perhaps if they even knew about it. The media coverage on Solo’s case has been minimal ever since the incident occurred three months ago. All attention has been on the charges in the NFL, but the fact is that the issue of domestic violence and lack of consequence for professional athletes extends far outside of one league and doesn’t revolve entirely around men either. The lack of discussion around Solo’s case may be due partly to the lack of attention that women’s sports receive in general, which poses a problem when it means the public will ignore serious, albeit rare, issues such as this one. However, with the recent growing attention on the NFL and domestic abuse, the focus is being broadened and the media is just beginning to shed some light on Solo’s situation.

With media and public awareness of this case now on the rise, the main concern becomes the message U.S. Soccer is sending with its actions, or lack thereof. The implication seems to be that an athlete should receive immunity from professional consequences as long as he or she is valuable enough. Now that media coverage in domestic abuse is increasing — and, just as importantly, expanding outside of the NFL — it’s up to informed citizens to decide if U.S. Soccer needs to suspend Solo, and to try to make a change if they feel there should be one.  

DAMAGE CONTROL: Goodell has been the focus of much negative press, as many believe he had access to the new tape when he made his initial ruling.

As the Major League Baseball (MLB) regular season begins to wind down, the hunt for October is beginning to heat up. With teams having just about 20 games left to make the final push for the playoffs, winning is becoming all the more important.

In the American League (AL) East division, the Baltimore Orioles have all but wrapped up first place. Sitting at 82-59, the Orioles have an 8.5 game lead on the second place New York Yankees. New York has battled injuries with their starting pitching, losing ace C.C. Sabathia (knee), Japanese rookie phenom Masahiro Tanaka (arm) and Ivan Nova (elbow) early in the season. Despite these injuries, the Yankees are just 4.5 games back in the AL Wild Card race.

In the AL Central, the Kansas City Royals have a record of 78-62, holding a slim two game lead on the Detroit Tigers. These two teams have battled back and forth all year. At the trade deadline, the Tigers solidified an already outstanding pitching staff by adding David Price in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays. The Tigers now boast each of the last three AL Cy Young winners with Price, Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander. If Detroit can manage to make it into the post season, they are definitely a team to watch.

The Los Angeles Angels are currently leading the AL West. With an MLB-best record of 86-55, Los Angeles is ahead of the Oakland Athletics by 6 games. The Angels’ offense, which is second in the league in runs scored, is lead by MVP candidate Mike Trout and slugger first baseman Albert Pujols. With a potent offense and a sturdy pitching staff, the Angels are quickly becoming the favorite to take home their first AL pennant since winning the World Series in 2002.

With the season coming to a close, the AL Wild Card race is very tight. Five teams are separated by just 4.5 games, with the Athletics tightening their hands on the extremely pivotal first spot. The Seattle Mariners, behind AL Cy Young favorite Felix Hernandez, lead the Tigers by 1.5 games for the second spot. The top two teams in each Wild Card race will face off in a one game playoff for the opportunity to advance to the divisional round. The Yankees and the Cleveland Indians are both still alive, as they both trail Seattle by 4.5 games.

The Washington Nationals lead the National League (NL) East by six games over the Atlanta Braves. Young superstar Bryce Harper leads the Nationals, who stand at 79-61. Despite an up and down year by ace pitcher Stephen Strasburg, Washington has received quality starting pitching from former Tiger Doug Fister (12-6). Washington hopes to make the playoffs for only the third time in team history.

The NL Central is lead by the 78-64 St. Louis Cardinals. The defending National League champions look to fend off the Milwaukee Brewers who have fallen into a late season slump, going 13-14 in August and have failed to impress fans. Look for the Cardinals to run away with this division.

The NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers, sitting at 80-62, hold a two game lead over the San Francisco Giants. With an ERA of 1.70, NL Cy Young favorite Clayton Kershaw leads a pitching staff that has been reliable all season. Young Cuban phenom Yasiel Puig and hot slugger Adrian Gonzalez steer a superstar lineup filled with strong bats. With Kershaw at the helm, look for the Dodgers to contend for their first World Series title since 1988.

The NL Wild Card race is the tightest race in baseball. The Giants are sitting firmly on top with a four game lead over the Brewers, Braves, and Pirates, who are separated by just .5 games. 

Whichever two teams can prevail will participate in a one game playoff that will determine who advances to the NL divisional round.

Look for teams with deep starting pitching staffs begin to assert themselves late in the season. With every game being a must win for teams in playoff contention, having a starter on the mound each game that can command the strike zone is key. Whoever can survive the final regular season test will begin the road to a world championship on September 30th.