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Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Eleven shots separated Phil and Tiger Sunday at Pebble Beach as Lefty secured his 40th Tour win. Jason Sobel had hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
Getty ImagesEUGENE, Ore. - The sign, in black ink on yellow cardboard, bobbed in Autzen Stadium's Section 41 as the Oregon band belted out another refrain of "Thriller." Its message, for sure, doesn't reflect the reality of college football on this particular date: Oct. 31, 2009.
But by the end of Oregon 47, Southern California 20 on Saturday night, it wasn't far from the truth.
"Welcome to the Fall of Troy" the sign read, and it's mistake was in the details. The stunning beatdown Ducks fans witnessed didn't so much prove that the wounded Trojans are destined for the Holiday Bowl, and then a string of 5-7 records. It proved that Oregon ranks as the nation's new hot program. And soon, it might rank among the nation's elite.
"The polls are still probably going to be Florida and Alabama," Ducks safety T. J. Ward said. "We feel like we're right there with anybody."
In the here and now, the rout puts Oregon on track for an outright Pac-10 championship and establishes it as the one-loss team best set to sneak into the BCS national championship game. In other words, Ducks fans, a postseason in Pasadena looks mighty likely.
But the night, and really this whole weekend, stands out as a celebration of where Oregon football is. Its offense, which rang up 391 rushing yards and 613 overall on the Trojans, is the nation's best north of Austin, Texas. Its stadium, complete with students clad in special black "Fright Night" T-shirts, features half the capacity of some of its big-conference peers but brings as much volume as any venue.
And don't forget the charismatic coach. With the sun still in the sky Saturday morning, Kelly donned the Oregon mascot's duck head and rolled through ESPN's live pregame show.
"I had trouble seeing," Kelly said later. "And it smelled."
As the sun set Saturday night, his top pupils — quarterback Jeremiah Masoli and running back LaMichael James — were whipping a Pete Carroll-coached defense like it's never been whipped before.
Forty-seven points? Most allowed by Southern California under Carroll. The 27-point margin? Most lopsided loss in Carroll's nine years. The rushing yards? Best performance against the Trojans since Texas A&M in the 1977 Bluebonnet Bowl.
"It was a real mess for us," Carroll said. "Oregon did everything they wanted to do."
As Carroll reflects, he'll realize he might be saying that more in coming years. Kelly said that just five of the Ducks' top 44 players are seniors. They always have recruited well coast-to-coast, and this sort of energy and result will only bolster those efforts.
Even if the sign forecasting Southern California's demise is wrong, and the Trojans continue on as a Top 10-worthy program each year, they finally could have company within their own conference. And they'll have competition for the title of "Coolest football program in the West."
Saturday, the coaches and players said all the right things about focusing on Stanford next week, taking the necessary steps toward a conference title. Always, though, there's the thought of lapping Southern California and becoming the Pac-10 Conference benchmark.
"We're going to try to push them," Kelly said of his own players, "and take them to places they've never been before."
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
CFT: Jordan Jefferson makes it clear he wasn't happy with LSU's game plan in the Tigers' BCS Championship Game loss to Alabama.
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 Memphis fulfills BCS dream Tigers officials thrilled to announce that school has been accepted to join the Big East Conference in 2013. |
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Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
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