Ohio State reclaims No. 1 spot in AP High 25; Travis Hunter headlines NFL depth chart takeaways, surprises

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Comfortable Wednesday! Carter Bahns right here along with your morning publication. It is NFL season opener eve, which supplies us some gentle on the finish of the tunnel on this hump day. Depth charts are out throughout the league, some last-minute transactions are going by way of and our Week 1 NFL Energy Rankings provide one last have a look at the preseason pecking order. The odor of soccer is lastly within the air.

However that is not all. Let’s get began with …

🌰 5 issues to know Wednesday

1. Ohio State is again on prime within the Week 2 AP High 25 ballot. There was no scarcity of motion within the AP High 25. The Buckeyes leaped into the No. 1 spot with the overwhelming majority of first-place votes after their defensive masterclass towards Texas. LSU (No. 3) and Florida State (No. 14) have been main climbers, too. However, Alabama is all the way down to No. 21 — its lowest rating in 17 years.
2. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. was recognized with a torn ACL. The Diamondbacks outfielder sustained a knee damage in a weird play Monday evening, and it was a critical one. Arizona positioned him on the injured listing Tuesday, and it’s unlikely he returns to the sector till at the very least the center of the 2026 season. The damage carries contract implications, because it makes Gurriel a close to lock to choose into his $13 million participant choice for subsequent yr.
3. Luke Goedeke obtained paid. The Buccaneers signed their proper deal with to a four-year, $90 million contract extension with $50 million assured. Goedeke’s new annual wage is the third-richest amongst NFL proper tackles and is a testomony to Tampa Bay’s potential to develop prolific offensive linemen.
4. Our first NFL Energy Rankings of the season are in. And the Eagles are the workforce to beat. That isn’t stopping our Pete Prisco from siding with the Payments as his preseason Tremendous Bowl decide, although.
5. The NCAA faces one other lawsuit, and it’s a doozy. Two Vanderbilt soccer gamers are main a class-action swimsuit that argues the NCAA’s redshirt rule violates antitrust legal guidelines. If a choose sides with the gamers, it might change faculty sports activities perpetually. (Cease me should you’ve heard that earlier than.) I defined why this might result in athletes enjoying 5 years of school sports activities, somewhat than 4.

🏈 Don’t miss this: NFL depth charts are out, and there are some surprises

Travis Hunter’s function(s) on the Jaguars has been one of many best uncertainties of the NFL offseason, however with groups throughout the league unveiling their depth charts on Tuesday, Jacksonville supplied some perception into the place and the way usually the No. 2 general decide will line up. All indicators level to Hunter enjoying on each side of the ball however primarily at extensive receiver. He stands as a beginning wideout and second-string cornerback on the Week 1 depth chart.

Talking of Hunter, the rookie extensive receiver recognized for torching him in faculty made a shock look on the highest line of the Titans’ depth chart. Fourth-rounder Elic Ayomanor is listed forward of veteran pass-catcher Van Jefferson, which is curious provided that he was not even the primary receiver Tennessee took on this yr’s draft. Ayomanor made his fame at Stanford with a 294-yard, three-touchdown effort in a 2023 win over Colorado.

Within the Meadowlands, it seems the Giants will trip with Jaxson Dart as the first backup to Russell Wilson. The rookie leaped over Jameis Winston on the depth chart, although coach Brian Daboll didn’t affirm whether or not Dart’s bounce to the QB2 function is official.

Lastly, preseason darling Jacory Croskey-Merritt could not have locked up a key function with the Commanders in any case. He opens the yr because the fourth choice in Washington’s operating again room regardless of making waves in camp.

🎾 Novak Djokovic holds off Taylor Fritz to succeed in semis

There aren’t any extra American males left standing within the US Open. No. 4 seed Taylor Fritz put up a struggle towards No. 7 Novak Djokovic, however for the eleventh time in as many matches, the Serbian legend obtained the final snort. With the 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 win, Djokovic is on to the semifinals, the place he’ll meet No. 2 seed Carlos Alcaraz on Friday.

The takeaways from the match have been twofold, and Zach Pereles — hat tip to the now-former CBS Sports activities morning publication creator — mentioned it greatest.

• Pereles: “It is yet one more loss that left Fritz shaking his head in disbelief and plenty of viewers doing the identical relating to his opponent: How does Djokovic, at 38 years previous, hold doing it?”

Djokovic was in management early, however when Fritz obtained off the mat within the third set, his dwelling crowd helped swing the momentum. Djokovic approached the chair umpire with a plea to calm the jeers from the Fritz-leaning followers, however it was as a substitute his play — and a few assist from the American’s errant serves, together with a decisive double fault on match level — that silenced the gang in the long run.

🏆 The very best (and not-so-best) of the remaining

• Benches cleared between the Giants and Rockies after Rafael Devers’ dwelling run off Kyle Freeland.
• New particulars emerged in Dolphins outdoors linebackers coach Ryan Crow’s home violence case.
• Tom Brady stopped in need of calling himself the best passer in NFL historical past. As an alternative, he gave that title to Aaron Rodgers.
• Nick Saban is dissatisfied with what he noticed from Alabama in its Week 1 upset.
• 5 NFL gamers will put on a particular gold patch on their jerseys this season. Here is why.
• Caitlin Clark continues to be not cleared for contact with lower than two weeks left within the WNBA’s common season, however the Fever stay hopeful that she is going to return.
• Deion Sanders doubled down on his questionable clock administration within the loss to Georgia Tech.
• Mike Tomlin is “actually anticipating” Cam Heyward to play within the Steelers’ season opener amid his contract state of affairs.
• Brian Kelly fired again at Dabo Swinney over his evaluation of LSU’s efficiency.
• Jon Jones was cleared of felony expenses stemming from a February automobile accident.
• A College of Kentucky cheerleader was arrested after police discovered a useless toddler in her closet.
• Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy made certain everybody is aware of about Oregon’s hefty roster finances forward of Saturday’s matchup. Dan Lanning gave a pointed response.
• 4-star freshman quarterback JuJu Lewis will see motion in Colorado’s Week 2 matchup towards Delaware.
• Former Payments extensive receiver Gabe Davis is headed again to his previous workforce.
• The Steelers granted Robert Woods’ request to be launched from their follow squad.
• One UNLV defensive again gave a blunt evaluation of UCLA’s Nico Iamaleava forward of Saturday’s conflict.
• Olympic champion Gabby Thomas will miss this month’s World Athletics Championships with an Achilles damage.
• John Calipari will make his first journey again to Memphis when Arkansas faces his former workforce in October.

📺 What we’re watching Wednesday

🎾 US Open, 11:30 a.m. on ESPN
⚾ Mets at Tigers, 1:10 p.m. on MLB Community
⚾ Yankees at Astros, 8:10 p.m. on MLB Community