If a team is unavailable to play in College Football Playoff semifinals on New Year’s Eve because of COVID-19 issues, the game will be forfeited and the available team will advance to the championship. With COVID-19 cases spiking across the country due to the omicron variant, the CFP announced Wednesday contingency plans for the semifinals and national championship game, which is scheduled for Jan. 10 in Indianapolis but could be delayed as much as four days. No. 1 Alabama is scheduled to face No. 4 Cincinnati in the Cotton Bowl in one Dec. 31 semifinal and No. 2 Michigan is set to play No. 3 Georgia in the Orange Bowl in the nightcap of the CFP doubleheader.
Top-ranked Alabama arrived Sunday in North Texas without offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien or offensive line coach Doug Marrone, but coach Nick Saban expected both assistants to make it for the playoff semifinal game at the Cotton Bowl.
The University of Nevada softball team has released its 2022 spring schedule, head coach Linda Garza announced last week. Nevada’s 52 game slate includes five away tournaments and 24 conference games in the season. The Pack will have 14 home games, including two home non-conference doubleheader games, and 12 away games in the conference schedule. Nevada will face one Power 5 opponent and two teams that were in NCAA postseason tournaments last season, UCLA and conference opponent Fresno State.
Head coach Jay Norvell isn’t the only member of the 2021 Nevada Wolf Pack football team who didn’t truly believe that home means Nevada. Nearly two dozen players, coaches and recruits, who were on the Wolf Pack roster or verbally committed to the school, all chose to be Rocky Mountain high with Norvell’s Colorado State Rams.
With the Raiders trailing by six points at halftime Sunday, Josh Jacobs told the coaches to give him a chance to get into a rhythm, to make up for a lost fumble, and to put their trust in his running abilities. They obliged.
Josh Johnson joined the Ravens 10 days ago, and the well-traveled quarterback started his first game in 1,092 days with first place in the AFC North on the line Sunday at Cincinnati. The Chargers didn’t have outside linebacker Joey Bosa, running back Austin Ekeler, receiver Mike Williams and center Corey Linsley when they faced the Texans. The Vikings were missing running back Dalvin Cook for their matchup against the Rams. Blame COVID-19.
The NHL is emerging from an extended holiday break with taxi squads and other roster revisions, a move made to guard against more disruptions to the season amid more players and coaches going into COVID-19 protocol Sunday. Each team will be allowed to have a taxi squad of up to six players and to make emergency recalls from the minors if COVID-19 absences would cause anyone to play without a full lineup. Taxi squads, which were used during the shortened 2021 season, are set to be in effect until at least the All-Star break in early February.
Three of the 107 wrestlers at last Wednesday’s Cougar Bash came from Pershing County High School. The team competed at Spanish Springs High School against opponents from all over northern Nevada. Justin Carruth (132), Lucian Gonzalez (195) and Wyatt Hughes (152) gained valuable experience at one of the first tournaments of their high school wrestling years.
It was Pershing County’s second go-around with the Virginia City Muckers. The Mustangs traveled to Virginia City on Friday and lost the non-conference match up 71-52.
The Pershing County High School girls basketball team had a lot to talk about. They had just finished their first half against Virginia City and were ahead by two points — too close for comfort. “I was impressed when I walked into the locker room and the team was discussing all the things they needed to fix for the second half,” said PCHS coach Lee Houston. “We always talk about the third quarter being the most important.”
Nevada has hired Oregon co-defensive coordinator Ken Wilson as the Wolf Pack’s new head coach. Nevada athletic director Doug Knuth announced Friday that Wilson will take over the program after Jay Norvell accepted the head coaching job this week at Colorado State.
It’s been two years since northern Nevada’s high school wrestling world competed. Last weekend over two dozen teams clashed at the Winnemucca EventsCenter. Graduating senior Devin Moura (138) represented PCHS at the Cody Louk tournament.
The PCHS girls basketball team played four games in three days this past weekend, a victory in itself. They competed in the Whittell tournament in Zephyr Cove.