Welcome to Screen Shots! This is where I tell you what sporting events you should watch on TV every week! Make sure you subscribe so it comes straight to your inbox! Have your own suggestions? Shoot me an email at [email protected]!

An absolutely ridiculous week of college football, but we did get some separation between the pretenders and contenders! P.D. and I discuss the wildest moments of the weekend, who we expect to be standing when it’s all said and done, and, of course, we make our picks for this week’s slate!

Now, to the sports!

With the College Football Playoff expansion becoming official earlier this week, enjoy these non-Power 4 games while you can! Memphis QB Marcus Stokes might be the best Group of 6 passer in the country. The West Florida transfer ranks in the top 10 in the nation in both passing yards per game and touchdown passes. We’ve got ourselves a Lowcountry connection, too! Stokes’ high school coach, Collin Drafts, is a Beaufort native who went on to become the greatest quarterback in Charleston Southern University history. Stokes is the second-best athlete Drafts has ever coached. As all of you know, Drafts was my coach at the Charleston Southern basketball camp the year I won MVP. Unfortunately for you, you can’t watch me, but be sure to watch Stokes!

Well, the Bob Chesney hire has worked out pretty well for UCLA, huh? This is the highest the Bruins have been ranked since 2001, when Bob Toledo was roaming the sidelines. I’m not even sure that’s a real person. This year’s UCLA team has been doing it with a backup QB. Ty Dieffenbach, also not a real name, has been looking more and more comfortable as the season has progressed. Not bad for a guy who Pitt tried to make a tight end! I’m not sure if there’s such a thing as a Cinderella team in major college football, but if there is, it’s this team. Check them out!

The 2026 SIAC Championship Game! Thorobreds head coach Felton Huggins Jr. led Kentucky State to its first-ever playoff appearance last season. He’s trying to build on that by capturing the program’s first SIAC title. To do it, his team will have to take down a Benedict team looking to avenge its loss in last year’s title game. The Tigers did win it all in 2022 and 2023, but they are looking for their first title under head coach Ron Dickerson Jr. I hope you’re starting to like these non-FBS games as much as I am!

But don’t worry, we’re still covering the big boys. I know the Demon Deacons wish we had the 24-team playoff field. Despite their only loss being a close one to Miami, Wake Forest still has work to do to make the College Football Playoff. They could use a statement road win against an SMU team that’s no slouch. Meanwhile, SMU is trying to build momentum heading into next week’s showdown with Notre Dame. Two high-powered offenses, so expect plenty of points!

The US Men have won 4 straight matches since a disappointing World Cup exit. Guess it was a good thing they retained coach Mauricio Pochettino, right? Well, about that. Poch is headed to Manchester United to be their new manager. But, hey, this one is being played in Miami, which has a strong Haitian population, so it should be a great environment!

This is the biggest test remaining on Utah’s schedule after a big-time win in the Holy War put them in the driver’s seat of their CFP destiny. They’ll take on a Wildcats team that should still be riding high after an onside pooch kick recovery allowed them to kick the game-winning field goal against TCU last week. Arizona hasn’t lost at home in over a calendar year. Can the Utes add one more impressive W to their resume?

Now, this is what I’m talking about! The super late Hawai’i game used to be a weekly staple. Gather round, kids, and let me tell you about the days of floppy disks and landlines. But, seriously, there’s no better way to end a day of college football for those of us of a certain age. The Rainbow Warriors have taken a step or two back after last year’s 9-win campaign. A win against a Bison program that has looked right at home in its first year at the FBS level would be a nice sign that things are still on the right track in The Aloha State. To do that, they’ll have to overcome a North Dakota State defense that is 2nd in the nation in points allowed. I believe! Kinda.

Speaking of things I remember because I’m old, I don’t think there were any NFL games in Europe until I was in college, and even then it was one a year. Now, it seems pretty obvious that Roger Goodell is trying to figure out the logistics of moving a franchise there. Now, I can’t say I entirely mind it because the early game is fantastic for those of us who no longer stay up to watch the Hawai’i game because we have young children. This one is in Munich, Germany, and I heard if you watch it, there’s a 63% chance Drake Maye throws you an interception!

The kind of game you plan your whole week around. This Trojans team is much different than the one that lost to the Gamecocks in the 2nd round of last year’s NCAA Tournament. Their three-headed monster of JuJu Watkins, Jazzy Davidson, and Saniyah Hall are all averaging at least 19.7 ppg through 3 games. The scary part is Watkins doesn’t look like she’s quite in a rhythm yet after missing all of last season with a torn ACL.

They will have their hands full with the Gamecocks. Their season-opening win against Maryland felt dull due to a second-half collapse. Whatever the issue was, Dawn Staley had it handled by last Sunday’s game against North Carolina. They outscored the Tar Heels by 23 in the 3rd quarter en route to a 45-point win. The Gamecocks are stacked as always, but pay special attention to a much stronger and more aggressive Chloe Kitts.

UConn star Sarah Strong dropped a career-high 39 points as the Huskies bounced back from a rare November loss in a big way against a top-10 Iowa team. That’s the good news. The bad news? The issues Michigan exploited are very real, and Louisville has the talent and personnel to exploit them.

Opponents have been able to build a ton of momentum when Strong isn’t in the game in a way we haven’t really seen with past UConn stars. The Huskies have also struggled to defend opposing guards, which they’ll certainly have to do against a Cardinals squad that starts three explosive scoring guards and brings a fourth off the bench. Jeff Walz’ team could very well give UConn all that it can handle and more!

Don’t you want to know where these players we’re watching could end up? The Houston Comets, Toronto Tempo, Washington Mystics, Los Angeles Sparks, Portland Fire, and Seattle Storm are participating. There’s a high chance we get JuJu Watkins staying in LA or leading the Comets, à la another former Trojans star, Cynthia Cooper. No matter what, we get to make fun of the Sky for trading their pick to the Mystics for Ariel Atkins. Get your mock drafts ready!

A battle between the two teams atop the AFC North! The Steelers have looked very Steeler-ish in that they manage to win games even though they don’t really look that dominant. Bengals QB Joe Burrow has looked that dominant and leads the league in passing yards per game and touchdown passes. The entire league has its hands full with Cincinnati WRs Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, but Pittsburgh’s defense is as capable as any to handle them. Who will be in the division’s driver’s seat when this one is done?

Women’s hoops has done a number on my word count this week. A Palmetto hoops showdown! The Tigers are led by Ace Buckner, whose dad, Greg, was a star on the Clemson team that made the 1997 Sweet Sixteen. Citadel forward Ramel Bethea is the only Division I basketball player who was alive for that one. The 30-year-old Bethea didn’t start playing basketball until he hit a growth spurt during his five-year stint in the Navy. The 6’9” forward is averaging 3.3 bpg through 3 games. Do it for the old fellas!

Speaking of geriatrics, Tom Izzo and Rick Barnes are still patrolling the sidelines. Barnes was the coach of the aforementioned Clemson Sweet Sixteen team. Izzo’s Spartans are coming off a big-time win against Duke. No matter how much things change, ol’ Tom is going to run out a team that turns basketball into an absolute slugfest.

After a career of being labeled a choker, Barnes has led the Vols to the Elite Eight three seasons in a row. I still don’t really believe in him, but VCU transfer Terrence Hill is very good! Way past both of the coaches’ bedtimes, but it should be a good one!

Giannis’ first game against his old team or whatever, but the story here is the Tyler Herro-Bam Adebayo reunion. Herro, who was sent to Milwaukee in the Giannis trade, isn’t very smart. In this particular instance, he proved this by trashing Bam in DMs to a Heat fan. In a move that everyone except Herro could have seen coming, the fan leaked those DMs when Herro was traded. This led to Bam punching Herro in the face in a Las Vegas gym. To make this whole thing even funnier, this trade has been terrible for both players. Herro gets to chuck a million shots, but the Bucks are on pace to win 8 games. Bam has struggled to make a consistent impact alongside the ball-dominant, paint-clogging Giannis. We can only hope they take their frustrations out on each other.

A Michigan reunion! The Wolverines won last year’s national championship, then everyone bolted. Coach Dusty May took the Mavericks’ head coaching job and drafted Morez Johnson Jr., who had a double-double in the title game. The star of that Michigan team, Yaxel Lendeborg, has picked up right where he left off in college. He’s averaging 21.4 ppg, 7.2 rpg, and 4.0 apg while helping the Warriors look like an actual contender for the first time since winning the 2022 title. If he keeps it up, he’d be Golden State’s first Rookie of the Year winner since Chris Webber. Michigan fans could use this one with the way their football season has gone.

As always, thank you for reading! Make sure you’re subscribed so you get this in your inbox first thing Thursday mornings! Also, share with your friends! See you next week!