College Football
HOUSTON – Duke Catalon scored three touchdowns and Houston’s defense hurried and harassed Heisman favorite Lamar Jackson all night to propel the Cougars to a stunning 36-10 victory Thursday night that dashed No. 3 Louisville’s playoff hopes.
Louisville (9-2) entered the game ranked fifth in the College Football Playoff rankings but was outdone by a Houston team that saw own playoff hopes foiled by two losses to unranked teams.
Things went wrong quickly for the mistake-prone Cardinals when they fumbled the opening kickoff to Houston (9-2). Greg Ward threw his first touchdown pass on the next play to make it 7-0. Brandon Radcliff lost a fumble later in the first and Houston added a field goal on the ensuing drive to make it 10-0.
Jackson threw for 211 yards and a touchdown and was sacked 10 times.
Houston scored touchdowns on three consecutive possessions in the second quarter to push the lead to 31-0 at halftime. Catalon caught a touchdown pass, ran for another score and Houston got the third score in that span on a 50-yard pass by receiver Linell Bonner after a lateral.
MLB
CHICAGO – Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says the league plans to study some high-profile baseball operations positions to determine if certain qualifications and characteristics are more predictive of success.
Manfred says the study “has everything to do” with the sport’s minority hiring issue. Only three of baseball’s 30 teams are managed by minorities.
Manfred made his remarks on Thursday at the end of two days of owners’ meetings at a downtown Chicago hotel just two weeks before baseball’s collective bargaining agreement is set to expire. Negotiators for owners and players have been meeting since spring training.
Manfred says he remains optimistic that a deal will be completed by the time the current agreement runs out on Dec. 1. He declined to address any details from the bargaining sessions, but says an international amateur draft remains on the table.
NEW YORK – The United States will open its World Baseball Classic schedule against Colombia on March 10, play the defending champion Dominican Republic the following day and close Group C of the first round against Canada on March 12.
Major League Baseball and the players’ association announced the schedule Tuesday. The Americans’ first-round games will be in Miami.
Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles had been announced in August as site of the March 22 final of the 16-nation tournament.
Skiing
BEAVER CREEK – The men’s World Cup downhill, super-G and giant slalom races at Beaver Creek in two weeks have been canceled because of unseasonably warm weather.
The International Ski Federation (FIS) made the decision Thursday on a day when the resort was receiving snow. It’s the first time since 2001 that the entire program at Beaver Creek has been scratched, according to the U.S. Ski Team.
No makeup dates for the races have been announced.
On Wednesday, FIS said a lack of snow forced the cancellation of the men’s World Cup speed races Nov. 26-27 in Lake Louise, Alberta.
It wasn’t all bad news for ski racing in North America: FIS confirmed Thursday that the women’s World Cup giant slalom and slalom races are a go for Thanksgiving weekend in Killington, Vermont.
Associated Press
