After losing five consecutive games, the Maryland athletic department announced Wednesday that it was moving on from head football coach Mike Locksley. The school described the decision as a " mutual" agreement between both parties.

When the Terrapins called a team meeting for Wednesday morning, the news had already been broken by multiple outlets that included OutKick, players were seen arriving to the football facility for an explanation from those in charge of moving the program forward.

Unfortunately, news like this rarely stays quiet until a team can gather privately. Reporters typically wait outside football facilities to speak with players and gauge their reactions after a head coach is fired.

Defensive coordinator Aazaar Abdul-Rahim will be the interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

WHICH COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACHES IMPROVED OR TANKED THEIR HOT SEAT STATUS FOUR GAMES INTO THE SEASON?

Yes, reporters will stand outside the football facility for player interaction

That was the case Wednesday, when two University of Maryland student reporters stood outside the athletic complex hoping to speak with players leaving the facility after learning about Locksley’s dismissal.

According to one of the student reporters, SB Nation’s Testudo Times journalist Nolan Rogalski, he and Jude Wilkenfeld believed they were permitted to stand outside the football complex because Maryland is a public university.

However, a Maryland staff member reportedly called police on the two student journalists for "suspicious activity." Two officers then arrived at the scene and questioned the reporters about what they were doing outside the facility.

"For @testudotimes , @JudeWilkenfeld and I were outside Jones-Hill House trying to get players to comment," Rogalski mentioned on social media. "An athletics staffer took pictures of us, and a police dispatch was called for suspicious activity; a cop and 2 cop cars pulled up, and officers ID’d us and asked us to leave."

TCU FOOTBALL PULLS CREDENTIALS FROM LOCAL NEWSPAPER FOR REPORTING ON LOCKER ROOM ASSAULT STORY

The students appeared to be doing nothing out of line. They were simply covering a major story unfolding on their campus and attempting to speak with players affected by the coaching change.

This time last season, there had already been seven head coaches fired in college football, and every single one of them led to reporters in some capacity trying to gather quotes from athletes who were affected by the news.

Somewhere, there was a breakdown in communication on Wednesday following the firing of Locksley.

Terrapins release statement on police questioning students

Whether the school acted out of spite or genuinely did not know what the two students were doing outside the football complex is up for debate.

The University of Maryland Police Department recorded the names of Rogalski and Wilkenfeld but said no report was filed regarding the incident. The school and UMPD released a joint statement Wednesday evening emphasizing that they respect the First Amendment rights of journalists.

TCU DOES AN ABOUT-FACE AFTER STRIPPING LOCAL NEWSPAPER'S CREDENTIALS DAYS BEFORE FOOTBALL SEASON

The statement also cited heightened security concerns surrounding the football program in recent weeks as the reason police were contacted.

"UMPD was contacted today, Oct. 21, 2026, about two individuals who were standing outside of Jones Hill House," the statement noted. "Due to heightened concerns for staff and player safety around the football program in recent weeks, there has been increased security around athletics facilities. A UMPD officer approached the two individuals, learned they were with a campus media organization, recorded student IDs, and no report was taken."

"UMPD and Maryland Athletics respect the First Amendment rights of all journalists reporting in public spaces."

COLORADO FOOTBALL OPENS PRACTICE TO FANS AND REPORTERS, BUT TREATS IT LIKE A CLASSIFIED PENTAGON BRIEFING

The Maryland athletic department has recently been criticized over decisions made regarding press conferences involving the now former head coach Mike Locksley.

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Now they are searching for a new head coach, while also still making the news for actions involving reporters.

Retired NFL linebacker Brandon Spikes has had an interesting football journey.

The former five-star prospect from Shelby, North Carolina committed to Florida out of high school and was a part of the loaded 2006 recruiting class that featured himself as well as college football legends Tim Tebow and Percy Harvin.

After a decorated college career which included two All-American selections and two national championships, Spikes was drafted late in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots, where he spent five of his seven seasons in the league.

CHASE DANIEL NEARLY MADE TIM TEBOW WALK OFF THE SET OF 'SEC NATION' WITH 'DEROGATORY' COMMENT ABOUT FLORIDA

The dream for every young man growing up playing football is to ultimately hear their name called by the commissioner of the NFL on draft day, but Spikes claims he had to make some personal (and financial) sacrifices before going pro.

As a guest on the popular "Bussin' With The Boys" podcast, the former Patriots linebacker revealed he wasn't exactly hurting for money while in college.

WHICH TEAMS HAVE THE MOST VALUABLE COLLEGE FOOTBALL ROSTERS HEADING INTO 2026 SEASON?

"To be honest, I took a f—ing pay cut when I left 'Gainesvegas,'" Spikes said when asked about how much money he made while playing for the Gators.

Mind you, this was pre-NIL, so anything Spikes earned was all under the table at the time.

NCAA SUSPENDS TENNESSEE LINEBACKER FOR $427 PLANE TICKET, AS COLLEGE SPORTS HANDS OUT MILLIONS IN NIL

While his response elicited a laugh from both Will Compton and Taylor Lewan, who were high-level college players in their own right, Spikes was mostly being tongue-in-cheek with his answer.

He did, however, reveal the numbers were a lot closer when factoring in Uncle Sam, referring to Massachusetts as "Taxachusetts" due to the high income taxes he incurred while playing for New England.

"You played in Foxborough," Spikes asked. "That check looks a little bit different when you walk up out of there."

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When asked by Compton whether he cleared seven-figures while wearing orange and blue, Spikes denied it, playing it coy before adding that the university found a way to move his mom down to Florida while he was playing for the Gators.

"Those same home-cooked meals I got my whole life, I got those right there in Gainesville," he joked.

If you are one of the few fans still believing kids weren't getting paid before the advent of NIL, I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but players like Spikes were living large long before it was "legal" to do so.

Let's all give Spikes a hand for being so charitable to take a cut in pay to play for the Patriots.

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What a class act!

'Nightcaps' is a daily column that catches you up on the biggest sports, news, and culture stories you may have missed while pretending to do work at your desk. It runs Monday-Friday on OutKick.com.

Another October Hump Day is here, folks. This is No. 3 of the month, with just one left. Before you know it, we'll all be basting turkeys and hanging lights.

It goes fast. Soak it all in. Don't take a single day for granted, because we're in the final stages of the greatest month of the year.

World Series on deck. NBA is back. Midweek college football is hitting on all cylinders at the moment. Hockey in full swing. The NFL is currently sending teams to Paris for reasons I still can't figure out.

NFL MONITORS FRANCE STREET VIOLENCE BEFORE SAINTS-STEELERS GAME NEAR PARIS WITH A MAJOR DECISION LOOMING

Just an amazing time to be alive right now if you're a sports fan. It doesn't get much better than this.

Let's roll.

Welcome to a Hump Day Nightcaps — the one where the Neyland Stadium crowd last weekend had Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer seeing GHOSTS in the fourth quarter.

Goodness. Brutal look here for the head coach of the Crimson Tide. Saban would NEVER!

What else? I've got Danica Patrick back on the campaign trail, Tiffani Amber Thiessen gives her Halloween costume a test drive, and a hypothetical college football question worth your time today.

Sound good? Good!

OK, grab you your favorite Back to the Future movie to celebrate Back to the Future Day, and settle in for a Hump Day 'Cap!

It appears Neyland Stadium got to Kalen DeBoer

That's right. Today is the day any Back to the Future fan worth his or her salt knows like the back of their hand.

October 21 (2015). They thought we'd have flying cars back in the '80s when they made this movie, and, to be fair, we're getting closer.

Did y'all see what Elon cooked up over the weekend? The ROADSTER!

Yeah, we're not far off! About 11 years later than Doc McFly envisioned, but still, not bad.

As for the franchise itself ... I've said for years that Back to the Future is one of the greatest trilogies of all time. That's right — all time. It's also one of those rare ones where the middle movie is the best of the three. That's hard to do. It's rare. And BTTF pulled it off all those years ago.

Impressive. What a dynasty.

OK, let's get this class started with another dynasty that, sadly, feels a bit old in 2026: The Alabama Crimson Tide.

A hypothetical worth discussing

Amazing. Poor Kalen DeBoer. He looked just miserable last weekend in Knoxville, and that video — coupled with the apparent record the Vols broke — makes it even worse.

As for the decibel record itself ... Tennessee claims it now owns the highest on record at 130.3. Some folks on the internet aren't so sure. I've seen fans point to the LSU-'Bama game in 2022 at 133, and some random Nebraska game in 1992 at 133.6.

The Vols, however, maintain last Saturday's third-down sack tops 'em all. From the official release:

No crowd pops were louder than during a huge sequence in the third quarter with the Vols leading 19-10. Defensive end Tyree Weathersby recorded a sack on second down with 3:56 remaining in the stanza. The ensuing play, the Crimson Tide committed a delay of game penalty that made it third-and-16.

Neyland Stadium experienced 130.3 decibels (dBA peak) on field level for a noise event that lasted seven seconds during that sequence, which was the highest scientifically verified decibel crowd event in college football history. Alabama was called for a false start one play later. 

For what it's worth, the highest decibel level for any sporting event on record took place at a Monday Night Football game at Arrowhead Stadium back in 2014, according to the folks over at earpeace.com. True story.

Argue away!

And when you're done debating that, take a look at this little hypothetical question making the internet rounds today and tell me where you land:

Danica, Tiff Ann & Happy Anniversary to this legend!

So, for me, this one is insanely easy ...

It's Kirby Smart at Nebraska, right? Feel like Kirby would turn Nebraska into a powerhouse in Year 1. Two years tops. I don't even think Matt Rhule is a good coach, and he somehow has Nebraska at 5-2 right now (should be 6-1, maybe 7-0).

As for the others ...

Curt Cignetti at Missouri would be No. 2, followed by ... Marcus Freeman at Michigan? I don't know. The rest of that list looks like a disaster to me. Lincoln Riley at Texas would just be Sark 2.0. Ryan Day at Northwestern would be hilarious, and Deion Sanders at USC would be the most entertaining, but also the most combustible.

Anyway, let me know! Zach.Dean@OutKick.com.

OK, let's rapid-fire this Hump Day class into a big Hump Day night. First up? It's officially election SZN, which means Danica Patrick is back on the Trump Train.

Choo-choo!

"I wish you could all have just 5 minutes with @potus! He is so easy to talk to and SO fun to listen to! He’s a great story teller… funny and obviously interesting. He is also very curious what your opinion is pertaining to any topic. And of course he is really into sports, which I love!" Patrick said in her post, which included several pictures from the 2024 elections featuring Trump and the ex-NASCAR star.

Anyone else here beyond exhausted by all the election stuff? It's just brutal. I got 7 phone calls/texts this morning alone from candidates asking A) for money, or B) for me to "take a short survey" so they could see where things stand.

There are signs EVERYWHERE in my town right now. Everywhere. On every street corner. In front of every store. Below every stoplight.

And don't get me started on the commercials. Goodness gracious, the commercials. It's nonstop. If I have to see Byron Donalds shoot hoops with his kids one more time, I'm going to lose it.

You're gonna win Florida, Byron. I promise! Give us a break!!

Next? On the way out, I'd be remiss if I didn't take a minute and wish a happy 15-year anniversary to what I consider one of the pivotal moments in the history of college football ...

Pure cinema. Man, I miss the Pac-12 After Dark. What an amazing time that was. We had it all, and now it's basically reduced to nothing.

The fake ref in that video? He goes by Jacen Lankow — an Arizona alum who is now a household name in Tucson.

From Tucson.com, which chronicled the event in real time:

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With four seconds left before halftime and the Wildcats leading 42-7, Lankow — a UA senior — ran onto the field dressed as a game official, whistled a play dead, yelled "ball, ball, ball," attempted to grab the football from the umpire — and then bolted from midfield to the north end zone while simultaneously ripping his costume off to reveal a Speedo.

This was a Halloween prank from the then-senior. He bought a ref outfit from the costume store across the street. He counterfeited an all-access field pass using Microsoft Paint.

Microsoft Paint!

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The brawl, of course, had nothing to do with this prank. Nada. It was a completely separate event.

Those were the good old days.

OK, that's it for today. Good Hump Day, everyone. Let's keep going strong into the back-half of the week. Halloween ain't far off, you know?

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Speaking of ... let's end the day with Tiffani Amber giving us a little sneak peak of her costume.

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Well done.

The sky appears to be falling in Austin, Texas, with the Longhorns having suffered back-to-back losses. With Arch Manning being the starting quarterback for a Texas offense that ranks in the bottom half of the league, many are pointing at him as the lead culprit of the messy situation, but one former head coach is pointing the blame elsewhere.

Just two weeks ago, Texas was the No. 1 team in the country and appeared to be a real threat to win a national title. Now, the Longhorns are just one loss away from virtually being eliminated from College Football Playoff contention, but the big picture of it all is that head coach Steve Sarkisian has simply not pushed Manning to take a step in the right direction.

To put it simply, Manning has been average so far this season. He's 10th among SEC quarterbacks in completion percentage (63.9), 12th in passing yards (1,295), and ninth in touchdown passes (11). He has not been able to elevate his team's offense as much as many expected him to in what is now his fourth year in Austin.

STEVE SARKISIAN VOWS TO 'EVALUATE EVERYTHING,' WON’T RULE OUT BENCHING ARCH MANNING AMID TEXAS' TWO-GAME SKID

In Brian Kelly's opinion, the offensive struggles seen at Texas this season fall on the shoulders of the man who calls the plays, Sarkisian.

"I think it’s on the play caller," Kelly told Danny Kanell on SiriusXM on Tuesday. "I think the play caller takes a lot of the responsibility. Look, he’s your quarterback. They’re not going back. I mean, they’re not going to bench him unless there’s just a total meltdown."

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Kelly, like the majority of others in and around college football, complimented Sarkisian's offensive mind, but claimed it may be time to make the game plan a bit simpler for Manning moving forward.

"Coach Sarkisian is an outstanding play caller. He understands the game. He’s proven, seasoned, but sometimes there has to be that sit-down conversation," Kelly continued.

"Say, ‘Look, we’re going to do what you can do and execute.’ And to your point, Danny, this is about accuracy and higher completion percentage. If we can run the ball with more effectiveness, if you add those two things to the Texas offense, they’re going to win the rest of their football games."

Manning was only asked to throw the football 20 times during Texas' loss at home to Florida a week ago. He completed 14 of his passes, threw for one score, and didn't throw an interception in his team's 27-24 loss.

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LANE KIFFIN IS ALREADY GETTING HIS EXCUSES READY FOR LSU'S DISAPPOINTING REGULAR SEASON

As Kelly alluded to, the Longhorns playing a more complementary style of offense could greatly benefit Manning. Texas rushed for just 99 yards against the Gators.

On the flip side of Kelly's opinion, if the recipe for success six games into the season is to dumb down the offense for Manning, the Longhorns could be in for a long second half of the year.

Texas takes on No. 7 Ole Miss this upcoming Saturday at home, with road contests against Missouri and LSU still looming as well.

Texas has permanently banned a fan from attending Longhorns home football games after he was seen flipping off several Florida Gators players in Austin on Saturday.

The Longhorns suffered their second consecutive loss in Week 7, with the Gators pulling off a 27-24 upset. Shortly after the final whistle, a fan wearing Texas gear was caught on video flipping off Florida players as they left the field.

The fan was holding up his own phone behind his middle finger and documenting the scene himself while being filmed by FOX 7 video photographer Anthony Geronimo, who shared the video on X. Several Florida players walked after the fan, but any sort of altercation was avoided.

STEVE SARKISIAN VOWS TO 'EVALUATE EVERYTHING,' WON’T RULE OUT BENCHING ARCH MANNING AMID TEXAS' TWO-GAME SKID

With the original video of the scene picking up over 3.5 million views, it made its way to the Texas athletic department, which has made it clear that it will not tolerate such behavior by banning the individual from future games at Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.

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"I want to address the video circulating on social media showing unacceptable behavior by an individual who had the privilege of field access following Saturday’s game," Chris Del Conte, Vice President and Athletic Director, wrote in a statement published on the university's website. "We pride ourselves on sportsmanship and treating our opponents with respect. This individual’s actions did not reflect those values or meet our standards and will not be tolerated.

"The matter has been addressed internally, and I want to personally apologize to the University of Florida and its entire football program. Having access to our field comes with a responsibility to represent Texas with class and respect. This individual failed to uphold that responsibility and has been permanently banned from Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium."

Fans flipping off players is not a rarity in the college football world, but a fan with field access walking over to opposing players and doing so is.

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Texas welcomes No. 7 Ole Miss to town on Saturday in what is likely a must-win game for the Longhorns if they want to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive. Texas will enter Saturday night's contest at 4-2 on the year, while the Rebels sit at 5-1.

Three-time national championship-winning head coach Urban Meyer knows what good quarterback play looks like, and he isn’t seeing it from Arch Manning right now.

Texas has lost two straight games, Manning has struggled in each of them, and the noise in Austin has only grown surrounding the 22-year-old. Meyer said during a recent appearance on OutKick’s "Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich" that during Texas’ thrilling comeback win against Ohio State last month, Manning looked like the guy everyone thought he was going to be, but he has since regressed.

"It's hard to believe we're here," he said.

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"His second half against Ohio State, particularly the last two drives, that looked like the guy that everybody talked about. He was phenomenal. But he’s gone backwards."

Meyer said that last season, Texas didn’t have great wide receivers, which he believed was a viable excuse for Manning's struggles against tougher teams. This season, Manning has struggled despite having Cam Coleman and Ryan Wingo, two standout wide receivers, and Meyer thinks Manning should be benched.

He cited Michigan as an example of how benching a quarterback can work.

ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON'T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!

"You saw coach Kyle Whittingham make the change at quarterback. Instant spark. They beat Penn State. We all know if they don't make that change, they lose to Penn State. So, I think they're at that inflection point right now," Meyer said.

Longhorns backup quarterback KJ Lacey Jr. has taken more first-team reps, and Meyer said head coach Steve Sarkisian has to take reps away from Manning.

"You got to start giving that guy reps and then at (that) point, it's going to be a really really difficult decision if he's going to make that decision to make a change, because I'm really worried about Texas. They look awful."

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After the Longhorns' loss to Florida on Saturday, they dropped from No. 12 to No. 19 in the latest AP Top 25 poll. Texas’ schedule does not get any easier, as the Longhorns face No. 7 Ole Miss on Saturday night.

Dan Lanning said he was still gathering information about Oregon wide receiver Evan Stewart’s arrest but the fifth-year Ducks' head coach vowed to take what he described as "appropriate action" once he had all the necessary details.

"There will be an appropriate action taken. Still gathering some details with what that situation looks like," Lanning said.

He added that the situation would be dealt with internally. "But that would be handled internally. I’m not gonna respond to any other questions about that. We’re gonna handle that with our guys."

COLLEGE FOOTBALL WEEK 7 SCHEDULE: TOP GAMES, TV CHANNELS, STREAMING, PREVIEWS

Stewart was taken into custody early Sunday on charges of driving under the influence, hours after the Ducks rallied to defeat Nebraska on Saturday night. He was booked into the Springfield Municipal Jail, according to police records.

Lanning said the incident was unfortunate because it cast a shadow on the Ducks’ win.

Stewart did not play in the game against the Cornhuskers because of an undisclosed injury. He has 27 catches for 352 yards and four touchdowns this season after missing all of last season because of a right patellar tendon tear.

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"There was an incident this weekend that didn’t match our standard here in our program," Lanning said.

Oregon visits Illinois for a Big Ten matchup with star quarterback Dante Moore’s status still unclear.

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Moore has missed the Ducks’ past two games while recovering from a concussion.

Lanning said Moore participated in practice leading up to Oregon’s Week 6 matchup with UCLA, but Brock Thoman and Dylan Raiola ultimately saw action in the Ducks’ 17-15 loss to the Bruins. Both quarterbacks also played against Nebraska.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Find yourself something or someone you love as much as Lane Kiffin loves making excuses for things that haven't even happened yet.

Kiffin's first season as head coach of the LSU Tigers has been a bit of a roller coaster. They've at times looked dominant, like the opening weekend demolition of Clemson, then struggled in a loss to what should have been an overmatched Kentucky team. The loss at Ole Miss, in a highly charged, emotional return to Oxford was understandable on the face of it, and yet was exactly the type of game Kiffin was hired to win.

Now, with two losses in the first seven games, LSU still has a tough schedule remaining. The Tigers have upcoming games against Auburn on the road this weekend, a home game against Alabama, followed by Texas in Baton Rouge, a road game against Tennessee, and a season-ending trip to Arkansas. For a program that entered the season with aspirations of reaching the College Football Playoff, Kiffin needs to win out to feel good about finishing in playoff position.

LANE KIFFIN IS ALREADY SOMEHOW BLAMING THE SEC'S NEW CONFERENCE SCHEDULE FOR LSU'S INJURIES

And he's already got his excuses ready for if they don't.

In a news conference this week, Kiffin explained to reporters that he opposed the SEC's new nine-game conference schedule, and detailed how the math guarantees the SEC an additional eight in-conference losses.

"And they kinda said when it was proposed, they said, 'Well, okay, you're going to take on eight more losses. I mean, that's going to be real, there's no way of changing the math, that's going to happen. So you see that, I think somebody said there's two SEC teams in the top-10 right now, and I said before it started, I said, 'Take away the first SEC game that you play because that's going to be brand new, the ninth one came early and got added and replaced an early win, you know where's that going to put you?'

"Look at this team [Auburn Tigers], if you took away their first SEC loss, and it was just a win versus a Group of Six team, they'd be a top-10 team right now. They'd have one loss, on the road at Tennessee to a really good team. And somehow now, because of adding an extra game, they're not even ranked and they just beat the number one team in the country."

He concluded the answer, "It's just where football is, and they can't see like they do in basketball or baseball, metrics, so it is what it is."

The reason Auburn isn't ranked is because they don't deserve to be, win over Georgia or not. And the reason the SEC has just two teams in the top 10 is because they keep losing. When asked a follow-up, whether there were any positives to the nine-game schedule, Kiffin was short: "No."

"You're ... just seeing teams with more losses, more beat up. And there's so much into it more than just the losses. You know, it's at a time when because of it, I'm not complaining, I'm saying what it is, because of the [transfer] portal that you can leave every year and NIL, you see players going from teams for more money, and they go to another team in conference.

"And that's fine, it is what it is, but at the same time that you see that, that it's so hard for teams to build depth after their top players ... don't add more conference games. Because now you've got what you got."

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The problem with all of this is that it is exactly the argument other conferences were making when the SEC had the advantage of an eight-game schedule. You had programs that scheduled themselves four free non-conference wins, found themselves ranked because of their record, then provided "ranked" wins and losses in SEC play. That was a tremendous boon for the entire perceived strength of the conference and helped create the "depth" argument.

Now that the advantage has been removed, Kiffin is rushing to complain about it. Yes, the SEC is going to have eight extra losses this year, and it's going to show up in the standings and the polls. Just like it does for everyone else.

One other important point from his argument is that we don't have "metrics" in college football like we do in basketball or baseball. And he's right, there are no official NET ratings like there are in basketball. But we do have "metrics" in college football, they just don't always tell the story Kiffin and others like to tell.

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According to ESPN's SP+ rankings, which evaluate team efficiency on offense, defense and special teams while adjusting for competition, the Big Ten has nine teams in the top 30, compared with seven for the SEC. Turns out, this season at least, the Big Ten's "depth" is better than the SEC. Seems unlikely that Kiffin would be adamant that the Big Ten's nine-game conference schedule is dragging down their results.

That Auburn team he referenced? They're No. 42. Because they're not actually at the level of a ranked team, it's just that the gaps between the best and the mediocre is smaller than it's ever been. Texas A&M is No. 33, Oklahoma No. 34, Florida No. 38, and Mississippi State No. 48. Yes, the SEC is getting a lot of benefit of the doubt when it comes to human poll voters relative to objective metrics.

Speaking of that preferential treatment, it's obvious when looking at just wins and losses too.

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There are currently five teams from the SEC ranked despite having two losses. There isn't a single two-loss team in the top 25 poll that isn't from the SEC. That's correct; not one other conference has a ranked team with two losses. Just the SEC. They're already getting rewarded for their schedules, even if the "depth" in this year's SEC is not as strong as it's perceived to be.

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Don't worry though, Kiffin will still find something to complain about.

Ohio State head coach Ryan Day delivered bad news for his Buckeyes football program, as quarterback Julian Sayin will be out "indefinitely" because of a shoulder injury.

Day initially said that Sayin would miss "several weeks" after injury his throwing shoulder following Ohio State’s 19-15 win over Indiana this past weekend.

Several weeks have now turned into an indefinite amount of time away from the Buckeyes, and Day admitted the team is preparing as if Sayin won’t be available for the remainder of the regular season, and even worse, the College Football Playoff.

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"First off, we’re not going to put any timeline on his recovery, but he is out indefinitely," he told reporters. "So, what we’re trying to do is give Julian and his family some privacy to go through this process. But based on the nature of the injury, we are putting together a plan for him not being available for the regular season and also him not being available for the postseason.

"Based on that, if he’s not able to return this fall, we’ll put a plan together for that as well. That’s really the update I have right now out of respect to him and his family."

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Luke Fahey, the true freshman who took over after Sayin went down in the fourth quarter of last week’s victory, will remain the Buckeyes’ starter moving forward. The injury also comes with Ohio State on a bye this weekend before traveling to No. 16 USC for a Halloween matchup.

"When Luke's in there, we just may need to do things just a little bit differently, but the bye week gives us a chance to regroup on that and put our heads together," Day said on Saturday.

Sayin’s injury came after Hoosiers defender Mario Landino hit his throwing shoulder while sacking him. The hit forced Sayin to fumble, and he went to the locker room to look at his ailment. Sayin later returned to the sideline in a sling.

There has not been a specific injury for Sayin, but one can imply just how serious it could be if Day and his coaching staff are preparing as if he might not be available for the entire rest of the season.

Sayin, who was expected to be among the top NFL Draft prospects, threw for 1,772 yards thus far with 17 touchdowns to only two interceptions this season.

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Now, all eyes will be looking at Fahey, a three-star recruit out of California, to see if he can keep the Buckeyes as the No. 3 team in college football, if not better.

"He's got confidence, he's got athletic ability, he's a competitive kid," Day said of Fahey. "I don't think the moment was too big for him."

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Urban Meyer knows a thing or two about what makes a great college football coach.

The 62-year-old College Football Hall of Fame inductee won three national championships during his nearly two-decade career, two of which came while he was roaming the sidelines at the University of Florida.

His ties to Gainesville made him a trusted voice in the Gators' latest coaching search, and coaching searches have been frequent occurrences since he exited stage left in December 2010.

FLORIDA GATORS COACH JON SUMRALL SAYS HE WOULDN'T HAVE LEFT TULANE IF HE WASN'T ALLOWED TO COACH PLAYOFF TEAM

With Meyer's help, Florida selected Jon Sumrall, whose first year is off to a roaring start thanks to two top-10 wins (Ole Miss and Texas) before he's even had a chance to coach a full season.

Seven games into his tenure, Meyer has been blown away by Sumrall, and joined Dan Dakich on his show, "Don't @ Me," to discuss how he had a small part in helping usher the new Gator to The Swamp this past fall.

FLORIDA COACH BRINGS LAUGHS, NO FILTER AND LANE KIFFIN COMPARISON REBUTTAL TO FIRST SEC MEDIA DAYS

"I don't like him, I love the guy," Meyer said with the same smile a proud older sibling would wear when talking about his younger brother's accomplishments.

"I never met him until this year, I was involved in the coaching search. They asked me to kind of vet, and one phone call, I hung up the phone and I called a guy on the board of trustees and I said, 'you found your guy, man.'"

FORMER OHIO STATE, FLORIDA COACH URBAN MEYER REVEALS THE ONE PLACE HE REFUSED TO RECRUIT PLAYERS FROM

As I mentioned before, Meyer knows what a good coach looks like.

Outside of his accomplishments, Meyer's "coaching tree" looks as impressive as anyone's not named "Saban."

Just a few of Urban's notable assistant coaches over the years include Ryan Day, Dan Mullen, Brian Hartline, Charlie Strong, Steve Addazio, Luke Fickell, and Mike Vrabel, among others.

So, when Urban Meyer hops on the phone and says "you found your guy," chances are he's onto something.

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"This guy doesn't b—h... you ever hear him bitch about the NIL? You ever hear him b—h about the transfer portal," Meyer asked rhetorically. "No, he loves the game. He loves his players."

Meyer also lauds Sumrall for how tough he is on his players while still showing them love.

FLORIDA COACH JON SUMRALL REVEALS EARLY CAREER STRUGGLES, LIVING IN SLUMS OF SAN DIEGO AND 'CARRYING A GLOCK'

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"I love when he says, 'yeah, we suck, we just suck less today and we beat Texas.' I mean how cool is that?"

A big part of why Meyer has been so drawn to the 43-year-old Gators coach is the fact that he sees a lot of his younger self in Sumrall, too.

He brings up their Bloody Tuesday practices and mentions that the second in command is Rusty Whitt, Florida's head strength coach.

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"The number two in charge is their strength coach, just like us," Meyer recalls. "I believe he's a Green Beret who runs the strength program, and he's the culture."

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It's early, and a lot of things can still change, but Sumrall is doing his best to make Meyer look like a genius since the moment he hung up that phone 11 months ago.

Welcome to Screencaps, "America's Best Daily Column," as named by the readers. Screencaps, which publishes seven-days-a-week, is a mix of sports, pop culture, and emails from sane readers from around the world. This column isn't for the coastal elites. Give us a week to steal your heart. Our track record is pretty good. Let's have some fun.

I miss the days in the SEC when you could give a $20 handshake to get into big college football games...not that I would've ever done that with my father

Now we have guys like Blake Bible going to extremes to get into mid-season games with playoff implications. Police say they found Bible "drinking a White Claw while wearing a uniform from Axis, the security company paid to work events at the University of Tennessee, near the G10 ramp on Phillip Fulmer Way just before 3:30 p.m."

The security company says Bible stole a shirt and hat that its workers wear at games.

THE COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF IS SACRIFICING ITS SOUL TO BE AN ATM FOR CONFERENCES WITH EXPANSION TO 24 TEAMS

My concern is that with a 24-team playoff, will we even get games where college-aged guys are willing to (allegedly) steal security uniforms to see games in-person? The important SEC and B1G teams will be able to lose three games and get into the playoffs.

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These two can't even look at each other – it's over

Days after Troy Aikman didn't dispute that he's beefing with Joe Buck, the two were back in the same broadcast booth last night and let's just say it was icy. Troy's not in the mood. If you listened to the broadcast, it was all business. There was no banter. Aikman clocked in, did his job and got out.

ESPN ALLOWING TROY AIKMAN TO WALK AWAY FROM JOE BUCK BOOTH WOULD MAKE NO SENSE | BOBBY BURACK

Who gets Aikman's job? I still say McAfee. He's already traveling with the Monday Night pregame show and doing the MNF alt-cast.

It's great to hear from new fans who found Screencaps from the Fox News homepage

• Keith R. writes: I am 60 years old from Pittsburgh.  Just wanted to say I do not understand technology well so I’m not sure how I came across your column.  I’m glad I did though, I love reading it.  If I am able to subscribe I will.  The best thing I’ve read so far was this morning.  I listen to most sports on mute these days.  I have a growing disdain for nearly every announcer and most analysts.  So bad that I find myself not enjoying the game because I just criticize the booth.  If I could watch the skycast on every game I would be happy.  Most of the announcers are just Captain Obvious and I honestly don’t care about 99% of what they say.  All I need is the down and distance and the crowd noise and I’m good! 

Kinsey: Thanks for reading, Keith. I'm not going to lie, the OutKick pivot from being it's own entity to being integrated as Fox News Digital's sports division has been a work in progress. Some readers left forever. Many stayed. Many loyal Fox readers think I'm an idiot and they don't get the column. That's fine.

And then there are guys like Keith who come along. He gave the column a chance. Now he's hooked. That's the business plan working like a charm.

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Chiefs heiress Gracie Hunt's brother has a new Swedish girlfriend

Let's give a round of applause to Knobel Hunt, who will one day inherit the Kansas City Chiefs, along with his sisters Ava and Gracie. This guy is always overshadowed because he's off working in New York City as an investment banker, which should get him ready to run a billion-dollar NFL franchise down the road.

Knobel broke the news Monday that there's a new Swedish girlfriend in the mix. Between Gracie preparing to marry Trent Green's son and Ava cheering at SMU, it's a busy time for the Hunt family.

Does America have a door-holding problem?

I'm not talking about a problem with a lack of holding the door for people. I'm talking about holding the door for people who are too far away from the door to deserve the door to be held open for them.

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Should we be holding the door for anyone who is more than a car length away from the door? Should it be a half-car length rule? In this meme, the lady seem to be about a SUV and a half length away. I say let the door close on her.

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That is it this morning. The sun is shining. The NBA is back for those of you who LOVE the NBA.

Let's get after it.

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Marcus Freeman is 49-13 overall as the head coach of Notre Dame since taking over the Fighting Irish at the end of the 2021 season. It's a respectable record, but when you take a slightly deeper dive into the numbers, the situation turns into an utterly embarrassing one.

Notre Dame's best season under Freeman came in 2024 when the Irish finished the regular season at 11-1, rattling off 10 straight wins after losing at home to Northern Illinois, before ultimately losing in the national championship game to Ohio State. That campaign was unquestionably great and very respectable, but when you peel back the curtain and focus solely on the regular season, not even 2024 could be labeled impressive.

On the heels of the Irish losing on the road to BYU in Week 7, the team's first noteworthy opponent of the season, Notre Dame has been in the crosshairs yet again as a program that simply can not win the rare meaningful game it actually schedules during the regular season, and it turns out that there is some very real legitimacy behind that idea.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL FACES ANOTHER CLOCK CONTROVERSY AFTER BYU UPSETS NOTRE DAME

Chris 'The Bear' Fallica of Fox Sports did some digging into Notre Dame's record under Freeman to find out if the narrative about the Fighting Irish was as bad as some in the college football world have made it out to be, and the numbers paint quite the picture.

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Notre Dame has won 16 games dating back to the start of the 2025 season, and according to Fallica's findings, those 16 teams have posted a combined record of 62-91 against FBS opponents. If you take those 16 teams and look at their record against Power Four schools, it drops to a stunning 32-78 mark.

While those numbers reflect how soft Notre Dame has made its schedule over the years, it somehow gets even more alarming.

WEEK 7 AP TOP 25 POLL FEATURES A COMPLETE SHUFFLE AFTER CHAOTIC WEEKEND, WITH MIAMI TAKING OVER THE TOP SPOT

Freeman has posted a 44-11 regular-season record while in charge of the Irish, and of those 44 wins, a whopping five have come against teams that finished the season ranked. Two of those five ranked opponents happened to be service academies.

Looking ahead at the remainder of Notre Dame's regular season slate, the Irish play host to No. 1 Miami on Nov. 7 and No. 23 SMU two weeks later.

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Things will fall into place as they always do, but it's relatively safe to assume that if the Irish finish the year at 10-2, they will punch a ticket into the College Football Playoff.

If Notre Dame finishes inside the Top 12 in the final CFB Playoff rankings, it automatically qualifies for the Playoff no matter the teams or resumes in a similar position.