NFL – National Football League – Week 5
Last Night
Chicago Bears 40, Washington Commanders 20
Bears 40, Commanders 20 – Fields and Moore lead the Bears to their first win of the season
Justin Fields connected with DJ Moore for 230 yards and three touchdowns to help the embattled Chicago Bears pick up their first win of the season by beating Washington 40-20. Fields matched his career high set last week with four TD passes. Chicago’s victory came hours after word emerged of the death of franchise great Dick Butkus. Relief was palpable at the end of a 14-game skid dating to last season — since Oct. 24, 2022, the last time they won a game. All the off-field drama the organization has been mired in for weeks melted away in the moments of celebration. Washington fell behind 27-3 at halftime and lost a third consecutive game.
Sunday
Carolina Panthers at Detroit Lions, 1:00 p.m. Rock 107 WIRX 12:00
Tennessee Titans at Indianapolis Colts, 1:00 p.m.
NFL – Dick Butkus, fearsome Hall of Fame Chicago Bears linebacker, dies at 80
Fearsome Chicago Bears middle linebacker Dick Butkus has died at 80. The team said in a statement that he died Thursday. Citing his family, the team said Butkus died in his sleep at his home in Malibu, California. Butkus was a Hall of Famer whose bone-rattling tackles made him one of the most intimidating players in NFL history. He was the quintessential modern linebacker, a disruptive force who roamed sideline to sideline and left a trail of broken opponents behind. Despite a short career in which he retired at 31, Butkus came to define his position. He later acted in movies, TV shows and commercials.
NFL – Magic Johnson chides Commanders for ‘no intensity’ in a 40-20 loss to Chicago
Washington Commanders part-owner Magic Johnson has chided his NFL team for showing no intensity or fire in a 40-20 loss to the previously winless Chicago Bears. Coach Ron Rivera’s Commanders produced another terrible first half and fell into a 24-point hole against Chicago on Thursday night. That led to boos from the home crowd. Eventually, Washington briefly displayed some competence but wound up losing against an opponent club that hadn’t won a game in nearly a year. Washington’s defense was supposed to be a strength under Rivera but Washington Commanders could not slow down Justin Fields and DJ Moore. Washington has lost three games in a row and allowed at least 33 points in each of its past four outings.
NFL – Lions host winless Panthers, aiming for 3rd straight win to stay atop NFC North
The Detroit Lions are rolling as they head into a matchup with Carolina — just as they were last season. Detroit hopes to have a different result. The Panthers played a part in keeping the surging Lions out of the playoffs last year, beating them by two touchdowns with a franchise-record 570 yards in Week 16. The NFC North-leading Lions host the winless Panthers on Sunday, aiming to hold onto their first outright division lead since Week 2 in 2017. The Panthers are 0-4 and rookie quarterback Bryce Young has struggled.
MLB – Major League Baseball – Divisional Playoffs – Best of five
Saturday
Texas Rangers at Baltimore Orioles, 1:00 p.m. (Game 1)
Minnesota Twins at Houston Astros, 4:45 p.m. (Game 1)
Philadelphia Phillies at Atlanta Braves, 6:00 p.m. (Game 1)
Arizona Diamondback at Los Angeles Dodgers, 9:20 p.m. (Game 1)
NHL – National Hockey League Preseason
Last Night
Toronto Maple Leafs 4, Detroit Red Wings 3 – OT
Minnesota Wild 3, Chicago Blackhawks 2 – Shootout)
MCCAA – Michigan Community College Athletic Association
Last Night
Women’s Volleyball
Olivet 3, Lake Michigan College 2
Southwestern Michigan College 3, Glen Oaks Community College 1
NCAAFB – College Football – Week 6
Saturday
Western Michigan at Mississippi State, 12:00 p.m.
Central Michigan at Buffalo, 2:00 p.m.
Ball State at Eastern Michigan, 3:30 p.m.
(2) Michigan at Minnesota, 7:30 p.m.
(10) Notre Dame at (25) Louisville, 7:30 p.m.
Michigan State (bye week)
NCAAFB – Michigan has owned the Little Brown Jug. Minnesota will get fewer cracks at it
The Little Brown Jug is one of the oldest trophies in college football. Michigan and Minnesota have played for possession of the classic earthenware since 1909. The gaps between games are only going to grow in this increasingly crowded Big Ten. The second-ranked Wolverines play the Gophers this weekend in just their fourth appearance at Huntington Bank Stadium since it opened on Minnesota’s campus 14 years ago. Michigan leads the all-time series 76-25-3. The Wolverines have won 42 of the the last 46 matchups. The Gophers haven’t won at home since 1977.
NCAAFB – Michigan keeps the show on the road with a trip to underdog Minnesota
Second-ranked Michigan plays a Big Ten game at Minnesota on Saturday night. The Wolverines are 5-0. The Gophers are 3-2. Michigan is favored by 19 1/2 points, according to FanDuel Sportsbook odds. The Wolverines lead the all-time series 76-25-3. They have won 25 of the last 27 contests. The last time Minnesota won at home was in 1977. Michigan has won 17 straight Big Ten games. The Wolverines have an average margin of victory this season of 28.4 points for their best five-game mark since 1904. Michigan has won 25 straight games against unranked opponents.
NCAAFB – Notre Dame visits Louisville seeking 31st straight win over ACC opponent
No. 10 Notre Dame and No. 25 Louisville meet for just the fourth time but the first as ranked foes in a nationally televised prime-time matchup. The Fighting Irish seek their 31st consecutive win over an ACC opponent after topping then-No. 17 Duke 21-14 last week in Durham. Louisville is in the AP Top 25 for the first time this year and seeks its first 6-0 start in 10 years. The Cardinals have dropped two in a row to the Irish. They’re coming off a 13-10 comeback win at North Carolina State, a game clinched by Quincy Riley’s late interception.
NCAAFB – Expanding Big Ten weighs competition, rivalries, TV ratings and road trips
The first season of an 18-team, bicoastal Big Ten Conference will include Oregon hosting Ohio State, Penn State at Southern California and Michigan going to Washington. The Big Ten released five seasons’ worth of football opponents for each of its schools. The conference adds USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington next year to a league that otherwise has all of its schools in the Eastern and Central time zones. Game dates will be released later. The schedules include 12 annual protected rivalry games and no more than one trip to the West Coast for any of the league’s Eastern and Central time zone members.
Golf – PGA – Hadley battling for a PGA Tour card again and opens with 64 in Mississippi
Chesson Hadley is battling for a PGA Tour card for the third straight year. At least he has a little more time on his side and a swing change that is coming together. Hadley played a clean round for an 8-under 64 in the Sanderson Farms Championship. That gives him a one shot lead over Brandon Wu and Henrik Norlander. Ludvig Aberg of Sweden was happy enough with a 67. He’s still a little tired from making his Ryder Cup debut last week at Marco Simone outside Rome. Aberg missed three short birdie putts on the back nine.
Golf – LPGA – Hyo Joo Kim shoots 64 in Texas to take 2-stroke lead in The Ascendant LPGA
Hyo Joo Kim took the first-round lead Thursday in The Ascendant LPGA, breaking away at Old American with a back-nine birdie run in a 7-under 64. Kim, the 28-year-old South Korean player ranked No. 7 in the world, had a two-stroke lead over Azahara Munoz of Spain, Sofia Garcia of Paraguay and Yu-Sang Hou of Taiwan. Sarah Kemp of Australia and American Marina Alex followed at 67. Kim had eight birdies and a bogey in her afternoon round. After a bogey on the par-3 11th, she birdied Nos. 13-16 and parred the final two. The five-time LPGA Tour winner has eight top-10 finishes this season without a victory.
MHSAA – High School Sports
Last Night
Football
Buchanan 27 (4-3), Bronson 0 (2-5)
Boys Soccer
SMAC Tournament
Portage Central at Gull Lake, PPD 10/10 Championship
Kal. Loy Norrix 2, BC Lakeview 1 3rd place game
St. Joseph 2, Mattawan 1 5th place game
Portage Northern 2, Lakeshore 1 7th place game
Kalamazoo Central 9th place
Battle Creek Central 10th place
Other games
Lawton 8, Michigan Lutheran 0
Howardsville Chr. 2, Our Lady of the Lake 0
Fennville 5, Bloomingdale 1
Constantine 1, Bridgman 0
Fruitport Calvary 9, Saugatuck 1
Volleyball
Edwardsburg 3, Niles 1
Otsego 3, Plainwell 1
Three Rivers 3, Paw Paw 0
Sturgis 3, Vicksburg 0
Watervliet 3, Buchanan 1
Decatur 3, Lawrence 0
Howardsville Christian 3, Covert 0
Tonight
Football (all games start at 7:00 p.m.
SMAC
Lakeshore (5-1) at St. Joseph (3-3) SJ: News/Talk/Sports 94.9 WSJM 6:35 LKSH: 97.5 Y-Country WYTZ 6:45
Portage Northern (6-0) at Portage Central (5-1)
Mattawan (3-3) at Battle Creek Lakeview (0-6)
Battle Creek Central (0-6) at Kalamazoo Central (1-4)
Lakeland
Brandywine (2-4) at Benton Harbor (2-4)
Berrien Springs 32 at Dowagiac (4-2)
Wolverine
Edwardsburg (3-3) at Niles (5-1)
Plainwell (1-5) at Otsego (1-5)
Three Rivers (1-5) at Paw Paw (6-0)
Sturgis (2-4) at Vicksburg (2-4)
SAC
South Haven (4-2) at Watervliet (2-4)
Allegan (4-2) at Parchment (3-3)
Schoolcraft (5-1) at Lawton (5-1)
Saugatuck (6-0) at Galesburg-Augusta (1-5)
Southwest 10
Comstock (0-6) at Centreville (3-3)
Cassopolis (3-3) at White Pigeon (6-0)
Non-Conference/Independent
Gull Lake (4-2) at Cadilliac (3-3)
Livonia Clarenceville (2-3) at Kalamazoo Loy Norrix (1-4)
Coloma (2-5) beats Hartford by forfeit
Delton-Kellogg (1-5) at Decatur (2-4)
SW Michigan 8-Man
Twin Cities (3-3) at Bangor (3-3)
Wyoming Lee (4-2) at Red Arrow (4-2)
Eau Claire (2-4) at Wyoming Tri-Unity (3-3)
Lawrence (0-6) at Bloomingdale (0-6)
Gobles (5-1) at Bridgman (6-0)
Grandville Calvin Christian (4-2) at Marcellus (5-1)
Britton-Deerfield (2-4) at Martin (4-2)
GR Northpointe (4-3) defeats Fennville by forfeit
Saturday
Football
Kalamazoo United (4-2) at Constantine (5-1), 1:00 p.m.
