Rain pushes ALCS Game 4 to tonight; Alabama at Tennessee leads a loaded Saturday

New Rain washes out ALCS Game 4; Guardians and Rays try again tonight

Cleveland GuardiansTampa Bay RaysMilwaukee Brewers

Cleveland waited all evening for the rain to move out, and it never did. Game 4 of the American League Championship Series was postponed late Friday night, and Major League Baseball rescheduled it for 8 PM ET tonight at Progressive Field on TBS and truTV, according to ESPN's Jorge Castillo.

The washout changes the back half of the series. Game 5 moves to Sunday at 5 PM ET in Cleveland, on what had been a scheduled day off. If more games are needed, Game 6 would be Monday and Game 7 Tuesday at Tropicana Field, which means the teams could play four days in a row. The Guardians still lead 2-1.

The pitching plans stay the same: All-Star right-hander Nick Martinez starts for Tampa Bay, and Cleveland opens a bullpen game with Shawn Armstrong. Both managers said their teams would be ready, ESPN reported, and ESPN's weather feed calls for a cold, dry night in the upper 40s.

Whoever wins the series meets Milwaukee, which has been resting since it swept the Dodgers on Thursday. World Series Game 1 is still set for Friday, Oct. 23, in Milwaukee.

Sources: ESPN (Jorge Castillo); ESPN scoreboard and weather feed.

Alabama at Tennessee leads a college football Saturday full of ranked matchups

Alabama Crimson TideTennessee VolunteersKeelon Russell, Alabama QBKamario Taylor, Mississippi State QB

The Third Saturday in October lands on the third Saturday in October this year. No. 6 Alabama and No. 14 Tennessee, both 5-1, meet at Neyland Stadium at 3:30 PM ET on ABC. ESPN's forecast calls for a mostly sunny, breezy afternoon in the upper 50s. Alabama is trying to bounce back from its loss to Georgia, while Tennessee has won the last two meetings in Knoxville, according to the University of Tennessee. Our full preview has more on the matchup.

It is one of six games between ranked teams on ESPN's schedule. The day opens at noon ET with No. 4 Ohio State at No. 5 Indiana and closes with No. 2 Notre Dame at No. 8 BYU, where ESPN's College GameDay is set up in Provo, according to ESPN's Pete Thamel.

One noon game has an injury question. Mississippi State quarterback Kamario Taylor (foot) was downgraded to doubtful on the SEC's availability report for the trip to LSU, and leading rusher Fluff Bothwell is also doubtful, ESPN's Alex Scarborough reported. Doubtful is not out; a final report comes closer to kickoff.

Elsewhere, No. 1 Georgia hosts Auburn, No. 3 Miami hosts Florida State, and No. 7 Texas hosts Florida, according to ESPN.

Sources: ESPN schedule and AP Top 25 (via ESPN); ESPN (Alex Scarborough, Pete Thamel); SEC availability report (via ESPN); University of Tennessee Athletics.

New Eagles rule out Saquon Barkley; Caleb Williams still questionable for Sunday

Saquon Barkley, Eagles RBCaleb Williams, Bears QBPhiladelphia EaglesChicago Bears

Philadelphia will be without two of its biggest stars against Carolina on Sunday. The Eagles ruled out running back Saquon Barkley with a hamstring injury on Friday evening, a day after ruling out quarterback Jalen Hurts with a blood clot in his calf, according to ESPN's Tim McManus. With Will Shipley on injured reserve and Tank Bigsby also out, Dameon Pierce is in line for most of the carries, and Tanner McKee starts at quarterback. Receiver DeVonta Smith has no designation after missing two games.

In Chicago, Caleb Williams is officially questionable for Sunday's 1 PM ET game at Atlanta. The Bears listed him that way on their final injury report after he practiced fully Thursday and Friday, ESPN's Courtney Cronin reported. Williams has missed three straight games with a hamstring injury and said he still had medical steps to clear. Coach Ben Johnson said Williams was on track but did not announce a decision. Atlanta's Michael Penix Jr. has been cleared to play after a rib injury.

Baltimore had already ruled out Lamar Jackson for its game at Cleveland, so Tyler Huntley starts again for the Ravens, according to ESPN. Kansas City will be without receiver Rashee Rice against the Chargers.

Sources: ESPN (Tim McManus, Courtney Cronin, Jamison Hensley, Marc Raimondi); Chicago Bears injury report.

New Elijah Brown wins his first start as Washington snaps a three-game skid

Washington HuskiesPurdue Boilermakers

Washington's quarterback change paid off on Friday night. Elijah Brown, the Stanford transfer starting in place of the injured Demond Williams Jr., threw for 302 yards and three touchdowns as the Huskies beat Purdue 38-26 in West Lafayette, according to the Associated Press. Brown also threw three interceptions, but Purdue could not make Washington pay. Trey Cooley's long touchdown run in the fourth quarter sealed it. Both teams have a bye next week.

Source: Associated Press recap (via ESPN).

Josh Jacobs comes off the commissioner exempt list Monday

Josh Jacobs, Packers RBGreen Bay Packers

The NFL announced that Green Bay running back Josh Jacobs will be removed from the commissioner exempt list on Monday, making him eligible to practice and play next week, ESPN's Rob Demovsky reported. The league's investigation under its personal conduct policy is still open, so a suspension remains possible. The six games he will have missed would count toward any ban. The Packers host Dallas on Sunday night without him.

Sources: ESPN (Rob Demovsky); NFL announcement.

Avalanche rally past the Penguins; Bruins win a fourth straight

Nathan MacKinnon, AvalancheColorado AvalancheBoston Bruins

Pittsburgh scored twice early in Denver, and then Colorado took over. Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and three assists, and Artturi Lehkonen scored twice as the Avalanche won 5-2, according to the Associated Press. Sidney Crosby picked up an assist that moved him into seventh place on the NHL's career assists list.

In Anaheim, Boston also came back from two goals down. Elias Lindholm set up David Pastrnak's tying power-play goal and then scored the winner in the third period of a 4-2 victory, the Bruins' fourth in a row. Boston plays again tonight in Los Angeles.

Source: Associated Press recaps (via ESPN).

Hall of Famer Cliff Hagan dies at 94

Kentucky Wildcats

Cliff Hagan, the Kentucky great who became a five-time All-Star with the St. Louis Hawks, has died at 94, the University of Kentucky announced Friday. ESPN noted that Hagan was part of the 1956 trade that sent the draft rights to Bill Russell to Boston, and that he helped the Hawks beat Russell's Celtics for the 1958 NBA title. He later served as Kentucky's athletic director.

Source: University of Kentucky announcement (via ESPN).

The 24-team playoff takes a big step forward

The College Football Playoff has reached a handshake agreement with ESPN to broadcast a 24-team playoff starting in the 2027 season, sources told ESPN's Heather Dinich on Friday. It is not final. The deal still has to be written up and approved by the boards involved. Pete Thamel reported the expanded field would add about $345 million a year to ESPN's payments.

The plan under discussion would end the Power 4 conference championship games, start the season a week earlier and give the top eight seeds a bye plus a home game. Fans and analysts are split on whether that many teams would take the edge off the regular season. The Big Ten, which has pushed hardest for the format, says the seeding rewards keep the games meaningful.

Source: ESPN (Heather Dinich, Pete Thamel).

The new-look Sixers are still finding their rhythm

Joel Embiid, 76ersPhiladelphia 76ersSan Antonio Spurs

Philadelphia played its preseason finale with LeBron James, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Jaylen Brown all logging their most minutes of the exhibition season, and the result was a 125-120 overtime loss to Boston's reserves, ESPN's Kris Rhim reported. Embiid looked sharp, but the players admitted the group is not in sync yet. The Sixers open Tuesday at the Knicks, one of three opening-night games on NBC along with Celtics at Pistons and Thunder at Spurs. San Antonio said it will start a three-guard lineup next to Victor Wembanyama in that game.

Sources: ESPN (Kris Rhim, Michael C. Wright); ESPN schedule.

Titans CEO apologizes to fans after an 0-5 start

Tennessee Titans

Tennessee's front office tried to calm a frustrated fan base on Friday. Team CEO Burke Nihill told ESPN's Turron Davenport that the organization is sorry for the losing and fully backs first-year coach Robert Saleh and general manager Mike Borgonzi. The Titans are winless this season and have lost seven straight going back to last year.

Source: ESPN (Turron Davenport).