All hail Week 0, plus an apology for the poll

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Good morning! Make amends with Cleveland today. Coming up: 

Appetizers: Mmm, soup

Tomorrow at noon ET, across the planet, an American tradition officially begins. The college football season will be underway, with North Carolina coach Bill Belichick — still a strange concept to me — welcoming us with what will surely be a big smile. 

Welcome to Week 0, the part of the college football slate that barely existed a decade ago. There is a full program of games waiting for you. It won’t be the sheer volume of Week 1, but a perfect appetizer to help us warm up. A tiny bowl of college football soup. I like soup. 

I went to Until Saturday’s Jason Kirk for a guide on what to look for this weekend, and whether to care. Jason told me that despite an eight-game FBS schedule this weekend, the games snuck up on us due to the myriad controversies occurring in the sport right now. Stay tuned for more on that. 

Anyway, here’s what to watch for tomorrow: 

💬 “Bill Belichick’s status will hoard attention, but don’t forget North Dakota State’s FBS debut and the ball-knower’s main event: Memphis-UNLV, which could end up deciding a Playoff spot.” 

More than enough for me. Subscribe to Until Saturday to make the most of college football season. A few more tidbits to tide you over until the full Week 1 slate arrives: 

Let’s keep moving to something a little more … existential:

Feedback Loop: About that poll yesterday

First, a mea culpa: You were not going loony yesterday as the second button on our poll about ESPN’s ticker abandonment refused to click. That’s a mistake on our end. Apologies. 

But I still have insights: 

• Nearly 9,000 of you voted to bring back the ticker. I am among those voters, and while it might be a pure nostalgia play, I believe pretty firmly in it. I’m so used to the ticker being there that I don’t need a fuller screen than before. Don’t take my youth from me more than time already has. 
• How many voted in favor of the ticker removal? Who knows! But judging by your emails to us, it seems the crowd was evenly split on the topic. And The Athletic’s media columnist, Andrew Marchand, counts himself among you: “Give me a clean screen every time to watch these games. If I need to know a score in 2026, I have a phone.” 

Harrumph. Aren’t we trying to limit screen time? Or is that just the father of a 4-year-old speaking? 

Enjoy your fuller screens this fall. Or get mad about it. Thank you for voting — or trying to vote.

News to Know

Dilip Vishwanat / Getty Images

Hellebuyck confirms trade request
Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck, one of the best netminders in hockey right now, publicly confirmed his desire for a new team yesterday, months after asking the Jets to find him a new home. Hellebuyck noted that he wanted to quell any rumors as training camp approached. Everyone seems to be handling this professionally.

The eligibility fight deepens
A Texas judge issued a temporary restraining order against the NCAA, the SEC and its commissioner Greg Sankey yesterday, clearing the way for 40 players to gain a fifth year of eligibility. Per the ruling, multiple NFL rookies will be able to return to college and play this season. This comes after most power conferences passed rules this week barring any pro rookies from competing. It’s all very tiring.

More news:

• Arizona State is facing scrutiny after a hockey player collapsed during a military-style workout. Read our full story.
• Packers running back Josh Jacobs was charged with two misdemeanors relating to a domestic violence incident. See the details.
  
• In the latest round of labor talks, MLB wants to revamp the offseason schedule. Read more here.
  
• Braves ace Chris Sale tossed a complete-game shutout last night to help Atlanta sweep the Dodgers. Yowza.
  
• Aces forward NaLyssa Smith is out for the rest of the season with a leg injury. Brutal turn for a title favorite.
  
• On the men’s side, Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe will miss significant time with a meniscus injury. Read our full story.
  
• Kevin Durant said his Nets team with Kyrie Irving and James Harden was better than his Warriors teams “on paper.” I don’t know, man.
  
• U.S. Open singles brackets are out. Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka have tough roads to the finals.
  
• Former Liverpool star and current popular soccer pundit Jamie Carragher is the subject of a bankruptcy inquiry over an unpaid tax bill. Whoops.

📰 Find more news here 24/7.

Monitoring 👀: Before any snaps, we’re already doing mock drafts

Alex Slitz / Getty Images

We’re back with our first Monitoring of football season, which feels like a thing. Thus, we’re going to start with a shocker: 

A 2027 NFL mock draft. Nick Baumgardner published his picks yesterday, which are equal parts educated guesses on how the college football season and the NFL season shake out. You have to laud Nick for the courage to take a stab at it when things can change so much. 

His first pick? Texas quarterback Arch Manning to the Cardinals. Oregon quarterback Dante Moore goes next to the Dolphins, followed by Ohio State wideout Jeremiah Smith to the Browns. I can see all that happening. See his full mock here. 

Tough math. Our NFL projection model is always such a valuable tool, in both teaching me what to expect and telling me how surprising an outcome really is. Austin Mock published his latest model for this season earlier in the week, which we discussed. 

Yesterday, Mock wrote a follow-up about the teams his math found most difficult to pin down: Bills, Steelers, Eagles, Packers and Giants. Find out why here.

Joakim Noah, and growth. A clip that admittedly makes me cackle every time I watch is the former Bulls forward’s anti-Cleveland screed. “You like it? You think Cleveland’s cool?” His delivery is just perfectly hilarious. And I like Cleveland, to be clear. 

Now, through a new travel show, a 41-year-old Noah is back in Cleveland, making amends. Joel Lorenzi found a contrite Noah, which I found really insightful. It’s worth a read. 

A golf brand’s future. Good Good Golf, a massively popular brand in this YouTube era of the sport, tanked its value this week with a controversial ad that showed a man shoving a woman to the ground. Since, outrage has flared and financial support has cratered. Is there any path back for Good Good? 

MLB awards. We wrote about Pete Crow-Armstrong’s MVP efforts last weekend, but in Jim Bowden’s latest projection, he indeed wins the NL award, with Shohei Ohtani finishing second. Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski gets the Cy Young. His full picks are here. 

Thanks for keeping watch. Until next week.

Watch Guide

📺 EPL: Manchester City at Crystal Palace
3 p.m. ET on USA Network
A Friday afternoon Prem match is always a good idea, but I’m keeping a leery eye on City, who scuffled last weekend before winning late in their opener. I suspect there are kinks to be worked out under new coach Enzo Maresca. 

📺 MLB: Red Sox at Yankees
7:15 p.m. ET on Apple TV
These two playing is always fun, but both teams are essentially guaranteed a playoff spot and theoretically still have a chance to catch the Rays in the division. If they don’t, this game will matter a ton for deciding the top AL wild-card spot. Book it. 

📺 WNBA: Fire at Dream
7:30 p.m. ET on Ion
I’m curious to see this Atlanta team after signing DeWanna Bonner with just six games left in the regular season. Take a peek.

📺 NFL: Bengals at Eagles
8 p.m. ET on CBS
It’s the last preseason game, but it’s still nationally televised football. Keep an eye on Birds defensive back Kapena Gushiken, who made our list of top stock risers of the preseason.

Pulse Picks

Modern gambling has taken a toll on many folks in America. Just ask the baseball players who are on the receiving end of death threats from miffed bettors. It’s all quite troubling. 

Ever been on the University of Georgia’s campus during football season? You’ve probably heard Kirby Smart barking at his players over a loudspeaker. 

Why is the T206 Honus Wagner card so valuable? Larry Holder explained, and talked to some big-name folks who have forked over the cash for one. Fun story. 

Steph Curry can sign a new max extension tomorrow. There is real worry he doesn’t — and about what happens afterward. 

Yes, the NFL and Disney released a collaboration this week. See all the designs. 

Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: The CFP bracket projection. 

Most-read on the website yesterday: Ken Rosenthal’s column on why the Diamondbacks keep putting up with Ketel Marte.