Antonio Blakeney fields questions during an interview in October 2025. | Photo from @antonioblakeney on Instagram
Jan. 28, 2026 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
The newest addition to an unfortunate saga regarding gambling affecting the integrity of sporting competitions was exposed Jan. 15 when a federal indictment named 39 current or former college basketball players across 17 different schools in a point-shaving scandal and charged 20 players with federal crimes. In addition, six non-athletes or “fixers” were reportedly charged for conspiring in the scheme. According to the indictment, players were given anywhere from $10,000 to $30,000 from conspirators to throw games and underperform. Fans may remember last fall when Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, along with others, was charged in relation to an illegal gambling ring. Two defendants from that case, Shane Hennen and Marves Fairley, were also charged in this case and may face up to 25 years in federal prison for their roles.
The operation is alleged to have begun in September 2022 when Antonio Blakeney of the Jiangsu Dragons in the Chinese Basketball Association engaged in the point-shaving scandal and attempted to recruit his teammates as well. One such example was when Blakeney scored 21 points below his average. Blakeney was charged separately from the rest of the indictment.
The scheme made its way to college basketball, where conspirators are said to have targeted players who didn’t have significant name, image and likeness contracts, and would therefore be easier to recruit for the scheme, as well as non-athletes who had ties to collegiate basketball, such as trainers and other “people of influence.” 29 different games between February of 2024 and January of 2025 are said to have been affected, including four postseason games in various tournaments, although NCAA Tournament games, also known as “March Madness,” seem to have been unaffected.
Simeon Cottle of Kennesaw State, who is charged for his role in helping fix a game March 1, 2024, played as recently as Jan. 14 and was his team’s leading scorer. According to a statement from the university given to Sports Illustrated, Cottle has been suspended indefinitely from all team activities. Other current players named in the indictment are Carlos Hart from Eastern Michigan, although his involvement took place when he was still with New Orleans, Oumar Koureissi from Texas Southern, with his involvement taking place with Nicholls State, and Camian Shell from Delaware State, whose involvement took place at North Carolina A&T. It appears that like Cottle, all of these players have been suspended or removed from their teams.
In the wake of the scandal, NCAA President Charlie Baker issued a statement that said over the past year, 40 players from over 20 schools have been investigated, with 11 of those athletes being ruled permanently ineligible due to betting on their own performances. An additional 13 of the investigated student athletes did not cooperate with investigations, and while it’s unclear whether they were also ruled permanently ineligible, Baker said in his statement that “none of them are competing today.” Baker also urged states to bolster regulations regarding sports gambling in order to “better protect athletes and leagues from integrity risks and predatory bettors.”
One of the protections the NCAA is looking for is a ban on what are considered “high-risk” player prop bets, similar to restrictions placed at the NBA level regarding prop bets on players with comparatively lower salaries. When it comes to the state of Oregon, all gambling on collegiate sports is currently prohibited; however, some tribal casinos are able to offer it via their own sportsbooks, due to operating under a different set of laws. Legal proceedings are still ongoing, and it remains to be seen what will come of the charges and what future protections may be put in place.
James Nnaji poses in his Baylor Bears uniform. | Photo from @cbbcontent on Instagram
Jan. 21 2026 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
The intense shift in college sports over the past few years has been well documented and discussed ad nauseam. College athletes can now earn money through contracts and brand deals after being strictly prohibited from doing so for essentially the entire history of college sports. In addition, transfer restrictions have been loosened, allowing athletes, for the most part, to become immediately eligible after transferring schools, while the old rule had required them to sit out for a season unless they were a graduate transfer or received some sort of waiver from the NCAA.
For some, the changes are ruining college sports. For others, the changes are welcome and make the system more fair for athletes. Every few months, it seems a new controversy pertaining to these name, image and likeness rules becomes a topic of debate in the sports industry. The newest of these controversies is the eligibility of Baylor center James Nnaji.
Nnaji, age 21, was drafted 31st overall to the Detroit Pistons in 2023 after playing professionally for FC Barcelona’s basketball team and then promptly traded to the Charlotte Hornets. A year later, he was traded to the Knicks as part of a larger deal that included All-Star center Karl Anthony-Towns. Nnaji never played official NBA minutes, playing only in the Summer League in 2023 and 2025. Nnaji was also a “draft and stash” player, meaning that while he was drafted to the NBA, he would hold off on signing a contract and continue playing overseas until he and the team that held his draft rights — essentially the right to be the only NBA team negotiating with him — worked out a deal. The practice has been common with international players over the years, with players like Manu Ginobili, Arvydas Sabonis and current Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic all taking extra seasons with their pre-draft teams for various reasons before joining their teams in the NBA. Some players are drafted and stashed due to outstanding contractual obligations with their pre-draft teams and/or because their team in the NBA thinks their development as a player is better off with a team in which they’ll be getting more playing time. Some never sign contracts and end up continuing the remainder of their career in another league.
Nnaji continued playing for Barcelona before being placed on loan to Girona and remaining there until March of 2025, when Nnaji and the club mutually agreed to part ways. Shortly thereafter, he would be loaned again, this time to Merkezefendi Belediyesi Denizli, a basketball club based in Turkey. In July, he announced that he and Barcelona had parted ways, making him a free agent. Nnaji, however, was not ready to give up on his dream of playing basketball at a high level and the Baylor Bears needed the help. After Nnaji’s agent learned that Baylor’s center depth was running thin due to injuries, he proposed the option of Nnaji joining the program to both Nnaji and the Baylor coaching staff. On Christmas Eve, his signing with the team and immediate eligibility were announced, drawing the ire of both coaches and fans. Arkansas coach John Calipari called the situation out in a press conference, saying, “Why did they let that kid play? Tell us all, ‘Here’s the reason.’ Then we’ll all go get pros.” Baylor coach Bryce Drew defended the decision to add Nnaji, saying, “When it came out that you could recruit G-League players, I was against it at first. I didn’t want to do it, but we don’t make the rules. If they say you can drive 80, you’re going to drive 80. If you drive 70, you’re going to get passed.”
UCLA women’s basketball coach Cori Close came to the defense of Drew, saying, “The reality is that I don’t blame him for doing that if it’s within the rules and it’s the landscape we’ve been given. We didn’t ask for those.” Close continued, “The reality is it’s such a chaotic mess and the rules change every couple weeks, and there’s no accountability, and what they said was going to be true about revenue share and caps and what third parties were going to be allowed to do and not allowed to do … hasn’t transpired.”
Close’s comments speak to a larger conversation around the NCAA and its ability to enforce rules. It’s important to note that the changes in name, image and likeness rules didn’t come from the NCAA itself but rather from the NCAA essentially having its hand forced by a unanimous Supreme Court ruling that determined rules against student athletes monetizing their name, image and likeness violated antitrust laws. Still undetermined is whether college athletes legally have the same rights as employees of an organization do. There’s also been legal challenges on the NCAA’s rules about their eligibility timeline, and although for the most part those have stood, challenges are still currently going through court cases and could bring significant change. Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo voiced his displeasure with the NCAA as an authority figure, stating, “I’m not real excited about the NCAA or whoever is making these decisions, without talking to us, just letting it go. They’re afraid they’re going to get sued.” Calipari simply said, “Let them sue us.”
Since joining the Bears, Nnaji has appeared in five games, playing an average of 14.2 minutes with 2.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, .4 assists and .4 blocks per game. The Bears have gone 1-4 in those five games and currently sit at 13th in the Big 12, although it is still pretty early in conference play. In his first game on the road against TCU, the crowd booed him. Nnaji believes the frustration is unwarranted, saying, “I didn’t do anything illegal. I didn’t try to break any rule.” Technically, Nnaji is right. He’s still within five years of what his high school graduation would be, which is the window of eligibility the NCAA provides for student athletes, save for a few special cases. He’s never been enrolled in college before and he never signed a real NBA contract.
It’s not that people are upset at James Nnaji; he’s just an athlete doing whatever he can to chase a dream. In general, they’re upset at the NCAA for what they perceive is a now lawless landscape in college athletics that is slowly turning it into a semi-pro development league, whether that be in football, basketball or any other sport.
Mike Tomlin addresses the Steelers’ locker room post game. | Photo from @miketomlin on Instagram
Jan. 21 2026 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
While the remaining four teams continue their push to win the 2026 Super Bowl, the remainder of the league is left with a long offseason ahead of them, wondering what changes need to be made in order to take the next step towards winning the elusive Lombardi Trophy. For some, that’s free agency signings and big trades, for others, it’s finding new talent in the draft and some teams are completely cleaning house and starting over with a new coaching staff. While the Giants, Falcons, Dolphins and Titans have already found their coaches of the future, the Ravens, Raiders, Cardinals, Bills, Browns and Steelers are all still looking for their next head coach. For teams like the Ravens and Steelers, this is rather unfamiliar territory as both teams had the first and second longest tenured coaches in the league, respectively. Next season will be the first time in nearly two decades that the two rivals will face off without either Harbaugh or Mike Tomlin on either sideline.
When it comes to some of the other teams, however, they’re back on the search for their next coach after a relatively recent hire. For teams like the Raiders, they’re right back in the hunt after thinking they’d secured their coach of the future last season. Next year, there will be another handful of teams moving on from their coaches after a short period of time. It happens every single season and will continue to happen as long as there are still head coaches for football teams.
So why is nailing a coaching hire so difficult? Of course, there are more reasons than one, but to start, we must consider that an NFL head coach is a pretty exclusive job. Only 32 human beings in the entire world are considered knowledgeable enough about the game of football while also having the ability to connect with a large roster of players that all have different strengths, weaknesses and personalities. On top of that, every single week during the season, a coach is tasked with watching hours of film and learning about an opposing team’s strengths and weaknesses while another football genius does the exact same thing on said opposing team. Coaches often have a nonexistent work-life balance, some doing 16-hour days for about six days a week for 18 weeks. If they make the playoffs, that can extend another five weeks. If they don’t make the playoffs, they probably won’t have the job much longer. While they’re far from underpaid, earning annual salaries in the multi-millions each year, it’s incredibly difficult to find someone who can handle all of that and stay focused enough to coach the team at the level required to be successful in professional football. There’s an old saying that NFL stands for “Not For Long.” Usually, that’s used in reference to the average career length of just three years for players, but it’s true for coaches as well. According to Sports Illustrated, the average tenure for NFL coaches is also three years, a downturn from a reported 4.3 years by Business Insider in 2016, meaning that of the coaches hired in the coming weeks, for all the excitement they might bring to a fanbase, there’s a better chance than not that they won’t even finish their initial contract. In half of that time, the fanbase will be calling the coaches’ capabilities into question.
This year, like most years, the most discussed candidates for the current coach openings are a mix of old and new. Some, like Harbaugh and former Browns coach Kevin Stefanski, are known commodities. Others, like Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter and Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, are exciting yet unproven candidates. Then there are guys like Broncos defensive coordinator and former head coach of the team, Vance Joseph, who are almost a mix of the two, having been head coaches in the past before being fired and returning to the coordinator ranks, and now being looked at for a second chance. Some may be inclined to go with what’s familiar, and others may try to go with the unfamiliar in an attempt to put themselves ahead of the curve amongst the remainder of the league. There are disappointments and success stories for both, and no approach has necessarily proven better than the other, which is what continues to make the process so difficult.
So, as the 2026 coaching carousel continues, it’s important to remember that, in many ways, picking a good head coach is a dart throw. Maybe an educated guess at best. Even if the right candidate is selected, it may not be the right fit for their skill set and coaching style. Coaches like Bill Belichick are a great example of things not working out at one location and then working wonderfully at another — some coaches are just meant to be high-quality assistants as opposed to running the whole show.
Coaches, just like players, have to grow and develop their skill set over time, but unlike athletes, there isn’t a clearly defined prime of their career, and the unique circumstances of coaching aren’t necessarily something that can just be taught. Currently, multiple organizations are dedicating countless hours to researching, interviewing and putting together the best contract possible for their preferred coaching candidate in the hopes that they’ll find the next elite head coach. And while they certainly might, the only certainty in the NFL coaching carousel is that people will keep on getting fired, and the cycle will just keep spinning.
Kaelon Black runs in for a touchdown during the Peach Bowl. | Photo from @cfbplayoff on Instagram
Jan. 14 2026 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
On Jan. 19, the college football season will culminate with the College Football Playoff National Championship game in Miami. Both the Miami Hurricanes and Indiana Hoosiers will be looking to win their first championships of the playoff era and in the case of the Hoosiers, their first championship ever. Both teams have made it this far on a physical brand of football that revolves around strong play in the trenches. Both teams rank top ten in the country in rushing defense and have made a run by forcing turnovers and suffocating offenses.
Miami, led by coach Mario Cristobal in his fourth year, opened with a huge win against Notre Dame and continued a strong start before faltering against Louisville and eventually SMU. After that second loss to SMU, they went on a tear to end the regular season, winning each game by three scores or more. After making the playoffs in a debated decision from the committee, being the last team in over Notre Dame, they won a low-scoring 10-3 game against Texas A&M, where the defense came up big and shut down the Aggie offense. In the Cotton Bowl versus Ohio State, the defense again showed up, slowing down Ohio State’s offense and limiting star receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate. They would then win a back-and-forth game against Mississippi with quarterback and Georgia transfer Carson Beck running for what would prove to be the winning touchdown with 18 seconds remaining. On offense, Beck is joined by first-year receiver Malachi Toney and running back Mark Fletcher Jr., propelled forward with a bruising offensive line. Defensively, star pass rusher and likely first-round pick in the NFL Draft, Rueben Bain Jr., wrecks offensive gameplans. While Bain gets a lot of the attention, he’s far from the only star on the defense, with Akheem Mesidor, Jakobe Thomas, Keionte Scott and others making the defense an extremely formidable unit. Miami’s success is a bit of a return to form, as they’ve won five national championships, with the most recent being in 2001 behind one of the strongest teams in college football history.
On the other side, Indiana has put together one of the craziest turnarounds the sport has ever witnessed, going from one of the worst programs in the country historically to a national finalist. The job head coach Curt Cignetti has done with the Hoosiers is incomparable to anything seen in recent memory. When Cignetti took over, he inherited a 3-9 program and immediately improved it, leading the team to an 11-1 regular season record and appearance in the college football playoffs. This year, the team has taken yet another step forward with California transfer quarterback and Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza leading the offense with quick processing skills, elite ball placement and solid decision making. Joining him are receivers Elijah Sarratt, Charlie Becker and Omar Cooper Jr., who’ve been incredible all season as reliable targets for Mendoza, keeping the offense a well-oiled machine. The offensive line is led by starting center Pat Coogan, who won MVP of the Rose Bowl quarterfinal, which is unheard of for offensive linemen. Defensively, Indiana is led by Aiden Fisher, Mikail Kamara and D’Angelo Ponds. The Indiana defense is relentless and is excellent at forcing uncharacteristic mistakes by bringing intense pressure, giving an already elite offense more chances to add to the scoreboard. Indiana won the Big Ten, getting a bye to the quarterfinal, where they dismantled Alabama in the Rose Bowl 38-3. They then advanced to the Peach Bowl, where they cruised against the Oregon Ducks, winning 56-22, powered by three forced turnovers and a nearly perfect, five-touchdown performance from Mendoza, thus booking their first trip to the national championship game in school history. Indiana is made up of underrated and overlooked recruits that embody Cignetti’s philosophy of “production over potential.”
So, how do both of these teams match up with each other? Indiana is a clear favorite at the moment, and how could they not be? They’ve been a complete buzzsaw throughout the season and arguably even more so throughout their playoff run. Their execution and attention to detail is almost robotic, making it very difficult to pick against them. However, for how strong they’ve been, they aren’t unbeatable. There have been three instances throughout the season where they were involved in close games that could’ve gone the other way. A 20-15 game against 8-4 Iowa, a 27-24 game against 6-6 Penn State and a 13-10 Big Ten championship game against Ohio State. All three of those teams had something in common. They were able to drag Indiana into a physical, relatively low-scoring game. In those three games, Mendoza didn’t necessarily set the world on fire either, throwing a combined four touchdowns, three interceptions, with a 61.8% completion percentage.
Now, Indiana is obviously built to handle these kinds of games, as they won all three and have the personnel and play style to pull it off. In fact, it’s probably the preferred way for Indiana to play. They’re great at figuratively punching opposing teams in the mouth and demoralizing them, but these three games provide a sort of formula that shows when a team has the personnel and play style to bully Indiana back a bit, they have a shot. Miami definitely has that kind of personnel and it’s shown up when they’ve needed it most. Something else that might bode well for Miami is their ability to win the time of possession battle and keep their offense on the field longer, wearing down the defense over the course of the game and making them difficult to stop late in the game. Not to mention the game is being played in Miami, which will allow the Hurricanes to come in perhaps a bit more rested than the Hoosiers. It’s going to be important that Miami take as much advantage of this as possible with a quick start — or at least not allowing a quick start for Indiana — or else the lead could become insurmountable rather quickly, like it did for Oregon. While Miami has shown it has what it takes to hang with the Hoosiers, Indiana has the best coach and quarterback in the country, and it’s tough to find any glaring weaknesses. Miami probably puts up a decent fight early, but Cignetti simply has Indiana operating on a different level right now and it’s hard to imagine anyone stopping them. They’ve proven no moment is too big for them and there’s no real good reason for that to end now.
Prediction: Indiana wins 31-14 and becomes the first 16-0 team ever.
A picture of the College Football Playoff National Championship trophy. | Photo from @cfbplayoff on Instagram
Jan. 14 2026 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
Next Monday, the college football season officially wraps up when the Miami Hurricanes and Indiana Hoosiers take the field at Hard Rock Stadium and play for a national championship, and despite the many changes the sport has undergone in recent years, many things stay as they’ve always been. Namely, controversies over how a national champion is determined.
For years, national champions were selected by polls after the bowl season, leading to many disputes over who the national champion really was. In 1998, an actual national championship was introduced between the two highest-ranked teams. Today, 12 teams compete in the playoff and regardless of changes along the way, the process still has detractors.
In the current format, the five highest-ranked conference champions automatically make the tournament. This means that at least one of the “Group of Five” teams — soon to be Group of Six now that the PAC-12 has added enough teams to potentially receive an automatic bid again — will make it in. For those unfamiliar, college football has “Power Four” and “Group of Five/Six” conferences, with the Power Four being full of large schools while the remainder of the conferences are full of schools that are a bit smaller. In the first two seasons, the G5 teams involved have lost in lopsided games. Last year, Boise State lost to Penn State 31-14. This year, Tulane lost to Mississippi 41-10 and James Madison lost to Oregon 51-34.
The main gripe some fans have with the inclusion of G5 teams is that they simply aren’t on the same tier as the Power Four teams, and therefore, their automatic spots in the bracket should be removed to fit in more Power Four teams. However, many would counter-argue that point and say that all teams should have a clear-cut way to qualify for the tournament in some form, regardless of school and conference size.
Another issue is that a 12-team playoff has essentially rendered conference championships useless to the point where some teams, although they’ll never admit it, might prefer to miss their conference championship entirely. If a team plays in the conference championship, they’re risking injury in an additional game while other teams that will eventually be in the field get the week off, and the payoff often isn’t worth it. Take the Big Ten Championship earlier this season, which pitted #1 Ohio State and #2 Indiana against each other. Both teams were going to make the playoffs regardless of the result. Indiana beat Ohio State 13-10, and all it meant was that both teams swapped positions. With that being said, the games are unlikely to go away because it’s such a significant revenue generator.
In addition, being top four in a 12-team bracket should be a significant advantage as you get to skip a round, but with the near-month layoff between the regular season and second round, some wonder if that’s negatively affecting the teams with bye weeks. In the past two years, teams that received a bye week to the second round are 1-7. While the effect could be debated, the fact that the highest-ranked teams don’t get a chance to play on their own campus, like teams ranked 5-8 do, puts fans in a strange position. Of course, they’d like their team to have a better chance at a title, but they’d also like to see their local team play as opposed to traveling to one of the bowl locations that host the quarterfinals and semifinals. Now, the easy solution here seems to be just holding off on neutral locations until the semifinals, but because the bowl game organizations hold so much influence, this realistically will not happen.
So here is one proposed solution to hopefully solve these issues while staying realistic. The playoff can expand to 16 teams. Going to 16 will make sure that each team ranked in the top eight gets a chance to play at home. As for how it’s determined who qualifies for the playoffs, each conference could receive a certain number of automatic entries based on merit. For example, it could be based on the average number of teams ranked in the top 16 nationally each year. Conference championships could then be replaced with play-in games for the final qualifying spot out of the conference. Say, for example, the Big Ten has five automatic bids. Rather than having a fairly meaningless game against two teams where both teams make it regardless, the fifth and sixth-place teams in the conference would be battling it out with their season on the line. This would satisfy the conferences and TV networks, allowing them to have a primetime game on that weekend and create a more exciting process for determining the playoff field. Now, there still needs to be a way for G6 teams and independent teams to qualify to ensure fair access to the tournament. Perhaps the best way to go about it would be to leave at least two spots for schools that don’t get a chance to automatically qualify via conference, whether that be an independent or a team from a non-automatic qualifying conference. Not only does this make the playoff accessible, but it would make the aforementioned play-in games much more exciting, knowing that the losers of those games are eliminated.
At the end of the season, the playoff committee’s only job would be to determine who the two highest-ranked non-automatically qualifying conference champions and/or independents would be. After this, the other 14 teams are already determined and all they’d need to do is rank the teams however they see fit from 1-16 and allow the bracket to play out. As mentioned earlier, it could be based on an average over a certain period of time, say five years. If over the previous five-year span, a conference has an average of three teams ranked in the top 16, that would be their automatic bid amount.
Again, this format is purely hypothetical and relies heavily on assumptions that the decision-makers involved would agree. This format also doesn’t solve everything. The playoff would still run into about the third week of January, which runs right alongside the transfer portal. The format also doesn’t solve some of the issues with scheduling that fans and coaches alike have brought up. However, it feels like it might be a step in the right direction towards creating a playoff system with clarity in the qualification process and creating more high-stakes moments while hopefully satisfying as many people as possible.
Joe Lorig coaches the team from the sidelines with Dan Lanning in the background. | Photo from @OregonFootball on Facebook
Jan 7. 2026 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
When discussing the Oregon Ducks coaching staff, most people will start with head coach Dan Lanning, a former defensive coordinator at the University of Georgia where he won a national championship in 2021. They’ll talk about offensive coordinator Will Stein, who, after this season, will take over at Kentucky to become head coach. They’ll mention defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi, a former assistant coach under legend Nick Saban, who will also be leaving Eugene at the end of the season to take over his own program at Cal. They’ll speculate about Drew Mehringer and Chris Hampton, who will be taking over for Stein and Lupoi next season. All of these coaches have been discussed at great lengths over the past few months, leaving Western Oregon University alum Joe Lorig under the radar.
Lorig was born in Edmonds, Washington, about four hours away from Monmouth. In 1991, he joined the Walla Walla Community College football team as a cornerback where he received All-Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges honors twice. He remained at Walla Walla until transferring to Western Oregon before the 1994 season. Lorig was a team captain for the Wolves and would go on to receive a bachelor’s degree in law enforcement and a master’s in correctional administration from Western in 1995 and 1997 respectively. Lorig began coaching at Western, starting off as the defensive backs coach for two seasons. Also on the staff in the defensive coordinator role was Arne Ferguson, who would then ascend to the head coaching role for the Wolves in 2005 where he has remained since. During the 1997 season, the Wolves won the Columbia Football Association and qualified for the NAIA national playoffs. In just a two season span the Wolves had an impressive five defensive backs receive All-Conference honors.
In 1999, Lorig took a coaching job at Idaho State, initially starting as a position coach before becoming the defensive coordinator. At Idaho State, Lorig would coach Jared Allen, who would become a Hall of Fame defensive end who played for the Kansas City Chiefs, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears and Carolina Panthers.
Over the next 20 years, Lorig made multiple stops around the country. Among the most notable were Central Washington University, where he coached 26 All-GNAC players as assistant head coach and defensive coordinator; Arizona State, where he coached defensive backs and special teams and briefly coached Zane Gonzalez who would go on to win the award for the nation’s top kicker; Memphis, where he coached two-time AAC Special Teams Player of the Year and eventual Dallas Cowboys and Tennessee Titans running back Tony Pollard along with kicker Jake Elliott who would go on to win a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles; and Penn State, where he coached alongside James Franklin and eventual first round pick Jahan Dotson and second round pick KJ Hamler.
In 2022, he was hired on to the Oregon Ducks coaching staff as special teams coordinator and nickels coach after Dan Lanning arrived.
Lanning, who’s from the Midwest, would discuss the importance of having a high quality coach who was local to the area, saying, “His units have twice ranked No. 1 nationally in special teams efficiency and Joe is also connected with many of the high school coaches throughout the state of Oregon. He has an affinity for this part of the country and it’s just very exciting to be able to attract a coach of this caliber to our staff.”
Coaching special teams is often a bit of a thankless job. Most people don’t really think about special teams coordinators unless something goes wrong on that side of the ball. Special teams in general just seem very simple. They kick the ball, tackle the returner. Or, on the flip side, they receive the kick and block for the returner. However, high quality play on special teams can completely alter the momentum of a game. In a November interview with John Canzano, Lorig said, “We really believe here that there’s such fine margins when you’re playing USC or Penn State or whoever you’re playing, there’s such fine margins in the game that everybody’s gonna focus on offense and everybody’s gonna focus on defense obviously but a lot of people don’t put the time and energy and resources necessary into their special teams, it’s kind of a lost part of the game.” Take Lorig’s unit in just this playoff run alone as an example. During the opening round game against James Madison, Jayden Limar blocked a punt in the third quarter before returning it for a touchdown and putting the Ducks ahead 48-13. In the Orange Bowl versus Texas Tech, Lorig’s unit again came up big after they dialed up a fake punt that saw them confuse the Red Raiders post snap by having the left side of the formation move as if they were setting up a screen play. Instead, punter James Feguson-Reynolds rolled to his right and found Teitum Tuioti wide open to convert on fourth down and extend the drive. Plays like that are the kind that can completely demoralize the opposing team while putting the offense in a great position to score.
High quality special teams play can also give a team’s defense more field to defend. “If people really pay attention, it has a really really big impact on every game,” Lorig said. “One of the things we do is we track what we call ‘hidden yards’ in a game and I think people would be shocked and amazed at how often we win a game and we had eighty more ‘hidden yards’ or a hundred more ‘hidden yards.’” To explain the concept of ‘hidden yards’ in the simplest way, it’s essentially the field position gained on a kickoff or punt return. “It’s gonna impact the game one way or another. Either it’s going to change the game in the right way or the wrong way for your team.”
Next, Lorig and the Ducks will go on to the Peach Bowl in Atlanta where they’ll be tasked with beating the number one ranked Indiana Hoosiers, who gave Oregon their only loss of the season in Eugene by a score of 30-20. If they’re able to redeem themselves they’ll return to Miami to play in the national championship game for the first time since 2015 in an attempt to secure their first national title ever. Regardless of the results, fans can expect to see Western Oregon University alum Joe Lorig and his special teams unit playing a critical role for the remainder of Oregon’s run as they have all season long.
Rivers walks out of the tunnel before the Colts’ Monday Night Football game against the 49ers. | Photo from @indianapoliscolts on Instagram
Jan 7. 2026 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
The Indianapolis Colts started the 2025 season off stronger than most expected. Behind star running back Jonathan Taylor and an unexpected career resurgence from quarterback Daniel Jones, the Colts sat at 8-4, and not only were they exceeding expectations, but they looked like legitimate contenders for the Super Bowl and even held their conference’s number one seed at a point. Furthermore, Indianapolis made a move to bring in defensive back Sauce Gardner from the New York Jets at the trade deadline in a move that signaled they were all-in on the current iteration of the team and that they felt like Gardner was a missing piece that could put them over the top.
However, towards the end of the first quarter during a game in Jacksonville, Jones, who was having what most considered to be the best season of his career and already somehow playing through a fractured fibula, dropped back, stumbling a bit as he did so, completed a short pass to Alec Pierce who was coming off of a drag route and fell to the ground. As the training staff surrounded him, Jones, who was visibly frustrated and in pain, slammed his helmet into the ground multiple times. The replay showed that on the drop back, his foot planted in the turf awkwardly before he hit the ground. Further tests and imaging would reveal that Jones had torn his Achilles, ending his best season and putting a year that had been filled with so much excitement for the Colts fanbase and organization in peril. Backup quarterback Riley Leonard would take over, but unfortunately the Colts went on to lose 36-19. To make matters even worse, Leonard suffered an injury of his own during the game, spraining his PCL, which caused him to miss time. Not to mention, their other quarterback, Anthony Richardson, was already on the injured reserve list with an orbital fracture after a freak accident during pregame warmups where he was hit in the eye with an exercise band. The Colts tried to turn to Sam Ehlinger who had played for Indianapolis in the past and was a member of the Denver Broncos practice squad, but he turned down the opportunity, choosing to stay with the Broncos who had been putting together a solid season of their own.
And so, with few other reliable options, the Colts made a move that shocked everyone. They brought in Philip Rivers, a quarterback many feel is a future Hall of Famer after spending 17 seasons in the NFL, 16 of them with the Chargers. Rivers had last played in 2020 with the Colts at age 39, putting together a decent season and making the playoffs before losing in the wild card round to the Buffalo Bills.
Rivers, now 44 years old, had spent the last few years as the head coach for St. Michael Catholic High School where his son Gunner played quarterback. At St. Michael Catholic, Rivers had implemented a simplified version of the Colts offense and Rivers would speak with Colts head coach Shane Steichen weekly about the intricacies of the offense and how to incorporate them into his game plans. Steichen and Rivers had a long history of working together, as Steichen had been with the Chargers for nine seasons in total throughout Rivers’ career there in various assistant coach roles which helped ease the transition for everyone involved.
However, his first game back would quite possibly be the worst matchup he could’ve been dealt. He would be tasked with leading the Colts into Seattle against one of the best and most complicated defensive schemes in the league with just under a week of preparation. Rivers and the Colts got the ball first and started the game with three straight handoffs to Jonathan Taylor. Rivers’ first pass of the game would be a deep shot to Taylor which fell incomplete bringing up a third down. On the next play, Rivers would find Michael Pittman for his first completion, good for 12 yards and a first down. The game was a relatively low scoring affair and stood at just 6-3 late in the first half. With less than six minutes in the half, Rivers took the field again and led the Colts through the teeth of the Seattle defense and into the redzone. Then on 3rd and 4, from the Seattle 8 yard line with just over 90 seconds left in the half, Rivers found Josh Downs for his first touchdown pass in nearly five years, taking a 13-3 lead.
Unfortunately for the Colts, Seattle would respond in the second half by taking a 15-13 lead late in the game. It would be up to Rivers and the offense to take the lead back and walk off Lumen Field with a win against all odds. On the drive, Rivers made a huge play on third down, finding Alec Pierce for a 16 yard gain. While the Seattle defense would mostly stand strong, the Colts did just enough to set themselves up for a 60 yard field goal attempt from Blake Grupe which made it through the uprights, giving them a 16-15 lead with less than a minute to play. Again though, Seattle refused to lose, driving down the field and hitting a long field goal attempt of their own to take an 18-16 lead with 18 seconds. After getting the ball at their own 30 yard line, Rivers, in desperation mode, heaved a pass deep for Michael Pittman that was intercepted by Seahawks defensive back Devon Witherspoon, sealing the game for good with the Colts coming up just short.
Despite the disappointing result, most acknowledged that with all things considered, Rivers had put together a solid performance going 18-27, for 120 yards, with one touchdown and one interception.
The next week wouldn’t be much easier as the San Francisco 49ers would come into Indianapolis. Rivers once again held his own, going 23-35, 277 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Yet, it still wasn’t enough as the Colts fell 48-27 on Monday Night Football. After the Texans defeated the Chargers, the Colts were then mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, making them just the sixth team since 1970 to miss the playoffs after an 8-2 start. The 2025 Colts and Philip Rivers is a story one would expect to see in a movie, and while it didn’t have the ending they might’ve hoped for, it was undoubtedly one of the best stories of the year.
The Australian women’s deaf basketball team poses by a Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics sign. | Photo from @shirleyliuofficial on Instagram
Dec. 3 2025 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
Last week, the 2025 Tokyo Deaflympics concluded after an 11-day run that included 209 events across 18 different sports such as swimming, basketball, tennis, judo and more. Ukraine led the medal count by a large margin with 100 total medals, with the next closest country being Japan with a total of 51, although non-nationally affiliated athletes technically came in second in medal counts, with 52, and tied Ukraine’s gold medal count of 32. The United States was seventh in the overall medal count, winning 35, but was tied for third place in the gold medal count with 16.
This year’s games marked the 100-year anniversary of the sporting event after it started in 1924, then known as the International Silent Games and held in Paris. The main pioneers of the games were Eugene Rubens-Alcais, who was the president of the French Deaf Sports Federation, and Antonio Dresse, who was a deaf sports activist and represented Belgium during the earliest iterations of the games and won nine total medals, with one of them being a gold. After the 1924 games, Rubens-Alcais and Dresse would help form Le Comité International des Sports des Sourds,known in English as The International Committee of Sports for the Deaf.
During the Deaflympic games, audio instruction is substituted for visual. Take, for example, track and field events. During the Olympics, a starting gun is used to begin a race. During the Deaflympics, large lights are used to signal the beginning of a race. There is also an important distinction between the Deaflympics and the Paralympics, a sporting competition for athletes with physical disabilities. In the Paralympics, there is no division for deaf athletes to participate in. According to the International Deaf Sports Committee, “Many deaf people do not consider themselves disabled,” and so their omission from the Paralympics means that the Deaflympics, for and by deaf people, are the best fit.
Some athletes have even competed in both the Deaflympic and Olympic Games. Most recently, Diksha Dagar participated in the 2020 and 2024 games in golf after winning a gold medal in the Caxias do Sul Deaflympic games in 2022. Jakub Nosek, another Deaflympian, represented the Czech Republic in the 2018 and 2022 Winter Olympic Games as a member of the bobsleigh team.
One of the top performers of the games was the Kenyan track team as a whole, who had all of the medalists for the 5,000-meter race, with Ian Wambui Kahinga leading the way, along with James Mwanza Musembi and Nelson Kipkorir Rotich trailing just behind. Wambui’s performance was especially noteworthy as he set the Deaflympics world record with a 5,000-meter time of 13:52.83. This time cleared the previous record, which had stood since 2013 when it was set by Symon Kibai, by about ten seconds. “This is a dream come true,” Wambui said. “Breaking the world record was my ultimate goal. We worked as a team and I’m proud that Kenya owns the entire podium.” Wambui, who is only 24, has a long career ahead of him and will likely be one of the top competitors in the event for years to come, along with Musembi, who is only 21 years old himself. The performance from the three contributed to a 15-count medal tally that included five golds.
In soccer, the United States men’s team had an unexpected run, making it all the way to fourth place with wins against Korea and Brazil. While head coach Everett Palache is still learning how to sign himself, the team utilized interpreters to help him communicate with the team, having three total. One was specifically assigned to shadow Palache and help him communicate as he led the team through practice. Palache also explained that they would utilize color-coded pinnies and vests that Palache could use in order to get players’ attention, with red ones conveying some sort of immediate message while yellow ones would mean to keep checking in with Palache and his interpreters over the upcoming minutes. The women’s soccer team secured a fifth gold medal, the most of any country in women’s soccer, after beating Japan 4-0 in the final. The team also extended an impressive record, having never lost in 20 total years of play. In fact, the team has only ever played to a draw once, making them one of the most dominant teams across any sport in any competition. The United States also captured gold in men’s basketball, defeating Ukraine 69-59 in the gold medal match. The women’s basketball team won silver after just barely falling in a thrilling match against Japan that ended 65-64.
In addition to the accessibility for deaf athletes, there were special changes to make the event accessible to deaf spectators. For example, during badminton matches, screens would show the sounds of the match as text to allow spectators to follow along more easily. Volunteer ASL interpreters were also around to help guide guests around to make the experience as smooth as possible.
“I think the event was really well done,” said Western senior and ASL studies major Abby Money, who was a spectator at the event. “It was catered to both hearing and deaf people. They had interpreters on the big screens in the middle of the arena when they had announcements and even had international sign language for the people who didn’t know Japanese sign language.” Money also noted the difference in how fans interacted with the event and cheered on athletes. “When they had someone competing, they would take their hand from their shoulder and it almost looked like they were throwing something forward.”
The next iteration of the Summer Deaflympics is projected to take place in early 2029, with the location to be determined. The Tokyo games, however, were incredibly successful and drew record attendance, which bodes well for any future hosts that the games will be worth the time and investment from a financial standpoint. In fact, the attendance total far surpassed the initial goal of 100,000 spectators set by organizers. At the closing ceremony, Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said, “The dynamic performances of the deaf athletes gave courage and hope to the world. We were able to show the world what an inclusive society really looks like.”
The men’s cross country team huddles up at regionals. | Photo from @wou_xctf on Instagram
Nov. 19 2025 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
On Nov. 8, the Wolves concluded their 2025 cross-country season with the NCAA West Regionals held right here in Monmouth, where the men’s team finished eighth and the women’s team finished 17th. Matthew Resnik and Remedan Seman from the men’s team and Kyla Potratz from the women’s team had All-Region performances, with Resnik finishing 21st in the men’s 10K, Seman finishing 24th in the 10K and Potratz finishing 25th in the women’s 6K.
Resnik, who overcame an injury sustained during the track season, said of his regional finish, “It means a lot. Definitely. Coming from last year, got injured during track season, so didn’t know how this year would pan out, but you know, going All-Region makes me feel pretty confident in myself.”
Seman and Potratz also both saw significant improvements. “I think my freshman year, I was just getting used to it, and then last year I was really happy with my season, but I think I was 55th or something like that at regionals. So to be top 25, I just wasn’t expecting that going in this season so I was pretty happy with it and excited,” Potratz said.
For Seman, it’s a similar story. He said that he didn’t make the traveling roster in his first season before finishing 90th in his sophomore season and then now finishing All-Region. All three credit head coach Zach Holloway for their ability to improve, overcome challenges and find high levels of success. Holloway, who is a Western Oregon alumnus and was a part of the track and field program as a student athlete, just completed his third season as the cross-country head coach and, over the summer, became the interim head track and field coach. As an athlete at Western, Holloway is in the top 10 highest all-time performers in school history for the indoor 3,000-meter and 5,000-meter as well as the outdoor steeplechase. He’s also racked up an impressive list of achievements as a coach in a short amount of time, helping both the men’s and women’s teams win respective GNAC Indoor Championships in 2023, was a part of the coaching staff for the 2022 women’s GNAC Outdoor team title and won four national titles as a part of the Adams State coaching staff in 2016 and 2017.
“Zach’s really good at personalizing the training. He’ll talk to individual people and there’ll be like 10 different workouts going on at a time because he just will work with you.” Potratz said.
Resnik and Seman both agreed. “Zach’s just a great coach,” Resnik said, “Always likes to talk to you no matter what. Wants to see how you think about whatever he thinks. He’s a very knowledgeable guy, very smart but he still comes and asks you how you’re doing, how you’re feeling, what you think you need personally, so it’s definitely a 50/50 I feel like with that.” Seman added, “He’s a great coach. I think it’s because of him mostly, at least for me, that I got top 25.”
In addition to the all-region performances from Resnik, Seman and Potratz, the Wolves also received scoring from Ethan Bothwell, 29th in men’s 10K, Samuel Fuentes, 55th in men’s 10K and Isaiah Rodriguez, who finished 94th in the men’s 10K. For the women’s 6K, Adele Beckstead finished 79th, Jazmine Liebl finished 98th, Nettle Grey finished 121st and Charlotte Gardner finished 158th.
Both the men’s and women’s teams have very young rosters with no seniors in either of them, which means it’s likely that both can return everyone, or nearly everyone, for the 2026 season. This is an exciting prospect considering the aforementioned improvements that individuals such as Resnik, Portatz and Seman have made.
Not only will they be returning and building on top of successful seasons, but others on the team will look to make similar jumps under the tutelage of Holloway. Of the listed scorers for both teams, three are first-years and two are sophomores, including Resnik. “Our team is so young,” Potratz said of the women’s team. “The majority of them are freshmen this year and we’ve already improved so much. So I’m just really excited to see another year of Zach’s training and hopefully, personally, I’d like to make it to nationals for cross, but it would also be so cool if the whole team made it. And I think that’s definitely in reach for sure.”
Seman shared similar sentiments. “I think it’s really realistic for the boys’ team to say that we can make nationals next year. We have a lot of very young guys, we’re very talented, so I think the goal is to make nationals and I think it’s very realistic if we just train consistently and be disciplined about our training.”
During the GNAC championships, the men’s team took fourth place, with Seman finishing 11th, Ethan Bothwell finishing 19th, Resnik finishing 20th, Zander Campbell finishing 27th and Samuel Fuentes finishing 40th. The women’s team took 7th with Potratz finishing fourth, Adele Beckstead finishing 30th, Jazmine Liebl finishing 36th, Maslin Sigler finishing 40th and Nettle Grey finishing 46th. Of note is that all three GNAC runners who finished ahead of Potratz were seniors. This will make Potratz the highest finishing returning runner in the GNAC next year, which of course puts her right in the mix of favorites for the individual GNAC title next season.
Because of the youth on both teams, the leadership structure is a bit different than what’s typical for a team. In most cases, the seniors tend to take over as team leaders, but without any seniors on these two teams, the Wolves use a sort of leadership by committee approach. “I feel like all of us worked on coaching each other, making each other feel like we’re also included,” explained Potratz.
This leadership and positive culture has also extended past the track and courses, with 12 cross-country athletes between both teams making the academic all-GNAC list, with eight from the women’s team and four from the men’s team. Of the eight from the women’s team, those who were selected were Charlotte Gardner — who was one of seven runners in the conference on the women’s side to maintain a 4.0 — Amelia Merritt, Abbigale Elliott, Kaydence Nguyen, Kyla Potratz, Holly Hutton, Madison Huri and Natalie Perez. For the men’s team, James Lackey, Ethan Bothwell, Grant Bohannon and Remedan Seman were all selected. In order for a student athlete to receive All-GNAC academic honors, they must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.2 while competing.
In between now and the next cross-country season, the Wolves will have an indoor track season and an outdoor track season ahead of them. It’s a quick turnaround, but one that athletes must be prepared for. On Dec. 4, just under a month after regionals, the indoor track and field season begins at the Silver State Invitational & Multis in Reno, Nevada. “We don’t really have a big break,” Seman said, “But we love what we do, so we do it.”
Speaking to the love of running and what got them into cross-country and the general track and field umbrella, Kyla Potratz said it was seeing her sister run while she was growing up. “My older sister ran and so I just loved going to her meets and just the atmosphere at races and stuff was so cool. So I was like, ‘Hey, I want to be like my big sister.’” She continued, “This is just such a cool balance of you’re pushing yourself every single time trying to be better and you doing that helps pull your teammates.”
It’s a similar story for Resnik, who explained, “My dad grew me up running. He always did triathlons, ironmans, all that stuff. So I’m kind of just used to it. And then same thing with the individual sport, you’re just working on yourself, but no matter what, it’s always at the end of the day five. Five men score, five women score. So it’s a team, it comes down to the team as much as it is individual so just the culture of it, it’s always fun for sure.”
All three also shared stories about the culture of cross-country and track and field. Both Potratz and Seman specifically shared stories of opposing athletes supporting them during meets. Potratz mentioned that during regionals, an athlete she was racing against encouraged her to keep pushing. For Seman, it was an athlete from Chico State who encouraged him and helped him set a personal record. When asked what about the sport of running creates such a welcoming environment, Resnik said, “I think everybody knows that it’s just a hard sport. No matter what, if you’re showing up every day, everyone knows you’re putting in that hard-ass work.”
As mentioned, the indoor track season starts Dec. 4 and will run through Feb. 18 with the GNAC Indoor Championships in Spokane. From there, the team and individuals can qualify for nationals, which for indoor track will be held in Indianapolis, March 13 and 14. After that, the team jumps right into the outdoor season and April 10 and 11, students can mark their calendars for John Knight Twilight Night hosted on the track at McArthur Field.
“I just think it’s really fun,” Potratz said. “Some of the distance events are twilight, so you’re racing under the lights, which is such a cool vibe and experience. And yeah, it’s really fun when there’s a ton of people there cheering for you and your school.”
Seman added, “I think a lot of families show up at this meet. They can’t show up to out-of-state meets, most of them at least, and I think it’s fun to have your family here watching you race.”
The outdoor season will conclude with the GNAC Multis Championship April 27 and 28, the GNAC Outdoor Championships May 4 and 5 and the NCAA Outdoor Nationals in Emporia, Kansas, from May 21 through May 23.
“It’s not just our distance team. Our sprints team, multis team, throws team, everything,” Resnik continued, saying, “We’re looking pretty good this year. Hopefully, we can bring home a team title, so if you can come out, for sure come out.” As discussed earlier, coach Zach Holloway became the interim head track and field coach over the summer, and it’ll be exciting to see how the team does with him at the helm for both the indoor and outdoor seasons.
For more information about the cross-country and track and field teams, such as upcoming events and results, students can go to wouwolves.com and find information there or follow them on Instagram @wou_xctf. Make sure to keep an eye on both teams for their upcoming seasons and see how the team continues to improve and set new highs.
A photo of Jack Della Maddalena (left) and Islam Makhachev (right) on a promotional poster for UFC 322. | Photo from @espnmma on Instagram
Nov 12 2025 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor
On Nov. 15, UFC 322 will be headlined by Islam Makhachev versus Jack Della Maddalena, a welterweight title fight that’s been one of the more anticipated fights of the year. Maddalena enters at 18-2, with losses to Aldin Bates and Darcy Vendy, while Makhachev comes in at 27-1 with his only loss being to Adriano Martins 10 years ago. Makhachev has established himself as a machine in the UFC, using high-level wrestling ability to climb his way to the top of the sport and taking down legends and fan favorites such as Dustin Poirier, Alexander Volkanoski — on two separate occasions — and Charles Oliveira. In his last fight at the beginning of this year, he made quick work of Renato “Money” Moicano, submitting him in just the first round. On the other side, Jack Della Maddalena comes in off of a win by unanimous decision against Belal Muhammad in May, where he won the Welterweight Champion belt, setting up this matchup against Makhachev, who moved up from lightweight. Della Maddalena has drawn comparisons in style to Dustin Poirier, who, despite losing to Makhachev, gave him one of the most difficult fights of his career. Firas Zahabi, who coached UFC legend Georges St-Pierre, said, “Now imagine Dustin Poirier as a little bit bigger, and JDM, you could say, is a little bit more careful than Dustin Poirier.” The part about Della Maddalena being more careful than Poirier is an important note to make, as Poirier was submitted by Makhachev via D’Arce choke submission after his aggressive nature left him vulnerable to attacks. If Della Maddalena can be a bit more conservative and keep Makhachev struggling to find finishing opportunities, he could very well pull off the upset. Against Belal Muhammad, he was able to hold off multiple submission attempts en route to a decision win, but Islam Makhachev is an entirely different beast. Muhammad himself commented on the upcoming fight, saying about Makhachev, “He’s very smart, very controlled and doesn’t let you off the hook when you make a mistake. Jack makes mistakes on the ground.” Muhammad continued, “He has moments where he lapses safety. He’ll give up his back, he’ll give up his neck, he’ll give up an arm-triangle, and you can’t do that with Islam. Islam is going to see that and Islam is going to exploit it.” Muhammad gave credit where it was due to Della Maddalena, commending him for his ability in the standing game and for pushing through tough moments in the fight. He pointed out that in order for him to win the fight, he must avoid letting Makhachev push him up against the cage, noting that Poirier did a good job of keeping the fight in the center of the octagon before being submitted. Of course, this is easier said than done. However, Ben Vickers, Della Maddalena’s coach, thinks this may be an easier fight than Belal Muhammad was for the defending champion. “Belal’s a bit more unorthodox, so a bit harder to cope with, whereas Islam’s a more traditional sort of striker.” Vickers also mentioned the increase in weight for Makhachev, saying, “There’s two ways it could go. Does not having to cut weight help him or does carrying that extra weight hinder his cardio?” From the fighters’ side, Della Maddalena said that he would “break” Makhachev, who responded by saying, “I’ve heard this ‘I’ll break you’ thing so many times already. Every fight, someone wants to break me, someone wants to knock me out. People don’t believe such things anymore.” Della Maddalena definitely does present some problems for Makhachev. Many people seem to think this should be an easy matchup for Makhachev on the road to adding on to an already stacked resume that has some people considering him one of the greatest of all time, but that very well may not be the case. There is a reasonable path to an upset here. Much crazier things have happened in the UFC before, and the Della Maddalena camp seems very confident. The biggest unknown here, of course, is how Makhachev will handle the change in weight. If he struggles with cardio, Della Maddalena could use his more patient style to pick Makhachev apart a bit and neutralize the grappling threat. However, Makhachev is typically very well prepared for all of his fights, so relying on his cardio being poor is probably a losing strategy. It’s just as likely that the added weight and energy from not having to cut make Makhachev even more dangerous and allow him the opportunity to overwhelm Della Maddalena and find a finish. The key factor, really, like Muhammad said, is if Della Maddalena can stay away from the cage and keep Makhachev from using it to put him in compromising situations, the fight probably goes more favorably towards him. Again, these are big ifs, and with a fighter of Islam’s caliber, sometimes you just have to lean towards what’s been tried and true. He’s the current number one-ranked pound-for-pound UFC fighter for a reason, and everyone who’s tried to stop him in the past 10 years has been unsuccessful. What fans are witnessing from Makhachev right now is quite possibly one of the greatest runs put together by a fighter that the UFC has ever seen. Jack Della Maddalena has as good of a chance as anyone who’s tried to put an end to that run, and he may be able to avoid being finished, but Islam Makhachev might just be too much to handle. Prediction: Islam wins by unanimous decision.
