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  • ESPN staff

What a Week 7. In the words of Tennessee coach Josh Heupel, “This is college football at its absolute best.”

Unless you’re on the losing side of things, how could anyone disagree?

From all the monumental upsets that dramatically shifted the College Football Playoff picture to the best plays that we will watch over and over, we catch you up on the best moments from the week.

Best troll (pregame)

Lane Kiffin is no stranger to being one of college football’s best trolls. After all, who could forget his “Get your popcorn ready” comment before last season’s Ole Miss–Alabama game? Of course, it backfired last October, when the Crimson Tide jumped to a 28-0 halftime lead en route to a 42-21 win.

He didn’t do any public trolling last season before he returned to Tennessee for the first time as a head coach since he infamously left for USC. After Ole Miss’ 31-26 win, a crowd of over 102,000 raucous fans pelted bottles and golf balls onto the field, to which Kiffin said, “It wasn’t about me, but I just want to say, ‘Take that, you 100,000 fans.'”

As focused as Kiffin was for his Rebels’ matchup against Auburn, even he couldn’t ignore the fact that two of his bigger rivals were facing each other in a battle of undefeated top-10 teams. Naturally, he took a side.

“Let’s both beat the state of Alabama today,” he said on ESPN’s College GameDay on Saturday morning. “Go Vols.”

His Ole Miss squad took care of business in the early afternoon, jumping to a 21-0 lead and putting up 448 yards on the ground en route to a 48-34 win.

He was watching when Alabama-Tennessee came down to the wire, tied at 49 with two seconds left, with Tennessee kicker Chase McGrath lining up for a 40-yard field goal.

So … how did that game end?

Best celebration (and postgame troll)

McGrath’s made kick led to a massive field storm at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville. In Vols coach Josh Heupel’s words, “This is college football at its absolute best.”

The field storm:

The fireworks:

Playing “Dixieland Delight” after beating your rival for the first time since 2006.

Nothing short of epic.

See more of Week 7’s best trolls.

Best color

Sure, the Tulane Green Wave improved to 6-1 and are now ranked in the AP Top 25, but unfortunately the Dartmouth Big Green lost, so this honor couldn’t go to the color green (or the Crimson Tide, for that matter).

Between Tennessee and Syracuse, it was a big weekend for the color orange. (Texas won on Saturday, too.)

Syracuse, which two years ago went 1-10, is bowl-eligible for the first time since 2018 and is off to its first 6-0 start since 1987 after beating No. 15 NC State 24-9.

One thing that bodes well for the color orange: It is guaranteed a victory when Syracuse plays Clemson next week.

Best touchdown

Tennessee wideout Jalin Hyatt scored as many touchdowns on Saturday (five) as he had all season prior. But no touchdown was more spectacular than Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson ripping off an 81-yard touchdown run against LSU.

Richardson scrambled out of the pocket, picked up a block from Trevor Etienne inside the 25-yard line and gained steam as he crossed midfield. From there, he slipped out of Micah Baskerville‘s hands and dodged tackle attempts by safeties Jay Ward and Joe Foucha, maintaining his balance down the left sideline and Superman-leaping across the goal line.

Richardson’s run, which brought Florida within 42-28, was the longest play — passing or running — of his career. He scored an 80-yard touchdown run against South Florida last fall and has thrown two 75-yard touchdown passes in the past.

Best small-school moments

The biggest rivalry games of the regular season at both the FCS and Division II levels unfolded in similar fashions on Saturday afternoon. In both Fargo, North Dakota, and Big Rapids, Michigan, defending national champions enjoyed double-digit leads at home over their most hated rivals. And in both cases, the visitors struck back.

In the battle for the Dakota Marker, South Dakota State held North Dakota State scoreless over the Bison’s final six possessions and scored the game’s final 16 points, nine of which came from the foot of Hunter Dustman. His 18-yarder with 3 minutes, 49 seconds left gave the Jackrabbits their first lead of the game, and NDSU’s last-ditch drive stalled out near midfield. It was SDSU’s third straight victory in this bitter series.

At the Division II level, in the Anchor-Bone Classic, it was Ferris State taking the early lead. The 2021 national champ was up by 11 with eight minutes left, but the visiting Grand Valley State Lakers scored, forced a three-and-out and scored again to take a 22-21 lead.

The teams traded fumbles — always good for ramping up anxiety levels even higher than they already were — but like NDSU, Ferris State stalled out near midfield on its final opportunity. GVSU won its first game in the series since 2016, taking both bragging rights and, likely, the No. 1 ranking in the country in the process.

— Bill Connelly

More Week 7 takeaways

Michigan runs all over Penn State

Penn State-Michigan marked one of the rare marquee games in which the running backs came in with more shine than the quarterbacks. Michigan’s Blake Corum had emerged as a Heisman Trophy contender, while Donovan Edwards provided a jolt after returning from injury. Penn State’s freshman tandem of Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen had sparked a struggling run game, combining for 788 yards and eight touchdowns.

By late Saturday afternoon, Corum and Edwards had left everyone in the dust. They combined for 339 rushing yards and four scores against Penn State, becoming the first teammates to eclipse 150 rush yards in the same game since Alabama’s Eddie Lacy and T.J. Yeldon against Georgia in 2012. Touchdown runs of 67 yards (Edwards) and 61 yards (Corum) on consecutive third-quarter possessions put Michigan in the driver’s seat.

“We got the fourth-down stop, I’m walking off the field, taking my helmet up, ask for water and I look up at the scoreboard and see Blake breaking one loose,” defensive lineman Mike Morris said. “I’m happy for them, but I’m looking at 2 (Corum) and 7 (Edwards) and I’m like, ‘Bruh, y’all got to let us get a break a little bit.’ I’m like, ‘I love y’all, good job but …’

“Our backs are crazy.”

Thanks to Morris and his linemates, Penn State’s talented young backs never got going in a 41-17 loss, combining for only 35 yards on 12 carries with a long run of 9 yards.

“Obviously, we weren’t able to run the ball or convert on short-yardage situations and stay on the field,” coach James Franklin said. “They controlled the line of scrimmage and they controlled the game.”

— Adam Rittenberg

How does the Pac-12 being stronger impact its CFP chances?

When Utah punched in its 2-point conversation late Saturday night to beat USC 43-42, it was an incredible moment at Rice-Eccles Stadium. For the Utes, it preserved a clear path to the Pac-12 championship game and their chance to defend their title. Laughable officiating aside, it was a high-stakes college football game played at a very high level.

The result, however, with USC losing for the first time, was a big hit toward the conference’s College Football Playoff chances. It’s not a death blow, but the collective margin for error is thin.

Undefeated UCLA is obviously the best hope, and it has a chance to make a statement Saturday at Oregon. What shouldn’t be lost in all of this is that the Pac-12 might be the second-best conference in college football this season.

Only two conferences have four teams in the top 15 of the AP Poll: the SEC and the Pac-12 (No. 9 UCLA, No. 10 Oregon, No. 12 USC, No. 15 Utah). If it comes to comparing one-loss conference champions come selection time, that should matter. It also illustrates the problem with the four-team structure. With a 12-team field, there will be several more meaningful games over the second half of the season. More fan bases will be engaged with the sport in more areas of the country.

— Kyle Bonagura

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DeRosa to manage U.S. in World Baseball Classic

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15 hours ago

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April 10, 2025

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DeRosa to manage U.S. in World Baseball Classic

  • Associated Press

Apr 10, 2025, 11:36 AM ET

CARY, N.C. — Former major leaguer Mark DeRosa will manage the United States for the second straight World Baseball Classic, USA Baseball said Thursday.

DeRosa led the U.S. to the championship game of the 2023 tournament, where it lost to Japan 3-2 as Shohei Ohtani struck out Mike Trout to end the game.

Michael Hill, Major League Baseball’s senior vice president of on-field operations and workforce development, will be the team’s general manager, a position Tony Reagins held for the 2023 tournament.

DeRosa, 50, is a broadcaster for MLB Network. He had a .268 average with 100 homers and 494 RBIs over 16 major league seasons.

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Adell’s two-HR fifth inning keys Angels’ rout

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15 hours ago

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April 10, 2025

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Adell's two-HR fifth inning keys Angels' rout

  • Associated Press

Apr 10, 2025, 03:54 PM ET

TAMPA, Fla. — Jo Adell became the third player in Angels history to homer twice in the same inning, Mike Trout and Taylor Ward also homered twice and Los Angeles routed the Tampa Bay Rays 11-1 on Thursday.

Adell led off the fifth against Zack Littell (0-3) with first first homer this season for a 3-1 lead and capped an eight-run fifth inning with a three-run drive against Mason Englert. Adell matched a career high with four RBI.

Rick Reichardt homered twice in a 12-run inning at Boston on April 30, 1966, and Kendrys Morales homered twice in a nine-run sixth at Texas on July 30, 2012.

Ward homered on the game’s second pitch and Nolan Schanuel hit an RBI double in the second.

Jonathan Aranda closed the Rays to 2-1 with a run-scoring single in the fourth off José Soriano (2-1).

Trout hit a two-run homer in the fifth against Littell and added a solo homer in the ninth off Hunter Bigge for his fifth home run this season and the 27th multihomer game of his big league career. Trout also homered in the July 30, 2012, game.

Ward also homered in the fifth, a two-run drive against Littell.

Los Angeles has won four straight series.

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‘I told them the best option was him’: Pete Alonso showing why he’s the guy Juan Soto wanted hitting behind him

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April 10, 2025

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'I told them the best option was him': Pete Alonso showing why he's the guy Juan Soto wanted hitting behind him

  • Jorge CastilloApr 10, 2025, 07:00 AM ET

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      ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for The Washington Post before covering the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.

NEW YORK — Juan Soto had several questions for the New York Mets during his free agent negotiations this past winter. One was about their lineup construction.

Soto had just spent the 2024 season in the Bronx as half of a historically productive duo who drew constant comparisons to Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. He and Aaron Judge, the American League MVP, were a strenuous puzzle to solve in the New York Yankees‘ lineup. The left-handed Soto hit second. The right-handed Judge batted third. They protected each other and pulverized pitchers. Leaving the Yankees would mean leaving Judge.

“That was one of the essential parts of the discussion,” Soto told ESPN in Spanish on Tuesday. “Who was going to bat behind me?”

The answer seemed clear. Pete Alonso remained a free agent. The first baseman is homegrown and adored in Queens. More importantly, for lineup construction purposes, he’s a right-handed slugger. He isn’t on Judge’s level — who is? — but he ranks right behind Judge in home runs since debuting in 2019. He was an obvious complement to Soto.

“I told them the best option was him,” Soto said.

By late January, Alonso’s return still appeared unlikely. Mets owner Steve Cohen, during a fan event at Citi Field, called the negotiation “exhausting” and “worse” than the Soto pursuit. He left the door open, but much to the chagrin of Mets fans in the crowd that day, he also said the organization was ready to move on from the four-time All-Star.

Less than two weeks later, just days before spring training, the sides came to an agreement on a two-year contract with an opt-out after this season. The 30-year-old Alonso went from seemingly in the Mets’ past to protecting the franchise’s $765 million investment. Two months into the partnership, the early returns of the 2025 season support Soto’s opinion. The best example came in Tuesday’s win over the Miami Marlins.

The Mets, leading 6-5, had runners on the corners with one out in the sixth inning for Soto. Marlins manager Clayton McCullough brought in right-hander Ronny Henriquez — and, despite the runner on first, made the unusual decision to intentionally walk Soto. That loaded the bases for Alonso and created an inning-ending double-play opportunity with a righty-righty matchup — though McCullough made another unusual call by pulling in the infield and the outfield. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said he wasn’t surprised by the Marlins’ decision to walk Soto.

“I think it gets to a point where it’s pick your poison there,” Mendoza said.

Two pitches later, Alonso cracked a 93-mph sinker into the left-center field gap for a bases-clearing triple, blowing the game open on a cold, blustery afternoon in Queens.

It was Alonso’s second double of the day — his first, a Texas Leaguer to right field in the third inning, drove in the Mets’ first two runs. Alonso has served as the offense’s engine in the three hole, behind leadoff man Francisco Lindor and Soto, batting .333 with three home runs, 15 RBIs and a 1.139 OPS through the club’s first 12 games.

“It seems like teams are trying to not get beat with Soto,” Mendoza said. “And then, before you know it, they’re making mistakes with Pete, and he’s been ready to go and making them pay.”

Alonso is looking to reverse a three-year decline in offensive production, making better swing decisions after the worst offensive campaign of his career in 2024. It’s early, but so far Alonso is laying off pitches outside the strike zone more often. He’s barreling pitches over the plate at a higher percentage. He’s crushing pitches the other way — in the Mets’ home opener Friday, he clubbed a 95-mph fastball from Kevin Gausman down and out of the strike zone for a two-run home run to right field.

Hitting behind Soto, who has a .404 on-base percentage as a Met, has made his work a little easier.

“He’s such a pro,” Alonso said of Soto. “Obviously, we know he has power, he has the hit tool. He can hit for average. Super dynamic player offensively. But the thing that I really benefit from is just seeing — because he sees a ton of pitches and just kind of seeing what they’re doing to him, obviously, it really helps because they’re trying to stay away from the middle of the zone with him and I can kind of take some mental notes with that.”

With more pitches to Soto, the game’s most disciplined hitter, comes more strain for pitchers. With more runners on base, comes more pitches — and fastballs — over the plate for Alonso to devour. It is a formula Soto envisioned over the winter. Whether it extends beyond this season remains unknown.

There’s no question he is popular with fans. During the Mets’ home opener Friday, Citi Field roared for Alonso during pregame introductions. The fans did so again when he stepped into the batter’s box for his first at-bat. And then once more, moments later, when he emerged from the dugout for a curtain call after hitting a two-run home run.

This week, one option for replacing Alonso was taken off the board when first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the Toronto Blue Jays agreed to a 14-year, $500 million contract extension. Guerrero’s contract should help Alonso’s earning potential if he chooses, as expected, to opt out of his contract and hit free agency again this winter.

For now, in his seventh season, Alonso is thriving as the Mets’ first baseman, hitting behind his team’s most valuable player.

“That’s why you want [protection] like that,” Soto said. “First of all, to have the chance to do more damage and stuff. But whenever they don’t want to pitch me, I know I have a guy behind me that could make it even worse for them.”

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