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Virginia quarterback Chandler Morris is progressing toward returning to play on Saturday, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

There is optimism that Morris will start for Virginia at Duke as he continues to work his way through concussion protocol. A final decision on his status is not expected until game time, sources added.

Morris exited last week’s loss to Wake Forest after taking a hit to the head in the second quarter. He was taken to the locker room before being ruled out for the remainder of the game, finishing 3-of-6 for 19 yards and 6 rushing yards before his injury. Morris has thrown for 2,088 yards, 12 touchdowns and five interceptions on the season.

If Morris is not cleared to play, backup quarterback Daniel Kaelin will get the nod. The sophomore came on in relief of Morris last week but could never get the Virginia offense going, finishing 18-of-28 for 145 yards and 49 yards rushing, although he lost two costly fumbles in the 16-9 loss.

The loss ended Virginia’s seven-game winning streak and was its first in ACC play. The Cavaliers are now in a five-way tie atop the ACC standings with four other teams that have one conference loss, including Duke.

ESPN’s Andrea Adelson contributed to this story.

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Blue Devils win ACC crown, ‘deserve’ CFP berth

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Blue Devils win ACC crown, 'deserve' CFP berth

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Duke won its first outright Atlantic Coast Conference title since 1962 and threw the College Football Playoff into chaos on Saturday night when Darian Mensah connected with Jeremiah Hasley for a 1-yard touchdown on a fourth-down play in overtime, and the unranked Blue Devils held on to beat No. 16 Virginia 27-20.

The Blue Devils (8-5) are unlikely to make the playoff field, opening the door for a second Group of Five team — likely James Madison — to make it.

Duke last won a share of the ACC regular-season title in 1989, sharing it with Virginia in Steve Spurrier’s final season as the Blue Devils’ coach. The conference championship game was created in 2005, and Duke got there this year thanks to a five-team tiebreaker.

“So proud of this team,” Duke coach Manny Diaz said in his postgame, on-field interview on ABC. “Their mental toughness, their resilience, wow. These guys, they never give up. … They are ACC champions, and they deserve to be here.”

Virginia (10-3), the ACC regular-season champion, would have reached the CFP for the first time in school history with a victory but fell short when Chandler Morris was intercepted by Luke Mergott on the Cavaliers’ first offensive play in OT.

Mensah threw for 196 yards and two scores — both to Hasley — while Nate Sheppard ran for 97 yards and a score for Duke.

“These guys deserve to be in,” Diaz said of his Blue Devils and the CFP.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Indiana prevails over Ohio State for Big Ten title

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Indiana prevails over Ohio State for Big Ten title

INDIANAPOLIS — Fernando Mendoza‘s 17-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Sarratt gave No. 2 Indiana the lead midway through the third quarter, and the Hoosiers’ stingy defense shut down No. 1 Ohio State the rest of the way in a 13-10 victory Saturday night for their first Big Ten championship since 1967.

Indiana likely locked up the top seed in the College Football Playoff while extending the best record in school history to 13-0. The Hoosiers are also poised to claim the No. 1 spot in The Associated Press Top 25 poll for the first time.

They did it by snapping a 30-game losing streak against the Buckeyes that stretched to 1988. Indiana also ended major college football’s longest winning streak at 16 games, sealing the win with a 33-yard pass from Mendoza to Charlie Becker on third down, a play that took the clock down to the two-minute timeout.

Ohio State fell to 12-1 overall, though its quest to win back-to-back national championships for the first time will likely begin as the No. 2 seed in the CFP and a first-round bye.

The Buckeyes had a chance to retake the lead on fourth-and-1 from the Indiana 5-yard line late in the third quarter. But a replay review overturned the call on the field, determining Julian Sayin came up short. They also had a chance to tie the score with 2:48 to play, but Jayden Fielding missed a 29-yard field goal wide left.

The two quarterbacks dueling for the Heisman Trophy essentially played to a draw.

Mendoza was injured on the first offensive play of the game but returned after missing one play and finished 15-of-23 for 222 yards, with 1 TD and 1 interception. Sayin was 21-of-29 for 258 yards, with 1 TD and 1 interception.

But when the big plays were needed, Mendoza usually got the job done

Indiana took a 3-0 lead after Sayin’s pass was picked off in the first quarter, but the Buckeyes turned Mendoza’s miscue into a 17-yard TD pass to Carnell Tate for a 7-3 lead late in the first quarter.

The teams traded second-quarter field goals as the Buckeyes took a 10-6 lead, but Mendoza threw a TD pass to Sarratt near the sideline on Indiana’s first possession of the third quarter, and that was all the Hoosiers needed.

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Jets to host Canadiens in 2026 Heritage Classic

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Jets to host Canadiens in 2026 Heritage Classic

NEW YORK — The Winnipeg Jets and Montreal Canadiens will play an outdoor game next season.

The NHL announced Saturday the teams will face off in the Heritage Classic at Winnipeg’s Princess Auto Stadium. The event set for Oct. 25 will be the league’s eighth Heritage Classic and first since 2023.

Winnipeg will host its second outdoor showcase after falling to the Edmonton Oilers at the home of the CFL’s Blue Bombers in October 2016 before a crowd of 33,240. Montreal will skate in its fifth outdoor game and first in nine years.

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