1. A week of upsets – It took only a few days for college basketball to get its first colossal upset of the 2020-21 season. Virginia—a team used to being the victim of these seismic upsets—came into the season with two huge transfers in Sam Hauser (Marquette) and Trey Murphy (Rice). Even though this year’s Virginia squad upgraded its offensive firepower and stuck to the notion of elite defense, they somehow were beaten by a team that lost to UMass Lowell earlier in the week. Led by their senior captain Jamaree Bouyea, the Dons of San Francisco went on to splash 13 three-pointers to stun Virginia. All in all, I saw the game as a motivational spark for a Virginia team that definitely has the ingredients to win big games this year. Maybe this grounding loss to a team that hasn’t beaten a top-five opponent in 40 years will shock the hearts of the Cavaliers into winning motion. In a season filled with scheduling nightmares, more of these upsets are likely to take place. 

2. Jake Paul is still not a professional boxer – On Saturday night, Jake Paul unleashed a few brain-crushing blows to quickly knock out Nate Robinson. He knocked him down two times in the first round and eventually delivered a scary knockout blow to Robinson. Even though the fight ended with Robinson’s face on the ground, Paul’s stats in the short bout still didn’t seem impressive; he only managed to land 8 out of 38 punches. If Paul wants to fight a more grizzled opponent like Conor McGregor (one of the best combat athletes in history), then he needs to be able to schedule fights with other boxers that will actually challenge him and his million-dollar purse.

3. The power COVID-19 has on the NFL – On Sunday afternoon, the Denver Broncos somehow managed to take the field without a true quarterback at the helm of the offense. Their struggles against a stout Saints defense were a warning sign for other teams to follow every regulation set forth by the CDC and the NFL. Going into the game, the Denver coaching staff named former Wake Forest backup quarterback Kendall Hinton as the starter because of a COVID-19 outbreak among their whole quarterback group. Hinton was a quarterback his junior year before switching to wide receiver for his senior year, and he made the Broncos’ practice squad in his new position. Immediately after I read the headline, I envisioned Phillip Lindsey in the wildcat formation and ready to take off; however, Hinton did play for a good amount of snaps during the whole fiasco. Without any reps or experience in practice —not to mention a real game, Hinton only completed one ball for 13 yards and threw two picks. In my opinion, I believe that this example of what the NFL has the power to do in this time of a nationwide medical crisis, and I think that the league office was trying to send a message to all of the players and teams who have disregarded their safety regulations.