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The Portland Timbers have already won one trophy this year, and now they embark on a campaign to win another.

The MLS is Back champions start their MLS Cup playoffs Sunday against an unfamiliar FC Dallas side in a high-stakes, single-elimination knockout game. The Timbers, the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, host the No. 6 seed, although the two sides havent met all year.

The Timbers are the favorites, with FiveThirtyEight giving them a 62% of advancing, but they do head into playoffs missing some key players.

Winger Sebastian Blanco, who was named the best player at the MLS is Back tournament over the summer, went down with an ACL tear in September. He was followed by striker Jaroslaw Niezgoda, the Timbers best shots-to-goals converter, who went down with the same injury three weeks ago.

Normally if a team lost two goal-scoring designated players, the conventional wisdom would be that theres no hope for a postseason run. But the Timbers were built differently this year with what at times looked like an excess of attacking talent. Niezgoda, for instance, went long stretches without even starting.

Theres a little bit of luck in football, always, and we went into getting Jaro Niezgoda and Felipe Mora because we believed Jeremy Ebobisse would be gone at the Olympics and potentially miss six, seven games, Timbers general manager Gavin Wilkinson told The Oregonian/OregonLive last week. While we didnt have the Olympics, we had an injury.

Ebobisse has been sidelined for more than a month with a concussion, but coach Giovanni Savarese said he will be available for Sundays playoff game.

The Timbers could have been without Mora and midfielder Andy Polo because both were away on international duty and would have had to quarantine upon return, but MLS has allowed teams to skip quarantines if players return on charter flights, which both Mora and Polo did Thursday.

Its a bit of a risky decision from MLS. Planes arent the only place players can contract COVID-19 while outside of their MLS team bubbles, as shown by the outbreak among Uruguay national team players, some who only tested positive after returning to their clubs.

Other clubs in MLS may cry foul at some getting their players back earlier than others. Not all players will be able to charter, and four LAFC players, for instance, have already contracted COVID-19 while on international duty.

Timbers coach Giovanni Savarese wasnt specific about whether Felipe Mora (right) and Andy Polo will play Sunday, but he did confirm the players were already in Portland and the club will follow protocols and do things the right way.

But it appears luck has fallen in the Timbers favor again since Mora is tied for second in goals for the Timbers this season and has played a surprisingly significant role this season. When asked Friday, Savarese wasnt specific about whether Mora and Polo will play Sunday, but he did confirm the players were already in Portland and the club will follow protocols and do things the right way.

The Timbers were hoping Dairon Asprilla could be available off the bench too, but MLS announced Saturday he had been given a retroactive red card for a collision with the goalkeeper in the final game of the regular season. Asprilla has been one of MLSs least efficient strikers during the regular season, but hes been unexpectedly clutch in playoff games, earning the nickname Mr. November.

Still, the Timbers should have enough depth to get through the first round of playoffs.

I do like our depth, and I do think the way Gio has rotated the group to keep a number of players invested at this stage of the season is very much a positive, Wilkinson said. I think were one of the top three, four teams in the league in players used, giving significant minutes to players, and also in subs each game.

The Timbers are the only team in MLS to have four players with seven or more goals each: Diego Valeri, Ebobisse, Mora and Niezgoda.

For FC Dallas fans, their hope lies in the matchup itself. The Timbers havent played against FC Dallas yet in 2020, and there could be something about the way Dallas matches up to Portland that offers a surprise benefit.

Its an unusual circumstance: With COVID-19 derailing just about everything, the MLS regular season had to be shortened and travel had to be minimized as much as possible. That means the Timbers only played a handful of the same teams over and over, and their schedule could be judged as relatively soft compared to some other teams.

The LA Galaxy and the San Jose Earthquakes, who the Timbers faced in about a combined third of games this season, were often just plain bad, which is why the Timbers were able to score six goals in a single game against each team. Prior to this season, the Timbers had never scored six goals against anyone.

Meanwhile, the Timbers never had to face the team that topped the Western Conference, Sporting Kansas City, or fourth-place Minnesota United after COVID-19 jumbled the season.

The question becomes, are standings still a good measure of how good a team is when many teams arent even playing each other? Dallas fans will be hoping not.

But there is still plenty of tape to analyze, and Dallas tends to require their fullbacks to push forward to create scoring chances. That could play into the Timbers counterattacking prowess and leave Dallas vulnerable if the match plays out as expected.

Matches arent won on paper, though, and MLS is as unpredictable as any league.

Every game in MLS is difficult it doesnt matter who we play, Savarese said. And during the playoff time, its even more complicated.

Its like a new season, he added. We need to be sharp, prepared and ready to confront the team in front of us.

The Timbers open playoffs by hosting FC Dallas without fans at 7 p.m. Sunday, broadcast live on ESPN.

-- Caitlin Murray for The Oregonian/OregonLive

Read more:
Portland Timbers quest for another trophy begins with playoff matchup against FC Dallas - OregonLive

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Kyle Trask has been the most consistent college football quarterback in 2020.

Week 12's performance against the Vanderbilt Commodores marked the first time this season in which Trask did not throw four touchdowns in a game.

Trask was still involved on three scoring plays to reinforce his Heisman Trophy candidacy. His numbers and Florida's position in the rankings have him slightly ahead of Justin Fields on the odds chart.

Fields had an opportunity to clear Trask and Mac Jones with a dominant performance against the Indiana Hoosiers.The Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback struggled at the start with turnovers and failed to create a massive gap between himself and Trask.

Trask, Fields and Jones are viewed as the three most likely Heisman winners going into the final weekend of November.

Trevor Lawrence is still in the mix, but he is further down the Heisman shortlists right now because he has not played in a month.

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Trask was nowhere near the front of the Heisman conversation when the season started, but he has played his way into being the odds-on favorite.

On Saturday, Trask turned in his sixth 300-yard passing game and completed over 70 percent of his throws for the fifth time.

The Florida quarterback has 2,554 passing yards, 31 touchdowns, three interceptions and a 70.7 completion percentage. The passing yards and touchdowns totals put him in the top five in those categories.

Trask's rise to prominence feels similar to that of Joe Burrow in 2019, but the difference between the two is Florida is not on top of the polls like the LSU Tigers were.

Florida likely needs to beat the Alabama Crimson Tide in the SEC Championship Game for Trask to win the Heisman and to get into the College Football Playoff.

If Florida loses, Trask would have two losses to a pair of Top 10 teams. The other occurred on the road against the Texas A&M Aggies.

The lack of a playoff berth and only one marquee win over the two-loss Georgia Bulldogs may not be enough to sway voters in his favor, which is why he needs to win out to solidify his favorite status.

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Fields did not lose the Heisman on Saturday, but he also did not win it.

The Ohio State signal-caller threw his first three interceptions of the season and completed under 70 percent of his passes for the first time in four games.

Fields still threw for 300 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but the offensive surge did not occur until late in the second quarter and early in the third period, when the Buckeyes broke out to a 28-point advantage.

With no ranked opponents ahead in the next three games, Fields needs to put up high passing totals to keep his name close to Trask before conference championship weekend.

If he faces the Northwestern Wildcats on December 19, Fields would have a tough task on his hands. Northwestern held the Wisconsin Badgers to seven points Saturday.

If he marvels in that matchup and outperforms Trask and Jones on that weekend, Fields could gain the slightest of edges that earns him enough first-place votes.

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Jones appears to be in the perfect position to rise up the Heisman rankings in Week 13.

The Alabama quarterback plays in the highest profile matchup of the three contenders against the Auburn Tigers in the Iron Bowl.

Auburn will be the third Top 25 opponent Jones gets to play in 2020, which is one more than Fields and Trask.

Jones tuned up for the rivalry showdown with 230 passing yards and two touchdowns in Alabama's 63-3 rout out of the Kentucky Wildcats.

Saturday's win produced Jones' lowest passing output of the season, but he was not asked to do much against a team that was outmatched from the start.

In 2019, Jones gave the Crimson Tide a chance to beat Auburn in relief of Tua Tagovailoa with 335 passing yards and four scores.

If he turns in similar numbers Saturday, he could boost his Heisman chances ahead of the SEC Championship Game, which may serve as a knockout game for the individual award between him and Trask.

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1. Justin Fields

2. Kyle Trask

3. Mac Jones '

The Heisman race will likely come down to December 19.

The SEC Championship Game winner should provide its quarterback with a good chunk of first-place votes, but if Trask and Jones are involved in a high-scoring duel, the loser may still receive votes.

Fields has a chance to take the reins of the Heisman race with three unranked foes on the docket and a chance to torch Northwestern's defense, which is something Wisconsin could not do.

Ohio State has more explosive talent than Wisconsin, and Fields could use Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson and others to cut up the Northwestern defense.

If that happens, Fields could put on an offensive display that sways first-place votes in his direction.

He will not be able to match Trask's statistics, but he does have a chance to win a conference title and land in the playoff, which may shift the bulk of Heisman votes in his direction.

The wild card in this mix is Lawrence, who is +900 (bet $100 to win $900) to win the Heisman, but his inactivity has put him well behind the three favorites at the moment.

If Lawrence thrives in his next two games and beats the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the ACC Championship Game, he may move back into the Heisman mix.

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from ESPN.com.

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

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Read more here:
Heisman Watch 2020: Latest Race Odds and Predictions - Bleacher Report

Diarmuid Murphy knows well how unforgiving a Kerry inquest can be. The blinds are pulled and youre not stepping far outside the door. Just as well its level five.

Speaking on the Irish Examiner GAA podcast, the former Kingdom keeper and selector tried to process what went wrong in Pirc U Chaoimh on Sunday. It sounded simplistic to say Cork wanted it more, but it was as good a starting point as any.

Its the truth, quite simply. If you look at the way the game panned out from start to finish. Even in the first five minutes, Cork set the tone. They were very very aggressive, and rightly so. And to be honest I dont think our fellas were really mentally prepared for that.

To me, it looked like Cork played the game like a knockout championship game, like it was do or die. And I thought Kerry played the game as if there was a backdoor. Cork just wanted it more. You could see it in the 50/50s throughout the game.

I don't think Kerry took it for granted, and I can guarantee that the management would have been warning them about what was coming down the tracks, especially given the conditions.

But you wonder with players sometimes does it get into their head a little bit, that maybe today isnt going to be as hard as Peter (Keane) and the boys are telling us.

Mentally you sometimes wonder are players as well prepared as they can be. And this isnt a management thing. Its purely down to the players themselves. Are they ready for battle today? And you can see it in some of the decision making. Kerry turned over some very poor ball, shot selection was dreadful. In possession, it was probably the worst display Ive seen from Kerry in a long long time.

Murphy was surprised by the late switch that saw Brian Beaglaoich come in for Stephen OBrien and felt Kerry set up extremely cautiously.

The team selection was conservative at best, very cautious. Youre getting bodies behind the ball, but usually you see the forwards engage the defence much higher up the pitch coming out.

Kerry were sinking deeper and deeper, too far back. So even when they did turn over the ball they had the whole length of the field to go.

You just wonder in the backs of the minds of the management, was this a system for down the road. Is this something were going to bed in now, get over these next couple of games, and use it for Croke Park. Only they could say.

As unforgiving as the fallout inevitably will be, he accepts there are mitigating factors for Keane and his selectors.

It has been an extraordinary year. But you hope that the management and players will learn from it. Definitely, he has next year to fix it. He will be under pressure next year. You look at last year and the balance was too much towards attacking, this year it was skewed too much the other way.

There is a balance there to try and find the right mix.

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Excerpt from:
Gaelic Football Podcast: 'Cork played a knockout game. Kerry played like there was a backdoor' - Irish Examiner

The stage was all set at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi for two exciting line-ups to clash for the crucial Eliminator 1. The contest was deemed even more special for the Bangalore side, as they have made their way into the playoffs after 2016. The in-form Hyderabad were to posea stiff challengefor the resilient Bangalore side in their attempt of putting an end to their championship drought. Having put in to bat first, it was imperative for the Virat Kohli-led side to get off to a flying start. However, the knockout demons that came back to haunt the prolific batsman yet again.

The onus was on Virat Kohli to steer his side to an imposing total as surprisingly walked ahead of Aaron Finch to open the batting along with Devdutt Padikkal. He looked very confident as he nonchalantly walked down the wicket and placed the ball in empty spaces against old nemesis Sandeep Sharma, who has got the better of the batsman on 7 different occasions.

ALSO READ |David Warner & Kane Williamson Involve In A Game Of Darts And Here's Who Nailed It

But there was a twise in the tale as it was Jason Holder who gave the Hyderabad side an early breakthrough while handing the Bangalore captain yet another failure in knockout matches. Virat Kohli shuffled a long way across on the second ball of the second over and tried to guide the ball towards the fine leg. Jason Holder's extra bounce did the trick, and the ball brushed Kohli's glove and went straight to keeper Shreevats Goswami, who took a fine catch diving to his left. Netizens were quick to target the batsman after yet another underwhelming outing in a knockout fixture.

There is something about knockout matches that seem to get the better of Virat Kohli. Known for his consistency with the bat across all formats, the 32-year-old has a woeful record in knockout outings. Having appeared in 15 knockout matches in his international career, the batsman has crossed the 50-run mark only on two occasions and has 346 runs to his name.

ALSO READ |Virat Kohli Falls To New All-time Dream11 IPL Low Against Hyderabad After Another Failure

He has featured in three World Cup Semi-finals so far in his career and has failed to reach the double digits in all of them. The ICC Champions Trophy final in 2017 is yet another instance where the occasion got the better of the star batsman, and he was sent packing by Mohammad Amir for 5 runs.

ALSO READ |Virat Kohli's Move Of Opening The Batting Against Hyderabad In The Eliminator Backfires

The Bangalore skipper's batting prowess cannot be discounted as he has proved his mettle time and time again. He is the leading run-scorer in the league's history with 5,878 runs to his name. Suresh Raina, who is next to Kohli in terms of runs scored, trailed by more than 500 runs. The batsman has crossed the coveted three-figure mark five times in the cash-rich league, while he has smashed 39 half-centuries. Kohli has had a decent season this year with 466 runs in 15 games.

ALSO READ |Ishan Kishan Net Worth, Dream11 IPL 2020 Price, House And Personal Life Of Mumbai Star

Stay updated on the latest IPL 2020 news, IPL updates, IPL schedule, IPL 2020 points table, IPL 2020 matches and more. From live updates to breaking news, Republic World brings you all the live updates online so that you don't miss out on the IPL 2020 extravaganza.

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Virat Kohli heavily mocked on Twitter for failing to step up in another knockout game - Republic World

Hyderabad would be looking to bring their A-game when they face southern rivals Bangalore in the Eliminator of the Dream11 IPL 2020 at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi on Friday. Before this all-important knockout game, two of their premier players skipper David Warner and, Kane Williamson decided to have some fun as they decided to beat the pre-match stress by involving in a game of darts.

Taking to the micro-blogging site, the Orange Army had posted a video of Warner and Williamson taking on each other in an attempt to find out which one of them can hit the bullseye. Both the players are outstanding fielders on the cricket field and have also effected many run-outs with their sharp and accurate throws and therefore, this was expected to be an evenly matched contest.

At the beginning of the video, Kane can be seen explaining the rules of the game to David who is being a keen listener. The competition gets underway and it's the captain who draws first blood. Suddenly, the elegant New Zealand cricketer scores the equaliser and it's 'Game On!' from thereon.

Things only start getting intense from here on as neither of the two star-studded batsmen are taking their eyes away from the target. Towards the end, the Kiwi skipper rediscovers his rhythm whereas the explosive Australian opener who appeared to be in the driver's seat in the first half fails to make too much of an impact. Eventually, Kane gets the better of Warner by a close margin of 10-8.

The two players exchange handshakes after a tough competition as the video ends.

Coming back to the on-field action, David Warner and his side will be taking on Bangalore in the Eliminator that will be played at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi on Friday. However, unlike Qualifier 1, the losing team will not get a second chance to make amends as this is a 'Do or Die' encounter which means that the winner of this contest will face Delhi in the second Qualifier on Sunday for a place in the final while the loser will be knocked out from this year's competition.

The Orange Army had defeated Bangalore in the tournament decider of the 2016 edition. Therefore, the Virat Kohli-led side will be hoping to knock David Warner & Co. out for depriving them of their maiden title four years ago.

READ:Virat Kohli Decodes His Unique Style Of Captaincy Ahead Of The All-important Eliminator

Stay updated on the latest IPL 2020 news, IPL updates, IPL schedule, IPL 2020 points table, IPL 2020 matches and more. From live updates to breaking news, Republic World brings you all the live updates online so that you don't miss out on the IPL 2020 extravaganza.

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David Warner & Kane Williamson involve in a game of Darts and heres who nailed it - Republic World