The Atlantic Coast Conference announced a reworked football schedule for this fall, and for the first time ever, Notre Dame will be competing for a conference championship. The Fighting Irish will join 14 other ACC schools in playing an 11-game schedule starting the week of September 7th. The new schedule includes 10 conference games and one non-conference tilt, which must be played in the state of the ACC school. Notre Dame is eligible for the conference championship game, which will be played either December 12th or December 19th.
The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association announced Tuesday that no players have tested positive for the coronavirus in the last nine days since test results were last released. A total of 344 players were tested in the NBA’s bubble in Orlando and none were positive for COVID-19. The season resumes Thursday night with the Pelicans taking on the Jazz and the Lakers facing off with the Clippers. The Pacers resume the season Saturday against the 76ers.
Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard and head coach Frank Reich spoke to the media Wednesday, one day after the Colts complex opened for training camp. Ballard said that despite a slew of NFL players opting out of the 2020 season due to safety concerns, no Colts have informed the team of a decision to sit out. The fourth-year GM said he is confident the team can adjust without preseason games, pointing out that college football teams go without preseason contests every year. Reich added that he believes the Colts locker room is mature enough to not allow the ongoing coronavirus pandemic to become a distraction.
High school sports in Marion County will go on as planned, for now. Marion County Health Department director Virginia Caine shut down competition through October 1st in football, soccer and volleyball on Wednesday before reversing course. Later in the day, that plan was discussed with school leaders and Caine changed her stance. All sports will be allowed to proceed in Indianapolis and Marion County “under current IHSAA guidelines,” and the plan will be re-evaluated in two to three weeks.
The Cincinnati Reds snapped a three-game losing streak with a 12-7 win over the Chicago Cubs at Great American Ballpark. Sonny Gray improved to 2-0 gave up no earned runs and struck out 11 over six and two-thirds innings as the Reds jumped out to a 9-0 lead before Chicago began to claw its way back. The Chicago White Sox snapped a three-game skid of their own with a 4-0 win over Cleveland.
