data-mm-id=”_9fvolqlai”>For weeks, Cal Twitter, the surprising darlings of the college football season, campaigned to have ESPN's "College GameDay" come to Berkeley for the Golden Bears' ACC game against the Miami Hurricanes on October 5.At halftime of the Georgia-Alabama game on Saturday night, ESPN's Rece Davis said the magic words that made those Cal fans' biggest dreams come true.RELATED: College football's most unlikely darlings: Cal football Twitter"Next weekend, 'College GameDay' is going into unchartered territory … We are going to Cal," Davis said. "Never been to Cal. So the sturdy Golden Bears will welcome GameDay."Nick Saban came up with the perfect line to sum up just how long it's been since Cal football warranted the national spotlight.“Last time I’ve been to Cal was the workout of Aaron Rodgers. That’s a long time ago," said Saban, prompting Desmond Howard to break into laughter.Berkeley, for the FIRST TIME EVER, we're headed your way!College GameDay is coming to town as Cal welcomes top-10 Miami 🔥 @CalFootball pic.twitter.com/wnjmMT8rrE— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) September 29, 2024Not even Rodgers' two-year tenure in Berkeley (2003-04) convinced ESPN to bring its Saturday road show to Berkeley.The Bears (3-1) turned heads when they went into SEC country and beat Auburn 21-14 for head coach Justin Wilcox's signature win in his eight seasons. They stayed unbeaten with a 31-10 victory over San Diego State but lost their first-ever ACC game at Florida State in a hard-fought 14-9 defeat.Cal had a bye this week, so its hopes of hosting "GameDay" hinged on seventh-ranked Miami remaining undefeated. On Friday, the Hurricanes needed video replay to overturn a last-second Hail Mary touchdown and hold on for a 38-34 win over Virginia Tech and a 5-0 record.Congratulations, Cal Twitter. You actually convinced ESPN to come to Berkeley.For real though: the #Calgorithm did something that mattered. Bringing exposure to this amazing, special, unique place for college football. Thank you to everyone that made an effort. Go Bears!!!— Ghost (@GhostofGarbers) September 29, 2024MORE TOP STORIES From the Big LeadNBA: KAT heads to NYC as Knicks and Wolves pull off blockbusterNFL: Is the Raiders’ season over already?WNBA: How can Caitlin Clark get even better next season?SPORTS MEDIA: NBA fans think they know why Zach Lowe is out at ESPN
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Belgium extended their 100 per cent record in Group H by recording a third straight victory without conceding, while Benteke s treble gave the striker his first international goals since March 2015.
Benteke opened the scoring after just seven seconds, setting a new record for the fastest goal in World Cup qualifying, with Axel Witsel, Dries Mertens and Eden Hazard also on target, and Martinez was delighted with the forward s impact.
That goal really showed the concentration of the group, he told broadcaster RTBF. It was our goal to score early and we were rewarded quickly…
James Milner insists Manchester City are fully focused on the next stage of their League Cup defence against Newcastle United on Wednesday.
City overcame Newcastle on their own patch in the fourth round of last season s competition and the sides meet with a quarter-final spot once again up for grabs at the Etihad Stadium.
Following their Wembley triumph over Newcastle s north-east rivals Sunderland to lift the trophy in March, City returned to the competition in style with a resounding 7-0 win against Sheffield Wednesday in round three but Manuel Pellegrini s team head into their latest match on the back of a deeply disappointing week.
Milner scored to give the City a 2-0 lead against CSKA Moscow in the UEFA Champions League last Wednesday, only for their Russian…
Chelsea are keen on signing Bayern Munich forward Robert Lewandowski, according to the Telegraph.
Having finished thirty points behind champions Manchester City, and five points behind fourth place Tottenham Hotspur the Blues are planning a huge spending spree as they look to reclaim the championship.
They did win the FA Cup, beating Manchester United in the final at Wembley on Saturday with Eden Hazard scoring the only goal of the game from the penalty spot.
The Belgium international was Chelsea’s top scorer in the league with twelve goals – one more than record signing Alvaro Morata while Olivier Giroud netted three since signing from Arsenal in January.
Lewandowski scored over forty goals for Bayern for a third consecutive campaign during the 20…
Juventus have won the race for Matthijs de Ligt and handed Maurizio Sarri an €85.5million asset set to immediately challenge for a starting spot.
The Netherlands international commanded the attention of Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Manchester United and more before agreeing a five-year contract in Turin.
De Ligt, 19, captained Ajax with distinction in Europe and the Eredivisie last term and compiled a set of statistics consistent with a player who could change the look of Serie A s strongest defence.
Our dive into the Opta data illustrates why one half of Juve s established centre-back pairing might be looking over his shoulder.
LIGTS | Matthijs de Ligt officially signs for Juventus!
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen)
Bonuc…
Italy coach Marcello Lippi has praised Sampdoria s great start to the campaign but says Antonio Cassano will have to wait before finding out if he is to be included in his World Cup squad.
Samp beat Inter Milan 1-0 on Saturday to climb to the top of the Serie A standings, one point clear of Juventus.
Sampdoria has started well, said Lippi. They have important players and a good coach in Luigi Del Neri.
Samp was a team that was improving and I am happy that they are first in the standings as I played at Sampdoria for 20 years.
One of the main reasons why Samp have won all but one of their six encounters this campaign has been the impressive form of Cassano.
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Arsenal v Bolton
Never easy to predict Arsenal games but this one looks a little simpler than most. After flattering to deceive for a little while, Bolton have lost five of their last six and may well be sliding into another relegation battle.
Arsenal haven’t lost in six Premiership games and may be about to turn some of those draws into wins.
SoccerNews prediction: 2-0
Aston Villa v West Brom
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The Liverpool manager dropped Mignolet for an indefinite period before the 3-0 defeat at Manchester United a fortnight ago.
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Ajax forward Bojan Krkic is looking forward to taking on parent club Barcelona in Wednesday s UEFA Champions League clash.
Bojan joined the Dutch champions on a season-long loan from Barcelona in July, but Ajax have the option of extending it by another year.
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I m really looking f…
The Premier League transfer window has closed ahead of the start of the new season and managers up and down England will now take stock.
Have the rest of the top six done enough to catch Manchester City? Are the promoted sides suitably stocked to secure top-flight survival?
We will soon find out but, in the meantime, we pick out five signings that look pretty shrewd.
5. Pablo Fornals (West Ham)
At a reported fee of £24million, West Ham made what looks like being a clever addition.
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