🦅 Eagles Trade For Another WR, Judge on Historic Pace, + Our Big 12 Preview

Happy Friday Blitzers!

We’re getting you ready for the weekend by diving into the top stories, Aaron Judge’s quest for another 60-home-run season, and the chaotic landscape of the Big 12. Plus, we’ve got all the must-watch games and the top performances from the MLB and NFL preseason. It’s ‘Feel Good Friday’, so treat yourself to a coffee/muffin/donut/alcoholic beverage, you deserve it, and share the Blitz with a friend!

WTF Stat: On February 25, 1994, it was announced that a new conference would be formed from all 8 of the members of the Big Eight and four of the Texas member colleges of the Southwest Conference. Though the name would not be made official for several months, newspaper accounts immediately dubbed the new entity the "Big 12”. The “Big 12” currently has 16 teams, with only 7 of the original 12 remaining. The Big Ten now has 18 teams in it. This is a long way of saying, maybe we stop putting numbers in conference names.

⚾️ The Mariners have fired manager Scott Servais after the team lost eight of their last nine games, largely due to a struggling offense. Dan Wilson, a former Mariners catcher and current minor league coordinator, will take over as manager for the remainder of the season. The Mariners, who were leading the AL West in June, have since fallen five games behind the Houston Astros and are now at 64-64. Pitching was not the issue, they rank first in the majors in ERA, but their offense has underperformed.

• 🔥 Take: Not easy to be a manager when your best players: Julio Rodríguez, Ty France (traded), Jorge Polanco, and J.P. Crawford all have down years. Maybe Wilson can light a fire under them.

🏈 The Eagles have traded for wide receiver Jahan Dotson from the Commanders. In exchange, the Commanders received a third-round pick and two seventh-round picks in the 2025 NFL Draft. Dotson, a 2022 first-round pick, will serve as the Eagles' No. 3 wide receiver, complementing stars A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, who both received long-term contracts this offseason. Dotson, 24, had a solid 49 receptions for 518 yards and four touchdowns for the Commanders last year. Despite his potential, he struggled to secure a prominent role in Washington, with issues including a 7.4% drop rate, the 10th highest in the NFL.

• 🔥 Take: The rich get richer. Why not take a flyer on a talented first round WR? The only issue is it may cause some PTSD from Eagles fans remembering another talented first round receiver that had issues catching the ball: Nelson Agholor. Obligatory Nelson Agholor Good Samaritan video.

⚾️ Aaron Judge is on track to hit 60 home runs for the second time in his career. Judge blasted his 48th home run of the season against the Cleveland Guardians yesterday, maintaining a pace that could see him reach or exceed 61 home runs, a feat he accomplished in 2022. Judge currently leads the MLB in homers, RBIs, and slugging percentage (among other categories).

• 🔥 Take: Why is anyone pitching to Judge? Outside of him and Juan Soto, there is no one else in the Yankees lineup that pitchers fear. Time to give him the Barry Bonds treatment, put him on first for the rest of the season.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL PREVIEW - Big 12

The historical bullies, Oklahoma and Texas, sought greener pastures in the SEC and now the Big 12 truly is the wild west. There are favorites, sure, but this conference has the potential to be the most chaotic and the most fun in college football.

Projected Finish

1. Oklahoma State

2. Utah

3. Kansas

4. Kansas State

5. Iowa State

6. UCF

7. West Virginia

8. Arizona

9. Texas Tech

10. Colorado

11. Baylor

12. TCU

13. Houston

14. Arizona State

15. Cincinnati

16. BYU

Most Underrated Team: UCF - Head Coach Gus Malzahn and Arkansas transfer QB KJ Jefferson could be a match made in heaven. The last time Malzahn had a bruising quarterback at the helm, it was QB Cam Newton and they won the Natty.

Honorable Mention: Kansas

Most Overrated Team: Arizona - If you’re an engaged reader, you should be picking up on a theme: teams in new conferences have me furrowing my brow. Especially teams that historically aren’t winners i.e. Arizona.

Dishonorable Mention: Kansas State

Get Your Popcorn Ready to Watch These Dudes:

QB Shedeur Sanders - Colorado

QB Cam Rising - Utah

QB Jalon Daniels - Kansas

RB Ollie Gordon - Oklahoma State

RB Tahj Brooks - Texas Tech

WR/CB Travis Hunter - Colorado

WR Tetairoa McMillan - Arizona

Top Transfers

QB Dequan Finn - Baylor (Toledo)

QB KJ Jefferson - UCF (Arkansas)

WR Dorian Singer - Utah (USC)

WR Josh Kelly - Texas Tech (Washington State)

RB Dylan Edwards - Kansas State (Colorado)

EDGE BJ Green - Colorado (Arizona State)

Must Watch Games

8/29 - North Dakota State at Colorado

9/13 - Arizona at Kansas State

9/21 - Utah at Oklahoma State

9/28 - Oklahoma State at Kansas State

10/26 - Kansas at Kansas State

11/9 - BYU at Utah

11/29 - Oklahoma State at Colorado

MLB Games

• Atlanta Braves 3, Philadelphia Phillies 2: Rookie pitcher Spencer Schwellenbach delivered a stellar performance, retiring 19 consecutive batters to help the Atlanta Braves secure a 3-2 victory. After allowing a single to Bryce Harper in the first inning, Schwellenbach dominated retiring the next 18 batters and striking out 9 batters. The Braves, trailing the Phillies by six games in the NL East, benefited from Adam Duvall's home run and solid relief pitching.

Key Highlight: Not a ton outside of Scwellenbach in this one, but this was a really nice double play:

• New York Mets 8, San Diego Padres 3: Mets starter Luis Severino delivered a strong performance allowing just one run and five hits over five innings while striking out five. Severino outpitched Padres' starter Dylan Cease, who conceded three runs on nine hits through 6 1/3 innings. Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil, each recorded three hits, and Mark Vientos contributed three RBIs. The win improves the Mets' record against the Padres to 4-0 this season and keeps them in contention for a National League wild-card spot, currently sitting two games behind the Atlanta Braves.

Key Highlight: This highlight isn’t for this game, but these two walk-offs from earlier in the week overlayed together had to be shared:

• Houston Astros 6, Baltimore Orioles 0 : The Astros extended their lead in the AL West to a season-high 5 1/2 games with the win last night. Spencer Arrighetti outperformed Baltimore's ace Corbin Burnes, allowing just three hits over six innings while striking out six. Ben Gamel, in his Houston debut after being acquired from the Mets, contributed two RBI singles during the Astros' decisive scoring in the fourth and sixth innings. Burnes struggled for the second consecutive start, giving up five earned runs on eight singles over 5 2/3 innings. The loss pushes the Orioles 1 1/2 games behind the AL East-leading New York Yankees.

Key Highlight: Arrighetti has a 3.21 ERA and 60 strikeouts in 47 2/3 innings over his last eight starts. The rookie is getting hot at the right time 🍝 .

NFL Pre-Season Games

• Indianapolis Colts 27, Cincinnati Bengals 14 : In the final preseason game, Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson (8/14, 86 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) led an impressive 80-yard touchdown drive on his first series but struggled for consistency afterward. He threw a pick-six to safety Jordan Battle later in the game, and had a sack-fumble on his last drive. The Bengals, resting their starters, finished the preseason winless, but head coach Zac Taylor emphasized the value of the experience for his backups.

• Chicago Bears 34, Kansas City Chiefs 21: Both teams rested most of their starters in this one. Bears backup QB Tyson Bagent (3/6, 57 yards) led an opening drive touchdown, rushing for the score. The Bears' defense shined with Reddy Steward intercepting two passes, returning one for a 48-yard touchdown. Bears’ Velus Jones (the versatile RB/WR highlighted on Hard Knocks) impressed with 13 carries for 111 yards and a touchdown, making a strong case for a roster spot. The game was momentarily halted in the second half after Bears cornerback Douglas Coleman III was injured and taken off the field on a stretcher. He was later reported to be moving his limbs and was taken to a hospital for evaluation.

See the full MLB scoreboard here and the current standings here.

Starting with college football this weekend (times in EST):

Florida State vs. Georgia Tech (in Dublin, Ireland) | 12 p.m. | ESPN
McNeese at Tarleton State | 3:30 p.m. | ESPNU
Montana State at New Mexico | 4 p.m. | FS1
North Alabama vs. Southeast Missouri State (in Montgomery, Alabama) | 7 p.m. | ESPN
Florida A&M vs. Norfolk State (in Atlanta, Georgia) | 7:30 p.m. | ABC
SMU at Nevada | 8 p.m. | CBSSN
Delaware State at Hawai'i | 11:59 p.m. | Spectrum Sports PPV

In 1883, the Philadelphia Quakers make 27 errors against Providence Grays in 28-0 shutout defeat at Messer Street Grounds. My defensive abilities in softball maybe are not that bad after all… Note: wild pitches, walks, passed balls counted as errors in MLB prior to 1888.

P.S. Bring back the top hats with the throw back jerseys:

Yesterday's Trivia Time Answer

Which player has the most rushing yards while playing for an NFC North team?

C) Walter Payton - Payton is second all-time in rushing only behind RB Emmitt Smith. ‘Sweetness’ played for 13 seasons, all with the Chicago Bears and ran for 16,726 yards and 110 TDs.

Check back in on Monday for today’s trivia answer and more info!