GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND

1) It's MONDAY, OCTOBER 24. Join me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. 2) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): Heat lose season opener at home, NFL Week 7 picks, Greg Cote Show podcast, NFL Week 6 results, Mount Gregmore of columns.

GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW EPISODE OUT NOW!: Our 45th episode of 2022 and 136th overall is out now! New episode drops every Monday at 7 a.m. ET on Apple, Spotify and wherever you pod. Find all 136 we've done so far HERE. In our new episode: A new Le Batard Show “Mas Miami’ fan night is coming up December 10, and the GCS podcast reveals big plans for a major presence at the event; Greg shares the two new TV commercials out now that he loves; Greg is fascinated by a new forensic study on a Neanderthal family that lived 54,000 years ago and Chris and Yeti are palpably bored and dumbfounded by that fascination; and Chris and Greg report live from Sunday night’s Dolphins-Steelers game, and Greg shares an inside look at Saturday’s invitation-only gala honoring Miami’s 1972 Perfect Season team. Also in the new ep: Greg’s reveals a shocking and perhaps repulsive truth about himself; Greg rails against LIV Golf coming to Miami and a World Cup in Qatar; Calendar jumpers; Friends of Greg (FOG) update; A horrifying revelation about ants; and a new Dad joke of the week. Hit up GCS2245 for full story on latest ep, and watch our weekly YouTube preview. Thanks as always for the support, pod family. Please listen, review, follow, subscribe and so forth. We simulcast on Sirius XM, too, Mondays from 5-6 p.m. ET. Now our podcast has a website and merch store! Check it out at TheGregCoteShow.com and visit store by clicking 'Shop'. New items including Greg's Lobos T-shirts and hats -- with free shipping this week through Thursday! Also check out our podcast's YouTube channel.

NFL WEEK 7 PICKS: DOLPHINS -STEELERS AND ALL THE REST: Went a solid 8-6 against the spread last week, started the new week strong Thursday night, now let's keep it going! You want rampant parity in a league overrun by .500 teams? Only one of 14 games this week is matchup of two teams both with a winning record. Visit NFL Week 7 Gems to find all of our latest picks for Dolphins-Steelers, our Game of the Week, a big upset, the return of Dak Prescott and all the rest.

MOUNT GREGMORE OF COLUMNS: OUR LATEST FIVE:

NEW! Not Perfect, But Return Of Tua, Big Defense Lift Dolphins Past Steelers NEW!

NEW! Epic New Low For Cristobal: 8 Turnovers in 45-21 Home Loss To Duke NEW!

Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat Disappoint In Season-Opening Home Loss

Tua Can't Return Soon Enough As Dolphins Fall To Vikings For 3rd Straight Loss

Sorry, Canes, But 20-14 Win At Va-Tech Doesn't Impress Any More Than 3-3 Does

Hilltop: The five columns before that: Csonka, ‘Heart’ Of Dolphins Glory Days, On Life Of Adventure — And Perfection / QB Calamity! 3rd-String Thompson Has Rough Baptism As Dolphins Fall At Jets / Canes Lose ACC Opener, Fall To 2-3 As Misery Continues For Mario Cristobal / Five Years In, Miami Marlins Rebuild Isn't Working. Here Is The Solution / NFLPA Firing Doctor For Concussion Eval May Mean Fins, Tua Are Victims Here. Note: Mount Gregmore Of Columns includes opinion columns only. NFL picks, QB rankings and stories on newest podcast are not included.

HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (OCTOBER 23-24): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. The latest HB10:

1. DOLPHINS: Tua, defense lead Miami past Steelers on special night!: What a night! Tua Tagovailoa made his long-awaited return from a concussion and led Fins to 16-10 win over Steelers Sunday night to end a 3-game losing streak an put Miami at 4-3. Big defense including two late interceptions sealed the win. Game also marked the club's celebration of the 50th anniversary of the 1972 Perfect Season at the stadium Sunday on top of an invitation-only gala Saturday night at the Hard Rock Guitar Hotel.

2. HURRICANES: New low for Cristobal: 8 turnovers in 45-21 home loss to Duke: You thought the loss to Middle Tennessee State was bad? It was. This may have been worse. A 45-21 home conference loss to Duke Saturday thanks to eight (!) turnovers, most in a game by any Power 5 conference team since 2009. Canes now 3-4 and 1-2 in ACC as season goes off the rails. UM is at Virginia next week before hosting rival Florida State.

3. HEAT: Miami shakes off worst start since '07 with first win: Heat loss to Celtics Friday night gave Miami an 0-2 start for first time since 2007 -- and 0-2 at home for first time ever. That was after disappointing season-opening loss to Chicago plagued by poor defense. Heat finally won by beating Toronto Saturday to go 1-2 behind Jimmy Butler's 24 and more bench magic from Max Strus. Miami hosts Toronto again Monday/tonight before setting out on a three-game West road trip. 

4. MLB: It's an Astros-Phillies World Series!: The New York Yankees and the San Diego Padres are emphatically done! The AL and NL Championship Series ended Sunday with Philadelphia ousting the Padres 4 games to 1 and Houston sweeping the Yanks 4-0. Not sure Houston-Philadelphia is riveting TV, but we all hate the Astros, so that's something. Go Philly!

5. PANTHERS: Cats off to 4-2 start but lose Ekblad lost to injury: Panthers are 4-2 this young NHL season after Sunday's win over the Islanders. Cats are back at it Tuesday in Chicago but will be without star defenseman Aaron Ekblad until at least mid-November and likely longer with a groin injury. This would be the third straight season Ekblad had missed at least 20 regular season games due to injury. 

6. NASCAR: Larson back in headlines for right reason in Homestead win: NASCAR's eighth of 10 playoff races roared at Homestead-Miami Speedway today as Kyle Larson led 199 of 267 laps including the last one. The win came a week after the reigning Cup Series champion, eliminated earlier in this year's playoffs, was intentionally spun by Bubba Wallace, who got suspended for it. Joey Logano continues atop the playoff standings.

7. INTER MIAMI: Quick playoff exit ends successful season for Herons: A 3-0 playoff loss at New York City FC ended Inter Miami's Year 3 in MLS following an uplifting 14-6-14 regular season. The match marked the career finale for retiring star Gonzalo Higuain. Leaguwide, the conference finals will be set with results today. Out West, No. 1 seed Los Angeles awaits today's Austin-Dallas winner. In the East, No. 1 Philadelphia will face today's Montreal-NYC winner.

8. STATE COLLEGES (NON-UM): Huge upset win for FIU is an historic first!: This has never happened before. Of the seven state FBS football teams, FIU was the only one to win this week with Saturday's big 34-15 upset at Charlotte led by Grayson James' 306 passing yards. FU, now 3-4, stands alone because Miami, FAU and UCF all were upset losers, and Florida, Florida State and South Florida all had byes and did not play.

9. MARLINS: Fish narrow manager candidates, decision may be near: Astros bench coach Joe Espada and Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro have been the first candidates to be invited back by Miami for a second interview, for what that's worth. Plus for each: Espada might come as a World Series champ; Quatraro is used to small player payrolls. (I thought Bruce Bochy was worth a hard look; the Rangers hired him instead.) In other Fish news, shortstop Miguel Rojas is a Gold Glove finalist.   

10. CANES BASKETBALL: College hoops near as UM men, women unfurl: Jim Larranaga's Hurricanes men and Katie Meier's women's team, both coming off successful seasons, held their Media Day to tip-off the coming season. The men were 26-11 last year and reached the NCAA Elite Eight for the first time, but are unranked in the preseason poll (though just three spots outside of the Top 25). The UM women were 21-13 and reached the second round of the NCAAs but also are unranked. Both open the new season Nov. 7.

Missing the HB10 cut: U.S. Women’s National Team faces Germany at Inter Miami Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on November 10 in a battle of the top two women's teams in the world ..... No. 5 Clemson rallied to beat 14-Syracuse 27-21 on Saturday and No. 10 Oregon crushed 9-UCLA 45-30 in the biggest of five Top 25 matchups. One other top-10 team besides UCLA lost: No. 7 LSU falling 45-20 to Ole Miss ..... Warning: The money grubbers of LIV Golf are coming! The startup tour of players pocketing blood money from Saudi Arabia comes to Doral next week ..... USWNT drew Netherlands, Vietnam and a fourth team to be determined in its group for the 2023 Women's World Cup. England is opposite bracket, setting up a possible U.S.-Brits title match ..... Bulletin: Cristiano Ronaldo continues to sully his name with his petulance at Manchester United ..... Former world No. 1 Simona Halap faces a four-year ban from tennis after failing a drug test during the U.S. Open ..... One day before the World Cup kicks off November 20 in Qatar, two teams that did not qualify, Colombia and Paraguay, will play a friendly at Inter Miami Stadium ..... The 49ers acquired star RB Christian McCaffrey from Carolina for multiple draft picks in a major NFL trade ..... The College Football Playoff said it still is undecided on when it will expand to 12 teams, but hopeful it will happen as soon as 2024 ..... Dan Wieden, the ad man who coined Nike's famous 'Just Do It' slogan, died at 77 ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast is back with a new episode out Monday at 7 a.m. ..... Update: Countdown now 1,330 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.

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ARCHIVES

Thank you!: Was honored to have again been named by Associated Press Sports Editors as national Top 10 columnist for 2021 in '22 judging. The four nominated columns that won: Inter Miami’s David Beckham and Qatar a budding, avoidable controversy / Hall of Famer Jimmy Johnson knows biggest victory happened in own family / Scorned, but does he deserve empathy? Behind who Aubrey Huff became and Dolphins sabotaging Tua with interest in Watson

Select other recent columns: Dolphins Fall In Cincy, But Tua Hospitalized Puts Result In Perspective / No. 1 Dolphins, Fans Bask in National Attention, Ditch 20 Years' Irrelevance / Gamble Of Inaction: 5 Answers Will Judge Heat's Quiet Offseason / What's Going On Here!? Dolphins Beat Rival Bills, Improved to 3-0 / Cristobal Honeymoon Ends With Thud As Canes Lose To Middle Tennessee / Zero To Perfect: How Glory Days Dolphins Put Miami on National Sports Map / Our 2022 NFL Team Ranking. Wait. Miami Dolphins Are WHERE!? / Why Hill & Waddle Are Dolphins' Best WR Duo Since Clayton/Duper / UM's Van Dyke Had Epic Year. Now His Encore Will Define Start Of Cristobal Era / Serena's Week At U.S. Open One For Ages As Tennis' Queen GOAT Defies Time / Tribute: Community Was One Place Dolphins Won Big -- Because of Jason Jenkins / Watson Punishment Will Go Way Beyond HIs Extended NFL Suspension / Butch Davis On Retiring, His 50-Year Career -- & Canes Twice Almost Bringing Him Back / Miami Raised Mario Cristobal. Payback? Come Home & Make Canes Football Matter Again / Ross NFL Cheating Scandal A New Low For Owner Who Embarrasses Dolphins / 11 NBA Titles Not Where Bill Russell's Legacy Starts. Tribute To An  Epic Life / Ranking South Florida's Top 20 Biggest Sports Stars (2022 Edition) / If Miami Marlins Trading For Juan Soto Sounds Laughable -- That's The Problem / Dolphins' Tua: The Disrespected Underdog QB About To Prove Everybody Wrong / How Matthew Tkachuk Brings Needed Swagger, Bravado To Panthers / How Messi-to-Miami Became the Biggest, Longest Tease In Sports / Cy Young Alert: Marlins' Ace-On-Fire Sandy Alcantara Does It Again / The End Isn't Here, But It's Coming. Miami Sports Has Had Nobody Like Heat's Pat Riley / Title IX Empowered Women. The Supreme Court Has Done The Opposite / Why'd World Cup pick Miami? Thank Dolphins Founder & Unlikely Soccer Visionary Joe Robbie / Whatever Happened To Don King? Famed Boxing Promoter Back At 90 For Last Bow in Miami / A Lesson In Sioux City: Sports And Real Life In Age Of Mass Shootings / ‘Centerpiece of futbol in world’: Dream is green-lit. Now can Inter Miami deliver? / Could Have Died. Nearly Lost a Leg. Tiger Playing Masters Means He's Already Won / Marlins Owner Sherman Said He'd Spend. Payroll Says It Hasn't Been Enough / Crushing End Short Of Final Four, But Miami Hurricanes' NCAA Run Was Exhilarating Milestone / Tyreek Hill Trade, Terron Armstead Signing A Win-Now Power Play By Dolphins / When Spoelstra Joined Heat's 'Inner Circle' And Became Riley's Next Coach / Why Brittney Griner Is Lost In Russia / Top 15 Figures (Non-Athletes) In Miami Sports History / Hall of Fame Keeps Saying No, But Zach Thomas Keeps Feeling Gratitude / McDaniel Overcame Much In Own Life, Now Must Overcome Dolphins' Turmoil And Win / An Inside Preview Of Le Batard Show's Upcoming Musical. Yes, Musical / Ross Should Be Done As Fins Owner if Flores Allegations Are True  / Dolphins Firing of Flores The Unjustified Travesty Of A Clown-Show Owner / Canes Land Grand Prize In Cristobal, So No Excuses Left. New Glory Days A Must / 50 Years At the Herald For Me -- And a Lifetime Of Gratitude / Dolphins Fans, Ex-Players Gather For Emotional Farewell to Don Shula, Father of the Glory Days / Fairy Tale With Wrong Ending: Remembering Jose Fernandez 5 Years Later / An Appreciation of Udonis Haslem As He Re-Ups For 19th Heat Season / College Football and FSU Lose a Treasure In Passing Of Bobby Bowden /  Biles' Withdrawal For Mental-Health Reasons Merits Empathy, Not Scorn / Where Dolphins Rank Among Teams With Longest Championship Droughts / Nassib Coming Out As Gay NFL Player A Milestone In Sports History / In History And In Hearts, Howard Schnellenberger Will Matter For All Time / Reality, Loss, Comeback: How Sports Has Been Guiding Light In America's Awful Past Year / Time-Travelling To 1960s And Childhood, When The Baseball Card Was King / Don Shula, 1930-2020, R.I.P. / What Shula Meant to a Father & Son. The Boy Was Me

Revisit this blog often because it updates regularly. The Associated Press Sports Editors 2021 writing awards again ranked the blog's author a Top 10 national sports columnist in '22 voting in the major-outlet category. Greg is also a regular on the Dan Le Batard Show With Stugotz.

GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND

1) It's MONDAY, OCTOBER 17. Join me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. 2) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): NFL Week 6 picks, new Greg Cote Show podcast with Aaron Ekblad, 50 years later the Larry Csonka you never knew, NFL Week 5 results (Picks/Lobos/QB Rank), Mount Gregmore of columns.

GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW EPISODE OUT NOW!: Our 44th episode of 2022 and 135th overall is out now! New episode drops every Monday at 7 a.m. ET on Apple, Spotify and wherever you pod. Find all 135 we've done so far HERE. In our newest episode: Chris reports live from Pittsburgh after gloing to Bucs-Steelers game; Greg and Yeti chew over the Dolphins-Vikings game, MLB playoffs; Jumpin’ Charlie the World’s Largest Puppy eats Greg’s eyeglasses, forcing Greg to record newest podcast wearing emergency backup glasses that may or may not make him look like Harry Caray. Also, Charlie is sent away to boot camp; An in an in-show meeting. (Are we too naughty?); Greg turns on The House Of Dragons; Are we about done with Kanye West?; Tom Brady has finally made something of himself, buys pickleball team; Yeti recalls the time his life was threatened on the job; Dad joke of the week; and (!) a brand new Mount Gregmore! Hit up GCS2244 for full story on latest ep, and watch our weekly YouTube preview. Thanks as always for the support, pod family. Please listen, review, follow, subscribe and so forth. We simulcast on Sirius XM, too, Mondays from 5-6 p.m. ET. Now our podcast has a website and merch store! Check it out at TheGregCoteShow.com and visit store by clicking 'Shop'. New items including Greg's Lobos T-shirts and hats! Also check out our podcast's new YouTube channel.

Our NFL Week 6 picks: Onset of byes trims schedule from 16 games to 14 but it's still biggest week of season thus far with two co-Games of the Week in Bills-Chiefs and Cowboys-Eagles. Vikings-Dolphins should be a goodie, too. Visit NFL Week 6 Gems to find all of our latest picks for those three and all the rest Two more big upsets in the mix this week; will Fins be one? Got off to an unfortunate start Thursday night. We had Chicago winning at home over Washington in a pick-'em game, but Bears lost 12-7 -- failing to score on four tries inside the Commanders 5 in the final minute. That exemplifies our unlucky season so far. Sigh.

Column from Dolphins-Vikings game coming: Look for it online soon after game ends and in Monday print.

MOUNT GREGMORE OF COLUMNS: OUR LATEST FIVE:

NEW! Tua Can't Return Soon Enough As Dolphins Fall To Vikings For 3rd Straight Loss NEW!

NEW! Sorry, Canes, But 20-14 Win At Va-Tech Doesn't Impress Any More Than 3-3 Does NEW!

Csonka, ‘Heart’ Of Dolphins Glory Days, On Life Of Adventure — And Perfection

QB Calamity! 3rd-String Thompson Has Rough Baptism As Dolphins Fall At Jets

Canes Lose ACC Opener, Fall To 2-3 As Misery Continues For Mario Cristobal

Hilltop: The five columns before that: Five Years In, Miami Marlins Rebuild Isn't Working. Here Is The Solution / NFLPA Firing Doctor For Concussion Eval May Mean Fins, Tua Are Victims Here / Dolphins Fall In Cincy, But Tua Hospitalized Puts Result In Perspective / No. 1 Dolphins, Fans Bask in National Attention, Ditch 20 Years' Irrelevance / Gamble Of Inaction: 5 Answers Will Judge Heat's Quiet Offseason. Note: Mount Gregmore Of Columns includes opinion columns only. NFL picks, QB rankings and stories on latest podcast episode are among stuff not included.

HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (OCTOBER 16-17): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. The latest HB10:

1. DOLPHINS: Miami falls to Vikings for 3rd straight loss. (Hurry back, Tua!): Fins are 3-3 with three straight losses after Sunday's 24-16 home L vs. Minnesota. Rookie Skylar Thompson eft game with thumb injury after three series. Teddy Bridgewater entered, three a for a bunch of yards but was ineffective. Oh my lord does this team miss Tua Tagovailoa, set to return next Sunday night vs. Steelers. [My column from game above.]

2. HURRICANES: Canes end 3-game slide with 20-14 win at Va-Tech: The reeling Canes flew to Blacksburg trying to save their season Saturday at Virginia Tech in an all but must-win ACC game. UM entered 2-3 after three straight losses and 0-1 in the conference but an 8-point favorite over the 2-4/1-2 Hokies -- and UM won 20-14. Hurricanes led 17-0 at half and held on. [My column on game above]

3. HEAT: It's Opening Week for Jimmy, Bam and company:  A 4-1 preseason fades to irrelevance now as Miami's 35th NBA regular season opens at home Wednesday night vs. Chicago, with a four-game homestand against East rivals beginning the 82-game stretch. Miami had a quiet offseason, doing little to augment the core of Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Kyle Lowry, with Tyler Herro and Caleb Martin rounding out the new starting five. Was standing pat smart or a risk? We start to find out. 

4. PANTHERS: Cats, Tkachuk off to fast start as NHL season opens: Florida opened its 29th NHL season with a 3-1 win at the Islanders, giving Paul Maurice a W in his first game as coach, with new star Matthew Tkachuk scoring on a late empty netter. Cats made it 2-0 at Buffalo Saturday with a 3-2 win, and another goal and assist from Tkachuk. Florida is at Boston Monday before returning to the Sunrise rink for their home opener on Wednesday vs. Philadelphia.

5. INTER MIAMI: Higuain seeks to extend career as Herons open playoffs in New York: Miami after a 14-6-14 MLS regular season opens the playoffs at defending league champion New York City Monday night at Citi Field. Retiring star Gonzalo Higuain sparked Miami's run to postseason with 14 goals in last 16 matches. NYC is a much different team than the one that won the title. Miami is in better form lately and has a big shot to win. Meanwhile Miami's Drake Callender is a finalist for MLS goalkeeper of the year and Higuain for comeback player.

6. MLB: Phils-Padres in NLCS; Astros await NYY-CLE winner: The week began with baseball's final eight teams split into two best-of-5 AL and NL Division Series. Now only five are still alive. Philadelphia and San Diego advanced to an unexpected NL Championship Series, eliminating the favored Braves and Dodgers. Houston swept Seattle to reach the ALCS and awaits the Yankees-Guardians winner. Yanks stayed alive with win Sunday. Deciding Game 5 is tonight in the Bronx.

7. COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Vols deal Alabama first loss in huge week for sport: Eight Top 25 teams lost on Saturday, none bigger than No. 3 'Bama falling at No. 6 Tennessee, 52-49, in a battle of unbeatens. Vols had lost 15 in a row to Tide before this. Highest-ranked other teams to lose were No. 7 USC (to Utah), No. 8 Oklahoma State (to TCU) and No. 10 Penn State (to Michigan).

8. STATE COLLEGES (NON-UM): Gators, Seminoles suffer big home losses: LSU beat Florida in the Swamp, 45-45, and No. 4 Clemson edged FSU in Tally, 34-28. Gators and Noles both were 4-2 going in and poised to reenter polls with a win. In other state games (non-UM, FIU fell to 2-4, losing big to UTSA; FAU beat Rice; UCF crushed Temple and could be poll-bound at 5-1; and Tulane beat South Florida.

9. MARLINS: Cy to Sandy seems a lock, but manager hunt wide open: After the latest disappointing Fish season of 69-93, bright spot Sandy Alcantara remains a huge betting favorite to win the NL Cy Young Award. But odds on the next Marlins manager are tight. It's Joe Maddon at 4-1, Bruce Bochy 5-1, Miguel Cairo 6-1 and Joe Espada 7-1 heading the list. In other words, it's anybody's guess. Trust they'll pick someone experienced in working with really small payrolls?

10. NASCAR: Playoffs heading to Miami-Homestead Speedway: The seventh of 10 NASCAR playoff races was Sunday in Las Vegas, with Joey Logano winning and now atop the playoff standings. Circuit heads down to Miami-Homestead Speedway now for its eighth playoff race next Sunday.

Missing the HB10 cut: Co-Games of the Week in NFL as Bills beat Chiefs in reprise of last year's epic playoff game, and Eagles held off Cowboys stay unbeaten ..... LeBron James' son Bronny is one of five amateurs to be given Nike NIL deals. Bronny said thanks but couldn't be understood because of the silver spoon in his mouth ..... Yet another woman has socked Deshaun Watson with a lawsuit alleging massage room perversion ..... ESPN's Troy Aikman admitted he was "dumb" to say the NFL should "take the dresses off" and quit calling borderline roughing the passer penalties, a misogynistic aside straight outta 1958 ..... The PGA Tour is on the decline and LIV Golf is on the rise, said Phil Mickelson, the least impartial man on earth with the most vested interest possible and the biggest axe to grind ..... Can we all please take up a collection and pay Dan Snyder to disappear and never be heard from again? ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast is back with a new episode out Monday at 7 a.m. ..... Update: Countdown now 1,337 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.

GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND

1) It's MONDAY, FEBRUARY 21. Programming note: Will be back on with Le Batard on Wednesday this week, not Tuesday. 2) Join me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Follow the Greg Cote Show podcast separately on Twitter, Instagram and now TikTok, too! 3) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): Le Batard The Musical?, 5 lessons Dolphins can take from Super Bowl, Greg Cote Show podcast, new NASL doc with Greg among those interviewed.

GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW 100TH EPISODE OUT NOW!: Our 9th episode of 2022 and 1andmark 100th overall is out now! A new pod hits every Monday at 7 ET on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart -- wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. Find all 100 we've done so far HERE, free. In our most recent episode, we throw a party for our 100th ep, recap the annual PFPI Gala, discuss recent big Le Batard Show news and more. Thanks as always for the support, pod family. Please listen, rate, review and follow. (Our pod simulcasts on Sirius XM every Monday 5-6 p.m. ET).

Newest column: Who Dolphins, With Windfall Top Spend, Should target In Offseason To Fix Offense Fast. Other most recent columns: An Inside Preview Of Le Batard Show's Upcoming Musical. Yes, Musical / The Lesson For Dolphins in Rams-Bengals Super Bowl Result / Hall of Fame Keeps Saying No, But Zach Thomas Keeps Feeling Gratitude / and McDaniel Overcame Much In Own Life, Now Must Overcome Dolphins' Turmoil And Win.

HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (FEBRUARY 20-21): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. The latest HB10:

1. OLYMPICS: U.S. fifth in medals at Winter Games: The Winter Olympics in Beijing wrap up today with the Closing Ceremines. Team USA finished fifth in totals medals with 25, including eight golds. Many disappointments, including neither hockey team winning gold and Maekala Shiffrin fizzle on the slopes, but highs, too, including Elana Meyers Taylor becoming the most decorated Black athlete in Winter Olympics history, with five medals.

2. HEAT: Miami tied atop East at break for Sunday's absurd All-Star Game: Miami is 38-21 and tied with Chicago atop the Eastern Conference at the break. All-Star Game on Sunday in Cleveland saw a 163-160 defesve struggle, with Team LeBron topping Team Durant. Lone Heat rep Jimmy Butler hda a quiet two points in nine minutes. Miami returns to action this Friday at the New York Knicks.

3. PANTHERS: Cats stay hot, raise their road game: Florida remains atop the NHL East at 35-10-5 after Sunday's 5-2 win at Chicago. Florida has been nearly unbeaten at home and fallible away but has picked up its road game lately, winning seven of past nine away. Cats open five-game homestand Tuesday vs. Nashville.

4. INTER MIAMI: Big week as team opens MLS Year 3: David Beckham's team has disappointed its first two seasons but hopes are high for Year 3 opening at home in Fort Lauderdale this coming Saturday vs. Chicago Fire. But first: A key commission vote Wednesday on the team's propsoed new Miami stadium complex near the airprort.

5. UM BASKETBALL: Canes men, women chasing NCAAs: March Madness nears and the Canes men sit 19-8 (11-5 ACC) after Saturday's home stumble against Virginia. Team should qualify for NCAAs but Saturday hurt. Surging UM women are at 16-10 (9-7), with NCAA hopes enchanced by Sunday's upset win at No. 16 Georgia Tech.

6. DOLPHINS: McDaniel completes (mostly) new coaching staff: New Fins coach Mike McDaniel completed a 27-man coaching staff with 19 new faces and eight holdovers, including defensive coordinator Josh Boyer. Notable additions include offensive coordinator Frank Smith, former Dolphins star cornerbacks Sam Madison and Patrick Surtain, and Wes Welker. Elsewhere, fired Dolphins coach Brian Flores got hired by the Steelers as senior defensive assistant and linebackers coach. 

7. HURRICANES: Schedule set for Cristobal's first spring practice: University of Miami set its 15-day spring football schedule, which will begin March 7 and end with the spring game on April 16. The first spring game under new coach Mario Cristobal will be held at Inter Miami's stadium in Fort Lauderdale because of construction at the Hard Rock Stadium site.

8. NASCAR: Vroom! Daytons 500 launches season with surprise: The Daytona 500, first major race of the new NASCAR seasons, ran on Sunday with Kyle Larson beginning defense of his 2021 season championship but little-known Austin Cindric, 23, taking the checkered flag. It was second straight D500 surprise, after last year's race was won by 66-1 longshot Michael McDowell.

9. COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Playoff stays as is at least through '25: Months of debate about expansion amounted to zero as College Football Playoff said it will remain at four teams through end of its 12-year contract expiring after 2025 season. Staying at four teams for four more years will cost the 10 FBS conferences (and Notre Dame) an estimated $450 million in potential revenue.

10. MLB: Labor dispute now officially delays spring training: The MLB lockout, nearing three months old and a continuing stalemate, will delay the start of spring traoning games at least until March 5. Most teams including the Miami Marlins had been set to open February 26.

Missing the HB10 cut: Canes baseball swept Towson State in its four-game season-opening home series ..... So, apparently, the folks running Hard Rock Stadium and the Dolphins built the garage and pit area at the new Formula One racetrack on top of a sewer main, meaning it would block access to pipes for any needed repairs and raise the possibility of noxious gases seeping through manholes into the building. Oh, and they did it despite being warned of the hazards ..... USWNT opened the SheBelieves Cup tournament with a 0-0 draw vs. Czech Republic and plays New Zealand on Sunday in L.A. U.S. is using a young roster including rising star Trinity Rodman (Dennis' kid) ..... Los Angeles held a Super Bowl victory parade for the Rams. Highlight: Brief diversion from nightmare that is the Lakers season ..... The reborn eight-team USFL holds its first draft this Tuesday and Wednesday ahead of its spring startup. First pick belongs to coach Jeff Fisher and the Michigan Mustaches. Over/under on the USFL announcing it will fold is summer '23 ..... Manu Ginobili and former Heat star Tim Hardaway are among 11 finalists for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame ..... Awful week for PR guys. Former Angels communications director Eric Kay was found him guilty of distributing fentanyl and causing the death of former pitcher Tyler Skaggs in 2019. And it was reported the Cowboys in 2015 paid $2.4 million to settle a cheerleaders' claim that former club executive Rich Dalrymple filmed them changing ..... The NFL, Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and likely future owner Bruce Beal all have lawyered up to fight the allegations in the Brian Flores lawsuit ..... Marlins place seven players (four of them pitchers) in ESPN's 2022 ranking of MLB's top 100 prospects, though none higher than righty pitcher Max Meyer at No. 33 ..... Marlins Park on Tuesday night hosts Ye: Donda 2 Experience Performance, a Kanye West concert. Be interesting to see what Marlins Park looks like with a big crowd ..... A Maine woman recognized as the Patriots' oldest fan, Myrtle Milledge, died at 106. She rooted for the Pats since 1960, Tom Brady's rookie season ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast is back with a new episode out Monday at 7 a.m. ..... Update: Countdown now 1,590 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.

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ARCHIVES

Select other recent columns: Dolphins New Coach McDaniel Must Win, Heal Broken Franchise / Ranking Flores/Ross Bombshell Among Biggest Dolphins Scandals / Ross Should Be Done As Fins Owner if Flores Allegations Are True  / The G.O.A.T. We Never Saw Coming: From 199th Drafted To History, A Salute To Tom Brady / Like Him Or Don't, Antonio Brown Not Always To Blame -- And Wasn't In Bucs Divorce / Ortiz Makes Hall, But Final Denial Of Bonds, Clemens A Shame on Voters, Baseball / Mahomes-Allen Air Show A Reminder How Much Better Dolphins And Tua Need To Be / Time Is Right (But Running Out) For MLB to Reinstate Pete Rose /'There Was A Pall On Us': The Panthers Season That Would Not Be Derailed / No-Vaccine Is Your Right. But There Are Consequences as Djokovic Was Reminded / State Of Miami Sports: Every Major Team, Graded Top To Bottom /Dolphins Firing of Flores The Unjustified Travesty Of A Clown-Show Owner / Canes Land Grand Prize In Cristobal, So No Excuses Left. New Glory Days A Must and 50 Years At the Herald For Me -- And a Lifetime Of Gratitude.

GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND

1) It's MONDAY, JANUARY 24. Join me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Follow the Greg Cote Show podcast separately on Twitter, Instagram and now TikTok, too! 2) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): Time is right for MLB to resinstate Pete Rose, NFL Divisional Round picks, New Greg Cote Show podcast.

GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NFL! ROBOT UMPIRE! NEW EPISODE OUT NOW!: Our 5th episode of 2022 and 96th overall is out now! A new pod drops every Monday morning at 7 ET on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart -- wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. Find all 96 we've done so far HERE, free. In our brand new episode, Chris and Greg exalt over the NFL's most exciting playoff weekend ever, and have an exclusive 1-on-1 chat with a Robot Umpire. Also in the new ep: Bomb dog retires;  M&Ms scandal; Greg apologizes to Newlywed Mark for referring to a part of his wedding as a 'nightmare' on Le Batard Show; Yeti reports live from a hospital bed. Thanks as always for the support, pod family. Please listen, rate, review and follow. (Our pod simulcasts on Sirius XM every Monday 5-6 p.m. ET).

NFL Divisional Round playoff picks: OOF!: They were four great games. Except for me. We went 0-4 overall and 0-4 against the spread in the Divisional Round -- a near impossibility and an unfortunate first for us. The sad truth: NFL Divisional Playoff Gems. Previous: NFL Wild-Card Playoff Gems.

Time for MLB, in bed with gambling, to end hypocrisy and reinstate Pete Rose. New column: Time Is Right (But Running Out) For MLB to Reinstate Pete Rose.

Other select recent columns: 'There Was A Pall On Us': The Panthers Season That Would Not Be Derailed / No-Vaccine Is Your Right. But There Are Consquences, as Djokovic Was Reminded / State Of Miami Sports: Every Major Team, Graded Top To Bottom / and Dolphins Firing of Flores The Unjustified Travesty Of A Clown-Show Owner. Also: Dolphins Win, Finish 9-8, Now Must Commit To Build Around Tua / Why Saban 'What-If' Still Haunts Miami 15 Years later / No Playoffs And No Idea Yet On Tua Worst Possible Way For Dolphins To End Season / Revealing My 2022 Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot / Canes Land Grand Prize In Cristobal, So No Excuses Left. New Glory Days A Must and 50 Years At the Herald For Me -- And a Lifetime Of Gratitude.

HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (JANUARY 23-24): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. The latest HB10:

1. NFL: It's Chiefs-Bengals, Rams-49ers in final four: It hadn't happened since 2010 but it happened Saturday: Both No. 1 seeds losing in the NFL Divisional Round playoff. Green Bay fell to visiting San Francisco Saturday night after Tennessee was beaten by upstart Cincinnati. Sunday, reigning champion Tampa Bay fell at home to the L.A. Rams Kansas City held off Buffalo. That's four great games three upsets and a final four few expected.

2. HEAT: LeBron shines in return, but Miami wins: Miami is 30-17 and back atop the East, with Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler finally both healthy at once, after Sunday's 113-107 home win over the L.A. Lakers. Old friend LeBron James dropped 33 in his return as Miami opened a four-game homestand. 

3. PANTHERS: Cats fall in Seattle but still in East lead: Florida is 28-9-5 at the midpoint of the NHL regular season -- and 10-2-1 since a four-game COVID postponement in December -- even after Sunday's surpring 5-2 loss in Seattle to the expansion Kraken. Cats and Tampa Bay are fighting for East lead in a rivalry that seems destined for a renewal in the playoffs.

4. CANES BASKETBALL: Miami men fall to nemesis FSU again: The Miami men -- after an upset win over No. 2 Duke and a 28-point win over North Carolina -- were 14-4, an ACC-leading 6-1 in conference and just outside the Top 25 entering Saturday's home game vs. nemesis Florida State, only to fall to its nemesis rival, 61-60, and cede the ACC lead. Canes women, off first road win at FSU in eight years, are 10-7/3-4 after Sunday's loss at Boston College.

5. DOLPHINS: Fins casting wide net in ongoing coach search: Who isn't Miami interviewing to replace the unexpectedly fired Brian Flores? Seven men already have been grilled, with more ahead. The lean seems to be toward an offensive coach with a track record. Keep an eye on four OC's: Brian Daboll (Bills), Mike McDaniel (49ers), Nathaniel Hackett (Packers) and Eric Bieniemy (Chiefs) -- all among the final eight teams playing this weekend.

6. MLB: 'Big Papi' to head 2022 Hall of Fame class: With the big reveal set for live TV Tuesday night, David (Big Papi) Ortiz is the only certain '22 inductee to Cooperstown based on early voting results made public. Steroids-tainted Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens both seem likely to finally make it but are not sure things. Tainted A-Rod is being punished in his first year of eligibility and didn't come close.  

7. TENNIS: Depleted Australian Open reaches midpoint: Defending women's champion Naomi Osaka was ousted in the third round, reigning men's champ Novak Djokovic was banned over his no-vax stance, and fan favorites Roger Federer and Serena Williams aren't in Melbourne for health reasons. Marquee wattage is dimmed, but the year's frst tennis major goes on, with Ash Barty and Rafael Nadal leading the march into the quarterfinals. 

8. OLYMPICS: Countdown 11 days 'til Beijing Winter Games: Host China is infamous for its human rights violations and COVID remains a health cloud, but let the Games begin! Winter Games are February 4-20. The U.S. announced a diplomatic boycott, but American athletes will compete, led by champion slalom skiier Mikaela Shiffrin.

9. HURRICANES: Cristobal absorbs first loss as UM coach: Canes fans have been in parade-mode euphoric since Mario Cristobal got hired as football coach 17 days ago and it's been all smooth sailing ... until this week's hiccup. Miami targeted Arkansas' Kendal Briles as its next offensive coordinator, but he turned 'em down to remain with Razorbacks.

10. NASCAR: 'Junior' makes the Hall of Fame: Dale Earnhardt Jr., never a main-series season champion but 15 times voted most popular driver, has joined his father in the Hall of Fame. Junior topped the marquee among three inductees into NASCAR's 12th Hall of Fame class. "When I stumbled, you guys were right there ready to lift me back up,'' Earnhardt said to his fans.

Missing the HB10 cut: Inter Miami opened training camp for MLS Year 3. Season begins February 26 ..... NCAA voted to streamline itself and reduce the responsibility of the association at the national level. Layman's terms: The NCAA is weakening, with power ceded to confereces and schools in a turbulently changing landsacpe for ollege sports ..... The Tampa Bay Rays' controversial plan to split their home schedule with Montreal was rejected by MLB, ending team's 2 1/2-year plan for a "sister city" schedule. Meantime, how must half-wanted Tampa fans feel? ..... The NFL's Pro Bowl is February 6, so mark it on your calendars to not watch ..... And the MLB lockout drones and drags on ..... R.I.P. to entertainers Sidney Poitier, Meat Loaf and Louie Anderson ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast is back with a new episode out Monday at 7 a.m. ..... Update: Countdown now 1,618 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.

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GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND

1) It's MONDAY, NOVEMBER 8. Join me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Follow the Greg Cote Show podcast separately on Twitter, Instagram and now TikTok, too! 2) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): NFL Week 9 picks, Dolphins owner Ross to blame for season-ruining Watson chase, Week 8 results for picks/Lobos/QB rankings, Greg Cote Show podcast & more.

GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW EPISODE LIVE FROM LE BATARD SHOW FAN EVENT OUT NOW!: Our 43rd episode of 2021 and 85th overall is out now! New pod drops every Monday at 7 ET on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart -- wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. Find all 85 we've done HERE, free. In our most recent episode: Greg's live on-stage routine (pictured) and more from Le Batard Show's mini-Mas Miami fan event this weekend. Also: Latest Toy Hall of Fame inductees, Yeti live report from Braves' championship parade, how to pronounce "Tuesday," an homage to Villa Rose (R.I.P.), Big Bird gets the vaccine, NFL's wild weekend and the Tua worry, Greg's Lobos update, stern message from the National Respect The Pumpkin Foundation & more. Thanks as always for the support, pod family. Please listen, rate, review and follow. (Our pod simulcasts on Sirius XM every Monday 5-6 p.m. ET).

No Tua, but Dolphins win a game! My column: Fins End 7-Game Skid -- But Only Because Texans Were Even Worse.

Canes survive Georgia Tech, 33-30. My column: Is Manny Diaz Saving Himself? Coach, Comeback Canes Win 3rd Straight.

Most recent other columns: Dolphins' Watson Lust Ruined Season, Damaged Tua. And That Starts With Owner Ross / Buffalo's Late Classlessness Aside, Miami Out Of Answers In 7th Straight Loss / U-Turn: UM Season, Diaz Future Looking Up With 2nd Straight Big Win / and Quenneville Rightly Sacked as Panthers Coach Over 2010 Chicago Scandal.

HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (NOVEMBER 7-8): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. This week's HB10:

1. DOLPHINS: No Tua, 5 turnevers, burs, but Miami somehow ends 7-game skid: Deshaun Watson wasn't playing today for Houston. Or for Miami. Neither was Tua Tagovailoa, sidelined with a fractured finger. But Dolphins beat Houston Texans 17-9 in a battle of 1-7 teams -- despite five turnovers. Miami's key to success: Play somebody even worse.

2. HURRICANES: UM survives Georgia Tech, 33-30, for 3rd straight win: After consecutive wins over ranked North Carolina State and Pitt, Canes were big favoites hosting a down Gergia Tech on Saturday, and survived 33-30 to go 5-4 on the year. UM visits rival Florida State next Saturday then closes with Virginia Tech and Duke. Will it take running the table (including a bowl win) to save Manny Diaz?

3. HEAT: Miami wins 'Dwayne Wade Bowl' over Utah: Miami followed a Celtics home loss with Saturday's big 118-115 home win over Utah led by Tyler Herro's 29. Dwyane Wade, of course, is the retired Heat icon who now owns a small share of the Jazz. Heat set out Monday in Denver on a five-game West Coast roadie.

4. PANTHERS: Cats hand Carolina first loss: Mighty test on Saturday as 9-0-1 Panthers hosted 9-0-0 Carolina, with Florida skating off with a 5-2 home win. Cats are now 3-0-1 since coach Joel Quenneville abruptly resigned over his role in 2010 Blackhawks assault coverup. Florida begins a four-game road trop Monday at N.Y. Rangers.

5. NFL: Aaron Rodgers' big lie on vaccine costs Packers: Green Bay's superstar quarterback will not play this weekend for the 7-1 Packers because he tested positive for COVID after lying about his vaccination status. Cue State Farm jingle: "Unlike a good neighbor, Aaron wasn't there for his teammates."

6. UM BASKETBALL: College hoops begin for Canes, rest of country: Tuesday is opening day around America in college basketball. In Miami, the Hurricanes men and women -- neither ranked, both looking to tebound from off years -- host soft openings vs. Canisius and Jackson State, respectively. 

7. MLB: Atlanta celebrates World Series champions: City of Atlanta held a championship parade and festivities on Friday to celebrate the Braves' first World Series title since 1995. And isn't it just the Marlins luck: The best team in baseball (well, ostensibly) now resides in the NL East. 

8. INTER MIAMI: Team Beckham ends disappointing season with win: Inter Miami ended Year 2 12-5-17 and out of the MLS playoffs (that's 12 wins in 34 matches), but on the upbeat with a 1-0 win Sunday on Blaise Matuidi's goal at New England, which has best record in league. Playoffs start November 19.

9. NASCAR: Larson ends season of redemption with NASCAR crown: Kyle Larson spent much of last year suspended for a racial slur. Sunday he was crowned champion of this season at Phoenix, defeating fellow final-four Championship Four finalists Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr.

10. COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Michigan State loss to shake up CFP rankings Eight more Top 25 teams lost on Saturday -- including No. 3 Michgan State, whch of course will shake up the College Football Playoff top four. Look for the new inside four to be Georgia, Alabama, Oregon and likely Ohio State moving up and in.

Missing the HB10 cut: Reeling Florida Gators now 4-5 after Saturday's 40-17 loss to South Carolina topped state FBS results (non-UM division). Elsewhere, FSU lost to No. 19 N.C. State, UCF edged Tulane, South Florida fell to Houston, FAU lost to Marshall and FIU fell to 1-8 in a loss to Old Dominion ..... Favorite Knicks Go won the 38th Breeders' Cup Classic on Saturday in Del Mar, Calif. ..... The New York City marathon returns live Sunday after being held viritually last year because of the COVID pandemic ..... UEFA Champions League is off until November 23 with only four of 32 clubs a perfect 4-0-0: Liverpool, Ajax Amsterdam, Bayern Muncih and Juventus ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast is back with a new episode Monday at 7 a.m. ET ..... Update: Countdown now 1,695 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.

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GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND

1) It's MONDAY, NOVEMBER 1. Hope y'all had a happy and safe Halloween. Now welcome November! 2) Join me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Follow the Greg Cote Show podcast separately on Twitter, Instagram and now TikTok, too! 3) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): Panthers' Quenneville resigns amid scandal, NFL Week 8 picks, Fins sabotaging Tua over Watson infatuation, 10 ways Tua is world's unluckiest man, Week 7 results for picks/Lobos/QB rankings, Greg Cote Show podcast & more.

GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW EPISODE WITH GARY "THE BAG" ROSENFELD OUT NOW!: Our 42nd episode of 2021 and 84th overall is out now! New pod drops every Monday at 7 ET on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart -- wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. Find all 84 we've done HERE, free. In our latest episode: Greg has a live on-air pod reunion with childhood neighbor Gary "The Bag" Rosenfeld. Also: Toilet talk, PETA vs. the bullpen, Tomahawk Chop, sad demise of Joel Quenneville, Princess Belle, Lobos midseason update and more! Thanks as always for the support, pod family. Please listen, rate, review and follow. (Our pod simulcasts on Sirius XM every Monday 5-6 p.m. ET).

NFL WEEK 8 PICKS: DOLPHINS-BILLS, GAME OF WEEK, UPSETS AND ALL THE REST: We pivot to NFL Week 8 and our picks for Dolphins-Bills, our Game of the Week and Upset of the Week along with an additional upset and all the rest. Got off to a mixed start Thursday night. Lost the pick outright with Arizona losing but nailed it against the spread because we had Green Bay covering. For all of our latest picks: NFL Week 8 Gems.

Our latest columns:

Dolphins: Buffalo's Late Classlessness Aside, Miami Out Of Answers In 7th Straight Loss

Hurricanes: U-Turn: UM Season, Diaz Future Looking Up With 2nd Straight Big Win

Panthers: Quenneville Rightly Sacked as Panthers Coach Over 2010 Chicago Scandal

Also: Dolphins Sabotaging Tua Season Over Misguided Infatuation With Watson / As Dolphins' Dysfunction Surrounds Him, 10 Ways Tua Is The Unluckiest Man On Earth / Tua Shuts Off Noise, Throws 4 TDs, But It Still Isn't Enough / Canes, Embattled Diaz Show The Fight Left In Them /State of the Art: Heat, Miami's Best-Run Franchise, Sails In Opener / and 'Time to Hunt': Cats' Hyped Season Off to Wild, Winning Start

HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (OCTOBER 31-NOVEMBER 1): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. This week's HB10:

1. PANTHERS: Quenneville out as nightmare scandal interrupts dream season: Florida's NHL-best and franchise-best 7-0-0 start took a back seat this week as coach Joel Quenneville was engulfed by and resigned in shame because of what happened with the 2010 Chicago Blackhawks when Quennveille coached there. He was implicated in covering up the sexual assault of player Kyle Beach, then 20, who came forward this week. Cats are now 8-0-1 after Saturday's 3-2 OT loss in Boston, and are off until Thursday.

2. DOLPHINS: Promising start, typical finish in 7th straight loss: Miami tried to end its six-game losing streak as two-touchdown underdogs in Buffalo Sunday and came away as 26-11 losers. The defense show up, but the offense struggled including Tua Tagovailoa in his third start since returning from a rib injury. Still looming: A report out of Houston that the Texans and Fins contiunue in talks over a trade for embattled Deshaun Watson. However ESPN reports Houston will keep Watson beyond Tuesday's NFL trade deadline.

3. HURRICANES: They're alive! Canes, Diaz  bag 2nd straight big win: UM was a 9-point underdog at No. 17 Pittsburgh Saturday but prevailed 38-34, led by a huge day from young QB Tyler Van Duke leading a second straight win over a rabked opponent. Resurgent Canes are now level at 4-4 on the season and 2-2 in the ACC after win put Coastal Division title back in play. UM next hosts Georgia Tech on Saturday.

4. HEAT: Butler-led Miami stays hot early: Miami has begun the season 5-1 with signature early wins over East powers Milwaukee and Brooklyn after Saturday's rout-win in Memphis fueled by 21 3's, one shy of team record. As key addition Kye Lowry makes his presence felt, Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and super-sub Tyler Herro are carrying the scoring load, and Heat also boasts NBA's No. 2-ranked defense out the gate. Miami is back at it Tuesday in Dallas.

5. MLB: Astros cut Braves' lead, force a Game 6 in World Series: Houston overcame a fast 4-0 hole and won 9-5 Sunday to force a World Series Game 6. The Atlanta Braves still lead the series 3-2, but Games 6 and (if neccessary) 7 both are in Houston starting Tuesday. Braves trying to hangon for their first Wirld Series title since 1995.

6. INTER MIAMI: Loss eliminates Herons from MLS playoff race: Inter Miami is 11-5-17 with Saturday's 3-1 loss to New York City in Miami's home finale -- the defeat eliminating David Beckhams' club from the MLS playoff chase. Miami ends the regular season next Sunday at New England.

7. STATE COLLEGES (NON-UM): Gators pounded by No. 1 Georgia in Jax: No. 1 Georgia routed the Florida Gators 34-7 Saturday in the renewal of their neutral-site rivalry in the erstwhile 'World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party' in Jacksonville. Also on the Week 9 state FBS slate, non-UM division: FIU was shut out at Marshall, FAU edged UTEP, Florida State fell at Clemson, UCF routed Temple, and South Florida fell at East Carolina.

8. MARLINS: Fish keep popular Rojas with two year extension: Miami signed popular shortstop Miguel Rojas, 32, to a two-year contract extension through the 2023 season. He batted .265 with nine homers, 30 doubles and 48 RBIs this past season. Rojas is the longest-serving current Marlin, with the next two seasons his eighth and ninth in Miami.

9. NASCAR: The Championship Four field is set!: Kyle Larson was already in. Sunday, he got company as reigning champion Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. will join him in the Championship Four finale next Sunday in Phoenix -- winner-take-all for the NASCAR season crown. Alex Bowman's race win yesterady at Martinsville eliminated Champ Four contenders Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski.

10. COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Another bloody Saturday in Top 25: Three Week 9 national Top 25 matchups, two with possible College Football Playoff bearing: No. 5 Ohio State handled 20-Penn State and 6-Michigan fell at 8-Michigan State. The other was 10-Ole Miss falling at 18-Auburn. There were nine losses by Top 25 teams: The three mentioned, plus No. 9 Iowa, 12-Kentucky, 17-Pitt, 19-SMU, 21-San Diego State and 22-Iowa State.

Missing the HB10 cut: Greg Norman is taking on the PGA Tour. He will be COO and commissioner of a new golf league set to begin in 2022, backed by Saudi money and hoping to lure top players with lucrative guaranteed deals and rich purses ..... Nine days 'til college basketball! Tuesday, November 9, begins the 2021-22 college basketball season in Miami and nationally. Hurricanes open that day at home vs. Jackson State (women) and Canisius (men) in a day/night doubleheader. Neither UM team is ranked in preseason polls ..... The NAACP is urging a boycott of Texas over the state's restrictive voting and women's rights laws. It sent an open letter to five players' unions urging that their athletes not to sign with teams in Texas ..... UEFA Champions League play resumes Tuesday with eight matches ...... The Greg Cote Show podcast is back with a new episode Monday at 7 a.m. ET ..... Update: Countdown now 1,702 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.

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GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND

1) It's MONDAY, OCTOBER 25. Join me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Follow the Greg Cote Show podcast separately on Twitter, Instagram and now TikTok, too! 2) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): Heat win big on Opening Night, NFL Week 7 picks, Week 6 results, Greg Cote Show podcast & more.

GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW EPISODE OUT NOW!: Our 41st episode of 2021 and 83rd overall is out now! New pod drops every Monday at 7 ET on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart -- wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. You can find all 83 we've done HERE, free. In our new episode: Amin El Hassan and Juju Gotti sit in with us as discuss sports, bad acting and lots more. Also, Chris takes us around the world drinking, latest Hard Knocks/Greg's Lobos episode, Yeti debuts a new rap parody song, 'Breakfast Flan' and more. Thanks as always for the support, pod family. Please listen, rate, review and follow. (Our pod simulcasts on Sirius XM every Monday 5-6 p.m. ET).

NFL WEEK 7 PICKS: DOLPHINS-FALCONS, UPSETS AND ALL THE REST: We turn to NFL Week 7 and our picks for Dolphins-Falcons, our Game of the Week and Upset of the Week along with two additional upsets and all the rest. Got off to a mixed start Thursday night. Won the pick outright but pushed (tied) against the spread with Cleveland's 17-14 win last night. For all of our latest picks: NFL Week 7 Gems.

Our most recent columns:

Dolphins lose 6th straight game: Tua Shuts Off Noise, Throws 4 TDs, But It Still Isn't Enough.

Hurricanes, Diaz get needed upset win: Canes, Embattled Diaz Show The Fight Left In Them.

Heat's big Opening Night win: State of the Art: Heat, Miami's Best-Run Franchise, Sails in Opener. 

HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (OCTOBER 24-25): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. This week's HB10:

1. DOLPHINS: Tua throws 4 TDs, Fins still lose 6th straight: Miami was a small home underdog to Atanta Falcons on Sunday but led late on Tua Tagovailoa's fourth TD pass before the defense blew it and Fins fell, 30-28, for a sixth straight loss. Game came a few days after a report out of Houston said Texans and Dolphins are closing in on a trade for embattled star QB Deshaun Watson ahead of NFL's November 2 deal deadline. That would be so Dolphins: Giving up too soon on Tua for a guy under a mountain of accusations and civil suits and facing possible criminal charges and league suspension.

2. HEAT: Miami opens NBA season with exhilarating win, OT loss: The Heat opened Thursday night at home with a 137-95 rout of champion Milwaukee -- that euphoria quelled by Saturday's 102-91 OT loss at Indiana. Miami is back at it Monday/tonight vs. Orlando and then (circle it) Wednesday at Brooklyn.

3. HURRICANES: UM. Diaz get huge win in upset of NC State: Miami improved to 3-4 (1-2 in ACC) with Saturday's huge 31-30 home upset of No. 18 North carolina State fueled by Tyler Van Dyke's 325 yards passing and four TDs. Canes arestill scrambing to make a bowl and Manny Diaz is still fighting to save his job, but this win was huge. Just as big: Next Saturday at No. 23 Pitt.

4. PANTHERS: For-real Cats open NHL season 5-0!: Florida is 5-0 for the forst time ever after Saturdays' 4-2 win over Philadelphia, and by an impressive 22-9 goals differential. Panthers will try to keep the perfection going Monday at home vs. Arizona.

5. MLB: It's an Astros-Braves World Series: They're bangin' trashcans celbrating in Houston. The Astros, with a tradition rich in cheating, are headed back to the World Series for the third time in five years after eiminating Boston, 4-2, in the ALCS. In the NLCS Atlanta dispatched the favored L.A. Dodgers 4-2 fpr the Braves' first WS berth since 1999. Game 1 is Tuesday in Houston. (Go Braves!)

6. INTER MIAMI: Second straight win and still chasing playoffs: After six straight losses the topsy turvy Herons routed Cincinnati 5-1 Saturday for a second straight win. Miami is now 11-5-15 and within five points of playoff contention with three games left starting Wednesday at Atanta. Skim hopes, but three more wins to close the regular season will give Miami a shot.

7. STATE COLLEGES (NON-UM): Gators have bye, FIU falls yet again: Six schools including Boca Raton's FAU accepted invitations to join the American Athletic Conference as soon as 2023-24. The Owls are 4-3 after routing Charlotte on Thursday. UCF also is 4-3 after beating Memphis Friday. On Saturday, hot Florida State umlproved to 3-4 by routing UMass, FIU fell to 1-6 vs. Western Kentucky, and South Florida is 2-5 after routing Temple. The now-unranked Florida Gators were off. 

8. UM BASKETBALL: College hoops around the corner: Hurricanes men and women both open their seasons at home November 9, looking to rebound from off-years. Jim Larranaga's guy were 10-17 (4-15 in the ACC) last season and Katie Meier's women were 11-11 (8-10). Neither received a single vote in the AP preseason poll. Gonzaga is No. 1 in the men's Top 25 and South Carolina tops the women's poll.  

9. NASCAR: Larson, already in final four, wins again: Kyle Larson is in, with the other three spots wide open entering the next-to-last NACAR race before the championship race November 7 in Phoenix. Next Sunday at Martinsville will anoint the three drivers wholl be joining Larson.

10. SOCCER: Withour Messi and Ronaldo ... is it El Clasico?: Real Madrid won 2-1 at Barcelona on Sunday in the rival Spanish giants' first El Clásico clash of the new season. But, with Lionel Messi gone from Barca to Paris-Saint Germain and Cristiano Ronaldo from Madrid to Machester United ... is it stil El Clasico?

Missing the HB10 cut: The Lakers' Anthony Davis and Dwight Howard got into a heated exchange Friday, residue of an 0-2 start by a team favored to reach the NBA Finals ..... The 76ers' Ben Simmons now says he is not mentally ready to play. I'm sure famously empathetic Philly fans are quite understanding (!) ..... Australia's Ash Barty is skipping the WTA Finals but is assured of ending the year as the world No. 1 ..... What were the odds Willie Mays, at age 90, would join the NFT marketplace? ..... UEFA Champions League resumed Tuesday with Bayern Munich now one of only four perfect (4-0-0) teams and seen by many as the favorite ..... Marlins' Fall Development Camp for minor-league prospects ended Friday ..... Low-watt week for national college football with zero Top 25 matchups, but five more ranked teams lost: No. 7 Penn State, 8-Oklahoma State, 14-Coastal Carolina, 18-NC State and 25-Purdue ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast is back with a new episode Monday at 7 a.m. ET ..... Update: Countdown now 1,709 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.

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GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND

1) It's MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 20. Join me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Follow the Greg Cote Show podcast separately on Twitter, Instagram and now TikTok, too! 2) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): NFL Week 2 picks, NFL Week 1 results for my picks, Greg's Lobos and QB Rankings, Greg Cote Show podcast & more.

GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW EPISODE OUT NOW!: Our 36th episode of 2021 and 78th overall is out now! A new pod drops every Monday at 7 ET on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart -- wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. You can find all 78 we've done HERE, for free. In our newest episode: Jason "Jax" Jackson (pictured) is on with us to talk about his new role as Miami Heat play-by-play voice, and about the roast his foundation is putting in next month with Dan Le Batard as the roastee. Also: Season debut of Hard Knocks' behind the scenes look at Greg's Lobos, and the guys discuss the woeful weekend for the Dolphins and Canes. Thanks as always for the support, pod family. Please listen, rate, review and follow. (Our pod simulcasts on Sirius XM every Monday 5-6 p.m. ET).

Dolphins crushed 35-0 by Bills. My column: Miami once again not in same league with team it must learn to beat: Dolphins' Shutout Loss in Home Opener a New Low For Flores Era.

Canes fall 38-17 to Michigan State. My column: From the game that has UM fans jumping off cliffs: Miami Hurricanes Aren't Very Good -- And Keep Proving It.

NFL Week 2 picks: Our picks for Dolphins-Bills, Game of Week, Upset of Week and the rest at NFL Week 2 Gems. Off to 1-0/1-0 start after perfect Thursday night as we nailed Washington winning but Giants covering.

Our most recent other columns: Xavien Howard Deserved the Money and Respect He Wanted -- This Was Why / Canes' Offense Dangling Like a Cat And Needing Help /Tua's Burden as Dolphins Open at Pats? Lift a Team, a Franchise and a City. Now / Chasing Giants & Ghosts: Miami Hurricanes' 20-year search for return to glory / and Miami Herald's 2021 NFL Team Rankings: You Won't Believe Where Dolphins are.

HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (SEPTEMBER 19-20): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. This week's HB10:

1. DOLPHINS: Miami embarrassed in shutout loss to Bills in home opener: Fins fell hard to 1-1 with Sunday's 35-0 home-opening loss to AFC East rival Buffalo -- getting dominated all over the field. Bills have now won six straight in series, all easily. Tua Tagovailoa went down early with rib injury that doesn't seem serious. No matter. Miami had no shot in this one.

2. HURRICANES: Ouch! UM crushed by Michigan State, now 1-2: After blowout loss to No. 1 Alabama and narrow escape vs. Appalachian State, No. 24 Miami and quarterback D'Eriq King were looking for their first impressive performance of the season on Saturday at home vs. unranked but unbeaten Michigan State. Didn't get it. From from it. King had four turnovers in a 38-17 home loss. 

3. MARLINS: Somber anniversary near as Fish play out string: Next weekend marks the fifth anniversary of the tragic death at age 24 of Marlins ace pitcher Jose Fernandez, and the present-day Fish play out the string on a disappointing season. Miami is 63-86 entering Monday in midst of a six-game homestand continuing vs. Nationals.

4. INTER MIAMI: Herons walloped in 4-0 loss; Beckham increases stake: Inter Miami is 9-5-10 but was on 6-3-1 hot streak before Friday night's 4-0 home-loss spanking by the New York Red Bulls. Herons still are only one point off playoff pace entering a Wednesday home match with Nashville. Friday, owners Jorge Mas and David Beckham announced they had bought out two minority owners.

5. STATE COLLEGES (NON-UM): Gators hang tough but fall  to No. 1 Alabama: No. 1 Tide entered the Swamp a 14 1/2-point favorite over No. 11 Florida Saturday to top the state FBS schedule for collball Week 3, and Alabama escaped with a 31-29 win. Elsewhere (besides UM-Michigan State): UCF was an upset loser at Louisville Friday night, FSU got clobbered at Wake Forest, FAU routed visiting Fordham, FIU got hammered at Texas Tech and South Florida handled Florida A&M.

6. NASCAR: Homestead gets a big bump on new schedule: Homestead-Miami Speedway will return to the playoff portion of the NASCAR season in 2022. Homestead hosted the season finale championship race from 2002 through 2019 but was bumped to an early-season race date last year as NASCAR experimented with long anticipated schedule changes. Phoenix got the finale in 2020 and is to host it for a third consecutive season next year. Homestead was given an October 23 race date in '22 -- the middle race of the third round of the playoffs. 

7. HEAT: Miami prepares for opening of training camp, preseason: The Heat and new addition Kyle Lowry prepare to open training camp for the 2020-21 season on September 28, with the first preseason home game set for October 4.

8. PANTHERS: Cats open preseason training camp: Florida opens its NHL training camp this week toward the start of its preseason schedule with September 26 doubleheader vs, Nashville. Regular season opens October 14. Cats will stage fan event September 30, and October14-17 the club will host Amerigol International Hockey Association's 2021 LATAM Cup at Panthers IceDen in Coral Springs.

9. COLLEGE FOOTBALL (NON-STATE): Three Top 25 matchups on Week 3 slate: In addition to No. 1 Alabama's squeaker past No. 11 Florida Saturday, it was 10-Penn State beating 22-Auburn, and 23-BYU beating 19-Arizona State. Other Top 25 losers were 13-UCLA, 15-Virginia Tech and 24-Miami.

10. GOLF: Ryder Cup set to begin in Wisconsin: The Ryder Cup, a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States, stages its 44th edition this coming Friday through Sunday in Wisconsin. Will home-course advantage? Europe os the defending champion and has won nine of the past 12 events since 1995.  

Missing the HB10 cut: His FAU football received a $2.5 million grant from Michelle and Michael Hagerty to name the head coaching position as Hagerty Family Head Football Coach. So now it's the Owls led by Hagerty Family Willie Taggert? Can't make this s--- up, folks ..... History! The Milwaukee Bucks named Lisa Byington as team's new television play-by-play announcer, making her the first woman to handle full-time TV play-by-play duties for a major men's professional sports team .....  U.S. Soccer Federation announced it will offer the respective players’ unions for the men’s and women’s national teams the same contract, suggesting the equal pay for which the USWNT has fought so long. File it under 'Believe It When I See It' ..... Upcoming: Shula celebration October 2 ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast is back with a new episode Monday at 7 a.m. ET ..... Update: Countdown now 1,744 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.

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GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND

1) It's MONDAY, MARCH 1. Welcome, March, month of spring, and St. Patrick's Day! ) The Greg Cote Show podcast is separately on Twitter and Instagram. Join us on both! 3) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): Feels like fresh new era as NASCAR visits Homestead, Tiger Woods lucky to be alive, Greg Cote Show podcast & more. 4) Join me on Twitter and Instagram.

NASCAR/Homestead, Tiger Woods, other most recent columns: Michael Jordan, Pitbull Signal Needed New Era as NASCAR Returns to Homestead This Week and Doesn't Matter If Tiger Woods Never Wins Again. We Are Lucky He's Alive. Also: These Two Questions Will Determine Dolphins' Path On Watson Vs. Tua / Loss at Aussie Open Leaves Serena's Legacy Firm Yet Still Unfinished / Marlins Stick With Youth Blueprint As Rest Of NL East Spends Big / Oh Say Can You See No Anthem At Games? We Weigh In / Inter Miami's Beckham Risks Stepping Into Massive, Avoidable Mess / and Put Brady In Sports' All-Time Pantheon. But He Has Company.

GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW 1ST ANNIVERSARY EPISODE OUT NOW!: Our Miami Herald podcast debuted last March and our 1st Anniversary episode -- ninth of 2021 and 51st overall -- is out now! A new pod drops every Monday morning on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart -- wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. You can find all 51 we've done so far HERE for free. In our latest Ep9 of '21, we welcome in two special guests. Dr. Daniel B. Chan, an orthopedic trauma surgeon for Memorial Healthcare System, details Tiger Woods' injuries and what's ahead in his recovery -- and explains why what Woods suffered may be even worse than the injury to NFL quarterback Alex Smith. Also, ESPN NFL analyst Mike Tannenbaum joins us to predict how the whole Tua-or-Deshaun Watson drama will play out for the Dolphins. Also on the menu: Greg and Chris discuss the raging new Mr. Potato Head controversy; a smidgen of NASCAR talk (involving Michael Jordan and Pitbull); a debate over the move to make Kobe Bryant the new silhouette in the NBA logo; and a new Mount Gregmore marking the pod’s 1st anniversary with the greatest events or birthdays associated with March 2. Thanks as always for the support. Please listen, subscribe, rate and review!

HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (FEBRUARY 28-MARCH 1): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. This week's HB10:

1. GOLF: Tiger Woods suffers serious leg injuries in major car wreck: Thirteen months after a helicopter crash killed Kobe Bryant, sports nearly lost another all-time great tragically this week when Tiger Woods' SUV careened several hundred feet down a Los Angeles hillside, flipping multiple times. Woods, 45, suffered serious leg injures that will require many, many months of rehab and further delay if not imperil his career. But he survived. He's alive.

2. NASCAR: Byron wins main race at Homestead-Miami Speedway: Little-known William Byron won comfortably Sunday in the NASCAR Cup Series' Dixie Vodka 400, only the second main-series victory of his career. Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa served as grand marshal, with a pandemic-limited crowd of some 10,000 attending. Austin Cindric won Saturday's Xfinity Series undercard race. 

3. HEAT: No all-star picks, but hot Miami bouncing back big in standings: Neither Bam Adebayo (who should have made it) or Jimmy Butler (who was borderline) were picked as reserves for the March 7 NBA All-Star Game. But offsetting the snub, Heat have won six straight to climb to 17-17. They're back on playoff pace and only a half-game from fourth place in East with two games left before the ASG break.

4. PANTHERS: Pinch me. Are the Cats, like, really this good!?: Florida is 13-4-3 and tied atop the NHL Central even after Saturday's 4-3 shootout loss vs. Carolina. Cats face the Hurricanes in the Sunrise rink again Monday.

5. MARLINS: Doubts all around as Fish impress in spring opener: Miami ended its 17-year playoff drought last year but oddsmakers don't see a repeat in the tough NL East. ESPN projects Fish for 67 wins, last in division and 1 percent playoff shot after a low-key offseason it graded C-minus. Nevertheless, Miami impressed in its spring opener Sunday, beating Houston 6-1 behind home runs by Lewis Brinson, Jazz Chisholm and J.J. Bleday and five innings of shutout relief from the 'pen. Fish host rival Mets today in Jupiter. Regular season opens (no fooling) April 1 with six-game homestand vs. Rays and Cardinals.

6. BOXING: Canelo Alvarez wins easily in title defense at Hard Rock: Mexico's Canelo Alvarez, 30, dominated Avni Yidirim in a third-round TKO at Hard Rock Stadium Saturday night, the first boxing match ever held there. Álvarez, now 54-1-2, defended his WBC, WBA Super and Ring Magazine super-middleweight titles.

7. TENNIS: Miami Open reveals star-studded entry list: The March 22-April 4 Miami Open looks like a tennis fan's dream. Tournament announced the 77 top-ranked men all have committed, led by Australian Open champ and No. 1-ranked Novak Djokovic and all-time greats Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Women's field shows 75 of the top 78 players led by No. 1 Ashleigh Barty, Aussie Open champ Naomi Osaka and 8-time Miami winner and fan favorite Serena Williams. 

8. INTER MIAMI: Second-year club beefs up roster as preseason camp unfurls: Training camp is underway for Miami's second season in Major League Soccer and first for new coach Phil Neville. The club signed midfielder Gregore from Brazil's Esporte Clube Bahia and added veteran defender Ryan Shawcross from Stoke City of England's Premier League. MLS season begins April 17, with the announcement of the 2021 schedule expected shortly.

9. SOCCER: Champions League on to second leg in Round of 16: UEFA Champions League Round of 16 play resumes March 9 with second-leg matches. After the past week's conclusion of the first leg, four teams enjoy cushions of two-plus goals on aggregate: Paris-Saint Germain, Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Manchester City. Up by one-goal margins are FC Porto, Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea and Real Madrid. 

10. UM BASKETBALL: Do Canes women still have postseason prayer?: Katie Meier's Miami women's team rallied to finish the regular season 11-10, ending with three straight wins including Sunday's at Clemson. Might an impressive run in the March 3-7 ACC Tournament in Greensboro N.C. earn the team a postseason invite to, say, the WNIT? No such hope for Canes men, who are a miserable 7-15 after Saturday's loss at Clemson and close Monday at No. 15 Virginia and then Friday vs. Boston College. UM men are stumbling to their worst season since 1993-94.

Missing the HB10 cut: ESPN's Mel Kiper revealed his first-ever mock draft with trades. He has Miami standing pat at No. 3 and 18. Kiper's Dolphins picks are Alabama WR DaVonta Smith and Notre Dame LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah ..... Choosing the most dramatic way possible to admit his guilt, former USA Olympic gymnastics coach John Geddert died by suicide Thursday, hours after being charged with two dozen crimes stemming from allegations he physically, emotionally and sexually abused gymnasts ..... Canes baseball, 3-2 and No. 8 in USA Today/Coaches poll, hosts Virginia Tech today in rubber game of three-game series ..... After 13 years in retirement, 10-time majors winner Annika Sorenstam has rejoined the LPGA Tour at age 50 ..... U.S. Women's National Team routed Argentina 6-0 to win soccer's SheBelieves Cup in Orlando. Megan Rapinoe scored twice in the finale; Rose Lavelle was named MVP ..... Seven-day countdown to next Sunday's NBA All-Star Game in Atlanta that nobody seems to want played ..... America's Cup sailing (remember that?) gets underway this coming Saturday in New Zealand ..... ESPN rankings for the July MLB Draft show one top-10 local player: Miami Hurricanes catcher Adrian Del Castillo at No. 9 ..... Tokyo Olympics announced its four-month Torch Relay would commence March 25 ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast's celebrates its 1-year anniversary since debuting last March 2, with its ninth episode of 2021 and 51st overall dropping Monday morning ..... Update: Countdown now 1,947 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup.

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1) It's SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27. Search out last Tuesday's podcasts of the Dan Le Batard Show With Stugotz for way too much of me including the new 'Back In My Day' (Shoes!). 2) The Greg Cote Show podcast is separately on Twitter and Instagram. Join us on both! 3) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): Hot Button Top 10, most recent columns, Greg Cote Show podcast & more. 4) Join me on Twitter and Instagram.

MICHAEL JORDAN, PITBULL SIGNAL NEEDED NEW ERA AS NASCAR RETURNS TO HOMESTEAD THIS WEEK: NASCAR feels different as it returns to Homestead-Miami Speedway this weekend for the main-race Dixie Vodka 400 on Sunday after Saturday’s undercard Xfinity Series race. It still feels different for the wrong reasons as the ongoing COVID-19 threat entering its second year continues to limit crowds and drivers’ time at the track. It feels different in good ways now, too, though. There is a newness at play, a fresh breeze. This is not your grandfather or even your father’s NASCAR with its redneck roots harking to its birth in the segregated late 1940s. The sport’s recent disassociation with the Confederate flag stands towering at the forefront. So does white drivers uniting to make that anti-racism video last summer as the streets filled with protest. We see a sport once stuck for so long in Deep South mores going national, attracting millennial eyes, entering the 21st Century. “NASCAR is trending up,” as Homestead track president Al Garcia. Michael Jordan is a team owner now. So is "Mr. 305" Pitbull. NFL star Alvin Kamara is involved. New markets on the schedule. A new wave of budding-star drivers led by Chase Elliott. For our full latest column, visit Michael Jordan, Pitbull Signal Needed New Era as NASCAR Returns to Homestead This Week.

IT DOESN'T MATTER IF TIGER WOODS EVER WINS AGAIN. WE ARE LUCKY HE'S STILL ALIVE: The 30-second video that retired Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade posted on Instagram Tuesday is full of happiness, but it is haunting for what would happen a mere 30 minutes later. Smiling and jocular, Wade and Tiger Woods are on a golf course in Los Angeles. Wade asks maybe the greatest golfer of all time how good or bad his own game is. Over Wade’s shoulder a grinning Woods, after a small pause, says, “Good?” — while playfully shaking his head no. The two sports superstars were in L.A. to record something for Discovery’s Golf TV channel. Wade was 15 when Woods changed golf with his historic victory at The Masters in 1997. “The reason I picked up a golf club,” Wade says. Around 7 a.m. Pacific time on Tuesday, Woods’ 2021 Genesis GV80 would careen down an embankment, rolling several hundred feet downhill and flipping multiple times. “It was very fortunate that Mr. Woods came out of this alive,” said Deputy Carlos Gonzalez. It is the latest reminder that no amount of wealth or fame protects one from whatever cruelty fate has in mind. It also writes the latest chapter in the star-crossed story of Eldrick Tont “Tiger” Woods, the ongoing tale of epic, towering triumph, scandal and descent, redemption and rise. Now this. Let those words sink in. “It was very fortunate that Mr. Woods came out of this alive.” We nearly lost Tiger Woods this week. Thirteen months after a helicopter tragedy took the life of Kobe Bryant, the sports world nearly lost an icon of like stature, if not dare say even greater. For our full recent column, visit Doesn't Matter If Tiger Woods Never Wins Again. We Are Lucky He's Alive.

Dolphins, Serena, Marlins: Our other latest columns: These Two Questions Will Determine Dolphins' Path On Watson Vs. Tua / Loss at Aussie Open Leaves Serena's Legacy Firm Yet Still Unfinished / and Marlins Stick With Youth Blueprint As Rest Of NL East Spends Big. Also: Oh Say Can You See No Anthem At Games? We Weigh In /Inter Miami's Beckham Risks Stepping Into Massive, Avoidable Mess / and Put Brady In Sports' All-Time Pantheon. But He Has Company.

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