1 of 5 | Fullback Kyle Juszczyk and the San Francisco 49ers face the Los Angeles Rams at 4:25 p.m. EST Sunday on Fox. File Photo by Terry Schmitt/UPI |
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MIAMI, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- The college football bowl season is nearly over, but the last week of the NFL regular season takes place this weekend. Golf's Tournament of Champions and NBA and college basketball games also fill the weekend schedule.
Dozens of European soccer matches and regular-season NBA and NHL games also take place from Friday through Sunday.
The NFL's first-ever Week 18 headlines the schedule, with another Saturday and Sunday filled with games which impact the postseason picture.
Several teams already clinched their spot in the postseason, while others vie for a first-round bye or to snatch one of the remaining berths.
NFL
The 2021-22 campaign marked the first NFL season with 17 games, which resulted in a Week 18 for the first time in NFL history. The slate of season finales features two games Saturday and 14 games Sunday.
Several teams are eliminated from playoff contention, while others are locked into the postseason with a slim chance of improving their seeding. That means some games are meaningless as far as the playoff picture is concerned.
Some of the top NFL teams are likely to rest key players to protect them from injuries before the playoffs, but three spots remain in the NFL's 14-team playoff field. The AFC's No. 1 seed -- and first-round bye -- is still available. Two Wild Card berths also remain in the AFC.
The Baltimore Ravens (8-8), Indianapolis Colts (9-7), Las Vegas Raiders (9-7), Los Angeles Chargers (9-7) and Pittsburgh Steelers (8-7-1) are the AFC teams that remain in contention for the conference's Wild Card berths.
In the NFC, six of the seven playoff spots are clinched. The New Orleans Saints (8-8) and the San Francisco 49ers (9-7) are the only teams that can earn the final berth.
The Colts face the Jacksonville Jaguars (2-14) at 1 p.m. EST Sunday on CBS. The Steelers battle the Ravens at the same time on the same network.
The 49ers face the Los Angeles Rams (12-4) at 4:25 p.m. Sunday at Fox. The Saints battle the Atlanta Falcons (7-9) at the same time on the same network.
The Chargers face the Raiders in the final game of the NFL regular season at 8:20 p.m. Sunday on NBC.
Tournament of Champions
The PGA Tour's Sentry Tournament of Champions teed off Thursday and runs through Sunday at the Plantation Course at Kapalua in Maui, Hawaii.
The tournament airs on Golf Channel and NBC.
No. 1 Jon Rahm and No. 8 Justin Thomas are the favorites in the 39-player field. Defending champion Harris English (No. 13), No. 2 Collin Morikawa, No. 3 Dustin Johnson, No. 4 Patrick Cantlay, No. 5 Bryson DeChambeau, gold medalist Xander Schauffele (No. 6), No. 14 Jordan Spieth and No. 33 Phil Mickelson are among the top other top golfers in the field.
The tournament only features winners from the PGA Tour from the previous season and the gold medalist from the Olympics.
Second-round action airs from 6 to 10 p.m. EST Friday on Golf Channel. The third round airs at the same time Saturday on Golf Channel. Early final round coverage airs from 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday on NBC. Live final round coverage airs from 6 to 8 p.m. on Golf Channel.
The winner of the tournament claims a $1.476 million prize.
Basketball
Dozens of men's and women's college basketball and NBA games air nationally from Friday through Sunday.
Two Top 5 women's college teams take the court Friday night. Arizona, the No. 5 team in the Coaches Poll, hosts Washington state at 8 p.m. EST on Pac 12 Network. No. 3 Stanford hosts Oregon at 10 p.m. on the same network.
On the men's side, several Saturday afternoon matchups feature ranked teams. No. 3 Purdue faces Penn State at noon on Big Ten Network. No. 14 Houston, No. 17 Providence and No. 22 Seton Hall also play in noon games.
North Carolina hosts Virginia at 1 p.m. on ESPN. Michigan battles No. 10 Michigan State at 2:30 p.m. on Fox. No. 1 Baylor faces TCU at 5 p.m. on ESPN+.
One of the best women's games should take place Sunday, when No. 1 South Carolina hosts No. 20 Kentucky at 1 p.m. on ESPN. No. 4 NC State battles No. 19 Notre Dame in another great women's basketball matchup at 2 p.m. Sunday on ACC Network.
The NBA TV slate tips off Friday night. Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets host Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN. LeBron James' Los Angeles Lakers host Trae Young's Atlanta Hawks at 10 p.m. Friday on the same network.
The Boston Celtics host the New York Knicks at 7:30 p.m. Saturday on NBA TV. Stephen Curry's Golden State Warriors host the Cleveland Cavaliers at 8:30 p.m. Sunday on NBA TV.
Weekend schedule (all times EST)
Friday
Soccer
Bundesliga: Borussia Monchengladbach at Bayern Munich at 2:30 p.m. on ESPN+
FA Cup: Manchester City at Swindon Town at 3 p.m. on ESPN+
Golf
Sentry Tournament of Champions: Second round from 6 to 10 p.m. on Golf Channel
College basketball
Men's
Marquette at Georgetown at 6:30 p.m. on FS1
Kent State at Ohio at 6:30 p.m. on CBSSN
Milwaukee at Detroit Mercy at 7 p.m. on ESPN2
Women's
Washington State at Arizona at 8 p.m. on Pac 12 Network
Oregon at Stanford at 10 p.m. on Pac 12 Network
NHL
Flames at Hurricanes at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Capitals at Blues at 8 p.m. on NHL Network
NBA
Bucks at Nets at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
Hawks at Lakers at 10 p.m. on ESPN
Saturday
Soccer
FA Cup: Watford at Leicester City at 10 a.m. on ESPN+
FA Cup: Brighton at West Brom at 10 a.m. on ESPN+
FA Cup: Chesterfield at Chelsea at 12:30 p.m. on ESNP+
FA Cup: Everton at hull City at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN+
La Liga: Barcelona at Granada at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN+
Bundesliga: Borussia Dortmund at Eintracht Frankfurt at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN+
La Liga: Valencia at Real Madrid at 3 p.m. on ESPN+
College basketball
Men's
Purdue at Penn State at noon on Big Ten Network
Wichita State at Houston at noon on CBS
St. John's at Providence at noon on FS1
UConn at Seton Hall at noon on Fox
Virginia at North Carolina at 1 p.m. on ESPN
Texas at Oklahoma State at 2 p.m. on CBS
Villanova at DePaul at 2 p.m. on FS1
Michigan State at Michigan at 2:30 p.m. on Fox
Alabama at Missouri at 3:30 p.m. on SEC Network
Kansas at Texas Tech at 4 p.m. on ESPN2
Colorado State at San Diego State at 4 p.m. on CBS
Baylor at TCU at 5 p.m. on ESPN+
Iowa State at Oklahoma at 6 p.m. on ESPNU
Georgia at Kentucky at 6 p.m. on SEC Network
Tennessee at LSU at 6 p.m. on ESPN2
Miami at Duke at 8 p.m. on ACC Network
UCLA at California at 8 p.m. on Pac 12 Network
Florida at Auburn at 8 p.m. on ESPN2
Saint Mary's at BYU at 10 p.m. on ESPN2
Women's
TCU at Iowa State at 2 p.m. on ESPN+
Oklahoma at Kansas at 5 p.m. on ESPN+
NHL
Penguins at Stars at 2 p.m. on NHL Network
Bruins at Lightning at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Sharks at Flyers at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Panthers at Hurricanes at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Devils at Blue Jackets at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Maple Leafs at Avalanche at 7 p.m. on NHL Network
Capitals at Wild at 8 p.m. on ESPN+
Predators at Coyotes at 8 p.m. on ESPN+
Senators at Canucks at 10 p.m. on ESPN+
Blackhawks at Golden Knights at 10 p.m. on ESPN+
Rangers at Ducks at 10 p.m. on ESPN+
Red Wings at Kings at 10:30 p.m. on ESPN+
NFL
Chiefs at Broncos at 4:30 p.m. on ESPN
Cowboys at Eagles at 8:15 p.m. on ESPN
Golf
Sentry Tournament of Champions: Third round from 6 to 10 p.m. on Golf Channel
NBA
Knicks at Celtics at 7:30 p.m. on NBA TV
Sunday
Soccer
Serie A: AC Milan at Venezia at 6:30 a.m. on Paramont+
Ligue 1: Nice at Brest at 7 a.m. on beIN Sports
La Liga: Real Beits at Rayo Vallecano at 8 a.m. on ESPN+
FA Cup: Shrewsbury Town at Liverpool at 9 a.m. on ESPN+
FA Cup: Morecambe at Tottenham Hotspur at 9 a.m. on ESPN+
FA Cup: Leeds United at West Ham at 9 a.m. on ESPN+
FA Cup: Sheffield at Wolves at 9 a.m. on ESPN+
La Liga: Getafe at Sevilla at 10:15 a.m. on ESPN+
Serie A: Sampdoria at Napoli at 10:30 a.m. on Paramont+
Serie A: Atalanta at Udinese at 10:30 a.m. on Paramont+
Ligue 1: AS Monaco at Nantes at 11:05 a.m. on beIN Sports
FA Cup: Arsenal at Nottingham Forest at 12:10 p.m. on ESPN+
Serie A: Juventus at AS Roma at 12:30 p.m. on Paramont+
Serie A: Lazio at Inter Milan at 2:45 p.m. on Paramont+
Ligue 1: PSG at Lyon at 2:45 p.m. on beIN Sports
La Liga: Atletico at Villarreal at 3 p.m. on ESPN+
College basketball
Men's
Minnesota at Indiana at noon on Big Ten Network
Cincinnati at Memphis at 3:30 p.m. on ABC
Washington at Colorado at 5 p.m. on ESPN2
Northwestern at Ohio State at 5:30 p.m. on Big Ten Network
Wisconsin at Maryland at 7:30 p.m. on Big Ten Network
Women's
Louisville at Miami at noon on ACC Network
Wichita State at South Florida at noon on ESPNU
Kentucky at South Carolina at 1 p.m. on ESPN
Tennessee at Ole Miss at 1 p.m. on SEC Network
NC State at Notre Dame at 2 p.m. on ACC Network
Duke at Syracuse at 2 p.m. on ACC Network Extra
Alabama at Georgia at 3 p.m. on SEC Network
Florida at Texas A&M at 3 p.m. on SEC Network+
Virginia at Georgia Tech at 4 p.m. on ACC Network
LSU at Auburn at 5 p.m. on SEC Network
Virginia Tech at North Carolina at 6 p.m. on ACC Network
NFL
Packers at Lions at 1 p.m. on Fox
Colts at Jaguars at 1 p.m. on CBS
Washington at Giants at 1 p.m. on Fox
Bears at Vikings at 1 p.m. on Fox
Titans at Texans at 1 p.m. on CBS
Steelers at Ravens at 1 p.m. on CBS
Bengals at Browns at 1 p.m. on Fox
49ers at Rams at 4:25 p.m. on Fox
Panthers at Buccaneers at 4:25 p.m. on CBS
Seahawks at Cardinals at 4:25 p.m. on Fox
Patriots at Dolphins at 4:25 p.m. on CBS
Saints at Falcons at 4:25 p.m. on Fox
Jets at Bills at 4:25 p.m. on CBS
Chargers at Raiders at 8:20 p.m. on NBC
NHL
Stars at Blues at 2 p.m. on NHL Network
Golf
Sentry Tournament of Champions: Final round from 4 to 6 p.m. on NBC and 6 to 8 p.m. on Golf Channel
NBA
Cavaliers at Warriors at 8:30 p.m. on NBA TV