‘Nightcaps’ is a daily column that catches you up on the biggest sports, news and culture stories you may have missed while pretending to do work at your desk. It runs Monday-Friday on OutKick.com.
Second Hump Day of November, folks. We’re officially in the double-digit portion of the month.
Somehow, Thanksgiving is two weeks from tomorrow. How’s that even possible? Feels like we were just grilling hamburgers for Labor Day, and now we’re turkey shopping for the best deal with the big day just 15 days away.
Wild stuff.
More importantly, of course, is what today is: Veterans Day. I was at the Panera down the street this morning and saw three vets eating breakfast. One of them had on a hat similar to one my late grandfather used to wear religiously.
We struck up a conversation. I thanked him for his service. He thanked me for stopping by just to chat. There was nothing special about it. Nothing extraordinary. We had a couple laughs, made a couple jokes about the 157 different coffee options, and went on our ways.
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It was simple, but important — to me, at least. He’s the reason I was able to duck out of my house this morning and work from a coffee shop. We often forget about that on most days, which is fair given life is hectic and busy and stressful.
But I gotta say … that one brief exchange made my day just a little better. I hope it did for him, too.
The little things in life really do go a long way.
Now, let’s roll.
Welcome to a Hump Day Nightcaps — the one where 23 college football players get slapped with a Saturday detention for beating the crap out of each other after last week’s game.
You’ll see.
What else? I’ve got a wild scoreboard graphic from last night’s MACtion contest, our weekly ‘Bash the CFP committee’ fireside chat after last night’s latest dump, and some ’90s nostalgia to end the day.
Wait till you see this Roku channel the internet stumbled upon last night. Incredible.
OK, grab you a sundae for National Ice Cream Sundae Day, and settle in for a Hump Day ‘Cap!
I have no real take on ice cream sundaes. Everyone likes an ice cream sundae. Like french fries, its one of the few things we all tend to agree on.
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My one hot take on ice cream? I contend that mint chocolate chip is the best flavor out there. I realize I’m in the minority on that, but I’ll die on that hill. Don’t knock it till you try it!
The Juice Bar on Nantucket has the best mint chocolate chip ice cream on the planet, by the way. You’re welcome.
Can’t hide money!
OK, let’s get this class started with a wild postgame college football brawl last weekend between Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Grambling State that resulted in a whopping 23 (!!!) players getting suspended.
Probably a fair number, if I’m being honest:
“We’re extremely disappointed by the events that transpired during postgame of the Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Grambling State football game,” SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland said on Tuesday before issuing the suspension(s). “Acts of that nature have zero place in the Southwestern Athletic Conference and intercollegiate athletics. The Conference Office has and will continue to enforce a zero-tolerance policy for all acts deemed to be unsportsmanlike and contrary to the high standard of good sportsmanship we expect from all individuals associated with the athletics programs within our league.”
The final tally? Nine players from Pine Bluff and 14 more from Grambling were suspended from that above brawl. In addition, each program was fined $25,000, which may sound like small potatoes, but these are HBCUs. That’s a lot of money for those schools.
Remember, these are the schools that get paid upwards of a million dollars to get destroyed by P4 schools once or twice a year. There ain’t a lot of wiggle room in the budget for a $25K fine.
Oh well. You live and learn!
Next? From SWACtion to MACtion, baby!
Goodness, college football is the best:
It there was ever a 90-second clip to perfectly display midweek MACtion, this is the one to use.
It was perfect. It’s everything we love about college football. We’re going to miss these moments in about two months, folks. Don’t take them for granted. Don’t waste a single second.
Now, let’s rapid-fire this Hump Day class into a big Hump Day night. How are we all feeling about the second batch of playoff rankings that were released last night?
Thoughts? Let me know! Zach.Dean@OutKick.com.
Two more on the way out, and they both involve a heavy dose of nostalgia. First? This has been making the rounds on Twitter today, and I have to admit, I am CAPTIVATED:
Just incredible. Do we have any Roku users here? Have y’all used this? Is it legit?
True story: About three years ago, I told my wife about this great idea I had for an app where it would literally just be an endless stream of commercials from the 1990s. That’s it. Just different commercials from different channels on any given day from the ’90s.
Feels like I missed a pretty big opportunity here, because someone took my idea and created something incredible. This thing would be on in my house 24/7 if I had Roku. You give me a chance to watch Catdog and an old Sears commercial from 1997, and I’m going to take it every single time. No-brainer.
Such a better time.
Finally, on the way out … speaking of old things that were so much better:
“Black Friday used to mean fist fights at Walmart to get 60% off a TV. Now it’s a month-long event where you get 10% off a towel.”
This is so true. Has anyone else noticed this? I was talking to my brother the other day about wanting one of those fancy frame TVs that are all the rage right now. The ones that basically look like a picture on the wall when you’re not actually watching something.
Anyway, they’re around $1,000, which is an absurd amount to pay for a TV in 2026. Naturally, I said I’d wait for Black Friday to see if I could find a steal.
“They’re already all on Black Friday sales on Amazon right now,” he said.
I looked. They are. Deals everywhere, and we’re still weeks away from “Black Friday.”
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Makes me sad. Black Friday used to be a huge deal. Growing up, it was bigger than Thanksgiving for most folks.
Now? It’s just another day. The deals have already started, and they’re watered down because they run all month long.
Does anyone here still go to a department store on Black Friday? I’d love to hear what the scene is like in 2026.
OK, that’s it for today. Good Hump Day, everyone. On that way out, here’s ESPN’s Laura Rutledge gearing up for another big week of FOOTBALL.
Take us home, Laura!