Gameplan
• WATCH
LSU vs. Alabama
Yawn. Yet another showdown between SEC rivals and national title contenders. If No. 9 LSU has any hope of getting into the BCS title game it must knock off the No. 3 Crimson Tide on Saturday (CBS). Another national race could also become clearer. 'Bama RB Mark Ingram has vaulted to the top of several Heisman tracking polls. He could become the school's first Heisman winner.
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Breeders' Cup
Zenyatta will be running—but with the girls or boys? The undefeated five-year-old was entered in Friday's Ladies' Classic (which she won last year) and Saturday's featured Breeders' Cup Classic (ESPN); as of Sunday her owners hadn't chosen one. A Zenyatta victory would be her 14th in as many starts. Only two U.S. horses since 1900 have won more without a loss.
• READ
Jacques Plante On Nov. 1, 1959, Jacques Plante changed the face of hockey: The Canadiens' star, ignoring taunts about his manhood, became the first NHL goalie to wear a mask. The thoughtful Plante was an innovator and eccentric (he knitted on team train rides)—and a seven-time Vezina Trophy winner. In this engaging bio Todd Denault tells the story of a trailblazer.
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Chargers at Giants
For the second time in his career Eli Manning faces the team he spurned on draft day 2004, when the No. 1 pick forced San Diego to trade him. The first meeting didn't go so well for him: The Giants lost 45--23, in 2005. This time the Chargers will be led by Philip Rivers, the QB they got from New York in return for Manning. Who got the better deal? Watch on CBS and judge for yourself.
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Countdown to Vancouver
The opening of the Winter Olympics was 100 days away as of Nov. 4. NBC starts its buildup to the Games with a multiplatform blitz, including the relaunch of NBCOlympics.com and the debut of a nightly Countdown to Vancouver on Universal Sports. Also, keep an eye out for athletes on NBC shows. Finally, a reason to watch Jay Leno in prime time.
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Without Bias
ESPN's 30 for 30 documentary series continues with a film exploring the death of Len Bias, by cocaine overdose, hours after being chosen at No. 2 by the Celtics in the 1986 NBA draft. Filmmaker Kirk Fraser interviewed dozens of Bias's family members and Maryland teammates. More than two decades after his death, Bias's tragic tale is still harrowing.
The Pop Culture Grid
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Athletes in the mix | Steve Phillips has to think about ... | ____ should play me on the big screen | Soupy Sales was ... | I need to sell my ____ on eBay | Twitter has turned into ... |
JUNIOR SEAU Patriots LB | Who? | Don Ho | Soupy Who? | Surfboards | A great source of communication |
DREW DOUGHTY Kings D | Discretion | The Rock | A funny guy five times older than me | Teeth | Something I will never use |
KEITH ELLISON Bills LB | His family | Will Smith | A little before my time | Atari video game system | Ridiculousness |
MIKE CHABALA Dynamo D | Why he didn't think before | David Beckham or Robert Pattinson | A pie connoisseur | My roommate, he needs a date | A great motivator |
Inside the Grid
Ellison shook his head when he heard that Chiefs running back Larry Johnson, a frequent tweeter, had been suspended one game for using a gay slur in a post last week. The 25-year-old said he wants no part of the social networking phenomenon: "I don't know why people want so many details about someone else's life. I'm not sharing."
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AL TIELEMANS (INGRAM)
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ANDREW GOMBERT/EPA (ZENYATTA)
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ROBERT BECK (RIVERS, DOUGHTY)
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AP (BIAS)
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CAMERON SPENCER/GETTY IMAGES (TWITTER)
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HOWARD C. SMITH/ISIPHOTOS.COM (CHABALA)
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ROBERT E. KLEIN/AP (ELLISON)
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BOB ROSATO (SEAU)
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MJ KIM/AP (SMITH)
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BETTMANN/CORBIS (SALES)
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PAUL SAKUMA/AP (ATARI)
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