Sports
Ranking 134 college football teams after conference title games: Boise State’s climb continues

Editor’s note: The Athletic 134 is a weekly ranking of all FBS college football teams.
The first year of the 12-team College Football Playoff was an absolute success.
Regardless of how the bracket plays out, it has already accomplished exactly what it was supposed to do. More regular-season games had more stakes. New faces made the field. The first-round games on campus will be electric. And the field appears wide open. It’s everything we wanted. Good job, everyone.
As for the bracket makeup itself, I don’t necessarily agree with every seed, but the committee got the right group. SMU was the correct decision over Alabama, at least in the current system where conference championships remain very important. Alabama’s wins were better, but its losses were worse. In the end, pulling a championship game loser out in favor of a three-loss team with bad losses would have upended the point of conference races. It was a close call. It was the right call.
Coming off conference championship weekend and ahead of the postseason, there was a shakeup at the top of this week’s penultimate edition of the Athletic 134.
GO DEEPER
College Football Playoff 2024 projections: Who are the national championship favorites?
1-10
My philosophy is to reward conference championship game winners and not ding the losers too much, except when they play each other. As a result, I have the same top seven as the committee. I said a week ago that a strong performance against Oregon would move Penn State above Notre Dame, and that’s what the Nittany Lions delivered in a 45-37 loss. Georgia’s second win against Texas jumped the Bulldogs up to No. 2, but I can’t drop the Longhorns much for an overtime loss.
The bottom end of the top 10 is different from the committee’s choices. Boise State and Arizona State move up to No. 8 and No. 9 with dominant championship wins against top-25 teams. SMU fell to No. 10 as a result of its loss to Clemson, but only because it was jumped by two other teams that played. While Arizona State has a blowout win against a Wyoming team that gave Boise State problems, the Sun Devils’ two regular season losses, compared to Boise State’s one last-second loss at No. 1 Oregon, keeps the Broncos ahead.

GO DEEPER
In defense of the College Football Playoff’s funky seeding format
11-25
Rank | Team | Record | Prev |
---|---|---|---|
11 |
11-1 |
9 |
|
12 |
9-3 |
11 |
|
13 |
10-2 |
13 |
|
14 |
9-3 |
14 |
|
15 |
9-3 |
15 |
|
16 |
10-3 |
25 |
|
17 |
10-2 |
16 |
|
18 |
9-3 |
17 |
|
19 |
9-3 |
18 |
|
20 |
10-3 |
19 |
|
21 |
9-3 |
20 |
|
22 |
11-1 |
28 |
|
23 |
9-3 |
21 |
|
24 |
10-3 |
22 |
|
25 |
10-2 |
23 |
Like SMU, Indiana fell back two places because it was jumped by two teams that had lopsided wins against top-25 opponents. Indiana has no such wins. The Hoosiers are still in my field, but their lack of quality wins left them open to getting jumped. Alabama remains the last team out of my 12-team CFP field.
Clemson moves up to No. 16 with its last-second win against SMU, but the Tigers stay behind South Carolina because of their loss to the Gamecocks a week ago. Army jumps up to No. 22 with a 35-14 win against Tulane, and UNLV falls to No. 24, jumped by Clemson and Army.

GO DEEPER
Alabama snubbed? The Crimson Tide’s case for Playoff inclusion
26-50
Rank | Team | Record | Prev |
---|---|---|---|
26 |
8-4 |
24 |
|
27 |
8-4 |
26 |
|
28 |
8-4 |
27 |
|
29 |
8-4 |
29 |
|
30 |
9-4 |
30 |
|
31 |
7-5 |
31 |
|
32 |
7-5 |
32 |
|
33 |
7-5 |
33 |
|
34 |
8-4 |
34 |
|
35 |
8-4 |
35 |
|
36 |
9-3 |
36 |
|
37 |
8-4 |
37 |
|
38 |
8-4 |
38 |
|
39 |
7-5 |
39 |
|
40 |
10-3 |
52 |
|
41 |
10-3 |
40 |
|
42 |
6-6 |
41 |
|
43 |
6-6 |
42 |
|
44 |
8-3 |
43 |
|
45 |
7-5 |
44 |
|
46 |
7-5 |
45 |
|
47 |
7-5 |
46 |
|
48 |
6-6 |
47 |
|
49 |
6-6 |
48 |
|
50 |
6-6 |
49 |
Tulane remains at No. 30 after the AAC title game loss to Army. Sun Belt champion Marshall jumps up to No. 40 after a 31-3 win against Louisiana.
51-75
Jacksonville State climbs to No. 60 with a 52-12 win against Western Kentucky in the CUSA title game, and Ohio moves up to No. 73 after beating Miami (Ohio) to win the MAC. The Bobcats stay behind Kentucky because of their 41-6 loss to the Wildcats in Week 4.
76-134
The Athletic 134 series is part of a partnership with Allstate. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.
(Photo: Loren Orr / Getty Images)

Sports
Conor Daly admits to performing gross act while waiting for Indy 500 to begin

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Conor Daly’s race team got a bit more than they bargained for at the Indianapolis 500 over the weekend as the IndyCar driver copped to a gross act on Monday night during the victory banquet.
The Indy 500 was delayed nearly an hour because of rain. Drivers were forced to sit in their cars on the frontstretch until officials gave them the all-clear to begin racing. Because of the delay, Daly said he just could not hold his urine in anymore.
IndyCar Series driver Conor Daly, #76, during the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis on May 25, 2025. (Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images)
“I want to thank my mechanics specifically, because there’s been a lot of talk tonight and I saw on the internet as well – a lot of toilet talk and maybe some using of the bathroom,” Daly said. “We had to wait a long time before the race. Never in my life have I urinated in my race car until Sunday.
“I was sitting on the grid, and I was like, ‘This is the best car I’ve ever been in, in my whole life. I’m gonna have to pee in this thing.’ I kid you not, I legitimately urinated in my race car before the race even started.”
Daly said he had to go “really bad” and admitted he sat through the entire race in his own urine. He said he “came clean” with his mechanics after the race was over.

Juncos Hollinger Racing driver Conor Daly, #76, sits on the wall after practice for the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis on May 19, 2025. (Grace Hollars-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
INDY 500 RUNNER-UP MARCUS ERICSSON, OTHERS PUSHED TO REAR FOLLOWING FAILED POST-RACE INSPECTION
“It was an embarrassing moment. I didn’t think I’d have to get there. (James) Hinchcliffe told me about that once but, anyway, now you guys all know.”
Daly finished eighth after starting out in 11th. The Juncos Hollinger Racing driver led 13 laps and appeared to have one of the quickest vehicles on the track.

Juncos Hollinger Racing driver Conor Daly, #76, high-fives crew members on Saturday, May 17, 2025, during qualifying for the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
However, it was Alex Palou who got the last laugh and won the race for the first time in his career.
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Sports
Prep talk: Four players to watch for Southern Section Division 1 baseball semifinals

There’s no holding back for Tuesday’s Southern Section Division 1 baseball semifinals. The quarterfinals were full of drama and close games. Now comes the real fun: Ace vs. ace, top team vs. top team.
It will be St. John Bosco hosting Corona on its new field and Santa Margarita hosting Crespi. Here’s four players who could be difference makers:
Jackson Eisenhauer, Crespi. He started the season without allowing any earned runs in 51 innings. He missed Crespi’s 2023 Division 2 championship season because of an injury. He throws strikes, has a sweeping curveball and is cool under pressure.
Brennan Bauer, Santa Margarita. He has the most pitching wins in school history, going 22-4. He’s good whether starting or relieving and will be needed at some point in a game that figures to be close and nerve-wracking.
Anthony Murphy, Corona. The junior center fielder and lead-off batter has come on strong, batting .426 with a team high 11 home runs on a team filled with pro prospects. The only time the 28-2 Panthers have lost were by shutouts, so you either deal with Murphy or go down to defeat. Corona has 16 shutout victories and will have Seth Hernandez (18-0 in two years) on the mound.
Noah Everly, St. John Bosco. The junior is batting .361 with three home runs and 26 RBIs. He also can pitch. When he has a big day at the plate, the Trinity League champs are tough to beat and he’ll need to do something against Hernandez and his 98 mph fastball.
The winners advance to the championship game at Cal State Fullerton to be Friday or Saturday.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
Sports
Indy 500 broadcast garners millions of viewers as Alex Palou wins for 1st time

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More than 7 million viewers tuned in to watch Alex Palou win the first Indianapolis 500 of his career over the weekend, FOX Sports announced on Monday.
The race garnered 7.05 million viewers, FOX Sports said, citing Nielsen fast national ratings. The company added that it had 8.4 million viewers at its peak between 4 p.m. ET and 4:15 p.m. ET.
Indianapolis 500 champion Alex Palou, of Spain, poses with the Borg-Warner Trophy during the traditional winners photo session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Monday, May 26, 2025. (Michael Conroy/AP Photo)
It was the most-watched Indianapolis 500 in 17 years, according to FOX Sports. The last Indy 500 to draw comparable viewership was the 2008 race, which garnered an audience of 7.245 million. FOX Sports said viewership was up 40% from last year’s race.
It was the first year FOX broadcast the Indianapolis 500.
INDY 500 POLE-SITTER CRASHES INTO CREW MEMBERS ON PIT ROAD: ‘REALLY SCARY’

Alex Palou, of Spain, celebrates with fans after winning the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 25, 2025. (Michael Conroy/AP Photo)
Palou passed Marcus Ericsson with 14 laps to go in the race and held him and the rest of the pack at bay to win the race. It was the fifth win of the 2025 season for Palou and the first time a Spaniard had won the Indy 500.
Palou started the race in sixth position on the second row on the outside of Scott Dixon and next to Felix Rosenqvist. He needed to work hard to get to the front as persistent droplets of rain and several caution flags came out, which could have halted his momentum at any time.

Alex Palou, of Spain, celebrates after winning the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 25, 2025. (AJ Mast/AP Photo)
As the race came down to the end, he got his opportunity to move around Ericsson. He had some lap traffic in front of him, but they didn’t appear to hinder Palou’s ability to win at all. For Palou, it was jubilation down the frontstretch with the anticipation of kissing the bricks and some ice-cold milk to cool him off after the grueling event.
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