College football Week 4 preview – DJ Lagway, Arch Manning try to get right

Bill ConnellySep 19, 2025, 07:00 AM ET
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You could say that Saturday brings the first act of the 2025 college football season to a close.

Next week, we’ll get a couple of mammoth helmet games — Oregon at Penn State, Alabama at Georgia — and conference play will be fully underway. We’ll head into October talking a lot about playoff implications and the hierarchy among the sport’s top teams.

First, however, we have to tie up some loose ends. We get another week to figure out which of a large group of hyped-but-struggling quarterbacks — Texas’ Arch Manning, Clemson’s Cade Klubnik, Florida’s DJ Lagway, LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier — will steer out of a current skid. We get a huge Illinois-Indiana game (just an amazing combination of words there). We get a matchup of two of the Big 12’s best and meanest teams to date (Texas Tech at Utah). We get former Sooners quarterback Jackson Arnold and Auburn heading to Norman in a battle of SEC unbeatens. And we get another massive week in the Group of 5, with American Conference unbeatens Memphis and Tulane getting shots at SEC upsets and ambitious teams such as UNLV, North Texas and Boise State facing big road tests.

At the start of the college football season, 11 teams had at least a 2% chance of winning the national title, per the Allstate Playoff Predictor. Three weeks in, there are 13. Nothing has been even slightly decided through three weeks, and the door for chaos could open even further this weekend. Before we get to the second act of 2025, here’s everything you need to follow in a loaded Week 4.

All times Eastern.

Jump to a section:
Scuffling QBs | Indiana-Illinois
Big 12 headliner | SEC eliminators?
G5’s big weekend | Week 4 playlist
Small-school showcase

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Which disappointing quarterback can rally?

Despite some chaotic undertones, the season has gone approximately as we thought it might. Among the top nine teams in the preseason SP+ rankings, six are still there, and the three others (Texas, Notre Dame, Michigan) haven’t exactly plummeted. Some teams have disappointed early on, but few seasons are completely lost.

For a quartet of quarterbacks, however, we’re approaching now-or-never territory: Either start looking like you were supposed to look or chalk up 2025 as a spectacular disappointment.

2390 Florida at No. 4 Miami (7:30 p.m., ABC)

If DJ Lagway threw only three interceptions against LSU, the Gators might have scored an upset. That’s a positive, right? He instead threw five in a 20-10 loss, but the Florida defense still gave the Gators a chance. It has allowed only 38 points in three games.

The offense has scored only 26 in two FBS games. Opponents aren’t afraid of the run game, receivers aren’t getting open, and Lagway is developing some pretty extreme tendencies in passing to specific areas of the field (as evidenced by all the green “completion” dots along the right sideline on this chart):

Four of Lagway’s six 2025 interceptions have come on third-and-long, and a fifth came in a last-ditch drive against LSU. He’s trying desperately to make something happen, and it’s bringing out some terrible tendencies.

Miami quarterback Carson Beck has been good, and he has gotten the help Lagway hasn’t, from his offensive line and his receivers. But the Florida defense could make this one interesting if Lagway can take what he’s given by a Miami defense that ranks 83rd in yards allowed per dropback.

Current line: Miami -7.5 | SP+ projection: Miami by 10.6 | FPI projection: Miami by 7.2

183

Syracuse at Clemson (noon, ESPN)

Like Lagway, Clemson’s Cade Klubnik has performed far worse than expected and has gotten little help from his castmates. Syracuse has a history of overachieving against Clemson, but the Orange have the worst-rated FBS defense remaining on the Tigers’ schedule. If Clemson’s offense, currently 96th in points per drive, doesn’t get going now, when might that happen?

The Orange blitz a good amount, and blitzing has hurt Clemson because of a banged-up offensive line and a less-than-scary run game. Klubnik is getting hit a lot and throwing lots of passes short of the sticks. The timing of the offense is off, and the Tigers can’t afford to suffer another conference loss before they start to figure things out. The return of veteran receiver Antonio Williams, listed as probable for Saturday, can’t hurt.

Current line: Clemson -16.5 | SP+ projection: Clemson by 9.2 | FPI projection: Clemson by 9.6

2545 Southeastern Louisiana at No. 3 LSU (7:45 p.m., SECN)

With all proper respect to Southeastern Louisiana — the Lions are seventh in FCS SP+ with a loss to only Louisiana Tech — I’m guessing that LSU remains unbeaten Saturday. Now’s a good time to start repairing an LSU offense that ranks just 112th in points per drive.

Garrett Nussmeier has the most tenable place on this list; his team is unbeaten, and he’s 37th in Total QBR — not what was expected but far higher than anyone else here. His main issue is that he’s playing it safe. The LSU run game might be even worse than it was last year, the offensive line is committing too many penalties, and Nussmeier is throwing mostly quick passes to keep the train moving. His 65% completion rate is solid, but his average yards per completion has fallen from 12.0 (pretty low) to 10.0 (terribly low).

LSU’s line should hold up against SELA — if it doesn’t, yikes — so it will be interesting to see if Nussmeier starts looking further downfield. Now’s the time to build some better habits.

SP+ projection: LSU by 33.0 | FPI projection: LSU by 34.9

2534 251 Sam Houston at No. 8 Texas (8 p.m., ESPN+)

Going by projections, Texas has the easiest game on this list. But Arch Manning might also be the most broken QB. After showing potential progress in Week 2, Manning completed just 11 of 25 passes for 114 yards, a touchdown and an interception against UTEP. The Miners mostly rushed only four defenders and forced Manning to work through progressions; he took forever to throw and was frequently inaccurate.

Manning is 124th out of 136 QBs with a 55.3% completion rate, and he’s 133rd in average time to throw (3.28 seconds). Meanwhile, his 14 dropbacks against man coverage have netted 13 total yards. His running backs are hurt, his line isn’t great, his receivers aren’t getting open enough and he’s throwing inaccurate passes. If the Texas offense doesn’t get right against a dreadful Sam Houston defense, it might not happen.

Current line: Texas -39.5 (down from -41.5 on Sunday) | SP+ projection: Texas by 40.0 | FPI projection: Texas by 37.7

Shades of 1950 in Bloomington

356 No. 9 Illinois at No. 19 Indiana (7:30 p.m., NBC)

On Oct. 28, 1950, “Goodnight Irene,” performed by The Weavers, was dominating the airwaves. “All About Eve,” starring Bette Davis and featuring a young Marilyn Monroe, was in theaters. SMU was No. 1 in the country, Bear Bryant’s Kentucky was No. 4 and live college football wasn’t found on national television.

It was a long time ago, is what I’m saying. And it was the last time Illinois and Indiana met as ranked foes. In that game, the No. 12 Fighting Illini rode spectacular line play to a 20-0 win over the No. 19 Hoosiers. History hasn’t been kind to either program since. But that has shifted of late.

Curt Cignetti’s Hoosiers and Bret Bielema’s Illini are a combined 27-5 since the start of 2024, and though neither has played an opponent ranked higher than 65th in SP+, both are in the top 15 in points and points allowed per drive this season. They’re treating iffy opposition like excellent teams are supposed to.

Both teams dominate in the Little Things department — red zone, field position, turnovers — and both boast efficient offenses with dominant receivers: Indiana’s Omar Cooper Jr. has 299 yards and four TDs, while Illinois’ Hank Beatty has caught 19 of 20 passes for 289 yards and a TD. Each defense has allowed a few big plays, but they’re both still giving up 4.6 or fewer yards per play.

We know that blue bloods get the best TV ratings, but these two teams have earned this prime-time slot. The computers and sportsbooks lean toward Indiana — and frankly, it’s odd that Illinois is ranked 10 spots higher in the polls — but it would be a surprise if this one didn’t go down to the wire.

Current line: Indiana -6.5 (up from -4.5) | SP+ projection: Indiana by 3.9 | FPI projection: Indiana by 3.1

A Big 12 headliner in Salt Lake City

2641 254 No. 17 Texas Tech at No. 16 Utah (noon, Fox)

If you take preseason projections out of the equation — a terrible idea if you want predictive accuracy, but an intriguing way to look at performance to date — Texas Tech would be first in SP+ and Utah would be eighth. The Red Raiders have overwhelmed three bad opponents by an average score of 58-12, and the Utes lead the Big 12 in early overachievement, topping SP+ projections by an average of 13.7 points per game. On Saturday, one of these teams will score a huge early Big 12 win.

Tech’s defense gives up quite a few big plays, while Utah’s offense, as is customary, doesn’t make many. The Utes rank first in rushing success rate, but so does Tech’s defense. Defensive tackles A. J. Holmes Jr. and Skyler Gill-Howard have eaten up interior run blockers, but the Utah line is one of the most proven in the country, and quarterback Devon Dampier and RBs NaQuari Rogers and Wayshawn Parker keep Utah on schedule.

Even with huge leads in each game, Texas Tech has passed more than 35 times per game at a fast tempo. The Red Raiders are third in yards per dropback, and Behren Morton is completing 70% of his passes at 16.2 yards per completion. Receiver Coy Eakin‘s early numbers (245 yards at 20.4 per catch) are scary.

As you’d expect, however, Utah’s pass defense looks good, too: eighth in completion rate, ninth in interception rate, 24th in yards per dropback. The Utes have given up a few more third-and-long conversions than expected, and if that remains an issue, Tech might never give up the ball. Regardless, there are strength-versus-strength matchups everywhere. This game will be awfully fun.

Current line: Utah -3.5 | SP+ projection: Utah by 1.9 | FPI projection: Utah by 3.8

SEC elimination(ish) day

As with Indiana-Illinois in the Big Ten, the SEC has a couple of huge games among teams that aren’t necessarily conference title contenders — though, we don’t know for sure yet — but are jockeying for 10-2 records and potential CFP bids.

201 No. 22 Auburn at No. 11 Oklahoma (3:30 p.m., ABC)

Oklahoma’s ridiculously back-loaded schedule — six of its final seven opponents rank 17th or higher in SP+ — meant that the Sooners would need a fast start. So far, so good. They’re 3-0 with a win over Michigan despite an offense that remains a work in progress. Quarterback John Mateer might be the current Heisman betting favorite, but the run game averages just 4.3 yards per carry (not including sacks), and the Sooners have fumbled five times with lots of passes broken up. Their five turnovers (104th nationally) haven’t come from bad luck.

Still, Mateer is creating big plays with his arm, and four Sooner pass catchers are on pace for 50-plus receptions. Plus, the OU defense doesn’t need a ton of help — the Sooners rank fourth in points allowed per drive and third in yards allowed per play.

They’re also sixth in rushing success rate allowed, and that might be the most important number against Auburn. The Tigers are running the ball a ton, with the combo of running back Jeremiah Cobb and quarterback Jackson Arnold carrying a heavy load. They’re avoiding must-pass situations — which doomed Arnold as OU’s QB in 2024 — but they’ll likely face some Saturday afternoon, and we’ll learn if Arnold has improved a little or a lot from last year’s disastrous campaign.

Current line: OU -6.5 | SP+ projection: OU by 7.4 | FPI projection: OU by 3.8

2579 142 South Carolina at No. 23 Missouri (7 p.m., ESPN)

Missouri is one of just 16 teams to overachieve against SP+ projections in all three games, and the Tigers are up to 11th in SP+ because of it. The offense looks great because of a trio of transfers: quarterback Beau Pribula (on pace for 3,100 passing yards), running back Ahmad Hardy (1,800 rushing yards), and receiver Kevin Coleman Jr. (1,000 receiving yards).

South Carolina has the first top-50 defense (per SP+) the Tigers have faced, though the Gamecocks got worked over by Vanderbilt’s efficient attack last week in a jarring 31-7 loss. They don’t give up many big plays, but they rank 73rd in success rate. Mizzou’s offense ranks 12th.

The South Carolina offense saw plenty of offseason hype, but it has been an absolute dud, scoring just five touchdowns in three games and ranking 123rd in points per drive. Receivers Nyck Harbor and Donovan Murph are averaging 21.6 yards per catch, but at only four catches per game. Quarterback LaNorris Sellers has become even more sack-prone — I probably should have put him on the disappointing QBs list above — and this week, he has had to work through concussion protocol while preparing to face a Mizzou defense that grades out as well as or better than Vandy’s.

Shane Beamer’s Gamecocks are projected favorites in only two more games this season. Either they get back on track immediately or 2025 veers into “Lost Season” territory.

Current line: Mizzou -10.5 (down from -12.5) | SP+ projection: Mizzou by 13.7 | FPI projection: Mizzou by 9.5

Another huge weekend for the Group of 5

The race for the Group of 5’s guaranteed playoff spot could see some twists this week, with two major hopefuls (Memphis and Tulane) getting shots at SEC upsets, and three others — UNLV, North Texas and Boise State — all facing tricky road trips.

235 Arkansas at Memphis (noon, ABC)

Memphis has looked awesome early and gets AAC opponents South Florida, Tulane and Navy at home. SP+ gives the Tigers a 36% chance of finishing 11-1 or better. Quarterback Brendon Lewis and running back Sutton Smith (in for the injured Greg Desrosiers Jr.) lead an efficient offense, and the defense has crushed bad offenses (including a Troy offense that lost its starting QB early on).

Arkansas’ offense, however, is as explosive as ever, thanks to quarterback Taylen Green, running back Mike Washington Jr. and receiver O’Mega Blake. The Razorbacks could be a permanent track-meet team thanks to a shaky defense, but Arkansas is capable of regularly winning those track meets, too.

Current line: Arkansas -7.5 | SP+ projection: Memphis by 0.5 | FPI projection: Arkansas by 2.4

2655 145 Tulane at No. 13 Ole Miss (3:30 p.m., ESPN)

It’s hard to figure out how good Tulane actually is. The Green Wave made runs of 27-0 against South Alabama and 24-3 against Duke but let both opponents back into the game. Jake Retzlaff is 11th in Total QBR, but the run game moves backward a lot. The defense is a turnover machine, but it’s inefficient otherwise. Against whichever Ole Miss QB holds the reins — the injured Austin Simmons or backup Trinidad Chambliss, who destroyed Arkansas — the Green Wave will need far more stops than they’ve been making. Ole Miss’ run defense has been damningly bad, but the Rebels probably have too much firepower for Tulane to snag a third power-conference victory.

Current line: Ole Miss -13.5 | SP+ projection: Ole Miss by 17.5 | FPI projection: Ole Miss by 13.8

2439 193 UNLV at Miami (Ohio) (noon, ESPNU)

After a rough start against Idaho State in Week 0, Dan Mullen’s UNLV has begun to look the part, and SP+ gives the Rebels a 14% chance of getting to 11-1 or better. Anthony Colandrea is fifth among G5 quarterbacks in Total QBR, both RB Jai’Den Thomas and WR Jaden Bradley are on pace for 1,000-yard seasons, and the defense has at least stabilized a bit.

Miami was outscored 62-17 by Wisconsin and Rutgers, but the RedHawks gave up almost no big plays, and with explosive quarterback Dequan Finn and receivers Keith Reynolds and Kam Perry on offense, they could make UNLV’s long road trip awkward.

Current line: UNLV -2.5 | SP+ projection: UNLV by 8.4 | FPI projection: UNLV by 3.3

249 349 North Texas at Army (noon, CBSSN)

In two home games, quarterback Drew Mestemaker and North Texas have overachieved against SP+ projections by a combined 77.6 points. In their lone road game, the Mean Green nearly lost to No. 122 Western Michigan. They’ll need to play far better in West Point against an Army team that sure looked like Army again in Week 2’s upset of Kansas State. Quarterback Cale Hellums rushed for 124 yards and led five drives of double-digit plays in Manhattan, Kansas, and if Hellums remains steady moving forward, Army will be a giant pain for any AAC team with CFP aspirations. Like North Texas.

Current line: North Texas -2.5 (flipped from Army -2.5) | SP+ projection: Army by 2.2 | FPI projection: UNT by 0.2

2005 Boise State at Air Force (7 p.m., CBSSN)

Boise State’s season-opening faceplant at USF, combined with an upcoming trip to Notre Dame, removed all margin for error. The Broncos will likely have to sweep Mountain West play to have any hope of a CFP bid. Of course, they’re projected favorites in every MWC game, and they still have massive talent with running back Sire Gaines, defensive tackle David Latu, edge rusher Jayden Virgin-Morgan and safety Ty Benefield.

Air Force has been a pain for BSU plenty of times, and the Falcons still dominate the ball. But the defense got torched by Utah State last week. Not an encouraging sign.

Current line: BSU -10.5 | SP+ projection: BSU by 10.6 | FPI projection: BSU by 11.2

Week 4 chaos superfecta

We’re once again using this space to will chaos into existence, looking at four carefully curated games with pretty big point spreads and mashing them together into a much more upset-friendly number. Our winning streak ended last week when Miami, Ole Miss (barely), Alabama and Auburn all won. But we’re still 2-for-3 on the young year, and now it’s time to move to 3-for-4!

Sticking with this week’s “Anatomy of a mid-major upset” theme, SP+ says there’s only a 38% chance that Washington (88% win probability against Washington State), Cal (80% against San Diego State), Colorado (75% against Wyoming) and BYU (72% against East Carolina) all win. Let’s take down a power-conference team!

Week 4 playlist

Here are some more games you should follow if you want to get the absolute most out of the weekend, from both information and entertainment perspectives.

Friday evening

Iowa at Rutgers (8 p.m., Fox). In theory, few matchups scream “ROCK FIGHT!!” like Iowa-Rutgers, but Rutgers is ninth in points per possession and 83rd in points allowed per possession. Iowa has little big-play potential, but the Hawkeyes have moved the ball well against mortal defenses. So, maybe this one isn’t destined to finish 7-6 or 5-3 or something.

Current line: Iowa -2.5 | SP+ projection: Rutgers by 0.2 | FPI projection: Rutgers by 1.6

Tulsa at Oklahoma State (7:30 p.m., ESPN). At the moment, this is the last game in which OSU is a projected favorite. Either the Cowboys use this as a spectacular get-right game after their 66-point humiliation at Oregon in Week 2 — or there’s (more) pain on the horizon in Stillwater.

Current line: OSU -12.5 | SP+ projection: OSU by 9.8 | FPI projection: OSU by 11.0

Early Saturday

SMU at TCU (noon, ESPN2). The Battle for the Iron Skillet! Few teams have underachieved against SP+ projections more than SMU through three games; maybe a rivalry game will wake up the Mustangs. If not, TCU’s big-play offense could have a lot of fun against an SMU defense that has given up loads of chunk plays.

Current line: TCU -6.5 | SP+ projection: TCU by 7.4 | FPI projection: TCU by 4.7

UAB at No. 15 Tennessee (12:45 p.m., SECN). Trent Dilfer’s third UAB team has been the same “solid offense, no defense” squad as his past two. If Tennessee is still reeling from last week’s heartbreaker against Georgia, the Blazers might land a punch or two, but not 60 minutes’ worth.

Current line: Vols -38.5 | SP+ projection: Vols by 37.0 | FPI projection: Vols by 36.4

Maryland at Wisconsin (noon, NBC). Per SP+, Wisconsin has only a 26% chance of reaching bowl eligibility this season, thanks to a schedule that already featured one top opponent and has five more to go. Lose to Maryland, and those odds fall to basically nil. At least it sounds like injured quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. — formerly a Terrapin — could be ready to go.

Current line: Wisconsin -9.5 (up from -7.5) | SP+ projection: Wisconsin by 0.4 | FPI projection: Wisconsin by 5.1

Saturday afternoon

No. 21 Michigan at Nebraska (3:30 p.m., CBS). Two years ago, Nebraska was on the wrong end of a 45-7 blowout loss to Michigan at home. Now, on paper, the Huskers have basically a 50-50 shot at taking down the Wolverines and scoring their biggest win since, what, 2015 (39-38 over No. 7 Michigan State)?

Current line: Michigan -1.5 | SP+ projection: Nebraska by 1.1 | FPI projection: Nebraska by 0.1

Purdue at No. 24 Notre Dame (3:30 p.m., NBC). Well, Notre Dame, it’s time to start scoring some style points. After losses to Miami and Texas A&M, the Irish will have to win out to have serious hope of a CFP shot, and they might have only one more genuine marquee win opportunity — USC in Week 8, and that’s only if the Trojans maintain their current form. So, it’s time to wreck some opponents. (Purdue might have something to say about that. Especially if the Irish defense doesn’t start defending.)

Current line: ND -26.5 | SP+ projection: ND by 20.4 | FPI projection: ND by 20.3

NC State at Duke (4 p.m., ESPN2). Duke has allowed 18 gains of 20-plus yards (tied for 122nd nationally). NC State has given up eight of 30-plus (tied for 114th). With State’s Hollywood Smothers and Wesley Grimes and Duke’s Nate Sheppard and Cooper Barkate, this could be a great game to be an explosive skill corps guy.

Current line: Duke -3.5 | SP+ projection: NC State by 1.2 | FPI projection: NC State by 0.1

North Carolina at UCF (3:30 p.m., Fox). I have no idea about either of these teams. Bill Belichick’s UNC has collected itself since its embarrassing Week 1 loss to TCU, and UCF has been good enough in Scott Frost’s first two games back in town. But anything from a 35-point UNC win to a 35-point UCF win wouldn’t surprise me.

Current line: UCF -7.5 | SP+ projection: UCF by 7.0 | FPI projection: UCF by 11.2

Temple at No. 18 Georgia Tech (4:30 p.m., The CW). Temple can make some big plays and could make things messy if Georgia Tech lets its guard down after last week’s big win over Clemson. The Yellow Jackets haven’t given us any reason to think that’s possible, though. (By the way, they’re projected favorites in their next eight games.)

Current line: Tech -23.5 | SP+ projection: Tech by 21.6 | FPI projection: Tech by 18.9

Oregon State at No. 6 Oregon (3 p.m., BTN). Three weeks into the season, Oregon has risen from seventh to second in SP+ while OSU has fallen from 75th to 107th. We will need to conjure a lot of Weird Rivalry Magic to make this one interesting.

Current line: Oregon -34.5 | SP+ projection: Oregon by 40.1 | FPI projection: Oregon by 36.3

Saturday evening

Arizona State at Baylor (7:30 p.m., Fox). Arizona State finally checked into the 2025 season, putting away a spirited Texas State team with relative ease last week. Now, the close-game festival that is Big 12 Play begins against a Baylor team that might have transformed its season with Week 2’s wild comeback win over SMU.

Current line: Baylor -2.5 | SP+ projection: Baylor by 3.8 | FPI projection: Baylor by 0.8

West Virginia at Kansas (6 p.m., FS1). Kansas got a week to recover after a blown lead and a rivalry loss to Missouri; WVU is riding the crest of a big comeback and a rivalry win over Pitt. Who’s ready to move past the emotion and start the rest of their season? I’m pretty sure Kansas is still good, and WVU’s offense might have finally begun its season late against Pitt.

Current line: Kansas -13.5 | SP+ projection: Kansas by 7.1 | FPI projection: Kansas by 9.7

BYU at East Carolina (7:30 p.m., ESPN2). ECU has overachieved against SP+ projections by nearly three touchdowns per game. The Pirates could be good. And they get to give BYU’s freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier his first big road test. But the Pirates will have to score on BYU’s defense, which is first in points per drive and yards per play.

Current line: BYU -6.5 | SP+ projection: BYU by 9.5 | FPI projection: BYU by 6.0

Washington at Washington State (7:30 p.m., CBS). Washington State was impressive in its 36-13 runaway win over San Diego State in Week 2. Then, the Cougs went to North Texas and got absolutely blasted 59-10. Week 2 Wazzu and a torrid Martin Stadium would make this awfully tricky for Washington. Week 3 Wazzu … would not.

Current line: UW -20.5 | SP+ projection: UW by 18.6 | FPI projection: UW by 21.0

Southern Miss at Louisiana Tech (7:30 p.m., ESPN+). From 2021 through 2024, each of these proud old mid-major programs went 14-35 with an SP+ ranking of about 112.5. Now, both are 2-1 with at least a 60% chance of bowl eligibility. Can Southern Miss quarterback Braylon Braxton engineer enough points on a Tech defense allowing 12.3 points per game?

Current line: Tech -3.5 | SP+ projection: Tech by 7.8 | FPI projection: Tech by 3.7

Late Saturday

Michigan State at No. 25 USC (11 p.m., Fox). A kickoff at 11 p.m. ET for a team based in Eastern Time? Cool. Makes perfect sense. Anyway, USC is averaging 55 points per game and 9.6 yards per play, and Michigan State has topped 40 points for two straight games. I don’t think the Spartans have the defense to make this a game for 60 minutes, but this could have Pac-12 After Dark vibes for a while.

Current line: USC -17.5 (up from -14.5) | SP+ projection: USC by 17.7 | FPI projection: USC by 24.2

California at San Diego State (10:30 p.m., CBSSN). Quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele and Cal are 3-0 and projected favorites in the next six games. But they’re 94th in third-down conversion rate, and SDSU’s defense ranks seventh. If the Aztecs can score a bit (not a given), they could make this one tricky.

Current line: Cal -12.5 | SP+ projection: Cal by 13.2 | FPI projection: Cal by 10.9

Smaller-school showcase

Let’s once again save a shout-out for the glorious lower levels of the sport. Here are three games you should track.

Division III: No. 16 Wisconsin-Whitewater at No. 6 Mary Hardin-Baylor (noon, local streaming). These programs lorded over Division III for nearly 15 years before getting surpassed by North Central. Both are still talented and dangerous, and they’re meeting for the seventh straight season (not including 2020). UWW has produced a 200-yard rusher in each of its first two games, but a third straight, against the Crusaders’ defense, would be a surprise.

SP+ projection: Whitewater by 1.2

Division III: No. 3 Johns Hopkins at No. 4 Susquehanna (1 p.m., FloFootball). The second D-III game on the list is even bigger: JHU backed up its top-five standing with a 27-13 win over No. 20 John Carroll last week and boasts the second-best defense in D-III, per SP+. Susquehanna, meanwhile, ranks fifth on offense. It might be North Central vs. The Field in D-III, but either of these teams could make a deep playoff run.

SP+ projection: Susquehanna by 0.3

FCS: No. 23 New Hampshire at Dartmouth (1 p.m., ESPN+). An incredibly interesting Ivy League season finally opens Saturday: The league champ will participate in the FCS playoffs for the first time, and at first glance, it looks like we have a three-team race among Harvard, Yale and a Dartmouth team that gets an immediate shot at a résumé win of sorts. UNH nearly beat Ball State last week — it was actually a bit of an upset that the Wildcats didn’t — and boasts one of the stingier defenses the Big Green attack will see all season.

SP+ projection: Dartmouth by 1.7

(One game you shouldn’t track? Rio Grande at Ferris State. That’s the second-worst team in NAIA, per SP+ — pronounced “Ry-Oh Grand” and located in the same Ohio town as the first Bob Evans restaurant — facing the class of Division II. SP+ projects Ferris State as a tidy 97.2-point favorite. The final score will be whatever the Bulldogs want it to be. If morbid curiosity gets the best of you, it kicks off at 3 p.m. on FloFootball.)

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Marlins At Mets: Bobby V And Mazzilli Enter The Mets Hall Of Fame On Saturday, With Beltrán To Follow In September

NEW YORK — The Miami Marlins (26-31) arrive at Citi Field on Friday for three games against the New York Mets (23-33) on the kind of weekend that gives a Mets fan in May reasons to look up. The franchise is inducting Lee Mazzilli and Bobby Valentine into its Hall of Fame on Saturday afternoon. Carlos Beltrán, the third member of this year’s class, will have his number 15 retired and his induction ceremony in September. The first 15,000 fans through the gates Friday get a Bobby Valentine Disguise giveaway — fake mustache, glasses, the entire 1999-era bit. Fireworks Night follows Friday’s game.

Both clubs walk into Citi Field still in the conversation. The Mets are 4.5 games out of the third National League Wild Card. The Marlins are five out. The dog days of summer have not arrived. There is a full month of June ahead, then the trade deadline, then everything that comes with it. For two teams that started slow in a division that has not yet produced a runaway leader, this weekend is the kind of stretch you bank wins from while the standings are still soft.

New York Mets’ Juan Soto flips his bat after hittin a two-run home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds Tuesday, May 26, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Friday: Meyer at Peralta

Max Meyer (5-0, 2.52 ERA) takes the ball Friday night at 7:10 p.m. ET for the Marlins. Meyer is the only undefeated starter in baseball with at least eight starts. He has 68 strikeouts in 60-plus innings and a sub-2.55 ERA. Meyer threw six sharp innings in Miami’s 12-0 win over the Atlanta Braves on May 18 and has not lost a decision in 2026. He is the kind of arm a club builds around.

Freddy Peralta (3-4, 3.52 ERA) takes the ball for the Mets. The 30-year-old Dominican right-hander pitched for the Dominican Republic at the 2026 World Baseball Classic and has 63 strikeouts across his 11 starts. He last faced these Marlins in Miami on Saturday and lost a 1-0 pitchers’ duel that could just as easily have gone the other way. He is one of the few healthy rotation pieces the Mets have and he has been pitching like it.

Saturday: Phillips at Scott — And A Hall Of Fame Ceremony

Tyler Phillips (0-0, 1.07 ERA) starts for the Marlins on Saturday at 4:10 p.m. ET, his second career start after being stretched out from the bullpen. Phillips threw five innings last Sunday at home, allowed one earned run, and helped complete a sweep of these same Mets. The story of Phillips this month is the story of a long-relief guy quietly playing his way into a rotation spot. Christian Scott (0-0, 3.20 ERA) starts for the Mets in what is essentially his sixth professional outing — a young right-hander with real stuff and the chance to introduce himself to a national broadcast slot.

Before the first pitch, on the field, the Mets will induct Mazzilli and Valentine into the team Hall of Fame. The first 15,000 fans through the gates receive a Mazzilli/Valentine players pin. Mazzilli is going to walk out to his old position with the entire Brooklyn-Italian section of the borough cheering. Valentine is going to walk out for the first time as a Mets Hall of Famer with the franchise’s modern playoff era — the one between Davey Johnson and Terry Collins — formally recognized at last.

Sunday: Junk at McLean

Janson Junk (3-5, 4.80 ERA) gets the ball for Miami on Sunday at 1:40 p.m. ET in the series finale. Junk last pitched Wednesday in Toronto in relief and is on three days of rest in a swing-starter role. Jonah McLean (2-4, 4.40 ERA), a 26-year-old Mets right-hander with 75 strikeouts on the season, gets the start opposite him. McLean has the highest strikeout-per-nine on the Mets’ active starting staff. Junk needs the kind of grind-it-out start that Marlins fans have seen him give before. The kind that puts a weekend in motion.

FILE – Former New York Mets’ Bobby Valentine, wearing a fake moustache, reacts as he is introduced during an Old-Timers’ Day ceremony before a baseball game between the Colorado Rockies and the Mets on Aug. 27, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger, File)

The Bobby V Weekend, And What It Means

Bobby Valentine spent seven years managing the Mets from 1996 to 2002. He took the team to consecutive postseasons for the first time in franchise history. He took them to the 2000 World Series, the only Mets manager to do so between 1986 and 2015. He left with the second-most wins of any manager in team history. But the reason this Hall of Fame induction is happening this weekend, on a Marlins-Mets weekend, is what Valentine did in the ten days between September 11, 2001 and the resumption of baseball in New York City on September 21.

Shea Stadium became a staging ground for first responders headed to Ground Zero. Valentine personally fed workers at his nearby restaurant. He organized players and staffers for relief efforts. He visited Ground Zero on multiple occasions. He helped establish Tuesday’s Children, a nonprofit created to support the more than 3,000 children who lost a parent in the attacks. That organization still operates today and continues to support families almost twenty-five years later. That is the work being honored on Saturday afternoon. The 536 wins are the resume. The decade of post-9/11 community work is the reason the room will be on its feet.

New York Yankees first base coach Lee Mazzilli, left, and New York Mets manager Bobby Valentine share a laugh before Game 1 of the World Series Saturday, Oct. 21, 2000, at New York’s Yankee Stadium. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)

Valentine has also been a quiet ambassador for international baseball. He managed in Japan for the Chiba Lotte Marines, winning a Japan Series in 2005 and developing a generation of Japanese players who later came to MLB. He threw out a ceremonial first pitch at a 2013 World Baseball Classic game in Fukuoka. The Mets going into the World Baseball Classic era with an open-door philosophy — Steve Cohen has consistently encouraged Mets players to represent their countries when invited, from Soto and Peralta to Brazobán and Vientos — is a continuation of a posture Valentine helped author in the franchise twenty years before the WBC even existed.

Bobby Valentine, a former manager of Boston Red Sox, throws a ceremonial first pitch at the World Baseball Classic first round game between Japan and China in Fukuoka, Japan, Sunday, March 3, 2013. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)

Former New York Mets’ manager Bobby Valentine, left, talks with Italy’s head coach Mike Piazza, right, prior to the quarterfinal game between Italy and Japan at the World Baseball Classic (WBC) at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan, Thursday, March 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Lee Mazzilli, The Brooklyn Mets Story

Lee Mazzilli was drafted by the Mets in 1973 out of Abraham Lincoln High School in Brooklyn. He played ten years in Queens across two stints, was a 1979 All-Star, and hit the first home run by a Met in an All-Star Game that summer in Seattle. He is the kind of player every Brooklyn family of a certain generation tells stories about. He is also, importantly for World Baseball Network’s readership, the most prominent Italian-American figure in the modern Mets canon — a Brooklyn kid, an Italian last name on the back of a Mets jersey, drafted out of a New York City public high school. The bridge between borough and franchise that the team has tried to recreate in every generation since.

New York Mets outfielder Lee Mazzilli, manager Joe Torre Listen to coach Willie Mays talk outfield. Mays and Mazzilli are arrivals at camp to work on Mazzilli’s outfield problems on Feb. 21, 1978 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (AP Photo)

Mazzilli came back for the 1986 World Series team. In Game 6 against the Boston Red Sox, with the Mets one strike from elimination, Mazzilli came off the bench in the eighth inning, walked, and scored the tying run on a sacrifice fly by Gary Carter. He went 2-for-3 with two runs scored across Games 6 and 7. The man on third base when Bill Buckner’s error happened was a different teammate, but the one who scored the run that *brought the Mets within one* in that inning was Lee Mazzilli of Brooklyn.

New York Mets Lee Mazzilli reacts as he crosses home plate to score the Mets’ third run of the game on a sacrifice fly by Gary Carter against the Boston Red Sox in New York, Oct. 26, 1986. The Mets went on to win the sixth game of the World Series 6-5 in 10 innings. (AP Photo/Susan Ragan)

Carlos Beltrán, The Cooperstown Clock

Carlos Beltrán is the third inductee and the one whose Cooperstown timeline is most pressing. Beltrán was 70.3 percent on the BBWAA ballot in January — short of the 75 percent needed but tracking toward induction in 2027. He is currently a Special Assistant to Mets President of Baseball Operations David Stearns. The Manati, Puerto Rico native ranks in the Mets’ top ten in home runs, RBI, runs scored, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and OPS. In 2006, he finished second in the National League in bWAR with 8.2 as the Mets advanced to the NLCS.

Beltrán represented Puerto Rico at multiple World Baseball Classics. He was a leader on the 2013 Team Puerto Rico that nearly won the tournament, the squad that established Puerto Rico as one of the WBC’s most dangerous countries for the rest of the decade. He is the most decorated international player to wear a Mets uniform in the franchise’s six decades.

Puerto Rico’s Carlos Beltran, right, highs five with teammates before the start of the World Baseball Classic first round game against Spain in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Friday, March 8, 2013. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton)

Beltrán has remained close to the borough his whole career. In 2009, during a rehab assignment, he played a game with the Brooklyn Cyclones in front of fans who treated it like a major-league appearance.

New York Mets’ Carlos Beltran signs autographs while on a rehab assignment with the Class A Brooklyn Cyclones in a baseball game against the Hudson Valley Renegades at KeySpan Park in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009. (AP Photo/Henny Ray Abrams)

In November 2019, he was introduced as the Mets’ manager — a job he never got to start, but a moment that signaled where the franchise was placing him in its long-term plans. He has been an organizational fixture in some form ever since. His number 15 will be retired in a September ceremony at Citi Field that will also serve as his formal Mets Hall of Fame induction.

FILE – New York Mets’ Carlos Beltran smiles during an introductory baseball news conference in New York, Nov. 4, 2019. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

Three players. Three different threads. One weekend that the franchise, and its fans, get to celebrate together.

The Soto Heater

Juan Soto is on a heater. He hit his 12th home run of the season on Wednesday off Cincinnati’s Andrew Abbott. Six of his last eight hits have been home runs. He has eight home runs in his last 12 games. Only eight National League hitters have more home runs than Soto on the season, and all of them have played in at least nine more games than he has — he missed two and a half weeks in April with a right calf injury. He is hitting .301 / .392 / .594 with a .986 OPS that would lead the National League if he had enough at-bats to qualify.

In his words, he is “trying to do damage.” That has been the Mets offense for the last three weeks. Soto has accounted for nearly half of New York’s RBIs over their last eight games. The reinforcements are coming. Jared Young (Canada) was just activated off the 10-day IL. A.J. Minter is back from the 60-day. Jorge Polanco (Dominican Republic) is on a rehab assignment at Binghamton and could be back next week. Eric Wagaman homered Wednesday after being selected from Syracuse. The shape of the lineup the Marlins are facing this weekend is different from the one they swept eight days ago.

The Marlins Coming In

The Marlins enter Friday with several stories worth following. Otto Lopez (Panama, plays for Team Canada at the WBC) leads the team at .330 — a serviceable shortstop having his best month as a Major Leaguer. Xavier Edwards is hitting .306 with a .386 on-base percentage and the lowest strikeout rate of any starting infielder in the National League. Liam Hicks (Canada) has 11 home runs and 44 RBIs, still third in the National League. Owen Caissie (Canada) drove in both runs in Miami’s 2-1 win over this same Mets team last Friday. Esteury Ruiz (Dominican Republic) tripled in that one. Jakob Marsee (American-born, plays for Team Italy at the WBC) stole his 14th base of the season Tuesday in Toronto. Javier Sanoja (Venezuela) hit his first career grand slam against the Atlanta Braves on May 18. Joe Mack, the 23-year-old No. 4 organizational prospect, is in his rookie season behind the plate and has a pop time good enough that opposing dugouts have noticed.

Eleven Marlins were on 2026 World Baseball Classic rosters. Eury Pérez (Dominican Republic), Sandy Alcántara (Dominican Republic), Heriberto Hernández (Dominican Republic), Lopez, Hicks, Caissie, Ruiz, Marsee, Sanoja, plus two other names on the active roster represent six different countries.

The Mets You Are Seeing (And The Italian Thread)

The Mets carry their own international footprint. Soto (Dominican Republic). Luis Torrens (Venezuela) — likely catching multiple games this weekend. Huascar Brazobán (Dominican Republic) — Team DR alongside Peralta at the WBC. Vidal Bruján (Dominican Republic). Jonah Tong (Canada) — the 23-year-old rookie who threw three scoreless in Miami last Friday. Jonah McLean (Sunday’s starter) carries his own WBC reps. Mark Vientos (Miami-born, plays for Team Nicaragua at the WBC under Dusty Baker). Bo Bichette (West Palm Beach-born, announced he would play for Team Brazil at the WBC but withdrew before the tournament; his brother Dante Jr. played for Brazil in his place). Marcus Semien (Team USA WBC).

Steve Cohen’s posture on this has been clear from day one of his ownership: Mets players are allowed and encouraged to represent their countries at the WBC. That is how a franchise builds international depth in a sport where the talent pipeline has shifted decisively outside the United States over the last twenty years. The 2026 Mets roster has eight current contributors who wore a country’s colors at the tournament in March. That is the legacy Valentine helped author and Beltrán helped represent. World Baseball Network exists to track this.

The Italian thread runs through the building this weekend. Mazzilli is going into the Hall. Brett Baty is a Mets infielder with Italian heritage. Mark Vientos has roots in the same Italian-American baseball tradition that produced Mazzilli a generation ago. And across the diamond, Jakob Marsee (Team Italy at the 2026 WBC) is in center field for Miami. One Mets HOF inductee, one Mets infielder, one current Met from the same heritage line, and one Marlins outfielder repping Italy at the WBC — all in one ballpark on Saturday afternoon.

How To Watch

Friday May 29 · 7:10 PM ET · Meyer vs. Peralta · Marlins.TV · WPIX · Bobby Valentine Disguise (first 15,000) · Fireworks Night
Saturday May 30 · 4:10 PM ET · Phillips vs. Scott · Marlins.TV · SNY · Mets Hall of Fame Induction · Mazzilli/Valentine Players Pin (first 15,000)
Sunday May 31 · 1:40 PM ET · Junk vs. McLean · Marlins.TV · SNY
Radio: WQAM 104.3 (Miami) · WAQI 710 AM (Spanish) · Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880 AM (NY)
Streaming: MLB.TV · Fubo

The Stakes

The Marlins enter Friday three games ahead of the Mets in the NL East and five games out of the third National League Wild Card. Both clubs are still in the chase. The Mets need to take at least two of three to bank a series win going into June and a road trip through Colorado and Los Angeles. The Marlins, riding a stretch of solid baseball with Meyer pitching the way he is, want to keep stacking wins because every weekend they take from a rival is a weekend that strengthens the front office’s hand at the deadline.

Bobby V is back at Citi Field on Saturday. Beltrán is on the Cooperstown clock. Mazzilli is finally getting his moment. Soto is on a heater. Meyer is undefeated. Two teams still in the conversation in late May, playing three games in front of a fan base getting to celebrate its own history. That is what May 29-31 looks like in Queens.

First pitch Friday is 7:10. See you at the ballpark.

— MT

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Ric Flair alleges trademark infringement.

On social media, Ric Flair said that someone is using his “Flair” trademark. He warned the individual to clear this up by Monday, or else they’ll have to deal with his attorneys.

“Unfortunately, There Is Someone That I’m Very Familiar With Using My Own Trademark FLAIR. I Would Like Anyone Who Is Using My Trademarks- Which Are Impossible To Own And I Own Mine, To Know That I’m Well Represented By A Reputable $1000 Per Hour Attorney That Makes A Living Suing People That Abuse My Trademark. You Know Who I’m Talking About. I Hope You Can Clear This Up By Monday, And If We Can’t Resolve This Issue, Read The Penalties.”

Unfortunately, There Is Someone That I’m Very Familiar With Using My Own Trademark FLAIR. I Would Like Anyone Who Is Using My Trademarks- Which Are Impossible To Own And I Own Mine, To Know That I’m Well Represented By A Reputable $1000 Per Hour Attorney That Makes A Living Suing… pic.twitter.com/yVZJlCbYoY

— Ric Flair® (@RicFlairNatrBoy) May 29, 2026

In a follow-up to his previous post, Flair posted this:

“The Relationship Was Gone 9 Years Ago… I’m Sorry & Sad That It Has Come To This. I’ve Tried My Best To Fix Things Over The Years Only To Be Rejected Because Your Wife Runs Your Life.”

The Relationship Was Gone 9 Years Ago… I’m Sorry & Sad That It Has Come To This. I’ve Tried My Best To Fix Things Over The Years Only To Be Rejected Because Your Wife Runs Your Life. pic.twitter.com/xguEDt2R3L

— Ric Flair® (@RicFlairNatrBoy) May 29, 2026

David Fleir, Ric Flair’s son, appears to be a part of Green Flair Recycling according to his LinkedIn profile.

During a recent interview, Flair commented on the Los Angeles Lakers’ Luka Doncic missing the second round of the NBA playoffs. Fans can read his comments here.

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Backrooms Actor Avan Jogia Wants to Bring You Into His World

After two decades in the entertainment industry, Avan Jogia has definitely learned a thing or two.

Getting his start in Hollywood early on Nickelodeon’s Victorious and later the teen drama Twisted, it was a bit of a whirlwind getting spit out of the “kids’ television program machine,” as the 34-year-old actor describes it. Though it took some time, Jogia eventually realized he has full control “to navigate where I want this ship to go,” choosing roles and directing films that truly resonate with him.

“[After] 20 years of having been making stuff, I might be arriving at what my boundaries are,” he tells The Hollywood Reporter. “It takes a long time, not just time elapsed, but inside yourself to be like, ‘Maybe I do deserve to decide how I want to make and what I want to make.’ And so I’ve arrived at that part of the play.”

Jogia’s now diving into projects that lean into world-building and allow characters to exist beyond “the very narrow window of human expression,” he says. That’s exactly why the Prime Video romantic psychological thriller 56 Days caught his attention and saw him star opposite Dove Cameron earlier this year. And it’s why he jumped at the opportunity to work with Kane Parsons on his Backrooms film, which released Friday.

Below, Jogia opens up about transitioning from kids’ television and into more mature roles and directing, what it was like working on Backrooms, the success of 56 Days, collaborating with his fiancée, Halsey, on their new movie and more.

Going to go back to the beginning, what made you initially want to pursue a career in entertainment?

I really liked the concept of being able to be seen as a professional and be taken seriously and also to be able to professionally play, which is what I do for a living. And so I started talking about it when I was like six. Once I understood what it was, my parents held off as best they could and I bugged them until I was like 12 and then they sort of were like, “OK, let’s go to this acting class and sort of like satisfy this thing.” And because of that, I got a lot of commercial work. … And then I started taking more narrative parts in Vancouver, Canada.

Then I dropped out of high school, which I recommend to no one. And I tell this story very rarely because of what I ended up doing, which was kids’ television. You end up being the sort of de facto ambassador and co-parent for every single person of an entire generation or two. And I dropped out of school and drove down to California and lived in a trailer behind someone’s house for $300 in the valley. And then I got the show called Victorious, which is this sort of cultural phenomenon.

We were kids who were a little bit more driven and so we were plucked out and put into this kids’ television program machine, and once it spits you out, as it did for me, it spit me out in my late teens, early ’20s. And I was fortunate enough to go onto the second intermediary step on the ladder, which is teen television. I was on the ABC Family (now Freeform) show called Twisted, which is a beloved cult show for many people because around the time it was one of those shows that was in that pack of Pretty Little Liars and all the other ones.

lazyload fallback — Denise Richards and Avan Jogia in ‘Twisted’ season one.

Everett Collection

Having got your start in acting, when did you know you wanted to transition into directing?

After that show [Twisted] was done, it was sort of my choice to navigate where I want this ship to go. And though that’s the year that I did the two Sundance films and I had the mini-series I did with Sir Ben Kingsley come out, Tut, it was this sort of like, OK, so this is approaching the reason why I came to the party in the first place. I love acting and I will continue to do acting my whole life. Then you get started in one thing and you realize the journey of life, and if you’re listening carefully and you’re not just accepting the first truth that you learnt, you can alter your life in the way that you want.

So I directed a film that I wrote. I wrote the film when I was actually 23, out of frustration that I really didn’t like the parts that were available, and so I wrote these parts for other people, the kind of parts that I wanted to do and I grew up wanting to be in. I like frenetic, energetic movies where characters get a real opportunity to be characters, to be extreme, to not exist in the very narrow window of human expression.

Backrooms is your newest project, and since audiences don’t technically see you on camera in the film, how did this role come about?

Kane’s [Parsons, director] so smart. I’ve liked him since he was 16 years old making his videos, and he got this opportunity and I was happy to be involved in anything to support his vision for what this thing is. I love the world building. That’s the kind of film that I wanted to be able to be in when I got out of the machinery of kids’ television and into my 20s.

Me and Kane, I don’t know what it was. We kept on talking. We talked way more than I think a part like this normally would merit, because he’s a world builder and I just love that stuff. So am I. And there’s no part of this film, when watching him work, that isn’t important to him. He’s got lore and he’s got myth and he’s got depth for every aspect of it and that’s how you make things that I like. We had many conversations and I think there was a bunch of different versions of how I was going to be in this, but he just was like, “You’re in it. I don’t know in what capacity.” And it was because I said to my agents and managers, “Whatever the capacity is, I’m a gamer. I want to play ball.”

It was recently announced that you’re going to be directing and co-writing the film Replacer with your fiancée, Halsey. How did the idea come about and how excited are you to be collaborating together?

One of the joys of my life is being able to live and collaborate with someone who I think is immensely talented in every medium that she’s exploring. And we work really well together. We have a similar writing sensibility, which made the writing process super easy, and I’m just excited to watch. Again, I want to watch actors have fun exploring something larger than themselves or larger than the everyday, the mundane and the rote. I want actors to come in and swing on a person and on a character. And watching her be able to do that, I mean, I wrote it with the attention that in your 20s, she was busy being wildly successful in a very, very hard field. So she didn’t have time to do movies like this. And so I was like, “You should have had one of these, so let me write it.”

That’s a pretty grand romantic gesture to be like, “Let me write a movie for you.”

Yeah, that should have been something that happened, but it didn’t because you took this different dimension jump, but there’s a dimension where you could have been doing this and doing this and doing this. And part of loving someone is also being able to see all the different versions of them that could have been or that might yet still be.

You mentioned that you were avoiding romantic lead roles at one point in your career, but then you just starred in 56 Days, which became a hit on Prime Video. What made you want to join this project, as well as what was your reaction to how it resonated with fans?

It’s a romantic lead, but there’s so much there. There’s meat on the bones. There’s something for me to perform. There’s a constant tension that’s there that I can do it really, really sweetly, or I can do it with the weight of all the internal stuff that Oliver’s going through. Also, not for nothing, it was quite a physical part because I had my shirt off all the time (Laughs), which, insert massive sigh about how it’s a lot of work. But that was something to do. I’d done a couple of those, but I hadn’t really done something like this.

And then of course it’s a number one show situation, which is amazing and I’m so humbled by that, and people have been really, really nice about it and kind. I don’t think anyone expects a show to be a cultural moment. I think you would have to be quite mad as a person to be like, “Oh yeah, No. 1.” But it’s always a nice thing. It ended up being sort of a choice for me because once you do a show like that, what happens subsequently is you get a million more opportunities to do that sort of thing and people are intimating that you should keep going on this train even if it takes you further from what you want to do. And because I’m oppositional defiant, I was like, “Let me go direct a movie.” (Laughs.)

Fans have also been fancasting you to potentially portray Xaden in the Fourth Wings Prime Video adaptation. I know your focus is on directing at the moment, but would you be open to doing that role if presented the opportunity?

Everything has something interesting to it, not for nothing. I’d love to do fantasy. When you’re a little boy and you’re growing up and you want to be an actor, you have a list in your mind of things that you would love to do. I saw The Lord of the Rings and was like, “I would love to be able to one day be included in fantasy.” And I grew up. I’ve played every large-scale fantasy video game that there is to play. I’ve spent tens of thousands of hours of my life living in a fantasy world. I would love to be able to be in a movie or a TV show that has fantasy elements to it. I would love to be a pirate. That’s what I’m saying when I say acting. What I got into this to do is to make myself as a child happy by playing in worlds that have always excited me since I was a kid. And so the concept of dragons and a fantasy world like that, that sounds awesome.

If you had to describe what makes Avan Jogia, Avan Jogia, what would you say?

I’m passionate. I’m curious. I love creative collaboration. In a world where there’s so little community, film set, the pirate ship, the us all go to sail and we find whatever this thing is out in the open ocean, that community of people that I get to work with every day, that is what I’m always looking for. That creative community of ideas where we’re all rolling up our sleeves and we all believe in a thing and we’re all doing it together is way more important than what the result ends up being. The result is a byproduct of the time spent with a community. … I’m someone who’s always made for the sake of making and then sometimes I lose my way. But I think [after] 20 years of having been making stuff, I might be arriving at what my boundaries are. Like I said earlier in the conversation, it takes a long time, not just time elapsed, but inside yourself to be like, “Maybe I do deserve to decide how I want to make and what I want to make.” And so I’ve arrived at that part of the play.

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Marlins At Mets: Bobby V And Mazzilli Enter The Mets Hall Of Fame On Saturday, With Beltrán To Follow In September

Friday: Meyer at Peralta

Saturday: Phillips at Scott — And A Hall Of Fame Ceremony

Sunday: Junk at McLean

The Bobby V Weekend, And What It Means

Lee Mazzilli, The Brooklyn Mets Story

Carlos Beltrán, The Cooperstown Clock

The Soto Heater

The Marlins Coming In

The Mets You Are Seeing (And The Italian Thread)

How To Watch

The Stakes

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Backrooms Actor Avan Jogia Wants to Bring You Into His World

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