The ESPN Daily: The legacy of Tyler Trent, LeBron’s revenge tour and the fallout from a middle finger in Seattle

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‘This is what his life did’ … Purdue superfan Tyler Trent captured the imagination of the nation when he correctly predicted his Boilermakers would upset the Buckeyes, making his prediction mere days after doctors had found his osteosarcoma had spread. Tyler died on New Year’s Day, but his legacy in West Lafayette seems to be just beginning. Read More

The earthquake that shook the World Series … Tim Kurkjian was there when 6.9 earthquake struck during Game 3 of the 1989 World Series in San Francisco. Some people tried to make light of the situation … but the fear and consequences were very real. Thirty years to the week after he was an eyewitness to the terror, Kurkjian remembers how, for many players and fans, it was a life-changing event. Read More

The pressure mounts … John Elway has two football lives — in one, he’s the legendary icon of perhaps the most successful era in Broncos history. In another, he’s an embattled executive who’s running out of time to turn around the team he loves. For maybe the first time in decades, the scoreboard isn’t in Elway’s favor in Denver. Here’s the challenge he faces as losses pile up and time grows short. Read More

The fallout from a middle finger … Earl Thomas had plenty of memorable images in his time with the Legion of Boom, but perhaps the most iconic one was him giving the Seahawks sideline the middle finger while being carted off the field with a broken leg. It would prove to be his last moment in a Seahawks’ uniform, and the bad blood still remains. Here’s a look at the complicated relationship between Thomas and his former team as he returns to Seattle for the first time Sunday, now as a member of the Ravens. Read More

From holding to head-butting … Ever wonder what the most common penalty is in the NFL? What about the least-common one in the NHL? How about in baseball? That last one is a trick question — baseball does not have “penalties” as we traditionally understand them — so you won’t get that answer here. You totally will get the other answers, though. We made sure of that. Read More

The Astros go up 3-1 in the ALCS over the Yankees behind three-run home runs from George Springer and Carlos Correa.

“It was insulting, for sure. Once I got cut, I could have just come here [to the Jets] and not stayed there and re-sign. When they re-signed me, I was thinking that I was good. Two weeks later, I was gone. So, it’s like, ‘Why did I waste my time?’ Because at the end of the day, it was kind of a waste of time for me.”

— Jets WR Demaryius Thomas, on his short stay with the Patriots Read more

On this date in 1977, Reggie Jackson hit three home runs on three pitches in Game 6 of the World Series. The feat earned him the nickname “Mr. October.” Watch

Pittsburgh vs. Syracuse (7 p.m. ET, ESPN): Pittsburgh, which kinda feels like it has a chance of being ranked if everything goes well for the rest of the season, travels to Syracuse for a Friday night ACC matchup.

Astros at Yankees, Game 5 (7:08 p.m. ET, FS1): The Astros jumped out to a commanding 3-1 series lead in The Bronx on Thursday night. Will Houston clinch a World Series berth, or will New York stay in the fight?

UFC Fight Night: Reyes vs. Weidman (9 p.m. ET, ESPN2): Dominick Reyes will fight Chris Weidman in a light heavyweight matchup in Boston. Former NFL defensive end Greg Hardy will also be fighting on the main card. You can catch the prelims at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

Beterbiev vs. Gvozdyk (10 p.m. ET, ESPN): Oleksandr Gvozdyk takes on Artur Beterbiev for the WBC/IBF light heavyweight unification. You can catch the undercards at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+.

College GameDay (Saturday, 9 a.m. ET, ESPN): GameDay travels to State College for the Michigan-Penn State matchup (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC). For a first look at the top stories and marquee matchups, make sure to tune in to our Countdown to GameDay (Saturday, 8:30 a.m. ET, ESPN App/YouTube/Twitter/Facebook). After the crew makes its picks, stay on the ESPN family of networks for a full day of college football, including No. 12 Oregon vs. No. 25 Washington at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC and at No. 1 Alabama vs. Tennessee at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Minnesota United FC vs. LA Galaxy (Sunday, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN): Zlatan Ibrahimovic will try to lead the Galaxy past Minnesota United in the first round of the MLS playoffs. The winner will have the chance to face No. 1-seed LAFC in the second round.

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