Rhythmic

N.Y. Giants 29 — Dallas 24 Lawrence Tynes kicked two field goals in the fourth quarter, and the New York Giants beat the Dallas Cowboys, 29-24, in Dallas on Sunday after blowing a 23-point lead. New York (6-2) surged to a 23-0 advantage early in the second quarter after defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul returned a Tony Romo interception 28 yards for a touchdown. Dallas (3-4) then scored 24 straight points to take a 1-point lead at the end of the third quarter.

Marco Scutaro's line drive single scored Ryan Theriot with the go-ahead run in the top of the 10th inning, and the San Francisco Giants beat the Detroit Tigers, 4-3, on Sunday night in Detroit to complete a four-game sweep of the 2012 World Series.

This week’s rankings will look very different when the new AP Poll comes out following a Saturday full of upsets. Four Top Ten teams fell this week and five ranked teams suffered their first losses of the season. Meanwhile, Collin Klein and Manti T’eo boosted their Heisman chances while Alabama, Oregon, Kansas State and Notre Dame continued to make their case for a shot in the national title game.

Former Heisman Trophy finalist Tyrann “Honey Badger” Mathieu and three former LSU football players were arrested Thursday and charged with a variety of drug crimes.

Friday, Oct. 26 Cincinnati at (15) Louisville Papa John's Cardinal Stadium, Louisville; 8 p.m. (ET) on ESPN Two of the Big East's best teams meet on a Friday night in Kentucky. Fifteenth-ranked Louisville (7-0 overall, 2-0 Big East) is led by quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and running backs Senorise Perry and Jeremy Wright. Cincinnati (5-1, 1-0) was ranked and undefeated before dropping its game against Toledo last week. The Bearcats have beaten Louisville in the last four meetings between the teams.

#13 Mississippi State (7-0) at #1 Alabama (7-0) [Saturday at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN] After steamrolling through its first seven opponents, the Crimson Tide now gets to the meat of its schedule with a three-game stretch vs. #13 Mississippi State, at #6 LSU and vs. #22 Texas A&M. Thus far, Alabama hasn’t really been challenged, outscoring its opponents by almost 33 points per game. The Tide defense has been as good as we’ve seen in years, ranking first in almost all defensive categories. But while the defense understandably gets the publicity, the Alabama offense has been no slouch either, scoring 40+ in five of seven games this year. Quarterback A.J. McCarron leads the nation in pass efficiency and the offense ranks 14th nationally in scoring.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Minnesota Vikings — 8:20 P.M. Mall of America Field, Minneapolis Tampa Bay (2-4) quarterback Josh Freeman is the 11th-rated passer in the NFL. He'll have to contend with a Vikings' defense that is tied for third in the league with 22 sacks. With quarterback Christian Ponder committing seven turnovers in his past three starts, Minnesota (5-2) may rely on running back Adrian Peterson. Peterson's 652 rushing yards are tied for third in the NFL. He'll face a Buccaneers' run defense that ranks third in the league, allowing just 76 yards per game on the ground.

After surviving their record sixth elimination game of the 2012 postseason on Monday night, the San Francisco Giants advanced to the 2012 World Series. There, they will face the Detroit Tigers starting Wednesday night at AT&T Park in San Fran. Here's a preview of the 2012 World Series:

Brian Urlacher and D.J. Moore each collected turnovers to stifle potential second-half touchdown drives, and the Chicago Bears beat the Detroit Lions, 13-7, in Chicago on Monday night. It was the fourth straight win for Chicago (5-1). The Bears led 13-0 when the Lions threatened in the third quarter, advancing the ball to the 1-yard line before Urlacher recovered a fumble by Joique Bell of Detroit (2-4). Quarterback Matthew Stafford drove the Lions back into the red zone three possessions later, only to have Moore intercept his pass from the 3-yard-line.

Matt Cain pitched his second series-clinching game of the postseason, and the San Francisco Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 9-0, in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series on Monday night at AT&T Park.