CBS yesterday afternoon drew a 7.8 overnight rating for Auburn's 26-14 win over Alabama, marking the best figure for a college football game this season to date. The rating in the 3:30pm ET window is the best for any non-SEC Championship CFB game on CBS since the Iron Bowl drew an 8.6 overnight in '13. The rating also is up 66% from the same matchup last year.

Meanwhile, Fox yesterday afternoon in the 12:00pm window drew a 6.7 overnight for Ohio State's 31-20 win over Michigan, marking the net's best figure yet for a CFB game. However, that figure is down 36% from a 10.4 rating on ABC last year, when both schools were ranked in the top 10 and the game went to double OT. OSU's rout of UM in '15 drew a 6.8 overnight on ABC.

Black Friday sales are "expected to come in at around" $33B, representing a "4.8% advance over Black Friday last year." Black Friday is "expected to be the third-busiest shopping day of the year, behind the Saturday before Christmas and Cyber Monday," according to market research firm Customer Growth Partners. A few technical problems "popped up on Friday" as Nike customers "complained about error messages when using the sportswear maker’s website" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 11/25). Nike Direct VP/Communications Charlie Brooks said that the company was "seeing a high level of traffic and sales on its site on Friday and that 'some consumers (are) experiencing intermittent issues, and our teams are working on those'" (WSJ.com, 11/24).

The Golden Knights "held their own inaugural Black Friday sales event called 'Gold Friday,'" and a "line of fans" came early for the special 9:00am PT opening. Fans said that they "waited an hour to pay for their logo gear" at The Arsenal, the team store at the team's HQ/practice space at City National Arena. There were 20% off coupons for fans who "pulled the Golden Knights’ sword from the big stone outside the store." Golden Knights CMO Brian Killingsworth said that he was "pleased with the line of fans." They "filed in very politely with no Black Friday crowd incidents that you see in other retail locations" (LVSPORTSBIZ.com 11/24).

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's contract "could be finalized by midweek," according to sources. Many NFL owners will be in N.Y. this week for committee meetings "ahead of the full ownership meeting in Texas in December," and there is a "strong sentiment among many owners, including some on the Compensation Committee that has negotiated the deal, to get the matter fully resolved ahead of the Dec. 13 meeting." Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones on Thursday said that he "expects the full ownership group to discuss the matter at the December meeting." But Jones is "not in a position to dictate the protocol at this point, and ... several other powerful owners believe the matter can be resolved" in N.Y. this week (CBSSPORTS.com, 11/26). CBS’ Jason La Canfora said support for Goodell’s contract "remains strong" while Jones' "opposition forces are waning" (“The NFL Today,” 11/26).

Dish on Friday said that it "reached a carriage agreement" with CBS and was "restoring the programmer's stations to more than two million subscribers impacted by a three-day blackout that lasted through" Chargers-Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day. Neither company "disclosed financial terms of the new agreement." Dish subscribers in 18 markets spanning 26 states "went without CBS on Thanksgiving" (WSJ.com, 11/24). NFL fans on Thursday "raged over the issue on social media" (DALLASNEWS.com, 11/24). The Cowboys' Thanksgiving game "traditionally attracts the most viewers to a regular-season NFL game every season" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 11/24).

F1 has "unveiled a new logo for the sport ahead of a brand relaunch" in '18. The design -- finalized following collaborations with the FIA and Wieden + Kennedy -- was "revealed publicly using a short video immediately after the end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix." The logo will be "replaced for the first time in 23 years." F1 Managing Dir of Commercial Operations Sean Bratches said, "We needed to provision this mark to our promoters, our sponsors, our broadcast partners. We have a new merchandise partner next year, we're going to have a massive store. ... We thought this was an opportune time to outline what we feel is a mark that will take us into the future." F1 Marketing Dir Ellie Norman also discussed the "need for a new logo" in order to "allow other partner logos to be incorporated with the sport's own mark" (RACER.com, 11/26).

The CFL estimates "one-third of the 36 million people" in Canada will watch today's Stampeders-Argonauts Grey Cup on TSN. A typical CFL game would see "14 cameras in use," but the number for the title game at TD Place Stadium "will be 40." TSN also "added 'Super Slo-Mo' to its broadcasts this year," and they will have two of those cameras in place. Network technicians "spent Friday afternoon installing 'The Condo Cam' in one of the penthouse suites at the Lansdowne condominiums." Not only will viewers get "something they haven’t seen before from the West end of the stadium, they’ll also get shots of the city they wouldn’t normally see" (OTTAWA CITIZEN, 11/25).

Shaw, Nissan, GMC, Sirius XM Canada and BDC Financial are among the major brands that have signed on as sponsors of TSN's coverage (TSN).

Former Trail Blazers player and broadcaster Steve "Snapper" Jones "has died" at the age of 75. Jones "earned all-star honors" during eight seasons in the ABA and was a "well-known broadcaster who was an endearing personality." Jones "finished his professional playing career" with the Blazers in '75-76, and his broadcasting career "began after his playing career ended." Jones called games at CBS and "worked as the color commentator" for the net during the '77 NBA Finals, when the Blazers won the title. He also "worked as part of the Blazers broadcast crew and Blazers TV." Jones later "worked for TBS, TNT, NBC and served as an analyst for 'The NBA on NBC'" (Portland OREGONIAN, 11/26).

CAA's Nez Balelo, the agent for Japanese P/OF Shohei Ohtani, on Friday asked for "written explanations in English and Japanese on how Ohtani would fit into each organization intending to bid and what makes the team attractive." The memo from Balelo was distributed to all 30 teams "along with materials for the Dec. 1 vote on a new posting agreement" between MLB and Nippon Professional Baseball. If the deal is approved, Ohtani is "expected to be put up for bid later that day or the following day." Each team was "asked to provide its answers in both languages as soon as possible." Clubs were told "not to include any financial terms of a possible contract" (AP, 11/25).

Qatar today "unveiled the design" for what it claims is the FIFA World Cup's "first 'reusable' stadium, the seventh of eight expected venues that will stage games" in '22. Ras Abu Aboud is a 40,000-seat stadium that will be built on Doha's southern waterfront and "host matches up to the quarter-final stage." After the World Cup, the stadium will be "taken down, with the parts put in to containers in the hope it will be reassembled and used elsewhere." Qatar has now "revealed the designs for all venues expected to be used" in '22 except Lusail Stadium, which will "host the opening game and World Cup final" (AFP, 11/26).

President Trump on Saturday "was spotted" playing golf with Jack Nicklaus and his son, Gary, in West Palm Beach. On Friday, Trump "played with Tiger Woods, Dustin Johnson and Brad Faxon at another of his courses, in nearby Jupiter" (AP, 11/25).

Meanwhile, Trump on Friday morning "criticized the NFL" on Twitter, as he "took aim" at the players and Commissioner Roger Goodell. Trump tweeted, "Can you believe that the disrespect for our Country, our Flag, our Anthem continues without penalty to the players. The Commissioner has lost control of the hemorrhaging league. Players are the boss!" (USATODAY.com, 11/24).

A special two-hour documentary called "The NHL: 100" will be shown on NBCSN and NHL Network at 10:00pm ET tonight. The documentary, made to "commemorate the NHL’s Centennial Celebration," is "split into 25-year periods, from the Founding Years to the Original Six to the Expansion Era and the Global Game of today." The four 25-minute episodes will be "streamed on NHL.com beginning Monday." Producer Ross Greenburg said that the educational aspects of the film "might teach a thing or two to the league's most knowledgeable fans" (DENVER POST, 11/26).

The Dodgers on Friday opened a "pop-up museum" at Dodger Stadium celebrating their 60 years in L.A. An exhibit called "60 Years in LA" opened in the left field reserve area of the ballpark, "featuring a variety of Dodger jerseys, trophies and other historical items." The temporary museum "will feature" the '17 NLCS trophy and a World Series ring from "each of the five championships" won in L.A., on loan from former owners the O'Malley family. The collection "comes on loan" from the Baseball HOF, as well as the "private accumulation" of the L.A. Sports Museum's Gary Cypres (DAILYNEWS.com, 11/24).

ESPN's Chip Kelly "agreed to" a five-year, $23.3M deal with a $9M reciprocal buyout to be UCLA's football coach, the school announced yesterday. He will be "formally introduced as the program’s 17th head coach in a news conference" tomorrow (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 11/26).

UFC Fight Night 122 on Friday "drew an announced attendance of 15,128 for a sold-out show" at Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai, but no live gate total "was announced." The event marked the promotion's "debut in mainland China and featured eight Chinese fighters" (MMAJUNKIE.com, 11/25).

Rutgers had to "move port-a-potties outside the gates" at High Point Solutions Stadium yesterday during a home football game against Michigan State "because of a water pressure problem" (NJ.com, 11/26).

Toyota on Friday ran a two-page ad congratulating driver Martin Truex Jr. and Furniture Row Racing for winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship. The ad also congratulated Christopher Bell and Kurt Busch Motorsports for winning the Camping World Truck Series (THE DAILY).

"He used the words 'sons of (expletive)' to talk about NFL players who have made it clear they're protesting racial inequality and police brutality. Those are sons of (expletive)? Really? You're the President of the United States and you're going to call them sons of (expletive)? And you're going to call (Colin) Kaepernick out for non-violent protests, a staple of American democracy? That's really hard to deal with" -- Warriors coach Steve Kerr, discussing President Trump during an appearance yesterday on CNN's "The Axe Files" (USATODAY.com, 11/25).

"I gotta ship Trump some ZO2s so he can calm down a little bit" -- LaVar Ball, on making a peace offering to the President in the form of some Big Baller Brand sneakers (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 11/25).

"For all the endeavors he's in, it's really impressive. And even the things he might not be involved in, he's willing to listen and learn. The amount of empathy he's able to give is something that's missing right now in society. I haven't had a teammate quite like him" -- Eagles S Malcolm Jenkins, on the social activism of his teammate, DE Chris Long (PHILLY.com, 11/24).

"As a former restaurateur, I can tell you it's an economic issue as well. When the Broncos won, our sales would be up 6 to 7 percent for the first couple days, (and) for the week, it would average 4 to 5 percent. And when they lose, you’re down 3 to 4 percent. I think I can speak for the retail business community that the Broncos better start winning" -- Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, on the Broncos' 3-7 record this season (DENVER POST, 11/23).

"I'm quite convinced that if we bid for them we'll get them" -- Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi, on his city bidding for the '26 Winter Games (GLOBE & MAIL, 11/24).

"We’re not as much concerned about the attendance requirement because we knew we had to meet it, we’ve planned, we’ve implemented strategies with corporate partners so that we sell what we have to sell" -- Coastal Carolina Univ. AD Matt Hogue, on the school meeting its attendance goals in its first season at the FBS level (Myrtle Beach SUN NEWS, 11/26).

So sad to hear of Steve “Snapper” Jones’ passing. A big guard in his ABA day, he was more than solid. As a broadcaster he was a model for me: spoke the language properly and even eloquently when the moment called for it. #RIP my 1974 Maurice Stokes Game roommate. https://t.co/jNlxkFmeyl

— Len Elmore (@LenElmore) November 26, 2017

Baker Mayfield urging his team to calm down reminds me of the time Patrick Reed got caught saying the wrong thing on TV in China, and then sought out Bubba for PR advice.

— Doug Ferguson (@dougferguson405) November 25, 2017

Pac-12 South alone is going to payout about $24 million in buyouts this cycle to head coaches.

— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) November 26, 2017

The bloggers vs. traditional media throwndown in Edmonton this week has been extraordinarily amusing and nostalgic. Oh how I’ve missed “you only get insight through access but you’re a non-journalist fan that doesn’t deserve access so [fart noise]”

— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) November 26, 2017

This is part of danger of having so many journalists leave the industry to work for teams or league https://t.co/d5DudttaFe. They avoid stories like Ovechkin supporting Putin.

— Damien Cox (@DamoSpin) November 26, 2017

If you see a tweet we will not want to miss, send it to us at editorial@sportsbusinessdaily.com

On the list of epic fails. Broncos blanket with Salt Lake City, UT skyline (see the Mormon Tabernacle?) Maybe the manufacturer thought the @Broncos needed a little divine intervention from the LDS. #BroncosCountry pic.twitter.com/IpdHNUXzHz

— Joe Hess (@RunningJoeInJax) November 25, 2017

The CHICAGO SUN-TIMES goes with the header, "How Slow Growth, Tanking Persist In Era Of Record MLB Revenues." The new CBA "already looks worse than the previous CBA for many of the major-league players who negotiated it. For the same reasons, it could also be worse for many fans."

The AP examines former broadcaster Brent Musburger's new role with the Vegas Stats & Information Network: "Musburger is looking live these days in the middle of a bustling casino sports book. ... It's there that Musburger and his guys fill listeners in on the latest odds and trends. It's there that they also hope to knock another hole into the perception that sports betting is somehow immoral and sleazy."

Elsewhere:

• Is visiting players' "Vegas flu" a factor in Golden Knights' success?
• Under Armour learned from mistakes to make Curry 4 signature shoe.
• Fantasy sports operators crowd a growing market in Maryland.
• Writer offers some ways to improve PGA Tour's fall schedule.
• Jay Glazer and Nate Boyer's "MVP" program unites veterans, athletes.
• With early detection possible, will NFL do more to fight head injuries?
• How a century ago, Toronto was almost left out of the NHL.
• Working in relative anonymity, Evan Gold is Bruins' salary cap guru.