Greg Cote’s Hot Button Top 10: Michigan facing NCAA hammer?, why Charissa Thompson mess matters & more

GREG COTE’S HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (NOVEMBER 19): WHAT IN SPORTS HAS GRABBED US LATELY: Our Sunday Hot Button Top 10 had been blog-only but when our blog retired it moved, re-imagined, to online-only. HB10 means what’s on our minds, locally and nationally, but from a Miami perspective and accentuating stuff that’s big, weird, damnable, funny or otherwise worth needling as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. Welcome to the 38th edition of your Sunday sports-potpourri notes column, the new HB10:

1. HURRICANES: Loss to Louisville 2nd straight near-miss to top-10 team: “Close is not good enough,” said Mario Cristobal after Saturday’s 38-31 home loss to Louisville. Can’t blame turnovers this time. UM had 13 of those in its four previous losses but zero Saturday. The defense simply couldn’t handle the Cardinals, and dumb late penalties didn’t help. Canes are clearly better than last season ... but also better than 6-5.

2. HEAT: Miami’s 7-game win streak fizzles in fourth: Fans after Miami’s 1-4 start: “Not making the Damian Lillard trade happen has ruined the season!” Fans at 8-4 after a seven-game win streak: “Dame who!? Never doubt the magic of Erik Spoelstra! Heat Culture!” Heat finally lost Saturday in Chicago, blowing a fourth-quarter lead, to open a five-game road trip that continues Monday against the Bulls again, with Tyler Herro getting closer to return.

3. COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Michigan’s concession an admission of guilt: Michigan overnight went from righteous anger and threatened lawsuits over coach Jim Harbaugh’s three-game suspension to meek acceptance. Hmm. The Big Ten penalty for sign-stealing will stand, and the school is now accepting it because of developments in the NCAA’s ongoing investigation into the Wolverines’ (alleged) cheating. Friday the school fired linebackers coach Chris Partridge in an apparent related move. Michigan could face major future sanctions related to lack of institutional control. (My column from November 8.)

4. DOLPHINS: Nobody beats the bad like the Fins do: Miami is 6-0 as a favorite and 0-3 as an underdog., including the loss to the Chiefs in Germany before the bye. Now, Sunday at home vs. Las Vegas is the first of five straight games that will find the Fins favored, often by a lot, like today’s 13-half point line. So if the pattern of beating-the-bad continues Miami should be 11-3 before a very tough finish vs. Dallas, at Baltimore, then vs. Buffalo.

5. PANTHERS: Reinhart carrying goals load as Cats stay hot: Florida after an 0-2 start is 11-5-1 and second in the East entering a three-game homestand starting Monday -- with every indication they’ll be in the mix to return to the Stanley Cup Final. Credit Sam Reinhart, whose 13 goals tie for most in NHL as Mathew Tkachuk (three goals) still looks for his offensive rhythm. Circle Wednesday on the calendar: Cats host East-leading Boston.

6. SPORTS MEDIA: Why the Charissa Thompson fiasco matters: So Charissa Thompson, Fox Sports and Amazon Prime Video host (for now) on Thursday Night Football, is doing the Apology Tour after admitting on a podcast she used to make up reports when working as an NFL sideline reporter earlier in her career. It matters because journalists (even in sports) work very hard to build credibility and trust, and this undermines that. It matters because females in sports media especially face an unfair burden, so this doubly hurts. May Ms. Thompson find a career that better suits her.

7. MARLINS: Manager of year award? (You’re welcome, says Kim Ng): Call Skip Schumaker’s NL Manager of the Year award a parting gift from former GM Kim Ng, who hired him but left when the club hired a new president who would usurp much of her power. Marlin Luis Arraez was top-10 (eighth) in NL MVP voting, and Fish pitcher Eury Perez received a single vote for Rookie of the Year. Miami got shut out in Cy Young voting.

8. GOLF: Welcome back, Tiger! Woods sets return to competition: Tiger Woods, 15-time major champion and still the biggest thing in golf at 47, announced Saturday he’ll compete in the Hero World Challenge event he hosts in the Bahamas November 30 to December 3. It will be Woods’ first PGA Tour start since withdrawing from the third round of The Masters last April. He has played in only five tournaments since suffering serious injuries in a single-car crash in February 2021.

9. AUTO RACING: F1’s return to Vegas mercifully ends: Formula One’s Las Vegas Grand Prix was won by Max Verstappen (of course) Saturday night. The way the buildup to the race went, they’re lucky the final wasn’t postponed by a swarm of locusts. Disappointing ticket sales and a nightmarish opening night dogged the event. A water valve issue on the Strip eight minutes into the first practice Thursday caused severe damage to Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari and long delays. Repairs stretched so late into the night that fans were told to leave well before practice resumed at 2:30 a.m. F1 offered no apology to fans, some of whom spent up to $50,000 for a three-day pass. Single-day ticket holders got only a $200 voucher. Now a class-action lawsuit has been filed on behalf of the 35,000 people who bought tickets for Thursday’s practice session.

10. COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Update. Deion Sanders needs emergency hype replacement: Remember when Colorado started 3-0 and coach Deion (Prime) Sanders was a genius who kept trademarking pet phrases and appearing in TV commercials? Quick update: Today Colorado is 4-7 and 1-7 in the Pac-12 after a 56-14 loss to Washington State. Is he Coach (Past His) Prime now? Just asking.

Other most recent stuff from me: ‘Close isn’t good enough’: Hurricanes 38-31 loss to Louisville 2nd straight near-miss vs. top-10 team / NFL Week 11 picks / Hurricanes hugely better in Cristobal Year 2, & win over No. 10 Louisville would prove it / Herald NFL Week 10 QB rankings / Hurricanes fall 27-20 at FSU, but Miami shows fight, glimpse of better future / Previous HB10 / And my latest podcast: