College football kicks off Saturday, as the sport begins a second season in the midst of a global pandemic.

• The state of play: Much like last year, teams, students and fans face varying realities. Some stadiums will require proof of vaccination, some will require masks, and others will require neither.
• Yes, but: While the pandemic hovers over this fall much like the last, the upcoming season will look more like 2019 than 2020, with most schools welcoming full crowds and encouraging tailgating.

The big picture: Late August is always a special time in America. Summer is winding down, school is starting back up, football is kicking off and fall is just around the corner.

• For the second straight year, those late summer vibes feel slightly off, to say the least.
• But football remains a constant in our lives, marking the time as it has for decades.

Schedule: There are just five games on Saturday, with the real action starting next week. The most notable matchup, and the only conference game, is Nebraska vs. Illinois.

• 1pm ET: Nebraska (-7) at Illinois (Fox)
• 2pm: UConn (+27.5) at Fresno State (CBSSN)
• 3:30pm: Hawaii (+17.5) at UCLA (ESPN)
• 9:30pm: UTEP (-10) at New Mexico State
• 10pm: Southern Utah (+24) vs. San Jose State (CBSSN)

Go deeper: Intel on all 130 FBS teams (ESPN)

The Yankees won their 12th straight game on Thursday night, rallying to beat the Athletics, 7-6, in Oakland.

Why it matters: This is the franchise's longest winning streak since their famous 1961 season, best known for the home run chase between Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle.

Go deeper: Have the streaking Yankees gotten better or luckier? (FiveThirtyEight)

The USMNT on Thursday announced its 26-man roster for World Cup qualifiers, which kick off next week in El Salvador, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes.

How it works: Eight CONCACAF teams will play 14 games each in a round-robin tournament to determine who qualifies for Qatar 2022.

• Schedule: The U.S. plays in El Salvador on Sept. 2, hosts Canada in Nashville on Sept. 5 and travels to Honduras on Sept. 8. Five matches follow in the fall, with the final six running through March 2022.
• Qualification: The top three teams qualify for the World Cup, and the fourth-place finisher gets one more shot in an inter-confederation playoff next spring.

Roster breakdown: The average age is just north of 24, with players averaging fewer than 20 caps each. Just six have previous World Cup qualifying experience.

• 10 players are on European clubs in this year's Champions League, nine play in MLS, and all but two contributed to the USMNT's phenomenal summer.
• Of note: 26 players will report to camp in Nashville on Sunday, but matchday rosters will be limited to 23 men.

The last word: The summer has gone about as well as the USMNT could have hoped, with two trophies secured. But none of that matters now, says head coach Gregg Berhalter.

"It's nice to win a trophy in Nations League. It's nice to win a Gold Cup trophy. It's nice to be ranked 10th in the world. It doesn't mean anything if we don't qualify for the World Cup."

🥇 Pic du jour: Yes, you're seeing that correctly: two Paralympians without arms competing in the 100m freestyle. If that doesn't inspire you, check your pulse. Humans are incredible.

⚽️ Champions League draw: 32 clubs were split into eight groups during Thursday's Champions League draw. Manchester City and PSG will face off in Group A, in what could ultimately be Ronaldo vs. Messi.

⚾️ Historically immaculate: Chris Sale on Thursday recorded his third career immaculate inning (three strikeouts on nine pitches), joining Sandy Koufax as the only pitchers with that many.

🎥 More drones: After the stunning drone footage of the Cowboys' practice facility went viral, the Dolphins made their own version. I'm hoping more teams follow — can't get enough of these videos.

⚾️ Wander Boy: Rays rookie Wander Franco has reached base in 26 straight games. The only other AL players under the age of 21 to do that? Mickey Mantle and Al Kaline.

After three weeks away for summer break, the 2021 Formula 1 season resumes Sunday at the Belgian Grand Prix.

The intrigue: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) has dominated the sport for nearly a decade, winning six of seven drivers' titles since 2014. But this year, he finally has a nemesis in Max Verstappen (Red Bull).

• The two drivers have won nine of the 11 races so far, and they're currently separated by just eight points atop the standings.
• Verstappen grew up in Belgium, adding another layer of drama to the race. Nearby traffic signs have been changed from 30 (km/h) to 33 to match Max's number.

Go deeper: A title fight for the ages (The Ringer)

The Little League World Series will crown its first champion in two years on Sunday night in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, Jeff writes.

Saturday semifinals:

• South Dakota vs. Ohio (12:30pm ET, ABC)
• Hawaii vs. Michigan (3:30pm, ABC)

Let's meet the semifinalists ...

Sioux Falls, South Dakota: Their offense hasn't done much, but it hasn't needed to, with the pitching staff allowing just one hit in three games.

• The star: Lefty hurler Gavin Weir has thrown four no-hitters this summer. His pitch count last time out will keep him off the mound this weekend — but he's pretty good with the bat, too.
• The city: Sioux Falls has a population of 193,000. The falls were created 14,000 years ago during the last ice age, and the Lakota and Dakota tribes have been there for nearly 300 years.

Hamilton, Ohio: California crushed them last weekend, but Ohio got the last laugh in Thursday's 4-2 win.

• The star: J.J. Vogel has been lights out on the mound, with 17 K, two hits and two runs allowed in 10.2 innings. He also had four RBI in the pivotal elimination game.
• The city: Hamilton, a town of 62,000 just north of Cincinnati, got its start in 1791 as a fort named after Alexander Hamilton. Now it goes by the "City of Sculpture," hoping to revitalize itself through the arts.

Honolulu, Hawaii: Offense led the way in the first two games before stellar pitching and a couple web gems finished the job for "Da Boys."

• The star: Ryan Keanu has allowed just three hits and one run across two complete games. In the one game he didn't pitch, he went 3-5 with two doubles and a dinger.
• The city: Honolulu has been the capital of Hawaii since King Kamehameha III moved it there in 1845. The city of 343,300 resides on the southern tip of Oahu just eight miles from Pearl Harbor.

Taylor, Michigan: A loss to Hawaii put them in the elimination bracket, where they routed Texas (15 runs on 14 hits) to set up a pivotal rematch.

• The star: Cameron Thorning has seven RBI in four games (including a clutch grand slam), plus six strikeouts and a save.
• The city: Taylor, a Detroit suburb with a population of 63,131, was founded in 1847 and named for future President Zachary Taylor — a hero of the then-raging Mexican-American War.

The NFL season is fast approaching. While we eagerly await its arrival, we're counting down the league's top 20 players.

• Player: Josh Allen, QB (Bills)
• Age: 25
• College: Wyoming
• Contract: 6 years, $258M (FA in 2029)
• 2020 stats: 16 games; 4,544 yards, 37 TD, 10 INT; 421 rushing yards, 8 TD; 1 catch, TD
• 2021 fantasy: No. 31 ADP (average draft position)
• Week 1: Steelers at Bills

The big picture: Allen's growth since his rookie season in 2018 has been astounding. He's transformed into an MVP candidate and has Bills fans dreaming of their first Super Bowl parade.

• By the numbers: Just look at this statistical progression through three seasons: Wins (5-10-13); QBR (49.8-49.4-81.7); completion percentage (52.8%-58.8%-69.2%); passing TD (10-20-37); passing yards (2,074-3,089-4,544); INT percentage (3.8%-2.0%-1.7%).
• Wild stat: Allen has 25 career rushing scores, which already ranks third among active QBs. No wonder the Bills gave him the most guaranteed money in NFL history ($150M).

What they're saying: "His biggest weakness is also what makes him so good," an AFC scout told ESPN (subscription). "He'll hold onto the ball a little too long or bail on the pocket too early, [but] he often gets away with that because he's so strong and can break tackles."

ICYMI: 20. Dalvin Cook; 19. Trent Williams; 18. Bobby Wagner; 17. Tyreek Hill; 16. Jaire Alexander; 15. Stefon Diggs; 14. Myles Garrett; 13. Jalen Ramsey; 12. George Kittle

17 years ago today, Argentina stunned Team USA, 89-81, in the semifinals in Athens, denying American pros Olympic gold for the first time.

• Manu Ginóbili (29 points) starred for a disciplined Argentinian squad that had seven players with NBA experience.
• USA co-captains Allen Iverson and Tim Duncan scored just 10 points each, while 19-year-old LeBron James played only three minutes under coach Larry Brown.

Why it matters: Argentina went on to beat Italy, joining the U.S., the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia as the only countries to win men's basketball gold.

• The U.S. beat Lithuania to win bronze, an underwhelming result that lit a fire under the entire USA Basketball program.
• The Americans have lost just one Olympic game since the Argentina debacle. It happened last month in the opening round against France, who they later beat in the gold medal game.

🎥 Watch: Highlights (YouTube)

Source: Giphy

Nebraska, which opens its season at Illinois tomorrow, ranks seventh among FBS schools in all-time wins (905).

• Question: Name the six schools ahead of the Cornhuskers.
• Hint: Nebraska plays three of them this season.

Answer at the bottom.

"Fall wedding" — two words college football fans hate to hear. But this year, they don't have much choice.

• Thanks to 2020 delays, The Wedding Report estimates that there will be 2.8 million weddings in the U.S. this year — up from 1.2 million in 2020 and 2.2 million in 2019.
• "[M]any of those weddings are ticketed for the fall," writes The Athletic's Nicole Auerbach, "which is as close to blasphemous as you can get for college football fans in some parts of this country."

Go deeper: An age-old fall Saturday conflict takes on a new tone (The Athletic)