WHAT SPORTS REPRESENTS IN TIMES LIKE THESE

A few hours after the L.A. Rams completed practice in Woodland Hills Thursday afternoon, the NFL announced that “in the interest of public safety,” Monday’s NFC wild-card game against the Minnesota Vikings would be moved from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood to State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. “The decision was made in consultation with public officials, the participating clubs and the NFLPA,” the league said.

During a press conference before the decision was announced, Rams Coach Sean McVay said, “This is bigger than the game of football. It gives you perspective.”

McVay then provided that perspective. “What sports represents,” he said, “is an opportunity for people to come together and provide a temporary sense of relief from some of the things that they’re going through. And I am excited about the opportunity for our team to go compete, and people can be proud to have a team that represents a lot of things that are right about sports.”

Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell and offensive coordinator Wes Phillips contacted McVay this week after seeing devastating video about the fires. “More just friends checking up,” he said, “not necessarily worried about ‘how does that affect our game?’”

After practice, the Rams canceled media access to the locker room so that players possibly affected by the Kenneth fire that broke out Thursday afternoon near Woodland Hills could leave, a team official told the L.A. Times.

This weekend, football fans in SoCal will have the opportunity to experience the aforementioned “temporary sense of relief.”

Thursday night at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Notre Dame The Irish will face the winner of

The winner of tonight’s game ESPN between Ohio State and Texas at the Cotton Bowl in Arlington, Texas, will meet Notre Dame in the College Football Playoffs championship, which will take place on Monday, 1/20, at Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The Irish defeated Penn State 27-24 in an instant classic Thursday night.

Six NFL Wild Card playoff matchups will be played this weekend, starting with the L.A. Chargers vs. the Houston Texans in Houston at 1:30 PST on CBS and Paramount+.

Below is the complete schedule of football games.