Nov 22, 2018 4 min read

Air Force defeats Colorado State

Cole Fagan ‘s Thanksgiving feast consisted of yards and carries.

Turns out, the junior fullback had quite the appetite.

Fagan rushed for 260 yards, the third-most in Air Force history, and linebacker Kyle Floyd thwarted a late drive with an interception to help the Falcons hold off Colorado State 27-19 Thursday.

Fagan gouged the Colorado State defense with run after run up the middle, including an early 3-yard score. He finished 15 yards shy of the school record set by Chad Hall in 2007.

Referendum: Taiwan or Chinese Taipei?

Athletes from Taiwan compete at the Olympics under the name of a make-believe country: Chinese Taipei. They march behind an imaginary national flag and, if they win a gold medal, hear an “alternate national anthem” being played.

Imagine if France or Australia had to use an assumed name at the Olympics, or the United States and Japan were banned from flying their flags.

A referendum to challenge this will be held in Taiwan on Saturday. It asks if the self-governing island should compete in international sports events – including the 2020 Tokyo Olympics – as “Taiwan” instead of “Chinese Taipei.”

“We are the sole IOC member banned from using our own country’s name,” said Chi Cheng, a bronze medalist in the 1968 Olympics. “We are the only member who cannot sing our national anthem and fly our national flag. We are the only one. This shows how seriously China is suppressing us.”

No matter what voters want, nothing is likely to change.

China’s authoritarian government has viewed Taiwan as a renegade province since the two separated in the 1949 civil war. The International Olympic Committee backs China, which will host the 2022 Winter Olympics.

In a statement to the Associated Press, the IOC said it will not alter a 1981 agreement that Taiwan must compete as Chinese Taipei. Its executive board repeated that stance in meetings on May 2-3.

“The agreement remains unchanged and fully applicable,” the IOC said.

That puts the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee in a bind. If the referendum passes, it could be required by Taiwanese law to go ahead with the name change pending approval from the legislature.

But in a statement to AP, it said “we are bound by the Olympic Charter, the agreement we signed with the IOC in 1981, and also by the IOC executive board decision.”

Taiwan’s athletes are caught in the middle. Dozens protested Wednesday, fearing they could lose their chance to participate in the Olympics.

In the NHL

The Edmonton Oilers acquired defenseman Chris Wideman from the Ottawa Senators on Thursday for a 2020 sixth-round pick.

Wideman has two goals, three assists and 12 penalty minutes in 19 games this season. The 28-year-old native of St. Louis had 16 goals, 27 assists, 98 penalty minutes and a plus/minus rating of plus-7 over 175 games in four seasons with Ottawa.

Darnold doesn’t practice

New York Jets rookie quarterback Sam Darnold sat out team drills for a second straight day of practice, increasing the likelihood he’ll sit out against New England on Sunday.

Darnold strained his right foot against Miami on Nov. 4 and didn’t play the following week against Buffalo. Josh McCown will start in Darnold’s place again if the youngster is unable to play.

Darnold showed some progress Wednesday when he was in uniform for the first time since the injury, but didn’t throw passes in individual or team drills. It was the same situation Thursday when the Jets practiced indoors because of temperatures in New Jersey dropping into the low-20s.