Ellington

High school football, Provine vs. Forest Hill at South Jackson, 7 p.m.: The Rams look to rock the Rebels.

Friday, Sept. 17

High school football, Madison Central at Brandon, 7 p.m. (620 AM): Head out to the 'burbs for another big battle.

Saturday, Sept. 18

College football, Vanderbilt at Ole Miss, 11:30 a.m. (Ch. 12/97.3 FM): Unhappy days are here again in Oxford after the Rebels disappointing (but not unexpected) 0-2 start. Playing Vandy is usually good for what ails Ole Miss, but the Rebels are in the grip of a full-blown quarterback controversy. … Also, Jackson State vs. Tennessee State, 6 p.m. (BET/105.9 FM): You know things have gotten bad at JSU when players, coaches and local media were hailing the Tigers' "moral victory" after last week's 28-20 loss to Northwestern State. Morale might plummet when the local heroes tangle with the Tennessee Tigers. Don't miss halftime.

Sunday, Sept. 19

Pro football, San Francisco at New Orleans, noon (Ch. 35/620 AM): The Saints kicked it old school in last week's blowout loss to Seattle. But even the Saints should be able to compete with San Francisco, which is one of the NFL's worst teams. All of this is contingent on Hurricane Ivan staying away from the Big Easy, of course.

Monday, Sept. 20

Pro football, Minnesota at Philadelphia, 8 p.m. (Ch. 16): This game looks more competitive now than it did when it first appeared on the schedule.

Tuesday, Sept. 21

Extreme sports, Gravity Games, 7 p.m., OLN: Tonight, some guys risk their necks doing bicycle stunts. Enjoy.

Wednesday, Sept. 22

Birthday, Ronaldo turns 28: The Real Madrid star from Brazil turns up on TV all the time for Champions League matches and so forth. He's a big deal in soccer, which means he's no big deal in the USA. Not that a Euro millionaire cares what Americans think about him, anyway.

The Slate is compiled by the brilliant Doctor S.