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♪ welcome to all of you watching us here in the united states, canada and all around the world, i'm kim brunhuber ahead on cnn newsroom. new bribery charges against the head of the senate foreign relations committee and his wife. the evidence includes bars of gold and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash. we'll bring you all the details. >> plus, dramatic scenes at the u.s. southern border as thousands of migrants attempt to cross the rio grande and enter the united states. and ukraine says a major attack on russia's black sea fleet headquarters has left dozens dead or wounded. we'll have a live report this hour. >> announcer: live in cnn center this is cnn newsroom with kim

brunhuber. u.s. democratic senator robert menendez of new jersey is angrily rejecting calls of resigning after he and his wife were charged with corruption related offenses, the second time since 2016 he's faced criminal charges. he's remained defiant as calls for his resignation multiplied on friday. he said it's not lost on me how quickly a latino is judged and pushed out of his seat. i'm not going anywhere. many of his own party are calling for him to step down, including the new jersey governor. saying quote the alleged facts are so serious they compromise his ability to represent the people of our state and the speaker of the new jersey general assembly said, quote, we are given the public's trust, and once that trust is broken we cannot continue. we have more on the investigation. >> some of the cash was stuffed

in the senator's pockets. >> reporter: indicted again, new jersey senator bob menendez facing corruption related charges for the second time in ten years. prosecutors announcing a three count federal indictment against the democratic senator and his wife over their dealings with three new jersey businessmen starting in 2018. >> the senator and his wife accepted hundreds of dollars in bribes, in exchange for senator menendez using power and influence to protect and enrich those businessmen. >> reporter: the alleged bribes include more than $550,000 in cash hidden in the senator's home and safe deposit box, a mercedes benz convertible and gold bars worth tens of thousands of dollars, among other things. it alleges the committee chair quote provided sensitive u.s. government information, and took other steps that secretly aided the government of egypt. >> behind the scenes senator menendez was doing those things

for certain people, the people who were bribing him and his wife. >> reporter: the senator issued a defiant statement in response to the u.s. attorney's latest allegations. i have been falsely accused before because i refused to back down to the powers that be and the people of new jersey were able to see through the smoke and mirrors and recognize i was innocent. menendez has long maintained his innocence in this latest probe into his dealings telling cnn back in april -- >> this inquiry will end up, i believe, in absolutely nothing. >> reporter: the senator faced corruption charges in 2015, he fought off conspiracy, bribery, and other fraud charges related to political favors. >> to those who were digging any political grave so that they could jump into my seat, i know who you are, and i won't forget you. >> reporter: that case ended in a mistrial, a partial acquittal and all charges against the senator being dropped. in this latest case menendez remains defiant saying he won't be distracted by baseless accusations. a lawyer for the senator's wife

said she denies any wrongdoing, all five defendants are due in court wednesday to face these charges, this comes as there is a growing call by a number of new jersey lawmakers for the senator to resign. this is cnn in new york. democratic senator majority leader chuck schumer tells cnn his -- fund the government as chaos rules in the republican-led house. with the u.s. a little over a week away from a government shutdown, he says she's trying to cut a spending deal with mitch mcconnell as kevin mccarthy says he'll try to pass a series of year long funding bills next week even though it usually takes months to hash out differences on spending legislation. here he is. >> i think we've made some progress to those who have been holding up passing the rule to get onto these bills. we wanted to do it individually rules but i guess we do aminny bus rule, rules that will go in

today, we've got members working, and hopefully we'll be able to move forward on tuesday to pass these bills. >> melanie zanona has more details. >> reporter: lawmakers have left washington for the weekend without a clear plan to avoid a government shutdown, this after conservative hardliners once again scuttled kevin mccarthy's plans. initially the house gop was planning to vote on a stopgap measure to fund the government. it included a number of conservative priorities, but, mccarthy has to reverse course once he realized he did not have the votes to move forward. they have a new plan they're trying to pursue next week, a number of mccarthy's allies outlined that strategy with reporters in the capitol on friday. their plan as of right now is to try to pass individual long-term spending bills, as many as they can, and the hope there is that then they can get more conservative hardliners on board with a short-term plan to avoid a government shutdown. the challenge with that plan is that all of those bills are dead on arrival in the senate,

something kevin mccarthy has warned members would not work in their favor if they're not able to pass anything in order to have leverage. and furthermore on the senate side senate majority leader chuck schumer has taken steps to add vns his own short-term funding bill, something that will give ukraine aid and disaster money, that could tee up a showdown with the house. let's take a listen to what schumer said about working with mitch mcconnell on a bipartisan plan. >> you both think you have an agreement with leader mcconnell to put ukraine in a continuing resolution. >> leader mcconnell and i are both strongly for aid in ukraine and i believe the majority of members of both parties of the senate agree with that. >> reporter: kevin mccarthy is going to have a decision to make, he can ignore the bail from the senate and risk a government shutdown or he could put the bill on the floor and risk a threat to his speakership. hardliners are willing to oust him if he works with democrats.

this is melanie zanona. if you're needing car repairs, you could soon be out of luck. the strike is extended to include -- the move the likely to hit dealerships hard and limit their ability to service vehicles. the union said it won't expand its strike at ford facilities noting improvements in negotiations with that company. president biden who has been criticized for not showing enough support for the union workers said he will go to michigan on tuesday and join the picket lines. u.s. department of homeland security secretary alejandro mayorkas will travel to the rio grande valley in texas. the state seeing a surge of migrants at the southern u.s. border. many have arrived at cities in el paso and eagle pass. governor greg abbott is sending buses to the two cities to help authorities on the influx, which

he blames on president biden. here's more on the handling of the crisis. >> reporter: president biden is continuing -- u.s. mexico border. homeland security officials tell me over the course of the last few days border authorities arrested more than 8,000 migrants each day. that, compared to late may when those daily encounters were around 3,500. numbers that held over the course of the summer. homeland security officials couldn't quite say what led to this latest surge but they pointed to poor economic conditions as drivers of migration. the administration announced this week they would send 800 new active duty military personnel to the u.s. mexico border to serve in a supporting role, something they have done before, as well as add capacity to border facilities to accommodate those who are crossing as they are processed through those facilities. but what the images this week showed is that this remains a

logistical humanitarian and political challenge for this administration. the handling of the u.s. mexico border has been a delicate political issue for president biden as republicans continue to hammer him over the issue, and democrats also raise concerns over the images on the u.s. mexico border. but the administration also had a major announcement this week when they said that nearly half a million venezuelans already in the united states would be eligible for work permits under what's known as temporary protected status. that was a move that addressed a major stress point with new york which has been seeing an influx of migrant arrivals as well. so all of this, taken together again, underscoring the issues and challenges this administration still faces on immigration more than two years later. priscilla alvarez, cnn, washington. just later this hour, we'll take you to the border town now synonymous with the crisis and we'll look at what's behind the surge and how the city is

responding. well, the migrant crisis is dividing leaders in europe grappling with how to handle tens of thousands of migrants fleeing parts of africa. the plooigt of migrants has been a main focus for pope francis who is wrapping up a two-day visit to france. on friday the pontiff told reporters the treatment of migrants arriving on the italian island of lapadusa is quote, cruel, and lacking humanity. the pope, again, getting involved in the controversial issue of migration, an issue dear to him, of course. take is through this meeting with macron, who isn't exactly a radical liberal on the issue. >> no, in fact, kim, i think we need to take a moment to reflect on the fact that we are going to be witnessing a grand historical irony today. you know, traditionally when a french president meets a pope politically speaking that's considered an effort to reach

out to the right in france, that is to cultural conservatives. today, however, many observers believe macron is hoping this meeting is actually going to help him on the french left, that is he will be meeting with the world's leading champion of the rights and the human dignity of hmigrants and refugees at a time when his government is taking a hardline position on the issue. yesterday we heard pope francis talk about the mediterranean sea as a huge cemetery, a reference to the estimated 20,000 migrants and refugees who have died trying to make that crosses since 2014. we also heard him condemn the fanaticism of indifference. and today we are expecting the pope to use even stronger language on the migrant question. now, you know, what difference that is going to make to macron's policies remains to be seen but it is clear that the conversation between these two men today, kim, is going to be robust, and probably a bit

challenging. >> all right. and obviously, you know, it's a polarizing issue, france said it would bolster its borders with italy, wouldn't take in migrants. how is the pope's message being received broadly in france? >> well, i think in general people know that when pope francis comes he is going to speak in defense of migrants and refugees, that has been one of the cornerstones of his political agenda or these last ten years. he has first trip outside of italy was to the island of lampadusa where he laid a wreath in the city to commemorate those who died. it's no surprise to anyone he's pushing this message. as you indicate it is a tremendously divisive issue, not just in france, but all across europe and so far the pope's efforts to promote this policy of welcome, and of incorporation of migrants and refugees, hasn't done much to stem a strong

anti-migrant tide across europe, whether today he's going to turn a corner remains to be seen, but at least it is clear, i think, to all observers that macron is going to hear today a challenge from the world's probably preeminent moral voice on this question, and you'll hear a message that will not sit entirely comfortably with the policies that his own government is pursuing, kim. >> yeah, exactly. all right, we'll be following this visit throughout the coming hours, john allen in rome, thank you so much for this, appreciate it. tropical storm ophelia is just off the coast of north carolina and is expected to make landfall in the coming hours. it's almost at hurricane strength, and is already bringing storm surge, flash flooding and damaging winds to coastal north carolina and virginia. parts of north carolina are under a hurricane watch, and significant impacts are expected in both states. more than 38,000 customers are without power in north carolina and virginia.

and severe weather is also forecasted in maryland and delaware. maryland's governor has declared a state of emergency. started's game in washington between the atlanta braves and washington nationals has been postponed because of the storm. now, ophelia is expected to deliver heavy rain across much of the mid-atlantic, continuing through the weekend. still ahead, a standing ovation for ukraine's president in the canadian parliament. volodymyr zelenskyy wins a pledge of more support in ukraine's war against russia's aggression. we'll have details on that coming up. plus, less than four hours away from the opening ceremony of the largest asian games ever. china is hoping to show the world it's open for business after the pandemic. live report. and later, colorado head coach dion sanders shaking up the college football world. stay with us. including mental alertrtness from one serving. to help keep me sharp.

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ukraine is disputing russia's account of a missile strike on its naval headquarters in crimea. russia said only one soldier is

missing after ukraine hit its black sea fleet headquarters on friday. ukraine special operations forces say dozens of people were killed or wounded, including some senior leaders of the black sea fleet. a statement didn't provide any evidence for the claim. meanwhile, kyiv says russian drones and artillery pummelled parts of southern ukraine overnight, it wounded three in the kherson region. the strikes came on the heels of multiple attacks of russian targets there. a top ukrainian general told cnn in an exclusive interview they will still help ukraine's ongoing counteroffensive because they degrade russia's equipment and its chain of command. matthew chance has more. >> reporter: ukraine's latest spectacular strike. on occupied crimea. caught on camera by passers by. the smoke is billowing from the headquarters of russia's black

sea fleet. an edifice of russian power on the peninsula, now smoldering and in ruins. the media images show blown out windows and collapsed roof. russia says five missiles were -- there's no denying others punched through. explosions, explosions, right here in the center of the city, says the woman recording this aftermath. she seems shocked, but not surprised. for weeks now ukraine has been stepping up strikes on targets in crimea, like this hit on a military shipyard earlier this month, badly damaging a russian surface vessel and a submarine, being repaired in a dry dock. ukraine has also been degrading russian air defenses, destroying

at least two sophisticated s-400 systems, placed in crimea, another setback for russian forces. at sea, naval drones have targeted russian shipping. and ukrainian special forces have seized control of strategic black sea oil and gas drilling platforms. crimea. firmly in ukraine's sights. matthew chance, cnn london. >> reporter: and salma abdel aziz has been following developments in ukraine and she joins us from london. starting with the attack on the headquarters, a significant development, so much that we don't know. what more are we learning? >> reporter: we have a statement this morning, kim, from ukraine's special forces, it says that dozens of russian

soldiers -- sea fleet it goes on to say in that statement that the timing of the strike was significant, apparently taking place, again, according to ukrainian officials, during a high-level meeting, and that that led to several members, several senior members, leadership members of the black sea fleet being among those killed or wounded. again, important to remember here that ukraine has provided no evidence of this claim, and russia, of course, disputes it, as you mentioned, the russian official line so far to date is that only one russian soldier is missing and yes, of course, they do admit this headquarters has been struck. but regardless of what the outcome of this specific strike is, as you heard there from our matthew chance, crimea, this russian-occupied peninsula has been very much in the cross hairs of ukrainian attacks, and in recent weeks, and months, as

its long range capabilities, ukraine's military long lang capabilities have increased it has left those russian forces on that peninsula ever more vulnerable to ukrainian strikes like this one. >> yeah, salma, you're talking about the long range capabilities, the threat to invading russian troops could grow even further now with reports that president biden could finally send those long range missiles that ukraine's been asking for. >> yes, so we're speaking here of the army tactical missile systems, these have long been a request from president zelenskyy. they do have a range of nearly 190 miles, that's much further than the furthest range that ukraine has now, which is the storm shadow missiles from the uk, those have a range of about 155 miles. and, again, it's all about that vulnerability that russian troops would feel deep in russian occupied regions, the

ability to strike at the heart of russian command and control centers, almost 200 miles away from the front lines would deeply complicate the kremlin's fight, deeply complicate its ability to supply and provide its troops on those front lines. now, what do we know so far? again, this has followed the pattern we've seen over and over again kim with requests from any weapons from president zelenskyy. one of resistance from washington, think the f-16s and the tanks. and then there's months and months of lobbying that eventually leads to a shift in strategy and that appears to be what's happening here. we're expecting that president biden is going to make a statement anytime, anytime soon on this, and that those could be provided. but, the important thing to remember here, kim, is throughout this conflict there's been one weapon after another that ukraine has wanted, but there's no magic bullet here. there's no magic missile system here that's going to suddenly

change the tide. this is all about building, building, building as the days of this counteroffensive are really numbered because of the upcoming winter. >> good point. all right, salma abdel aziz in london, thanks so much. ukraine's president is thanking canada for its ongoing support in the war, volodymyr zelenskyy and justin trudeau signed an agreement in helping rebuild ukraine. canada will support kyiv for, quote, as long as it takes providing long-term support instead of a piecemeal approach. zelenskyy says he's grateful for canada to help train fighter pilots, and an aid package, and funding for mental health services in ukraine, he delivered an impassioned speech before canadian parliament. listen to this. >> it is genocide, what russian occupiers are doing to ukraine, and when we want to win, when we

call on the world to support us, it is not just about an ordinary conflict, it is about saving lives of millions of people. >> israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu is touting a potential deal to normalize relations with saudi arabia, his remarks first came friday at the united nations. saudi arabia doesn't currently recognize israel. netanyahu said such an agreement could create, quote, a new middle east. here he is. >> for centuries my country was repeatedly invaded by empires passing through it in their campaigns of plunder and conquest elsewhere. but today, today as we tear down the walls of enmity, israel can become a bridge of peace and prosperity between these continents, peace between israel and saudi arabia will truly create a new middle east. >> israeli prime minister also said palestinians shouldn't have

veto power over new agreements with arab states. on thursday palestinian authority president abas warned against sidelining palestinians in any potential deal. haiti's acting president delivered an urgent request to strengthen the country's security. friday, he asked the u.n. to authorize a multi-national support mission to the country, he is requesting police and military forces to help combat gangs and restore peace and order to the country. waves of crime and unrest have rocked haiti since the nation's former president was assassinated in 2021. still ahead, a new surge of migrants at the u.s. southern border, we'll give you a closeup look at the humanitarian crisis when we come back. stay with us. loss affects your life. you miss out on important momements... you feel alone. start hearing better today with rca's all new, advanced hearing aids.

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welcome back to all of you watching us here in the united states, canada and all around the world, i'm kim brunhuber, this is cnn newsroom. the migrant crisis at the u.s. southern border is escalating. in just 24 hours this week nearly 9,000 migrants crossed the rio grande and passed through razor wire to enter the united states. on friday texas governor greg abbott announced he's sending buses to the border cities of eagle pass and el paso, the republican governor says the buses will take the migrants to other cities and help border communities that are in his words overwhelmed by president joe biden's border crisis. for a closeup look at the human toll of the migrant crisis we turn to cnn's ed lavandera on the border between mexico and the united states. >> reporter: a small group of

migrants scour the river bank searching for a safe place to slip through razor wire, their final obstacle in a months long journey to reach u.s. soil. a man carries a young boy on his shoulders, leading a line of migrants crossing the rio grande. he said we faint, we pass out, this is crazy but thank god we are here. jorge holds his 3-year-old child telling me his family walked three months through mexico before crossing the river. he said we cross illegally because our children can't take it anymore, can't handle it anymore. eagle pass, texas the flash point for a u.s. border crisis with no end in sight. for several days thousands of people have turned themselves into u.s. authorities, but on this day the scene is dramatically different, only a small number of migrants have crossed the river. >> people are frustrated. they're angry. this is not normal. >> reporter: eagle pass mayor says city resources are strapped and claims that most of the

migrants are processed and released, many go to large cities. >> we don't know where they're from, what their names are. >> reporter: where they're increasingly met with resistance, and dwindling resources. >> imagine eagle pass, a town of 28,000 people, with limited resources, what are we supposed to do? fend for ourselves? we can't. >> we have joe biden interfering with my efforts to secure the actual border. >> reporter: texas republican governor greg abbott has gone on the political offensive, blaming the biden administration for the crisis. abbott is positioning his state as the only one stepping up, posting a video on social media of state authorities standing in front of a migrant group, the governor writing we are repelling illegal immigrants at the border, and reposting this video, writing we are refusing to let migrants in, and sending them back. but the migrants in that video were not repelled from the border. we watched as they all eventually helped each other of crawl underneath the razor wire and turn themselves into state

authorities and border agents. >> i am frustrated with everybody, with everybody because for me it's about the river. >> reporter: jess runs a kayak company, he's suing for altering his business. >> all these barriers, have they stopped them? no, sir, they haven't. until the problem is addressed, these people are coming over here for the american dream. >> reporter: local officials in border communities like eagle pass fear this latest migrant surge is far from over. the mayor of eagle pass says federal authorities have told him, 50 to 60,000 migrants are starting to make their way through southern mexico, and that large groups of migrants are waiting for the trains in mexico moving north to start running again. jorge carillo and his family arrive shaken and exhausted, but with a clear eye of what they've seen along the way to make it this far. he says there's thousands of people coming behind him. the most pressing question for local officials all along the

u.s. southern border is just how long this migrant surge is going to last. here in eagle pass, local officials tell us they've been told by federal authorities that there are tens of thousands of migrants making their way up north through mexico, and so the question is where they're all going to end up, what specific areas of the border are they going to end up in, and that is what they're most concerned about. they don't know if this is going to last weeks or months, but they are bracing for the worst. ed lavandera, cnn, eagle pass, texas. >> and joining me now is cnn opinion writer raul rayes, an analyst for usa "today." already earlier this week officials arrested close to a record number of migrants, and we heard there in that piece that the migrants say thousands of people are coming behind him. what's behind this latest surge? >> the starting point, i think, that is important to remind

people is that this is not illegal immigration, per se, because these are people who are generally coming here under the american asylum law which requires presence on american soil. they are coming here to make their asylum claims and these pictures we see are very troubling. anyone, whatever your political affiliation, they're very disturbing but these are just the visible part of a much broader crisis in our entire immigration system, where we have 10 million undocumented people, where we haven't done an overhaul since 1986, a full generation. the programs we have like daca and temporary protected status, those are temporary fixes, band-aids on a much larger crisis. that's why we are at this point. >> absolutely. you talk about the politics here and the response, i mean, we see the governor of texas is now ordering more buses to send the migrants to democratically

controlled cities, greg abbott was writing here, until president biden upholds his constitutional duty to secure american's southern border texas will continue to deploy as many buses as needed to relieve the strain caused by the surge of illegal crossings. i mean, surely this can't be the best solution, right? >> no, absolutely not, and, in fact, depending on the circumstances, whether or not these migrants are -- have full knowledgeable consent to make these trips, you know, they might be legally dubious. basically, we have seen instances of governors in florida, texas, sending some migrants around the country under basically false pretenses where the migrants were promised things and sent off without full knowledge of the situation. and what we are seeing, though, whether we're talking the border, places like new york city and los angeles, it's just unsustainable. >> and you mentioned new york, i mean, those migrants end up in cities like new york, and president biden was facing a barrage of criticism from his own party, especially in new

york, so now he's allowed almost half a million venezuelan migrants to apply for work permits. but republicans argue that protecting recent venezuelan migrants if deportation will just encourage more to head north. are they wrong here? >> well, i'm not going to go out so far as to say they are wrong but we do know that there is no tangible link between specific u.s. immigration policies and influx of migrants in particular migrants. there is a tremendous benefit, at least in new york city, to allowing these people temporary protected status. that means the most important thing is that they can work right away as opposed to having to wait amin mum of six months. that means they can get off of social services. that means the taxpayer's burden in new york state and new york city will be lower, that means they can start contributing to society, paying their taxes, you know, finding their own homes, and not putting this tremendous strain on the city, which i

mentioned we all know it's unsustainable. until we see more of a federal response, more of a response from congress around all of these immigration issues, that's the status quo, and congress, through their inaction, got us to this -- to these problems, and congress is -- they offer the only way out, but so far we are seeing a complete advocation of their responsibility around these issues. >> let's talk about congress then, i mean, conservative republicans are vowing to shut down the government unless congress agrees to new anti-immigration measures. how do you think this is going to play out politically at the federal level over the next days and weeks? >> it's very hard to make a prediction given, you know, the makeup of this congress, even there's a lot of dissent on the right side of the aisle about what the proper path forward is, but one thing is for sure, you know, no matter who has been in the white house, or who has had control of congress over the last few decades our immigration policies have centered around

deterrent strategy, and also a strategy of securing the border first, the idea that we're not going to make any type of move on immigration reform until the border is completely secured. but those policies have failed for over 25 years. it seems like -- if lawmakers were truly interested in a solution, they might try a different approach because what we have up to now clearly isn't working, it's going to take a lot more effort, cooperation, compromise, by congress to move the needle on this issue, and sad to say that's not really something that is practically or sort of politically viable or realistic in this congress right now. >> yeah, everyone agrees it's broken, no one can agree how to fix it. always appreciate getting your perspective, raul rayes, thank you so much for speaking with us. >> thank you. the federal judge in california has struck down a statewide ban on firearm magazines, holding more than ten

rounds. the judge issued an injunction friday calling the law arbitrary and capricious. he said there's, quote, no national tradition of prohibiting or regulating firearms based on their firing or ammunition capacity. california officials say they'll appeal. governor gavin newsom says the decision is politics, pure and simple. in just a few hours, china will officially open this year's asian games, beijing is hoping the events will also give it a boost competing on the world stage. we'll have a live report from china, next, stay with us. save $ $400 on the new sleep number c4 smart bed. now only $1,49999. sleep next level. shop now only at sleep number

china is less than four hours away from the opening ceremony of the largest asian games ever. chinese state media say xi jinping will be in the host city of hangzhou to declare the games open, more than 12,000 athletes are set to participate in the games, a new record. athletes will compete in 40

sports, 61 disciplines, and 481 events over the coming weeks. dignitaries from around the world are in china for the opening ceremony. the syrian president al-asad making his first visit to the country since war broke out in 2011. for more cnn's mark stuart joins me live. the biggest ever asian games, what are you keeping your eye on? >> reporter: let me start with context to all of this from hangzhou, china, the asian games without question are a very big deal in this part of the world, but especially for china. according to state media the government has spent a lot of money on venues, they are sleek, they are modern. but above that, this is an opportunity for president xi jinping to tell the world that, "a," china is open for business, but two, it's also in a position for deal making on its own, especially now that the covid

restrictions that we saw here for about three years have been lifted. and as such, that is why we saw that face-to-face meeting with the president of syria, and xi jinping. during that discussion some agreements were made, including china pledging to support syria in some of its rebuilding efforts, also to integrate syria more fully in its belt and road initiative which is an economic and infrastructure program that really has been at the center of china's economy, at least in most recent times. but, again, there's also this message that the pandemic is over, and that you can come to china, you can be a visitor, you can be a tourist and that's why we are seeing people from more than 40 countries, athletes from more than 40 countries participate here, people are not wearing masks, they are not wearing social distancing, that is a big shift from the past, especially from the 2022 winter olympic games when very much a bubble type system was in place.

what does remain, though, is very tight security, even in our walks, in our drives around the perimeter of the asian games complex, there are a lot of restrictions, movement is very limited. nonetheless, the focus is on sports, the opening ceremony is tonight, it's a moment that president xi jinping and i'm sure other leaders from beijing, pretty safe to say, hope the focus is on sports and not some of the economic problems that are plaguing china right now, kim. >> interesting. all right, thanks so much, marc stewart in hangzhou, china, appreciate it. still to come, have a look at this. >> who ready. >> i'm ready. >> give me my music, deejay. >> the famous coach shaking up the college football world, stay with us. >> here it is, the big drums.

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- [announcer] do you have an invention idea but don't know what to do next? call invent help today. they can help you get started with your idea. call now 800-710-0020. let's turn now to a man who's captured the sports world's attention by turning one of the worst squads in college football into a top 20 team that so far, at least, is undefeated. cnn's andy scholes takes a look

at how dion sanders is shaking things up at colorado, and making headlines. >> who ready. >> i'm ready. >> who ready. >> i'm ready. >> give me my music there, deejay. >> the colorado buffaloes have taken college football by storm this season, thanks to one man. coach prime. >> here we come to get you. >> reporter: after three seasons coaching hbcu jackson state dion sanders instantly transforming colorado into the most entertaining team in college football and did it by being unapologetically himself. >> i make a difference, i truly make a difference. i make folks nervous, man, i get folks moving and they see, i get folk twiddling their thumbs, i get them thinking and second guessing themselves roich first thing he did he told all the players he inherited to leave. >> i want you towel a get ready. >> reporter: coach prime overhauling the buffaloes roster, bringing in 86 new

players this season, and criticings said his in your face brutally honest method would never work. >> everything dion has been doing has been putting a target on his team's back. >> no one like dion, sold to give guys a bunch of pink slips. >> all the hype in the offseason with colorado does not mask the fact they don't have any players on that roster. >> reporter: but sanders continues to prove them wrong. >> do you believe now? >> and coach prime has completely changed colorado's culture, bringing unprecedented excitement. >> i'm peggy. >> peggy, how you doing? >> are you prime? >> that's what they call me. >> do i call you that? >> call me anything, you're good. >> how about good looking. >> even 98-year-old colorado superfan peggy copham who has rarely missed a game since 1940 can't believe what coach prime has brought to boulder. >> it's absolutely unbelievable. all this attention, that one man has brought to this town, this

program. >> for the first time ever colorado has completely sold out of tickets and the school says merchandise sales are up 819 #% from last season. rapper lil' wane led the team out of the tunnel before last week's thrilling win over rival colorado state. that was after the rock was in attendance as boulder hosted espn's college game day. >> he's doing it in a way, this is the hard part, galvanizing not only a town in boulder, colorado, but also galvanizing an entire country. >> yeah, wow, you make me cry, man. did you hear him say -- >> two recruits that have helped coach prime's instant success in the rockies are two of his sons, sha door, shiloh, the defensive back, who wears dad's iconic 21. >> i believe. >> i believe.

>> fans have known dion sanders for tech kads as one of the best athletes ever, is he now the best coach in college football? >> let me see a mirror so i can look at it. >> you feel that? >> you think i'm going to sit up here and tell you somebody else, you think that's the way i operate, that somebody else got that on me? will join me next hour with much more on coach prime and the rest of colorado's season. well, nasa is on the verge of a historic achievement years in the making. one of its spacecraft is about 30 hours away from delivering the first asteroid sample collected in space, when the spacecraft swings by earth on saturday, set to release a capsule containing 8 ounces of rocks and soil from the near asteroid. the craft will continue its tour of the solar system while the capsule is expected to land in the state of utah. scientists hope the sample will provide insights into the

formation of the earth and the solar system. i'm kim brunhuber, i'll be back with more "cnn newsroom" in a moment, please do stay with us.

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