As 2016 fades into the rear view mirror we remember legends that passed, including Prince, David Bowie, Gene Wilder and Muhammad Ali. One guy had enough and was so superstitious he started a GoFundMe campaign to get Betty White through 2016. Californians celebrated a new era by giving an iconic sign a new look.
On the field 2017 is ushered in with NFL and college football playoffs as well as exciting basketball.
National Football League (NFL)
The NFL regular season ended Sunday and only a few games actually mattered for determining the playoffs, bringing out some great performances and odd behavior.
Chain snatching…In a weird incident of intimidation or possibly jewelry envy, Denver’s Akib Talib ripped Oakland’s Michael Crabtree’s chain off – during the game. Boys Being Boys? The Raiders lost, and adding injury to assault, QB Matt McGloin (himself an injury replacement) was hurt in the game.
Nostradamus in Wisconsin? In the season finale the Green Bay Packers defeated the Detroit Lions to secure a home playoff game. The win was the Packers’ sixth-in-a-row and fulfilled MVP candidate Aaron Rodgers’ prediction for a new beginning and to “run the table” in November. Impressive considering his team was 4-6 at the time and had lost four straight games. Whether he really has a crystal ball or was trying to impress girlfriend Olivia Munn, Rodgers called it and his Pack are Vegas’ Super Bowl darlings.
Courtesy: Green Bay Packers Nation
With the regular season in the books here’s whose in. The really good teams earned a bye and the others are playing this weekend:
AFC
#1 New England Patriots – home enjoying clam chowda with freezing temperatures outside
#2 Kansas City Chiefs – home eating BBQ doused in plenty of KC Masterpiece sauce
NFC
#1 Dallas Cowboys – home sitting back with Texas-size margaritas and ribs
#2 Atlanta Falcons – home chowing on chicken and waffles
#4 Houston Texans vs. #5 Oakland Raiders (Saturday 4:35 PM ET)
#3 Seattle Seahawks vs. #6 Detroit Lions (Saturday 8:15 PM ET)
#3 Pittsburgh Steelers vs. #6 Miami Dolphins (Sunday 1:05 PM ET)
#4 Green Bay Packers vs. #5 New York Giants (Sunday 4:40pm ET)
The NFL calls the day after the season ends Black Monday but it’s more like Pink Slip Monday. Fans in these six cities are looking for a new beginning as their head coaches were fired, some just hours after the season concluded: San Francisco, San Diego, Denver (coach retiring for health reasons), Los Angeles, Jacksonville and Buffalo.
College Football
Over 20 Bowl games were served up this past week and the biggest dilemma for some top prospects was whether or not to play. LSU’s Leonard Fournette and Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey decided to sit out to avoid injury before April’s NFL Draft. Michigan’s Jake Butt played and tore his ACL but thankfully took out a $4 million insurance policy.
Monday night delivered the most exciting game as #9 USC defeated #5 Penn State 52-49 in the Rose Bowl on a game winning field goal as time expired. USC Freshman QB Sam Darnold is someone to watch next year as he put up an astounding 453 yards and five touchdowns.
In the College Football Playoff semifinals, defending champion #1 Alabama dismissed #4 Washington 24-7. Then #2 Clemson embarrassed #3 Ohio State 31-0.
The only drama was when Alabama dismissed offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin following the game. Kiffin reportedly was checked out and already thinking about his new beginning as Florida Atlantic’s head coach.
Alabama and Clemson meet for the National Championship on January 9th. Look familiar? It should. It’s a rematch of last year’s offensive shootout won by Alabama.
National Basketball Association (NBA)
The calendar year is new but the NBA’s two top teams remain the same. The Golden State Warriors lead the West and the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers remain the class of the East.
Houston Rockets guard James Harden put together a jaw-dropping New Years Eve performance against the New York Knicks with 53 points, 17 assists, and 16 rebounds. Harden inserted himself and his fabulous beard into the MVP race, alongside Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook.
Courtesy: 106.1 Evansville
College Basketball
A magical season is currently a mess at #8 Duke. Coach Mike Krzyzewski (pronounced Shuh-Shev-Ski), arguably the best college basketball coach of all time, will be out four weeks after back surgery. The preseason No. 1 team (12-2) is also without captain Grayson Allen who was suspended for repeatedly tripping opponents on the court, and still trying to integrate three heralded freshmen into the rotation.
This week’s AP top-5 teams are:
#1 Villanova
#2 Baylor
#3 Kansas
#4 UCLA
#5 Gonzaga
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See you next time…
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