Thanksgiving weekend had something for everyone: turkey dinners, Black Friday, binge watching “Gilmore Girls” and whole lot of nail-biting rivalry games.
Politics not withstanding…Fidel Castro, a US nemesis for over 50 years who died on Friday, was quite a baseball player and a huge Cuban sports promoter. San Francisco 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick, you may know him as the guy who kneels during the National Anthem, found himself in hot water for wearing a Castro t-shirt.
“Rivalry Week” was in full force in college football, but not to be left out the NFL had its share of heated rivalry matchups as well.
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National Football League (NFL)
In one of football’s oldest and most intense rivalries (think David Letterman and Jay Leno), the Dallas Cowboys continued their winning ways and defeated the Washington Redskins on Thanksgiving Day. The Cowboys have been playing on Turkey Day since 1966, and own the NFL’s best record.
Two birds with one stone…With a win Sunday, New England Patriots QB Tom Brady bested two rivals. He beat the hated New York Jets and in the process tied his arch-rival QB Peyton Manning with 200 career victories, the most in NFL history.
The game of the week was played in the Mile High city between bitter AFC West rivals (think Pearl Jam and Nirvana). The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Denver Broncos in overtime on a field goal with just one second left.
In the week’s Monday night finale, the Philadelphia Eagles lost at home to the Green Bay Packers, putting a major dent in Philly’s playoff chances. Geno’s, Pat’s and Tony Luke’s were serving up plenty of cheesesteaks to disappointed Eagles fans after the game.
Like father like son. Joe Thomas Jr. helped the Packers to victory Monday but his dad was a bigger winner becoming the oldest Division I football player ever at…wait for it…55-years-old. #AgeIsJustANumber
College Football
In the biggest of all college football rivalries, know simply as “The Game,” #2 Ohio State came from behind to beat #3 Michigan in a double overtime thriller. The Columbus, Ohio faithful got ready for the game by banishing the letter “M” and replacing it with “X.”
Our hearts go out to the OSU community after Monday’s attack on campus.
#1 Alabama beat its bitter in-state rival #16 Auburn (think Biggie and Tupac) in the “Iron Bowl.” Undefeated Alabama seals its position atop the college football rankings and is a lock for the four-team College Football playoff.
Texas two-step…Texas fired coach Charlie Strong immediately after its season-ending loss and looked just 160 miles away to replace him with Houston coach Tom Herman.
The College Playoff takes place in late December and the following conference championships will help determine who makes the cut.
- PAC-12 – #4 Washington #9 Colorado (Friday, 9:00pm ET)
- SEC – #1 Alabama #15 Florida (Saturday, 4:00pm ET)
- ACC – #3 Clemson #19 Virginia Tech (Saturday, 8:00pm ET)
- Big 10 – #6 Wisconsin #7 Penn State (Saturday, 8:00pm ET)
A little confused? Here is a cheat sheet.
National Basketball Association (NBA)
No complacency here…LeBron James and his defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers are blazing hot, setting an NBA mark with back-to-back games of 20 three-point shots made. The Cavs boast the Eastern Conference’s best record and are favorites to make it back to the Finals in June.
Panic? Not in Oakland. After losing their first game of the season, the Golden State Warriors have gone 16-1 since and own the NBA’s best record. Early returns look like a third-straight NBA Finals matchup with Cleveland, creating the league’s newest and hottest rivalry.
College Basketball
Now that college football regular season is over, the focus on campus is shifting to hoops. The AP top-5 teams are:
#1 Kentucky
#2 Villanova
#3 North Carolina
#4 Kansas
#5 Duke
Remember at TINK Sports we watch the games so you don’t have to.
See you next time…
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