Like A Good Neighbor
Here for you as you start off your first work week of 2021. The $100k bonus, the best comeback story and the Heisman Trophy is on deck.
We've got your back day in and day out by bringing you plenty to talk about, but we won't take up your trash cans when you're out of town.
Can't win them all,
The Last Night's Game Team
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
The College Football National Championship Game is set. The Crimson Tide of Alabama will take on the Ohio State Buckeyes on January 11 in Miami. As if that excitement wasn't enough for this week, tomorrow college football will (virtually) crown the Heisman Trophy Winner. The trophy is awarded to the most outstanding player in college football. The finalists include two Alabama players Mac Jones (QB) and DeVonta Smith (WR), Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence and Florida quarterback Kyle Trask. Smith is the current favorite to win. THE SUSPENSE IS KILLING US
OVERTIME
Alex Smith of Washington Football Team (NFL - National Football League) is the best comeback story of the season. After a horrific broken leg that resulted in an infection that almost cost him his leg, Smith returned to start for his team. In the coolest public display of affection, Alex's wife Elizabeth posted a photo for inspiration before yesterday's game. It was of the Lombardi Trophy (that the Super Bowl Champions receive) made of Smith’s former leg brace. She talked about how proud she was of Smith and how far he's come. It must have worked because with yesterday's win Washington locked down their division title and a spot in the playoffs, even though they have a losing record. A LONG WAY BACK
SIDELINE STAT
The Seattle Seahawks (NFL) were THIS close to wrapping up the season and heading into the playoffs, but instead of taking a knee to close out the game, the Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson called an audible and threw a pass to David Moore. Why? Moore was one catch away from a $100,000 bonus. Moore had an incentive built into his contract that stated that he would receive $100,000 if he had 35 catches this season, and that last-minute catch was Moore’s 35th of the season. In a postgame interview, Wilson said he knew of the incentive and made sure he changed the call, so his teammate received his bonus. A LITTLE HELP FROM A FRIEND
COACHES' CORNER
Today is referred to as Black Monday in the NFL. It's the Monday after the regular season that coaches get fired. So far, Adam Gase of the New York Jets and Doug Marrone of the Jacksonville Jaguars have lost their jobs, but no telling who will be next. DON'T LET THE DOOR HIT YOU..
It’s On
How a joint helped Tyson make it through his fight, why this weekend was huge for women in football and why the 49ers are suddenly homeless?
Is it just us or did the first half of 2020 go by at a snail’s pace? Now here we are a few weeks away from the end of the year.
Finish strong,
The Last Night’s Team
Boxing
Arguably the biggest sporting event of the weekend, Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. brought the star power and the entertainment value. But the boxing…maybe not so much. The 16-minute fight between the two 50+-year-olds was dominated by Tyson but the judges ruled it a draw at the end. Tyson was very chill in the post-fight interview and later we found out why. Tyson admitted he smoked weed before the fight. IN THE AIR TONIGHT
Overtime
Women everywhere rejoiced when Sarah Fuller stepped foot on the football field for Vanderbilt on Saturday. Fuller became the first woman to play in a Power Five college football game. (The Power Five conferences are the biggest, highest-powered conferences in college football). Praises from legends Billie Jean King and Sue Bird were just a few of the messages of support and excitement that flooded social media. IN IT TO WIN IT
In other progressive news, Callie Brownson, the chief of staff for the Cleveland Browns (NFL - National Football League), stepped into an interim role and into the history books yesterday. She became the first woman to coach an NFL position group during a regular-season game. She filled the role as the tight end coach because TEs coach Drew Petzing did not travel with the team for Sunday's game due to the birth of his first child Saturday morning. CONGRATS ALL AROUND
Sideline stat
The San Francisco 49ers (NFL) are homeless after a new COVID ban by Santa Clara County (the county the stadium is located in) that bans all contact sports for three weeks – including professional football. The team found out about the ban the same way the rest of us did – via a news conference. Luckily, they were on their way to play in Los Angeles but the ban doesn’t bode well for the team who will need to find another location – tentatively Arizona – to practice and play. A HEADS UP WOULD’VE BEEN NICE
Coaches’ corner
The scariest moment of the weekend was a crash in the F1 (Formula One) race in Bahrain. Driver Roman Grosjean somehow walked away from a crash that split his car in two. Like something out of an action movie, Grosjean jumped out of his fireball of a car while being sprayed by a crew armed with fire extinguishers. TOO HOT TO HANDLE
May The Force Be With You
A new professional sport now has a home in the U.S., star-studded soccer playoffs and the family-friendly golf tourney with a $1M purse.
As curfews go into effect across the country, that means your masked conversation while dining outdoors should be interesting and thought-provoking. What better way to relate to everyone than where sports meets pop culture?
No need for a curfew if your bedtime is 10 pm,
The Last Night’s Game Team
MLS (Major League Soccer)
Tonight’s Friday night lights bring us a different kind of football tonight with the start of the MLS playoffs in a COVID world. With a compressed schedule, MLS will do everything in their power to reschedule a game where one or both teams is suffering from a COVID outbreak but it could result in a forfeit of the game and therefore the team would exit the postseason (it’s a single-elimination tournament). The Sporting Kansas City and Philadelphia Union are both ranked No. 1 in their respective conferences but it’s anyone’s guess who will end up in the finals on December 12. Kevin Durant (Phil. Union) is one of the star-studded athletes and celebrities to have an ownership stake in an MLS team. SIDE HUSTLE
Overtime
Don’t get us wrong, we all wish COVID would go away but the wife of Detroit Lions (NFL - National Football League) quarterback Matt Stafford took to social media to share her displeasure with the rules in place. In Kelly Stafford’s Instagram life story she said “I'm over living in a dictatorship we call Michigan.” The rant comes days after Michigan implemented new rules including taking school and work virtual. She later apologized for the use of the word dictatorship and praised healthcare workers. RUBBED PEOPLE THE WRONG WAY
Sideline stat
There’s nothing like quality family time on the golf course but how about doing it for your share of $1M? Tiger Woods announced that he and his son Charlie, 11, will be battling it out against John Daly and 18 other legendary golfers (think Greg Norman, David Duval and Jim Furyk) and a member of their family in the PNC Championship on December 17. While the tourney is for fun and won’t go against anyone’s records there is a total purse of $1M on the line. FAMILY FUN
Coaches’ corner
Wednesday night was a big night for the Ball family. First, the youngest of the three basketball brothers, LaMelo Ball was the third selection in the NBA (National Basketball Association) Draft by the Charlotte Hornets. (Michael Jordan is an owner and chairman of the Hornets). And SPOILER ALERT older brother, Lonzo Ball who plays for the New Orleans Pelicans, was unveiled as the whatchamacallit on the “Masked Singer.” Like a man to man defense, actor Ken Jeong nailed it when he said it was Ball, who is also a rapper on the side. SO LITTLE TIME FOR THAT MUCH TALENT