The Rundown: It's Super!

While we may not agree on the Patriots or Falcons, pizza or wings, man buns or beards (or neither), there’s one thing we can all agree on – puppies. The Super Bowl won’t be the only excitement happening this weekend.

Weekends are ruff,

The Last Night’s Game Team

PS – Since it’s our last Friday for Tailgate Treats until next football season, today we have the ultimate list of party favorites. Chow down!

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NFL (National Football League)

• Designated driver. You’ve probably heard about the revolutionary Tostitos bag with a breathalyzer built-in. Tostitos partnered with NFL player Delanie Walker whose Aunt and Uncle were killed by a drunk driver on the way home from watching him play with the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl. The “party safe” bag produces a $10 Uber code if alcohol is detected.
• Be prepared. Did you miss Wednesday’s Five Things to Know About Super Bowl 51? Don’t worry we have all you need to know for this weekend’s celebrations. Tune into the game on Sunday at 6:30 pm (EST). 

PGA (Professional Golfers Association) 

• The Waste Management Open wraps up this weekend in Scottsdale, AZ. The Open is known for its 16th hole, the rowdiest hole in golf. The hole is enclosed with seating for over 16,000 intoxicated and wild fans. Watch the crowd celebrate Tiger Woods’ hole in one back in 1997. No golf claps here. 

Overtime

• It’s finally time for the biggest event of the year, the Animal Planet’s Puppy Bowl, which airs on Sunday at 3 pm (EST). Teams Ruff and Fluff are armed with cuteness but the viewers are the true winners. Here’s the most adorable starting lineup you’ve ever seen.

Sideline stat

• The NFL Network is broadcasting 80 hours of live coverage leading up to the Super Bowl. Take that Oscar award red carpet coverage.

Coaches’ corner

• Quarterbacks are always the talk of the Super Bowl so here’s what you need to know for Sunday. (For more on the other stars of each team, click here).
  • Matt Ryan, Falcons – This is the first Super Bowl for “Matty Ice” (like Natty Ice – get it)? but he’s been anything but cold this year. He’s the top candidate for the NFL MVP.
  • Tom Brady, Patriots – Mr. Gisele Bündchen is appearing in his seventh Super Bowl and this year with his protection necklace. Brady lost his battle with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and sat out four games this year for “deflategate” at the beginning of the season. Hating Roger Goodell is one thing all Patriots fans can agree on. 

The Rundown: Let's Fly Away

Take us with you on your weekend getaway – we make great road trip buddies.

We’ll bring the snacks and play DJ,

The Last Night’s Game Team

PS – With the Super Bowl just around the corner, here’s a tailgate treat that’s bound to be a fan favorite. It involves bacon and bacon makes everything better. 

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NFL (National Football League) 

• On Sunday four teams will battle it out to claim one of the spots in the Super Bowl in Houston on February 5th.
• Green Bay Packers vs Atlanta Falcons. Typically, they say defense wins championships but this is not the case in this game. Both offenses, led by Aaron Rodgers (Packers) and Matt Ryan (Falcons), rank toward the top and both defenses are sub-par. This is also last game in the Georgia Dome, home of the Atlanta Falcons.
• Pittsburgh Steelers vs New England Patriots. The game is a home game for the Patriots and they are virtually unbeatable at home during the playoffs. The Steelers have to play a perfect game after a week of distractions between Antonio Brown streaming locker room talk live on social media and the flu making its way through the team. 

Tennis

• Think before you speak. An ESPN broadcaster covering the Australian Open was fired after he compared Venus Williams (sister of Serena) to a gorilla. He insists he meant guerilla when he talked about her “guerilla effect” in a match. A poor choice in words because last time we checked they both sound the same when you mention them on TV.
• In other news. There was a huge upset in the second round of the Australian Open when unranked Denis Istomin beat Novak Djokovic (#2). Thanks for playing – see you next time.

Overtime

• The NFL Network released a promo video for this weekend’s games with all of the team’s starting quarterbacks, except New England Patriots’ Tom Brady. Brady and the league embarked on a bitter battle early this year when he was suspended for four games for deflategate. Apparently there’s still bad blood.

Sideline stat

• The Oakland Raiders (NFL) have officially filed relocation papers to move the team to Las Vegas. Their relocation must be approved by 3/4 of the NFL owners in March, but with the support of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft (the big dogs on campus) it seems likely that the relocation will go through.

Coaches’ corner

• The starting lineups for the NBA (National Basketball Association) All-Star Game have been announced. The two conference teams are led by Golden State Warriors teammates Steph Curry and Kevin Durant (West) and the Cleveland Cavaliers duo of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving (East).

The Rundown: Weekend Preview Edition - Friday Festivities

Happy dance! It’s Friday and there’s football, baseball, NASCAR and more to watch this weekend. We hear a weekend of sports filled brunches calling our names.

We’ll take a mimosa please,

The Last Night’s Game Team

PS - Get excited for this week’s tailgate treat. It comes to us from a guy you might have heard of, Al Roker. His recipe for homemade brisket beef jerky is out of this world if you go light on the liquid smoke. That’s what’s going on in our neck of the woods.  

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NCAA Football (College)

• Force majeure. Hurricane Matthew has forced the cancellation of LSU (Louisiana State University) – University of Florida game this weekend. The teams do not have an open date in common for the rest of the season so it will not be rescheduled.
• Surprise guest. ESPN College GameDay heads to College Station, TX ahead of the Tennessee Volunteers (#9) and Texas A&M Aggies (#8) matchup. Will free agent and hometown hero Johnny Football, aka Johnny Manziel whose four-game NFL suspension is over, be the guest picker to try to improve his image? 

NFL (National Football League)

• Welcome back. Tom Brady’s suspension for “deflategate” is officially over and just in time for his New England Patriots to face the winless Cleveland Browns. Brady seemed to enjoy his four week break by attending a football game at his alma matter, University of Michigan, and nude sunbathing in Italy with is wife, but it’s back to work for him this Sunday.
• Bottom of the barrel. In Thursday Night Football news, Arizona Cardinals improved from their 1-3 record (wins-losses), beating the equally dreadful San Francisco 49ers.

MLB (Major League Baseball)

• That was easy. Toronto Blue Jays used the momentum from their wild card win to thoroughly defeat Texas Rangers (final score 10-1) in Game One of the ALDS (American League Division Series).
• Hometown pride. Building off Cleveland Cavaliers’ NBA Championship momentum, Cleveland Indians a took step in the right direction with a Game One win over Boston Red Sox in the other ALDS game.
• If you’re looking for an excuse not to work, all four playoff games will be played today. Catch the full schedule here.  

NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing)

• Shake and bake. The second round of the “The Chase for the Cup” begins on Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The 12 remaining drivers look to win this race to guarantee their spot in the next round. Kevin Harvick will start from the pole position.

WNBA (Women’s National Basketball Association)

• Showdown. The WNBA finals begin on Sunday with Los Angeles Sparks (#2) taking on Minnesota Lynx (#1).

Overtime

• The Toronto Blue Jays win over the Baltimore Orioles in the wild card game was overshadowed by a fan incident. A Blue Jays fan threw a full beer at an Orioles outfielder catching a fly ball. The fan has since been identified and charged with criminal mischief and wasting a perfectly good beer.

Sideline stat

• Pittsburgh Steelers’ Antonio Brown received a fine of $24,000 for his “pump” (aka twerking) touchdown celebration. This is his second fine of the year for his suggestive celebrations.

Coaches’ corner

• Barry Bonds, the leading home run hitter of all-time, was fired as the Miami Marlins hitting coach after one season. Bonds rubbed everyone wrong as a player and apparently nothing changed in his career as a coach.