That Breakthrough Moment

In case you missed it, the Super Bowl is this Sunday. The spectacle where pop culture, kitchen fare and sports collide.

Be there or be square,
The Last Night’s Game Team

PS - It’s our last Tailgate Treat of the season and we’re bringing you the best recipes state by state for the Super Bowl. What’s the most popular recipe in your state? Find out here.

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NFL (National Football League)

That #FridayFeeling of impressing your co-workers. It’s inevitable, the Super Bowl is coming. You could choose not to watch it or simply watch it for the commercials. Either way impress everyone over the next few days with your knowledge around the game. How much does the halftime performer make? What food is the most popular? Have the Eagles ever won a Super Bowl? We have it all in our Five Things To Know About The Super Bowl.   

When you can't help but Say Something. Justin Timberlake may be performing during the NFL's halftime show but that didn't stop him from ruffling some feathers with a statement he made in a press conference. Amid all the concussion controversy that surrounds the league, he told a reporter that his son would "never play football."

Overtime

On Sunday before the Super Bowl, you can tune into the Animal Planet’s Puppy Bowl. The real winners, besides the viewers of course, are the puppies because all of them are adoptable shelter dogs. (Hint: they all get adopted). This year’s game will feature 90 puppies from a record 58 shelters and rescue groups from 24 states and Puerto Rico. The cheerleaders? Obviously, baby barnyard animals. Also helping out the referee? Shirley the rescue sloth. 15 FUN FACTS ABOUT THE PUPPY BOWL

Sideline stat

Experts predict over $4.76 billion will be wagered on the Super Bowl this year but only three percent of it will be legally bet in Nevada. The rest of the money will be bet with offshore sportsbooks and local bookmakers. (Nevada is currently the only state where you can bet on a single game). SPORTS BETTING 101

Coaches’ Corner

The biggest tradition in the storied Duke basketball program is “Krzyzewskiville," where students camp out before games to secure their game ticket. (The camp name is an homage to their coach). Since this year's flu has been so widespread and deadly, the school has closed the camp. Party poopers. 

Vegas readers! Catch us this morning on The Morning Blend (ABC 13) between 9-10 am (PST) to play Super Bowl trivia alongside Shawn and JJ.

The Top 5 Most Memorable Sports Moments of 2017

This year brought us some big wins, tragic losses and definitely some memorable moments. When you ring in 2018, here’s what to talk about until the clock strikes midnight.  

Cheers,

The Last Night’s Game Team

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The Top Five Most Memorable Sports Moments of 2017

1. Between three major hurricanes, multiple California fires and a mass shooting, sports teams and players stepped up to support their local communities by donating money and their time. Most notably was Houston Texans JJ Watt (NFL – National Football League) who started a fundraising effort for victims of Hurricane Harvey. He promised to match the first $100,000 raised and ended up raising over $37 million in donations for hurricane relief efforts. MORE 

2. After earning the title of the No Fun League, the NFL relaxed their touchdown celebrations rules this year. Players embraced this freedom of expression and have graced us with celebrations to honor the Rockettes, playing leapfrog, a bench press workout and of course a line dance to the electric slide. SEE MORE

3. Like we needed more evidence to prove that Serena Williams is nothing short of Superwoman. In January, she won her record 23rd Grand Slam win at the Australian Open. (A Grand Slam is one of the four major tournaments in tennis). Later she revealed that she was pregnant during her big win. Therefore, this year brought us the birth of her baby girl and her glamorous wedding to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. MORE

4. The hype was worth the hype in the Mayweather vs. McGregor boxing match. MMA fighter (Mixed Martial Arts) Conor McGregor stepped outside his comfort zone to step into the ring and fight one of boxing’s best, the undefeated Floyd Mayweather. The fight lasted 10 rounds and Mayweather was declared a winner but not before McGregor earned the sports world’s r-e-s-p-e-c-t. MORE  

5. This year was a terrible year for the U.S. Men’s Soccer Team. The U.S. team did not qualify for the World Cup for the first time in 31 years. Also having a crappy year? Team Italy. They didn’t qualify for the World Cup for the first time in 58 years. Ciao World Cup dreams.

PS – There are some great things ahead in 2018. Most notably, the College Football National Championship, Super Bowl, Winter Olympics and World Cup all in the first six months of the year.

 

There's more where that came from

Instead of focusing on the past, here are the top three buzzworthy topics in the world of sports right now, including cancelling Sunday Night Football, why the NBA had a very Merry Christmas and why Old Guys rule. READ

Rolling In The Dough

Whether you're going out or staying in, here’s how you can carry on the conversation this weekend.

Piece of cake,

The Last Night’s Game Team

PS - This week's Tailgate Treat is an easy pizza with all things good and cheesy for your game day excitement. (Or breakfast the next morning. We’re not judging).

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MLB (Major League Baseball)

ICYMI. The Houston Astros made their city proud, winning the World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Their win was 56 years in the making.

 

College Football

What to wear. Arizona State University will be donning their best on Saturday night. They’ll sport special 'Brotherhood' uniforms to honor the U.S. Military and the late Pat Tillman, a former ASU football player who was killed in combat.

Okie scuffle. ESPN College GameDay heads to Stillwater, OK for ‘Bedlam,’ a rivalry game that divides households. Oklahoma (#8) will take on Oklahoma State (#11) and the game will feature two of the best quarterbacks in the nation. FULL SCHEDULE

Overtime

Wedding bells are ringing in the Houston Astros locker room. Shortstop Carlos Correa proposed to his former beauty queen girlfriend on the field after their World Series win. Not to be outdone, pitcher Justin Verlander will wed model Kate Upton this weekend in Italy. He’s skipping the championship parade for the wedding. In his defense, he was playing with the Detroit Tigers, who weren’t World Series bound, when they planned their nuptials.   

Sideline stat

Major NFL (National Football League) sponsor Papa John’s has blamed declining sales on the player protests, saying the lack of NFL leadership has hurt their shareholders. Their pizza making competition disputes those claims saying their sales are up. Even DiGiorno Pizza jumped in on the action with this catty tweet. Let the cheese wars begin.   

Coaches’ corner

Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson was on a historic pace for a rookie. You may remember earlier in the season when Watson donated his first NFL paycheck to three stadium employees whose lives were devastated by Hurricane Harvey. Unfortunately his first season on the field is over as he tore his ACL yesterday in practice. NFL SCHEDULE