The Rundown: Weekend Wrap Up

While some we’re braving the -3° temps in Minnesota, we braved the sweltering heat of our fireplace to bring you with today's updates. We breakdown the NFL playoff games as well as preview tonight’s big game, the College Football National Championship Game.

Don’t fight the inevitable like Sepp Blatter and seize the day.

We’d prefer to stay in bed,

The LNG Team

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NCAA Football (College)  

• Tonight’s the night! It's the National Championship Game in Glendale, AZ where the Crimson Tide of Alabama will take on the Tigers of the University of Clemson. You can catch the game at 8:30 pm (EST) on ESPN
  • Crimson Tide beat Michigan State and are the SEC (Southeastern Conference) Champions.
  • Tigers beat Oklahoma University to become the ACC (Atlantic Coast Conference) Champions.
  • Key players
    • Alabama Running Back Derrick Henry who won the Heisman Trophy this season.
    • Clemson Quarterback Deshaun Watson who finished third in the Heisman voting.
  • Alabama is looking for the fourth National Championship in seven years.  Head Coach Nick Saban has four national titles under his belt.  
• Z winners. North Dakota State Bison (pronounced bizon) won its fourth straight National Championship beating Jacksonville State 37-10. These teams play in the FCS division, which is one level lower then division one college football like Alabama or Clemson.  Quarterback Carson Wentz may have played himself into the top quarterback position in the NFL Draft.

NFL (National Football League)

• Your playoff breakdown awaits

Kansas City Chiefs 30 vs Houston Texans 0

• Chiefs continued their 11-game winning streak.
• Chiefs Knile Davis set the tone for this thrashing by taking the opening kickoff back for a 106-yard touchdown.
• Chiefs defense forced Texans Quarterback into five turnovers (four interceptions, one fumble).
• Stand out Texans Defensive Lineman, JJ Watt, left in the third quarter with groin injury and did not return.
• Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots play on Saturday at 4:35 pm (EST) on CBS.

 Pittsburgh Steelers 18 vs Cincinnati Bengals 16

• Steelers lead 15-0 heading into final (fourth) quarter.
• Cincinnati scored 16 unanswered points in fourth quarter and that’s when things went crumpled for Cincinnati.
• Here’s how things went down from there. Cincinnati had the ball with under two minutes left and simply needed to run out the clock to win. Then Bengals fumbled the ball and Steelers recovered.
• Long story short, the Steelers Kicker Chris Boswell kicked a field goal with 14 seconds left in the game to give the Steelers the lead and eventually the win.
• Pittsburgh Steelers play Denver Broncos on Sunday at 4:40 pm (EST) on CBS.

Seattle Seahawks 10 vs Minnesota Vikings 9

• Dedicated fans braved the weather and watched the third coldest game in NFL history (-6° F).
• Vikings lead 9-0 heading into the fourth quarter.
• Minnesota Kicker Blair Walsh was responsible for all of the points the Vikings scored through the third quarter.
• Vikings had a chance to take the lead with 22 seconds left on a seemingly automatic field goal. In a ‘laces out’ debate that would make Ray Finkle cringe, Walsh missed the easiest field goal of the year to give Seattle the win. Walsh led NFL kickers with 34 made field goals on the year. 
• According to ESPN, the Seahawks 10 points were the fewest by a winning playoff team since 1997.
• Seattle Seahawks will play Carolina Panthers on Sunday at 1:05 pm (EST) on FOX.

Green Bay Packers 35 vs Washington Redskins 18

• To say Packers weren't playing well going into game is understatement.
• Washington had the early momentum when they tackled Green Bay Quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, in the end zone for a safety in the first quarter.
• Redskins then hit a field goal and then scored a touchdown where the kicker, Dustin Hopkins, missed extra point to make it 11-0.
• The momentum swung in favor of the Packers who led 17-11 going into halftime.
• The Redskins came out of halftime strong by scoring in the third quarter but the Packers then scored 18 unanswered points to win 35-18.
• Green Bay Packers will play Arizona Cardinals on Saturday at 8:15 pm (EST) on NBC.

• Young and hungry. Miami Dolphins hire Chicago Bears Offensive Coordinator, Adam Gase, as their new Head Coach. At 37 years old Gase takes the title of youngest NFL Head Coach.

NCAA Basketball (College)  

• What are the odds? University of Nevada-Las Vegas fires Head Coach Dave Rice after five seasons. Assistant Coach Todd Simon will take over on interim basis. It's rumored that former Cleveland Cavaliers Head Coach Mike Brown will eventually fill position.
• For the buzzer. In possibly game of the season thus far, University of Southern California beat University of Arizona 103-101 in four overtimes.

MLB (Major League Baseball)

• In the rafters. Seattle Mariners announced they will retire the second number in team history- #24. The number belonged to newly selected Hall of Famer and former Mariner Ken Griffey, Jr. (All MLB teams have retired #42 which is the number of Jackie Robinson who was the first African American to play in the modern era of the Major Leagues.) 

FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association or french for INternational association football federation)

• Naughty naughty. Former FIFA President Sepp Blatter, will appeal his eight-year ban from the sport. His ban stems from a long list of corruption charges for bribery. 

Overtime

• Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney was a walk-on wide receiver for Alabama where he won the National Championship in 1992. Swinney roomed together with his mom for three years during college because that was all they could afford. It’s a touching story if you need a little break from work. 

 Sideline Stat

• In NHL (National Hockey League) news, Washington Capitals’ Alexander Ovechkin became first Russian born player to score 500 career goals. 

Coaches’ Corner

• If the field at a NFL stadium is only 100 yards long, how does a player have a 106-yard punt return for a touchdown? While the field only shows 100 yards, the field is actually 120 yards long (10 yards for each end zone.) Therefore, Knile Davis caught the kick six yards into the end zone and ran it all the way down the field for a 106-yard touchdown. 

The Rundown: Weekend Wrap Up Edition

This weekend was full of sports action.  Here's a snapshot to impress your friends and family at holiday parties this week. They'll be so impressed. Just don't eat the fruitcake. 

Seasons Greetings, 

The LNG Team

PS - Give us some coaching tips. Let us know in the comments your likes, dislikes or if you want to learn something specific. 

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NCAA Football (National Collegate Athletic Association aka College Football)

• Ladies hide the remote. Capital One Bowl Mania began Saturday. There are 42 bowl games in all with the culmination in the National Championship Game on January 11 in Phoenix, AZ. 

NBA (National Basketball Association)

• All-Star Alert! Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving made his season debut Sunday vs 76ers. This was his first game back since breaking his knee in NBA Finals vs Warriors last year.
• Who you calling old? Kobe Bryant dunked for the first time this season against the Houston Rockets. Bryant will retire at the end of the season after a 20 year NBA career. 
• Solid Gold. The Golden State Warriors continue their hot streak with a 26-1 record.

NFL (National Football League)

• What's his secret? New England Patriots, led by quarterback Tom Brady, clinched a first round playoff bye for 6th season in a row. (Brady is married to Victoria's Secret model Gisele.) 
• Yet another reason to hide the remote. NFL playoffs start on January 9, 2016.
• Heading North? San Diego Chargers beat Miami Dolphins 30-14 in most likely last game in San Diego before inevitable move to Los Angeles.
• Perfection. Carolina Panthers hit a late field goal to stay undefeated against New York Giants 38-35. Only Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers stand in the Panthers' way of a perfect season. 

overtime

• University of Nebraska Cornhuskers' Women's Volleyball Team swept the University of Texas Longhorns to claim the National Championship in front of a record setting crowd of 17,561.

Sideline Stat

• The only NFL team to finish undefeated is the Miami Dolphins in 1972 (14-0)

coaches' corner

• What's a bye? A team receives a bye which means they don't have to play a game when most other teams have to play. In this instance, the Patriots finished in first place in their division and have earned a weekend off to rest and practice before they play their first playoff game.