Now What?

Now that the Olympics are over guess it’s time to binge-watch “Mare of Eastown” or one of the 20 other shows everyone is talking about.

So many choices, so little time,

The Last Night’s Game Team 

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Olympics

The last weekend of the Summer Olympics wrapped up with a few huge wins for Team USA, which finished one gold medal ahead of second-place China in the medal count. Adding to that Team USA tally were the women’s basketball team (their seventh straight gold medal), men’s basketball team (fourth consecutive gold) and women’s volleyball (first gold ever). Also, for the first time, 93 Olympic organizing committees won a medal - the most to ever win a medal at a single Olympic Games. SEE YOU IN PARIS

Overtime

The NFL (National Football League) Hall of Fame speeches are always inspirational, and this weekend’s induction lived up to the hype. We had high hopes for Peyton Manning’s speech. After all, he has been the host of “Saturday Night Live.” He had the audience laughing especially as he took a jab or two at his longtime rival Tom Brady, who attended the ceremony as Manning’s guest.

The thought-provoking speech came from former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson, 78, who talked about QTL – quality time left. "Think about that," Johnson said. "I'm 78 years old and I think about QTL all the time." BE IN THE MOMENT

Sideline stat

Arguably the world’s best soccer player, Lionel Messi, is moving on. During an emotional press conference, he said farewell to his team, FC Barcelona, that he had played for since he signed with them at age 13. (He’s 34-years-old). Messi is leaving because of team financial constraints and has agreed to a two-year deal with PSG (Paris Saint-Germain). PASS THE TISSUES

Coaches’ corner

The Toronto Blue Jays (MLB – Major League Baseball) finally returned to their home stadium after being banned from traveling across the border all season due to COVID protocols. (They split their time between Buffalo and Florida). It's clear they like being home, judging by the dance party that ensues after each home win. The clubhouse turns into a club, complete with strobe lights. RAVING JAYS

The Cost Of Winning - 5 Things To Know About College Recruiting

Is there anything coaches won’t do?

Whatever it takes,

The Last Night’s Game Team

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1. Making it to the big leagues is a big deal and nearly impossible. Only 3-5% of athletes, in any sport, will make it to the collegiate level, let alone the pros. Some players are recruited as young as junior high. SO YOU’RE SAYING THERE’S A CHANCE?

2. Prospective student athletes have the opportunity to have five “paid” official recruiting visits to schools. This means all expenses related to the prospect’s visit are paid for by the school. These are also the trips you hear about that may or may not involve parties and other tactics to get recruits excited about the schools. But they, nor their families, cannot receive gifts or payments from any school. WILD AND FREE

3. Coaches go to lengths to get their top prospects to commit with school visits and extravagant home visits. Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh has climbed a tree, went to school with top prospects and had a sleepover complete with some Netflix. One coach wrestled a prospect and another serenaded a recruit or two (and it worked). WHATEVER YOU’RE INTO

4. Head coaches don’t have to only win over the athlete, but their families. One coach went as far as writing a recruiting letter to a prospect’s cat.  And sometimes things don’t always go as planned, like when one mom ran off with the letter of intent and no one could find her. (His dad later signed the paperwork. That led to a court battle). WHEN YOUR MAMA IS THE DRAMA

5. While you might think that a college coach’s job is to call plays and win the big game, 50% of their time is spent recruiting. You might remember a story about Arizona State University’s football coach Herm Edwards, who spent his career in the NFL. He had no idea about having to recruit AND coach. WELCOME TO THE WORLD

Thanks to the Bedford Agency for their help with today’s post. Just like we relied on them for great info for this post, college recruits across the country from all sports (and their families) rely on Bryan, a former division I recruiting director, and his team to navigate the recruiting process.

Wednesday Wisdom

Here’s what everyone will be talking about this morning at the watercooler including how Michael Jordan proved he's the real deal, a NYC Fashion Week debut, more Antonio Brown and why Team U.S.A. is scared. READ