That’s A Wrap
Tiger Woods’ 11-year-old son talks trash, he played with an injured what and a huge weekend in college football?
Level the playing field this weekend, by knowing just enough about what’s happening in the world of sports to create conversation and maybe even turn some heads.
We see you,
The Last Night’s Game Team
College Football
This weekend in college football is consumed by conference championship games. These games determine who plays in which big bowl game, including the two national championship playoff games. The two big games everyone will be talking about this weekend include Ohio State and Washington. Ohio State didn’t play enough games to qualify for the Big Ten Championship Game but they were able to get special dispensation and will play Northwestern.
The Washington Huskies were all set to play the USC Trojans in the Pac-12 Championship but COVID reared its’ ugly head and they had to drop out. Now the Oregon Ducks will play in their place. WHAT A YEAR
Overtime
The father-son golf duo of Tiger and Charlie Woods is going to have to bring their A-game on the golf course tomorrow after Charlie, 11, talked trash to his dad’s colleague, pro golfer Justin Thomas. The Woods boys will take on Thomas and his dad during the PNC Championship where 20 major champions compete alongside a family member. Charlie is the youngest competitor but has some big wins on the junior circuit. DON’T LOOK NOW
Sideline stat
Major League Baseball has made the long-overdue decision to recognize Negro League players as “major league.” What does this mean? First, it validates the careers of more than 3,000 players and it changes who holds which records in the record books. MLB is reclassifying the records from 1920-1948 as its “major league” period. In 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first Black player to play in the major leagues. After 1948 the "Negro League" still existed but was viewed as a minor league farm system for the major league teams. VALIDATION
Coaches’ corner
Stop us if you’ve heard this one before - a guy plays an entire NFL (National Football League) game with a fractured throat. It happened to Frank Ragnow of the Detroit Lions. He dealt with what was essentially a vocal cord contusion for the entire game last weekend, which obstructed his ability to breathe, eat and talk. That was a huge challenge for the center who is responsible for making the line calls. Luckily his teammates stepped in as his voice. No word yet if Ragnow will play this weekend. NO ‘I’ IN TEAM
Why Hello Friday
Kapernick’s delicious new partnership with Ben & Jerry’s, meet the Babe Ruth Of Congress and the tradition of the Army-Navy game.
It’s the moment you’ve been waiting for – Friday. So, slap on those yoga pants and your Zoom friendly top, and let’s get to it.
Working for the weekend,
The Last Night’s Game Team
College Football
As the college football season winds down, we have one game that earns the respect of all football fans, Army vs. Navy. Typically, the matchup between the two teams gets its own weekend without any other teams playing but not this year. The game has been moved to West Point (home of Army) for the first time since 1943. The two teams played during two World Wars so COVID is not going to stop them. Army is clearly the better football team this year but this is a great game of respect. The teams’ fellow cadets will be in the stands cheering them on. A SIGHT TO SEE
Overtime
If you've been wondering where former NFL (National Football League) quarterback Colin Kaepernick is, you can find him in the freezer section on a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream pint. The partnership between the two is providing another platform for discussion around social injustice over a bowl of ice cream. Change The Whirled is caramel with fudge chips and swirls of graham crackers and chocolate cookies. (It’s also non-dairy). ONE SPOONFUL AT A TIME
Sideline stat
Outside of the Super Bowl, one of the most prestigious awards in the NFL is the Walter Payton Man Of The Year Award, awarded to the player who has shown outstanding dedication to community service while representing excellence on the field. The nominees, one from each team, will each receive a $40,000 donation to their charity of choice and the winner, who will be announced before the Super Bowl, will receive an additional $250,000 donation to a charity. PAY IT FORWARD
Coaches’ corner
We always love it when politics comes at us with something we might be able to talk about without setting the room on fire. You may have heard that President-Elect Joe Biden has selected Rep. Cedric Richmond as a senior adviser but did you know Richmond’s nickname is the "Babe Ruth of Congress?" He earned that nickname not for eating hot dogs and slamming Coca-Cola in the dugout but for his prowess during the charity Congressional Baseball Games. Richmond has quite an impressive baseball resume, playing in college and he is by far the best pitcher and hitter on the field, racking up stats that impress even the biggest sports fan. HOW ‘BOUT THEM APPLES?
What to watch
Saturday is the MLS (Major League Soccer) Championship Game between the Seattle Sounders (named after the Puget Sound) and the Columbus Crew (named after, well, hmm…they like teamwork? The rumors about the name range from because they’re a union town to it was a fan vote to they like 2 Live Crew). The Crew are slight favorites to win but two of their star players were not medically cleared to play. And if you want to sound in the know, it’s “MLS,” not “the MLS.” LEARN SOMETHING NEW EVERYDAY
Can We Just Talk?
Breaking down the Pippen-Beasley drama (so much drama…), a Friday edition of “tell me something good” and why big feet are a big problem.
Here’s to hoping that the most drama you encounter this weekend is in this newsletter.
Let’s do this,
The Last Night’s Game Team
NFL (National Football League)
The conversation around the NFL season seems to be marred with constant COVID chatter, so let’s talk about something positive. This week brings us the player-led campaign My Cause My Cleats. A record number of players worked with artists and cleat manufacturers to create custom-designed cleats that will be worn this week and then auctioned off to benefit the charity of their choice. More than 20% of the 1,000 players participating chose social justice causes with others selecting youth, education or health and wellness-related initiatives. TELL ME SOMETHING GOOD
Overtime
It’s the sports-related drama everyone is talking about – the Minnesota Timberwolves (NBA - National Basketball Association) Malik Beasley, 24, and Larsa Pippen, 46. Allow us to fill you in. Beasley asked Pippen out via a public Instagram post. Here’s the awkward part - Beasley is married and has a child with Montana Yao. Then photos surfaced of Beasley and Pippen out together, only a month after Beasley was charged with felony threats of violence and fifth-degree drug possession. Oh, and Pippen’s estranged husband is NBA legend Scottie Pippen. (She also a past history – allegedly – with rapper Future but we’ll let you go down that rabbit hole yourself). Yesterday Yao, who was said to be caught off guard by all of this, filed for divorce from Beasley. SO MUCH DRAMA
Sideline stat
It’s the football game we seriously never thought we’d be talking about – BYU and Coastal Carolina. The two teams are making lemonade out of the lemons 2020 gave them. Both BYU and Coastal Carolina have 9-0 records but are still looking for the respect of the CFP committee (College Football Playoff committee – they decide which teams go into the playoffs). So when Coastal Carolina’s opponent cancelled their game on Thursday, BYU lived by their 2020 motto of “Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime” and stepped in to play Coastal Carolina on two days’ notice. Now they’re the game of the week and College GameDay will even be broadcasting live from the campus. SEIZE THE DAY
Coaches’ corner
Normally we’d say that George Russell has big shoes to fill this weekend in replacing seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton (who has COVID) in this weekend’s F1 (Formula One) race, but not in this case. Russell has a big problem and it’s not nerves. His size 11 feet are too big for Lewis Hamilton’s car so he’s having to wear smaller shoes to make it work. NO PAIN NO GAIN