Sports Junkie

Current Mood: sporty

I don't know what it is, but for some reason this spring I have become WAY more into sports that I have ever been. And I'm not just talking about my recent love of football, it has become an interest of sports across the board:

Hockey
*Miami University (OH) 's team, the Redhawks, made it to the Frozen Four. My sister and a few of my friends have gone/are going there, so I've made a point to pay a bit of attention to that.
*Sis seems to have rediscovered her love of hockey, so she and Bradley have been going to some Cincinnati Cyclones games, and they're in the playoffs. Get Cyc'd!
*My roommates are way into NHL level hockey, so I have been watching some with them and have adopted their team, the Detroit Red Wings - currently headed into the Western Conference Semifinals.

Baseball
*Opening Day came and went, and I watched the Reds play and it made me miss home a little, so I made Gold Star Chili for the apartment. It's way early in the season, but they're on a streak and in 2nd place in the NL Central.

Basketball
*I really don't care much for basketball, but I love brackets. I finished 3rd of 18 in my March Madness Pool.
*Purdue Boilermakers made it to the Sweet 16 with a young team, so maybe next year we'll improve and I might actually go to a game? Then I can genuinely root for Robbie Hummel.

Auto Racing
*Haven't watched any NASCAR, but from what I can tell it hasn't changed much since the Points Cup was implemented, rewarding consistency and boring racing. My driver Dale Jr. has bounced around to many different teams and hasn't made much of a name for himself, unfortunately.

Soccer, Golf, Tennis, MMA, other sports
*No thanks.

Football
*Purdue said goodbye to Coach Joe Tiller and replaced him with Danny Hope. Our main prospect for QB next year was suspended, so we'll probably have a rough year.
*I've spent the NFL offseason reading up on the draft, free agency, and the mechanics that make up the offseason. I feel like kind of a loser, but I've gotten pretty into football as a whole. I read mock-drafts, fan sites, histories and analysis of salaries, draft positions, and all sorts of projections. I'm ready for some real football, though.
*And fantasy football.
*The Bengals have made some not-horrible offseason decisions, so that makes me optimistic. Later I think I will do some predictions about the next NFL season.

There's been a few big changes happening in the NFL - Favre retired (but that could change), Madden retired (his replacement, Chris Collinsworth, is a Bengal but also looks like a bird man). Commisioner Goddell is looking to change 2 preseason games into real ones (and that would make a lot of old records disappear), and move games out of the US, and is currently negotiating a new CBA and possible rookie salary cap - all of these will change the shape of the league over the next few years.


Finally, some links:

Here's probably the best NFL draft article I've come across.

For a look at some misconceptions about the NFL busted by MATH, look here.

Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald bring the funk.

Because it makes me happy, some of the biggest sports upsets in history.

Lastly, how have I never heard of this dude?