Sports Takes Category

Posted On December 4, 2017By Ryan DaughertyIn Sports, Sports Takes

Baylor Bears Football: 2018 Recruiting Class

*Photo by Gordon DeLoach – @flashpho A new era: How Baylor’s 2017 recruiting class fared… After an explosive rise to dominance under Art Briles that included a Heisman Trophy, two Big 12 Championships, the most prolific offense in America over a four or five year stretch, and a home field advantage that was rivaled by only few programs, the Baylor Bears were in firm position to not only be one of the top programs in Texas and the Big 12, but the nation. Unfortunately, with all that success came aRead More
Jason Redman Brickyard 400
Suffolk, Va., July 6, 2016 – In just a few short weeks, racing fans from across the country will flock to Indianapolis for one of NASCAR’s biggest events of the summer. And despite being named the winner of the annual Crown Royal “Your Hero’s Name Here” program, which renames the Brickyard 400 after a deserving hero, retired U.S. Navy SEAL Jason Redman’s name won’t be displayed around the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway – for good reason. Redman instead asked that the race bear the name of the charity he andRead More
Last year, I was lucky enough to go to Indianapolis to see the Your Hero’s Name Here 400 (formerly known as the Brickyard 400) in person. I was able to take in the race, and get to meet the heroes that had competed for the naming rights, including last year’s winner, Jeff Kyle. It was an amazing event, and one that I am proud to support. This year, the field has been narrowed down to five finalists, who you can learn more about here. Vote for your choice by JuneRead More
A team with no money just won the English Premier League. Vegas had them at 5,000-1 odds. Nobody, including their mothers, picked them to win the title. But it’s clear to me how this happened. To hijack a line from the film Moneyball, “We are card counters at the blackjack table and we’re going to turn the odds on the casino.” Here’s what transpired… Leicester City flipped the script on the excruciatingly top heavy Premier League. A league in which 3 powerhouse clubs have dominated title wins for over 100Read More
Novak Djokovic won the Miami Open over the weekend, breaking all kinds of records in the process. His 6th Miami Open title, 27th Masters title, and dangerously close to earning more prize money than the untouchable one… Roger Federer. Nobody can beat him, or even win a set off of him. He’s won 22 sets in a row without much resistance, and has rendered even the best servers unable to hold serve. What is he doing that’s so special? It begins and ends with the brain, duh. Mental tennis DuringRead More

Posted On February 6, 2016By Ascher RobbinsIn Gambling Life, Sports, Sports Takes

Super Bowl 50: Analysis and Predictions

  At last, the biggest day in the sporting world is finally here – Super Bowl Sunday. The biggest game of the year is always a spectacle; however, with this being Super Bowl 50, the hype is at an all time high. The NFL has gone all-out promoting Super Bowl 50 – perhaps more so than with any of the game’s 49 previous iterations. And the matchup holds plenty of intrigue on its own – the Denver Broncos and Peyton Manning’s “last rodeo” versus the Carolina Panthers and one ofRead More
SAN DIEGO, CA – If I’m sitting at my desk at 1am, clutching a coffee mug, it has to be January, and it has to be a night session match of the Australian Open. Indeed, it’s Federer against Djokovic, for the 45th time. #UpAllNight has become an annual tradition for me since I began following tennis in 2011. For two weeks out of the year, I forgo conventional Pacific Time Zone hours to indulge in all of the action of the tournament I love. But for the first week of thisRead More

Posted On January 23, 2016By Ascher RobbinsIn Gambling Life, Sports, Sports Takes

Breaking Down 2016 NFL Championship Weekend

After a crazy Divisional Playoff weekend that saw an insane Aaron Rodgers’ Hail Mary followed by a Cardinals’ walk-off overtime win, a 31-0 first half barely holding up, in Carolina typical Andy Reid clock (mis)management in a Chiefs’ loss, and the defense doing enough to earn another win in Denver, we’re left with four contenders for the Lombardi Trophy. For the first time since 2004, the final four teams remaining are the top four seeds in the playoffs – #2 seed New England travels to #1 seed Denver in theRead More
One-fourth of the NFL’s 32 teams remain heading into this Sunday’s Divisional Playoff Games. The eight squads still vying for the right to be forever known as Super Bowl 50 Champions all have their flaws; perhaps more than any year in recent memory, there doesn’t seem to be a clear favorite in neither the AFC nor NFC. Three of this weekend’s four games are rematches – only the Chiefs and Patriots will line up against each other for the first time – so we might have some idea of what toRead More
Tennis is a young person’s sport. A player’s prime is normally between the ages of 23-27. But the average age of this year’s top 8 men is 29.6 years old. In fact, there’s only a single man under the age of 28. So with the 2015 race to London featuring so many veterans, does the tournament really mean anything for the younger players of the ATP as we move towards next season? The answer is a resounding no. Instead, it’s for the fans. Perspective When you think about this year’sRead More

Posted On October 13, 2015By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

Why I Would Make An Excellent MLB Manager

Modern baseball managers are wimps. They treat their players like prized hams, and make decisions that defy all common sense and logic. But it’s all in the name of keeping their job. Because job security is non-existent, managers are never allowed to truly relax. They make decisions that they can explain away in job interviews the following winter. It’s time for an overhaul. I would be the greatest manager that major league baseball has ever seen. Most of a manager’s failures are the result of doing too much. That’s whyRead More

Posted On September 18, 2015By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

Tennis Fans: Why Novak Deserves More Love

It’s January of 2009, and 21 year old Novak Djokovic has just retired from his 4th Grand Slam match in only his 17th appearance. While trailing American Andy Roddick in the 4th set, Djokovic complained of sickness due to the sweltering Australian heat. Were used to this sort of thing by now. Novak is not a fighter… yet. Many fans sadistically viewed this Aussie retirement as karma after an ugly verbal incident between the two men at the previous year’s U.S. Open. Roddick had flippantly remarked that Novak was alwaysRead More

Posted On September 10, 2015By Hunter SimmonsIn Sports, Sports Takes

The Torture of Being a San Diego Sports Fan: Revisited

About a year ago, I wrote about some of the pains that come with relentlessly cheering for mediocrity. At that time, the San Diego Padres were on their way to finishing their season 77-85. Those that call themselves baseball fans can understand this year’s disappointment. In 2015, life was injected into the team. The owners, in a spat of brilliance, hired the upstart AJ Preller as the team’s general manager, who did not waste too much time signing some of the biggest names in baseball: Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, JamesRead More

Posted On September 8, 2015By Brian WrayIn Sports, Sports Takes

Ramblings of a Tennis Nerd: U.S. Open Edition

When you watch a lot of tennis, and are opinionated, it only makes sense that you need to document your enthusiasm. During the U.S. Open Men’s 4th round match between Roger Federer and John Isner, I got a little excited, and decided to do just that. Here’s how it went down: FIRST SET: Wow, John Isner, what a fine serve you have. Can you teach me bro? Federer, you just returned a 138mph serve, how does it feel? It looks really humid in New York. I’m glad I’m in SanRead More
Boys will be boys, and sometimes men will still act as boys. This sociological truth transcends even the most gentlemanly of sports, including tennis. But the altercation involving Nick Kyrgios and Stan Wawrinka was different than most on-court arguments, even by tennis standards. The personal nature of the infamous sledge wasn’t the first of its kind, and it won’t be the last. In case you missed it, Aussie Nick Kyrgios made a comment during his match against Wawrinka that “Kokkinakis banged [Wawrinka’s] girlfriend.” He muttered it under his breath, butRead More