Month: October 2024

The United States Men’s National Soccer Team started out the last round of World Cup qualifiers in the most embarrassing way possible, losing to Mexico at home then getting ripped apart down in Costa Rica. The results were bad, although CONCACAF qualification is generous to say the least, though what was most disturbing was how hopelessly overmatched the U.S. looked. The 2018 World Cup, which starts in exactly one year, was always going to be a strange interlude for a team caught in between its talented generation of old guys led by Clint Dempsey and the new wave of feisty youngsters, but they looked like Wile E. Coyote chasing the Road Runner when the hexagonal round started. Since then, things have turned all the way around. The team, led by the world’s greatest teenager, has won…

Trade deadline day! The day when futures are squandered, rebuilds torpedoed, and onerous contracts willingly taken on, all in pursuit of that one final piece that may not pay off for months, or years, and probably will never pay off at all. But perhaps there's no reason to be so negative; look at Marian Gaborik's happy face from last year. So let's break down every single trade made today: Tampa Bay Lightning get Braydon Coburn, Boston's 2015 second-round pick, Boston's 2016 second-round pick Philadelphia Flyers get Radko Gudas, Tampa Bay's 2015 first-round pick, Tampa Bay's 2015 third-round pick Boston Bruins get Brett Connolly These are two separate trades, but Tampa clearly wouldn't have made one without the other. For the Lightning, the dra…

Purdue's Braden Smith is questionable to play in his team's Big Ten semifinal game against Wisconsin on Saturday in Minneapolis, per the conference injury report. CBS Sports, however, reported that coach Matt Painter said while Smith isn't at 100 percent, he will start. Smith, an All-Big Ten first-team point guard, sustained a calf strain with 12:26 remaining in the top-seeded Boilermakers' 67-62 win over eighth-seeded Michigan State on Friday. Smith initially was holding his right knee before being taken to the locker room. He returned to the game with 8:32 remaining but played tentatively down the stretch, finishing with five points and eight assists. Purdue coach Matt Painter said Friday that Smith would be re-examined. "He pulled a calf muscle or got hi…

It’s no longer the baseball preseason. Time to get your ass fired up for the regular fall season of America’s Pastime. Read all our playoff team previews here. Today, you’re getting to know … THE CHICAGO CUBS. Who are the Cubs? The Cubs are, spiritually speaking, the only possible team that could go 97-65 and still end up third in their own division without it surprising you at all. Meanwhile, the drunken North Side dudebros who cheer this team on make this the ONE fanbase out there for whom the prospect of temporarily limited bathroom availability represents a true crisis. WHERE DO I PISS? OH DEAR GOD WHERE DO I PISS?! (pisses on a nearby dog) What guys should you know? Pitcher Jake Arrieta is a guy! He’s 21-6 with a 1.82 ERA this season, which sounds pretty fucking awesome. …

data-mm-id=”_gi4ddex52″>Tim Tebow made some comments about the dangers of allowing collegiate athletes to get endorsement money. Though he was passionate about his stance, it did not go over well in the marketplace of ideas. Some went at the former Heisman Trophy winner and current ESPN pundit harder than others.Stephen A. Smith, speaking today on First Take, went to bat for Tebow– not because he agrees with the opinion, but because it was different than his and people called the minor leaguer some names on social media.My reply to recent comments against @TimTebow…… pic.twitter.com/9FzNbuKeSg— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) September 16, 2019It’s important to note that there was widespread criticism of Tebow from within the ESPN family, with some saying he was speakin…

data-mm-id=”_xsmhbao3d”>Three players ejected, a commentariat up in arms, lengthy – seriously lengthy – bans incoming. Just another Thursday night in the NFL. In case you missed it, Myles Garrett sacked Mason Rudolph in the dying seconds of the Browns' 21-7 win over the Steelers, and after a little confrontation on the floor tried to hit the QB with his own helmet, landing one solid hit and sparking an almighty brawl. Here's the question: so freaking what? Garrett, the first overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft and on a Browns team which is having their 17th consecutive season from hell, got too hyped up on a dead play and did something stupid. Nobody's arguing that there's a Nobel Prize coming for this play. But could we stop with the hand-wringing for half a…

data-mm-id=”_elpf99xis”>The 62nd annual Daytona 500 is right around the corner, and some of NASCAR's most successful drivers are still looking for their first wins in the Great American Race. One of those is 2012 NASCAR Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski, who has finished as high as third (2014). Keselowski has been in the NASCAR spotlight, and not for reasons he would prefer. when you get a bad parking spot pic.twitter.com/zIXpP22hgP— Nick Bromberg (@NickBromberg) February 9, 2020After a questionable blocking maneuver by fellow Team Penske driver Joey Logano in the exhibition Busch Clash led to a wreck that took Keselowski out of the race, he publicly expressed his frustration with his teammate, saying he "got wrecked for no reason." Fortunately, the two have settled…

data-mm-id=”_teht1rzhp”>Former Chicago Bears offensive lineman Kyle Long and Paul Swan, a tire carrier for the No. 3 of Austin Dillon and former linebacker for the Bowling Green State University football team, debuted their new weekly show on NASCAR's YouTube channel a few days ago. Here it is:Initial impression? This may be some of the best follicle-for-follicle beard content out there. Long took a few minutes to speak to The Big Lead about the new project and bask in the warm comfort of encountering another human being named Kyle in the wild.Kyle Koster: Just a heads-up: all of my questions are going to be about being named Kyle. Do you like your name?Kyle Long: It's a simple name but it's a unique name. I think it's a pretty name. KK: I looked up its meaning when…

data-mm-id=”_r7u8ng5f0″>Bills coach Sean McDermott is hot and bothered by the fact that the division rival Miami Dolphins (and some other teams) are going to have fans in their stands this year while his team will not. He called this decision "ridiculous" and insinuated teams without fans will be at a competitive disadvantage. Here's his full quote. “”We control what we can control, but I think it’s honestly ridiculous that the playing field for each stadium is inconsistent.””Vikings coach Mike Zimmer made similar comments recently, saying: “I think there are some unfair things going on around it as far as some teams can have fans and some teams can’t. So I think there is a competitive disadvantage in some of those areas.”On the surface, I agree. The NFL has unifo…