Welcome to October – it’s about to be a fun month! To give a proper welcome, in all it’s sports glory, let’s kick things off with views of the Golden State Warriors very own new star player, Kevin Durant, getting his very first bucket with the new team.
QUIPS FOR THIS WEEK
NFL
The National Football League was back in action over the weekend — the Dallas Cowboys overcame another week of injuries (they’re still without QB Tony Romo) and beat the San Francisco 49ers 24-17 with the help of rookies Ezekiel Elliot (138 yards and a TD) and Dan Prescott, Washington got their second victory in a row — this time with a 31-20 victory at home over the Cleveland Browns, and the New England Patriots are no longer undefeated after losing to the Buffalo Bills 16-0. Good news for the Pats — they’ll have QB Tom Brady back in the lineup next week. Oh, and it was quite the day for Atlanta Falcons QB Matt Ryan, who had 503 yards and 4 TDs in a 48-33 victory over the Carolina Panthers (Julio Jones also added 12 receptions with a record 300 yards). We’re also sending get well wishes to QB Cam Newton who suffered a concussion during the game.
Sunday nights game saw the Pittsburgh Steelers overcome last week’s tough loss with a strong victory over the Kansas City Chiefs 43-14.
Monday Night Football features the New York Giants against the Minnesota Vikings. Tune into the action at 8:30pm on ESPN.
College Football
There was all kinds of fun in college football this past weekend and plenty to discuss. Let’s start with the best game of the weekend – #3 Louisville versus #5 Clemson which saw QB Deshaun Watson help Clemson get the 42-36 win after throwing 5 touchdowns. Other notable games include: #4 Michigan getting the victory over #8 Wisconsin 14-7 to stay undefeated after an impressive interception from Jourdan Lewis helped the Wolverines close out the game, and North Carolina upset #12 Florida State 37-22, getting a win and breaking FSU’s 22 home game winning streak.
In terms of the new top 5, it breaks down like this: #1 Alabama, #2 OSU, #3 Clemson, #4 Michigan, and #5 Washington.
Speaking of rankings, it’s not every year that the ACC is known for their football skills across the league but this season, things seem to be different as there are six ACC teams ranked in the AP poll — #3 Clemson, #7 Louisville, #10 Miami, #17 North Carolina, #23 Florida State and #25 Virginia Tech.
NBA
LeBron James is officially with her – In an op-ed in Business Insider, published on Sunday evening, LeBron explains why he endorsing Hillary Clinton for President of the United States in the 2016 election.
In other on the court news, rookie Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers (aka the first pick in the NBA draft) is set to have foot surgery after suffering a broken bone and is expected to be out for at least 3 months.
MLB
It’s officially October — which means playoff baseball is here! BUT before we get there, let’s talk about the last few days of the regular season. Over the weekend, we saw the Toronto Blue Jays get the 2-1 win over the Boston Red Sox – giving them the home field advantage in the wild-card match-up for the American League. On the other side, the National League is good to go as well — as the San Francisco Giants took out the LA Dodgers 7-1 to do what they do best and clinch the wild-card match-up. It is an even year after all.
So what does all of this actually mean for the playoffs? Well, it looks like this:
American League
- East: Boston Red Sox
- Central: Cleveland Indians
- West: Texas Rangers
- Wild Cards: Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays
- Tune in Tuesday night at 8pm on TBS
National League
- East: Washington Nationals
- Central: Chicago Cubs
- West: Los Angeles Dodgers
- Wild Cards: New York Mets and San Francisco Giants
- Tune in Wednesday at 8pm on ESPN
It’s also hard to believe, but it’s the end of the road for Boston Red Sox star David Ortiz. The Sox sent Big Papi off with an emotional day of gifts, teammates and memories to mark the end of an era.
Other
Remember that time the United States won golf’s very own Ryder Cup? Oh wait that was Sunday. After 8 years, they defeated Europe. Congrats team USA!
Clint Dempsey of the Seattle Sounders will miss the rest of the regular MLS season and the playoffs due to an irregular heartbeat.
In World Cup Hockey, team Canada came from behind to win 2-1 over team Europe. Canada is the reigning champion in Olympic hockey, World Championships, and the World Cup of Hockey. Sidney Crosby (captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins) won MVP with 10 points in six games. The only two other players to ever win the Hart Trophy (MVP of the NHL), Conn Smythe Trophy (the “MVP for his team” trophy for the NHL playoffs), and MVP at the Canada Cup/World Cup of Hockey are Bobby Orr and Wayne Gretzky.
JUST FOR FUN
STORIES FOR INSIGHTS, COOL FACTOR + DEBATE
Piece of the puzzle
Will they get J.R.?
Negotiations are a two way street, and right now J.R. Smith and the Cleveland Cavaliers are still in contract negotiations even though training camp has started. Will LeBron lose one of his “big guns,” or will his comments help move the deal forward?
Vin Scully
Recalling 67 years
Take a look at the oral history of one of Baseball’s legendary voices
Come, Mr. DJ
How do colleges get students in the stands?
You can thank the DJ for drawing in younger fans and keeping the crowd’s spirit up, even if the games aren’t always nail-biters
Out of home
A new way to guarantee an audience
ESPN has found a new way to sell their television audience to ad agencies — monetizing “out of home” game viewership
PS: Wondering why you’re missing out on SQ? If you’re using Gmail, make sure you check your Promotions folder! If you want SQ to go to your Primary folder instead, click on this email and drag it into your Primary folder.
The SportsQuip 