2022 In Sports

2022 has been quite the year in the world of sports, both college and professional. Lot of great moments and some not so great. We won't get into the bad, we only discuss the good for this article. That being said, here's a look back at what was in 2022.

Tennis:
Australian Open: Rafael Nadal, Ashleigh Barty
French Open: Rafael Nadal, Iga Świątek
Wimbledon: Novak Djokovic, Elena Rybakina
U.S. Open: Carlos Alcaraz, Iga Świątek

NASCAR:
Daytona 500: Austin Cindric
Geico 500: Ross Chastain
Coca-Cola 600: Denny Hamlin
Cup Series Championship: Joey Logano

Golf:
Masters: Scottie Scheffler
PGA Championship: Justin Thomas
U.S. Open: Matt Fitzpatrick
The Open Championship: Cameron Smith

Football:
2022 CFP National Title Game: Georgia def Alabama 33-18
'Super Bowl LVI: Rams def Bengals 23-20

Basketball:
Men's National Championship: Kansas def North Carolina 72-69
Women's National Championship: South Carolina def UCONN 64-49
NBA Finals: Golden State def Boston in Six Games!

Baseball:
World Series: Astros def Phillies in six games!

Hockey:
Stanley Cup: Colorado def Tampa Bay in Six games!

In Memorium:
-Dan Reaves (77)
-Don Maynard (86)
-Bill Fitch (93)
-Emile Francis (95)
-Jean Potvin (72)
-John Clayton (67)
-Gene Shue (90)
-Tommy Davis (83)
-Mike Bossy (65)
-Clark Gillies (67)
-Guy LaFleur (70)
-Marian Barber (38)
-Bob Lanier (73)
-Bill Russell (90)
-Vin Scully (93)
-Maury Wills (89)
-Bruce Suter (69)
-Ray Guy (72)
-Paul Silas (79)
-Franco Harris (72)
-Pele (82)

Merry Christmas

Happy holidays to one and all and a Very Merry Christmas. Enjoy our holiday tradiion

Pro Bowl Roster Announced

Pro Bowl time is drawing near. Its the collection of the best of the best from around the National Football League during the 2022 regular season. So here's what we got for the Pro Bowl this year.

AFC:
Offense:
Quarterback: Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City, Josh Allen, Buffalo, Joe Burrow, Cincinnati
Running Back: Nick Chubb, Cleveland, Josh Jacobs, Las Vegas, Derrick Henry, Tennessee
Fullback: Patrick Ricard, Baltimore
Wide receiver: Tyreek Hill, Miami, Stefon Diggs, Buffalo, Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati, Davante Adams, Las Vegas
Tight End: Travis Kelce, Kansas City, Mark Andrews, Baltimore
Offensive Tackle: Laremy Tunsil, Houston, Terron Armstead, Miami, Orlando Brown Jr., Kansas City
Offensive Guard: Quenton Nelson, Indianapolis, Joel Bitonio, Cleveland, Joe Thuney, Kansas City
Center: Creed Humphrey, Kansas City, Mitch Morse, Buffalo

Defense:
Defensive End: Myles Garrett, Cleveland, Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas, Trey Hendrickson, Cincinnati
Defensive tackle: Chris Jones, Kansas City, Quinnen Williams, NY Jets, Jeffery Simmons, Tennessee
Outside linebacker: Matt Judon, New England, Khalil Mack, LA Chargers, T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh
Inside/middle linebacker: Roquan Smith, Baltimore, C.J. Mosley, NY Jets
Cornerback: Sauce Gardner, NY Jets, Pat Surtain II, Denver, Marlon Humphrey, Baltimore, Xavien Howard, Miami
Free Safety: Minkah Fitzpatrick, Pittsburgh
Strong Safety: Derwin James, LA Chargers, Jordan Poyer, Buffalo

Special Teams:
Long Snapper: Morgan Cox, Tennessee
Punter: Tommy Towsend, Kansas City
Placekicker: Justin Tucker, Baltimore
Return Specialist: Devin Duvernay, Baltimore
Special Teams: Justin Hardee, NY Jets

NFC:
Offense:
Quarterback 1 Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia 7 Geno Smith, Seattle 8 Kirk Cousins, Minnesota
Running Back: Saquon Barkley, NY Giants, Tony Pollard, Dallas, Miles Sanders, Philadelphia
Fullback: Kyle Juszczyk, San Francisco
Wide Receiver: Justin Jefferson, Minnesota, A.J. Brown, Philadelphia, CeeDee Lamb, Dallas, Terry McLaurin, Washington
Tight End: George Kittle, San Francisco, T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota
Offensive Tackle: Trent Williams, San Francisco, Lane Johnson, Philadelphia, Tristan Wirfs, Tampa Bay
Offensive Guard: Zack Martin, Dallas, Landon Dickerson, Philadelphia, Chris Lindstrom, Atlanta
Center: Jason Kelce, Philadelphia, Frank Ragnow, Detroit

Defense:
Defensive End: Nick Bosa, San Francisco, Brian Burns, Carolina, DeMarcus Lawrence, Dallas
Defensive Tackle: Aaron Donald, LA Rams, Jonathan Allen, Washington, Dexter Lawrence, NY Giants
Outside Linebacker: Micah Parsons, Dallas, Za'Darius Smith, Minnesota, Haason Reddick, Philadelphia
Inside/Middle Linebacker: Fred Warner, San Francisco, Demario Davis, New Orleans
Cornerback: Darius Slay, Philadelphia, Trevon Diggs, Dallas, Tariq Woolen, Seattle, Jaire Alexander, Green Bay
Free Safety: Quandre Diggs, Seattle
Strong Safety: Budda Baker, Arizona, Talanoa Hufanga, San Francisco

Special Teams:
Long Snapper: Andrew DePaola, Minnesota
Punter: Tress Way, Washington
Placekicker: Jason Myers, Seattle
Return Specialist: KaVontae Turpin, Dallas
Special Teams: Jeremy Reaves, Washington

Playoff Clinching Scenarios Week 16

Week sixteen has arrived in the NFL. We got three weeks left in the regular season and teams have a great chance to lock up playoff spots this week. Here's how that could go down.

AFC: Clinched- Buffalo Bills (playoff spot) Kansas City Chiefs (AFC West)
Buffalo Bills:
-Buffalo can clinch the AFC East with a win OR a Miami loss

Cincinnati Bengals
-Cincinnati can clinch a playoff spot with a win OR a Jets loss

Baltimore Ravens
-Baltimore can clinch a playoff spot with a win AND losses by the Jets, Dolphins and Patriots

Los Angeles Chargers
-Los Angeles can clinch a playoff spot with a win AND losses by the Patriots Jets and Raiders

NFC: Clinched- Philadelphia Eagles (playoff spot) Dallas Cowboys (playoff spot), San Francisco 49ers (NFC West), Minnesota Vikings (NFC North)

Philadelphia Eagles
-Philadelphia can clinch the NFC East with a win
-Philadelphia can clinch home field and top seed with a win or a tie and Minnesota loss

New York Giants
-New York can clinch a playoff spot with a win AND losses by Washington, Detroit and Seattle

Playoff Clinching Scenarios Week Fifteen

The playoffs are right around the corner in the NFL. We have a couple of spots already clinched. Heading into week fifteen we have a few more teams that can clinch playoff spots. Here's what we got for this week in the NFL.

AFC:
Buffalo Bills
-Buffalo can clinch a playoff birth with a win, OR a tie and a loss by the Jets Patriots and Chargers

Kansas City Chiefs
-Kansas City can clinch the AFC West with a win OR a Chargers loss
-Kansas City can clinch a playoff spot with a Tie and losses by the Jets, Dolphins and Patriots

NFC: Clinched Philadelphia Eagles (playoff birth)
Dallas Cowboys
-Dallas can clinch a playoff birth with a win OR losses by Seattle, Detroit and Washington

Minnesota Vikings
-Minnesota can clinch the NFC North with a Win OR a Lions loss

San Francisco 49ers
-San Francisco can win the NFC West with a win

Rare Air For Great Eight

In the game of hockey, goal scoring is essential. You do it once, you got skill. You do it 800 times, that's a feet that three men have ever hit. Wayne Gretzky and Gordie How now have company as Alexander Ovechkin joins that exclusive brotherhood. It had been a hot streak for Ovechkin, who had scored goals in four straight games to reach the milestone.

What Ovechkin has done is nothing short of incredible.

There's no stopping him when he's on his game. Ovechkin has had a unique ability in his career to be able to find the back of the net in new and exciting ways. he makes the highlight films and he does it so easy. Since he's joined the league in 2006, in every full year that he has had, Ovechkin has scored 32 or more goals, he's gone over 60 goals once, eight more of 50 or more goals and three more seasons of 40 or more, the rest have been 30 or more. There are times watching the great eight, where he looks like more then a man.

Gretzky is going to have some company soon in the close to 900 goal club and Ovechkin is the guy to do it. Now don't get it wrong, there have been great goal scorers in this game. Jaromir Jagr looked like he might have had an outside shot at it, but didn't really come close. Brett Hull same thing when he was on top of his game in the early 90s.

With current skaters, Crosby could have come close to 600 had he managed to stay healthy, same thing with Steven Stamkos. Nobody else right now really looks like, at least on paper and based on past performances, that they will come close to doing what Ovechkin has done.

Ovechkin has been the face of the Capitals and one of the faces of the entire league since he burst onto the scene. He's been one of the most steady scorers that this game has ever seen and he's played at such a high level.

Next up to catch, #99

College Bowl Schedule Announced

The time has arrived. Bowl season is just a week away. Lots to digest from the bowl games for the 2022 season. Fear not, we've got you covered. We will list the full bowl schedule below so you can keep track of it.

Friday, Dec 16, 2022
-HomeTown Lenders Bahamas Bowl Miami (Ohio) vs. UAB Thomas Robinson Stadium Nassau, Bahamas 11:30am ET ESPN
-Duluth Trading Cure Bowl 25 UTSA vs. 24 Troy Exploria Stadium Orlando, FL 3:00pm ET ESPN

Saturday, Dec 17, 2022
-Wasabi Fenway Bowl Cincinnati vs. Louisville Fenway Park Boston, MA 11:00am ET ESPN
- Cricket Celebration Bowl Jackson State vs. NC Central Mercedes-Benz Stadium Atlanta, GA 12:00pm ET ABC
-SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl Florida vs. 14 Oregon State Allegiant Stadium Las Vegas, NV 2:30pm ET ESPN
-Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl Washington State vs. Fresno State SoFi Stadium Inglewood, CA 3:30pm ET ABC
-LendingTree Bowl Rice vs. Southern Miss Hancock Whitney Stadium Mobile, AL 5:45pm ET ESPN
-New Mexico Bowl SMU vs. BYU University Stadium Albuquerque, NM 7:30pm ET ABC
-Frisco Bowl North Texas vs. Boise State Toyota Stadium Frisco, TX 9:15pm ET ESPN

Monday, Dec 19, 2022
-Myrtle Beach Bowl Marshall vs. UConn Brooks Stadium Conway, SC 2:30pm ET ESPN

Tuesday, Dec 20, 2022
-Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Eastern Michigan vs. San Jose State Albertsons Stadium Boise, ID 3:30pm ET ESPN
-RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl Liberty vs. Toledo FAU Stadium Boca Raton, FL 7:30pm ET ESPN

Wednesday, Dec 1, 2022
-R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl WKU vs. South Alabama Caesars Superdome New Orleans, LA 9:00pm ET ESPN

Thursday, Dec 22, 2022
-Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl Baylor vs. Air Force Amon G. Carter Stadium Fort Worth, TX 7:30pm ET ESPN

Friday, Dec 23, 2022
-Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl Louisiana vs. Houston Independence Stadium Shreveport, LA 3:00pm ET ESPN
-Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl Wake Forest vs. Missouri Raymond James Stadium Tampa, FL 6:30pm ET ESPN

Saturday, Dec 24, 2022
-EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl Middle Tennessee vs. San Diego State Ching Complex Honolulu, HI 8:00pm ET ESPN

Monday, Dec 26, 2022
-Quick Lane Bowl New Mexico State vs. Bowling Green Ford Field Detroit, MI 2:30pm ET ESPN

Tuesday, Dec 27, 2022
-Camellia Bowl Georgia Southern vs. Buffalo Cramton Bowl Montgomery, AL 12:00pm ET ESPN
-SERVPRO First Responder Bowl Memphis vs. Utah State Gerald J. Ford Stadium Dallas, TX 3:15pm ET ESPN
-TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl Coastal Carolina vs. East Carolina Protective Stadium Birmingham, AL 6:45pm ET ESPN
-Guaranteed Rate Bowl Wisconsin vs. Oklahoma State Chase Field Phoenix, AZ 10:15pm ET ESPN

Wednesday, Dec 28, 2022
-Military Bowl UCF vs. Duke Navy-Marine Corps Mem. Stadium Annapolis, MD 2:00pm ET ESPN
-AutoZone Liberty Bowl Kansas vs. Arkansas Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium Memphis, TN 5:30pm ET ESPN
-SDCCU Holiday Bowl North Carolina vs. 15 Oregon Petco Park San Diego, CA 8:00pm ET FOX
-TaxAct Texas Bowl Texas Tech vs. Ole Miss NRG Stadium Houston, TX 9:00pm ET ESPN

Thursday, Dec 29, 2022
-Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl Syracuse vs. Minnesota Yankee Stadium Bronx, NY 2:00pm ET ESPN
-Cheez-It Bowl Oklahoma vs. 13 Florida State Camping World Stadium Orlando, FL 5:30pm ET ESPN
-Valero Alamo Bowl 20 Texas vs. 12 Washington Alamodome San Antonio, TX 9:00pm ET ESPN

Friday, Dec 30, 2022
-Duke's Mayo Bowl Maryland vs. 23 NC State Bank of America Stadium Charlotte, NC 12:00pm ET ESPN
-Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl Pitt vs. 18 UCLA Sun Bowl Stadium El Paso, TX 2:00pm ET CBS
-TaxSlayer Gator Bowl 21 Notre Dame vs. 19 South Carolina TIAA Bank Field Jacksonville, FL 3:30pm ET ESPN
-Arizona Bowl Ohio vs. Wyoming Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ 4:30pm ET Barstool
-Capital One Orange Bowl 6 Tennessee vs. 7 Clemson Hard Rock Stadium Miami Gardens, FL 8:00pm ET ESPN

Saturday, Dec 31, 2022
-Allstate Sugar Bowl 5 Alabama vs. 9 Kansas State Caesars Superdome New Orleans, LA 12:00pm ET ESPN
-TransPerfect Music City Bowl Iowa vs. Kentucky Nissan Stadium Nashville, TN 12:00pm ET ABC
-Vrbo Fiesta Bowl 3 TCU vs. 2 Michigan State Farm Stadium Glendale, AZ 4:00pm ET ESPN
-Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl 4 Ohio State vs. 1 Georgia Mercedes-Benz Stadium Atlanta, GA 8:00pm ET ESPN

Monday, Jan 2, 2023
-ReliaQuest Bowl 22 Mississippi State vs. Illinois Raymond James Stadium Tampa, FL 12:00pm ET ESPN2
-Goodyear Cotton Bowl 16 Tulane vs. 10 USC AT&T Stadium Arlington, TX 1:00pm ET ESPN
-Cheez-It Citrus Bowl 17 LSU vs. Purdue Camping World Stadium Orlando, FL 1:00pm ET ABC
-Rose Bowl Game 11 Penn State vs. 8 Utah Rose Bowl Stadium Pasadena, CA 5:00pm ET ESPN

Monday, Jan 9, 2023
-CFP National Championship Semifinal Winners SoFi Stadium Inglewood, CA 7:30pm ET ESPN

Changing Of The Guard In Queens

There's a changing of the guard in Queens this winter. One ace out, another ace in. Jacob deGrom has taken his talents elsewhere. So to replace him, Justin Verlander has been brought in.

Losing Jacob deGzrom does sting a little, as he's spent his entire nine year career in the blue and orange. During that time, he won 82 games, struck out 1,602 hitters and had a 2.52 career ERA in New York, four of those years resulted in an all star game appearance. Oh and he managed to win a pair of Cy Young's and a rookie of the year. Now, he's taking those talents to Texas, signing a five year deal worth $185 Million.

It's kind of understandable why deGrom took off for Texas, he felt a bit of disrespect from the Mets organization. He was the team best pitcher but never fully got treated like it. It seemed as if he was playing second fiddle to Matt Harvey and even Noah Syndergaard. Both of whom the Mets put in higher esteem for whatever reason.

He hit the free agent market and landed in Texas. According to reports, deGrom liked the winning culture that's building around the Rangers. Part of it, from my point of view, is that he wanted to be a on a club where he was the true ace and he felt that way going in. He never truly got that in New York, and it wasn't helped any by adding Max Scherzer last year.

On a personal note, I know with injuries and him leaving, things kind of went south for Jake on the way out of Queens. But having said that, I want to thank deGrom for all that he did for this team and the memories he provided for the franchise.

Now the Cy Young winner from the AL last year, Justin Verlander comes into the mix. He comes to Queens on a two year deal worth $ 86 million. Verlander brings 17 years experience and 244 career wins into the mix. With almost 3,200 career strikeouts, a career 3.24 ERA, 3 Cy Youngs and a world series title. He reunites with former Tigers teammate Scherzer at the top of the Mets staff.

What worries me a little is Verlander age, he is 39 years old. He still got great stuff, there's no denying that. If he can stay healthy there's still plenty left in the tank for Verlander to be very good and very effective in Queens.