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TL’s Sunday Notes | DIGGIES ’25

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The Lyrics Edition:

While We’re Young (Ideas) Offers Up Some Great Lyrics in Rock History

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – Quoting the Monty Python TV show, “now for something completely different.”

Warning Sports Fans: The start of this column is 100% music – not sports – and, it also needs a qualifier – one used frequently while making lists of favorite this or favorite that. The qualifier is that if I were asked to list my favorite lyrics in rock history for 365 consecutive days, you’d get 365 different versions, some with repeats, but many without a single repeating entry.

So, my obvious qualifier: On December 7, 2025, these are the “TL-Top 40” lyrics in my personal catalogue of musicology. That catalogue runs pretty deep, especially from my formative years of the late 1960s to early 1970s. Many of my entries reflect memorable rock ‘n roll songs burned into my memory while many a stylus burned grooves into vinyl albums, an amazing number of them from 1971.

Figuring you get the picture, here are the TL DIGGIES of Rock Lyrics – 2025 edition.

The listing is a TL Top 40 award listing for some of the great and meaningful lyrics in my personal history of listening to great Rock n Roll songs (they are listed in the random order of identifying the songs I wanted to highlight, not great to greatest nor anything else. Only the final listing of the group comes with a deep explanation of it being my all-time fave and the column cover photo might give you a hint:

(1) – “We learned more from a three-minute record, baby Than we ever learned in school.” Bruce Springsteen, “No Surrender,” 1984 (Submitted by column contributor Natly, and it matched yours truly, Tee Els, exactly – so this the listing placed at #1)

(2) – “Sunday’s on the phone to Monday, Tuesday’s on the phone to me” The Beatles, “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window,” 1969

(3) – “You got rats on the west side, bed bugs uptown, what a mess, this town’s in tatters,” Rolling Stones, “Shattered,” 1978

(4) – “You know the day destroys the night, Night divides the day, Tried to run, tried to hide, Break on through to the other side.” The Doors, “Break On Through (To the Other Side), 1967

(5)- “I’ve been waiting so long, to be where I’m going, In the sunshine of your love.” Cream, “Sunshine of your Love,” 1967 (Jack Bruce)

(6) – “I watched with glee, while your kings and queens, Fought for ten decades, For the gods they made … I shouted out, ‘Who killed the Kennedys?’ When after all It was you and me.” Rolling Stones, “Sympathy for the Devil,” 1968

(7) – “And as we wind on down the road, Our shadows taller than our soul, There walks a lady we all know, Who shines white light and wants to show, How everything still turns to gold, And if you listen very hard, The tune will come to you at last, When all are one and one is all. To be a rock and not to roll.” Led Zeppelin, “Stairway to Heaven,” 1971

(8) – “I’ve been walkin’ Central Park, singing after dark, People think I’m crazy! Stumbling on my feet, shuffling through the street, Asking people, “What’s the matter with you, boy?” Rolling Stones, “Miss You,” 1978

(9) – “Oh, let the sun beat down upon my face, With stars to fill my dreams, I am a traveler of both time and space, To be where I have been.” Led Zeppelin, “Kashmir,” 1975

(10) – “Why don’t you come with me little girl, On a magic carpet ride? Well, you don’t know what we can see, Why don’t you tell your dreams to me, Fantasy will set you free, Close your eyes girl, Look inside girl, Let the sound take you away” Steppenwolf, “Magic Carpet Ride,” 1968

(11) – “This is our last dance, This is our last dance, This is ourselves. Under pressure, Under pressure. Pressure.” Queen and David Bowie, written by Freddie Mercury and Bowie, “Under Pressure,” 1981

(12) – “I had a job, I had a girl, I had something going, mister, in this world, I got laid off, down at the lumberyard, Our love went bad, times got hard, Now I work down at the car wash – Where all it ever does is rain – Don’t you feel like you’re a rider, On a downbound train?” Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, “Downbound Train,” 1984

(13)- “Excuse me, while I kiss the sky.” Jimi Hendrix, “Purple Haze,” 1967

(14) – “I know a man ain’t supposed to cry, But these tears, I can’t hold inside. Losin’ you would end my life, you see, ‘Cause you mean that much to me, You could have told me yourself, That you loved someone else, instead, I heard it through the grapevine, Not much longer would you be mine, Oh, I heard it through the grapevine, And I’m just about to lose my mind, Honey, honey, well.” Marvin Gaye, “Heard It Through the Grapevine,” 1969

(15) – “Oye como va, mi ritmo / Bueno pa’ gozar, mulata” Tito Puente, “Oye como va,” 1962 (covered by Santana, 1971)

(16) – “No one knows what it’s like, To be the bad man, To be the sad man, Behind blue eyes” The Who, “Behind Blue Eyes,” 1971 (written by Pete Townshend)

(17) “All you need is love, love, Love is all you need” The Beatles, “All You Need is Love,” 1967 (Lennon-McCartney)

(18) – “Sing us a song, you’re the piano man, Sing us a song tonight, Well, we’re all in the mood for a melody, And you’ve got us feeling alright” Billy Joel, Piano Man,” 1973

(19) – “So goodbye yellow brick road, Where the dogs of society howl” Elton John, “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” 1973

(20) – “A boy is born, In hard time Mississippi, Surrounded by four walls, That ain’t so pretty” Stevie Wonder, “Living for the City,” 1973

(21) – “Hold me closer, tiny dancer. Count the headlights on the highway, Lay me down in sheets of linen, You had a busy day today” Elton John, “Tiny Dancer,” 1971

(22) – “The song is over, It’s all behind me” The Who, “Song is Over,” 1971 (lyrics by Pete Townshend)

(23) – “Little darling, it’s been a long cold lonely winter, Little darling, it feels like years since it’s been here, Here comes the sun, doo-doo-doo-doo, here comes the sun” The Beatles, “Here Comes the Sun,” 1969 (lyrics by George Harrison)

(24) – “She’s a good girl, loves her mama, Loves Jesus and America too, She’s a good girl, who’s crazy ‘bout Elvis, Loves horses and her boyfriend too” Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, “Free Fallin,’” 1989

(25) – “To everything turn, turn, turn. There is a season turn, turn, turn, And a time to every purpose under Heaven” The Byrds, 1965 (Cover of song written by Pete Seeger, with words from the Book of Ecclesiastes)

(26) – “So far away, Doesn’t anybody stay in one place anymore, It would be so fine to see your face at my door, Doesn’t help to know you’re just time away” Carole King, “So Far Away,” 1971

(27) – “Ran into the devil, babe, he loaned me twenty bills, Spent the night in Utah in a cave up in the hills. Set out runnin’ but I take my time, A friend of the devil is a friend of mine, If I get home before daylight, Just might get some sleep tonight” Grateful Dead, 1970 (Written by Robert Hunter, Jerome Garcia, John C Dawson)

(28) – “Can you hear me calling out your name? You know that I’m falling And I don’t know what to say” Fleetwood Mac, “Everywhere,” 1987 (Lyrics by Christine McVie)

(29) – “South City midnight lady, I’m much obliged, indeed, You sure have saved this man whose soul was in need” Doobie Brothers, “South City Midnight Lady,” 1973

(30) – “Gotta keep those lovin’ good vibrations a’happenin’ with her” Beach Boys, “Good Vibrations,” 1966 (Composed by Brian Wilson, with Mike Love)

(31) – “Father, father, We don’t need to escalate You see, war is not the answer For only love can conquer hate, You know we’ve got to find a way, To bring some lovin’ here today, oh (Oh)” Marvin Gaye, “What’s Goin’ On,” 1971

(32) “When the night has come, And the land is dark, And the moon is the only light we’ll see, No, I won’t be afraid, Oh, I won’t be afraid, Just as long as you stand, Stand by me” Ben E. King, with credit to Sam Cooke, “Stand By Me,” 1961, (Lyrics by Ben E. King, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller)

(33) – “Do I have to tell the story, Of a thousand rainy days since we first met, It’s a big enough umbrella, But it’s always me that ends up getting wet, Every little thing she does is magic, Everything she does just turns me on, Even though my life before was tragic, Now I know my love for her goes on” The Police, “Every Little Thing She Does is Magic,” 1981 (lyrics by Sting – Gordon Sumner)

(34) – “Wake up, Maggie, I think I got something to say to you, It’s late September and I really should be back at school” – Rod Stewart, “Magiie May,” 1971

(35) – “Sometimes I’m right and I can be wrong, My own beliefs are in my song, The butcher, the banker, the drummer and then, Makes no difference what group I’m in I am everyday people, yeah, yeah” Sly and the Family Stone, “Everyday People,” 1968

(36) – With or without you, With or without you, ah-ah. I can’t live with or without you” U2, With or Without You,” 1987

(37) – “These days, These days I sit on corner stones, And count the time in quarter tones to ten, my friend. Don’t confront me with my failures, I had not forgotten them” Gregg Allman, “These Days,” 1973 (Lyrics by Jackson Browne, originally for Nico, 1967)

(38) – “Early morning, April 4, Shot rings out in the Memphis sky, Free at last, they took your life, They could not take your pride” U2, Pride (In the Name of Love), 1984

(39) – “Well, I sat there at the table, And I acted real naive, For I knew that topless lady Had something up her sleeve.” John Prine, “Spanish Pipedream,” 1971 (Submitted by column contributor “The Invincible Claude”)

(40) – “Crossroads, seem to come and go, yeah.” Allman Brothers, “Melissa,” 1967 (Words and Music by Gregg Allman)

**** And, “The End,” possibly the greatest of the great finishing lyrics in the history of recorded music of any genre, “And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make” by The Beatles on the amazing Side B of Abbey Road. The album side concludes with such amazing features. Following “Here Comes the Sun” and “Because,” The Beatles recorded and mixed a series of songs, mostly known as The Medley.

“You Never Give Me Your Money” opens the medley and it is brilliantly followed by “Sun King” and “Mean Mr. Mustard,” then “Polythene Pam,” an incredible John Lennon song, sung with his Scouse/Merseyside accent – all Liverpool. “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window” comes next, a song about crazy fans finding their way into Paul McCartney’s house, followed by “Golden Slumbers,” “Carry That Weight,” and the previously noted, “The End.”

The album takes a silent break before “Her Majesty” finishes off the epic side of The Beatles’ very best and – thus – my A-#1 lyric.

Apologies to: Yesterday, (Paul McCartney); The Way It Is and Look Out Every Window, (Bruce Hornsby); My Girl, The Temptations, Reach Out, The Four Tops (Lyrics by H-D-H – Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Eddie Holland; Songs by The Mamas and The Papas; If You Leave Me Now and 24 or 6 to 4, (Chicago) (Lyrics by Peter Cetera for the former and Robert Lamm for the latter); and a zillion others.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: It’s tough to follow-up that collection of Rock Hall of Fame lyrics with some sports notes, but let’s cover some business, first.

PGA TOUR Brunch – You’ve read about the special – Cover Everything – PGA Tour missive a few times in this column. It’s a six days a week e-News sent directly to your Inbox and it’s designed to give PGA Tour fans mobile-first, mobile-friendly tournament previews, betting odds, news updates and the most important URL links to content to save time and help you navigate the world of pro golf right from your device over lunch, brunch or whenever. Compiled and written by this reporter (Terry Lyons) who enjoys weekly competition in a couple Fantasy Golf leagues, too. Sign-Up or gift PGA TOUR Brunch to your favorite golfer or PGA TOUR fan and receive a special 2026 discount by visiting HERE. (Notification: PGA Tour Brunch is not affiliated with the Tour and is a publication by Digital Sports Desk and Terry Lyons).

NETFLIX: This week, it was announced that Netflix will acquire Warner Bros., including its film and television studios, HBO Max, HBO and archives. United is the leading streaming entertainment service with Warner Bros.’ iconic stories, bringing some of the world’s popular titles and properties, like Harry Potter, Friends, The Big Bang Theory, films like Casablanca, series like Game of Thrones and the DC Universe, all together with a bundle of other programs. What the potential merger (if approved by USA and other world regulatory authorities) will not sell are the cable TV stations like CNN, TNT, TBS and others. They will be re-packed into a publicly sold company. The deal has an enterprise value (including debt) of approximately $82.7 billion, with an equity value of $72 billion, the companies said. Who knew that the one-time – mail a DVD of a movie to customers offering – would become the kingpin in an $82 billion dollar take-over? But, Netflix said it expects to see $2-to-$3 billion in cost savings annually by the third year after the WB deal closes. Raise your hand if you saw this coming.

MISSING NYC: A e-newsletter by Will Leitch, stating the things he missed about New York City after moving away 12 years ago prompted me to think of a short list of things that I miss, too.

First, Will’s list:

  1. Good Sushi
  2. Seeing first-run movies a week before the rest of the country
  3. Walking everywhere
  4. Walking everywhere
  5. Walking everywhere

A very worthy list.

Cosmo (photo by Andrea P. Martin)

Now, my list, not including the important stuff like friends, family, people and Cosmo:

  1. Christmas in New York and Rockefeller Center (NBA office was at 51st & 5th)
  2. The Tree
  3. Madison Square Garden
  4. The Beek – a.k.a. The Beacon Theatre for rock shows
  5. The West Village; Corner Bistro, Bar & Books, etc.
  6. Restaurants where you can get whatever you want, anytime you’d like to eat
  7. St. John’s games at The Garden or a trip out to campus and Carnesecca Arena
  8. St. Patrick’s Cathedral (I saw it everyday for 26+ years)
  9. Inside Park at St. Bart’s (my favorite indoor/outdoor place to meet for a beer)
  10. The 7 Train to CitiField and the Mets

And, Will is correct, it was great to not own a car, not pay for car insurance and gasoline and everything else and walk everywhere you needed to go, or grab a quick subway ride.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Nov 16

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TL’s Halloween 🎃 Sports Notes | Nov 2

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The Reservoir near Boston College (Photo by Victoria Lyons)

By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

CHESTNUT HILL – Today’s column begins with a simple question. Why is the NBA and its players singled out for the practice of “Load Management” while many other sports employ the same treatment but remain unscathed of criticism?

I think load management started with Track and Field and Boxing, to allow the athletes plenty of time to recover from prior races or bouts. I don;t think any of us have any issue with that practice, although I do remember former San Antonio Spurs and USA Basketball Dream Team center David Robinson quizzing USA champion hurdler Edwin Moses on his sparse schedule on a Dream Team bus ride returning to the Ambassador Hotel from the Barcelona ‘92 Opening Ceremonies.

The Admiral shook his head, hearing Moses didn’t compete between the Olympics and Worlds while the Spurs might face the Lakers (Shaquille O’Neal), the Rockets (Hakeem Olajuwon), the Knicks (Patrick Ewing) and the Celtics (Robert Parish) within a week or two.

Taking that exchange aside, Load Management is utilized in a number of other sports besides track or boxing. In fact, it’s used in the toughest of sports – ice hockey – where your starters only play 1/3rd of a game, and share time with 3 or often 4 lines, Defense has 6 guys splitting the time. Goalkeepers need two guys to carry the load.

In baseball, starting pitchers only play every four or five days, and their catchers never play in a day game after a night game. All baseball players frequently get a day off. In the bullpen, relievers and closers rarely pitch two days in a row and the prized closers can only throw for three outs, lasting one half an inning.

In American football, the lineup of players (11) are divided into two groups, so 22 guys play instead of 11. There are offensive units and defensive units and also special teams are entirely different players to manage the load and help avoid potential injury. The teams play one game a week.

Of course, in the NBA, the great Michael Jordan swore he HAD to play, as he didn’t want to disappoint a fan who saved a ton of money and bought a ticket months before the scheduled game. MJ set very worthy barometer and played all-out nearly every single night of his career with that fan/ticket buyer in the back of his mind for motivation.

Other examples?

Thoroughbred Race Horses are load-managed with the best of ’em, so much that even the three weeks off between the Preakness and Belmont seems far too short for a Triple Crown contender.

I’m just not sure why basketball gets singled out?

Do you know why?

BC vs. ND: Your roving reporter had the pleasure to attend the Boston College vs. Notre Dame college football game on Saturday. BC’s campus was glowing, and Alumni Stadium – the place Doug Flutie built – was sold out.

It was an absolutely gorgeous New England day with a pure, postcard blue sky. When the game began, Notre Dame was a 29.5 point favorite over the hometown Eagles, but at the half, BC trailed 12-7 and was very much in the game. Then, when Boston College’s Luca Lombardo kicked a 25 yard field goal late in the third quarter, the 10-1 Notre Dame over BC fan ratio was silenced as the scoreboard read ND 12-10.

Boston College had every opportunity to take the lead in the fourth quarter but failed to convert on two 4th Down and 1 yard plays. ND countered with another touchdown to make it, 18-10.

ND broke it open when Jeremiyah Love ran 94 yards with 11:07 remaining in the game. BC could do no more. It was the strongest effort of the season by the Eagles but that effort did nothing for the “win column,” as only an opening week of the season victory over Fordham has been the winning effort.

It was an incredibly exciting event.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: It’s getting late in the 2025 College Football season and both Indiana and Vanderbilt are legit Top 10 and College Football Playoff Bowl bound, for sure. The next thing you know, St. John’s will be ranked No. 5 or No. 6 in College Basketball. … This season, the college football playoffs feature a 12-team format where the five highest ranked Conference Champions and the next seven highest-ranked teams will qualify. The four highest-ranked teams overall receive a first-round bye and are seeded 1-4, while the teams seeded 5-12 play in the first round, with higher seeds hosting the games on campus. The quarterfinals and semifinals are played in the big time bowl games. Here’s the schedule so you can plan ahead.

  • First Round: December 19–20, 2025
  • Quarterfinals: December 31, 2025, and January 1, 2026
  • Semifinals: January 8–9, 2026
  • National Championship: January 19, 2026, in Miami Gardens, Florida

TIDBITS & NUGGETS:Does everyone have their complete set of NBA team #Hashtags for the 2025-26 season? If not, here they are:

If we’re going to rank a few, how about a Top 5:

  1. #TakeNote for the Utah Jazz
  2. #RepTheDistrict for the Wash DC Wizards
  3. #FearTheDeer for the Milwaukee Bucks (longtime fave)
  4. #WeTheNorth for the Toronto Raptors (Another longtime fave)
  5. #LakeShow for the LA Lakers (Third longtime fave)

NBA CUP: We are all about to be overtaken by the NBA Cup and its artistic dominance of basketball courts at every NBA arena. This season, many of the courts have the same overall design and differ only in colors and the names of the team cities emblazoned at center court. Here in Boston, we long for a simple design with some parquet flooring as the main play. Not this year. Elsewhere, the red tones are just too much and do not reflect well. In other locales, such as Los Angeles, the Lakers’ gold (call it yellow) glows in the dark. Many fans like the gray motif, and Brooklyn does it well, along with Chicago, Golden State, Memphis, OKC, Orlando, Portland, Sacramento, San Antonio.

COSM: The late David Stern, NBA Commissioner from 1984 to 2014, had a dream of broadcasting NBA games to make every viewer in the world experience the game as though they were sitting in a courtside seat. That dream is a step closer to reality and the league announced its latest tech deal to take that small step, or giant leap – depending on how you see it.

The NBA and Cosm, an immersive technology, media, and entertainment company, announced a new long-term partnership to produce and distribute live NBA games in shared reality at Cosm’s immersive entertainment venues through 2030 and beyond. During the 2025-26 NBA season, Cosm will produce and present key national games across the league’s broadcast platforms via ABC/ESPN, NBC/Peacock and Prime Video as well as select games and events during NBA All-Star Weekend, NBA Playoffs and NBA Finals.

In February 2023, the NBA became the first-ever professional sports league to partner with Cosm ahead of the opening of the first immersive entertainment venue in Los Angeles’ Hollywood Park in July 2024. Cosm has since opened its second venue in Dallas at The Colony’s Grandscape and is slated to open three additional venues in Atlanta, Detroit, and Cleveland in 2026 and 2027. Other future locations are yet to be announced..

Last year, Cosm reimagined the way NBA fans can experience games, leveraging its innovative camera and production technology to capture and distribute live games back to its 87-foot-diameter, 12K+ LED domes. Cosm venues blend state-of-the-art visuals with the energy of the crowd to create an arena-like atmosphere that provides fans with a view of the game from a range of unique angles, including behind the bench and under the rim. In particular, the Los Angeles venue in Inglewood will be a marquee destination for fans during NBA All-Star activities in February 2026.

“The response from fans at Cosm domes last year demonstrated what an incredible way it is to experience an NBA game,” said Teddy Kaplan, Vice President, Head of New Media Partnerships at the NBA. “We couldn’t be more excited to extend our partnership and look forward to working in lockstep with Cosm to engage our fans as they expand their footprint to different markets across the country in the coming years.”

“The NBA took the leap to be our first league partner, and we are honored to extend the foundational partnership that started it all,” said Jeb Terry, President and CEO at Cosm. “With our shared spirit of innovation, passion for the fan experience, and belief in the power of Shared Reality, we will continue to super-serve NBA fans for many years to come, and in many more locations.”

WNBA LABOR AGREEMENT – TIMEOUT: With the expiration date of the WNBA’s current collective bargaining agreement upon them, the WNBA players association agreed to the extension with the league as previous talks had stalled in an attempt to strike a new deal. According to a news reports from ESPN and The Athletic, the WNBA and WNBPA reached a resolution on a 30-day extension after considering it for two days. The prior agreement expired on October 31.

Keep in mind, the W signed a new 11-year media deal with Versant in late September. The agreement potentially tips-off for the 2026 season and includes at least 50 WNBA games annually and portions of the WNBA Playoff and WNBA Finals games during select years. Versant, the parent company of cable networks and brands soon to be spun off from Comcast has been rapidly acquiring sports rights and diving deeper into women’s sports in particular. The latest agreement expands upon a previous broadcast package between the WNBA and Versant’s USA Network signed in 2024.

REDFORD TRIBUTE: Anyone sick of NFL football, yet? Probably not, but that’s why God invented the DVR (a.k.a. Tivo, Thank-you). Tune in or record, you’ll have a great time watching all the hits!

The Sting is a personal favorite, but The Way We Were is an amazing motion picture, often overlooked.

NOVEMBER 2 – TCM’S TRIBUTE TO ROBERT REDFORD

6:00 AM A Bridge Too Far (1977)

9:00 AM Barefoot in the Park (1967)

11:00 AM Downhill Racer (1969)

1:00 PM The Candidate (1972)

3:00 PM All the President’s Men (1976)

5:30 PM The Sting (1973)

8:00 PM Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

10:00 PM The Way We Were (1973)

12:15 AM A River Runs Through It (1992)

2:30 AM The Hot Rock (1972)

4:30 AM War Hunt (1962)

PARTING WORDS & MUSIC: This will mark two weeks in a row with movie clips, as last week was a clip of The Sting. If you’ve seen the motion picture featured today and you can make it through this clip without tearing up, you are NOT human. Here’s to Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand – two of the all-time greatest.

While We’re Young (Ideas) is a weekly (every weekend) collection of Sports Notes and News written by Terry Lyons. The posting of each notebook harkens back to the days when you’d walk over to the city news stand on Saturday night around 10:00pm to pick-up a copy of the Sunday papers. Inside, just waiting, was a compilation of interesting sports notes, quotes and quips in a column that always sold a few newspapers. Wire Service reports are utilized within the column.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | 8/31

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

NORTON (Mass) – The stars are aligning in the game of golf. Let us count the ways:

  • The PGA Tour concluded with a very entertaining FedEx Cup Playoffs (won by England’s Tommy Fleetwood in grand Fashion).
  • The LPGA tour is cruising through Massachusetts during this great Labor Day weekend as the best female golfers in the world compete in the FM Championship at TPC Boston – formerly the site of a PGA Tour/FedEx Cup Playoff round.
  • The Ryder Cup is on the horizon and United States Ryder Cup captain, Keegan Bradley, had a very difficult decision this week as he made is choices for Captain’s picks to round out the 12-player USA team. England’s Luke Donald will do the same and make his Captain’s selections on Monday (September 1). The Ryder Cup will be contested between Europe and the USA from September 26-28 at Bethpage State Park on Long Island, NY.
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While readers of WWYI might’ve expected a full column on the Baseball home stretch, the start of college football or a preview of the NFL season ahead, you’ll be keen to know that an amazing connection to the PGA Tour-LPGA Tour-and-Ryder Cup walked right into the path of your intrepid columnist earlier this week. Thus, footy can wait a week or so and WWYI will educate you on the great Pat Bradley, aunt of Keegan, and one of the classiest athletes in history – any sport, anywhere. Ms. Bradley was publicizing the 2025 FM Championship when WWYI ran into her and reminisced about rainy summer days on Long Island.

From this observer’s point of view, the FM Championship at TPC Boston is the LPGA equivalent of the Traveller’s Championship, held each June at TPC River Highlands near Hartford.

Why?

They are both the best run, organized, challenging but reward for risk golf tournaments on the circuit. The Traveller’s is a Signature Event (elevated purse) and it comes at a challenging time, usually right after the U.S. Open. Nevertheless, the pro golfers all turn up, as the tournament has the best reputation of taking good care of the golfers and their families.

So it says for the (relatively) new FM Championship for the LPGA. Raised purse, great course in a great place (players stay in locales near either Boston or Providence). The sponsors have dedicated time, hard work, money and Human Resources (volunteers as good as they get) to staging what will surely be the model for all future LPGA events in the years to come.

Bradley was on hand as the media met the powers that be in staging this weekend’s FM Championship in Norton. She was fabulous and this columnist remembers watching her play on Long Island at the Meadowbrook Golf Course in the Western Union International (1979-1982). Pat Bradley was often high on the leaderboard and came from the Commonwealth and was quite accustomed to golf in the Northeast.

“I remember playing the LPGA Championship at Pleasant Valley in 1975 when I was on tour, so the history of professional golf has always been strong in Massachusetts,” said Bradley. “To be back here at TPC (Boston) is a huge treat. The talented athletes are great ambassadors, not only to the game of golf, but to the world of golf. It’s a joy to walk the fairways and watch them do their thing.

Embed from Getty Images

“I am celebrating my 50th year on the LPGA Tour, and when I think back, gee wiz, when I joined the tour in ‘74, the LPGA was about 25 years and here we’re celebrating 75 years. It’s been a tremendous organization and it gets stronger and stronger every year. And, when you have sponsors like FM believing in you as an organization, as athletes, as golfers, it just makes your heart grow and full. You just can’t wait to play these fairways.”

Bradley was joined by Brockton, Massachusetts native Megan Khang who proudly noted she winters in Boston, although it’s a short break with the fact the LPGA Tour runs from about January 18 to November 24. This weekend, Khang sits T-18 after a (-3) score of 69 on Saturday.

“I love being around Massachusetts,” said Khang. “It’s where my family is. For me, being from Massachusetts and playing MassGolf growing up, it’s cool to say, you don’t have to move somewhere warm full-time.’

Bringing it back to Pat Bradley, the 1981 U.S. Open champion, she’ll always have eyes on the LPGA, but this week she was watching her nephew on television, first at the TOUR Championship where he finished T-7 and pocketed a cool $1,121,667 for his efforts after shooting 70-64-63-70 on the championship weekend. Despite his No. 11 ranking on Tour, (No. 8 if you only look at USA golfers), Keegan did not pick himself to play on the Ryder Cup and his aunt had faith in his decision.

“If I said anything to Keegan, it was whatever decision you make, it will be the right decision,” noted Aunt Pat, keeping the family business as close as a Corleone might practice. “I know he’s been dealing with it (Ryder Cup pressure) and he’ll be dealing with it for a little more time. Keegan is the right guy for Bethpage Black, and he and his team will bring the Cup home. He’ll let the fellas know to keep their focus, because otherwise Bethpage Black will let them know.

“It’s been a tremendous moment for Keegan and his family,” added Ms. Bradley. “I’m so proud of all that he has done. I’ve never been so proud of him than the day he took that phone call (to be the US Ryder Cup captain) a couple years ago.

“When a young man goes into Yankee Stadium with a Red Sox baseball cap, you know he’s got guts,” she concluded in her sum-up of the USA’s captain.

FOR THE RECORD: These United States pro golfers made the Ryder Cup team by points earned during the past season:

  1. Scottie Scheffler
  2. J.J. Spaun
  3. Xander Schauffele
  4. Russell Henley
  5. Harris English
  6. Bryson DeChambeau

Then to round out the team, Bradley’s Captain’s picks were: (in alphabetical order)

Sam Burns

Patrick Cantlay

Ben Griffin

Collin Morakawa

Justin Thomas

Cameron Young

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HERE NOW, THE NOTES: There’s been no better moment for the college football season than watching the retiring ESPN commentator and former coach, Lee Corso,make his final pick of the week in front of 100,000 Ohio State fans on Saturday at Noon. ESPN College Game Day ranks neck and neck with the Inside the NBA crew of Turner Sports as the best two wrap-around shows in the business. Game Day might have the edge, as it’s always a live remote on a pumped-up college campus, always the “biggest” game of the week, the best match-up, the most important game. It was no surprise to see Corso pick Ohio State to please the hometown fans. Corso donned the head piece of Brutas the Buckeye mascot to a standing ovation, possibly the loudest in college sports. Second to the Lee Corso tribute, was the college football pageantry on display at the legendary “Horseshoe” in Columbus. Saturday proved to be a perfect, 70-degree, 44% humidity, deep blue postcard blue sky day. Can you imagine being a first-year student just enrolled at The Ohio State University and on campus for a week or two? (Corso was correct, by the3 way, as Ohio State defeated No. 1 ranked Texas, 14-7).

On the other hand, the vaunted Army Black Knights football team suffered one of its most stunning defeats in history, falling 30-27 in double overtime to the Tarleton State Texans football team, an FCS program.

PREDICTIONS: Making these College Football Playoff prediction with the benefit of seeing the Ohio State win over Texas, here are the WWYI thoughts for CFB Playoffs 2025-26:

  1. Ohio State
  2. Clemson
  3. Penn State
  4. Georgia
  5. Notre Dame
  6. Texas (lost Saturday)
  7. Oregon
  8. LSU
  9. Alabama (lost Saturday)
  10. Miami (Florida)
  11. Texas Tech
  12. Arizona State

TL’S – In the Hunt: Illinois, South Carolina, Michigan, Florida, Ole Miss and SMU.

NFL Predictions will come next week.

THIS JEST IN: The bat tossed in the air by a New Jersey Little Leaguer to celebrate a home run which earned him a suspension (lifted by a judge in appeal) was sold Friday for nearly $10,000 at auction. The proceeds from the sale of 12-year-old Marco Rocco‘s autographed bat will be donated to the program he plays for, Haddonfield Little League. The auction was conducted by the reputable firm of Goldin Auctions and it drew 68 bids. The winning bid was $9,882, but the name of the winning bidder was not announced. Marco’s bat flip on July 16 in the final of the NJ Little League sectional tournament resulted in an ejection, a one-game suspension and a legal fight won by the flipper.

THIS JUST IN: In Saturday’s semifinal of the AmeriCup men’s basketball tournament, the United States (3-2) fell to Brazil (4-1), 92-77, in Managua, Nicaragua. Canada and Argentina were playing in the other semifinal at press time. The USA will face the loser of that game for the 2025 FIBA Men’s AmeriCup bronze medal.

Over in FIBA EuroBasket 2025, the Group stage is just being completed and the tournament will advance to the Final phase this week. See the STANDINGS.

Celtics fans want to know: Kristaps Porzingis is averaging 16.7 points per game while playing 26.8 minutes per game for Latvia. The Celtics traded Porzingis and a second-round pick to the Atlanta Hawks this past June in a three-team deal that sent TeranceMann and the No. 22 pick (Drake Powell) in the 2025 NBA Draft to the Nets, while Georges Niang and a second-round pick headed to Boston. In another move to clear additional salary off the books, the Celtics subsequently sent Niang and two future second-round picks to the Utah Jazz for rookie wing RJ Luis Jr., out of St. John’s.

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CAN’T MAKE IT UP: As reported annually by the Associated Press with a dateline of BUÑOL (Spain), thousands of people from all around the world seeking a challenging date for their Tide detergent skills and a messy thrill to boot, spent one fun-filled hour flinging bushels of overripe tomatoes at each other during Spain’s “Tomatina”celebration this week. It was dubbed, “the mother of all food fights” as a packed street in the town of Buñol went deep red as revelers squished, smashed and hurled 120 tons of the overripe garden favorite. Tarps covered building fronts as an estimated 20,000 people let loose amid screams and laughter. The gazpacho didn’t stand a chance, but it beats getting gored by an angry Bull.

STREAKING: Heading into today’s (Sunday) series finale against the Pittsburgh Pirates, arguably the worst hitting team in MLB, the Boston Red Sox have lost five home games in a row. That’s after the Sox won nine of the previous ten (July 26-August 16). Adding to the woes of inconsistency for this hometown team, the Sox have lost four of their last seven series after winning four straight series from July 25-August 6. … Boston has scored three or fewer runs in 11 of their last 16 games. Boston is now (75-62) and are positioned as the American League’s 2nd World Card team, trailing the New York Yankees by one game. Boston is 3.5 games back of AL East division leader Toronto (78-58) … The Seattle Mariners are the 3rd Wild Card team and trail the Red Sox by 2.0 games.

IF THE PLAYOFFS BEGAN TODAY: Here’s the way the teams would match-up if the MLB postseason began today.

AMERICAN LEAGUE:

(1) Blue Jays vs. winner of (4) Red Sox vs. (5) Yankees

(2) Tigers vs. winner of (3) Astros vs. (6) Mariners

NATIONAL LEAGUE:

(1) Brewers vs. winner of (4) Cubs vs. (5) Padres

(2) Phillies vs. winner of (3) Dodgers vs. (6) Mets

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Aug 3

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – The Wyndham Championship being contested in Greensboro, North Carolina this weekend is the final tournament of the 2025 PGA Tour regular season. Next week starts the three tournament FedEx Cup Playoffs when the best golfers in the world must qualify amongst the Top 70 for the FedEx St. Jude Championship (August 7-10), then the Top 50 for the BMW Championship (August 14-17) and then the Top 30 to compete in the final tournament of the season, the TOUR Championship (August 21-24) at East Lake in Atlanta.

Over the many years of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, the PGA Tour and its players have constantly defended the ever-changing format. While the gradual cut-down (elimination of 20 golfers per tourney to send the best 30 golfers to the TOUR Championship), the various proposals to allow the top golfer to begin the final leg at (-10), counting down (-9), etc for the start.

It just didn’t work.

This year, the TOUR Championship will be played as a 72-hole stroke-play event, with all players starting the tournament at even par. The best performer over the course of four rounds at the TOUR Championship will win the FedEx Cup and the FedEx Cup bonus distribution total of cash is $100 million, with the FedEx Cup champion earning $10 million.

Not bad.

But, the tour still seeks a way to reward the players who score the most FedEx Cup points leading into East Lake and that brings us to No. 2 in the world, Rory McIlroy.

McIlroy decided to forego participation in the the FedEx St. Jude next week, the lone golfer among the 69 others who have qualified to take a week off.

You see, McIlroy is guaranteed to make the Tour Championship at East Lake regardless of his results in Memphis or the following week’s BMW Championship in Owings Mills, Maryland. McIlroy is second in the standings after three wins this season, including the Masters, and he’s some 850 points ahead of Sepp Straka who stands in third place leading into this week in Carolina.

Coming off the two or three week stint in Europe (Scottish Open and The Open), McIlroy will rest and practice for a big push in the grand finale, and that’s completely within the current rules.

After years of wrestling with the format which – at times – forced the players to participate each week, the PGA Tour seems to have thrown up its hands in surrender on the issue.

This column thought and thought of ways to correct the un-correctable, and then decided to consult with column contributor and avid PGA Tour fan, Chris Gallivan. The maven of mulligans thought long and hard and came up with the idea of a “Tiered System” to revert back to the gifted strokes method of operation and allow the No. 1 player top billing, but then to group players (maybe in fours) to trail the No. 1 by only a stroke, then another four to trail by only two, and so on.

The increase in the number of players in the hunt puts much more pressure on the No. 1 while it also forces players (No. 2 through 20+) to play each week of the Playoffs or else slip downward in the placings. A worthy idea for consideration, and an idea that will require more study by WWYI in crunching numbers from previous years’ play and playoffs.

Meanwhile, it’s Happy Trails for Rory McIlroy this week and we’ll see you in Atlanta where he’ll surely have plenty of practice rounds while the others are toiling away in the heat of Maryland.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The Boston Red Sox organization received significant blowback when they chose not to make any major trades before this past Thursday’s MLB trading deadline. The Sox made two smaller, less impressive deals, acquiring pitchers Steve Matz and Dustin May, both contributors but not the No. 2 starter Red Sox management was striving to obtain in a last minute deal. Matz pitched one inning of relief (the sixth inning) of Saturday’s 7-3 Boston win over the Houston Astros. May has yet to pitch for Boston.

The “inactivity” was widely criticized by media and fans, and even some MLB GM-types accused Boston’s head of baseball ops and GM Craig Breslow of being “difficult to deal with,” fueling the firestorm of more criticism on sports talk radio city-wide.

Digital Sports Desk believes the best trade made was the trade that wasn’t made, as Minnesota ace Joe Ryan was reportedly on the block, but at a high cost. Surely, the Twins were asking for the moon of Boston rookies and prospects and there was no long-term contract in sight if Breslow pulled the trigger on a deal.

Additionally, Boston OF Jarren Duran has been long rumored to be the fodder in place for a major deal, but slow down Trader Joes. Duran has proven to be the key piece of a Boston clubhouse that has evolved as the year progressed. Time after time, Red Sox players have spoken of the closeness that developed as the team struggled but then reeled off a 10-game winning streak before the MLB All-Star break and now have won six of their last seven games, including two over the LA Dodgers, two over the Minnesota Twins and two vs. the Astros – with a series finale scheduled for Sunday.

Boston is now (61-51), ten games over the .500 mark and in second place in the tough as nails American League East. The Red Sox are also in the driver’s seat for the two AL Wild Card slots, 1.5 games ahead of the floundering New York Yankees, losers of their last two games and 4-6 over the last 10 games. Consider this: New York was 9.5 games ahead of Boston on June 12th.

The key issue for Breslow and the Sox so-called inactivity was not even considering a trade involving any of Boston’s “Class of ‘25, in OF Roman Anthony, and INF Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell, nevermind Duran or utility man Ceddanne Rafaela – all serious commodities as the trade winds of hope blew hard for other clubs.

The trading deadline passed, and yes, the Red Sox must now rely on starters Walker Buehler (6-6) and Lucas Giolito (7-2) who go No. 2 & 3 behind All-Star Garrett Crochet(12-4).

The Red Sox are 19-7 since July 1, tied with the Milwaukee Brewers for the best record in the majors during that timespan. That said, the Red Sox are in the midst of the toughest portion of their 2025 schedule, with the next 10 games against clubs with .500 records or better. Another key factor since the beginning of July for Boston is the fact they are 11-5 in games decided by three runs or fewer and that includes eight one-run games.

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: Cooper Flagg or Cooper Criswell? Take your pick. Interesting note on Boston Red Sox pitcher Cooper Criswell. On Friday night, Criswell went (7.0 IP, seven hits, a run, two walks, four strikeouts) allowed a solo HR in the second inning but did not allow a run in the other 6.0 innings pitched. Criswell tied the longest start of his career and also recording his second career quality start (also 7.0 IP and 0 ER on 7/23/24 at Colorado). … The key factor: In his last seven starts, beginning 7/23/24, Criswell is 2-0 with a 1.49 ERA (6 ER/36.1 IP) and he’s allowed three earned runs or fewer in 17 of his last 19 starts, including two earned runs or fewer in 15 starts.

THE DISTRICT: Looks like the Washington Commanders will be based in The District, not Maryland, for many years to come. The D.C. Council voted to approve development of the RFK Stadium site in DC, which is the first step toward the Commanders building a new $3.7 billion stadium in the city. A second reading of the proposal to redevelop RFK and its campus and the subsequent vote on the project will occur on Sept. 17. If the plan passes that second vote, it would then go to D.C. mayor Muriel Bowser for approval. The plans call for a domed stadium and development of the entire area. More to come as the votes near.

THIS JEST IN: Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca did not get his NBA team when the Grousbeck family put the majority of the legendary C’s franchise up for sale. In multiple reports on Saturday, Pagliuca changed gears and investment strategy as he reportedly reached a deal to buy the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun for a record $325 million and move the team to Boston in 2027.

The news of the Pagliuca bid came on the same day Sportico reported that billionaire Marc Lasry is considering a bid to buy the Sun.

The WNBA league office issued a terse statement in reaction to the leak of the sale, noting, “Relocation decisions are made by the WNBA Board of Governors and not by individual teams.”

The statement reviewed its history of expansion – past and present day – The league has announced five expansion teams that will begin play over the next five seasons with Portland (2026), Toronto (2026), Cleveland (2028), Detroit (2029) and Philadelphia (2030) joining the WNBA. Each paid a then-record $250 million expansion fee. The most recent expansion team is the Golden State Valkyries, a team founded this season and currently playing in the Chase Center in San Francisco, home of the Warriors.

In the process of expanding, nine other cities bid for start-up teams, including Houston, which the league singled out as getting a team in the future when it announced Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia in June. Boston did not bid, but continuous talk of Boston becoming a WNBA host city surfaced each of the past two years when the Sun played single regular season games at TD Boston Garden.

The WNBA continued, “Those other cities remain under consideration based on the extensive work they did as part of the expansion process and currently have priority over Boston. Soon-to-be Celtics team owner Bill Chisholm has also reached out to the league office and asked that Boston receive strong consideration for a WNBA franchise at the appropriate time.”

With the relocation reports and the WNBA statement at odds, one must remember the fact the W’s big brother had a number of clubs move over the years, including a very unpopular relocation from Seattle to Oklahoma City in 2008-09. The Sonics/Thunder were the third team in a string of relocat (Vancouver Grizzlies to Memphis-2001) and a (Charlotte to New Orleans-2002) dance that resulted in Charlotte receiving a new expansion franchise. That doesn’t count the mysterious San Diego Clippers to Los Angeles move in 1984, a relocation without league permission, and the New Jersey Nets slide from East Rutherford, NJ to Brooklyn in 2012).

In 2021, the Atlanta Dream sold for $10 million and in 2020, the Las Vegas Aces went for $2m.

It seems the WNBA will have some accounting to do between the $250m and $350m now on the table.

YOU CAN’T MAKE IT UP: “Paging Joey Chestnut. Paging Joey Chestnut,” as the Associated Press reported from Shrewsbury, Pennsylvania that a truckload of raw hot dogs spilled across a Pennsylvania interstate Friday after a crash that briefly clogged heavily traveled arteries in both directions. They caused a traffic jam, too.

Work crews were stuck with a job they did not relish — rolling up the scattered tube steaks for disposal. “Once those frankfurters leave the truck and hit the road, that’s all garbage, and it’s still pretty warm,” Shrewsbury Fire Company Chief Brad Daubermansaid, suffering in 85-95-degree temps which engulfed the East Coast.

State police said the tractor trailer had an unspecified mechanical problem on Interstate 83 a few miles north of the Maryland line as morning rush hour was wrapping up, causing the truck to push into a passenger vehicle. When the truck scraped along a concrete divider, its trailer was ripped open and the contents scattered all over the roads.

Four people required medical attention, Dauberman said, for injuries that police said were not life-threatening. Dauberman added, that emergency crews couldn’t help but see the humor in the situation, and his daughter texted him a photo of a hot dog-themed T-shirt.

“I can tell you personally, hot dogs are very slippery,” the fire chief said. “I did not know that.”

Obviously, no one thought of the one, guaranteed solution, as a call to five or 10 local dog pounds and turning a few dozen furry friends loose would’ve scooped up the raw dogs in a matter of minutes. Of course, the next morning might’ve been a bigger issue.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | June 15

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – As the 2025 NBA Finals and NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs come towards a close, and both series going six, maybe, seven games, Major League Baseball grinds on through the dog days of June. By the 4th of July, it will be “Baseball Season,” but, now, the winter sports are holding on to the interest of sports fans and to loyal, yet dwindling, worldwide television audiences.

 

For both the NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Final, pundits are criticizing the rise of the small market teams. In the NBA, Oklahoma City (Thunder, the No. 47 TV market) and Indiana (Pacers, the No. 25 TV market) are playing some of the best basketball seen in years, yet talking heads are harping on the size of each city.

In the NHL Cup Final, small market (Sunrise, Florida) representing Miami and South Florida as a whole (the No. 18 TV market in the USA), now 2-2 (going into Saturday night’s Game 5) vs. Edmonton (1.6m people in market, no Nielsen TV ratings info).

Here’s a look at the tremendous NHL Stanley Cup promo from TNT:

To help promote the Finals (NBA)/Final (NHL), each league and its broadcasters created/aired terrific promo teases, with the NHL’s shining brightly.

The NBA went with a solid campaign, underlined by Nat King Cole’s incomparable song, “Unforgettable.” The :30 second spot airs during NBA programming but also popped up elsewhere to promote tune-in to the Indiana vs OKC series, and other playoff matchups earlier this spring.

The concept took a storyline created by Goodby-Berlin during the “I Love This Game” campaign, weaving in everyday acts and tasks by the everyday fan into the glorious highlights of NBA action in the playoffs.

The All-Time Greatest Sports Tease

Teasing John Malkovich by CBS Sports

The NBA promos struck a chord of an NFL pre-game tease from years ago, one I’ve highlighted in this space before, for sure.

This aired prior to the 2018 AFC Championship game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and New England Patriots won by the Tom Brady-led Patriots, 24-20.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: This coming week is one of WWYI’s favorite weeks of the year. It’s PGA TOUR comes to New England week with the Thursday morning tee-off at the TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut. Digital Sports Desk (and PGA Tour Brunch) will be on site to cover the tournament.

The Travelers Championship is a TOUR Signature Event and will feature a very strong field, including Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1-ranked player in the world and the tournament’s defending champion. This year’s event will be held June 16-22. In addition to Scheffler, every player in the Top 15 of the current Official World Golf Ranking is eligible to play – and 45 of the Top 50 ranked players – has committed to compete. That includes Rory McIlroy (No. 2), who completed the career Grand Slam by winning the Masters this year and also won THE PLAYERS Championship; Xander Schauffele (No. 3), the 2022 Travelers Championship winner and the reigning Open Championship winner; Collin Morikawa (No. 4); Justin Thomas (No. 5); Ludvig Åberg (No. 6); Russell Henley (No. 7); Sepp Straka (No. 8); and Hideki Matsuyama (No. 9).

“This is an incredible field of world-class PGA TOUR players coming to Connecticut this week, and the competition is going to be something golf fans won’t want to miss,” said Andy Bessette, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer at Travelers. “Thanks to the dedication and hard work of countless people and the support from the best fans on TOUR, the Travelers Championship has become a premier week in golf that continues to have a significant impact on numerous worthy charities throughout the region. We’re looking forward to another great tournament.”

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: The NBA and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) today announced the Top 30 boys and 30 girls who will participate in the 15th edition of Basketball Without Borders / Asia, which will be held at the Singapore Basketball Centre in Singapore from Thursday, June 19 – Sunday, June 22. … USA Basketball announced the 2025 USA Men’s and Women’s 3×3 National Teams scheduled to compete at the 2025 FIBA 3×3 World Cup June 23-29 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. The 2025 USA 3×3 Men’s National Team features Henry Caruso, Mitch Hahn, James Parrott and Dylan Travis, while the 2025 USA 3×3 Women’s National Team includes Morgan Maly, Sarah Strong, Mikaylah Williams and Sahara Williams. On the men’s side, the veteran quartet won the 2024 FIBA 3×3 Men’s AmeriCup last December. … The National Basketball Association, National Basketball Players Association and 2K, a wholly owned label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. and publisher of the leading global basketball video game NBA 2K series, today announced they have agreed in principle to terms for a new multiyear global partnership expansion. In addition, 2K has also agreed in principle to terms to extend its longstanding relationships with the NBA G League and USA Basketball. The agreements will enable 2K to continue creating the most realistic, authentic and engaging NBA video game experiences. … Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak was selected to the 2024-25 NHL Second All-Star Team. This is Pastrnak’s second nomination to the NHL Second All-Star Team (2023-24). He previously received First Team honors in 2019-20 and 2022-23. … The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame revealed the matchups for the annual 2025 Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off. The event will take place on Saturday, November 8, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, and will feature a doubleheader: Providence vs. Virginia Tech and George Washington vs. South Florida.

CWS: Here is your printable bracket for the 2025 College World Series, a double elimination college. baseball tournament ongoing as we type and read: (HERE)

U.S. OPEN and FATHER’S DAY SPECIAL: For WWYI & PGA TOUR Brunch Readers and Subscribers, there’s a new golf training tool that’s making serious strokes on and off the course: XView AI – the first and only markerless app that delivers real-time, full-swing golf analysis using nothing more than your iPhone.

Just like a subscription to PGA TOUR Brunch, it’s the perfect gift for Dads who love their game and their gadgets, as the app is currently being offered in a limited-time promotion through Father’s Day 2025. *Buy 2 months at $49.99 per month for XView AI and get one month free (Offer good now through midnight PT on June 16th).

Enter code: xviewdad25

More Info at: (HERE)

THIS JEST IN: The Houston Chronicle is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Houston Rockets’ back-to-back titles won in 1994-95. During the ‘95 NBA Playoffs, the Rockets faced the toughest road to a title – maybe of all-time.

Let former Chronicle columnist Fran Blinebury explain: (Click Here for his column)

TL’s Sports Notebook | April 13

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor-in-Chief, Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – The radio and its sister, the transistor radio, gave way to the television which soon became a color TV. A few years later, we watched sports from around the globe by way of satellite TV. Years later, the technology improved from over-the-air to cable TV. A little while after that we could buy our own pizza-sized DIRECT-TV satellite dish which gave way to the smart TV and streaming devices.

Basketball’s set shot became a jump shot which morphed into running one-handers and finger rolls. Sooner or later, we had the dunk shot, then the slam dunk. Years later, the gimmick three-point shot was brought into the gamed years after that, pro teams were shooting 50 three-point attempts per game.

In baseball, the fastball was soon joined by the curve ball which gave way to a slider, then a cutter which is now a sweeper.

All-in-all, things ch, ch, ch, change.

Things change in life and in sports. It’s inevitable. When you take a giant step back to examine the progress, progress is good. Standing still is bad.

Take a look at the coverage of the 2025 Masters Tournament. CBS Sports via Paramount+ (and similar coverage by ESPN and its ESPN+ Streaming service) will provide over 100 hours of coverage this week. ESPN+ served up four hours of coverage of the Par 3 tournament on Wednesday. Not too long ago, over-the-air TV coverage of the Masters was limited to four or five hours from Augusta on the weekend.

For all four days of Masters Tournament play, viewers can watch four Featured Groups per day and Featured Holes coverage of Holes 4, 5 and 6, the famed Amen Corner and Holes No. 15 and No. 16. – all streamed on ESPN+ or Masters.com sites.

That a ton of TV coverage and a ton of change for the members of Augusta National who used to pride themselves as the ultimate “less is more” believers.

The “less is more” theory was perfected by the late NBA Commissioner David Sternwhen the league had to consolidate regular season coverage on CBS Sports in order to land a (then) lucrative tv deal that really focused on the NBA Playoffs and Finals. At the time, the NBA national tv deal was only eight regular season exposures plus the NBA All-Star Game. The power of the league’s cable tv package via Turner Sports had yet to reach its eventual impact.

Let’s talk about another ch, ch, ch, change.

The NBA will begin postseason play this week with a relatively new Play-In Tournament that will be as competitive as any first round match-up. Upon conclusion, the two teams to survive the Play-In will be in position to upset the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds. That’s especially so in the West where about four games separates seed No. 2 from Seed No. 8.

In other words, the No. 2 Houston Rockets will have their hands full with their opponent, no matter who it is. That’s good for competition and good for the NBA which sparks interest in an extra four franchise markets and a massive marketing deal with So-Fi as the NBA Playoffs begin.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Back in the good old days of the Masters, these nine players were atop the leaderboard. In 2025, they all missed the cut. In fact, of the 18 former champions in the 2025 field, nine made the cut and these nine did not”:

  • Dustin Johnson, 3 over (74-73)
  • Bernhard Langer, 3 over (74-73)
  • Sergio Garcia, 4 over (72-76)
  • Mike Weir, 4 over (75-73)
  • Fred Couples, 4 over (71-77)
  • Phil Mickelson, 5 over (75-74)
  • Adam Scott, 5 over (77-72)
  • Jose Maria Olazabal, 7 over (77-74)
  • Angel Cabrera, 11 over (75-80)
  • Vijay Singh withdrew on Monday

This year’s tournament marked the end of his Masters playing career for Germany’s Bernard Langer, one of the true, gentlemen of the game of golf. He missed a 10-foot par putt on 18 and missed the cut by one after rounds of 74 and 73. Not only would making the putt have extended the two-time champion’s Masters career by two rounds, but it also would have made Langer the oldest player to ever make the cut at Augusta National. “It was a very special last two days for me,” said Langer, the 1985 and 1993 Masters champion, after 41 years playing Augusta.

All five amateurs in the 2025 Masters field missed the cut. Justin Hastings, the Latin American Amateur champion, shot 76-72 to lead the amateur contingent, but a player must complete 72 holes to earn low amateur honors. Hastings, No. 12 in PGA TOUR University, finished T13 at this year’s Mexico Open at VidantaWorld.

MASTERS: After an opening round 72 (even par), Rory McIlroy put two great rounds of (66) together and leads the 2025 Masters by two strokes over an equally impressive Bryson DeChambeau (69-68-69). The tournament’s 18 and 36-hole leader, Justin Rose, shot (75) on Saturday and fell seven strokes off the lead and is tied for sixth place. Defending champion Scottie Scheffler is also seven back heading into Sunday’s final round.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Feb 25

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The Gate D Press Elevators at Fenway Park Await (Photo by DSD)

By TERRY LYONS, Editor-in-Chief of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – The Polar Vortex has been doing cartwheels all around North America as the glaciers melt in the Northern 51st. With it, the ice surrounding our homes is deeper, darker and as dense as the ice at TD Garden, where Team Canada recently defeated the U.S. of A. in overtime of the championship game of the 4 Nations Tournament

 

4 Nations was missing the sanctioned Russian Federation team and possibly the next best, the Czech Republic, for sure, but for an NHL contrived mid-season tournament, the event(s) in Montreal and here at TD Garden in the cold North End couldn’t have gone better, sans the injuries sustained by Charlie McAvoy, the Bruins’ best defenseman and Florida Panthers star forward Matthew Tkachuk who sat out Saturday’s 2-1 loss to the Seattle Kraken because of a lower-body injury. Panthers coach Paul Maurice announced Tkachuk’s absence after the pregame morning skate. Tkachuk first experienced discomfort during the 4 Nations, when he helped lead the United States to the tournament final.

McAvoy had “an infection in his right shoulder” and suffered “a significant injury to his AC joint” during Team USA’s 4 Nations opener last week, the Bruins said. He was released from the hospital on Thursday and is reportedly on a week-to-week timeline to return.

With McAvoy out, the Bruins’ new top backline pairing heading into the second half of the regular season will be Nikita Zadorov and Andrew Peeke. Recent call-up Michael Callahan is skating on the second pairing with Brandon Carlo, while Parker Wotherspoon, who has not played since January 30, is on the third pairing with Mason Lohrei.

Boston has an uphill climb, as they’ve dropped to sixth place in the NHL’s Atlantic Division, but they remain only one point behind the Detroit Red Wings for the final Wild Card spot. The Bruins are the fourth worst team in the Conference in +/- goal differential.

Down the hallway, the Boston Celtics are among the top three teams in the Eastern Conference but trail the Cleveland Cavaliers for the coveted top spot. Not surprisingly, the New York Knickerbockers are only two games behind Boston in the loss column. Even though the Celtics have won eight of their last nine games, the Sunday, Feb 23 (today) 1pm game against the Knicks at TD Garden will be a key indicator for the second half of the NBA season. The Knicks are coming off a 142-105 thrashing at the hands of the Cavs.

Similarly, on February 8, the Celtics slapped the Knicks’ ears with a 131-104 lesson at Madison Square Garden. Jayson Tatum put up 40 points in that game to anchor the Celtics’ scoring effort. Guard Payton Pritchard had 25 points off the bench. … NY Knicks ‘glue’ man, Josh Hart, has been sidelined with patellofemoral syndrome, a painful knee condition.

In other NBA news, San Antonio’s amazing All-Star center Victor Wembanyama will be sidelined for the rest of the season due to deep vein thrombosis (blood clot) in his right shoulder. His injury pretty much buries the Spurs underneath the four Western Conference play-in teams but assures them of another substantial pick in the NBA Draft.

All in all, we’re coming down the homestretch, and I don’t mean at rain-soaked Daytona.

If you’re watching the calendar and awaiting the great sports days of the spring, you’re not alone. We’re only 22 days away from the first pitch of the 2025 Major League Baseball regular season, as the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs have the honor of opening the season in Tokyo. In doing so, the great fans in Japan will see some combination of the outstanding Japanese pitching trio of Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and newcomer Roki Sasaki, while Chicago is likely to throw SP Shota Imanaga in the opener. … The rest of the MLB teams open their 2025 season on or about Thursday March 27 with the Red Sox at Texas. … It’s 40 days and 40 nights until Opening Day at Fenway Park in Boston.

SPRINGTIME SPORTS CALENDAR

  • February 22 – MLS Regular Season begins
  • March 2 & 5 – Atlantic Sun and Big South Tournaments begin
  • March 9 – Daylight Savings Time begins
  • March 11-15 – ACC Basketball Tournament (Charlotte)
  • March 12-15 – BIG EAST Conference Tournament (MSG)
  • March 16 – NCAA Selection Sunday
  • March 17 – St. P☘️trick’s Day
  • March 18-19 – MLB Regular Season begins (in Tokyo, Japan) (LAD/CHI)
  • March 20-21 – NCAA Basketball First Round (Play-In is March 18-19)
  • March 20-21 – Hockey East Semifinals and Championship (TD Garden)
  • March 27-28 – NCAA Sweet 16
  • April 3-6 – NCAA Women’s Final Four (Tampa Bay)
  • April 4 – Boston Red Sox home opener vs. St. Louis (2:10pm)
  • April 5-7 – NCAA Men’s Final Four (San Antonio)
  • April 10-13 – The Masters (Augusta, GA)
  • April 10-12 – NCAA Frozen Four (St. Louis)
  • April 15-18 – NBA Play-In Tournament
  • April 19 – NBA Playoffs begin
  • April 20 – NHL Playoffs begin
  • April 21 – Patriots’ Day (Boston Marathon/Red Sox @11:10am)
  • May 24-26 – NCAA LAX Final Four (Foxboro, Mass)

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The 4 Nations Face-Off concluded on Thursday night with Canada defeating the USA, 3-2, in overtime. According to ESPN and Nielsen, the championship game delivered 9.3m viewers, ESPN’s largest audience for ice hockey, ever. The previous high on any broadcaster was 8.9 million for NBC’s telecast of Game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final between the Boston Bruins and St. Louis Blues. During the USA loss to Canada, the ESPN audience peaked at 10.4 million viewers and gave the network its largest non-NFL or college football viewership on the network’s platforms since the 2024 NBA Finals.

Former New England Patriots QB Tom Brady purchased part of a Foxborough-based trading card retailer and wants to help it score new business, according to the Boston Business Journal. … The Pats’ GOAT acquired a 50% stake in CardVault and is lending his name to the company, which will be known as CardVault by Tom Brady, according to the news release issued this week. The company did not disclose specific terms of the deal. … CardVault sells sports trading cards and other sports collectibles through its stores at TD Garden in Boston, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, and at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut.

TIDBITS: “The Trade,” as it is now known, seems to be one of those occurrences in sports where everyone “knows where they were” when they heard the news. While it’s not of the level of Michael Jordan leaving the NBA in his prime for minor league baseball, the Dallas Mavericks’ trade of Luka Dončić for LA’s Anthony Davis (and other assorted goodies) just stopped the NBA/sports world in its tracks. … Mavericks great Dirk Nowitzki was in – get this – The Maldives, vacationing with family, when “his phone blew up,” according to the franchise’s all-time best player. … In the truly global NBA, the news of the trade travelled 10,022 miles in a matter of seconds.

Is Boston Brewin’ or is it just another cup of coffee? Brad Marchand, captain of the Bruins, winning member of Team Canada at the 4 Nations tournament and a six-time NHL All-Star, is launching a new business – his own brand of ground coffee. Brad’s Brew will soon be available at 90 Market Basket grocery stores in New England, according to a news release issued this week. … The coffee comes in medium and dark roast blends and is roasted by a family-owned business, Boston’s Best Coffee, which is based in South Easton.

The 2014 NBA Rookie of the Year, Michael Carter-Williams of Syracuse University, is hoping to land a WNBA franchise for Boston, whether it’s through expansion or being a destination for a current team that wants to move. Williams is part of the Boston Women’s Basketball Partners group that is spearheading the initiative. The group hasn’t submitted a bid to the WNBA, although it has talked with the third party the league hired to handle the expansion bidding process. “The main objective is to get a team in Boston,” said Carter-Williams to the Associated Press earlier this week. “It doesn’t matter if it’s an expansion team or a team that wants to sell and move to Boston.” … The hint was being dropped to the nearby Connecticut Sun franchise, playing out of the Mohegan Sun resort in Uncasville, Connecticut – about a 107 mile drive from TD Garden. Should the Sun wish to set up in Boston, complete with its loyal following and NESN broadcasting deal. … The WNBA already announced three expansion teams that will start play over the next two years, with Golden State beginning this summer, followed by Toronto and Portland starting in the summer of 2026. … One other expansion franchise is expected in 2027, and that will come from a long list of bidders, including Cleveland (again) – where are the Rockers? – Detroit (again) – where are the Shock? Houston (again) – where are the champion Comets? They’re all lined up along with Philadelphia, Kansas City and Nashville, among others.

THIS JEST IN: Where’s Johnny Damon when you need him? …Why? …It’s “Bring back the beards to the Bronx” year for the New York Yankees. Yankees managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner declared “well groomed beards” would be permitted in declaring an end to the franchise’s longstanding policy that allowed mustaches but not beards or unruly sideburns.

“In recent weeks I have spoken to a large number of former and current Yankees – spanning several eras – to elicit their perspectives on our longstanding facial hair and grooming policy, and I appreciate their earnest and varied feedback,” Steinbrenner said Friday morning in a statement. “These most recent conversations are an extension of ongoing internal dialogue that dates back several years. Ultimately the final decision rests with me, and after great consideration, we will be amending our expectations to allow our players and uniformed personnel to have well-groomed beards moving forward. It is the appropriate time to move beyond the familiar comfort of our former policy.”

The policy on player appearance includes the length of their mane — stating “hair cannot touch the uniform collar” — and came about in 1976. When George Steinbrenner died in 2010, his daughter and Yankees managing partner, Jennifer, insisted the team’s rule not be changed. … A generational shift that came too late for infamously shaggy stars such as Damon and Randy Johnson takes effect immediately.

IS IT COINCIDENTAL timing or part of a plan, as Steinbrenner claimed? Yes, there is at least one current Yankees player who appreciates the razor relief. New closer Devin Williams reported to Tampa with the goatee look he’s had for several years. When the topic of the facial hair policy came up, Williams was coy and said only “we’ll see” when pressed on his plans for altering his appearance.

CAN’T MAKE IT UP: PGA Tour pro Blades Brown made the cut at the 2025 Mexico Open at Vidanta World. To do so, he shot 68-69 for -5 when the cut came at -3. Brown made his PGA Tour debut about a month ago at the American Express at LaQuinta. Since then, it’s been a challenge. “I mean, I’m hitting a lot of golf balls. The weather back in Nashville isn’t amazing right now, but I’m super happy to come down here to Mexico and speak some Spanish,” said Brown. “I took Spanish four years in high school, so I’m really happy I chose that over Latin. I’m having so much fun here at the resort and I can’t wait for the next two days.”

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Jan 5

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BOSTON – Let’s start the Year 2025 with some bold predictions for the sports world in the year to come.

  • Ohio State will win the College Football National Championship.
  • Free agent pitcher Roki Sasaki will sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
  • Canada will win the 4 Nations Face-Off.
  • The Detroit Lions will win the Super Bowl. Jared Goff will be MVP.
  • Kansas will win the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship with Tennessee, Duke and Florida falling short in the 2025 Final Four.
  • Citizen Bull will win the Kentucky Derby but not the Triple Crown.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights will win the Stanley Cup, defeating the Washington Capitals.
  • The Oklahoma City Thunder will win the NBA title, defeating the Boston Celtics with OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander winning a double MVP for the regular season and NBA Finals.
  • Scottie Scheffler will repeat as the winner of the TOUR Championship, the FedEx Cup and the PGA Tour’s Player of the Year. He will not get arrested this season.
  • The Los Angeles Dodgers will be World Series champions once again.

Admittedly, there are no wild and crazy predictions included in the bunch. Every team, player and horse has a legitimate chance if you were to poll the oddsmakers of Las Vegas.

It’ll be evident in the results of MLB that the rich will continue to get richer (Dodgers, Yankees, Mets), largely because the rules of baseball allow for it without much regard to league-wide parity.

For instance, the Dodgers agreed to a deal with star Korean infielder Hyeseong Kim, the team announced this weekend. The deal is for three years and a guaranteed $12.5 million with an option for 2028-29 that could increase the value of the deal to $22 million. … Kim batted .304 and logged a .364 on-base percentage over eight seasons with the Kiwoom Heroes. He also stole at least 20 bases in each of the past seven seasons, reaching as high as 46 in 2021. A left-handed hitter, Kim slashed .326/.383/.458 with 11 home runs and 30 steals for Kiwoom in ’24.

In the NBA and NHL, where teams play from the same proverbial deck of cards with various salary cap restrictions, repeating as champion is a difficult task.

closeup photo of lighted tealight candles on rackPhoto by Thomas Bormans on Unsplash

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Many of us fell asleep after midnight as December 31st turned to January 1st and the year 2025 began in the quiet peace of the night. In New Orleans, it wasn’t quiet nor peaceful in the French Quarter and by 3:15am, horror brought 2025 in with death and destruction. If you’ve been paying attention to the news, they (terrorists) ruined the celebratory atmosphere of fun and revelry in one of America’s great cities. In doing so, they put a damper over the Sugar Bowl (quarterfinal of the CFP) and the Bowl season, in general. More importantly, 15 souls were lost in a random, senseless attack which injured 36 others and left the entire city of New Orleans on edge, fearful of what might be next.

We’ve seen it before, right here in Boston, when two morons decided to place deadly homemade bombs in two backpacks and dropped the bags along the sidewalks of the finish line route of the Boston Marathon in 2013. The initial bombing caused the deaths of three and injured more than 260 others, not counting the emotional scars of friends and families of the victims and casualties. In addition, in the ensuing police action, a police officer was shot and killed.

The terrorism didn’t start in Boston, as there’s been countless strikes, including the 9/11 attacks, an open shooter at a Las Vegas outdoor concert, bombings at clubs in cities dotting the USA, Europe and throughout the world.

The unbelievable thing is the fact film producers turn the acts of terrorism into motion pictures and documentaries. Director and screenwriter Peter Berg, along with co-writers Matt Cook, and Joshua Zetumer, made a the film based on the book – “Boston Strong” – by Casey Sherman and Dave Wedge. Boston-based actor Mark Wahlberg became the face of the film, “Patriots’” Day, all with good intention but still glorifying the act.

In theaters now is director Tim Fehlbaum‘s Golden Globe-nominated film “September 5.” The film is set almost entirely in the ABC Sports control room and focuses on the real-time challenges faced by the broadcasters in covering the terrorist plot at the 1972 Munich Olympics. September 5 wasn’t the first to chronicle that horrendous attack, as “Munich” and “One Day in September” predate the current film.

ABC Sports anchor Jim McCay summed it up that bleak September day, stating: “Our worst fears have been realized tonight. They have now said that there were 11 hostages. Two were killed in their rooms, yesterday morning. Nine were killed at the airport, tonight. They’re all gone.”

Yes, the victims of the ‘72 Olympics are all gone, but the terrorists – and the motion pictures – keep coming back.

TIDBITS: The things I think about include the fact that 8 o’clock coffee is just as good at 6:30 or 7 o’clock. … When I ordered my coffee, the counterperson seemed quite confused when I asked for No Sugar but Half and 1/4 … Wind breakers don’t really break the wind, and, in fact, the wind breaks the jacket more often than not. … Aside from their size, there’s not much difference between softballs and hardballs in baseball. If you get hit with either one, they’re both pretty hard. … You’ve heard of Manute Bol’s son Bol Bol, right? Pretty good player. Maybe he should sponsor a bowl game and it could be the Bol Bol Bowl.

Random Notes: In case anyone hasn’t noticed, UConn has reeled off seven straight “Ws” since the shakedown start in Maui. … the Big Ten basketball matchup of the week was UCLA at Nebraska. … Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama thinks the object of the game of golf is to shoot 65 or better … BC’s Zay Flowers, now known as Lamar Jackson’s favorite Baltimore Ravens wide receivers left Saturday’s game against the Cleveland Browns with an injured right knee. He walked off the field under his own power but further examination(s) will be necessary. Some might criticize Ravens head coach John Harbaugh for playing his starters, but Baltimore needed the win to earn the AFC North title, a game ahead of Pittsburgh. … TGL Golf will tee-off Tuesday, January 7 at 9:00pm ET on ESPN. The inaugural match will pit the New York Golf Club taking on The Bay Golf Club. Three players from each team will go head-to-head in a 15-hole match featuring two different formats – nine holes of Triples and six holes of Singles.

The column is happy to note a new indoor record for “Open Rate,” the key indicator of growth and acceptance for this publication each weekend. The new high mark is 78%. By comparison, a good open rate ranges from 17-28% and 21.33% is the industry average. With subscription offerings, the rate gets higher, of course.

“Hello Old Friend” – Need a new Spotify classic rock playlist? How about 4 hours and 57 minutes of serious rock, all compiled in one place for WWYI readers – right HERE. Eric Clapton and Yvonne Elliman are a reason to tune in right away.

LEGENDS OF SPORT: Here’s one of Andrew D. Bernstein’s tremendous podcasts, recorded at the Basketball Hall of Fame.

KEY DATES IN 2025: Everyone needs to circle these dates on their sports calendar:

January 2025:

9 – Orange Bowl (CFP Semis)

10 – Cotton Bowl (CFP Semis)

11-12 – NFL Wild Card Weekend

18-19 – NFL Divisional Playoffs

20 – College Football Championship (Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta)

NBA – King Holiday Full NBA Schedule

26 – AFC/NFC Championship Sunday

February 2025:

2 – NFL Pro Bowl (Orlando)

6 – NBA Trade Deadline

9 – Super Bowl (New Orleans)

12 – MLB Pitchers & Catchers Report to Spring Training

12-15 – 4 Nations Face-Off (NHL) (Montreal)

14-16 – NBA All-Star Weekend (San Fran)

17 – 4 Nations Face-Off – Semis (Boston)

20 – 4 Nations Face-Off – Championship (Boston)

March 2025

8 – Final Regular Season Games in College Basketball

12-15 – BIG EAST Championship (The Garden, NYC)

16 – NCAA Men’s Selection Sunday

18-19 – MLB Tokyo Series (Cubs v. Dodgers) – Tokyo, Japan

18-19 – NCAA Men’s First Four (Dayton)

20-23 – NCAA First and Second Rounds

27 – MLB Opening Day

27-30 – Sweet 16/Elite 8 – NCAA Basketball – (ATL, NJ, INDY, SF)

April 2025:

4 – Boston Red Sox home opener (vs St. Louis)

5-7 – NCAA Men’s Final Four (San Antonio)

21 – Patriots’ Day/Boston Marathon

DIGITAL SPORTS DESK’S ALL NFL FANTASY TEAM: Here are the best players in NFL Fantasy Football for the 2024-25 season:

  • QB – Josh Allen
  • QB – Lamar Jackson
  • QB – Joe Burrow
  • RB – Saquon Barkley
  • RB – Derrick Henry
  • WR – Ja’Marr Chase
  • WR – Justin Jefferson
  • WR – Amon-Ra St. Brown
  • TE – Brock Bowers
  • TE – George Kittle
  • PK – Chris Boswell
  • PK – Brandon Aubrey
  • DT – Broncos
  • DT – Vikings

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Rocktober

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Rocktober’s Best Touring Group is the Tedeschi Trucks Band (Photo by T. Peter Lyons/DSD)

By TERRY LYONS, Editor-in-Chief Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – The month of October just R-O-C-K-S. It always has rocked and I think it always will rock.

Most of the early rockin’ was done in the late ‘70s when AOR (album oriented rock) radio began with the likes of WPLJ-FM in NYC, KLOS in Los Angeles, the great KGB-FM in San Diego, WRIF-Radio in Detroit among many others all stations that left the 2-minute max-length sounds of the 1960s and delved into the lengthy music of Deep Purple, Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Led Zeppelin – all playing six+ minute epics.

One station, WMNX in Minneapolis, is on record for the first to utilize the term “Rocktober.” Alex Tarpley, the former program manager of WMNX, Minneapolis, was the lead petitioner for “Rocktober,” which meant it would be nationally recognized and a law of the land to have the month of October so named by licensed radio stations.

By the mid-80s, Congress was working on – what else? – Immigration law. But within, came a proclaimation, written on November 6, 1986, President Ronald Reagan signed the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA), known as the Simpson-Mazzoli Act, into law. In addition to requiring employers to attest to their employees’ immigration status and making it illegal to knowingly hire illegal immigrants, the bill included in section 45, ii 99–603, paragraph 19, an un-related rider requiring all Classic Rock-format radio stations to observe Rocktober by using the official Rocktober voiceover when leading into a music segment, or “block,” or face fines of up to $5,000 a day.

“It was the Wild West, man,” said Tarpley. “We were out of our minds. WMNX was total madness. I had guys getting the Led out at 8 in the morning. I was first on that, by the way. This was the morning drive time and we’re getting the Led out. Unreal.”

Bob Donaldson, DJ, aka “Dodgy Bob from England”of WMNX, and later KSQY of San Diego noted the music being played became all about a block of music, rather than one song at a time, followed by commercial spots or banter.

“For me,” said Donaldson in his put-on English accent imitating Bad Company’s Paul Rodgers, “everything became about the block. “Life in the Fast Lane” backed with “Hotel California,” “Purple Haze” backed with “All Along the Watchtower,” “Stairway to Heaven” backed with “Kashmir.”

Darrel Schmidt, the station manager at WMNX noted, to freelancer Kevin Depew, “First time I heard a block I was livid,” said Schmidt. “Did I just hear two songs in a row by the same artist? What in the hell is going on?”

The rest was history for what is now called “Classic Rock Music,” but intertwined within the Rocktober moniker were people like New York Yankees superstar Reggie Jackson, a.k.a. “Mr. October.”

Thus, the stars aligned on an everlasting October sports scene of NFL football, College football, MLB Post Season and the World Series, together with the start of the NBA and NHL. It became a collision of great rock music and great sports. All in one month.

Nowadays, even the WNBA is as cool as it gets and right on the rockin’ theme as the WNBA Finals – once staged Labor Day weekend – is playing its decisive fifth game Sunday evening at 8pm (ET) on ESPN, going up against NBC’s Sunday Night Football match-up of the New York Jets at Pittsburgh Steelers (8:20pm ET).

Long live, Rocktober.

a large white building with lights on it's sides
Photo by Tim Thorn on Unsplash

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The head coach of the University of Virginia, Tony Bennett, packed it in this week. The reports first stated his sudden departure “was not health related.” But, deep down, maybe it was? … Bennett, one of the highly respected and very successful NCAA I head basketball coaches, explained to the masses that his decision was directly tied to the state of the game in 2024. “The hardest thing to say is when I looked at myself and I realized I’m no longer the best coach to lead this program in this current environment,” explained Bennett at a press conference. “If you’re going to do it, you gotta be all-in. If you do it half-hearted, it’s not fair to the university and those young men. So in looking at it, that’s what made me step down. I think it’s right for student-athletes to receive revenue. … “Please don’t mistake me,” he said Friday. “The game and college athletics is not in a healthy spot. It’s not. And there needs to be change, and it’s not going to go back. I think I was equipped to do the job here the old way. That’s who I am. … “It’s going to be closer to a professional model. There’s got to be collective bargaining. There has to be a restriction on the salary pool. There has to be transfer regulation restrictions. There has to be some limits on the agent involvement to these young guys. … And I worry a lot about the mental health of the student-athletes as all this stuff comes down.” … He’s 100% correct, says WWYI, but maybe his decision was health related? Maybe we all need to worry about the mental health of the college basketball coaches? … The saying is something like, “You can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube.” … It’s time for college coaches to recognize the fact they need a right hand to manage all the business BS that comes with the massive shift in college sports. The coach needs to give up the ‘full control’ militaristic approach and have a Basketball GM oversee everything that doesn’t cross between the four lines. ADs (who often think they can be the GM of a big time college basketball team but can’t because they need to dedicate their time across every sport – male and female) need to help hire that right hand for the head basketball coach. Colleges have pushed back against a “pro approach” for decades, trying to pretend it was an amateur sport, but once that March Madness () contract kicked in years ago, it quickly became a pro sport. FedEx envelopes delivered under the table are no longer in play. N.I.L. means “Now It’s Legal” and bright, creative sports business minds need to work together with their AD/Coach/Program to create an environment for the team to WIN. It’s hard. It’s different, but it’s not that difficult.

TID-BITS: It’s October 20, and there’s eleven days until Halloween. But today, there’s been (at least) two full-fledged Christmas promotions. Seen by WWYI on the morning of October 19, yes, a “Countdown to Christmas” promo for The Hallmark Channel. … Then, buried in this morning’s email was a Pottery Barn Kids Guide to its Holiday Shop. “See our latest festive collections, including exclusive styles from top designers and accents featuring fan-favorite characters,” said the missive, complete with Disney Mickey Mouse Christmas gifts and The Grinch, too. … WWYI calls “Foul,” and recommends to all marketers to – at least – wait until November. … In our joint, it’s officially Christmas season when Santa shows up at MACYS in Herald Square (NYC) the traditional end of the Thanksgiving Day Parade. … Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy made very few friends in the Gaston family when he referred to team owner Don Gaston’s son, Paul, as “Thanks Dad” when the younger Gaston took over the franchise. Now, it might be “Thanks Bro,” as the Globe is reporting that Mark Bezos, founding partner of HighPost Capital private equity group and half-brother of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is expressing interest in purchasing the club, according to an unnamed industry source. In addition, current Celtics limited partner Robert Hale, high on Forbes’ list of the wealthiest of Americans, said Friday he has “keen interest” in making a bid for the team, now that managing partner Wyc Grousbeck indicated the Celtics are up for sale. … The iconic NBA franchise could fetch a record $6 billion on the open market.

NEW NETWORK: Directly from a FanDuel media news release, Diamond Sports Group and FanDuel announced an agreement on a broad, long-term commercial partnership, including:

  • Exclusive right to name Diamond’s 16 regional sports networks and Diamond’s digital offerings, including the direct to consumer product, as FanDuel Sports Network
  • Linear and digital media placement and integration opportunities across all live NBA, NHL and MLB games on FanDuel Sports Network
  • Shared commitment to explore a unified direct-to-consumer app experience with the ability to syndicate FanDuel TV programming across FanDuel Sports Network, including studio programming like “Up & Adams,” “Run It Back” and FanDuel TV’s live rights programming
  • FanDuel to have reseller designation for Diamond’s direct-to-consumer product; and additional economic and equity elements.

David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond, stated: “Collaborating with FanDuel provides a tremendous pathway for Diamond to elevate the fan experience and deepen the incremental value we provide for our team, league and distribution partners. This partnership reinforces opportunities to further strengthen the close connection our RSNs have with local fans, including enhancing our direct-to-consumer offering for a growing digital audience. In the meantime, having finalized agreements with the NBA, NHL and our key distributors, we remain focused on moving our business forward and driving value for our team partners and our stakeholders.”

Mike Raffensperger, President, Sports, FanDuel, stated: “Partnering with Diamond provides us an opportunity to put the FanDuel brand at the intersection of the nation’s largest group of regional sports networks. A large cohort of FanDuel customers are devoted RSN viewers and this agreement allows us to further cement the FanDuel brand with sports fans and provides a unique vehicle to reward our users.”

On October 21, the (previously named) Bally Sports RSNs will officially be renamed under the FanDuel Sports Network brand with corresponding regional monikers. Diamond Sports Group‘s 16 owned and operated RSNs will include: FanDuel Sports Network Detroit, FanDuel Sports Network Florida, FanDuel Sports Network Great Lakes, FanDuel Sports Network Kansas City, FanDuel Sports Network Indiana, FanDuel Sports Network Midwest, FanDuel Sports Network North, FanDuel Sports Network Ohio, FanDuel Sports Network Oklahoma, FanDuel Sports Network SoCal, FanDuel Sports Network South, FanDuel Sports Network Southeast, FanDuel Sports Network Southwest, FanDuel Sports Network Sun, FanDuel Sports Network West, and FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin.

POWER RANKINGS: It’s past the quarter pole of the NFL regular season and things are shaking out and shaping up. The first observation, stealing just another front page headline from years of the same old story, same old lies – SAME OLD J-E-T-S, is the fact the New York (Jersey) Jets were the first NFL team this season to fire their head coach. While WWYI won’t subject you to the days of Rex Ryan, a look at the last few hirings for the Jets provide the following gems:

  • 2015-18 – Todd Bowles (24-40 .375)
  • 2019-2020 – Adam Case (9-23 .281)
  • 2021-2024 – Robert Saleh (20-36 .357)
  • 2024- ? – Jeff Ulbrich (0-1 .000)

The Jets are conducting a search for their next head coach and former New England head coach and NFL legend Bill Belichick’s name . Might the next coach come from a group of coaches most likely to see the ax, according to Vegas odds?

  • Doug Pederson Jacksonville Jaguars -140
  • Mike McCarthy Dallas Cowboys +400
  • Kevin Stefanski Cleveland Browns +550
  • Antonio Pierce Las Vegas Raiders +600
  • Zac Taylor Cincinnati Bengals +900
  • Dennis Allen. New Orleans +1600
  • Nick Sirianni Philadelphia Eagles +1800
  • Brian Daboll New York Giants +2000

It’s ON to the NFL POWER RATINGS: Here’s one man’s P.O.V. less than halfway through the NFL regular season:

AFC:

  1. Kansas City
  2. Baltimore
  3. Houston
  4. Buffalo
  5. Pittsburgh
  6. Denver

NFC:

  1. Minnesota
  2. San Fran
  3. Detroit
  4. Atlanta
  5. Washington
  6. Chicago

ROCKTOBER POWER RANKINGS FOR THE 1ST CFB PLAYOFFS: Again, just one man’s P.O.V. and still very early in the college football season:

  1. Ohio State
  2. Georgia
  3. Oregon
  4. Miami
  5. Alabama
  6. Notre Dame
  7. Penn State
  8. Ole Miss
  9. Tennessee
  10. Texas
  11. Clemson
  12. Indiana

THREADING THE NEEDLE: There’s nothing prettier in sports than an NHL defenseman beating two quick-skating, checking forwards by threading the needle with a pass that sends one of his wingers in on a breakaway to score a goal in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Well, the FE Apparel Company, together with the NHL Players and our friends at Getty Images is threading the needle in another fashion by creating a limited edition set of NHL custom jackets and hoodies. In this day of sustainability, FE Apparel creates their garments with 100% recycled material – not used plastic Coke bottles but recycled yarn – which is designed for durability. Many of the images on the garments depict the iconic designs of NHL goalkeepers’ masks. Bill Chang, CEO of FE Apparel Co. oversees the new brand and asks his growing number of customers to tag the company – @feapparelco – to spread the news and styles. NHL Rangers fans can visit the FE showroom next to Madison Square Garden.