We are coming to the end of one of the greatest weekends on the sports calendar every year. That’s right, March Madness is in full swing, and we’re here to recap opening weekend in this week’s SSM.
Our first big upset, Oral Roberts over Ohio State The Buckeyes were flat, Golden Eagles were great Florida’s next in the bracket for ORU Will the Cinderella story end or continue?
The best team in the country, Gonzaga Bulldogs Came out smooth in round one, no plugs, no clogs They took it to Norfolk, 98-55 was the score Hard not to imagine The Zags in the Final Four
Another huge upset, this time the East bracket Abilene Christian came in and caused a huge racket They took out big brother in the Texas Longhorns Turns out ACU was big brother, Texas were newborns
The Baylor Bears have looked the part Two strong wins so far, a solid start Hartford and Wisconsin caught the Bears wrath Are Scott Drew and the boys on a championship path?
The NBA playoffs are ready to go The postseason tournament starts tomorrow The champions will pop some champagne bottles Big loss for the players though, no Instagram models
We already know The Masters have been pushed back But come November, golf fans will be jacked Unfortunately, Augusta announced this week No fans due to COVID this year, not one in-person peek
The COVID ravaged Cardinals actually played a game! Their first since July 29th, what a shame They swept the White Sox in a double header Hopefully lesson learned, and the players will be better
Ohio State QB Justin Fields, not a quitter Started a MoveOn.org petition, asking the B1G to reconsider A continued push of the #WeWantToPlay movement If this petition goes anywhere, we could see some college football improvement
Being a sports fan is one of the best things in the world. Putting your time, effort, and hope into something completely out of your control lets us as fans experience the highest highs and the lowest lows. Another great part of being a fan of a team is the traditions. This could be anything from a certain chant at a game, a simple “Go ____” when you see a stranger wearing your team’s gear out in public, or throwing out a hashtag on social media when the game starts to show support.
But what are the best traditions we’ve seen? In no particular order…
Say what you will about Notre Dame, this sign is great. Simple, succinct, and certainly motivational. Each of the Irish football players gives a quick tap to the sign before taking the field. The origins of this sign are a bit hazy, but former coach Lou Holtz reinstated the sign placement while he was head coach and it doesn’t seem like it’s going anywhere anytime soon.
In the early 1990’s, The Brewers began this gag as a virtual race on their scoreboard. Originally, it was only a three way race between Bratwurst, Polish, and Italian. In the mid-90’s, Hot Dog made his debut. The lineup became complete in 2006, when Chorizo was installed into the competition. Rumors have swirled that actual Brewer players have donned a sausage suit from time to time to join in on the festivities.
At the end of every pregame performance from Ohio State’s marching band, they write out “Ohio” in script, as seen above. The ultimate honor for a marching Buckeye is to “dot the I.” The honor is typically reserved for an upperclassman sousaphone player, and was first performed in 1936.
Self-imposed bias here, but this one might be one of the best traditions we have in sports today. Starting in 2017, after a social media suggestion, Iowa fans turned and waved to the patients at the top floor of Children’s Hospital overlooking Kinnick Stadium at the end of every first quarter. The kids often make signs and messages to put on the windows in a response to the fan’s wave.
It’s a truly moving tradition, and if you haven’t had the chance to participate or see it live, here’s a great example.
The slow building theme song, terrible CGI Bulls running through Chicago landmarks, Benny the Bull waving the Bulls flag at center court, absolutely iconic. If you were a team visiting The United Center in the 90’s, you were basically down by 10 as soon you heard this song come over the loud speakers. Unfortunately, the Bulls continued using this intro after the Jordan era, kind of watering down the tradition. This is one that should have been retired as soon as MJ, Phil, and the dynasty as we all knew it left town (speaking of the end of the Jordan era, if you haven’t checked out our review of “The Last Dance,” check it out here).
Touching a sign, blowing a horn, or simply waving a hand. All things that would seem to be normal activities. But when they are included in sports, these simple tasks can take on a whole new meaning that can be appreciated by competitors and fans alike. There are thousands of sports traditions out there, which ones did we miss?
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