NCAA History Guide

The NCAA is often criticized for its commercialism and lack of true collaboration. With the NCAA-run March Madness tournament just completed, however, it’s hard to imagine a world of college sports in which the NCAA does not play a pivotal role. In football, on the other hand, strides are being made that just might change the relationship between universities, conferences, and the NCAA.

The first, seemingly unimportant, development is the branding of the new College Football Playoff. The new format, set to debut after the 2014 regular season, hopes to resolve some of the arguments for reform that have become increasingly prevalent in the last several years. The logo has just been chosen this week, and the gaining momentum for the new playoff leads to a startling realization: unlike the championships for nearly every other college sport, the branding of the College Football Playoff features no mention of the NCAA. This may in fact be a deliberate choice. As college football seeks to reformat their playoff process, they may also be looking to refocus on college football, rather than the NCAA.

Continue reading “The NCAA Fate in Football” »

Are you looking for a great way to stay fit during the off season? Well, there are a ton of different options out there, but as a college student many options can be expensive. Today I’ll look at some economical ways to stay fit during the off season.

Home fitness programs – P90x and others

A home fitness program is always a great economical solution; with so many videos and dvds out there, training at home is easy. I personally recommend P90x as it is a great program that really hits all areas as it includes weight lifting, cardio, stretching and yoga. The dvds are only around $100 – cheaper if you get them used and you’ll only need to spend another $70 or so for workout bands, a pullup bar and yoga mat.

An alternative to P90x is Insanity. This program focuses more on cardio, so you’re going to have to supplement this with another weights workout separately. Of course there are a ton of different dvd sets that you can get. There has also been a massive surge in fitness apps, so if you have a smart phone, I’d recommend checking the selection to see if anything looks interesting.

Continue reading “Cheap Fitness Programs to Stay Fit During the Off Season” »

Most active people have, at one time or another, had to deal with injury. Injuries occur either through accidents, due to poor training practices, or from using the wrong gear. Failure to warm up or stretch before or after training can also lead to injuries. While some types of injuries may be minor, others are more serious and take a longer time to heal.

Most active people have problems coping with injuries because they are not used to reduced activity. Some even refuse to admit they are injured and they continue with activities that make the injury worse. Several things can be done to cope with a sports injury.

1. Admit you are injured

The first thing you need to do is to admit you are injured and thus you cannot do most of the things you do every day. If you are an athlete, this means that you should not attempt to compete if you have an injury, however slight, as you risk making it worse. Admitting it will also help you to get help. Do not assume that the injury will just ‘heal itself’.

Continue reading “5 Ways To Avoid ‘Losing It’ When You Have A Sports Injury” »

So many die-hard fans watch their favorite NCAA teams every day, either live and in person or in the comfort of their own home. You may be one of them. But do you know the one event that started the NCAA as a whole?

The wide variety of college athletic teams in the organization now is huge compared to the starting point of the organization. Any guesses as to what one event started the NCAA? It all started with one rowing competition between two top schools: Harvard and Yale.

Continue reading “Formation of the NCAA: Un Unexpected Beginning” »

With pastimes and hobbies being limited overseas for our dedicated troops, there remains one constant, strong interest for all troops: college football. One of the most popular items sent in care packages for soldiers from fellow Americans safe at home are footballs. This surely has to say something for how passionate these men are about one of America’s favorite pass times.

When one watches the masses of people that assemble for rivalry college football games and, on a larger scale, the gargantuan crowd that appears for the Super Bowl, it’s hard to imagine that the sport of football began in small, elite colleges, making the sport virtually unknown to the rest of the United States. Amazingly enough, it is almost solely due to the armed forces that football has attracted so talented athletes, dedicated fans and gained, tremendous overall success.

Continue reading “Importance of College Football to Our Troops” »

Oh, football season. A time when students and families wait in long lines, crowd bars, and gather in parking lots on Saturdays to watch the teams they’re rooting for (hopefully) dominate the opposing team. People spend money on team gear, food, accessories, and travel. If you take a look around stadiums, you’ll see waves of the team colors, painted faces, colored hair, and all sorts of outfits signaling strong team spirit.

Everything about college football Saturday will start off fun and exciting. The players are excited, the crowd is riled up, and, if it’s an especially great day, the sun will be shining. Students stand up to watch the game, the crowd cheers, and then kickoff happens. As viewers eagerly watch what follows, they cross their fingers and hope their team will play well.

But, losses are inevitable. Sometimes a team, even one that’s doing so well, will lose. Then what happens to the fans?

Continue reading “Disappointed Football Fans” »

I tried to have a normal lunch today, but there was no way to do it. After three minutes of banter with a friend he inevitably asked me, “So what do you think about the Penn State situation?”

Damn. I really thought I would be able to just eat a sandwich and move on with my day. No such luck. I instead forced myself to probe my feeble brain for what I thought of the whole thing, something I had avoided until then. And here’s what came to my mind:

1. Bobby Bowden just backed his way back into the record books.
2. A lot of kids who had nothing to do with the whole situation have effectively had their accomplishments wiped clean (not that I think this matters much, everyone still remembers the Fab Five)
3. Recruiting just got a lot easier for east coast teams and Big Ten foes, in particular Ohio State
4. Prepare for the transfer exodus

Discerning tailgaters, if you take your craft seriously, you’re going to want to keep up with the Jones’ for the upcoming season, and you’ll probably want to get together your wish list right about ummm…now.

We’ve been scouring the web looking for the best tailgating gear and ideas to make sure you’re properly supporting your alma mater this fall as well as impressing the heck out of anyone lucky enough to be parked near you.

The Essentials

Can’t tailgate without a nice grill. Here are some winners in our book:

The Weber Smokey Joe
Portable, well made and provides the ability to regulate airflow. Basically, the kinds of attributes you want in a full sized grill but perfect for a small tailgate. Weber is a mainstay in the grilling industry for a reason. Tough to go wrong here.  Shop for one here.

Continue reading “2012 college football tailgating guide” »