It’s been a busy start to the college football season, and I’ve managed to squeeze in a lot of miles, memories, and moments before being sidelined to the IR.
How It Started
The season kicked off with a last-minute trip down to Charlottesville, VA to watch Coastal Carolina University take on the University of Virginia. The score honestly doesn’t matter—the real win was reuniting with sorority sisters and old college friends. Worth every mile of the late night drive back home.
Not long after, I headed south to my old college stomping grounds in Myrtle Beach, SC. Crashing my parents beach vacation has become my favorite two weeks of the year. But honestly, they needed me. Who else was going to set up the WIFI and Alexa for them? I’m lucky to have great friends still working for Coastal and making me look really cool in front of my parents. They got to experience the suite-life while seeing the best looking field, the Surf Turf, as Coastal beat Charleston Southern.
Then it was back to Northern Virginia just long enough to do laundry before hopping on another flight—this time to Knoxville. When a former client is your friend and is now coaching against your other college football team, you show up to support them. The University of Tennessee sang Rocky Top, a lot, during their 24-56 victory over the University of Alabama Birmingham.
Sidelined
Unfortunately, future road trips are on hold for now. I’m officially sidelined on the IR as I wait for MRI results to confirm what Doctors are saying is a bucket-handle meniscus tear. Praying there is no other damage. With health insurance being the biggest scam in America, the last thing I want is a fourth knee surgery. So, if you pray, I could really use a miracle right now. And a GoFundMe page.
This Weekend
What a weekend to be sidelined on the couch watching sports! With the Ryder Cup and college football, there weren’t enough devices to watch everything.
Ryder Cup
I’m not sure I will ever fully understand how the scoring works for the Ryder Cup, but the Europeans are crushing the Americans right now in Farmingdale, NY. Bethpage Black has lived up to expectations, with one of the loudest and rowdiest crowds. About an hour west of NYC, New York and New Jersey’s finest have given the European ‘bums’ a Yankee welcome. Rory McIlroy has been the fan favorite to pick on, and nothing has been off limits. However, these insults are fueling the Europeans. Europe leads 11.5 to 4.5 going into Sunday.
You need 14.5 points to win the Ryder Cup. There are 12 points available to earn on Sunday. Basically, like my knee, the Americans need a miracle to pull off the biggest comeback win in Ryder Cup history. (Europe came back in 2012 after being down seven points—that’s the largest comeback in Ryder Cup history.)
College Football
Notre Dame embarrassed Arkansas! The Irish jumped out early and never looked back, pouring in 42 points in the first half alone. Razorbacks head coach Sam Pittman is already in the hot seat. And after a 56-13 beatdown, the Razorbacks may be calling for a new coach instead of calling the hogs.
LSU (#4) went to Oxford, MS, and lost to Ole Miss (#13) 19-24. But the best storyline was LSU LB Whit Weeks dating the daughter of Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin, who you can always count on for a great soundbite.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DPH90S6jeGg/?igsh=MTVvMDExNnFsbHQzNA==
Tennessee (#15) beat Mississippi State in OT down in Starkville, MS, 41-34. The Vols’ offseason QB “trade” (if you know, you know) with UCLA gave Niko a new home and welcomed Joey Aguilar to Knoxville. This was the college football version of a breakup that turned into a glow-up for the Vols. If Aguilar continues to improve, limit mistakes, and lead his team to big wins, he could become one of Tennessee’s most memorable signal-callers.
More College Football
Alabama (#17) traveled to Athens to take on undefeated Georgia (#5) in a marquee SEC matchup. Georgia was unable to complete a comeback, and Alabama’s defense made enough stops to secure the win 24-21.
Oregon (#6) upset Penn State (#3) in double OT, 30-24, for the Whiteout win. This was only the second time in Penn State history that a Whiteout featured two top-10 teams. But 111,000 fans left Beaver Stadium disappointed after an OT interception.
What a Saturday for college football! And Sunday is NFL, Ryder Cup, MLB, and WNBA semifinals. You know where I’ll be—on the couch with my knee on ice.
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