Category: sports

NFL Draft

Well, we finally have some good news coming out of the sports world. The NFL Draft is here everyone! Between the Packers draft class and who gets drafted out of Wisconsin, let’s take a look at what happened over these three days.

DAY 1

While the draft favored a lot of products out of the SEC conference, there were still a few surprises that came about. It wasn’t until later in the round when you started seeing wide receivers getting drafted. This class of receivers is so stacked with talent and can prove to be weapons on the field.

DAY 2

Rounds 2 was a very Running Back/Wide Receiver heavy but what made me happy was watching Jonathan Taylor go ahead of J.K. Dobbins (I’m not a biased fan at all). That made my day. Round 3 provided a defensive round but there were still some good picks. Zack Baun finally came off the board and I could not be happier for him. These two rounds have been ones to find the talent that may have gone hidden since they do not go to big schools.

DAY 3

As the draft came to a close, you saw a lot of interesting picks. There were plenty of wide receivers taken as well as offensive linemen. These four rounds showed that there is a lot to take away from this draft and get a good player who may become a star one day. Even if there was someone that did not get drafted, they can still be proud and show a team as an undrafted free agent to make a team.

PACKERS DRAFT PICKS (by round)

Round 1: Jordan Love, QB Utah State (26th)

Round 2: AJ Dillion, RB Boston College (62nd)

Round 3: Josiah Deguara, TE Cincinnati (94th)

Round 5: Kamal Martin, LB Minnesota (175th)

Round 6: Jon Runyan, OL Michigan (192nd)

Round 6: Jake Hanson, OL Oregon (208th)

Round 6: Simon Stepaniak, OL Indiana (209th)

Round 7: Vernon Scott, S TCU (236th)

Round 7: Jonathan Garvin, DB Miami (242nd)

Now my overall impression of this draft class is it’s a decent class. I am a little upset that there isn’t a wide receiver in this class since that position was stacked in the draft. Hopefully Brian Gutekunst finds another one in free agency, or Jake Kumerow will be a huge factor this season.

BADGERS THAT GOT DRAFTED (by round)

Round 2 Pick 41 Indianapolis Colts-Jonathan Taylor RB

Round 3 Pick 74 New Orleans Saints-Zack Baun LB

Round 4 Pick 146 Dallas Cowboys-Tyler Biadasz OL

Round 5 Pick 166 Detroit Lions-Quintez Cephus WR

While the draft started out in a weird sense as in being done all remotely, it shows that there is a chance that it could happen like this at another time. Congrats to all of the draftees in this years draft. I know there are some undrafted free agents that will be making teams as well, but no matter what happens to you, you are going to make an impact on the NFL.

Still No Sports

This quarantine thing is not fun anymore. At least the national sports channels like ESPN and Fox Sports are getting smart and re-airing classic games while looking forward to the end of this virus.

MLB Network

Recently, MLB Network has started airing classic games, especially on Wednesday. They call these days their Walk-Off Wednesdays which means they air games that end in a walk-off. Recently they had the 2011 NLCS game 5 between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Arizona Diamondbacks. I remember watching this game in real time and couldn’t believe that we just did that. With re-watching it, I kept looking at all of the names that were playing and I’m like wow there are a lot of names I recognize and who aren’t on the team anymore.

Warhawk Football Schedule Release

Today, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team released their 2020 schedule. I know this got me excited not only for the fact that I know when I get to work for the television station, but also something to keep my mind off of this coronavirus. The team kicks off their season September 5 at Carthage College, while the home opener is September 12 against Concordia University-Moorhead. The Warhawks open WIAC conference play at Eau Claire October 3 while at Perkins Stadium against Oshkosh October 10. The Oshkosh game will be one of the biggest games, as it has always been.

I know there wasn’t a lot to this, but when it comes to sports during this time, there is really nothing going on. It shows how much we rely on all of these other activities while going out. This is a time where we can look and see how all of this is affecting us. I love this because it gives me time to look into the future and see everything that could happen while being there to take in all of the new information surrounding the virus. It is a struggle being at home without being able to go anywhere or do anything with my family and friends. We will come out of this stronger than ever and it will be amazing.

Corona virus, You are a (insert creative profanity here)

Global Pandemic

Just when I thought the world of sports could recover after the Kobe Bryant tragedy, man was I a fool. I swear Kobe is looking at all of us and going well, ya’ll need to figure it out now because this is just sad man. The Corona Virus is literally taking all of the fun out of the spring season for sports. I mean everything is cancelled, from Spring Training for baseball to Pro Days for college football players looking to make the NFL draft this summer. They even cancelled the NCAA tournament for college basketball, ending any seniors chance of winning or making the tournament with their teams. I have resorted to watching bowling and the National Cornhole League on ESPN now.

Seasonal Depression

Without having anything to watch on TV now, what are we suppose to do? I mean they are at least showing re-runs of games on TV, but still that isn’t going to hold us over. MLB has already cancelled the rest of spring training and now looking to delay the start of the season, which is going to screw a lot of people over with taking off of work for those games, but what is going to happen in the future? Will it just be a shortened season? Will they make it go longer? Are these going to be the questions that all of the other sports are going to be asking themselves?

On the Bright Side

With all of these things getting cancelled, there are so many venues that have workers that were relying on all of this to make money and support their families. I just love how these players are giving back to their communities and helping all of those who are in need. Giannis announced on Friday, March 13th that he was donating $100,000 to all of the part time employees of Fiserv Fourm, then a few hours later Khris Middleton announced that he was matching Giannis’ donation. Saturday, March 14th, the entire Milwaukee Bucks organization announced that all of the players would donate $100,000 to help all that are affected by this. It’s things like this that restore my faith in these players.

In the End

I hope that something happens soon so not only the players can do their things, but the fans can enjoy the games they paid to see and everyone prevents this virus from spreading. This is something that we will have to keep an eye on to see if there are any major changes to it.

Spring is Upon Us

Brewers. Basketball. Busted Brackets. Basically the only way to sum up the season of spring. If you are into all things that are spring, then you are so ready for all of the fun that is sporting events in the season of spring.

Baseball

With all the drama that happened this off season in baseball, let just be excited about one thing: Baseball is finally back and we can look forward to all things MLB once again. We all know that this season is going to be watched more closely than others but there is still the chance that some stuff will be missed and the commissioner will be to blame.

Basketball

With the NBA All-Star weekend come and gone, it is now time to look ahead to the end of the season (finally!). This season has been one that no a lot of people thought would be like this. Now, it has been stated multiple times by myself that I am not a huge fan of the NBA, but I swear if I see another Kobe Bryant tribute, I might actually just scream because it is getting a little out of hand.

Busted Brackets

It’s almost March, which means it’s time to start looking ahead to March Madness!! I love March Madness every year, not only for the fact that it is around my birthday (The play-in games this year) but for the sole fact that there is so much drama that goes on and it changes how you look at the game. Now I’m not saying that I have every had a perfect bracket or even remotely close, but it is fun watching these kids go out and just play like their lives depend on it.

This spring season better not disappoint me, otherwise it is not going to be a good birthday for me.

Sports Update

Wow. All I can say is wow. We just started off the brand new decade, and it has already come to halt in the sports world. Not only has there been a lot within the Whitewater area, but within the state and even nationally too. This month alone has been one to forget coming into the new decade.

Let’s first look at the Whitewater athletics, where there was some good things but at the same time not so good things. The basketball teams here have always been ones to make tournaments and go on to have success in their season, but this year is one to forget on the men’s side. 2-6 is their record for the month of January. For a men’s team that has some success in recent years, it is very upsetting with how this season is going for the men. They are a young team I will give them that but it is just very sad for them. On the women’s side, this team is off to an amazing start with a record of 7-1. Even though they are playing without one of their star players in Emily Schumacher, who tore her ACL in late December, this team is still out there doing what they do best-winning.

In Wisconsin state athletics, there is so much between high school and collegiate, but just look at the college basketball teams. The biggest news this year has to be the Wisconsin Badgers. This team is kind of turning into a disappointment but the biggest news is Kobe King is transferring from the program. I see why-he wasn’t getting the time that he wanted and earned. Marquette on the other hand, they are doing amazing being led by Markus Howard.

Of course we can’t forget about the tragedy that was Kobe Bryant passed away in a helicopter crash. This news has affected everyone in some way but it is still hard to imagine this game without him there anymore.

This is one of the years that baseball is really going to be under the microscope this season with the cheating scandal that came out and all the managerial changes that have gone on. It hasn’t been easy to follow all of this but it will definitely be interesting to see what comes of this season.

Of all of the athletic news that has come out of this month, it sure is turning into a wild roller coaster and how the rest of the year is going to turn out.