With Madden set to release the 25th version of its popular NFL video game, I want to take a minute to recognize the place of this game in the childhood of so many over the last quarter-century. I know Madden had a big part in my after school time. At a time in my life when I idolized so many of the players in the game, it was truly awesome to be able to be them, even if only in a virtual way.
The 2013 version of Madden NFL will star Barry Sanders, arguably the best running back in NFL history, on its anniversary cover. Sanders won several rounds of online voting to gain the elusive cover, knocking out famous NFL players like Ray Lewis, Joe Montana, and Jerry Rice. The final battle came down to Sanders vs. Adrian Peterson, a current favorite in the NFL, having earned the title of MVP this year. Continue reading “Happy 25th Birthday to Madden NFL!” »
If there’s one sensitive topic when it comes to contact sports, it’s injuries, especially those to the head. Concussions and head hits are a growing problem in football, hockey, and wrestling especially. There’s a growing amount of research suggesting head hits, even those that don’t cause concussions, can cause neurological problems down the line. Unsurprisingly, that risk increases as the number of hits increases.
Concussions have been linked to suicide - they can cause depression, the inability to think clearly, anger, frustration, nausea, and more. And, the NFL has seen its fair share of suicides. Just last year Junior Seau, a star linebacker who played football for 20 years, committed suicide. During his autopsy, NIH researchers found he had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, is a crippling brain disorder that can cause depression, erratic behavior, and anger. Former NFL kicker Tom Dempsey has dementia at age 66.
Continue reading “Head Injury Harm and Hope for the Future” »
If you’re a football nut, you’re bound to know all the rules, right? You’re probably the person that can explain anything to your non-savvy football friends whenever they complain that they have no idea what’s going on. Well, much to your chagrin, embarrassment and disbelief, you might not be as knowledgeable about the rules of football as you think you are! Here’s a list of a few lesser-known rules about the game of football.
1. Accidentally, a team can Disqualify its Top Two Quarterbacks from Participating in the Game
Yup. You heard right. This rule comes from a famous game in 1990 nicknamed “body bag game” which was between the Redskins and the Eagles. Injuries took players out on both sides, including both the quarterbacks on the Redskin’s side. Thus a new rule was made, a third string quarter back must be kept on the sidelines at all times. This rule does come with a catch: if you put the third string quarter back in anytime during or after the third quarter, the first two quarter backs are not permitted to return to the game.
Continue reading “Think You’re Savvy on the Rules of Football? Think Again!” »
So many Americans delight in watching football, either from home or out at the game live. Like all other sports involving a ball, the game is centered around one thing: that very ball. Have you ever wondered how they have created and designed the footballs that are used in the NFL today? Read on to find out a brief description of the manufacturing process of footballs.
Interestingly enough, the first footballs were made out of pig’s bladders, which were inflated. Players didn’t like saying pig bladder, so they said “pigskin” instead. Today, we’re a little more sophisticated than that. We use what we called bladders, but they’re made of rubber. However, cowhide is still used.
After tanning it, it is cut into the bend of the football. Then, the bend is die-cut manually into four panels. Next, each panel is slid through a machine that flattens it to an exact thickness. Next, synthetic lining is added to each panel. It is lining made of three layers of fabric that is cross-layered firmly together. This ensures that the panels will not stretch. After that, a facing is added to the areas of the panel that will have the lacing and inflating needle hole. Then, the holes are punched. Finally, all four panels are sewn together by a hot-wax stitching machine for durability.
Continue reading “The Manufacturing Process of the Football” »
OK….deep breaths… FRAK! This is the last time I let my kids use my laptop. Freakin’ hell! So, my son wanted to play some dumb kids game on the computer. My wife was busy working on the desktop which is what the kids usually use so he says, “Dad, can I use your computer?” How do you say no to your son when he’s so sweet like that? Amiright?
So I get the computer for him and set it up and everything. Everything is going fine so I go to get dinner ready. Not 5 minutes later, in comes Jesse doe eyed and with an “I didn’t do it” look on his face. You parents know…something’s wrong. Well, come to find out the laptop is dead. Either the kid killed it or the game killed it or it just died on its own. I don’t know and I DON’T GIVE A CRAP! All my freaking fantasy football research is on that computer! I spent HOURS working on spreadsheets and research and lineups. Who do I start this week? Who’s injured and what about the inside scoop I got on some upcoming trades? (You’re gonna shit yourself when you find out about that, by the way…)
So now what do I do? Seriously…what do I do? I have no idea. I mean, how do I recover my data? I’m fooked! (as they say in China) I’m going to lose the season. DAMMIT!!!!!!!!!!
Sometimes you just have it. I, apparently, had it when the good people at Sooner Planet decided that my inimitable blogging skills earned me the chance to get some free college sports gear in exchange for a short review of their crimson and cream products.
Mind you, I’m not even a big Sooner fan, but you can’t turn down free stuff, can you? I have no desire to let someone else take this stuff which was rightfully bequeathed unto me, so I said yes, and then said “send me anything, here are my dimensions.” I’m not kidding, I actually said that. Here’s what the nice lady on the phone ended up sending me. Continue reading “Free Sooner Gear For Being Awesome” »
A multi-sport event is one competition or a series of them where athletes face off against each other in different sports. The arena is a fair and secure place. Many people would first think of the Olympic Games, though there are many other events that do the same thing.
It may well be that when a sports lover buys race tickets, for example, they may also be seeing a multitude of other types of competitions within that same type of sport. Or, there might be other events that are related that involve the same sport, just on different levels or as different types.
Continue reading “What is a Multi-Sport Event?” »
The old Pig Nation site was dedicated to Arkansas Razorback sports…though it never really got off the ground apparently. That made us sad, so we figured we’d go all Lazarus on this bad mammajamma and broaden out the appeal a bit and open it up to all things football. Hell, I’ll come right out and say it, there will be no theme to this site. Just a bunch of random football nonsense. But it should be entertaining.
Fantasy Canadian League Football
For example, a while back some friends and I were trekking through the eastern regions of Canada, likely trying to overrun a moose with my Grand Prix when we strolled into a beer store and saw a magazine devoted solely to CFL football. Now, I can honestly say I’ve never watched a complete game of CFL football at any point in my life, but I respect the game as I know quite a few talented college players and former NFL guys play there every year and the product’s pretty entertaining (more than the XFL and World League could muster in my own humble opinion).
Continue reading “Here for the pigskin purists!” »
