Antonio Brown did it all on the field Monday night. In the Steelers' 38-16 win over the Redskins, the receiver had eight catches for 126 yards, and even got a flag for twerking.
But perhaps his best performance came off the field. His new "This is SportsCenter" commercial appeared after the game ended, and it's delightful. He sits behind the reception desk and shows some great comedic timing with anchor Neil Everett. Good work all around, crew.
DeAngelo Williams is one of the best follows on social media. He's not afraid to make some controversial statements, like when he said Peyton Manning's 2015 season was overrated, calling it crap. He also actually stands up for real issues, and is a big proponent of breast cancer research and awareness, as he lost both his mother and aunt to the disease.
He's a great storyteller, too, and with an assist from ESPN's SportsCenter, he's shared a terrific story with us about the first time he met former teammate Kris Jenkins. Jenkins was a defensive tackle for the Panthers and the Jets, and is a large bear of a man. Thus, Williams' first encounter with him was...intimidating, to say the least. Enjoy.
In 1993, Jim Valvano delivered one of the best speeches the world has ever seen. If you haven't been fortunate enough to witness it, you need to check it out. Valvano was suffering from cancer at the time, but his positive, heartfelt words were simply inspiring.
The Jimmy V Award for Perseverance is awarded during the ESPYs to honor those who, in Jimmy V's words himself, "don't ever give up." This year, the recipient was Craig Sager, who's undergone treatment for three separate occurrences of leukemia. He's remained positive and spirited throughout an immensely challenging time. His acceptance speech was no different – do yourself a favor and watch this. It'll brighten your day.
The ESPYs were last night, and Chicago hip-hop artist Chance the Rapper stole the show with his tribute to Muhammad Ali. He debuted a new song during the awards ceremony, a soulful number complete with backing gospel chorus.
"I was a rock and roller back in my day/but now I'm just a rock," Chance sings over the chorus. Coupled with sound bytes of Ali, this is a very touching tribute. Enjoy.
Angels in the Outfield is a classic movie, fo sho. But it's a little bit of an unbelievable story. That's why it'd be perfect for an ESPN 30 for 30 documentary. College Humor feels the same way, and made an incredibly spot-on spoof of the sports giants' films. It features real cameos from actual ESPN and MLB analysts, and remember that Matthew McConaughey was in this movie? Yeah, me neither. Enjoy!
After Clemson's emotional, close 24-22 win over Notre Dame last night, Dabo Swinney was interviewed about the win on the field. He spoke about...well, viewers didn't entirely know, because the broadcast cut away to ESPN anchors Jay Harris and Kevin Connors fiddling around on their tablets, likely making last-minute preparations for the show.
ESPN said it was just a technical glitch, though a lot of Twitter isn't buying it, as the cut happened as soon as Swinney started thanking God. I obviously don't know ESPN's intent, but having been in that situation where the broadcast cuts away to me when I wasn't paying attention, it's very annoying. Check it out below:
ESPN did post the interview in full, if you just didn't want to miss a single word Swinney said.
Current generations have the unfortunate habit of being buried in their phone. I know I've done it myself. You just have to see that text, or post, or update, and waiting even a minute seems like an eternity. But when you can't wait to look at your phone while driving? That's when lives can change completely.
Fletcher Cleaves, a promising football player out of Corvoda High School in Memphis, TN, was driving home from practice one day with a friend. All of a sudden, an oncoming car came towards him, the driver distracted by his phone. Cleaves was able to avoid hitting the car, but as he swerved out of the way, his own car flipped over. Cleaves was left paralyzed from the waist down.
AT&T, as part of their "It Can Wait" campaign, partnered with ESPN to show Cleaves, both during his playing days and after his accident, as he works towards recovery. He recently graduated high school and moved out on his own.
It's a powerful message, and one that needs to be shared. Stop looking at your phone all the time. If there's anything truly urgent in that text message, the person on the other end should call. If not, wait until you're done driving to look at it. Don't ruin your life, or even worse - someone else's. It's not worth it.
Dan Patrick made an appearance on the first episode of the midnight SportsCenter the other night, hosted by Scott Van Pelt. And, partially to squash any rumors of a return, Patrick--who was unceremoniously removed from the show and ESPN in 2007--kept his visitor badge on the whole time. It's a nice subtle jab at his former employer, and it's wonderful. Way to go, Dan. Pretty awesome to see one of the best of the old days chatting with one of the best from the current era.
Have you ever tried asking someone a bunch of questions and they only respond with "I don't know," or even worse, straight up silence? Well, that's exactly what happened when Colin Cowherd tried to ask new Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh about everything under the sun. And Harbaugh, who's notorious for being kind of a hard-ass, reacts accordingly. By that I mean he barely gives any answers. Granted, some of these questions are terrible, but Harbaugh is not putting in much effort. The interview ends with Cowherd saying "I love ya, but this just isn't working" and hanging up on the coach. Remarkable.
When Stuart Scott passed away earlier this year from cancer, we lost a broadcasting legend. Fortunately, we've still got one in Ernie Johnson, who's had his own battles with cancer, among other struggles. But he has a tremendous amount of class, and it was on full display during the Sports Emmy Awards.
Johnson, who was nominated alongside Scott, Keith Olbermann, Bob Costas, Rich Eisen and Matt Vasgersian, won his third career Emmy for Outstanding Studio Host. But during his speech, he said there's only one place the award belongs: Stuart Scott's home. He called up Scott's daughters, Taelor and Sydni, and presented the award to them. Just a truly touching gesture by one of the best guys in sports.
Stuart Scott, longtime SportsCenter anchor and one of the most familiar ESPN personalities, sadly passed away Sunday morning from cancer. He was only 49 years old.
Scott was among my favorites--his tag team duo with Rich Eisen in the 90s helped me get ready for school, and he brought catch phrases like "cool as the other side of the pillow" and "boo-yah!" to the vernacular of sports broadcasters everywhere. And really, just to people everywhere. Scott was knowledgeable not only about sports, but about all sorts of culture, from Shakespeare to hip-hop.
Most importantly, he seemed to treat everyone with the utmost respect. And that's reflected in these heartbreaking condolences from Hannah Storm and Rich Eisen, who passed along the sad news.
Dick Vitale first announced a college basketball game in 1979. In case you were wondering, it was a game between DePaul and Wisconsin. As the legendary broadcaster enters his 35th season of calling games, ESPN gathered 35 of his colleagues to do their best impersonation of Dickie V. The results are...well, mixed, but entertaining nonetheless.
We're ALMOST at the point where I'm getting sick of Will Ferrell being in everything as Ron Burgundy, but we're not quite there yet. He's anchoring the 6pmEST/5pmCST edition of Sportscenter on Thursday along with Champ Kind. And of course, that means he sat down with Peyton Manning for an interview. Watch as Peyton tries to avoid cracking up. And FAILS.
The other day ESPN did a little segment on one-handed catches. To demonstrate, analysts Cris Carter and Keyshawn Johnson had a contest to see who could catch more out of five. The juggs machine was firing, the hands were working, and in the end, Carter wipes the floor with Keyshawn. But the real highlight is when Adam Schefter, looking every bit like Brick Tamlin of Anchorman fame, comes out to try his hand at being a wide receiver. And hilarity ensues.
