Free Republic

The college football public has spoken loudly: New Years Eve is not a popular choice for the College Football Playoff semifinals. ESPN drew 18,552,000 viewers for its Cotton Bowl broadcast of Alabama’s 38–0 win over Michigan State, while the Orange Bowl matchup featuring Clemson’s 37–17 victory over Oklahoma drew 15,640,000 viewers. Both playoff games last year drew just over 28 million viewers. The first playoff semifinal was down 45% in viewership versus last year; the late semifinal was down 34.4%.

In 2013, Stanford went to the Rose Bowl, and their band made people upset. In 2014, Stanford went to the Rose Bowl, and their band made people upset. In 2016, Stanford went to the Rose Bowl, and guess what happened! They played sinks and skateboards:

Go Rebels! Stanford......the Clorox team.....rolling

According to multiple reports out of Miami, Clemson has sent three players home from the Orange Bowl for failed drug tests. The players in question are wide receiver Deon Cain, tight end Jay Jay McCullough and kicker Ammon Lakip.

BREAKING: Eagles fire head coach Chip Kelly. Kelly led Philadelphia to 26-21 record, 6-9 this year.

On Saturday night the football world erupted with the reported allegation from an Al Jazeera report about Peyton Manning being involved with a clinic that distributed HGH. The Al Jazeera report was first promoted via the Huffington Post, which highlighted Manning's name in the report because his wife allegedly received HGH shipments in Florida. Manning fired back quickly and aggressively, calling the report "complete garbage" and discussing the possibility of suing Al Jazeera for defamation.

REGULAR SEASON FINAL WEEK 17 Jan. 3 New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons 1 New York Jets at Buffalo Bills 1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers 1 Detroit Lions at Chicago Bears 1 Baltimore Ravens at Cincinnati Bengals 1 Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns 1 Washington Redskins at Dallas Cowboys 1 Jacksonville Jaguars at Houston Texans 1 Tennessee Titans at Indianapolis Colts 1 Oakland Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs 1 New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins 1 Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants 1 Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals 4:25 San Diego Chargers at Denver Broncos 4:25 St. Louis...

WEEK 16 Dec. 24 San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders 8:25 Saturday, Dec. 26 Washington Redskins at Philadelphia Eagles 8:25 Dec. 27 Carolina Panthers at Atlanta Falcons 1 Dallas Cowboys at Buffalo Bills 1 San Francisco 49ers at Detroit Lions 1 Cleveland Browns at Kansas City Chiefs 1 Indianapolis Colts at Miami Dolphins 1 Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens 1 Jacksonville Jaguars at New Orleans Saints 1 New England Patriots at New York Jets 1 Chicago Bears at Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1 Houston Texans at Tennessee Titans 1 Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals 4:25 St. Louis Rams at Seattle...

(y=clinched division, x=clinched playoff berth, z= clinched home field) AFC East Team W L T Pct PF PA Net Pts Home Away Div Conf Last 5 Streak y-New Eng 12 2 0 .857 435 269 166 7-1-0 5-1-0 4-0-0 9-1-0 3-2-0 W-2 NY Jets 9 5 0 .643 344 272 72 5-2-0 4-3-0 2-2-0 6-4-0 4-1-0 W-4 Buffalo 6 8 0 .429 341 336 5 3-3-0 3-5-0 3-2-0 6-5-0 1-4-0 L-2 Miami 5 9 0 .357 278 361 -83 2-4-0 3-5-0 0-5-0 3-7-0 1-4-0 L-2 North Team W L T Pct PF PA Net Pts Home Away Div Conf Last...

A 15-year-old high school football player was hailed a hero after he was fatally shot as he covered three girls when a man “randomly” opened fire on a crowd in Tennessee, police said Friday.“Zaevion Dobson, a 15-year-old Fulton High School student and football player, was struck and killed after he had jumped on top of three girls to shield them from the shooters,” Knoxville police Chief David Rausch said, appearing emotional as he held back tears during a news conference.None of the three girls were injured, according to a GoFundMe page for Dobson, that said he was “our hero.”Thursday’s deadly...

Clinton Portis made enough money during his NFL career in Denver and Washington that he should be set for life: In nine NFL seasons, Portis made more than $40 million. But Portis isn’t just not set for life, he’s broke. Portis filed for bankruptcy this week, saying he has debts of more than $5 million that he can’t afford to pay.

WEEK 15 Dec. 17 Tampa Bay Buccaneers at St. Louis Rams 8:25 Saturday, Dec. 19 New York Jets at Dallas Cowboys 8:25 Dec. 20 Kansas City Chiefs at Baltimore Ravens 1 Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts 1 Atlanta Falcons at Jacksonville Jaguars 1 Chicago Bears at Minnesota Vikings 1 Tennessee Titans at New England Patriots 1 Carolina Panthers at New York Giants 1 Buffalo Bills at Washington Redskins 1 Green Bay Packers at Oakland Raiders 4:05 Cleveland Browns at Seattle Seahawks 4:05 Cincinnati Bengals at San Francisco 49ers 4:25 Denver Broncos at Pittsburgh Steelers 4:25 Miami Dolphins at San Diego...

As Army Football’s most disappointed fan, I vowed last year to ditch tomorrow’s annual faceoff against Navy – until a few months ago, when the squids had me sleep with the enemy and then shot me off an aircraft carrier. Let me explain. I don’t dislike football. But it doesn’t excite me the way, say, driving a tank or nearly crash landing into the Blackwater compound does (both of which I have done). I am obsessed, though, with the Army-Navy game. Maybe it’s because the teams embody sport in starkly military terms; or maybe it’s the cool uniforms. Who knows....

College football players are gladiators of sorts. On the one hand, they are vastly underpaid for the risks they take as well as the profits they generate for the university and the scores of jobs they subsidize. On the other, in terms of college protocols, they are pampered and exempt from rules that other students follow. Being exploited and privileged is a bad combination. For half a century, liberals have pointed out that football players should drop the amateur pretense, join a semi-pro club, and make the money they deserve -- given that their admissions, grades, and class attendance are...

WEEK 14 Dec. 10 Minnesota Vikings at Arizona Cardinals 8:25 Dec. 13 Atlanta Falcons at Carolina Panthers 1 Washington Redskins at Chicago Bears 1 Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals 1 San Francisco 49ers at Cleveland Browns 1 Seattle Seahawks at Baltimore Ravens 1 Indianapolis Colts at Jacksonville Jaguars 1 San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs 1 Tennessee Titans at New York Jets 1 Buffalo Bills at Philadelphia Eagles 1 Detroit Lions at St. Louis Rams 1 New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1 Oakland Raiders at Denver Broncos 4:05 Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers 4:25 New England...

Ex-officer Michael Weinstein described the public prayers as an 'outrage' He claims Air Force Academy football players are forced to participate Weinstein insists display of Christianity could be used for ISIS propaganda A former U.S. Air Force officer has branded the ritual of military football players kneeling in prayer a ‘putrid’ example of ‘Christian supremacy’ and demanded it must stop. Michael Weinstein, president and founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), insisted the public prayers so often seen on the football pitch before games are a scandalous outrage. He said Air Force Academy football players had approached the MRFF...

The State of the Union plays on every channel and nobody watches. The Super Bowl airs on one channel and everybody watches. This likely plays as the rationale behind President Barack Obama scheduling an address ostensibly on terrorism right before the start of the most-watched football game of the week.

Thousands of Michigan residents who participate in online fantasy sports games could be breaking state laws against gambling, but the officials responsible for enforcing those laws are reluctant to clarify whether the practice is prohibited. The issue entered the news when New York’s Attorney General Eric Schneiderman asked a court there to shut down the fantasy sports websites DraftKings and FanDuel in his state. Besides online fantasy sites, many Michigan residents compete in workplace fantasy leagues with friends where participants compete for money prizes. In Michigan, state Sen. Curtis Hertel Jr., D-Meridian Township, has introduced a bill to decriminalize fantasy...

"I wonder in 50 years, will we have football?" USA Today sports columnist Christine Brennan mused on Sunday. "We're going to have it for the next 10, 15, 20, 30, probably. But 50 years? I don't know," she told ABC's "This Week" with Martha Raddatz.

he Super Bowl is an annual celebration of Just Guy Things: homoerotic tight pants, dude-on-dude grappling, sports, balls, brews, and chili. Conversely, the Super Bowl halftime show is an incredibly flamboyant tribute to all things over the top, featuring big-name celebrities, elaborate pyrotechnics, and some of the best wardrobes (and wardrobe malfunctions) this side of the 2001 VMAs. No one has ever adequately explained the pairing of these two inherently disparate spectacles, and it’s difficult to imagine the Venn diagram of dedicated sports enthusiasts and people who are psyched to watch an extended Bruno Mars medley. Nonetheless we, the non-sports...