Tip Off

The most discussed sports topics at water coolers across America

1. Who is Victor Wembenyama?

The Scoop: Victor Wembanyama, a 7-foot-4 French basketball sensation, took the NBA by storm when he was chosen as the first overall pick by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2023 NBA draft. “Wemby” began his basketball journey at a young age, influenced by his parents' athletic prowess, and he quickly rose through the ranks. His incredible height, combined with his well-rounded skills, caught the attention of scouts, making him a highly sought-after prospect.

Despite his youth, he made a significant impact on both the French national team and in professional leagues. His 2022-23 season with the Boulogne-Levallois Metropolitans 92 in the French Pro A League was nothing short of spectacular, earning him multiple awards, including league MVP.

Wembanyama's entry into the NBA was highly anticipated, and he is already making waves, averaging over 20 points-per-game and is must watch television for NBA fans. If there’s one new name in basketball you need to know it’s his. He is going to be an absolute superstar. 

Conversation Starter: Is a teenager too young for all the fame and attention of the NBA?

2. Wild Weekend of College Football

The Scoop: As we approach the end of the College Football regular season, each game is of the utmost importance and this week has a packed schedule of top 10 teams in action. #1 Ohio State plays a struggling Michigan State; #2 Georgia matches up with #9 Ole Miss; #3 Michigan is on the road against #10 Penn State; #4 Florida State has a tough test with in state rival Miami; #5 Washington hosts reigning Pac-12 champ #18 Utah; #6 Oregon is matched up with the highly touted offense of USC; and #8 Alabama has to travel to Kentucky against a scrappy Wildcats team.

This weekend is going to be glorious for college football fans, with some of the biggest games being played at the most iconic stadiums in the sport. When the dust settles we may have a clearer picture of the National Championship race. 

Conversation Starter: What’s the most exciting sports game you’ve seen live?

3. Mutually Assured Destruction: Big Ten Cheating Scandal

The Scoop: Michigan claims they have a dossier of violations committed by Big 10 foes and are ready to expose them if Head Coach Jim Harbaugh is suspended! Big 10 Commissioner Tony Petiti informed Michigan the conference was planning to place Harbaugh on a two game suspension, in response, Michigan responded with definitive proof conference foes stole their signals and shared them to other teams in the conference.

Rumors have circulated that Michigan has even more dirt on their rivals and are ready to make them public if the Big 10 takes action against their team. Currently, there is a standoff with neither party making a move, but right now, we seem on the precipice of many stories of cheating, collusion, and scandal coming to light. As more information comes out, we will be the first to inform you!

Conversation Starter: If everyone is cheating, is it even that bad?

4. November College Basketball, Fraud Watch!

The Scoop: Early season college basketball is tune-up time for the best teams. They are faced against smaller programs, with the hopes of getting their team into top form before the season starts. So the expectation is every top team will easily beat their opponents right? Well, not in the case of preseason #4 Michigan State, who lost to James Madison in overtime.

Elsewhere, aspiring-basketball-school Princeton upset Big Ten Title hopeful Rutgers, and tiny Abilene Christine took down Oklahoma State. It may be too early to jump to conclusions about these teams, but it’s a blow to the confidence of fans of top programs seeing their team put up stinkers to begin the season. 

Conversation Starter: Do you care if your team struggles early in the season or are you the type of fan to be optimistic for improvement throughout the year?

5. Is the Fame Too Much for LSU Women's Hoops Stars?

The Scoop: You might remember LSU Women’s Basketball star Angel Reece taunting Iowa’s Caitlin Clark after the national championship game last year. Well, that LSU team stayed mostly intact and brought in transfer Hailey Van Lith, one of the best players in women’s basketball this year. With how stacked this LSU squad is, most fans expected them to dominate every game.

That wasn’t the case in Game 1, as LSU got upset by Colorado, leading to this hilarious troll on twitter. We still think LSU is the best team in women’s college hoops, but after an offseason full of social media influencing, promotional events, and capitalizing on their fame, maybe the team needs a bit more time to refocus on playing their game.

Conversation Starter: Do you think gaining notoriety distracts athletes from their craft?

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What We’re Watching This Week

If you're at a bar, they might be showing these games. Here's what you should know:

College Football

Saturday’s Games - A CRAZY Saturday of College Football

• Michigan State @ #1 Ohio State

• #9 Ole Miss @ #2 Georgia

• #3 Michigan @ #10 Penn State

• Miami @ #4 Florida State

• #18 Utah @ #5 Washington

• USC @ #6 Oregon

• #7 Texas @ TCU

• #8 Alabama @ Kentucky

• #13 Tennessee @ #14 Missouri

• Florida @ #19 LSU 

College Basketball

• #12 Arizona @ #2 Duke (Friday Night): The first major matchup of the season, with ex-UNC star Caleb Love leading Arizona to face off with a national title favorite & old rival Duke

Subscriber Question of the Week

Do you have a sports topic you want to get smart on? Let us know here.

This week, Emily from Michigan asked, "Who is in charge of the College Football team rankings?"

Hi Emily! Great question - and a good topic for this week!

There are three main rankings for college football - the Associated Press (AP) rankings an average score across voting media members, the Coaches Poll an average score of rankings by coaches from around the country, and the College Football Playoff (CFP) rankings a list produced by the CFP Committee. The first two are pretty straightforward, but the third is a bit more nuanced.

The 13-member committee reviews a team’s resume (who they have played against, key statistical measurements, win differential, etc.) and the “eye-test” (how good do we think this team is). At the end of the season, the top 4 teams compete in a semi-final and final to determine the National Champion.

There is no set criteria on exactly what the committee is looking for, and often fans question the logic used. For example, Washington is currently ranked behind Michigan, even though the Huskies have a better strength of schedule and wins against better teams. On the flip side, Ohio State is ahead of Michigan even though Michigan has better key metrics, like “game control” which is a statistical measure of how many plays a team has run while up 14 or more points. 

The lack of transparency causes many fans to gripe about the system. Previously an algorithm was used to rank teams based on objective criteria, but the common issue was it encouraged teams to run up the score in games against bad teams and pad their stats to look better for the computer. There is no solution that will make everyone happy, but for now this is the system that is used. 

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