Starting Five

Five sports topics that will be discussed at water coolers across America

1. Philadelphia Security is in Playoff Form

The Scoop: Philly is notorious for having some of the worst behaved fans in America. Whether it was booing Santa Claus, or throwing opposing fans’ cell phones onto the field, they are always full of surprises. Thus, running security at a Phillies playoff game is no easy task… however this guy shows he’s up for the challenge leveling a fan on the field. Whatever the case, the Philly crowd is playing its part, as the team are up 2 games to 0 against the Diamondbacks and need just 2 more wins to make the World Series.

Conversation Starter: What is your most unhinged fan story?

2. Is This Chargers Fan an Industry Plant?

The Scoop: The Monday Night Football game between the Chargers and Cowboys made headlines, but most of them weren’t for the game. The camera continuously panned to this woman. We don’t have an official count, but it felt like at least 10 times we were shown her overly animated antics. Skeptics are claiming she’s an NFL plant, to give life to a team with the least fans support in the NFL. However, she appeared on the “Pat McAfee Show” saying she “wished [she] got paid” but truly is just a diehard Chargers fan.

Conversation Starter: Do you think she’s a genuine fan? What benefit does planting a fan serve to the league?

3. Astros Storming Back in Style

The Scoop: The Texas Rangers were up 2-0 in the series, but the Astros put up a convincing performance in a 8-5 win. So far the away team has won all three games, and the Astros hope to continue that streak with Game 4 in Arlington.

Conversation Starter: Is a seven game series too long to determine the best team?

4. USMNT Rollercoaster Week

The Scoop: The USA Men’s Soccer Team was back in action this past week with two friendly games against Germany and Ghana. The US got off to an early lead against the German side thanks to a goal by “Captain America” Christian Pulisic. Unfortunately, the game turned sour from there as Germany stormed back to a 3-1 win. The team regrouped and beat a talented Ghanaian side 4-0, with impressive performances from 20-year-old Gio Reyna and 22-year-old Folarin Balogun. These friendly games don’t mean much for trophies or success, but are a clear indicator of where things stand in the world of international soccer and seeing the young talent of the US put up strong performances against good competition gives fans hope for the 2026 World Cup hosted on home soil.

Conversation Starter: Why is US soccer less dominant on the global stage than many other US sports?

5. Big 10 Battle Royale: Midwest Rivalry Week

The Scoop: One of America’s premier sports conferences is the Big 10, a name that no longer makes sense as there are 16 teams in the conference, and will be 20 next year with the additions of USC, UCLA, Oregon, and Washington. This is the last year of only Midwest teams, and one of the last times we see regional rivalries all falling on the same day. Saturday starts with #3 Ohio State vs #7 Penn State at noon, features Wisconsin vs Illinois and Minnesota vs #24 Iowa at 3:30, and finishes with a night game between #2 Michigan vs Michigan State.

Conversation Starter: Do you think college sports should stay regional, or are you a fan of “conference expansion” with teams playing a more national schedule like the pros.

Sports Memes Demystified

Do you have a friend who always sends you memes you need context for? We’re here to give you that context.

YouTube star Logan Paul fought Ju Jitsu World Champion Dillon Danis in a boxing match over the weekend. After months of build-up and fight promotion, where Danis routinely made flagrant, harassing comments about Logan’s fiance Nina Agdal, the two finally met in the boxing ring.

The fight itself was underwhelming. Danis landed 9 punches over 6 rounds and spent most of the fight blocking Paul’s shots. The only excitement came after the fight when security rushed into the ring to break the two up after Danis attempted to choke Paul out.

It was an expensive ticket and had a massive pay-per-view due to the hype surrounding the match up, but ultimately was about as violent as iCarly.

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

• #3 Ohio State (6-0) vs #7 Penn State (6-0): The marquee game of the weekend, two Big Ten Powerhouses battle for supremacy of the Big Ten East and poll position for a spot in the College Football Playoff

• #2 Michigan (7-0) vs Michigan State (2-4): Two bitter rivals face off for the first time since an infamous post-game brawl that led to multiple lawsuits. Expect emotions to run high in a game that otherwise should be non-competitive

• #11 Alabama (5-1) vs #17 Tennessee (6-1): Alabama looks to exact revenge for a last-second loss in 2022 and keep their playoff hopes alive

• #16 Duke vs #4 Florida State (6-0): The Blue Devils already have an upset win over Clemson, can they keep the magic alive or is Florida State just too talented?

• #14 Utah (5-1) vs #18 USC (6-1): USC looks to bounce back after a painful loss to Notre Dame against a Utah team that beat them twice last year en route to a Pac-12 Title.

MLB Playoffs

League Championship Round (See the live bracket here)

• Texas Rangers vs Houston Astros: The Rangers hold a 2-1 lead with Game 4 live from Arlington, TX at 5p ET

• Arizona Diamondbacks vs Philadelphia Phillies: The Phillies are up 2-0, but travel to Arizona as the D-Backs try to get back into this series

WNBA Finals

• New York Liberty vs Las Vegas Aces: It’s going to Game 5! After the Aces were on the brink of championship, The Liberty came up with back-to-back wins to force a decisive final game on Friday night.

Subscriber Question of the Week

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

This week, Isaac from Indiana asked, "I often hear my classmates discussing conference expansion, what is that?"

Hi Isaac! This is a topic on the mind of many sports fans and is a complex topic, we’ll try to simplify it for you!

In college sports, teams are organized into conferences, traditionally based on regional divisions. The conference operates as a unit, collectively bargaining for TV and media contracts and voting on their own rules and structures. In the last decade, teams in small conferences have moved to larger ones to increase their revenue potential. For example, Rutgers moved from the Big East to the Big Ten, allowing for Rutgers to get more media revenue as the Big 10 is a larger brand, and in turn the Big 10 Network got TV access to New York and New Jersey metropolitan areas.

More recently, top teams are shifting to the Big 10 and SEC. This will create basically Super Conferences for the major revenue sports (basketball and football), with Texas and Oklahoma joining the Southeastern Conference or SEC (which already has powers like Georgia, Alabama, and LSU) and USC, UCLA, Oregon, and Washington joining the Big 10 (with Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan). The media rights for these two conferences are now even higher in value, and the biggest athletic departments are getting the biggest slice of the pie.

However, this devalues the conferences they leave behind, like the Pac 12, which lost almost all its teams, and the national nature of the new alignments causes logistical challenges for student-athletes, particularly in non-football sports. This shift is driven by purely financial motives, raising questions about the amateur nature of college sports.

We hope this helps!

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