#he was top 10 for nearly the entire championship! so proud

[nocturnebby]

top 10 in ace race while wearing 7 inch heels! what a king queen!

[formula-one-thoughts]

What’s going on at Red Bull?

2020 (ignoring the global pandemic) should theoretically be Red Bull’s most comfortable year in F1 for a while. With Ferrari dropping considerably off the pace to the back end of the mid-field, their closest rival of the last few years has effectively been eliminated. Having pushed through the pitfalls of his aggressive driving style and refined his approach to racing, Max Verstappen has barely made a mistake of the kind that hampered his first few years at the team. They have on their hands a man who is widely considered (I believe rightfully so) to be the second best driver on the grid. And the results in part speak for this – they seem to have 2nd in the constructors championship in the bag. But a number of issues are plaguing the team that are making this an increasingly difficult season for them.

Firstly, Alex Albon simply isn’t delivering. It pains me to say this, as I love Alex; he is a genuinely nice guy and a great driver, and wouldn’t have been promoted to F1 and then Red Bull if he weren’t. He has pulled off some of the most exciting overtakes I’ve seen in a while since he landed the seat, braking late enough to make Daniel Riciardo jealous. But he is being majorly let down by his qualifying performance. In Russia for example he could only manage 10th (before a penalty dropped him to 15th), 1.1secs off his teammate in 2nd. Max is beating him 11-0 in the qualifying battle, and whilst Alex did manage to line up alongside him at Mugello and convert that into his first podium, when Max has finished a Grand Prix it has always been above his teammate. Plenty of people have said this isn’t a fair battle, that the team and car is built around Max, and that anyone going up against him will never have a fair chance. Of course the team is going to invest in Max – they would be stupid not to. He has a long-term contract with them and increasingly looks like the only alternate World Champion to Lewis Hamilton whilst the Brit remains in the sport. It doesn’t mater how good the second driver is, top teams have to choose a number one driver and get behind them if they want to have any chance of winning – just look at the mess Ferrari got themselves into last year with Leclerc and Vettel. But the accusations that Red Bull are sabotaging Alex are completely laughable. His success in the car means financial gains for the team, and it would be extremely beneficial for them and Max if Alex was closer to him, allowing for split strategies to attack the Mercedes. We’ve seen plenty of instances where a driver has entered a team built around one personality and managed to succeed: obviously the circumstances are all different but Ricciardo and Vettel, and Hill and Prost come to mind for me.

I think a major factor in this that has been overlooked a little though is the quality of the car, which due to the disappearance of Ferrari from the top has been more difficult to discern this year. Just because the team are second in the constructors championship by quite a way does not mean they have the second best car by quite a way. Even in Max’s hands, the RB16 looks a handful on the track, often more so than the Mclaren or pink Mercedes/Racing Point. Although impossible to tell for sure, I think the gap between the Red Bull drivers is exacerbated by the fact that Max is outperforming the car to quite a degree, whilst Alex is sadly underperforming. The pace of a team’s fastest driver isn’t always a direct indication of the pace of the car (Ferrari are experiencing something similar with their two drivers). The position of P3 that Max so often manages to slot himself into isn’t representative of the strength of the car, but neither is P8 (Albon’s average qualifying position this season). If Alex could consistently qualify and finish around the p4, p5, p6 mark (as he did after joining Red Bull mid way through last season), and on occasion stick together with Max throughout the race, then I think he and Red Bull could be proud of the results. There’s also rookie errors and clashes with other drivers from misjudged moves that end up landing Albon with a time penalty, damaged car, or both. His incident with Daniil Kvyat at the Nurburgring for example was completely avoidable, and reminiscent of the kind of incidents Max was causing in 2017 and 2018 (his clash with Vettel in China comes to mind). But whilst Max was making reckless manoeuvres, he was also getting results for the team, and Albon isn’t.

I don’t think there’s any chance at this point in the season of Red Bull swapping him out a la Gasly or Kvyat, but if things don’t improve his seat for next year is very much at risk. If they do decide to replace him though, who do they choose? For so long Red Bull were at the front of the pack when it came to their driver development programme, reflected in the fact that nearly half (7/16) of the podium sitters on the current grid are from the Red Bull Junior Team. But their talent pool seems to have dried up recently. The shuffling around of drivers between Alpha Tauri and themselves has left them in quite an awkward position, where the sister team they should be able to pick up-and-coming talent from consists of two demoted Red Bull drivers. Moving one of them back up to the number one team would be something of an admission that they fucked up their driver choices. I can’t see Gasly having any more success than Albon is having now, or he had during his first stint at Red Bull, if he makes the move back up (despite his strong form so far this season) and Kvyat definitely hasn't proved himself deserving of a promotion. Out of the nine Red Bull juniors, Yuki Tsunoda is the only driver with a realistic chance of gaining enough super licence points to move to F1 next season (I believe he needs to maintain his P3 in the F2 drivers standings for this), but he would only ever begin at Alfa Tauri. If they want to fill a seat at Red Bull with a new driver, they'll have to look to someone older and more experienced, creating a sort of Mark Webber Sebastian Vettel dynamic. Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez’s names have been thrown around a lot, but a departure from their home grown talent again shows a weakness and a failure in how the entire Red Bull outfit is being managed.

The troubles don’t stop there though. Whilst certainly better than during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, the RB16 is suffering far more reliability issues than its immediate predecessor. In last year’s 21 races, the Red Bull cars only suffered one reliability-based retirement (Gasly in Baku). In the 11 races so far this year they have had four, five if you consider Verstappen’s PU issue in Mugello that dropped him into his crash and would have ended his race anyway. Add to that Honda’s announcement that they will no longer be working with Red Bull after 2021(more on this another time), and the Austrian team’s situation is not looking at all rosy. For the sake of F1 fans everywhere eager for a close fight for the title, I hope Christian Horner and Helmut Marko sort it out.

What do you think about the situation at Red Bull? What do they need to do to challenge Mercedes? Let me know!

[daysswithyou]

Box Love

Characters: DAY6 Dowoon x OC

Genre: fluff, romance

Words: 2.2k

Description: boxer!dowoon AU

---

Stepping into the huge warehouse, Dowoon took in time to absorb his surroundings. Fighting equipment of all sorts filled the entire place. To his immediate right and left, sandbags lined the entire area and every sandbag was occupied by someone that was currently punching each punching bag left, right, front centre. In left corner by the back, there was a huge area for hand to hand sparring. Grunts of frustration and pain can be heard from that area as people got thrown around like rag dolls. In the right corner by the back, there was an area cordoned off for martial arts training. People can been seen jumping around holding sticks and dressed in traditional martial arts combat attire. Right in the centre, there was a large boxing circle. Currently there were 3 males and 1 female getting ready to enter the ring; what the female was doing there remained a mystery to Dowoon. Boxing was definitely separated by gender and weight class. She was easily 2 to 3 times lighter than them.

Good luck fighting them, I hope she’s doesn’t pass out.

Just as the fight was about to begin, Dowoon was called away by someone.

“I’m assuming you’re Dowoon.” A middle-aged man with a bald shaven head stuck out his hand which Dowoon took. He gave a very strong and firm handshake and Dowoon knew right there and then that he was someone that should not be messed with.

“Yes sir, I’m Yoon Dowoon.”

“Good to finally see you; heard a lot about you and your achievements. Runner up in light weight boxing, black belt in all forms of martial arts and the list goes on. All you’re missing is being World Champion in light weight boxing.”

“Yes, that’s why I’m here to train.”

“Let’s put you to the test then. See that lady in the ring? You’ll be fighting her later.”

“I don’t fight girls.”

“She’s no ordinary girl, believe me.  Watch and see for yourself.”

Turning his attention to the boxing ring, Dowoon began to focus his attention on you. He watched at first to figure out your fighting style but eventually gave up because you didn’t stick to one – what he saw was a mixture of tactics, making it nearly impossible for him to predict your next move. You were fast and sparing with your energy – you successfully avoided all their punches and you took down all of them easily by targeting vital points that brought the most pain to them.  At the end of it, you were the last one standing victorious as the other 3 lay groaning in pain around you. You locked eyes with Dowoon and he would be lying if he said he wasn’t intimidated by you. You were the exact definition of ‘looks could kill’.

“Her name is Y/N. Best fighter I ever had.”

“She’s really good I admit but how come I’ve never seen her at championships before?”

“She doesn’t want to fight competitively – she trains out of passion and she prefers to coach instead. All my medallists have been under her wing before.”

“I can see why.”

“Come with me.” The man then guided Dowoon towards the ring before asking him to get ready.

“We’ll decide how your training should proceed after fighting her. Good luck.”

“Thanks, I probably need it.”

Bouncing lightly on his feet to get the blood flowing in his limbs, Dowoon watched as you sized him up and immediately felt that small fire of anger burning in him.

“Any last words from the competitors?”

“I never thought I’d be seeing the legendary Yoon Dowoon here. Don’t go easy on me.”

“Sure thing Y/N.”

The whistle beeped and Dowoon wasted no time in attempting to land the first punch, which was his first mistake. Leaning towards the left, you easily dodged his punch and instead ducked low to land a strong one on his stomach. It was so strong that it knocked the wind out of him but thank goodness he wasn’t knocked to the ground. You were still poised and ready to attack. Charging forward with fury, Dowoon tricked you into thinking that he was aiming for your stomach so when you stooped low once again, he rose to land a hard punch on your right shoulder. You could feel the pain and you were sure that it would leave a nasty bruise later on. You staggered forward but even the immense pain could not stop your drive to destroy him. He had broken your clean record of not having let someone ever landing a punch on you – and you were going to kill him for that. Whipping around, you stuck your leg out to trip him and he landed face first with a loud thud on the floor. Taking advantage of his open position, you used your leg to immobilise his lower body before using your body weight to pin his upper body to the ground before holding him in the chokehold. After 5 seconds, you were announced the winner without a doubt. Dowoon was still coughing and massaging his throat after your strong chokehold; he was also in utter disbelief at your strength and skill – never has he ever, been defeated by a female, and so badly at that. All he managed to get was one punch in when usually he’ll be leaving his opponents completely crumpled and defeated. But out the corner of his eye, he could see you standing tall and proud, looking ready to take on another 10 more men.

“Excellent job. Now both of you should get some ice on these bruises.”

Nodding both of you exited the ring before you took Dowoon to the second level where fighters get treated for injuries.

“Here. Ice the one on the stomach.”

“Thanks.” He caught as you tossed him the ice pack before he gingerly placed the ice pack on the bruise, letting out a small sigh as the coolness of the pack eased the burning pain.

“That was a really good fight just now – I look forward to training with you.”

“I can’t tell if you’re being sarcastic now.”

“I’m serious! Besides, I don’t praise people often so I mean it when I say you’re good.”

“Thanks. You’re good too – don’t think I’ve ever seen a female fighter this strong. It’s a pity you don’t compete competitively.”

“I don’t like the blood thirst that goes on there. I’m quite content staying like this.”

“Well, you do have a point.”

Before you could reply, the door then burst open before revealing the man from before.

“Dowoon from now on you’ll be training with her.”

-

Training has never been this tough for Dowoon. You had put him under a strict regimen with the championships only 3 months away. You had imposed a diet on him to ensure that he maintains his weight in order for him to qualify for that weight class. Every morning started with jogs around the compound and weights training, afternoons were reserved for teaching advanced techniques and night was one-on-one sparring. In the beginning you had gotten your best fighters to spar with him but he proved that they were no match for him. Eventually, nights had become one-on-one sparring with you only. Dowoon enjoyed the night sessions the most – that was when the entire place was quiet and he could focus solely on training. But gradually, Dowoon found that he had something else to focus on: you. Spending so much time with you daily, it was impossible for him to deny that pull towards you that was only getting stronger and stronger with each passing day. You were a very admirable lady with certain qualities that he really liked but now was certainly not the time to be infatuated with you.

Before he even knew what was happening, he had landed on his back and you were directly on top of him now. You weren’t smiling though, in fact, you were snarling at him.

“FOCUS Dowoon! What wrong with you these days? You’re such easy prey – you’d be gone by now if this was the real thing!”

His next words came out as a whisper, so soft that if you weren’t paying attention to him you wouldn’t have caught them at all.

“You’re beautiful Y/N.”

Thrown off by his words, you’d let your attention slip and by the time you noticed the shift in the glint in his eyes, he had already changed your position – now you were hopelessly pinned to the ground as he stared at you from his position above. You fought to push him off, assuming that he was back in the game now.

“Stop fighting me Y/N, I’ve stopped fighting you a long ago.”

You stilled your hands – it was clear that this session had taken a different purpose now.

“What are you doing now?”

“I’m sorry for being so distracted these days Y/N but my heart just races when I see you and I can’t seem to focus on anything except you. I guess this is what people call love huh?”

“Yoon Dowoon, are you confessing to me right now?”

“I suppose you could put it that way… I love you Y/N, I really do.”

By now, you were in absolute disbelief. Was someone actually reciprocating your feelings now? You have a love-hate relationship with Dowoon since the very beginning. You hated him for obvious reasons: he was good at what he does and he proved to be real competition to you. And you hated that about him – you just couldn’t stop the competitive streak in you. But it took you some time before you realised you loved him. You admired his determination – despite getting bruised all over from the day before, he still showed up and gave his best. In his downtime, instead of resting, he’ll help out other fighters. Slowly, he crept into your heart. Was it actually possible that the person you loved felt the same as you did?

His next action confirmed your thoughts. Lowering his head, your lips connected softly. He was unexpectedly gentle for such a fierce fighter and you found another part to love about him. When he pulled away, you were left breathless.

For the first time in your life, you gave up something without a fight.

Your heart.

-

On the day of the championships, you were seated at the back row with your hood drawn up so that Dowoon wouldn’t see you. He had easily cleared the preliminaries and semi-finals and was once again, one of the crowd favourites to win the championships.

Go Dowoon, you can do it.

They started the match with the crowd’s cheering and the blow of the whistle. His opponent had the tendency to strike first and Dowoon was doing well avoiding him like you taught him. But you realised that it wasn’t working and that was his opponent’s tactic – wearing Dowoon down slowly before making the real strike. By the time you realised this, his opponent had landed a punch on Dowoon’s ribs and judging by the sound, you suspect something had cracked. Thrown off by the pain, he lost focus and that’s when his opponent successfully rained punches on him until he was beaten to the ground, effectively losing the first round out of three. Running forward, you caught Dowoon as he exited the ring.

“Dowoon! Can you still fight?”

“Yes.”

“Good, put a patch over your ribs first. Listen, I’ve figured out his tactics. He’s distracting you to wear you down so don’t fall for it later. Go for the first strike and aim for vital points. Conserve your energy. Do not let him get above you – you might not be able to throw him off. Lastly, stay unpredictable and throw in every style you know. You got this ok?”

“Got it Y/N, thanks.”

“Dowoon wait.”

Bravely, you stepped forward to give him a kiss on the cheek before sending him off the ring and heading back to your seat.

I hope I did the right thing – that should fuel him.

It did indeed. Dowoon did as you said and won the next two rounds with ease. He got a few nasty punches in but that didn’t matter with his opponent lying on the ground next to him by the end of it all.

Yoon Dowoon was officially the newest champion of the World Championship for Lightweight boxing.

-

A week later, once he had healed fully from his injuries, Dowoon and you took a slow walk around the Christmas market, admiring the sights and food. Fairy lights decorated each stall and with the snow falling to give the entire place a dreamy feel, Dowoon felt certain tonight was the night.

“Hey Y/N, let’s get a log cake for dessert?”

“Sure.”

“Sit here, I’ll be right back.”

You nodded as he dashed off. Watching him, you saw him whisper into the ears of the cashier before running back to join you.

“What did you tell him?”

“You’ll see later.”

“Ok then.”

Moments later, the log cake was presented to you and that’s when you noticed the words on it: “Y/N, will you be my girl?”

“So this was that it was all about.”

“Yup. And your answer is?”

With lightning speed, you leaned forward to peck him on the lips before digging into the cake. He broke out into a shy grin at your response, positive that that meant ‘yes’.

Tonight, he was feeling extremely accomplished – a world champion and your boyfriend.

[scalesofmotion]

10 best football teams in London

ดูบอลสด -  For those interested in football in London, there is something to behold. To make it clear for readers of this article outside of England, football means the "beautiful game" which is commonly called football all over the world.

London has a proud tradition of famous football teams with intense competition between them to become the best club. There are usually four or five London teams in the Premier League and there are plenty of commentators who believe this is one of the biggest obstacles to them winning the league. A "local derby" between two London football teams can create an exciting atmosphere and change the shape of their current heads so that they become very competitive.

Premier League tickets can be hard to come by at times, but a little persistence often pays off. There are a number of ticket agents who can get one for one price.

In the last decade, Arsenal and Chelsea have won the Premier League title twice and reached the European Cup final.

Here are some details of the 10 best football clubs in London. To avoid accusations that you are a fan, the list is arranged alphabetically: -

Armory

The Gunners, Arsenal, played in the top division of English football for consecutive seasons from 1919 to 20. They won 13 victories and set a unique modern record in the 2003/04 season as they went the entire season without defeat.

Arsenal have won the coveted doubles twice (championship and cup in the same season) three times, in 1971, 1998 and 2002.

In recent years they have moved to a new location, the Emirates Stadium with a capacity of 60,000 people. The Arsenal Museum is worth a visit and is open daily.

Brentford

Bee Football Club, Brentford, currently plays in the I Soccer League. They were founded in 1889 and have been playing their home games at Griffin Park Stadium since 1904. Brentford's most successful spell came in the 1930s. The years in the last century when they reached six consecutive finals in the First Division.

After the war, they spent most of their time in the third and fourth tier of English football. Brentford are four times in the FA Cup quarter-finals and two runners-up in the Football League.

Charlton Athletic

Adix, Charlton Athletic have seen better days. There were rest days in the 1930's and 1940's. They have had problems in recent years since being relegated from the Premier League in 2005 and the championship in 2008.

They played in a valley south of the River Thames in Greenwich. The association was founded in 1905.

Historically, Charlton's most prosperous period occurred in the 1930s when the club recorded the club's top finals, including second place in 1937, and after World War II when the club reached two cup finals. England won in 1947

Chelsea

The Pensioner or Blues Football Club Chelsea was founded in 1905 and plays in the Premier League. Chelsea are champions three times (1955, 2005, 2006) and won the FA Cup five times, the League Cup four times and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup twice. They reached the 2008 UEFA Champions League final.

Chelsea plays at Stamford Bridge in West London and has a floor capacity of 42,000. The Chelsea Museum is open almost daily and is well worth a visit for visitors interested in museums and the history of football.

Crystal Palace

The Eagles, Crystal Palace Football Club was founded in 1905. The team plays its home matches at Selhurst Park, where they have been based since 1924. The club is currently entering the second stage, the championship.

Crystal Palace's last successful period began in 1988-89 when the club finished third in the second division and were promoted to the first division. In 1990 he reached the FA Cup final, but lost once against Manchester United and finished third in the First Division in 1990-91.

Since then, Palace have been relegated several times and promoted to the FA Premier League, the last time being relegated from the top flight in the 2004/05 season. That is all despite the fact that the club nearly went bankrupt in July 2000.

Fulham

The Cottagers, Fulham Football Club was founded in 1879, celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2004 and are at the pinnacle of English football, the Premier League. Fulham is the oldest professional football team in London.

In 2009, Fulham reached its peak final in the Premier League, finishing 7th in qualifying for Europe.

The club has produced many great English players, including Johnny Haynes, George Cohen, Bobby Robson, Rodney Marsh, Alan Mueller and Jim Langley. They play at historic Craven Cottage, their home since 1896, a coastal country on the banks of the River Thames in Fulham.

Queens Park Rangers

The Hoops or QPR, Queens Park Rangers football club based in Shepherds Bush, west London. You are currently playing in the Football League Championship. His honors include winning the League Cup in 1967 and runners-up in the First Division 1975-76 and the 1982 FA Cup.

Queens Park Rangers Football Club was founded in 1882 and its traditional colors are blue and white. Due to its proximity to other clubs in West London, QPR has long been in competition with several other clubs in the area, the most notable of which are Chelsea, Brentford and Fulham, with whom they challenged the so-called West London Derby.

In 2007 QPR was taken over by Italian tycoon Flavio Briatore and is one of the 10 richest sports clubs in the world. The other major shareholders are Lakshmi Mittal and F1 Supremo Bernie Ecclestone. So check out this room!

Tottenham Hotspurs

The famous 1961 page of "Spurs" is still considered by many football fans to be one of the best soccer teams in the history of British football. They achieved a "double" which he had not achieved since Aston Villa won in 1897.

It gives a lot of things Spurs' final team has to do. But Spurs have a long tradition of playing good football. Hence, there are plenty of interesting games to be found at White Hart Lane, especially with their close north London rivals Arsenal.

In 1963, Spurs became the first English club to win a major European trophy - the European Cup Winners' Cup. They won the Football League Cup twice in the 1970s and became the inaugural UEFA Cup winners in 1972. In the 1980s, Spurs won several trophies: the FA Cup twice, the FA Community Shield and the FA Cup. UEFA 1983-84. In the 1990s they won the FA Cup and the Football League Cup, and in 2008 they beat Chelsea in the Football League Cup final. The win means Tottenham have won a trophy apiece over the past six decades - a feat uniquely linked to Manchester United.

The Spurs plan to have a new stadium completed in 2012 and is expected to be one of the best stadiums in England.

Watford

Hornets, Watford Football Club based in Watford, Hertfordshire. You play in the championship. The club was founded in 1881 and played on several pitches before moving to a permanent location at Vicarage Road in 1922, where they remain to this day. They have shared a stadium with Saracens Rugby Club since 1997. Watford have a longstanding rivalry with Luton Town.

The club is best known for two terms led by former England coach Graham Taylor. The first lasted from 1977 to 1987, when the club moved up to the old First Division Fourth Division. Watford, once in the top division of English football, finished second in the league in 1983, reached the FA Cup final in 1984 and took part in the UEFA Cup in the 1984/85 season.

The second period ran from 1997 to 2001, when Taylor led the club out of the second division renamed in the Premier League in successive seasons. Taylor is currently the non-executive director and honorary president of the club, along with Sir Elton John, who owned the club for both eras and has a long history with the club.

[rickhorrow]

15 + 5 + 5 To Watch : Week of 11419

1. As the Australian Open gets underway Down Under, Serena Williams will star in a year-long marketing campaign for the Bumble social networking app. The tie-up will kick off with a message of women’s empowerment during the February 3 Super Bowl, Williams told Reuters. Bumble began in 2014 as a female-driven dating platform for women to start discussions with potential male partners. The company is aiming to promote newer functions, Bumble BFF and Bumble Bizz, which also help women find friends and build business networks. In the campaign, “The Ball is in Her Court,” Williams will urge women to make the first move in all aspects of their lives. Serena helped create the Bumble campaign, which was developed and produced entirely by women, and will serve as global adviser to the company. The app now has more than 47 million users worldwide and competes with services such as Tinder and a new Facebook dating option. Williams is competing for a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open this month. Her broad endorsement portfolio made her 2018’s highest-paid female athlete, according to Forbes, and she remains one of the world’s most sought-after celebrity athletes.

2. As the NFL’s Conference Championships loom, CBS President and Chief Advertising Revenue Officer Jo Ann Ross said the network has sold more than 90% of its ad slots for Super Bowl LIII. According to Cynopsis Sports, that pace is ahead of the last two years and on par with Super Bowl 50, which CBS also broadcast. CBS Executive Vice President of Sports Sales and Marketing John Bogusz said the entire third quarter is sold out, with remaining slots currently scattered around the other quarters. Ross and Bogusz each said some of the new advertisers and categories will surprise, but they were not at liberty to disclose them because of a high number of non-disclosure agreements signed with the brands. A source said a 30-second spot is selling for as high as $5.25 million. As the NFL’s divisional championship games have seen attendance over 76,000 fans and ratings well up from last year, CBS should expect to comfortably sell out the rest of its inventory before the big game in Atlanta.

3. Ahead of this weekend’s big matchups, the NFL and Intuit Inc announced that as part of their multi-year official sponsor partnership, Intuit TurboTax Live will serve as the first-ever presenting sponsor of both the AFC and NFC Championship Games. As a part of the sponsorship, TurboTax Live branding will be featured during the 2019 AFC and NFC Championship Games as well as within ancillary programming and content across league broadcast and digital media platforms. "We're proud to have Intuit as the NFL's first-ever presenting sponsor for both AFC and NFC Championship games," said Renie Anderson, NFL Senior Vice President, NFL Partnerships, Sponsorship and Consumer Products. "Intuit has a longstanding reputation as a leader in the financial and accounting software industry that NFL fans recognize and trust this time of year." Beyond the presenting sponsorship of both 2019 AFC and NFC Championship games, Intuit also becomes the NFL's official sponsor for financial and accounting software, as well as tax preparation services.

4. The Pepsi Super Bowl LIII halftime show on CBS has been booked, and Maroon Five is in the golden spotlight. The most-watched musical event of the year officially has its headliner and special guests. Following in the footsteps of broad-appeal acts such as Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, Coldplay, Katy Perry, Bruno Mars, Beyonce, Madonna, and the like, Maroon 5, the three-time Grammy winning band, will be this year's headliner. The band will be joined by Travis Scott, a Grammy nominated rapper, and Big Boi, who is from Atlanta, which will be hosting the proceedings February 3 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Atlanta has long been a rap incubator, and you can expect many other high-profile local rap legends to play at the dozens of private events held annually around the Super Bowl.

5. The NBA has announced that the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets will star in this year’s edition of its China Games. The two franchises will face off in a pre-season double-header on October 10 in Shanghai and October 12 in Shenzhen. The NBA will run a variety of fan activities alongside the games, as well as a series of community outreach activities in the two cities hosting them. The Lakers last traveled to China in 2013 – the height of Kobe Bryant’s reach – while the Nets previously played games in China in 2010 and 2014. Said NBA China chief executive Derek Chang, “These games are the pillars of our efforts to bring authentic NBA action to our Chinese fans.” The 16-time NBA champion Lakers have not made the playoffs since 2013 but are still likely to rope in a big Chinese crowd after signing LeBron James ahead of the 2018-2019 season. The Nets have ties to China through minority owner Joseph Tsai, executive vice chairman of Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba, who purchased a 49% stake in the franchise last year. The NBA has staged 26 matches in China since 2004; this year will mark the 13th edition of its China Games.

6. The Los Angeles Clippers won the NBA’s first Team Innovation Award at the league's sales and marketing meetings in Miami. The team was recognized for the launch of Clippers CourtVision, a customizable digital experience available to FS Prime Ticket subscribers. The Golden State Warriors collected a league-high five awards at the meeting, including recognition for selling 10,000-plus season tickets, having a 90% season-ticket renewal rate, and three sponsorship awards. The Celtics, Cavaliers, Rockets, Heat, and Raptors each won four awards. The Hawks received the NBA Team Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Award, while the Kings earned the NBA Team Diversity and Inclusion Innovation Award. Overall, the NBA is widely considered the most innovative of America’s pro sports leagues, from both a team and individual athlete perspective.

7. The NFL believes “the timing is perfect” for a London-based franchise to launch within the next three years. This is the sentiment of Mark Waller, who will leave his role as the NFL’s Executive Vice President of International after nearly 13 years with the NFL. London has hosted the majority of the NFL's overseas games, and the league has been open about its intention to expand its global footprint. Waller, an advocate of having a London NFL team, said that 2021 was a "realistic" timeframe for a London-based team to be established. He said, "I think the marketplace is ready in the U.K. to host a franchise. The fan base is big enough, we have partnerships in media and sponsorships that are viable. We have stadiums that can host us, we have government support. I believe that 2021, that sort of timeframe, is a realistic timeframe for an owner to be ready." Waller also pointed out that 2021 is around the time of the renewal of the NFL's Collective Bargaining Agreement. A new franchise would need to be rubber-stamped by the CBA and factored into new media deals. The Jacksonville Jaguars have been seen as the most likely team to decamp from the U.S. to London.

8. This year's Indianapolis 500 "will pay special tribute" to Mario Andretti and the 50th anniversary of his only Indy 500 win in 1969. According to the Allentown Morning Call, Andretti's 50th anniversary celebration will include a "commemorative logo that will be used on the cover of the race program, on special merchandise and other places to celebrate the anniversary," and the "coveted bronze badges that have long served as credentials that allow garage and pit lane access will feature Andretti." Beginning May 1, the IMS Museum "will feature a special Andretti section devoted to his entire career." Because Andretti is "still so involved in IndyCar Series racing," he will "be around IMS almost all of May.” IndyCar CEO Mark Miles said that he "hopes to make a formal announcement" about a new series title sponsor next month; NTT Data reportedly is in talks as a potential replacement for Verizon. Andretti Autosport, home of rising IndyCar star Zach Veach, will obviously be front and center throughout the May celebration.

9. The NHL and the NHLPA have announced that they have each agreed to terms to continue with The Upper Deck Company as the exclusive licensed manufacturer of NHL Trading Cards. The 2018-19 NHL season marks the 29th straight year of Upper Deck hockey, a partnership that dates back to the 1990-91 season. Upper Deck became the first exclusive trading card partner of the NHL and NHLPA from 2004 through 2009-10 and has held similar rights since the 2014-15 season. The announcement comes at the perfect time of the season, as the 2019 NHL All-Star break is now less than two weeks away, coming to the world from San Jose’s SAP Center January 24-26. The excitement brought by the league’s “Young Funs” – rising young stars like Auston Matthews, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Patrik Laine – were likely part of the glue sealing Upper Deck’s continuation of their NHL deal.

10. With over 111 million followers across Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, LeBron James comfortably leads all players in total audience size in social as 2019 gets rolling, according to opendorse. Two MLS soccer veteran imports, Zlatan Ibrahimović (67.9 million followers) and Wayne Rooney were second and third with Steph Curry and Floyd Mayweather Jr. placing fourth and fifth. However, several of 2018’s top athletes were up-and-comers like JuJu Smith-Schuster and Kyle Kuzma, who posted the two highest growth rates and sit near the top in several other categories. The athlete rate with the highest engagement rate per post? The Washington Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin, with a rate of 6.4 % per post. Which of the leagues in North America have the largest following? The NBA. With over 721 million followers on social, NBA players comfortably lead all leagues in total athlete audience size. NFL players held onto second place ahead of the up-and-coming MLS, which earned a big bump from transfer stars including Zlatan and Rooney. The most active athletes? The WNBA, with an average 250 posts per athlete engaged in the social space.

11. A special feature of Electronic Arts’ (EA) Madden NFL 19 Championship was broadcast on primetime television in the U.S. last Tuesday as part of a deal with the NFL and the CW network. This year’s edition of the EA Sports standout, first launched in 2016, was the second to be broadcast following EA Sports’ Madden NFL 18 Challenge - reportedly the most watched North American esports broadcast in 2017.  The Madden championship features players from 32 NFL franchises with a $1.3 million prize fund across four major tournaments, including the Madden NFL 19 Classic, filmed in Las Vegas last month. The event was the first installment of the new edition after a fatal shooting at a championship qualifier in Jacksonville in August delayed the start of the current series. At the time, EA raised a $1 million fund to support victims and their families. Two further “Challenge” events take place in January and March. The esports championship will culminate at the Madden NFL 19 Bowl, which is held alongside the NFL Draft in April.

12. Thuuz Sports, using their custom designed algorithms to measure real time global event excitement, determined that the Philadelphia Eagles and New Orleans Saints were the most exciting teams throughout the NFL regular season. The Kansas City Chiefs’ record-setting game with the Los Angeles Rams was the most exciting regular season game of 2018. In terms of most exciting teams, the Eagles and Saints were the only teams to have eight games register as “GREAT” on the excitement scale. KC had seven Great Games make the list, while three non-playoff teams – Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Tampa Bay – joined the Rams with six Great Games each. The measurement scores were done on a 0 to 100 scale and take into consideration game pace, team parity, play novelty, momentum shifts, social buzz, and historical context. Coming soon: Thuuz’ evaluation of this year’s thrilling NFL post season matchups, as well as Super Bowl LIII.

13. Ricketts' soccer stadium faces political headwinds In Chicago. A planned 20,000-seat stadium for a Chicago soccer franchised owned by Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts "appears to be on life support," according to the Chicago Sun Times. Chicago Alderman Brian Hopkins reportedly rejected plans for the USL club's stadium due to its "expected impact on traffic in the area." Developer Sterling Bay and Ricketts "could try to revive the plan later, as traffic infrastructure in the area is improved during the years-long development process." Hopkins also put the kibosh on another major element of Sterling Bay's massive Lincoln Yards development: “a live entertainment district controlled by LiveNation with large music venues." Hopkins demanded the site be "repurposed as open and recreational space." Ricketts family spokesperson Dennis Culloton said the family's "potential involvement was focused on the soccer team and contingent on city approvals.”

14. The Nationals have "offered a reprieve to season-ticket holders affected" by the partial shutdown of the federal government. According to the Washington Post, the club announced that employees or spouses of employees of federal agencies "may postpone their monthly ticket payments beginning this month." Once the federal government reopens, the “next scheduled payment will be for the amount of the full missed payment(s)." Subsequent payments will return to "normal monthly installments," until the account is "paid in full by June 15." If the federal government remains shut down on February 1, season-ticket holders’ February 15 payment "will be postponed." If the federal government "remains shut down on March 1, season-ticket holders’ March 15 payment will be postponed.” Also participating in special ticketing discounts or other opportunities for federal employees in shutdown limbo: George Mason University and the Washington Capitals and Wizards.

15. PepsiCo has finalized Super Bowl LIII plans by putting its namesake soda product line, along with Doritos and popular sparkling water Bubly, in CBS' game telecast. According to AdAge, each brand "will get a 30-second spot" in the game. The 90-second total ad buy matches PepsiCo's investment last year. PepsiCo in 2018 "plugged Mountain Dew and Doritos at the same time with a two-part ad totaling 60 seconds starring Morgan Freeman and Peter Dinklage." Pepsi got a "standalone 30-second spot featuring pop culture icons" that have appeared in ads over time. PepsiCo is "once again sponsoring the Super Bowl halftime show," headlined by Maroon Five. As part of the deal, brand Pepsi "gets access to 10 seconds of ad time prior to the show.” AdAge also reported Audi is "coming back to the Super Bowl after sitting out last year," as the luxury auto brand "will use a 60-second spot in the second quarter to spotlight its electric vehicle ambitions." Audi is the fifth automaker to confirm a Super Bowl LIII ad buy, following Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, and Toyota.

Top Five Tech

Golf gets techie with an expanded PGA Tour/Twitter live-streaming partnership. Although Twitter and the PGA Tour have teamed up in the past, a new and expanded partnership will see Twitter distribute close to 140 hours of action for free. According to SportsPro, the coverage will be showcased on the @PGATOUR Twitter account, span 28 tournaments during the 2018-19 season, and include up to 90 minutes of play from the morning hours of all four rounds of events featured on the PGA Tour Live’s OTT service. Additionally, fans will be given the opportunity to vote via the “Fan Vote Fridays” initiative, which allows viewers to choose one of two featured groups to be shown on Twitter. The new deal’s first outing will begin at the Desert Classic in Palm Springs, California on January 17. The golf industry is blossoming in Asia, and to further the sport’s global presence, the Tour has taken OTT and social media seriously in order to garner a stronger following.

Tennis and esports come together at the Australian Open. At one of professional tennis’ biggest events, the Australian Open will feature a Fortnite: Battle Royale tournament called the “Summer Smash.” The esports tournament will consist of two separate Fortnite events: the first a solo tournament featuring 100 Fortnite professional players and the other a charity pro-am event, featuring content creators, athletes, and celebrities. According to The Esports Observer, Summer Smash will be an open entry Fortnite tournament with $355,000 in prize money and five hundred entries available upon an online first-come, first-serve basis. Although the tournament is only open to Australia and New Zealand residents older than 16, it will beat out IEM Sydney to become Australia’s largest cash prize esports tournament to date. Summer Smash takes place on the weekend of January 26, and will fittingly be stationed in Melbourne, Australia’s home of esports. After Melbourne Esports Open launched in September last year, the ATP is hitting a digital Grand Slam by incorporating esports into its on-court tennis repertoire to expand its young fan base.

2019 will bring changes in how sports marketing is handled on social media. Looking back at the past year, Coca-Cola heavily benefited from the Boston Red Sox’ victory in the World Series and Fortnite launched a partnership with the NFL. Esports and integrated advertisements are powerful new elements of brand-driven activations, but a central change in sports digital marketing will be the online shift from impressions to interactions. According to Oh No! Tech, more brands are adopting incentive-based care models that include a basic compensation package for the team or league combined with different levels of rewards regarding the success of online performance metrics. Since the beginning of 2017, the top five American sports (MLB, MLS, NBA, NFL, NHL) and NASCAR have deployed more than 6.3 million social jobs, resulting in 16.7 billion social media entries. As sports leagues slowly adopt gambling, the need to create online interaction will move to the forefront of all sports marketing deals.

NBCSports Washington’s alternate broadcasts of the Wizards could be the future of sports betting on TV. According to the Washington Post, NBCSports Washington Plus aired an augmented broadcast of the game against the Milwaukee Bucks last Friday featuring real-time statistics, sports betting information, and a “Predict the Game” contest prompting viewers to project the results of on-court action for the chance to win $500. The “Predict the Game” contest featured roughly 30 questions — such as “Will Trevor Ariza score 10-plus points in the first half?” – that appeared on the screen throughout the game. Fans submitted predictions on NBCSports Washington’s site and the winner(s) were announced during postgame coverage. NBCSports Washington’s alternate broadcast is free during its eight Wizards games this season, and the alternate broadcasts are the first step towards in-game prop betting via mobile devices, the most popular form of gambling in Europe. Soon, fans will be directly engaging with sports games and be able to wager real money on whether Alex Ovechkin will score on a power play or Bradley Beal will make a three-pointer during a specific possession.

The NBA, Yahoo, and Turner rethink the sports studio show with mobile-friendly “The Bounce.” According to Sports Techie, “The Bounce,” debuting January 21, will air for three hours during five nights of the week and feature expert analysis, highlights from live games, and personality-driven content centered on current games. Similar to NBA TV’s “Gametime,” “The Bounce” will star talking heads around a studio set; however the new show will be the first sports program to be digital-only, though Yahoo’s NBA show will soon be joined by an MLB counterpart from DAZN. Yahoo will also offer a live scoreboard, social media integrations, and behind-the-scenes footage on the studio show which will be produced out of Turner’s Atlanta studios. In contrast to Yahoo’s new live-stream of every in-market NFL game, “The Bounce” will act as a portal directing more viewers to ongoing games. As it is the first of its kind, the studio show on-the-go will likely change over time although the goal will remain the same: meet fans where they are to deliver a next-generation experience.

Power of Sports Five

As a part of a Royals Associates fundraiser, Mario Kart was played on the Jumbotron at Kauffman Stadium. According to CBS Sports, a local news helicopter from Kansas City’s KCTV5 was taking an aerial shot at Kauffman stadium when they noticed Mario Kart being played inside the empty stadium. As the video of the impressive Mario Kart screen started to go viral, the Royals’ charity Twitter account hinted that there may be more opportunities to game at Kauffman in the near future as the Jumbotron brand CrownVision may make it an auction item in 2019. Some of the baseball team’s players even took notice, as second baseman Whit Merrifield claimed “dibs on Yoshi,” a character in the game. This is a great example of how to bring on-field sports together with charity and video games, as many teams are looking to esports to help not only bring in market value, but serve as a means to give back to their communities.

18-time Grand Slam champion and member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, Chris Evert takes over chair of the U.S. Tennis Association's charitable arm. Evert partnered with the USTA Foundation in 2016 to set up the Jimmy Evert Fund, a scholarship program in honor of her late father. According to Fox Sports, she takes over the position from James Blake, formerly one of the world’s top-ranked players. The USTA foundation supports National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL) which works with more than 350 nonprofit youth development organizations to provide free or low-cost tennis and education programming to more than 200,000 under-resourced youth. Additionally, the Foundation provides The Donald Lawson Tisdel College Scholarship Fund, a $10,000 fund given to 20-25 exemplary high schoolers who have participated with a tennis program to put towards their higher education. With Evert in charge, tennis philanthropists can expect more initiatives based around female under-sourced youth utilizing tennis as a catalyst for change.

Medical organization SAFE MMA achieves charity status in the U.K. According to LawInSport, SAFE MMA was recognized as a charity by The Charity Commission in the United Kingdom in late December. Founded in 2012, the project was born for the benefit of protecting the health and safety of athletes taking part in MMA competitions through third-party medical screening and record-keeping services available to the public. Additionally, SAFE MMA provides independent medical advice and information to athletes to help respond to the lack of regulation or medical standards for MMA in the U.K. Founders who helped enable the establishment of the first unified standard for MMA in the U.K. include sports medicine professional Dr. Jack Kreindler, world-renowned referee Marc Goddard, veteran competitor Rosi Sexton, and independent representatives from the MMA community. With MMA growing in popularity thanks to OTT services like DAZN, the need to protect and regulate competitors is vital in a sport that can seem barbaric to some.

The charity golf series Gary Player Invitational is back in Abu Dhabi. Taking place at the Saadiyat Beach Golf Club, this year’s event saw more than 72 golf pros, celebrities, and business leaders join tournament host and Grand Slam Champion Gary Player on January 13. According to TimeOut, the event also plays homage to the United Arab Emirates' Year of Tolerance, which includes a UAE Tolerance Gala and an Inclusivity Roundtable addressed by Player. Professional golfers who have confirmed their spot at the Invitational include Thomas Bjorn, Matt Wallace, Eddie Pepperell, Shubhankar Sharma, Camilla Lennart, Carly Booth, Amy Boulden, Cheyenne Woods, and Beth Allen. Proceeds from the event will go to The Player Foundation, which has selected as local event beneficiary the Zayed Higher Organization for Humanitarian Care and Special Needs. Player is using his prestige as one of the game’s most decorated golfers to give back to those who are less fortunate while also helping to embed golf culture around the world.

Marlins manager Don Mattingly makes a difference with “Find A Way” charity event. The Find A Way event featured Mattingly, a former major league baseball player and current manager, MLB television analyst Harold Reynolds, and comedian Joe Piscopo with all event proceeds benefiting the underserved youth of Evansville, Indiana. This has become a major fundraiser for Mattingly’s charities that support youth athletics. According to the Courier Press, Donnie Baseball has another event on January 20, called the "Night of Memories," that will showcase stars from both sides of the Cardinals and Cubs rivalry to fundraise for the Tri-State Hot Stove League. Since 1993, the event has raised over $1.5 million that has been distributed to youth organizations, contributed to local athletic programs, and helped fund scholarships. Starting in 1988 with Make-A-Wish, Mattingly continues to give back to the less privileged in the communities where he lives – a useful note for the Marlins, who can use a helping hand getting any kind of media attention.

[placetobenation]

With such a large history to play with, discovering the beauty of Bob Backlund’s charisma or the connection of Bruno Sammartino to the MSG crowd was a new development throughout this project similar to rewatching The Godfather and On the Waterfront to rediscover the genius of Marlon Brando. WWE may not have always been YOUR promotion but for the better part of 50 years, it was THE promotion in the United States and transformed the pro wrestling landscape. This project serves to praise the individuals that best helped shape the vision of Vince McMahon Sr. and Jr. Place to be Nation is proud to present to you a ranking of the Greatest WWE Wrestlers Ever.

– Chad Campbell

Note: Results of this list are based on 118 ballots received between May and December 2017. Voters were asked to submit their list of the 100 Greatest WWE Wrestlers of all time and consider only their WWWF/WWF/WWE career. Ties were broken based on 1) number of ballots a wrestler appeared on and 2) high vote. 

Every wrestler who received at least one vote will be recognized in the coming weeks. Please stay tuned to Place to Be Nation as we reveal all of the honorable mentions right through the cream of the crop. Read the other installments, both written and audio, of this project here.

10. Chris Jericho Total Points: 9,969 Total Ballots: 116 Average Rank: 16.2 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 64 First Place Votes: 1 High Voter: Calvin Crowell

Nuance: Chris Jericho debuted in 1999, so even with years off, he’s had more than a decade and a half with the company, easily checking the longevity box. During this time, he’s been both a babyface and a heel up and down the card. He’s been a singles star and tag team competitor with Chris Benoit, Christian, Edge and the Big Show. Jericho constantly reinvents himself, so there may not be a wrestler that has shown greater flexibility in the WWE. He’s a master of nuance and intangibles, which allows him that character evolution.

Jump Up Moments: Jericho’s WWF arrival may be the greatest debut in company history from the countdown of the millenium clock to interrupting a Rock promo, the entire performance came off great and made Jericho look like a huge star. Things faltered a bit after that, but Y2J was a fixture in the Intercontinental Title picture having excellent matches with Chris Benoit, Kurt Angle and others throughout 2000-01. He opposed Steve Austin and Triple H in early 2001, having a great tag match along with Benoit against the Two Man Power Trip. He then was a key part of the Invasion storyline, leading to a rivalry with The Rock featuring great matches over the WCW title in late 2001. Jericho then defeated both Stone Cold and the Rock in the same night to become the first Undisputed Champion at Vengeance 2001, which he may have mentioned once or twice since. He would lose the Undisputed title to Triple H in the main event of WrestleMania X8 and the two would feud off and on until a Hell in a Cell match at Judgment Day 2002. Jericho would then again become a fixture in the IC title scene and form a tag team with Christian during 2002 and 2003. During this time he feuded with Shawn Michaels and the two had a strong match at WrestleMania XIX, ending with a handshake and a kick to the stones by Jericho. Jericho began a face turn during his storyline with Trish Stratus and Christian that resulted in Trish turned on Jericho during his WrestleMania XX match against Christian. He suggested the concept for the Money in the Bank ladder match and participated in the inaugural match at WrestleMania 21. In 2005, Jericho feuded with John Cena over the WWE title with matches at Vengeance 2005 (also including Christian), SummerSlam and a “You’re Fired” match on Raw that saw Jericho dragged out of the building. Jericho would return in 2007 after vignettes with digital code promoted his return to “save” the WWE from Randy Orton before transitioning to a short feud with JBL. Jericho then interjected himself into the Michaels/Batista feud, leading to Jericho feuding with his old nemesis. This feud was some of the best work of Jericho’s career as he and Michaels had a series of great matches, the feud escalated logically and Jericho developed a new, more ruthless heel character based on the villain from No Country for Old Men. Along the way, Jericho won the World Heavyweight Championship, which he traded with Batista before losing it to Cena at Survivor Series. Jericho then began running down WWF legends, defeating Roddy Piper, Jimmy Snuka and Ricky Steamboat at WrestleMania XXV and Steamboat at Backlash 2009 in surprisingly good matches. Later in 2009, he had a stellar feud with Rey Mysterio over the IC title during which Jericho unmasked Rey to pin him, before ultimately losing the IC title when Rey’s mask was also on the line. He then formed the JeriShow tag team and was a fixture in the Tag Title scene through the end of 2009. He was eliminated from the 2010 Royal Rumble by a returning Edge, then won the World Heavyweight Title and had a good match with Edge at WrestleMania XXVI. In early 2012, Jericho began a feud with CM Punk that featured really good matches at Wrestlemania XVIII and Extreme Rules. Jericho was a part-timer from 2013-15, where he would feud with Dolph Ziggler, the Wyatt Family, Fandango and others. In 2016, he was tied with AJ Styles culminating in a match at WrestleMania 32. He then feuded with Dean Ambrose and tweaked his character, wearing scarves and calling people “stupid idiots.” He then formed an alliance with Kevin Owens, doing great character work, before ending in an attack by Owens at the Festival of Friendship, leading to a match for the US Title at WrestleMania 33. Jericho is a former Hardcore Champion, European Champion, two-time US Champion, nine-time IC Champion (which is a record), two-time WWE Unified Tag Team Champion, five-time WWF/W Tag Team Champion, two-time WCW/World Champion, Undisputed Champion and three-time World Heavyweight Champion.

Promos/Character: No one has gone through more character reinventions and tweaks than Chris Jericho and almost all of them have gotten over. From his great debut and promo, the Y2J character was off to the races. He continued to cut smart-ass and entertaining promos, including his work on the Highlight Reel talk show segment. He had memorable character work during the Christian and Trish storyline over the $1 (Canadian) bet for Trish’s affections, and perfectly sold the “You’re Fired” match stipulation. Upon his return, his work escalating his feud with Michaels was top notch. Along the way he developed the ruthless, self-righteous suit wearing character that was both a stark contrast from the Y2J character and maybe the best work of Jericho’s WWE career. His late career reinvention wearing scarves, calling people stupid idiots and making The List of Jericho was fantastic too. He always got stuff over that would not have gotten over in less capable hands. The Owens partnership was a highlight of TV at the time and culminated perfectly.

Workrate: Jericho is an excellent worker, consistent and solid with a long list of very good to great matches. His matches against Benoit throughout 2000-01 for the IC title are all very good, and the tag team match with Benoit against the Two Man Power Trip on Raw was outstanding. His feud with The Rock in late 2001 saw some of Y2J’s best matches, including No Mercy 2001, Raw in November, Vengeance 2001 and Royal Rumble 2002. The Michaels match at WrestleMania XIX was a very good match, and the match against Christian at WrestleMania XX is another fun bout. Jericho’s matches with Michaels in 2008 at Judgment Day, Great American Bash, Unforgiven and No Mercy are all very good to great matches alone and tell a story of the feud progressing until the ladder match blowoff. His feud with Mysterio over the IC title saw excellent matches at Judgment Day, Extreme Rules and The Bash 2009. The WrestleMania XXVI match against Edge was very good, and he had a good showing in a losing effort at Fatal-Four Way against Evan Bourne. In 2012, his feud with Punk saw very good matches at WrestleMania XXVIII and Extreme Rules.  

Staff Thoughts: He’s Y2J, he’s the Best in the World at What He Does, and if you don’t think Jericho makes your list, you might make THE List, you stupid idiot. Nobody has reinvented himself and gotten over more consistently than Jericho. Along the way he had great matches with nearly everyone he feuded with. His run with AJ Styles and Kevin Owens featured good TV and the matches were solid, even if they weren’t up to the standards of his early career. He was the first ever Undisputed Champion, defeating The Rock and Stone Cold on the same night. His tag team with Christian was real good, as was his feud with Cena before leaving in 2005. The list of Jericho, Breaking the Walls Doooooown, it goes on and on. The nine-time IC champion has a nearly two-decade run, which means, Chris Jericho…You Just Made the List! (you knew we had to make that joke, right?) To hear more about Jericho, check out this Making the Cut podcast and this FYC podcast.

From the Voters: “Gotta be in the Top 20 for me. I enjoy his ring work just as much now, maybe more, than during the early 00s and as most everyone has already said, the constant reinvention of his persona has added him well. Have enjoyed watching him since the WCW days, but I think the recent “Stupid Idiot/List” period was my favorite run of his yet.” – Mike Andres, June 12, 2017

“Nobody has adapted their character better to stay over and relevant across nearly two decades. Early WWF run produced classic promos and a legendary series of matches with Chris Benoit. Hung as a main eventer with Triple H, Kurt Angle, Steve Austin and especially The Rock as a bonafide main eventer at the close of the Attitude Era. One of my favorite contests ever with Shawn Michaels at Mania XIX. Fun teaming with Christian. Redefined his heel persona upon his comeback and had an all-time feud with HBK plus excellent stuff with Rey Mysterio. Recent comebacks have once again demonstrated his versatility with Dolph Ziggler, AJ Styles and Kevin Owens. Seemingly ageless, he’s an all-time great. Top 20 or even top 10; would crack top 5 if he had a better run on top.” – Ben Morse, June 11, 2017

“Jericho is totally a dark horse top spot for me. His history in the ring can not be denied, but the crazy part for me is that I don’t have a big nostalgia factor towards him. So when I put those feelings (or lack there of) aside and go strictly by the numbers, he’s way up there. I’m starting to think my own list is going to surprise me.” – Taylor Keahey, May 29, 2017

9. Undertaker Total Points: 10,544 Total Ballots: 118 Average Rank: 14 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 80 First Place Votes: 2 High Voter: Corey Pierce; Scott Shifflett

Nuance: Wrestling fans born in November 1990 may have spouses, mortgages and kids of their own, but they’ve never known a world where the Undertaker wasn’t in WWF/E. Sure, his part-time status hurts his longevity a bit, but since Survivor Series 1990 fans knew that come sign pointing season, Undertaker would be back for WrestleMania. So he has longevity more than covered. He’s been both a babyface and a heel and has been a singles star and also had tag team success with Kane, Big Show and others. The nuance and intangibles that Taker brings to the table are a huge part of why the character not only survived but thrived when it could’ve easily been a forgotten gimmick of the 1990s. The mannerisms, facial expressions, aura and presence of the Undertaker are second to none and add tons to the character.

Jump Up Moments: Undertaker was one of the rare mystery opponents that worked, when he debuted as part of the Million Dollar Team at Survivor Series 1990. By late 1991 he was trading the WWF title with Hulk Hogan causing the title to be held up and awarded to the winner of the 1992 Royal Rumble. He defeated Jimmy Snuka at WrestleMania VII starting The Streak, which would run until WrestleMania XXX, becoming a focal point for the biggest show of the year by 2005. He had early feuds with Ultimate Warrior and Jake “The Snake” Roberts, turning babyface during the latter. He would feud with various monster heels and thieves who would take his urn, before becoming a more realistic character capable of having better matches. He then had a good WrestleMania match with Diesel and an excellent feud with Mankind, including wild brawls. He would win the WWF Title in the main event of WrestleMania 13 and hold it until SummerSlam 1997 where special referee Shawn Michaels cost him the title, kicking off their feud. Taker and Michaels had a red hot feud, including the first Hell in a Cell match that also featured the debut of his brother Kane. Undertaker would feud with Kane at WrestleMania XIV in a hot angle and that issue would continue off and on for decades. His HIAC match with Mankind at King of the Ring 1998 is one of the most memorable matches of all-time. The Deadman would then be a top challenger for new champion Stone Cold Steve Austin at SummerSlam 1998 in a big time match. He would remain a key part of the main event scene in a number of angles involving Ministries and Corporations and Corporate Ministries and Higher Powers, highlighted by his turn as a limo driver asking “Where to Stephanie?” He would debut the new “Biker Taker” character when he returned in May 2000. He would then defeat Triple H at WrestleMania X7 before becoming part of Team WWF destroying many WCW wrestlers during the Invasion. Undertaker turned heel later that year, becoming Big Evil by forcing Jim Ross to kiss Vince McMahon’s ass, before facing Ric Flair in a no-DQ match at WrestleMania X8. During this time he was a fixture in the main event scene with good matches against Angle, Rock and Brock Lesnar. In 2004 and 2005, Undertaker would be involved in notable moments like Paul Bearer being buried in cement and Mohammed Hassan conducting what appeared to be a terrorist attack. He also feuded with Randy Orton, defeating him at WrestleMania 21 and losing at SummerSlam 2005, and eventually winning the feud in a HIAC match at Armageddon 2005. After an excellent match with Angle at No Way Out and a WrestleMania match with Mark Henry, Taker feuded with Great Khali through 2006. Undertaker won the 2007 Royal Rumble and defeated Batista for the World title in a great match at WrestleMania 23 and continued a damn good feud, before Edge cashed in his MITB briefcase costing Taker his title. He had a good feud with Edge winning the World Title at WrestleMania XXIV and having several rematches throughout 2008. He would then start a feud with Shawn Michaels resulting in an all-time classic at WrestleMania XXV. He would then battle with CM Punk from SummerSlam through Hell in a Cell 2009 and go on to have a great WrestleMania rematch with Michaels. He would face Triple H in divisive matches at WrestleMania XXVII and XXVIII and face CM Punk in a great match at WrestleMania 29, before Lesnar ended The Streak at WrestleMania XXX in one of the most shocking moments in WWE history. Taker would defeat Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania 31 before challenging Lesnar in 2015 facing him at SummerSlam and Hell in a Cell 2015. Undertaker faced Shane McMahon at WrestleMania 32 and Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33. Undertaker is a Royal Rumble winner, Hardcore Champion, WCW Tag Team Champion, six-time WWF Tag Team Champion, three-time World Heavyweight Champion, four-time WWF/E Champion.

Promos/Character: When the lights went out and BONG… you knew someone was about to Rest…In…Peace. The Undertaker started out in what could’ve been a cartoonish one-note zombie character, but he turned it into the greatest gimmick the company ever had. He evolved that gimmick into a more fleshed out character, evolving it over time (admittedly some reinventions worked better than others). The Undertaker character is iconic, from the eyes rolling into the back of his head to the zombie sit-up to the throat slash gesture to the arms crossed pin with his tongue hanging out. In the early days of the character, Taker was mostly silent merely looking menacing while Paul Bearer did the talking. Later, Undertaker was fine as a promo and played the iconic legend character, adding more gravitas to many of his angles and matches.

Workrate: Here’s a hot take: Undertaker’s workrate is a mixed bag. He’s got all-time classics and all-time classic turds, which are hard to ignore (Giant Gonzalez matches, UnderFaker, etc.). But once he lost the shackles of the Deadman mannerisms, he started having good matches like his WrestleMania XII match with Diesel and his wars with Mankind, including the Boiler Room Brawl at SummerSlam 1996. He would have more good matches with Bret Hart and others before his feud with Shawn Michaels, resulting in a classic in the first Hell in a Cell match. The HIAC with Mankind is an iconic moment, and the SummerSlam 1998 battle with Austin was a huge match. He had a good ladder match with Jeff Hardy on Raw in 2002 and the three-way match with Kurt Angle and the Rock at Vengeance 2002. His feud with Brock Lesnar featured an excellent HIAC match at No Mercy 2002. The match with Randy Orton at WrestleMania 21 was strong and he and Angle had an excellent match at No Way Out 2006. His match with Batista at WrestleMania 23 was great and the next year his battle with Edge was also very good. Undertaker’s match against Michaels at WrestleMania XXV is an all-timer and the rematch a year later was right there with it. His matches with Triple H at WrestleMania XXVII and XXVIII are very divisive and he would have a great match with CM Punk at WrestleMania 29 in the last year of The Streak.

Staff Thoughts: Undertaker is the iconic character in the WWE, which was clearly recognized by voters as he’s the second wrestler to appear on every ballot. He’s been around longer than anyone and he’s got a case for having both the most epic matches and the most dogshit matches in history. His early years saw some dreadful angles and matches, some of which were not his fault as the character was supposed to no-sell as an undead monster, meant to scare the kids. He evolved from there, having good matches when he worked with Mankind, Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels. He’s been one of the biggest stars of the late Hulkamania era, the New Generation, the Attitude Era and whatever you want to call the time since. The Streak was arguably the most important part in any WrestleMania for 10-15 years, until it was snapped in one of the most shocking moments in company history. The specialness of The Streak led to great matches and made matches with Michaels, Flair, Punk, Batista, Triple H and others. When all is said and done, we can’t argue that the WWE has been His Yard for more than two decades. You can hear more about what the guys had to say about Undertaker on this FYC podcast and this Making the Cut.

From the Voters: “I wasn’t considering him for number one, but maybe he should be considered. The most iconic character in wrestling history who stayed relevant and valuable across the entire span of his career. Great as a heel and face. Delivered as the cartoon demon and demon killer and later as a guy who could have epic matches. Involved in some of the best matches and moments in company history. It got to a point where the top show of the year was built around him right as it became a stadium show with regularity. The Streak was the most important “title” in the promotion for years. Carried SD with Rey for a long time. A truly transcendent star in an era with few stars at all.” – Dylan Hales, June 3, 2017

“Greatest gimmick in the history of the business. Spent his first six years in the WWF working a restricted in-ring style due to his character, but still stayed over. Once he was able to cut loose and use a fuller arsenal, he immediately put on classic matches with Mankind, Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels and more. Evolved his look and style as time went on giving him the best tenure of anybody on this list. Late career renaissance yielded more great contests with younger stars like Brock Lesnar and Batista as well as contemporaries such as HBK and HHH. WrestleMania streak was one of the most compelling storylines in WWE. Easy top 10, maybe top five; only hurt by the valleys that come with such longevity.” – Ben Morse, June 9, 2017

“Took him a really long time to start having great matches, but once he did there were few big match workers better. His highest highs are well… high. I have a particularly high opinion of his HIAC matches with Brock and HBK and his Mania match with Punk. I also liked both the contemporary matches with Brock (not the mania one of course) a lot. He was also a staple and somehow got over a dark wizard gimmick well into 2017, which is bonkers. My gut says he is top 10 for me, but I can’t see him really outside the top 25.” – Matthew Richards, June 15, 2017

8. Bruno Sammartino Total Points: 10,665 Total Ballots: 112 Average Rank: 11.8 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 76 First Place Votes: 9 High Voter: Grady Blount; Scott Herrin; Chris; Michael DeDamos; Cody; Steve Gennarelli; Timothy Drake; Kelly Nelson; Robert Silva

Nuance: Bruno Sammartino spent just short of twenty years with the company, with his time spanning from 1963 to 1988, so he has longevity covered. He never worked heel and was primarily a singles star, though he would tag with other babyfaces, such as Spiros Arion, Dominic DeNucci and Tony Marino. Sammartino had a charisma, presence and connection with the crowd that had not been seen to that time and rarely since. His tough guy persona gave an aura of credibility to the company and wrestling as a whole at the time that helped build the WWWF into the company that still exists today.

Jump Up Moments: Bruno won his first WWWF World Heavyweight Title from Buddy Rogers in 48 seconds on May 17, 1963 to become the company’s second champion. He would hold the title for nearly eight years and defended the title against the top heels of the era including Killer Kowalski, Gorilla Monsoon, Dr. Jerry Graham, Hans Mortimer, Waldo Von Erich, Bill Watts, Ernie Ladd, Spiros Arion and George “The Animal” Steele. Bruno sold out both the current and previous Madison Square Garden locations with great regularity. When Sammartino finally dropped the title in a good match to Ivan Koloff, it was such a shocking moment that the MSG crowd went silent before rioting in anger. In 1972, Sammartino teamed with champion Pedro Morales, and both were blinded by Prof. Tanaka causing the two to accidentally fight each other. This resulted in Sammartino and Morales facing each other in a 65-minute draw at Shea Stadium. On December 10, 1973, Sammartino defeated Stan Stasiak for his second WWWF Title, which he held for three years, four months and 20 days. During this time, Bruno suffered a legitimate neck fracture in a match against Stan Hansen, returning to face Hansen at Shea Stadium in 1976 and later in a steel cage matches around the circuit. Sammartino lost the title on April 30, 1977 to Superstar Billy Graham who had both feet on the ropes. Graham and Bruno would have many rematches, including a steel cage match in Philadelphia that is the only documented case of Bruno losing in a cage. In 1980, Bruno’s protege Larry Zybszko turned on him, busting a wooden chair over Bruno’s head and leaving him a bloody mess. The two would have an escalating feud that is one of the greatest in company history and culminated by drawing more than 36,000 fans to Shea Stadium to see their cage match blowoff, which Sammartino won. He would then retire until 1984, which is when he would return to tag with his son David on a few occasions. He also had a very good feud with Randy Savage, including beating Savage by DQ in a lumberjack match at the Boston Garden and teaming with Tito Santana to defeat Savage and Adrian Adonis in a cage match at MSG. Bruno would also feud with Roddy Piper in singles and tags and eventually beat Piper in a cage match at the Boston Garden. Bruno also participated in the battle royal at WrestleMania 2 that also included NFL players. Sammartino is a WWWF US Tag Team Champion, a two-time International Tag Team Champion and two-time WWWF World Heavyweight Champion.

Promos/Character: Bruno was a good promo, added an element of believability and sincerity to his promos. The style was different and more serious, but he did a good job of adding to his feuds through promos. The classic feud with Larry Z. is an excellent example of escalating the feud by promo work. His character was an ethnic babyface and legit strongman and tough guy, but Bruno played that character as well as anyone ever has. To say he was over with the Northeast crowds of his time is a huge understatement as they were legitimately shocked on the rare occasions Bruno lost a match.

Workrate: It’s difficult to judge workrate across eras, but Bruno was certainly one of the better workers of his era. He brought a fire and energy to his brawling style that was absent for many other matches and that excited the crowd, adding in an electric atmosphere. His matches with Spiros Arion, Koloff, Stan Hansen, Larry Zybszko and others are very good to great matches. The WWE Network recently had a collection of Bruno Sammartino matches and there is a playlist on the Facebook group as well. Other recommendations include matches with Arion Feb-April 1975 at MSG, Jan-Feb 1976 against Billy Graham at MSG and Ken Patera in March 1977 at MSG, which is on the WWE Network. The matches in the Larry Z. feud are incredibly heated brawls. His matches against Savage and Piper in both singles and tags are also very good.

Staff Thoughts: The WWWF was built on the back of Bruno and if there’s no Bruno we may not be doing this list, because there may be no current WWE. You can say that about a handful of wrestlers, but Bruno is near the top of that list. He’s not called the Living Solid Hand, he’s the Living Legend. Watch any of his matches and they all feature incredibly hot crowds, and he sold out MSG more than anyone. He brought an intensity to his matches most could not match, having very good matches with Arion, Hansen, Zybszko, Koloff and others. The feud with Larry Z. is one of, if not the, best feuds in the history of the company. Sammartino looked, talked, wrestled like a mega star and just oozed pro wrestling out of his pores. The Living Legend held the title for more that a decade during his two reigns! To hear more about Bruno listen to this FYC podcast.

From the Voters: “The Zbyszko match got me into wrestling and made me a lifelong fan. He wasn’t on top for so many years by accident. If you grew up on the east coast in the 70s, you knew who Bruno was even if you weren’t a wrestling fan. He brought legitimacy to the sport that, even back then, was seen by many as fake.” – Tim Tetreault, May 29, 2017

“Bruno is a legend. Sold out MSG 20 straight times or something like that..hogan never did that…held the belt for for loooooonng times…having good matches along the way. He is probably in many people’s top 10. Plus he is in the HoF.” – Will Olson, June 1, 2017

“Easy top 10, maybe as high as top 3. He was somewhat limited, but he was a smart wrestler. Sometimes I think he is too quickly dismissed as an in ring performer. It will really depend on how I balance influence and draw vs in ring performance.I can even see it coming down to Bruno and Cena for me. That top tier is going to be tough.” – Matthew Richards, May 30, 2017

7. The Rock Total Points: 10,868 Total Ballots: 116 Average Rank: 10.5 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 95 First Place Votes: 2 High Voter: Nate Milton; Jason Fastkade

Nuance: How do you think the Rock fares in the nuance category? IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT YOU THINK. The Rock was the… BEST… damn Intercontinental Champion there ever was. Is there anyone more nuanced than the Rock? He made the crowd as wet as October with the mere raise of an eyebrow for crying out loud! Wonderful face, but one of the best heels in company history. So great that people went from wanting to see him die to wanting him to be World Champion WITHIN A YEAR. He gets dinged a bit for his longevity but it really is a solid four years of excellence, with bonus appearances where he usually killed it. The Rock can do it all, he CAN DO IT ALLLLLL! He even made those ridiculous boots work which is probably what propelled him to the top ten alone. His greatest ability though, may be his willingness to pivot if something isn’t working. Sure there’s the obvious ones where he bounces off “die Rocky die,” and the city of Toronto, but he even pivots mid match if he feels the crowd isn’t with him. Always the coolest guy in the room, even when wearing a tank top that made it look like he was naked from the waist down.

Jump Up Moments: Let’s skip smiling blue chipper Rocky Maivia, shall we? Except for his debut, which seemed to excited the grumps at the Garden. They would later go on to cheer an old man having a cardiac arrest, so let’s give Rocky some credit for getting over. We have to wait nearly a year for another bright spot, but oh is it ever bright. He joins the Nation and his prolonged breakup with Faarooq is wonderful right down to the Rolexes and portrait. The feud with Ken Shamrock is strong stuff and has at least one moment where Rock is stretchered from the ring with one arm raised in victory. He truly begins to shine in the feud with DX and the SummerSlam ladder match is the jumping off point for both he and Triple H’s careers. He gets so over by the fall they start to build the promotion around him, and his face work before the second consecutive screwjob is inspired. Memorable early feuds with Mankind and Steve Austin pepper 1999, but they just couldn’t keep the man heel. He conquers 2000 with a top-flight feud with Triple H and closes the year with excellent encounters with Rikishi and Kurt Angle. His rematch with Angle at No Way Out 2001 is tremendous and his main event with Steve Austin at WrestleMania X7 is one of the best in company history. The rest of 2001 is somewhat quiet but he does get to tease the tension with Steve Austin by singing him a little song in the build to Survivor Series. Then he fights Hulk Hogan in an all time classic, has a GREAT triple threat with Undertaker and Angle at Vengeance before killing it once again with Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam. Then… we get Hollywood Rock. Which is just the best. The concerts, the spitting in Hogan’s face, screaming HAKU MACHENTE at Hurricane: it all worked. Some convincingly argue that his match with Steve Austin at Wreslemania XIX is the best of their encounters. He then returns to help Mick Foley against Evolution the next year before taking a long hiatus. His first match with John Cena was great, his second was…f ine… the less said about his CM Punk matches the better.

Promos/Character: FINALLY THE ROCK HAS COME BACK TO (INSERT CITY NAME). AND IN FRONT OF THE MILLIONS… OF ROCK’S FANS HE’S GOING TO DRIVE DOWN KNOW YOUR ROLE BOULEVARD, TAKING A SHARP RIGHT ON JABRONI DRIVE AND CHECK YOU DI-RECT-LY INTO… THE SMACKDOWN HOTEL! DO YOU LIKE PIE? OR ANY OF THE OTHER PEOPLE’S PRODUCTS? IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT YOU LIKE! YOU NEED TO KNOW YOUR ROLE AND SHUT YOUR MOUTH YOU ROODY-POO CANDYASS! IF YE SMELLLLLLLLAALALALALALALLLLLAAAA WHAT THE ROCK IS COOKING!

Come on he’s the best. Even if you don’t think the material has aged well you can’t deny how well he delivers it. There are so many good promos to name. Poor Kevin Kelly still gets called a hermaphrodite every year on the PTB Podcast Christmas Play because of him. Coach is still afraid to pray. Creative beyond measure in a business of lunk heads. We REALLY miss a guy like the Rock while we are stuck listening to twenty minute opening promos every week. Hollywood Rock truly is one of the best runs of all time, and quite a departure from everything else he had done to that point.

Workrate: Rock could bring it in the ring when he needed to. Yes the sharpshooter was awful (except when I heard it referred to as the Scorpion King Deathlock, which will always be awesome). He had strong punches (made even stronger with spit) and was very fluid for a guy his size. That spin around DDT never really stopped being somewhat impressive. His selling could be cartoony at times, looking at you Stone Cold Stunner sell, but he was an interesting blend of cartoon character and legit athlete. Say what you will about the People’s Elbow, but he got that shit OVER. Finally, he was great at changing his ring style based on what the match was. If he was PISSED at Rikishi he wrestled differently. And ran to the ring in anger, which is always bonus points. His matches had stakes because he gave them stakes.

Staff Thoughts: Rock is always just the slightest of tiers below guys like Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin and Bruno Sammartino in terms of star power and importance to the business. The ultimate A1 guy. But, no one has ever gone on to greater things than him and it’s easy to see why. He was a once in a lifetime talent who was clearly hungry to grow as a performer and an individual. It’s sad that we as fans now get excited if he is merely going to show up, when we used to get him every week. When you got to see the Rock you were seeing a near blend of comedy, badassery and selflessness, you were seeing perhaps the most poised performer in the history of the business. It was electrifying.

From the Voters: “I think, at the time, people were either Austin Guys or Rock Guys. I was definitely a Rock Guy. In hindsight I love both, but Rock gets automatically and unfairly slotted behind Austin, as you mentioned, and I feel he’s extremely underrated between the bells. Once he figured it out, sometime around late 99, he *really* figured it out and had some gems.” – Greg Phillips, June 5, 2017

“Top ten for me. Came in greener than grass but bettered himself to the millionth degree and became WWF/E’s most successful mainstream star. His work rate tended to be rough around the edges bc he wasn’t a pure technical guy but he always worked his ass off in every match he was in. Nobody could control the crowd the way Rock can. His promos were always the highlight of Raw and SD. Especially in 2000 where he did some of his best promo work. 03 Hollywood Rock is probably his best stuff overall” – Dennis Nunez, June 4, 2017

6. Shawn Michaels Total Points: 11,546 Total Ballots: 118 Average Rank: 8.7 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 51 First Place Votes: 7 High Voter: Brad Faulk; Microstatistics; Jason Sherman; Ash; Andy Atherton; Neil Trama; Henry Rivers

Nuance: Shawn Michaels had an eighteen-year WWF/E career between his two runs. He played a babyface and a heel and he was both a singles star and featured in significant tag teams with Marty Jannetty, Diesel, Steve Austin, Triple H and John Cena.

Jump Up Moments: Michaels teamed with Marty Jannetty as the Rockers from 1988 to 1991, having a very good matches with the Brain Busters, Rougeaus, Orient Express, Powers of Pain and Hart Foundation. Shawn memorably turned on Jannetty, superkicking him then throwing him through the Barber Shop window to open up 1992. Michaels became the “Heartbreak Kid”, won the Intercontinental Title and feuded with Jannetty, having a match of the year contender on the May 17, 1993 Raw. As the IC champion, he faced WWF Champion Bret Hart in the main event of Survivor Series 1992 in a very good match. After vacating the IC Title due to a suspension, Michaels returned to challenge IC champion Razor Ramon, culminating in the first ladder match on PPV at WrestleMania X in an excellent innovative war. He then won the Tag Team Titles with bodyguard Diesel before the two split and feuded. Michaels won the 1995 Royal Rumble and went on to challenge Diesel for the WWF Title at WrestleMania XI. Michaels turned babyface and had a stellar match with Jeff Jarrett at IYH 2. At SummerSlam 1995 he and Ramon had a ladder match as good or perhaps better than the battle at WrestleMania X. Michaels entered into an angle where an enziguri from Owen Hart gave him a concussion, leading to him coming back and winning the 1996 Royal Rumble and having a very good match with Owen in February 1996. At WrestleMania XII, Michaels achieved his boyhood dream by defeating Bret Hart in an Ironman match to win the WWF Title. He defended the title in good to great matches against Diesel, British Bulldog and Mankind among others, before losing the title at Survivor Series 1996 and regaining it at Royal Rumble 1997. He vacated the title on Thursday Raw Thursday, losing his smile in the process, and taking some time off. Upon his return he won the WWF Tag Team Titles with Steve Austin on Raw before facing Austin at King of the Ring 1997. At SummerSlam 1997, Michaels officiated the title match between Bret and Undertaker, accidentally hitting Undertaker with a chair. He would then turn heel, form D-Generation X and feud with the Undertaker, having great matches at Ground Zero and Badd Blood. Michaels would then win the European Title from British Bulldog at One Night Only in a heated match and the WWF title at Survivor Series 1997 from Bret Hart in the Montreal Screwjob. Michaels injured his back at the 1998 Royal Rumble, leading to him leaving the company for four years after dropping the WWF Title to Austin at WrestleMania XIV. At SummerSlam 2002 he faced Triple H in a fun street fight and won the World Heavyweight Title in the first Elimination Chamber at Survivor Series 2002. He faced Chris Jericho at WrestleMania XIX in a very good match, and a year later challenged for the title in a three-way with Triple H and Chris Benoit. In 2005, Michaels had a very good feud with Kurt Angle, including excellent matches at WrestleMania 21 and Vengeance 2005. Michaels had a brief feud with Hulk Hogan, resulting in a match at SummerSlam 2005. In 2006, Michaels feuded with Vince McMahon and reunited D-Generation X. At WrestleMania 23, Michaels challenged John Cena for the WWE Title in a very good match, and had a strong feud with Randy Orton in 2007. At WrestleMania 24, Michaels had a very memorable match with Ric Flair to send his idol into WWE retirement The match with Flair led to a feud with Batista and then Chris Jericho, which would be one of the best of Michaels’ career, progressing naturally and having lots of great matches. He challenged Undertaker at WrestleMania XXV in a classic. DX would reform again and have a good feud with The Legacy. Michaels would put his career on the line and lose to the Undertaker in another great match at WrestleMania XXVI. Michaels is a two-time Royal Rumble winner, a European Champion, WWE Tag Team Champion, five-time WWF/World Tag Team Champion, three-time IC Champion, World Heavyweight Champion and three-time WWF World Heavyweight Champion.

Promos/Character: “He’s just a Sexy Boy…” and that character kind of…existed. The characters of Shawn Michaels never really clicked, whether it was as a Rocker, a heel or a face. The one notable exception to his character work is the original incarnation of DX in 1997 where Michaels has one of the greatest heel runs in company history. He got incredible heat every week on Raw and that match with Bulldog at One Night Only was insanity. His return as a legend is pretty generic, though he did great character work to escalate the Jericho feud. Shawn was always a good promo and decent in backstage segments as well.

Workrate: Workrate is the biggest thing that Shawn brings to the table, though his work is divisive among many voters, particularly his comeback catalogue. Still, he has an extensive list of great matches that can rival anyone. The Rockers were perhaps the best in-ring tag team the company ever had, having great matches with the Brain Busters, Orient Express and Hart Foundation to name a few. His Raw match with Jannetty in 1993 was very good as was his match with Bret at Survivor Series 1992. The WrestleMania X match with Razor is fantastic and set the template for ladder matches to come, and the two would have an equally good (or better) match at SummerSlam 1995. His match for the IC title with Jarrett at IYH 2 was a great old-school southern style match. Michaels had a good match with Owen in the build to WrestleMania XII and your mileage may vary on the Ironman match, but it is well-worked. His match with Diesel at Good Friends, Better Enemies is a good weapons brawl and his match with Mankind at Mind Games is fantastic. The tag team match with Austin against Bulldog and Owen on Raw is one of the best Raw matches ever and the King of the Ring match with Austin was also good. The first HIAC match against Undertaker is an all-timer and still stands as one of the best HIACs. The match with Bulldog in England is an incredibly heated match and Shawn does great heel work there and the Survivor Series 1997 match was good until the ending overwhelmed it. Upon his return the SummerSlam 2002 and Raw match in late 2003 with Triple H are very good, other matches with Hunter not so much. The Jericho WrestleMania XIX match is good and the WrestleMania XX title match is great. The matches with Angle in 2005 were both excellent and his SummerSlam 2005 match with Hogan is surprisingly good too. The WrestleMania 23 match and Raw match against Cena were very good. The match with Flair at WrestleMania is incredibly memorable. The feud with Jericho in 2008 progressed logically and had great matches at Judgment Day, Great American Bash, the confrontation at SummerSlam, Unforgiven and the ladder match at No Mercy. The WrestleMania XXV match against Undertaker is one of the best WrestleMania matches ever, and their rematch at WrestleMania XXVI is not far behind and a strong retirement match for Michaels.

Staff Thoughts: Michaels is the third wrestler to appear on all ballots, although discussions regarding his placement vary greatly. Some dislike his in-ring work, particularly since his return in 2002, and there are some legitimate criticisms. But Michaels has such a long list of great matches. He was always given good opportunities but he made the most of them, appearing in the first PPV ladder match and the first HIAC match, hitting it out of the park both times, and as a result both became regular gimmick matches for the company. The Rockers may be the best in-ring tag team in company history. His matches with Undertaker at WrestleMania are all-timers, and the list goes on and on. Michaels had good charisma and was a good talker, before having a historic heel run in 1997. Add it all up and the Showstoppah, the Icon, the Main Event, Mr. WrestleMania finds his way onto the top 10 of our list. To hear the guys talk more about Michaels, check out this FYC podcast.

From the Voters: “He was my favorite growing up and while I enjoyed his second run too, his first run was really good, from the Rockers stuff to the angle when he turned into a single, his first title run and the awesome heel 97-98 DX Shawn. For WWF purpose, i have him top 10 and probably top 5 to 7.” – Sean Zern, June 2, 2017

“1995-1997 is my favourite in-ring Shawn, outside of the ring by all accounts he was a flaming imbecile but in-ring he was on fire and match of the night or close on almost all those early PPVs. Jarrett, Diesel (x2), Foley, Razor (x2), Taker, the Rumbles, one of the Davey’s, one of the Sid’s, Vader, Bret (x2). His comeback run had perhaps as many great matches in total, but sprinkled over an 8 year period rather than a solid 2 years. He’s top 10 for me.” – James Derbyshire, June 3, 2017

“My favorite wrestler ever and a serious GOAT contender. Half of one of the most entertaining tag teams in WWF history in the Rockers. Elevated the Intercontinental title as one of the best heels of the mid-90s. Promo skill is virtually unmatched. Works as a babyface just as well as a bad guy. Kickstarted the Attitude Era with DX. His second act from 2002 to 2010 eclipsed most guys’ full careers. Classic matches with Marty Jannetty, Razor Ramon, Diesel, Jeff Jarrett, Bret Hart, Mankind, Triple H, Undertaker, John Cena…I could go on and on. Seminal Royal Rumble performer. His resume is incredible. Only knock is he didn’t draw on top. Easy top five material.” – Ben Morse, June 7, 2017

5. Bret Hart Total Points: 11,794 Total Ballots: 118 Average Rank: 7.5 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 50 First Place Votes: 14 High Voter: Jay Hinchey; Eric Miller; Adam Russell; Andy LaBar; David Carli; Sam Symonds; Andrew Nacelle; Trust Issues; Richard Land; James; Rory McNamara; Andy Halleen; Bret Hart; Ernie Rowe

Nuance: Bret Hart had a 13-year career in the WWF, so he gets good points for longevity. He was a babyface and a heel and had great success as a singles worker and in tag teams with Jim Neidhart and his brother Owen. Bret was a stickler for realism and strived to portray a realistic product in the ring and on the mic, and was very detail oriented focusing on the little things in the ring.

Jump Up Moments: Bret teamed with Neidhart as the Hart Foundation, having excellent matches with the British Bulldogs, winning the WWF Tag Team Titles from them in February 1987. Then, at WrestleMania III the Hart Foundation teamed with Danny Davis to take on the Bulldogs and Tito Santana. Bret was the final competitor eliminated by Bad News Brown in a battle royal at WrestleMania IV. The Hart Foundation defeated Demolition in a two-out-of-three falls match to win their second WWF title at SummerSlam 1990. Their second reign lasted until WrestleMania VII when they lost the title to the Nasty Boys and the team split afterwards. The Hitman’s singles career took off with an Intercontinental Title win in a great match with Mr. Perfect at SummerSlam 1991. He lost the IC Title to the Mountie at the 1992 Royal Rumble, but regained it from Roddy Piper at WrestleMania VIII. At SummerSlam 1992, Hart had an excellent match losing the IC Title to the British Bulldog in the main event at Wembley Stadium in front of 80,000 fans. In October of 1992, Hart won the WWF Title from Ric Flair in a shocking title change that did not originally appear on TV, but instead on Coliseum Video. The Hitman defended the title at 1992 Survivor Series against Shawn Michaels and against Razor Ramon at 1993 Royal Rumble. Hart lost the title to Yokozuna in the main event at WrestleMania IX. Bret won the inaugural King of the Ring in 1993, winning three matches (including a classic match against Mr. Perfect) and starting his long feud with Jerry “The King” Lawler. At SummerSlam 1993 Hart faced Doink the Clown, winning by DQ, and then Lawler, losing on a reversed decision when he would not release the Sharpshooter. At Survivor Series 1993, Bret teamed with his brothers to take on Shawn Michaels and his Knights, with only Owen being eliminated from the Hart team. At Royal Rumble. Bret teamed with Owen to take on the Quebecers for the WWF Tag Team Titles, losing by referee stoppage when Bret would not tag Owen. This led to Owen turning on Bret, kicking his leg out from his leg, but Bret would still go on to be co-winner of the 1994 Royal Rumble match. Owen and Bret had an all-time classic match at WrestleMania X, before Bret won the WWF Title from Yokozuna in the main event. Bret and Owen had another good match at SummerSlam 1994. The Hitman lost the title to Bob Backlund at Survivor Series 1994 when Owen convinced Helen Hart to throw in the towel. He challenged Diesel for the title in a very good match at Royal Rumble 1995. He had a rematch with Baklund at WrestleMania XI, and resumed his feud with Lawler in a Kiss My Foot Match at King of the Ring and then defeated Lawler’s dentist Isaac Yankem at SummerSlam 1995. Hart regained the WWF title at Survivor Series 1995 in a great match but then lost the title to Michaels in an Ironman match at WrestleMania XII. Hart would take some time off, before returning to feud with Steve Austin and defeat him in a excellent match at Survivor Series 1996. Bret began showing heel tendencies during this time, and executed a double-turn in his match with Austin at WrestleMania 13, a bout that many consider to be the best WWE match ever. Hart’s heel turn was unique as he was a beloved babyface in Canada and a hated heel in the US. He would then form the Hart Foundation with Owen, Neidhart, Bulldog and Brian Pillman. The Hart Foundation feud with Austin and others was white-hot through 1997, with the main event of IYH: Canadian Stampede being particularly insane. Bret won the WWF Title again at SummerSlam 1997 when Michaels accidentally hit Undertaker with a chair. Hart would feud with the Patriot during the fall of 1997 and at Survivor Series 1997, Hart lost the WWF title to Michaels in the famous Montreal Screwjob. Hart is a two-time King of the Ring, Royal Rumble winner, a two-time WWF Tag Team Champion, a two-time IC Champion and a World Heavyweight Champion.

Promos/Character: The Hitman character had a memorable look with his mirrored shades, pink and black attire and leather jacket. He was a no-nonsense wrestler relying on his Excellence of Execution. Despite claiming to be The Best There Is, The Best There Was and the Best There Ever Will Be, he wasn’t the greatest promo early in his career, but he did incredible promo work in 1997 during the Hart Foundation angle, playing a heel in the US and a babyface in Canada. He also performed excellent character work before, during and immediately after his match with Austin at WrestleMania 13 to execute the double turn.

Workrate: Bret leveraged the “Excellence of Execution” to have very good matches with nearly all opponents, using a realistic technical style. He carried the Hart Foundation to good matches with many tag teams of the time including the British Bulldogs, Killer Bees, Demolition, Strike Force, the Rockers and the Brain Busters. The IC Title win against Mr. Perfect at SummerSlam 1991 is excellent and his match with Piper for the IC Title at WrestleMania VIII is very good and a great moment. The 1992 SummerSlam match with Bulldog is a great carry job by Bret and an excellent match. The 1992 Survivor Series match with Shawn was very good as was the 1993 Rumble match with Razor. Bret put on a great performance at KOTR 1993 and the Mr. Perfect match is a classic. The Owen/Bret match is one of the best matches in WrestleMania and company history and the cage match at SummerSlam 1994 is good, with unique psychology of attempting to escape the cage. The match with Backlund at Survivor Series 1994 had good storytelling. He had good matches with Diesel, with the 1995 Survivor Series match being excellent. The match with British Bulldog at the December 1995 IYH was great. The match with Austin at Survivor Series 1996 is excellent and their WrestleMania 13 rematch is a strong contender for the greatest match in company history The main event of Canadian Stampede is a classic and features one of the most molten crowds you will ever hear. The Survivor Series 1997 match with Michaels is good before the screwjob ending.

Staff Thoughts: The Best There Is, The Best There Was and the Best There Ever Will Be is the fourth wrestler to appear on every ballot. During his tremendous WWF career he carried the ball during some tough times for the company in the wake of the steroid scandal and during a creative slump when interest in the product was low. The fans always believed in Bret, certainly more than the company seemingly did at times. He had a tremendous tag team run with the Hart Foundation, an IC Title run with classic matches with Mr. Perfect, British Bulldog and others and a top notch main event run. His matches with Owen and Austin at WrestleMania are some of the best in company history. The Hart Foundation vs. America angle was tremendous and some of the best work of Bret’s career, before the Montreal Screwjob sent him to WCW and doomed us all to the screwjob finish becoming a regular thing. To hear the guys talk more about Bret check out this FYC podcast or this Making the Cut.

From the Voters: “Bret does not look happy in that picture. Rewatching a ton of 93-97 WWF and Bret’s stock is going through the roof. I think he is the best offensive American wrestler ever. He is the God King of face vs face matches, which is probably the most difficult match structure to pull off. He was honestly the best babyface and heel simultaneously in WWF because he had to wrestle so many face vs face matches. The tag work leaves something to be desired. That main event run is pretty damn sweet. He was the heir to Jack Brisco. He would have made for an amazing NWA touring champion in the 90s if there was such a thing.” – Martin Boulevard, May 29, 2017

“In my top 5, easily. Great work-rate made up for his deficiencies on the microphone. Great matches with Curt Hennig, British Bulldog, and even 123 Kid. Also have to mention his matches with Stone Cold, Owen, and Undertaker. Hell, I’ll even go out on a limb and put Bret Hart as my number 1.” – Boyce Antrim, May 30, 2017

“Bret’s going to be a top 10 guy for sure for me. The question for me is, where does he fall, likely in that 5-7 range. Too many great matches, one of the best and most nuanced heel turns in company history. Wrestled in the best match I have ever witnessed live. I’m thinking 5 for right now.” – David Mann, May 31, 2017

4. John Cena Total Points: 12,007 Total Ballots: 117 Average Rank: 7 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 87 First Place Votes: 14 High Voter: Devon Hales; Kris Zellner; JF Vallee; Martin Boulevard; Patrick Fenton; Boss Rock; Dylan Hales; Dave Musgrave; Steve Williams; James Proffitt; Stacey O’Loughlin; Dean Coles; Steven Graham; Steven Riddle

Nuance: John Cena debuted in 2002 and is still going strong, notching 15 years and running to his name. He actually was a heel early in his run but has primarily been a babyface during his time with the company. He has mainly been a singles star, but has had notable tag teams with Shawn Michaels, Batista, Miz and David Otunga. Cena has a star power that no other wrestler of his era has and his charisma combined with unique fan reactions add a lot to many of his matches.

Jump Up Moments: Cena debuted answering Kurt Angle’s gold medal challenge in 2002 as a white meat babyface. After dressing as Vanilla Ice, he took on a rapper character with an edge, and challenged WWF Champion Brock Lesnar at Backlash 2003. He would later challenge other stars like Eddie Guerrero and he gained momentum as a member of Team Angle at Survivor Series 2003. He won the US Title at WrestleMania XX and defeated Booker T in a best of five series, culminating at No Mercy 2004. Cena won his first WWE Title against JBL at WrestleMania 21, and the rematch at Judgment Day 2005 in a great “I Quit” match. He then moved to Raw and feuded with Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle in feuds that were the start of the mixed fan reactions that would come to define Cena. In 2006, he lost the title when Edge cashed in his MITB before regaining it at Royal Rumble. He successfully defended his title at WrestleMania 22 against Triple H but then lost the title to Rob Van Dam at One Night Stand 2006 in front of a rabid crowd. Cena eventually won the belt back from Edge in a very good TLC match at Unforgiven 2006. In 2007, he faced Umaga at New Year’s Revolution and the Royal Rumble, the latter of which was a true classic. He faced Shawn Michaels in a very good match on Raw and at WrestleMania 23 and kept the title for most of 2007, before injury caused him to be stripped, ending the longest reign in 19 years. Cena won the 2008 Royal Rumble as a surprise entrant, and was added to the WWE championship match at WrestleMania XXIV against Triple H and Randy Orton. He won the Tag Titles with Batista before facing him at SummerSlam 2008. He would defeated Chris Jericho for his first World Heavyweight Title at Survivor Series 2008, before losing it to Edge at No Way Out. Cena regained the title at WrestleMania XXV and he would feud with Randy Orton, trading the title back and forth throughout much of 2009. Cena feuded with Batista at WrestleMania XXVI, Extreme Rules and Over the Limit 2010. He would feud with the Nexus in late 2010, before facing The Miz in the main event of WrestleMania XXVII, losing after interference from the Rock, setting up their match at WrestleMania XXVIII. Cena then feuded with CM Punk having great matches at MITB and SummerSlam 2011. The match with Rock at WrestleMania XXVIII was a great moment and he then faced the returning Brock Lesnar at Extreme Rules 2012 in an excellent match. Cena won the 2013 Royal Rumble, then had a very good six-man match against the Shield at Elimination Chamber before winning the WWE Championship from the Rock at WrestleMania 29. He lost the WWE Title to Daniel Bryan in a legendary match at SummerSlam 2013. At MITB 2014, Cena won his 15th World Championship, before getting squashed by Lesnar at SummerSlam 2014. Team Cena defeated Team Authority at Survivor Series 2014 causing the disbanding of the Authority. He faced Lesnar and Seth Rollins in an excellent three-way match at Royal Rumble 2015 and faced Rusev at Fastlane and won the US Title in a rematch at WrestleMania 31, leading to a series of US Open challenge matches. He faced Rusev in rematches at Extreme Rules and Payback before feuding with Kevin Owens at Elimination Chamber, MITB and Battleground 2015. He lost the US Title to Rollins in a Winner Take All match at SummerSlam before regaining it at Night of Champions then losing it to Alberto Del Rio at HIAC 2015. Cena then took a hiatus, returning at WrestleMania 32 helping the Rock fend off the Wyatt Family. He would return to in-ring competition against AJ Styles at Money in the Bank 2016 in a good match and the two would have an even better match at SummerSlam 2016. Cena had a great match with Styles and Dean Ambrose at No Mercy and faced Styles in a match of the year contender at Royal Rumble 2017, winning the title and tying Ric Flair for the most reigns of all time. He lost the title at Elimination Chamber and began feuding with the Miz, including a mixed tag match with Nikki Bella against Miz and Maryse at WrestleMania 33. He would then take a hiatus, but upon his return he had a very good match with Roman Reigns at No Mercy 2017. Cena is a two-time Royal Rumble winner, a MITB winner, a two-time World Tag Team Champion, a two-time WWE Tag Team Champion, a five-time US Champion, a three-time World Heavyweight Champion and a 13-time WWE Champion.

Promos/Character: Cena is a mixed bag as a promo, as he’s certainly capable of delivering good promos, and he began getting over so many years ago due to the edge he showed in his rap battles. Since that time, he too often cuts goofy joke promos. Cena is one of the best at the current promo style, but that style doesn’t always resonate with a large portion of the fanbase. His character has been the superman babyface and has taken many turns that don’t always ring true, like as a saluting marine, for example. That said, he really is loved by some fans, notably kids, and his polarizing reactions have added quite a bit of atmosphere to many of his big matches and moments. That split reaction defines Cena’s character as much as anything, and he has used it to his advantage, for example at MITB 2011 and ONS 2006.

Workrate: Cena’s a top-notch worker, which showed up in his debut match against Angle. The bloodbath in the “I Quit” match against JBL is very good. His matches against Edge in 2006 are all good, especially the TLC match at Unforgiven. The RVD match at One Night Stand 2006 is great for the atmosphere alone. The New Year’s Revolution 2007 with Umaga was very good and their rematch at Royal Rumble is an all-time great, one of the best title matches ever. He even got decent matches out of Great Khali in 2007. The three matches with Batista in 2010 were all good. The MITB match with CM Punk in 2011 is an all-time great match and angle and the rematch at SummerSlam is quite good too. His first match with Rock at WrestleMania XXVIII was driven by an electric atmosphere featuring two huge stars of different eras. The Extreme Rules 2012 match with Lesnar is fantastic. Cena was in the very good six-man against the Shield at Elimination Chamber 2013. His SummerSlam 2013 match against Bryan is a classic and the three way match at Royal Rumble 2015 is great. He had memorable matches during the US Open challenges with Cesaro, Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens and others. Cena has had classic matches with AJ Styles at SummerSlam 2016 and Royal Rumble 2017, both match of the year contenders. The Roman Reigns match at No Mercy 2017 was great and felt like a torch-passing match and moment.

Staff Thoughts: Cena’s the most decorated champion the WWE’s ever had and he’s been the chosen one for the company for a decade and a half. His character may or may not hit with you, but his ring work has been top-notch, quieting bullshit about him not being able to wrestle. His list of great matches is too long to list, but the Umaga match at Royal Rumble 2007, Punk match at MITB 2011, the Lesnar Extreme Rules match, the Bryan SummerSlam match and SummerSlam and Royal Rumble matches with AJ Styles are all-time classics. He’s a huge wrestling star and becoming a bigger mainstream star by the day as well. This all shows that while it’s fun to chant “John Cena SUCKS” in time with the music, nothing could be further from the truth. To hear the guys talk about Cena check out this FYC podcast.

From the Voters: “Lay up top 20. Where he lands in that 20 remains to be seen. Not called Big Match John for nothing. Much like the Warrior, saved his best stuff for the bright lights. Can wrestle with anyone from Daniel Bryan to the Great Khali. He is decent on the mic and those boos are out of respect. If no one liked him, they would be quiet.” – Jeffrey Thomas, May 30, 2017

“Top 5. Has a chance to be my #1. One of the greatest wrestlers of all-time. The comedy promos during 2010-2012 PG Era can be bad but otherwise an all-time great promo too. Isn’t a naturally gifted athlete or all that impressive with his mannerisms but his work ethic may be unmatched. Has classics every year dating back to 2005.” – Devon Motivator Hales, May 30, 2017

“He’s also my working #1, for all the obvious reasons, and he’ll definitely be #2 at absolute worst for me. He has the total package, body of work, peak stuff, little stuff, intangibles, promos, overness, longevity, everything you’d ever want out of a WWE ace. I don’t think anyone else combines being an important top guy to WWE with actual workrate and matches as well as he does.” – Stacey O’Loughlin, May 30, 2017

3. Hulk Hogan Total Points: 12,359 Total Ballots: 115 Average Rank: 5.5 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 100 First Place Votes: 26 High Voter: Brad W; Jesse; Glenn Butler; Ray Miller; Matthew Mehnert; Chad Campbell; Scott Butler; J.A. D’Amato; Matt Ferrell; Blaise Perrone; Karl Grant; Edwin Ortiz Jr.; Brian Scala; Chris Jordan; Sean Fluharty; Tyler Kelley; Ben Morse; Tim Tetreault; Sean; Steve Bennett; Rick Willard; Greg Diener; Troy Brostrom; James Derbyshire; Eric Boyd; Mike Rudh

Nuance: Hulk Hogan’s charisma and presence were custom-fit for the babyface that Vince McMahon, Jr. needed to take the WWF national, and the rest is history. His intangibles are off the charts, with his very name being synonymous with pro wrestling for a generation of fans. Hogan fills the longevity requirements with a decade long signature run supplemented by an earlier run of about a year and several sporadic returns that add up to another couple years. He was a heel in the 1979-80 run and he returned in 2002 as a heel in name only with the New World Order, but spent the rest of his time with the WWF/E as a babyface. He had signature tag teams with Randy Savage, Brutus Beefcake and Edge, as well as being a top singles star during the majority of his time with the company.

Jump Up Moments: Hogan had a run as a heel in 1979-80 and had notable matches against Bob Backlund and Andre the Giant. He returned and quickly won the WWF Title from the Iron Sheik on January 23, 1984. Hogan faced Rowdy Roddy Piper at the War to Settle the Score, airing on MTV and their manic promos, larger than life personalities and wild brawling ushered in a new era of wrestling to fans seeing the product for the first time. The two would continue their feud main eventing the first WrestleMania with Hogan teaming with Mr. T, a major TV and movie star of the time. He main evented WrestleMania 2 in a steel cage match against King Kong Bundy and then battled Andre the Giant, drawing between 93,000 and 78,000 fans (depending on whether or not you work for WWE) to the Pontiac Silverdome for WrestleMania III. His feud with Andre continued with the controversial loss airing on prime-time network TV at the Main Event. That led to the title being vacated and the tournament at WrestleMania IV, where Hogan and Andre fought to a double-countout. Hogan then joined forces with the “Macho Man” Randy Savage as the Mega Powers, main eventing the first SummerSlam against Andre and “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase in a fun match. The MegaPowers would then explode in a classic angle and good match main eventing WrestleMania V. He won the 1990 Royal Rumble before facing the Ultimate Warrior in a title vs. title match at WrestleMania VI, in a match much better than anyone expected. He got crushed by Earthquake before returning at SummerSlam 1990 where he defeated the monster by countout. Hogan won the 1991 Royal Rumble going on to win the WWF Title from Iraqi sympathizer Sgt. Slaughter in another very good match at WrestleMania VII. In late 1991, he faced Ric Flair in a series of house show matches, before losing the title to the Undertaker at Survivor Series 1991 and regaining it at This Tuesday in Texas. Flair interfered in both matches, causing the title to be on the line at the 1992 Royal Rumble where Sid Justice eliminated Hogan, before Hogan pulled out Justice drawing boos from the fans. Hogan faced Justice at WrestleMania VIII, before taking a leave of absence during the steroid trials. He returned to team with Brutus Beefcake as the Mega-Maniacs losing to Money, Inc. at WrestleMania IX. Hogan would later come to Bret Hart’s aid and accept a challenge from Mr. Fuji to face Yokozuna, and he won the WWF Title again. Hogan would lose the title at the 1993 King of the Ring to Yokozuna before leaving the company until 2002. Hogan returned as his “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan character, leader of the NWO in 2002, facing the Rock at WrestleMania X8 in a classic match with the crowd cheering Hogan wildly. This led to a post-match face turn and Hogan winning his sixth WWF Title at Backlash 2002. He remained in the main event scene, battling Undertaker and Kurt Angle before teaming with Edge to win the WWE Tag Team Titles on the July 4 episode of SmackDown. He lost to Brock Lesnar, passing out in his bearhug. In 2003, he battled Vince McMahon in a crazy brawl at WrestleMania XIX, and he began appearing as “Mr. America” afterward. Hogan returned in 2005, feuding with Shawn Michaels resulting in a very fun match at SummerSlam. Hogan would also face Randy Orton at SummerSlam 2006. He would later host WrestleMania XXX having an icon moment in the *Silverdome* with the Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin. Hogan is a two-time Royal Rumble winner, WWE Tag Team Champion and six-time WWF/E World Heavyweight Champion.

Promos/Character: “Well, ya know brother, whatcha gonna do when Real American plays, and the Hulkster brings those 24-inch pythons to the ring, rips off that red and yellow tank top. With all my little Hulkamaniacs training, saying their prayers, eating their vitamins, Hulkamania is going to run wild on you.” Everything in that previous sentence is iconic and the match hasn’t started yet. He delivered his promos with a manic passion that you couldn’t ignore and when he talked, you couldn’t look away. His promos were formulaic, but they worked, as did his angles and matches. Once the Hulkster dropped that big leg for the 1-2-3 brother, you better believe he was going to pose and cup that ear, soaking in the roar of the Hulkamaniacs. 

Workrate: The Hulkster gets a bad rap as a worker, but he had very good matches, particularly early in his career. He had good matches on SNME with Bob Orton, Paul Orndorff and Terry Funk to name a few and his feud with Kamala is very well regarded. The MegaPowers vs. MegaBucks match at the first SummerSlam is a very good, fun match. The Savage match at WrestleMania V is strong, and the match against the Ultimate Warrior a year later is a classic. He had a very good cage match against the Big Bossman on SNME airing in May 1989. The WrestleMania VII match against Slaughter is very good, regardless of your thoughts on the angle. His match against the Rock at WrestleMania X8 is a classic thanks in large part to the crowd reactions, but also due to the charisma of both participants. The match with Vince at WrestleMania XIX is a great chaotic brawl. The SummerSlam match against Michaels is known for Shawn’s crazy bumps, but it’s a really fun and solid match, too.

Staff Thoughts: “When it comes crashing down and it hurts inside…” and the roof blows off the damn building when that music hit, for the majority of a decade and for any return since. Without Hogan, are we making a list like this? Or are we having a WWF regional list and a Mid-South list, and a Mid-Atlantic list and so on and so on? There’s no real answer and maybe someone else would’ve taken the reigns, but we can’t picture anyone else having the success Hogan did. Hogan was not just one of the greatest characters in wrestling in the 1980s, he was one of the greatest characters in pop culture in the 1980s. He very much encapsulated that era in his promos, in his larger than life persona and in the energy he brought to everything he did. In the 1980s you knew you were a big star if you appeared on the Rock ‘n’ Wrestling cartoon, but it was named after Hulk Hogan, leaving no doubt who was the biggest star of all. At times his ring work could be formulaic, but at other times he was a helluva good worker. And even the formula matches still sent the crowd home happy. The WrestleMania III match is no workrate classic, but that angle, that event and that crowd set the template for big main events to come. And Hogan’s charisma made matches better with the Ultimate Warrior and Rock WrestleMania matches coming to mind. To hear more about Thunderlips, check out this FYC podcast while enjoying a nice meal from Hulk Hogan’s Pastamania.

From the Voters: “Without him, there might not BE a WWE. Underrated worker as well. Understood (and understands) how to work a crowd maybe better than anybody.” – Ben Morse, May 29, 2017

“The face of the man who is arguably the reason we are having this conversation right now. Many of his Wrestlemania main events are a little underappreciated. I actually enjoy the cage match against Bundy.” – Wil Gertler, May 30, 2017

“Has to be in the discussion for number one. Kind of an underrated worker. Sure there was a formula but the audience was rabid for him every step of the way. Isn’t that the point of wrestling?” – Aaron George, May 29, 2017

2. Steve Austin Total Points: 12,527 Total Ballots: 116 Average Rank: 4.3 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 20 First Place Votes: 15 High Voter: Lou Spadone; Trent Williams; Ben Halbur; Eric Vejnovich; Steve; Ryan Gray; Jeremy Ray; Jason Hartman; Tony Jurkas; Chris Crane; Vince Male; Mr. P; Jake Imm; Kevin E. Pittack; Owen Waite

Nuance: Steve Austin had a seven-year run as an active participant with some time missed for injuries so he’s about average on longevity, though his peak is shorter than many other top stars. He played both a heel and a babyface, primarily as a singles star, but he had tag team success with Shawn Michaels, Dude Love, Undertaker and Triple H. Austin was a master of facial expressions and body language to add to his matches, promos and segments. He focused on little things and could give incredibly nuanced performances. Austin’s presence and incredible connection to the crowd added more meaning to nearly all his matches, promos and segments.

Jump Up Moments: Austin debuted as the Ringmaster as part of the Million Dollar Corporation, before quickly taking the Stone Cold moniker, which he found more success with. He feuded with Savio Vega losing a Caribbean strap match at IYH: Beware of Dog, causing Ted DiBiase to be forced out as Austin’s manager. Austin would later say he lost the match intentionally to forge his own way. Stone Cold won the 1996 King of the Ring, last defeating Jake “The Snake” Roberts, cutting his iconic Austin 3:16 promo after his victory. Austin began showing his ruthless side, turning on friend Brian Pillman and breaking his ankle with a steel chair in a move that came to be known as “Pillmanizing”. He would also travel to Pillman’s house in the infamous “Pillman’s Got a Gun” segment of Raw. Stone Cold began challenging and taunting Bret Hart, who was taking time off, but returned to battle Austin in an excellent match at Survivor Series 1996. At the 1997 Royal Rumble, Austin showed his star power, often looking at his “watch” while waiting for competition before having a great reaction when Hart arrived. Hart eliminated Austin but the referee didn’t see the elimination, so Austin reentered the match and won it. The results were held up, causing a match between Austin, Hart, Vader and Undertaker at Final Four for the WWF Title. Austin continued his feud with Hart, leading to a match at WrestleMania 13 where Hart defeated Austin and the two executed a perfect double-turn in a fantastic match. Austin challenged Undertaker for the WWF title at Cold Day in Hell after he had injured Hart’s leg in a street fight on Raw. He also teamed with Shawn Michaels to defeat Owen Hart and the British Bulldog for the WWF Tag Team Titles, and later won them with Dude Love in very good matches on Raw. He also had a great match with Michaels at the 1997 King of the Ring. Austin was part of the ten man tag match that main evented Canadian Stampede, where he was a hated heel and the Hart Foundation were heroes in front of the Calgary crowd. Austin faced Owen Hart at SummerSlam 1997 in a very good match, before a botched piledriver broke Austin’s neck. He relinquished the IC and Tag Titles and attacked Owen at a Raw in MSG, followed by giving Vince McMahon the first of many Stone Cold Stunners. Austin regained the IC Title from Owen at Survivor Series 1997, before moving on to a feud with the Rock that saw Austin throw the IC Title into a New Hampshire river. Stone Cold won the 1998 Royal Rumble and set his sights on the WWF Title, which he won from Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XIV. The Austin/McMahon feud then took center stage, with Austin choosing to do things the hard way rather than the easy way, hitting Vince in the stones and giving out more Stunners. Dude Love became a substitute for McMahon, and challenged for the WWF Title at Unforgiven and Over the Edge 1998. Austin lost the title to Kane at the 1998 King of the Ring in a first blood match, but won it back the next night on Raw before taking to the Highway to Hell to face the Undertaker at SummerSlam 1998. He continued feuding with Kane and Undertaker, and the title wound up being held up and awarded to the winner of the Survivor Series 1998 Deadly Games tournament. Austin finished second in the 1999 Royal Rumble, but defeated McMahon in a steel cage match at St. Valentine’s Massacre, winning the right to face WWF champion the Rock at WrestleMania XV. Austin continued feuding with McMahon throughout most of 1999, and at various points during their feud he gave McMahon a beer bath, kidnapped him firing a gun with a flag that said Bang 3:16 causing McMahon to piss his pants and various other memorable moments. Austin was run over prior to the Survivor Series 1999 main event giving him time off to deal with an injured neck. In late 2000, Austin returned and faced Rikishi, who ran him over at Survivor Series, before turning his attention to Triple H, who was the mastermind all along. Austin won his third Royal Rumble in 2001 and then faced Triple H in a Three Stages of Hell match at No Way Out 2001. Stone Cold won the WWF Title at WrestleMania X7 in a great match against the Rock, turning heel in the process. He then formed the Two Man Power Trip with Triple H, winning the Tag Team Titles and having a great match with Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho on Raw. During the Invasion, Austin joined the Alliance, turning on Team WWF during the main event of the Invasion PPV. Austin would then feud with Kurt Angle, having an all-time great match at SummerSlam 2001, losing the title to Angle at No Mercy in another good match, before winning it back on Raw. The Alliance was defeated at Survivor Series 2001 and Austin turned babyface the night after Survivor Series and challenged for the Undisputed Title at Vengeance 2001, losing to Chris Jericho. He would also feud with Booker T during this time, including the famous supermarket brawl. Austin challenged Jericho for the Undisputed Title at No Way Out 2002, before taking on Scott Hall at WrestleMania X8. Creative differences and other issues led to Austin missing much of 2002, returning in early 2003. He face the Rock at WrestleMania XIX in his last match for the company. He would appear as Sheriff Austin and other authority figure roles, and is still a popular guest referee or special guest. Austin is a King of the Ring, a three-time Royal Rumble winner, a four-time WWF Tag Team Champion, a two-time IC Champion and a six-time WWF Champion.

Promos/Character: “You talk about your Psalms, you talk about your John 3:16, well Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!” And with that one promo countless black and white Austin 3:16 T-shirts were sold. That’s a money promo. While Austin 3:16 is his most famous promo, Stone Cold could be counted on week in and week out to deliver the goods on the stick to deliver promos that both advanced the storyline and electrified the crowd. If you want to hear more give me a hell yeah! OK, his interactions with Vince McMahon helped turn the company around and win the Monday Night Wars, and almost all of that was done through promos and character work, due to McMahon’s limitations inside the ring. Stone Cold’s connection with the crowd as the everyman anti-hero was something that hadn’t been seen before and maybe no one has had as strong a connection since. Giving your boss the double bird before kicking his ass and celebrating by chugging beers is something that resonated with a large portion of the audience that would like to do the same thing. It was wrestling as escapism from real life and it hit big time with the crowd. His later comedy work with Kurt Angle, Vince McMahon and the Alliance was excellent, as well. When it came to character and promo work, Austin could do it all. And that’s the bottom line, ‘cuz Stone Cold said so!

Workrate: Austin was a tremendous worker when healthy and showed great versatility by becoming more of a brawler when injuries slowed him down. His early matches with Savio Vega were good. Austin’s first great WWF match came against Bret Hart at Survivor Series 1996. The match between Hart and Austin at WrestleMania 13 may be the best match in company history. The double-turn was incredibly well done and moved Austin even further down the road to superstardom. The tag team match with Michaels against Bulldog and Owen, as well as the King of the Ring match with Michaels were very good. The main event of Canadian Stampede was fantastic and Austin did a great job playing a heel. The Over the Edge 1998 match against Dude Love was a great match that told a great story. The Three Stages of Hell match against Triple H was very good. The WrestleMania X7 match against the Rock is one of the best Mania main events in history and the bout on Raw with Triple H against Benoit and Jericho is one of the best matches ever on Raw. Austin’s match against Angle at SummerSlam 2001 is fantastic and on the short list of best matches in SummerSlam history too. The WrestleMania XIX match with the Rock is excellent, particularly considering Austin’s health challenges, and it was a great way to end their feud and Austin’s career in the ring.

Staff Thoughts: No star ever burned brighter or hotter in the WWE Universe than Stone Cold Steve Austin. He burned out too soon, due to injury, personal issues and creative differences, but the impact Austin had during his time is undeniable. During Austin’s time on top, the company reached heights of popularity it had never seen before and seems unlikely to reach anytime soon. You can make a strong argument that he’s involved in two of the greatest feuds in company history against Bret Hart and Vince McMahon. The Hart feud saw all-time great matches and moments, particularly the WrestleMania 13 war. The image of Austin bleeding buckets while trapped in the Sharpshooter before passing out is one of the most iconic images in company history. The McMahon feud featured memorable moments nearly every week on Raw, from Stunners to beer baths to pants pissing. He had an in-ring renaissance in 2001 having one of his best years with classic matches against Triple H, Rock, Angle, Benoit and Jericho. Austin’s one of the best promos and characters the company has ever had, from the Austin 3:16 promo to his beer chugging celebrations and even WHAT! All of this adds up one of the best all-around stars the WWE has ever seen. And all our voters said Hell Yeah! To hear more about what the guys had to say check out this FYC podcast.

From the Voters: “In the conversation for #1, but I think he had a strong case against him. Stretching from 97-03, he’s only got six years on top, and he missed one or two due to injury or pouting fits. Post-SummerSlam 97 Austin completely altered WWF main event style from wrestling to brawling, which lasted until Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar and WCW imports like the Radicalz switched it back; that could be an argument for or against, but he was able to hang both ways. Working in his favor, arguably nobody else–maybe Hogan–understood how to maximize their character more successfully. He’s got a cavalcade of great matches against Bret Hart, The Rock, Triple H, Kurt Angle and others. Yes sir, definitely in the discussion…” – Ben Morse, June 5, 2017

“In the conversation for number one. I’m throwing him, Rock, Savage, Shawn and maybe a small handful of others into that category. Could do it all, especially when healthy. Along with the Rock, defined the most mainstream and successful period in company history.” – Greg Phillips, June 5, 2017

“#1 Candidate. His biggest weaknesses are longevity & the propensity to fall under the spell of Attitude Era brawls. Some of those brawls are due to booking, some of it to his lingering injuries. It does hurt him though. Amazing worker in 97 & 01. Arguably the greatest WWE character of all-time. All-time great promo. Of the top 50 or so moments in WWE history he’s probably got about 20 of them. All-time great feuds with Bret/HF, Vince, & Rock. Special wrestler & performer. Once in a lifetime star. Maybe bigger than Hogan at his peak in terms of stardom. Probably had the biggest pops in wrestling history when the sound of breaking glass hit. Top 5 lock.” – Devon Motivator Hales, June 2, 2017

1. Randy Savage Total Points: 12,544 Total Ballots: 118 Average Rank: 4.9 High Vote: 1 Low Vote: 23 First Place Votes: 24 High Voter: Brian Bayless; ElliottPWO; Pete Schirmacher; Taylor Keahey; Jacob Williams; Ryan Everett; Travis Woloshyn; Matthew Richards; Nikolaj; Darren Hibbert; Todd Weber; Brian Meyer; JT Rozzero; Michael Schoen; Jeff; Justin Webb; Aaron George; Matt Souza; Jamie McGleave; D. Macgregor; Scott Criscuolo; Jason Greenhouse; Alexis; Randy Savage  

Nuance: Randy Savage is all nuance. Heel? Check. Face? One of the best in the business. Tag work? They’re called the fucking MEGA Powers. For nearly a decade he captivated audiences with his unparralled intensity. He introduced us to Elizabeth, and to what that male/female act could be. No one moved like him, no one spoke like him, and no one connected to the audience like him. He made you care. Each and every time he was out there. Very few matches were throwaways. They were personal. VERY personal. You always got the impression from Savage that he was a real person. A real person who often wanted to murder his opponents. In a world of cartoon characters and Honky Tonk Men this was by no means an easy feat. He was the Macho Man and he was the God damned best.

Jump Up Moments: His arrival in the promotion was heralded, like the coming of a macho comet. He was desired. Men got in line to plead their case to lead him. In the end, he rejected them all. He rejected the weasels, the loudmouths and the devious men in top hats. He chose HER. He needed her. Perhaps he always had. In them we saw the greatness of madness. He protected her and she helped him reach new heights; opening the ropes for him and always there when he needed her. While warding off animals he began conquering the promotion. First defeating a proud man, to win the first, of what would become many, prizes. The prize obsessed him. For years he needed only to protect her, but now there was gold in his eyes. He fought snakes and old Italian men before seeing a man whose drive rivaled perhaps only his own. He saw the Dragon coming. He lashed out, nearly crippling the red-blooded hero. It mattered not, the Dragon returned, and on the biggest stage conquered HIM. Few had ever looked better in defeat though as he soon found himself embattled with a charlatan with greasy hair and a sequined jump suit. They ganged up on him. Beat him. More importantly though they hurt HER. He needed help. Help came in the form of an immortal friend. Together they formed a power greater than the entire universe. Their handshake shook the foundations of civilization. While he would never conquer the sequined man, he would instead, in one night, banish all the demons of the past year and conquer the entire promotion. Things were good. He and his friend were battling the forces of evil, toppling giants and destroying the corrupt. SHE was with them. However when he looked at his new friend he no longer saw support, instead it was replaced with something more sinister. He saw a fleeting touch, a loving embrace… he saw LUST IN THE EYES. His friend had turned on him, and now not only wanted the championship, but he wanted a greater prize; he wanted HER. They battled and HE was toppled. He fought back. Finding new allies in a witch and a would be god, but it was no use. His friend had won. The title, the girl, everything. He spiraled, becoming royalty but never feeling full. He chased dreams. He beat dreams. He aided in stealing Dream’s African-American friend with benefits. It still wasn’t enough. He needed to reclaim the Ultimate prize that was once his. Now held within the clutches of a mighty Warrior, he requested a chance to, once again, prove his worth. When rejected he took matters into his own hands. In an explosion of rubies and gold he took what was most dear from the Warrior, and ultimately, set himself on a path from which he would not return. He fought he Warrior, valiantly, with his entire existence on the line, and lost. Crushed he laid in the ring, a broken and defeated man. The witch was irate, she began beating him. She degraded him. His salvation came through in a familiar face. It was her. She rid the ring of the witch and stood before the man she once loved. In this moment it became crystal clear that their love hadn’t passed. They embraced, reconciling and once again becoming whole. His obsession had driven her away but now they were together, in love, this time for good. She opened the ropes for him, they would leave and begin their new lives together. He stopped. This time HE would hold the ropes. HE would honor HER. This time would be different. He had grown, he had learned. As she left the ring  he took a moment to say goodbye, and the tears of joy were as loud as the cheers. He was loved again.

They were happy; got married, but there’s always a snake in the grass, waiting to snuff out happiness. The snake ruined the wedding, the snake attacked whenever he could. The snake brought a 15 foot king cobra in the ring and made it literally bite HIM while tears streamed down the face of the child clad in the HULK RULES shirt. He had tried to leave, but now he was back FIGHTING the snake. Trying to KILL the snake. The snake fell but a different kind of snake emerged in the aftermath. One who claimed that he had had HER. What ensued was a hated filled encounter during which HE once again conquered the promotion. Jealousy and madness had led to his demise, love brought him back and now it once again brought him the Ultimate prize.

Then some douchebag friend of his got all pissy because he didn’t visit him in the hospital enough.

Promos/Character: Fair to say he is easily one of the best talkers in company history. He made a promo with a cup of cream work for Christ’s sake. He always felt real. Go back and watch the promo where he talks about what he’s going to do to Crush. It’s quiet, seething and outright scary. Things affected him. He BLAMED HIMSELF for Elizabeth getting slapped, he WAS ALWAYS NUMBER THREE IN THE MEGA POWERS, every word out of his mouth made sense for his character and was delivered in a way which pushed his storylines forward. He was believable. With. That. Voice. He could do it all on the mic and then some. Modern performers should take note of how he understood the basic rules of television blocking and then purposefully broke them for effect.

Workrate: Crisp, efficient worker. Everything was smooth and realistic. His jabs were tremendous, and he rarely meandered as he climbed to the top rope for his trademark stuff. You could go on and on about his offense, but his selling is truly spectacular. He sold a damn leg injury for the better part of 1992 and never once came off hokey for it.  Some may give him flack or knock him for planning out his matches in advance, but once certainly can’t argue the results. Even Ricky Steamboat, who HATED it at the time, can’t fault the system that gave him one of the greatest matches of his career.

Staff Thoughts: Is there anything in the realm of professional wrestling that Randy Savage didn’t excel at? He was a tremendous worker, a top-tier promo and always had the audience in the palm of his hand. He was Mr. WrestleMania before it was a thing. His entire career was essentially one big storyline! That wasn’t due to Pat Patterson sitting by Vince’s pool and plotting out a six year arc. That was Randy Savage being zoned in to his character and meticulously laying out every detail. No one had that type of focus or commitment before, and no one has had it since. You cared about every minute he was on screen. Even when he was in there with George “Mine” Steele. Perhaps his greatest skill though was eliciting an emotional response from the audience. You can sell out the Garden, you can spawn a nationwide mania, you can kick the crap out of your boss every week or you can declare yourself HERE every show but those all pale in comparison to making that guy in the green cowboy hat weep at WrestleMania VII. Randy Savage had it all and the business is better for having had him. He elevated the art form and is still inspiring countless generations to follow in his footsteps. It’s with great pride, and a tear in my eye that we declare that, in this moment in time and with this very specific set of parameters, “Macho Man” Randy Savage is the greatest wrestler in WWE history.

From the Voters: “Short list of guys that could be number one, wont fall out of the top 10. To me, he is the posterboy of 80s WWE. I know Hogan was the draw and all that, but for me Savagerepresented ALL that wrestling was (in ring, out of ring, etc). He was exceptionally well rounded and stole than his fair share of big shows. He also excelled on Saturday Night’s main event. He has a number of quality matches from that show that helped carry WWE TV and I think added a lot of credibility to both the IC and World title.” – Matthew Richards, June 2, 2017

“GOAT candidate, though I’ll argue against him as number one on a WWF list simply because he was never given the ball long enough to run with it. All-time great character who transcended wrestling and infiltrated pop culture. His good matches were great and his bad matches were still pretty good. Maybe had the best match ever against Steamboat. Had classics with Tito, Hogan, Warrior, Flair and others. If he had been handed the reins of the company at either Mania V or VI, this wouldn’t even be a discussion, but he spent too long in Hogan’s shadow.” – Ben Morse, June 6, 2017

“I just wanted to also add I am wearing my Macho Man t-shirt today and have got at least half a dozen comments on it. If that doesn’t warrant Top 10 placement, what does?” – David Mann, June 8, 2017

[footballleague0]

Golf — Tony Finau’s road from fire-knife dancing to the Tour Championship

ATLANTA — Even now, Gary Finau can’t explain it. He’s walking down the perfectly manicured 18th fairway at East Lake Golf Club, host of this week’s Tour Championship, where the FedEx Cup champion will receive an eight-figure paycheck and even the last-place finisher will bank a total well into the six digits while pocketing invitations into each of next year’s major championships. His son, Tony, the third-oldest of eight children who grew up in their Rose Park, Utah, home, is just a few yards away, taking a mighty lash at his golf ball toward the final green.

It’s a scene Gary has been watching for 20 years. But he still shakes his head in wonderment about how it’s all unfolded.

“This is the sport that we used to talk about like, if you ever see me at a golf course, shoot me,” he says with a gregarious laugh. “Why would anybody go chase a little white ball into a hole? So we stayed far away. We thought playing golf was like going to your grave.”

The story of how he became the first golf instructor to a player who is now 28, ranked 53rd in the world and will embark on his first Masters appearance in April is one that sounds even too far-fetched for a Hollywood script.

Gary grew up in Tonga, playing rugby, cricket and football. When he immigrated to the United States at age 12, he fell in love with basketball and boxing. As Tony explains, “Golf in the Polynesian culture was just so out of the zone. Nobody plays golf. Everybody thought only girls or old rich white men play that sport.” It became part of their lives less by choice than happenstance.

The first tournament Tony recalls watching with his brother Gipper, who’s 11 months younger, was the 1997 Masters. A baby-faced Tiger Woods eviscerated the field that week, and the two boys in the hardscrabble neighborhood just northwest of Salt Lake City were among the millions who took notice.

“To see him do what he did, I could relate to him,” Tony says. “Obviously how exciting he was, but someone with a bit of color playing this game. That’s when I was like, maybe I can play golf. If he can do it, so can I.”

Within a few months, Tony’s mother, Ravena, implored Gary to find a hobby with the boys. The rationale was twofold: There would be critical father-son bonding time, but it would also keep the young boys out of the neighborhood and out of the trouble that always lurked there.

They offered them two nontraditional options: Golf or tennis. Still starry-eyed from watching Tiger, they chose the latter. That wasn’t the entire reason, though. The boys figured if they got good enough to play in tournaments, they could make their dad play caddie. The insidious thought of watching Gary lug a bag of clubs around a golf course was enough to cinch their decision.

So off they went to Jordan River, a par-3 facility where the first hole was 160 yards and none were longer. Gary would bark instructions despite his limited initiation into the game.

“He was still learning the game like we were,” Tony recalls. “Looking back, he was blindly teaching us to play golf.”

That was true, but he did know math.

“I used to drive them every day after school to the football field,” says Gary. “Stop there so they could see all their friends — 400 or 500 kids practicing Pop Warner football. I said, ‘Where is everybody?’ They’d say, ‘Right here.’ Then we’d drive up to the golf course. I’d say, ‘Who’s here?’ They’d say, ‘Nobody.’ I’d tell them, ‘Exactly. Your percentage to make it in golf is way better, boys. There’s no competition here. So let’s practice.'”

And they did, nearly every day, for hours on end. Gary was the coach, Ravena was the motivator, the one who constantly assured them that they could accomplish anything.

The family didn’t have the financial means to afford daily rounds of golf, so Gary improvised. Knowing it didn’t cost anything to use the chipping and putting area, he’d collect old range balls and the boys would practice until sundown.

In three full seasons on the PGA Tour, Tony Finau has made at least $1.8 million each year. Heading into the 2016-17 season finale, he’s at $2.55 million and counting. Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images

Soon enough, the pro at Jordan River took notice of their work ethic. He offered up the course, free of charge, whenever they wanted. The boys took advantage, often playing two or three rounds each day after school.

They became really good, really fast.

Soon they started to travel the country to play tournaments. Gary worked a night shift for Delta Airlines, so airfare wasn’t a problem. To assuage the cost of hotels and rental cars, the boys took a part-time job.

Fire-knife dancing is popular in the Polynesian culture. It’s exactly what it sounds like, with knives attached to the ends of sticks, covered in material set aflame, all while being furiously spun around by a performer. They’d been practicing the art since they could walk — and Tony, especially, was extraordinarily talented. Named after his mother’s brother, who was a world-class fire-knife dancer, Tony entered junior competitions and would regularly defeat much older, more experienced kids.

“It’s second nature to me, just like riding a bike,” he explains. “I pick up a stick and I can still spin it pretty well.”

Some kids had paper routes. The Finau boys would hold fundraisers, luaus and parties during which they would perform fire-knife dances and might collect a few hundred dollars to help alleviate the travel expenses at tournaments.

It opened up a whole new world outside of Rose Park. They didn’t just compete against some of the world’s best young golfers, they got to know them. At Doral one year, they befriended a boy from Northern Ireland named Rory McIlroy, who would later spend time in Utah with them during the summer months.

When he was 12, Tony won the Junior World Championships in San Diego for his age division. He still considers that a major turning point in bridging the gap between golf as a hobby and as a potential career.

“I looked at the banners and saw the names — Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, all these guys,” he remembers. “Then I saw my name. I said, ‘Why not me? I can make it, too.’ That really motivated me on another level. I started thinking, I can take this really seriously and accomplish some big things in this game.”

Fast-forward to today and Tony has already accomplished some big things. Last season, he won his first PGA Tour title at the Puerto Rico Open. This season, he’s compiled seven top-10s in 28 starts, including a nerve-wracking share of seventh place at last week’s BMW Championship.

Following a disappointing conclusion to his third round, Tony was outside the projected top-30 to advance to the season finale. The next day, he chipped in for birdie on the final hole to post a 7-under 64 and reach the field at East Lake, a victory in itself because of the impending perks it guarantees.

“It was really a special round on Sunday, kind of an 11th hour thing to get in,” he says. “I knew what I had to do and to make it happen was pretty cool. Something I’ll remember for the rest of my career, for sure.”

It’s a career that will undoubtedly include much more success for a guy with a growing reputation as one of the game’s most gifted players. None other than three-time major champion Jordan Spieth says of him, “Tony Finau is an unbelievably talented player who’s probably going to win, I think, dozens of times out here. He is really, really good and very underrated, in my opinion.”

It wasn’t all so easy. He didn’t transition from learning the game at Jordan River to winning junior tournaments to competing in the Tour Championship without a heaping dose of strife.

On Nov. 27, 2011, Ravena died in a car accident. The mother who had been so influential as a positive presence in her children’s lives was returning from a wedding in California when she was killed near the small town of Elko, Nevada.

Tony was 22 at the time, a professional for five years already, but still learning the game while toiling on the mini-tours. “It was very personal for him,” Gary says. “Out of all the kids, he was mommy’s boy.” One day after Ravena’s death, Tony and girlfriend Alayna — now his wife — welcomed their first son, Jraice. Within months, while still mourning and living in a small apartment with his growing family, Tony developed a stomach ulcer.

“Since she passed away, there’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think about her,” he says. “Now that I’m a parent myself, I understand what my parents went through and what they sacrificed, just to put me in this position. I think she’d be proud if she was here and could see me accomplish some of the things I’ve accomplished. I think she’d be really proud.”

Which caddies get FedEx Cup playoff bonuses? And what’s the talk about Rory McIlroy’s looper situation? This week’s anonymous caddie at the Tour Championship goes in-depth on a multitude of topics.

There’s nothing wrong with East Lake Golf Club or Atlanta (home base of the tournament’s main sponsors), but the season-ending Tour Championship would be an even bigger deal if wasn’t anchored to one location.

Not everyone agrees that the PGA Tour’s season finale, the Tour Championship, needs an overhaul or even a few tweaks. But if the tour did make some changes, what might they be?

2 Related

There is no specific blueprint for how — or why, or when — a professional golfer will springboard into the next echelon. There is no singular determinant for a player shifting his game into an extra gear and becoming one of the world’s best.

It’s not all about intangibles, though. By reaching the Tour Championship field for the first time, Finau will own the luxury of being able to set his schedule for the upcoming season. He’ll be immediately qualified into each of the game’s biggest tournaments, at least offering the opportunity of making that leap.

“One of the major goals this season was to get into the Tour Championship, because of the perks,” says his longtime instructor, Boyd Summerhays. “But it’s not just the perks, it’s the next step in his career. The way he’s playing, that’s where he’s been trying to base his game. He wants to win a major championship — and you can’t win it if you’re not in it.”

Of the 30 competitors in this week’s field, Finau is the lone player who this week earned his maiden voyage down Magnolia Lane next April. He’s been invited to watch the Masters Tournament before; he’s been invited to play Augusta National. But he’s turned the offers down every time, instead explaining that he doesn’t want to walk in the footsteps of Tiger Woods from that first tournament he’d ever watched 20 years ago until he could take a similar journey.

“I have goosebumps,” he admits, “just thinking about it.”

As for Gary, the man who knew nothing about the game when he first took his boys to Jordan River, which now exists as only a disc-golf course, he struggles to describe how he’ll feel making that drive with Tony, arriving at Augusta National with his son an invited participant.

“The experience of realizing that you can bend down and kiss that ground …” he says, his voice trailing off into the late-afternoon sun. “This is real. You got here. It’s possible.”

He thinks back to those early days. There were no other Polynesian fathers — not in Rose Park, at least — who saw golf as a future for their sons. No others who saw it as an escape from the troubles in their neighborhood to a more indulgent lifestyle.

“We don’t fit any mold of why we’re here, why we’re playing this game,” he explains. “It’s not that easy. He’s first-generation. I had no interest in the game. That’s what I think about. How the heck did this happen? I don’t even know how we did it.”

The post Golf — Tony Finau’s road from fire-knife dancing to the Tour Championship appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

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[giantsfootball0]

Golf — Tony Finau’s road from fire-knife dancing to the Tour Championship

ATLANTA — Even now, Gary Finau can’t explain it. He’s walking down the perfectly manicured 18th fairway at East Lake Golf Club, host of this week’s Tour Championship, where the FedEx Cup champion will receive an eight-figure paycheck and even the last-place finisher will bank a total well into the six digits while pocketing invitations into each of next year’s major championships. His son, Tony, the third-oldest of eight children who grew up in their Rose Park, Utah, home, is just a few yards away, taking a mighty lash at his golf ball toward the final green.

It’s a scene Gary has been watching for 20 years. But he still shakes his head in wonderment about how it’s all unfolded.

“This is the sport that we used to talk about like, if you ever see me at a golf course, shoot me,” he says with a gregarious laugh. “Why would anybody go chase a little white ball into a hole? So we stayed far away. We thought playing golf was like going to your grave.”

The story of how he became the first golf instructor to a player who is now 28, ranked 53rd in the world and will embark on his first Masters appearance in April is one that sounds even too far-fetched for a Hollywood script.

Gary grew up in Tonga, playing rugby, cricket and football. When he immigrated to the United States at age 12, he fell in love with basketball and boxing. As Tony explains, “Golf in the Polynesian culture was just so out of the zone. Nobody plays golf. Everybody thought only girls or old rich white men play that sport.” It became part of their lives less by choice than happenstance.

The first tournament Tony recalls watching with his brother Gipper, who’s 11 months younger, was the 1997 Masters. A baby-faced Tiger Woods eviscerated the field that week, and the two boys in the hardscrabble neighborhood just northwest of Salt Lake City were among the millions who took notice.

“To see him do what he did, I could relate to him,” Tony says. “Obviously how exciting he was, but someone with a bit of color playing this game. That’s when I was like, maybe I can play golf. If he can do it, so can I.”

Within a few months, Tony’s mother, Ravena, implored Gary to find a hobby with the boys. The rationale was twofold: There would be critical father-son bonding time, but it would also keep the young boys out of the neighborhood and out of the trouble that always lurked there.

They offered them two nontraditional options: Golf or tennis. Still starry-eyed from watching Tiger, they chose the latter. That wasn’t the entire reason, though. The boys figured if they got good enough to play in tournaments, they could make their dad play caddie. The insidious thought of watching Gary lug a bag of clubs around a golf course was enough to cinch their decision.

So off they went to Jordan River, a par-3 facility where the first hole was 160 yards and none were longer. Gary would bark instructions despite his limited initiation into the game.

“He was still learning the game like we were,” Tony recalls. “Looking back, he was blindly teaching us to play golf.”

That was true, but he did know math.

“I used to drive them every day after school to the football field,” says Gary. “Stop there so they could see all their friends — 400 or 500 kids practicing Pop Warner football. I said, ‘Where is everybody?’ They’d say, ‘Right here.’ Then we’d drive up to the golf course. I’d say, ‘Who’s here?’ They’d say, ‘Nobody.’ I’d tell them, ‘Exactly. Your percentage to make it in golf is way better, boys. There’s no competition here. So let’s practice.‘”

And they did, nearly every day, for hours on end. Gary was the coach, Ravena was the motivator, the one who constantly assured them that they could accomplish anything.

The family didn’t have the financial means to afford daily rounds of golf, so Gary improvised. Knowing it didn’t cost anything to use the chipping and putting area, he’d collect old range balls and the boys would practice until sundown.

In three full seasons on the PGA Tour, Tony Finau has made at least $1.8 million each year. Heading into the 2016-17 season finale, he’s at $2.55 million and counting. Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images

Soon enough, the pro at Jordan River took notice of their work ethic. He offered up the course, free of charge, whenever they wanted. The boys took advantage, often playing two or three rounds each day after school.

They became really good, really fast.

Soon they started to travel the country to play tournaments. Gary worked a night shift for Delta Airlines, so airfare wasn’t a problem. To assuage the cost of hotels and rental cars, the boys took a part-time job.

Fire-knife dancing is popular in the Polynesian culture. It’s exactly what it sounds like, with knives attached to the ends of sticks, covered in material set aflame, all while being furiously spun around by a performer. They’d been practicing the art since they could walk — and Tony, especially, was extraordinarily talented. Named after his mother’s brother, who was a world-class fire-knife dancer, Tony entered junior competitions and would regularly defeat much older, more experienced kids.

“It’s second nature to me, just like riding a bike,” he explains. “I pick up a stick and I can still spin it pretty well.”

Some kids had paper routes. The Finau boys would hold fundraisers, luaus and parties during which they would perform fire-knife dances and might collect a few hundred dollars to help alleviate the travel expenses at tournaments.

It opened up a whole new world outside of Rose Park. They didn’t just compete against some of the world’s best young golfers, they got to know them. At Doral one year, they befriended a boy from Northern Ireland named Rory McIlroy, who would later spend time in Utah with them during the summer months.

When he was 12, Tony won the Junior World Championships in San Diego for his age division. He still considers that a major turning point in bridging the gap between golf as a hobby and as a potential career.

“I looked at the banners and saw the names — Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, all these guys,” he remembers. “Then I saw my name. I said, ‘Why not me? I can make it, too.’ That really motivated me on another level. I started thinking, I can take this really seriously and accomplish some big things in this game.”

Fast-forward to today and Tony has already accomplished some big things. Last season, he won his first PGA Tour title at the Puerto Rico Open. This season, he’s compiled seven top-10s in 28 starts, including a nerve-wracking share of seventh place at last week’s BMW Championship.

Following a disappointing conclusion to his third round, Tony was outside the projected top-30 to advance to the season finale. The next day, he chipped in for birdie on the final hole to post a 7-under 64 and reach the field at East Lake, a victory in itself because of the impending perks it guarantees.

“It was really a special round on Sunday, kind of an 11th hour thing to get in,” he says. “I knew what I had to do and to make it happen was pretty cool. Something I’ll remember for the rest of my career, for sure.”

It’s a career that will undoubtedly include much more success for a guy with a growing reputation as one of the game’s most gifted players. None other than three-time major champion Jordan Spieth says of him, “Tony Finau is an unbelievably talented player who’s probably going to win, I think, dozens of times out here. He is really, really good and very underrated, in my opinion.”

It wasn’t all so easy. He didn’t transition from learning the game at Jordan River to winning junior tournaments to competing in the Tour Championship without a heaping dose of strife.

On Nov. 27, 2011, Ravena died in a car accident. The mother who had been so influential as a positive presence in her children’s lives was returning from a wedding in California when she was killed near the small town of Elko, Nevada.

Tony was 22 at the time, a professional for five years already, but still learning the game while toiling on the mini-tours. “It was very personal for him,” Gary says. “Out of all the kids, he was mommy’s boy.” One day after Ravena’s death, Tony and girlfriend Alayna — now his wife — welcomed their first son, Jraice. Within months, while still mourning and living in a small apartment with his growing family, Tony developed a stomach ulcer.

“Since she passed away, there’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think about her,” he says. “Now that I’m a parent myself, I understand what my parents went through and what they sacrificed, just to put me in this position. I think she’d be proud if she was here and could see me accomplish some of the things I’ve accomplished. I think she’d be really proud.”

Which caddies get FedEx Cup playoff bonuses? And what’s the talk about Rory McIlroy’s looper situation? This week’s anonymous caddie at the Tour Championship goes in-depth on a multitude of topics.

There’s nothing wrong with East Lake Golf Club or Atlanta (home base of the tournament’s main sponsors), but the season-ending Tour Championship would be an even bigger deal if wasn’t anchored to one location.

Not everyone agrees that the PGA Tour’s season finale, the Tour Championship, needs an overhaul or even a few tweaks. But if the tour did make some changes, what might they be?

2 Related

There is no specific blueprint for how — or why, or when — a professional golfer will springboard into the next echelon. There is no singular determinant for a player shifting his game into an extra gear and becoming one of the world’s best.

It’s not all about intangibles, though. By reaching the Tour Championship field for the first time, Finau will own the luxury of being able to set his schedule for the upcoming season. He’ll be immediately qualified into each of the game’s biggest tournaments, at least offering the opportunity of making that leap.

“One of the major goals this season was to get into the Tour Championship, because of the perks,” says his longtime instructor, Boyd Summerhays. “But it’s not just the perks, it’s the next step in his career. The way he’s playing, that’s where he’s been trying to base his game. He wants to win a major championship — and you can’t win it if you’re not in it.”

Of the 30 competitors in this week’s field, Finau is the lone player who this week earned his maiden voyage down Magnolia Lane next April. He’s been invited to watch the Masters Tournament before; he’s been invited to play Augusta National. But he’s turned the offers down every time, instead explaining that he doesn’t want to walk in the footsteps of Tiger Woods from that first tournament he’d ever watched 20 years ago until he could take a similar journey.

“I have goosebumps,” he admits, “just thinking about it.”

As for Gary, the man who knew nothing about the game when he first took his boys to Jordan River, which now exists as only a disc-golf course, he struggles to describe how he’ll feel making that drive with Tony, arriving at Augusta National with his son an invited participant.

“The experience of realizing that you can bend down and kiss that ground …” he says, his voice trailing off into the late-afternoon sun. “This is real. You got here. It’s possible.”

He thinks back to those early days. There were no other Polynesian fathers — not in Rose Park, at least — who saw golf as a future for their sons. No others who saw it as an escape from the troubles in their neighborhood to a more indulgent lifestyle.

“We don’t fit any mold of why we’re here, why we’re playing this game,” he explains. “It’s not that easy. He’s first-generation. I had no interest in the game. That’s what I think about. How the heck did this happen? I don’t even know how we did it.”

The post Golf — Tony Finau’s road from fire-knife dancing to the Tour Championship appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

from https://dailystarsports.com/2017/09/21/golf-tony-finaus-road-from-fire-knife-dancing-to-the-tour-championship/ from https://dailystarsports.tumblr.com/post/165590179686

[junker-town]

Is Stanford-USC a rivalry yet? Some fans on both sides say yes, definitely

A series that was long dominated by the Trojans is now a must-win game for both California private schools.

When No. 6 USC hosts No. 14 Stanford (8:30 p.m. ET Saturday, FOX), it’ll be the 95th meeting in a series that dates back to 1919. While the two began playing on a consistent basis in 1946, the series has garnered much more national attention over the last 10 years than in any decade prior.

The reason: Stanford stopped being bullied around and did some bullying of its own. While the Trojans hold a 59-32-3 edge, the Cardinal have controlled the last decade and entered 2017 on a three-game winning streak.

This year’s game has some pretty high stakes. Both teams are legitimate Pac-12 contenders, with Sam Darnold’s USC team being a Playoff pick out of the conference, and Stanford loaded with talent and coming off of a bye week.

With a game of this magnitude coming up, is Stanford-USC finally a true rivalry?

Here’s what Nick Dempsey, who happens to run both SB Nation’s USC (Conquest Chronicles) and Stanford (Rule of Tree) sites (that’s a rare thing!), says:

I can see how others outside of Pac-12 Country might not see this as a rivalry. I'm an Ohio native. I grew up an hour north of Columbus, Ohio, so my opinion of rivalry is entirely molded by growing up in the heart of the Ohio State vs. Michigan. So when I think of rivalry, I think of late November, usually around Thanksgiving, lousy weather, supercharged feelings, and downright hatred. I've seen fights, violence, grown adults crying, drunken revelry, riot police, and actual dumpsters set on fire because of college football rivalry.

You really just do not get that from an early September game, and you almost never get that from a game involving Stanford. So I can totally understand how people would feel like it is not a real rivalry, but make no mistake; these two teams absolutely have this game circled on their schedule, and it is absolutely a must win for both teams.

The now-legendary 2007 game was definitely a turning point, and I think it will be difficult to adequately answer this question without talking about the decade since. When Jim Harbaugh was on the Farm, he definitely notched up the intensity, with "what's your deal" joining the ranks of college football lore (in fact, there is an entire media industry trying to determine what Harbaugh's deal is). Clay Helton and David Shaw though are not Pete Carroll or Jim Harbaugh, though, so you likely won't see any sort of bitterness stemming from them getting a little too intense or emotional.

At the end of the day, this is definitely a game that both teams and fan bases look forward to and both view this as a must watch/must win.

Other USC and Stanford fans weighed in, too.

"It's totally a rivalry, from the Stanford perspective,” Rule of Tree’s Cameron Saterlee said. “It's always a must-win game, and it always carries weight in the Pac-12 race. Beyond being just an important game, there's a very tangible emotional element for Stanford fans.

“It might even be our most important must-win rivalry, since Cal has been so bad lately,” Saterlee continued. I have a feeling that even though USC fans normally wouldn't deign to call us a rival, in the post-2007 world where the Cardinal have won eight of the last 11 games, Trojan fans are fixated on beating Stanford as much as Stanford fans are fixated on beating USC."

“Here’s the thing about college football: it is all about traditions,” Conquest Chronicle’s Josh Eccles said. “Calling USC vs. Stanford a rivalry may ruffle the feathers of some traditionalists but, honestly, I would call it exactly that. I would even go as far as saying it’s probably a rivalry more so geared towards a newer generation of football fans, mainly due to the Jim Harbaugh/Pete Carroll dynamic of the mid-to-late 2000s.

“Both programs are proud of their respective histories. There is the whole Northern California vs. Southern California angle. They’re both private schools. There are many things that, to me, make this a rivalry,” Eccles added. “Traditionalists would probably list rivalries steeped in more history than this one, but I would definitely make the argument that USC vs. Stanford is, at worst, in the conversation for most entertaining rivalry at this point in time.”

The game gained intensity starting in 2007.

That year’s game was an upset thriller, with the unranked Cardinal beating the Trojans, 24-23, during Harbaugh’s first season in Palo Alto. Carroll’s USC team was expected to roll over Stanford:

Stanford had gone 1-11 the year before, and Harbaugh began with three blowout losses in four games.

Carroll’s two-time-champion, 35-game-home-winning-streak, preseason No. 1 Trojans hosted Stanford and, speaking of huge gambles, was favored by anywhere from 39 to 41.5 points. The Cardinal were also sending out first-time starting QB Tavita Pritchard.

One of the biggest plays on the game-winning drive: Pritchard converting a fourth-and-20 by throwing to a Harbaugh WR who'd later play CB for Carroll against Harbaugh in the NFL. You know him as Richard Sherman.

They say it’s the biggest point-spread upset ever. It topped Appalachian State’s win at Michigan by more than a touchdown, giving 2007 arguably the two biggest upsets of all time.

Shortly after that was the famous “what’s your deal?” game, when Carroll and Harbaugh had a postgame staredown.

There have been some memorable ones over the last few years.

The 2011 matchup went into triple overtime and resulted in a 56-48 Stanford victory that was nearly as unforgettable as ‘07:

Stanford started with a touchdown and USC matched it. USC began the 2nd overtime with a touchdown, and then Luck found Levine Toilolo to tie it again.

In the third overtime, Stepfan Taylor found pay dirt, then Luck feinted right before spinning a dime to Coby Fleener for the extra two points.

USC needed eight to match, and as the Trojans once again threatened the end zone, Terrence Stephens' powerful right hand thumped the ball out.

The ball squirted into the end zone - triggering a gasp from the still-packed Coliseum - and AJ Tarpley pounced on the football to extend the Cardinal's 16-game win streak.

In 2013, an unranked USC team pulled off a 20-17 upset over No. 4 Stanford, which was capped off by a game-winning field goal.

Stanford’s had the upper hand recently, but most of the games have been close.

Between 2007 and 2016, the historically lesser program beat its big-brand state rival seven times in the regular season and once in the Pac-12 Championship, with USC’s last win coming in 2014. The formerly lowly Cardinal have beaten the Trojans by as many as 34 points.

[rickhorrow]

15+5+5 To Watch : 12020

15 TO WATCH/5 SPORTS TECH/POWER OF SPORTS 5: RICK HORROW’S TOP SPORTS/BIZ/TECH/PHILANTHROPY ISSUES FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 20

with Jacob Aere 

Brands spent $4.48 billion on TV advertising during 2019 regular season NFL broadcasts, according to iSpot.tv data shared by Broadcasting & Cable. The figure is up nearly 14% on 2018, as the number of ad airings during NFL broadcasts climbed more than 7% to more than 32,000. According to the data, the ads scored 157.8 billion impressions, an uptick of 11% from the previous year. Verizon, also an NFL sponsor, was the top-spending company, shelling out an estimated $150.6 million to advertise during NFL games. Insurance firms Geico, Progressive, and State Farm also spent more than $100 million on ad spots. Most money came from the automotive industry, as Toyota, Hyundai, and others reportedly spent $605.2 million on commercials, while electronics and communication firms spent an estimated $351 million. The study comes ahead of Super Bowl LIV, which has seen brands pay FOX as much as $5.6 million for a single 30-second ad slot during the game. We assume that State Farm is disappointed to see spokesman Aaron Rodgers’ Packers fall to the 49ers and miss out on a “Super State Farm Bowl” against fellow pitchman Patrick Mahomes.

Pro Football Hall of Fame's latest round of inductees were announced last Wednesday, when the 13-man contingent joining coaches Bill Cowher and Jimmy Johnson in Canton, Ohio, were revealed. The so-called "Centennial Slate" comprises 15 members in total, with 10 slots reserved for members of the Seniors category—former NFL players who have been eligible for election for over 20 years but have not been voted in yet—three contributors (including former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue), and the two coaches. According to Newsweek, The Hall of Fame assembled a special 25-man strong Blue-Ribbon Panel to determine the 15 inductees. The panel included 13 members from the Hall of Fame's traditional pool of 48 voters, while the remaining 12 comprised Hall of Famers, coaches, football executives, and football historians. A list of almost 300 candidates was whittled down to 38 finalists last month, which was voted on by the Blue-Ribbon Panel. The 15 men on the Centennial Slate will be joined by the five modern-era enshrinees, who will be announced during the NFL Honors ceremony the weekend of Super Bowl LIV in Miami.

Lots of familiar ESPN faces, U.S. females populate the Australian Open. The Australian Open gets underway on Monday, replete with many very familiar faces reporting from Melbourne against the backdrop of bushfires that have commanded headlines, donations, and on-the-ground aid personnel from across the world. In the broadcast booths at Rod Laver Arena and around the vast tennis complex, James Blake has joined ESPN’s tennis team, with the company announcing a bevy of new contracts for its veterans as well. Longtime ESPN tennis stalwarts with new contracts include Darren Cahill (2007, the year he joined ESPN); Chris Evert (2011); Mary Joe Fernandez, marking 20 years (2000); Brad Gilbert (2004); John McEnroe (2009); Patrick McEnroe, celebrating 25 years (1995); Chris McKendry (1996); and Pam Shriver, marking her 30th year with the network (1990). Additionally, there are 22 American women in this year’s Australian Open main draw, the most at a Slam other than the U.S. Open since the 1999 Australian Open. The first round pitted the oldest, 39 year old Venus Williams, against the youngest, 15 year old Coco Gauff (the winner).

Family-friendly Gainbridge LPGA event offers something for everyone. Gainbridge LPGA at Boca Rio kicks off this week with 108 of the world’s best female golfers teeing it up in the four-day championship, January 23-26. Event officials have outlined additional family-friendly and affordable tournament week offerings for the whole community. The tournament kicks off on Monday with the Gainbridge Junior Golf Clinic at Osprey Point Golf Course. LPGA Players and certified golf instructors will be on hand to offer free golf instruction to kids ages 5 and up. On Tuesday, #GainbridgeLPGA is teaming up with Versant Health for a Women’s Leadership Summit that will feature a panel headlined by female business leaders, a fireside chat with a LPGA Tour pro, and presentations from pioneering female leaders. Next weekend, A.D. Henderson University School will offer free onsite STEM activities for kids of all ages. “Gainbridge is committed to making sure the week is affordable for the entire family and that there is something for everyone, beyond golf,” said Lesley Baker, Executive Director. “We are thrilled the tournament is able to offer several programs throughout the week in year one, and we invite everyone in the community to come out and experience the event.”

NHL All-Star Game takes the ice and the streets in St. Louis. The NHL has lined up its roster of activations for the 2020 NHL Fan Fair, the official fan festival of the2020 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend, running January 23-26 in St. Louis. Partners gearing up for the event include Enterprise, Honda, New Amsterdam Vodka, Truly, Discover, Dunkin’, Bud Light, GEICO, Great Clips, MassMutual, and SAP. Highlights of the four-day, family-friendly festival include autograph sessions featuring former and current NHL All-Stars; a Hockey Hall of Fame exhibit featuring the St. Louis Blues; NHL memorabilia and trophy displays, including the Stanley Cup; and the sixth annual NHL Mascot Showdown featuring all 29 NHL Mascots. Additionally, the NHL and Green Day will build on their multiyear partnership with the band’s headlining performance at the 2020 Honda NHL All-Star Game on January 25. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees will perform outside Enterprise Center shortly before they take the stage inside during the second intermission presented by Ticketmaster. The performance – as always, aimed at expanding hockey’s demographic reach – will be televised as part of the live All-Star Game broadcast on NBC and throughout Canada.

The WNBA and its players' union have come to terms on a new eight-year collective bargaining agreement that includes higher salaries, improved family benefits, and better travel accommodations. This represents a turning point for women's basketball and could ultimately lead to a substantial shift in how female athletes — across all sports — are compensated. The average WNBA cash compensation will reach nearly $130,000, and top players will be able to earn upwards of $500,000. Players will also receive a full salary while on maternity leave, and an annual child care stipend of $5,000. WNBA teams, which provide housing, will now guarantee two-bedroom apartments for players with children. And while players will still have to fly commercial, they'll finally get their own individual hotel rooms. "We believe it's a groundbreaking and historic deal. I'm proud of the players; they bargained hard, they unified, they brought attention to so many important topics," said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. The implications of this agreement reach beyond basketball into the larger workplace, at a time when women are demanding increased pay and benefits, on their merit and as a challenge to historically unequal pay.

The NBA players’ union has created an accelerator to aid athletes’ off court business ventures. NBA superstars LeBron James and Kevin Durant have become serial investors, lending their names, ideas, and money to multiple business ventures and startups. Now, their union wants to help its members with similar off-court aspirations follow suit. To that end, the NBPA is creating an accelerator program that’s open to current and former members. The program will operate in conjunction with Patricof Co., a highly specialized private investment platform designed to meet the unique needs and of pro athletes. The firm’s clients include Henrik Lundqvist, Venus Williams, J.J. Watt, and Todd Gurley. The union says the program will offer select player-led companies benefits including mentorship, exposure to like-minded entrepreneurs, and access to resources of the NBPA, Patricof Co., and undisclosed program sponsors. The new accelerator includes a three-day training camp to be held in June that culminates in a final pitch to a panel of professional investors. Just think of it as “Shark Tank” for hoops.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred came down hard on the Houston Astros last week for illegally stealing signs in 2017. Penalties Manfred imposed included a $5 million fine, the forfeitures of several top draft picks, and one-year suspensions from the game for manager A.J. Hinch and GM Jeff Luhnow -- who were subsequently fired by Astros owner Jim Crane. While the Astros have suffered irrevocable damage as a result of this investigation, ripple effects extend far beyond Houston. Former Astros bench coach and Boston manager Alex Cora was also fired by the Red Sox for his involvement in the Houston sign-stealing, and former Astros player Carlos Beltran, whom the Mets hired as manager just days before the first sign-stealing story broke, was canned and thus had the shortest tenure in Mets history. The sign-stealing scandal also likely extends beyond Boston and Houston, and the league will have no choice but to pursue all future leads now that the precedent has been set. While MLB's strict punishment will likely help dissuade teams from breaking the rules, further action is still required to quell public concerns about cheating.

Looking beyond the Super Bowl, sports books nationwide are preparing for XFL bets. While sports fans have been focused on picking NFL playoff teams to bet on, or marshaling their cash for the Super Bowl, yet another opportunity to wager on football is right around the corner: the XFL. Several states have already authorized bets on the second incarnation of the upstart football league, which begins its season in February, shortly after the NFL season concludes with the Super Bowl. Others are considering doing so, and bookmakers say they have requested that regulators add the league to lists of approved betting events. On the sports betting front, helped by a surge in sports betting, Atlantic City's casinos won $3.29 billion from gamblers in 2019, an increase of over 15% from 2018 — and a huge boon for a city that's still recovering from a mid-decade meltdown that saw five casinos close.

The Super Bowl is two weeks away, but Pepsi is already making Miami Ground Zero. Pepsi has announced that Harry Styles will headline the Pepsi Zero Sugar Super Bowl party on January 31 at Meridian Island in Miami. Planet Pepsi Zero Sugar “will see an out-of-this world build out, transporting fans to a transcendent audio-visual experience unlike anything else at Super Bowl LIV,” according to the announcement. Pepsi also promises a free Pepsi Zero Sugar to everyone in the U.S. if either the San Francisco 49ers or the Kansas City Chiefs’ final score ends in zero. The company said that if such a score results, it will refund the price of the drink, up to $2.50, to anyone in the U.S. who purchases it from February 2-4. It said that in 25% of previous Super Bowl games, at least one team finished with a score ending in zero. Pepsi will also award the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year winner for the 17th straight year. This year’s winner will receive a custom matte black Pepsi Zero Sugar trophy as the highest fan-voted honor for NFL Rookies.

Fashion retailer H&M has announced a new partnership with NFL in a deal brokered by IMG. The arrangement will see a new line of NFL-branded products sold in more than 20 countries outside of the US, including China, Japan, and the UK. Akash Jain, the NFL’s vice president of commercial development, said, “By partnering with H&M, we are able to reach fans in markets across the world with a diverse selection of apparel and accessories for men, women and children.” Meanwhile, Matthew Primack, IMG’s senior vice president of licensing, added, “The NFL’s international appeal as a lifestyle and fashion brand continues to grow rapidly. “With its reputation for creative collaborations and thousands of stores around the world, H&M is the perfect partner to provide an accessible and stylish collection of NFL apparel and accessories that will be sought after by football fans and fashionistas.” The collaboration is designed as a response to the NFL’s growing international profile, with regular season games in London and Mexico having heightened the league’s exposure. The Super Bowl is now broadcast in over 180 countries and 24 languages. 

In other football fashion news, ahead of Super Bowl LIV, Saks Fifth Avenue has created a Super Bowl-inspired collection for its Miami stores. After a successful collaboration in Atlanta last year, the upscale retailer is going even bigger in Miami. Last year, Saks Chief Men's Merchant Louis DiGiacomo told Women’s Wear Daily that the retailer is "not working with the NFL on this initiative but undertook it independently." He added, “Every year we work with the store in the city the Super Bowl is in.” For this year’s game, more than 100 items were created by fashion brands ranging from Heron Preston and John Elliott to Prada. The products "range from ready-to-wear and sneakers to accessories and were designed to celebrate the game." With NFL athletes increasingly as fashion-conscious as their NBA counterparts, it’s a safe bet that the Saks collection will be perused by visiting players as well as sartorially-savvy fans.

Nike begins the 2020s where it began the 2010s: as the number one sportswear brand on the planet. Nike’s Q4 earnings in 2019 grew to $10.2 billion; its income for the last completed financial year was $39.1 billion. All the same, the Portland-based giant faces significant change. It begins 2020 under only its fourth chief executive. John Donahoe, former eBay chief executive, joined Nike in January. Donahoe arrives after an awkward end to Mark Parker’s 13-year tenure. The high-profile Oregon Project closed amid reports that Parker had known uncomfortable details about the activities of banned distance-running coach Alberto Salazar. Strategically, Nike has other decisions to make that will be pertinent to the wider industry. Nike acquired consumer data analytics firm Zodiac in March 2018 and then bought Celect, a “predictive analytics and demand sensing” specialist, in August 2019. That same month it launched Adventure Club, a three-tier trainer subscription service for children. A full-scale version, perhaps based on the Nike+ membership and training scheme, could be a useful source of recurring revenue. Running a $143 billion corporation brings its rewards. Donahoe collects $45 million in cash and stock on arrival, then stands to earn up to $18.5 million a year. 

Starting this season on golf’s European Tour, caddies — who are on camera almost as much as their players — will be able to earn money through endorsement deals. Allowing caddies to be paid to have logos on items like their hats, bag straps, and towels could significantly improve their financial stability, which is currently tied to player performance. “As it stands now, a player pays the caddie a weekly fee, mostly to cover expenses, and a percentage of his earnings,” notes the New York Times. “This is not for the guy who caddies for the seventh-ranked player in the world, since he does very nicely," Sean Russell, chairman of the European Tour Caddies Association, told the media outlet. "This is for the guy who caddies for the 157th-ranked player. If you do the math, that caddie probably earned 12,000 euros (about $13,000) in bonus payments over the fixed fee for the week that covers expenses. If you're earning a 12,000-euro bonus you'd be better off stacking shelves." Since 2014, Valspar has sponsored the PGA Tour's Caddie Hat Program, which pays caddies to wear the paint company's logo on their hats. The European Tour's approach expands on that. 

Sad that the college football season has ended? A few more All-Star games remain. The Hula Bowl, the post-season all-star college football game held annually in Hawaii, named Newsweek as title sponsor of the 2020 event, which takes place January 26. “Newsweek is delighted to support the revival of a great American tradition," said Newsweek CEO Dev Pragad. "The Hula Bowl, with its deep American roots and its potential for global appeal, fits perfectly with our mission to build a loyal audience through highly engaging content on our multimedia platforms.” NFL Network also delivers live coverage of three collegiate all-star games this month starting this past Saturday, with the East-West Shrine Bowl and the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. On January 25, the network airs the Reese’s Senior Bowl. For college football diehards, that leaves mere weeks to fill with the pro game, including the debut of the XFL, before the NFL Combine gets underway in Indianapolis February 23.

Power of Sports Five

The NBA tipped off league-wide activities honoring the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. NBA teams playing January 16–20 are wearing custom Nike MLK Day warmup shirts designed in collaboration with the NBPA, MLK Foundation, and Martin Luther King III. The Dri-FIT T-shirt features words from MLK’s timeless speech on August 28, 1963: “We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.”  The NBA has long been a leader in race relations and community outreach activities centered on diversity, and its annual MLK Day celebrations – which lead into the league’s month-long celebration of Black History Month every February – serve as a tentpole moment for this activism each year. 

A capacity crowd of more than 15,000 at Rod Laver Arena watched Roger Federer defeat Nick Kyrgios in a one-set finale to the Australian Open's Rally for Relief to aid wildfire charities last Wednesday. Tennis Australia said the night helped raise nearly 5 million Australian dollars ($3.5 million) for the victims of recent and ongoing fires in Australia that have killed 28 people and destroyed several thousand homes, most of them in New South Wales and Victoria states. Smoke haze from the continuing fires has played havoc with scheduling of the first two days of qualifying at Melbourne Park, delaying play by several hours and prompting complaints from players over the air quality. Other players who took part included Rafael Nadal, Serena Williams, Caroline Wozniacki, and Alexander Zverev. On several occasions, volunteer fire personnel were invited on the court to play against the tennis stars. Fundraising efforts, which include various amounts for aces served during the tournament and the sale of merchandise donated by players, continue as the Australian Open begin in earnest on Monday.

FOX honors Stoneman Douglas students during its Super Bowl LIV prep. The football team of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida was recently invited by FOX to serve as stand-ins for the Niners and the Chiefs as FOX technicians check camera angles for their broadcast ahead of the game. "They are really excited. It should be an awesome experience," Stoneman Douglas football coach Quentin Short, told the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Stoneman Douglas was the site of the tragic mass shooting in Parkland in February 2018. Its students, including student athletes, subsequently became high-profile international spokespeople for gun control, and were said to be an inspiration for Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg in her international quest to combat climate change.

The Fritz Pollard Alliance released a pointed statement decrying the last two NFL hiring seasons. The Athletic reports that the alliance, which was founded in 2003 to promote diversity hiring, “called on the league to...take tangible steps to develop plans to increase the hiring of people of color in leadership positions.” Of five NFL openings this offseason, only one was filled by a minority — Ron Rivera at Washington. In the last two hiring seasons, only one African-American was hired to fill the 13 openings (Brian Flores in Miami), with five African-Americans fired. Four of 32 NFL teams have a minority coach: Washington, Miami, Pittsburgh (Mike Tomlin), and the Chargers (Anthony Lynn). 70% of the NFL’s players are men of color compared with 12.5% of head coaches. The alliance points out that in 100 years the NFL has gone from Pollard as the first African-American coach in 1921 to four coaches of color in 2020; the league has only one African-American GM and no African-American team presidents. This despite the presence of the Rooney Rule, enacted in 2002, which requires that teams interview at least one minority candidate. 

Dwayne Wade begins new career as Chief Culture Officer for CAA. Wade may have retired at the end of the 2018-2019 season, but there’s little downtime in his future. According to AdWeek, the 13-time All-Star is launching a new company with powerhouse talent agency CAA to help marketers connect with diverse audiences. Wade, who will soon celebrate his 38th birthday and have his Miami Heat jersey retired during a three-day ceremony, said he’s motivated in part by being “extremely competitive” with his wife, businesswoman and actor Gabrielle Union, and setting an example for his family. Wade’s role at CAA will have several facets. He’s launching CAA AMP, described as a brand-focused “cultural strategy agency,” and taking on the title of chief culture officer of CAA Basketball. There, Wade intends to help other athletes chart an entrepreneurial course for their post-playing lives. The new division is an extension of CAA’s diversity initiatives. In 2017, the agency launched CAA Amplify, highlighted by an invite-only conference featuring diverse artists and leaders from the sports, entertainment, media, and political worlds.

Top Five Tech

BASE:LINE is the new soundtrack to the NBA thanks to Apple, Ebro Darden, and Steve Stoute. According to The Undefeated, music industry entrepreneur Steve Stoute has combined the forces of Apple and the NBA to create a new weekly music playlist of 40 songs that will search the world for new hip-hop talent. The first weekly installment, which was released January 16, features Baby Keem, Dame D.O.L.L.A., Princess Nokia, Mozzy, Young M.A., Tobe Nwigwe, and more. Apple’s director of hip-hop and R&B, Ebro Darden, will curate the weekly playlists and the NBA will feature BASE:LINE in the soundtrack for its highlights and on social media. The new playlist offers artists a platform to get their music to a large worldwide audience while fans feel privileged to hear the up and coming artists before the rest of the world – it’s a win-win all centered around getting more eyeballs on the NBA.

Nike partners with esports giants T1 Entertainment and Sports and their League of Legends star Faker. According to SportsPro, Nike will design all T1 team uniforms while every athlete on the South Korean outfit’s roster will wear Nike footwear and sportswear during competition. The agreement also includes the development of a new esports training facility based in T1 headquarters in Seoul, South Korea’s capital, where Nike will devise training programs designed to improve the performance of T1’s professional gamers. Lee Sang-hyeok, T1’s star League of Legends player commonly known as “Faker,” will play a key role in promoting the partnership due to his iconic status and strong personal following. Founded in 2012, T1 becomes the latest esports company in which Nike has invested. The sportswear manufacturer signed its first esports apparel deal with China’s League of Legends Pro League last February and has since entered into a multi-year partnership with Furia Esports, a Brazilian gaming company. Nike is one of the few athletic brands diving headfirst into esports and is establishing itself early as a key player in the rapidly developing esports field.

BetMGM becomes the exclusive gaming partner of the National Lacrosse League. According to SportTechie, the deal represents the first gaming partnership for any lacrosse league in the United States. BetMGM is the mobile sports betting app developed by Roar Digital, a joint venture between MGM Resorts International and U.K.-based gambling firm GVC Holdings. BetMGM will create weekly betting lines distributed across all NLL platforms and social channels. Users will be able to wager on NLL games (where it’s legal), including placing in-game bets via the BetMGM mobile app or website. The BetMGM sportsbook is only currently available to users based in New Jersey. BetMGM also allows users to place bets on sports such as the NBA, NHL, NFL, MLB, MMA, college sports, soccer, golf, and tennis. The brand will receive promotional opportunities throughout the NLL regular season and playoffs as part of its partnership with the league. In November, the NLL announced a multi-year agreement with sports analytics firm Sportlogiq and the league already secured a betting integrity deal with Genius Sports, so the BetMGM deal was the final puzzle piece to get fans betting and paying attention to professional lacrosse.

Under-Armour refocuses its global brand through podcasts and long-form content. According to The Drum, the sports company's latest campaign, “The Only Way is Through,” aims to realign the sports label as one that truly understands athletes’ drive to push limits – to break “through” pain and mental barriers. It features a wide array of star athletes, including basketball MVP Stephen Curry, swimming legend Michael Phelps, and volleyball world champion Zhu Ting, who star in a fast-cut hero film that places them all in their natural, blood-pumping environments. This new campaign led to an entirely new global platform of storytelling: podcasting. Alongside out-of-home and OTT streaming buys, the brand is trialing new formats in order to get consumers engaging deeper with its athletes and is launching its first podcast with iHeartRadio. The series, which will launch with eight episodes and be hosted by the famed interviewer Cal Fussman. Similarly, Under Armour has brokered a deal with The Players' Tribune, in which the brand’s stars will write about their experiences in sport.

Barstool Sports is close to selling to little-known casino company Penn National. According to Recode, the Chernin Group, which currently owns Barstool, is in advanced talks to sell a majority stake in the company to Penn National Gaming, a publicly traded, regional gambling company that operates 41 properties in 19 states. Barstool was last valued at more than $100 million, but a potential purchase price could be much higher, and might create the biggest media-gambling tie-up in the U.S. since the Supreme Court legalized sports betting in 2018. The deal would tie Barstool, a well-known company with a passionate audience, to a casino company you may have never heard of and use Barstool’s brand to transition into online sports betting. This potential move looks like a positive for Barstool, which can't find a home with sports leagues due to its brash approach to sports and pop culture coverage, and Penn National, which needs to compete in the move to online sports betting.

[hottytoddynews]

HottyToddy.com provides readers a roundup of the commentary and information about the Ole Miss Rebels from various publications around the Web.

Readers can check out the latest information in a single post each day throughout the year. Here at HottyToddy.com, we are doing all the leg work to find the information that people want about Ole Miss sports.

Today’s stories come from Ole Miss Sports

Ole Miss Volleyball Announces 2017 Schedule

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Photo courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics

eading back to the newly-renovated Gillom Center this year, Ole Miss volleyball head coach Steven McRoberts announced the team’s 2017 schedule, which includes two home tournaments, nine home Southeastern Conference matches and eight matches against 2016 NCAA Tournament teams.

Schedule at a glance… • Ole Miss will face six teams who made the NCAA Tournament last year, including SEC Champion Missouri and Texas A&M twice. • Ole Miss will open the season hosting the Rebel Invitational Aug. 25-27. Teams include Louisiana Tech, North Dakota (2016 NCAA participant), Chattanooga and Florida A&M. • Prior to the football team’s home game against UT Martin, the Rebels will host the Rebel Classic Sept. 7-8 with Austin Peay, Northwestern State and Mercer coming to Oxford. • Other non-conference tournaments include a short drive to Jonesboro, Arkansas for the Arkansas State Tournament Sept. 1-2 featuring 2016 NCAA Tournament team SMU. The Rebels will round out the non-conference schedule with a trip to the most magical place on earth, Orlando, Florida for the UCF Tournament Sept. 16-17. • In between the final two tournaments, the Rebels will travel to Greely, Colorado for a mid-week match at Northern Colorado on Sept. 12. • SEC home matches include Auburn (Sept. 22), Alabama (Sept. 24), Georgia (Oct. 1), Florida (Oct. 13), Missouri (Oct. 25), Arkansas (Oct. 29), Mississippi State (Nov. 5), Texas A&M (Nov. 12) and South Carolina (Nov. 22). • The Rebels will play six conference foes twice, traveling to Mississippi State (Sept. 27), Arkansas (Oct. 6), Missouri (Oct. 8), South Carolina (Oct. 15), Texas A&M (Oct. 22) and Georgia (Nov. 10). Other road matches include LSU (Oct. 18), Tennessee (Nov. 17) and Kentucky (Nov. 19).

The Rebels return four starters from 2016, including outside hitters Kate Gibson and Lexi Thompson, who are poised to become the first Ole Miss members of the 1,000/1,000 club in the rally scoring era. Thompson and Gibson need 82 and 46 digs, respectively, to become the newest members of the exclusive club. Both players surpassed 1,000 kills last year, and battled it out until the end for the single-season kills record.

The full TV schedule will be released later this summer to include game times and TV designations. All home games not on TV will be available on SEC Network + via WatchESPN and the ESPN app.

For more information on Ole Miss Volleyball, follow the Rebels on Twitter, @OleMissVB, on Facebook at OleMissVolleyball and on Instagram at OleMissVB. Also follow Coach McRoberts on Twitter, @CoachMcRoberts.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports

Thornberry Readies For PGA Tour FedEx St. Jude Classic

Photo Ole Miss Athletics

Ole Miss sophomore golfer Braden Thornberry will compete in his first PGA Tour event this week at the FedEx St. Jude Classic in Memphis.

Thornberry, the 2017 NCAA Individual Champion, earned entry into the field thanks to a sponsor’s exemption earlier this spring. He tees off in round one Thursday at 9 a.m. in a group that includes Julian Etulain and Zack Sucher at the 7,244 yard, par-70 TPC at Southwind. Thornberry will play in the same group Friday with a 2 p.m. tee time.

The Southaven, Mississippi native is very familiar with the course at Southwind, tying the course record with a 61 at the 2012 Memphis Golf Association Junior Invitational when he was just 15 years old.

“It is going to be an awesome experience,” Thornberry said. “I will have a bunch of friends and family here to support me, because it is just 20 minutes from home. I have played the course 30 to 40 times, but never under tournament conditions. I’ve seen the pros play the course before, so I don’t think anything will surprise me.”

Ole Miss head coach Chris Malloy believes Thornberry’s knowledge of the course will help him during his first PGA Tour event.

“Anytime you get to play in a PGA Tour event it’s special and to be able to play in his hometown is a big deal,” Malloy said. “Familiarity will play a big part for him this week with all the new things being thrown at him, but he is very level-headed and I think he will be able to handle everything. He has had a few good days of prep and will be primed and ready to go.”

Ole Miss All-American and PGA Tour pro Jonathan Randolph will also be competing at the FedEx St. Jude this week. Randolph tees off at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

Daniel Berger won last year’s FedEx St. Jude Classic with a 13-under 267. This year’s event features a $6.4 million purse with $1.152 million awarded to the champion.

For all Ole Miss Men’s golf news and information, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMGolf, on Instagram at OleMissMGolf and on Facebook at http://ift.tt/2coEm4A. Fans can also follow head coach Chris Malloy on Twitter @CoachMalloy12.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports

Engels, Erb Advance for Ole Miss on Day One of NCAA Championships

Seniors Craig Engels and MJ Erb advanced through their semifinals to lead the way for No. 17 Ole Miss Wednesday, the first day of the 2017 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships from Oregon’s Historic Hayward Field.

With Engels advancing in the 1500 meters and Erb in the steeplechase, Friday’s final day of the men’s championship will feature three Rebels with big scoring chances, including junior Brian Williams in the discus.

Engels sat in second place for nearly the entire heat one of the 1500 meters Wednesday before breaking it open over the final 200 meters to take the win in 3:40.07. He will be the top seed in Friday’s 12-man final, which is scheduled for 7:42 p.m. CT on ESPN.

This is the second straight year for Engels, the two-time defending SEC champion in the 1500, to make the final in Eugene. He was a semifinalist in the 800 back in 2015.

It’s also the second straight year for Erb to make the 3000-meter steeplechase final, which is set for Friday at 7:54 p.m. on ESPN, immediately after the 1500. The SEC champion ran second or third for most of his heat. With the top five automatically advancing to the final, the homestretch featured seven men racing for those five spots, and Erb sprinted up to ensure his spot in a blanket finish by the top five men.

Another senior, Dempsey McGuigan, was oh so close to scoring points for the Rebels in the hammer throw. After placing eighth at last year’s NCAA Championships, he was throwing even farther Wednesday, but was done in by an historic performance from the field. In the first NCAA championships ever with eight men to throw over 70 meters, McGuigan finished in 10th with a best throw of 69.14m/226-10. He will earn second team All-America status (finishers 9-16 in each event).

Thursday will feature the first day of competition for the women, including Rebels in the hammer throw (Janeah Stewart), 4×100-meter semifinals (Nicole Henderson, Shannon Ray, Deanna Tate, Breanna Tate), steeplechase semifinals (Shelby Brown) and shot put (Raven Saunders, Stewart).

For more information on Ole Miss Track & Field, follow the Rebels on Twitter (@OleMissTrack), Facebook and Instagram.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports

Thornberry Named Haskins Award Winner As Top Collegiate Golfer

Ole Miss sophomore Braden Thornberry continued to add to his long list of accomplishments Wednesday after he was named the Fred Haskins Award winner, as the most outstanding men’s collegiate golfer.

The Fred Haskins Award is presented annually by the Haskins Commission to honor the most outstanding collegiate golfer in the United States. The award is named in memory of Fred Haskins, former golf teaching professional at the Country Club of Columbus. Votes are tabulated by the Haskins Commission from select writers, golf coaches and collegiate golfers.

Thornberry, who captured the 2017 NCAA Arnold Palmer Individual National Championship, led the nation in stroke average at 69.57 this season and posted five wins including the national title. The Southaven, Mississippi native is tied with Dave Peege for the Ole Miss record with seven career wins in just two seasons in Oxford.

“It is an honor to win the Haskins Award,” Thornberry said. “It validates all of the hard work that I have put in with my teammates. We are changing the culture of the Ole Miss Golf program and are headed in the right direction. I can’t thank Coach (Chris) Malloy and Coach (Kyle) Ellis enough for what they have done for me this year. It is an unbelievable feeling knowing my name will be alongside greats like Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. This makes me even more excited for next season!”

“To be named the most outstanding player in college golf is an incredible honor,” said Ole Miss head coach Chris Malloy. “Braden has been so consistent and to cap the year off with an NCAA Championship makes this season one that we will never forget. I am so proud of Braden, not only for his development on the course, but the man that he has matured into off of it. He is a great representative of our program as well as this wonderful award.”

Past Haskins winners include Ben Crenshaw, Luke Donald, David Duval, Justin Leonard, Phil Mickelson and Tigers Woods. Winners have gone on to compete in 42 Ryder Cups, win 28 majors and over 250 PGA Tour events.

For all Ole Miss Men’s golf news and information, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMGolf, on Instagram at OleMissMGolf and on Facebook at http://ift.tt/2coEm4A. Fans can also follow head coach Chris Malloy on Twitter @CoachMalloy12.

Past Haskins Award Winners 2017    Ole Miss          Braden Thornberry 2016    Texas               Beau Hossler 2015    Stanford          Maverick McNealy 2014    Stanford          Patrick Rodgers 2013    California        Michael Kim 2012    Alabama         Justin Thomas 2011    UCLA               Patrick Cantlay 2010    Georgia           Russell Henley 2009    N.C. State        Matt Hill 2008    UCLA               Kevin Chappell 2007    So. California Jamie Lovemark 2006    Oklahoma St. Pablo Martín 2005    UNLV               Ryan Moore 2004    Wake Forest   Bill Haas 2003    Oklahoma St.  Hunter Mahan 2002    UAB                 Graeme McDowell 2001    Georgia Tech Bryce Molder 2000    Oklahoma St.  Charles Howell III 1999    Northwestern Luke Donald 1998    Georgia Tech  Matt Kuchar 1997    Texas               Brad Elder 1996    Stanford          Tiger Woods 1995    Georgia Tech  Stewart Cink 1994    Texas               Justin Leonard 1993    Georgia Tech  David Duval 1992    Arizona State Phil Mickelson 1991    Arizona State  Phil Mickelson 1990    Arizona State  Phil Mickelson 1989    Arizona            Robert Gamez 1988    Texas               Bob Estes 1987    Arizona State  Billy Mayfair 1986    Oklahoma St.  Scott Verplank 1985    So. California  Sam Randolph 1984    UNC                 John Inman 1983    Furman           Brad Faxon 1982    Oklahoma St.  Willie Wood 1981    Oklahoma St.  Bob Tway 1980    BYU                 Bobby Clampett 1979    BYU                 Bobby Clampett 1978    Oklahoma St.  Lindy Miller 1977    So. California  Scott Simpson 1976    Florida             Phil Hancock 1975    Wake Forest   Jay Haas 1974    Wake Forest   Curtis Strange 1973    Texas               Ben Crenshaw 1972    Texas               Ben Crenshaw 1971    Texas               Ben Crenshaw

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports

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[beverlymunoz]

POAPS: Richard Pitino

Wherein tvp1 makes the case for Richard Pitino

Next up – Richard Pitino, the 34 year old head coach at the University of Minnesota, and son of coaching legend Rick Pitino.

Important Questions, In Rough Order Of Importance:

1. Has he coached teams that have won a national title, made multiple deep NCAA tournament runs, and/or consistently been highly ranked?

No. The Gophers are lock for this year’s NCAA tournament (Jerry Palm has them as a 5 seed now), and this will be Pitino’s first trip to the NCAA tournament as a head coach.

2. Has he built a program from the ground up?

No. Pitino spent only one year as the head man at Florida International before taking over at Minnesota for Tubby Smith. Tubby’s teams consistently were around 21-14 in his 6 year tenure and made the NCAAs thrice, including in his last year when the Gophers reached the lofty KPom rank of 20 (more on Tubby’s tenure below).

Pitino’s first year was OK: 25-13 and an NIT Championship. Then the bottom fell out. 18-15 followed by 8-23. Pitino was on everyone’s “hot seat” list coming into the season. He’s responded: 23-7, 11-5 in the B1G with a chance for a second place finish, KPom ranking of 32, and as mentioned an NCAA lock.

3. Has he substantially improved the program from when he took over?

He certainly did in his brief tenure at Florida International. At the tender age of 30, Pitino took over an 8-23 team from Isiah Thomas. (Yes, this was a thing that happened – Isiah Thomas was the head basketball coach at Florida International! And he was really terrible!) He improved that win total by 10 in his lone season there, the school’s first winning season in a decade. (Note, however, that FIU only went up from 221 to 187 in the KPom rankings.)

At Minnesota, the answer is murkier. None of Tubby’s teams rated better than a #10 seed in the NCAAs, and Pitino is on track to do better than that this year. Indeed, this is looking like the best Minnesota season not tainted by scandal since 1982 (more below). 7 of the 8 rotation players are non-seniors, so things are looking up going forward. I’ll answer this question with a qualified “yes.”

4. Has he succeeded at more than one head coaching job?

Again, let’s go with a qualified “yes” here. We lack enough of a track record at both jobs to be sure.

5. Does he have significant high-major experience as either a head coach or an assistant?

Pitino has a great pedigree, especially for someone so young. Besides his 4 years at Minnesota, he has 5 years of high-major assistant experience at two winning high-majors: Louisville and Florida (under Billy Donovan).

6. Is his team one of the best in its conference right now?

Indeed. As noted, Minnesota is near the top of the (albeit somewhat down this year) B1G.

7. Do his teams actually play, what is this thing called, "defense"?

This year the Gophers are 15th in the KPom Adj Defense rankings, so yes. Past results have been spottier. In reverse order: 162, 91, 78.

Pitino’s teams at Minnesota, except his first, have played fairly up-tempo, ranging between 48 and 162 in the rankings. Articles describe Pitino’s system as a mirror of the full-court high-pressure style favored by his father. He has a video about it as well.

8. So how about offense?

Pitino’s first two teams were good offensively, ranking 38 in 2014 and 41 in 2015. The bottom fell out in 2016: 230. This year, he’s bounced back to 77. The team has not shot the ball well this year, and is only decent rebounding, but they’ve gotten to the line and taken care of the ball. They don’t take many 3s.

9. Any indication that he can recruit McDonald’s All-American-type players?

Pitino convinced top-40 recruit Amir Coffey to stay in Minnesota (he’s now a freshman) and he has a top-100 recruit committed in the incoming class. No other top-100 recruits in his Minnesota tenure, but again, Minnesota. His bio notes that Louisville signed two top 15 classes in his three years there, but how much of that one can attribute to Pitino as opposed to other factors, who knows.

So this one I rate as “unclear,” but I think he’d likely do pretty well at State in this regard as long as he hired the right assistants. Hell, Herb Sendek and Sidney Lowe recruited well here.

10. Does he have any connection to NC State, North Carolina, or the ACC?

Besides the obvious one, no. Pitino is a Providence graduate.

11. Any other random red flags or positives?

He seems to be very similar to his Dad all around – in style, work ethic, mannerisms, even appearance. I would be fine with that, your opinion may vary.

Summary:

Would he be better than Gottfried?

As with other young, limited track records means one just has to shrug here. It could go either way. From one perspective, his record is 5 years as a head coach and only one really successful season, absent which he may have been fired this year. From another perspective, he’s already had success at two very difficult jobs and looks primed for more.

About that difficult job point: Before Clem Haskins arrived in 1986, Minnesota had been to the NCAAs twice. Two times. In its entire history. Haskins was quite successful: in 12 years, 6 NCAAs and 3 trips to the second weekend, including a Final Four in 1997.

Just one problem: Haskins was cheating like hell to do it, overseeing an academic fraud that even Roy had to have respected for its audacity. Unlike Roy (to date), Haskins had to suffer the consequences eventually. He was forced out in 1999, many of those wins were vacated (including the Final Four), and fairly severe sanctions were placed on Minnesota.

Dan Monson took over. Monson was the coach who first had success at Gonzaga. Why he took this job, I have no clue, and I suspect he regrets it. No doubt hampered by the sanctions, in 7+ seasons he made one NCAA appearance.

Enter Tubby Smith, following his divorce from Kentucky. Tubby’s record is summarized above. It doesn’t seem that impressive, until you consider that it’s easily the best non-Haskins 6 year stretch in Minnesota basketball history. He eventually said to hell with it and went to Texas Tech.

Pitino now is going beyond where Tubby, a damn fine coach, was able to take Minnesota. (N.B., this author always had a soft spot for Tubby.) In context, it’s quite impressive. It’s not as if the state of Minnesota churns out tons of top talent, he’s in a tough conference, and he’s faced various problems associated with the school and the athletic department, plus a long history of futility and scandal. You also have to consider that Pitino was only 31 when he started at Minnesota.

Back to the question: I think he’d likely do better than the Gott Man.

OK, so what is his ceiling?

His ceiling is that he’s his Dad. So, high.

Would he take the job if offered?

Here’s a fascinating question. Given the difficulties inherent in the Minnesota job, Pition’s evident ambition, and Pitino’s lack of any prior connection there, I can’t imagine he’ll be a lifer there. The question is, would he leave now, and would he come to NC State?

Having gone through the tough times at Minnesota early and achieved success, with the roster set up for a bright future, Pitino may think, “why leave now”? Minnesota also is building a long-awaited basketball practice facility that should help him. Then again, he may see a big season as the perfect time to move: do so now while he still can.

Did I mention that the Minnesota athletic department has been something of a shit show? Pitino was hired by former AD Norwood Teague. You may remember Norwood as the VCU AD when we tried to hire Shaka Smart in 2011, a proud UNC graduate, and a guy who sexually harasses his employees (allegedly). So Pitino is no longer employed by the guy who hired him. More recently, the football team had an embarrassing and divisive incident this year surrounding players who were suspended after being accused of sexual assault, and the team briefly boycotting as a result. No one came out of that looking good (counterpoint: Minnesota was able to lure hot coaching target PJ Fleck to take over football).

Then, the elephant in the room: Would he want to coach against his father on a regular basis?

His salary is $1.6 million, with a buyout “north of $1 million.” Doable.

Bottom line: In Pete Thamel’s recent coaching carousel column, he mentioned Pitino as a candidate for USF. If that’s accurate, you’d have to think he’d be interested in Raleigh. Unless he’s totally opposed to coaching against his Dad, or the elder Pitino tells him State is a crappy job, I think he’d at minimum be interested…and I say yes, he’d take the job if offered.

How would I feel if he were hired?

There’s been a lot of (very frustrating) talk in the media about how certain coaches at relatively cushy mid-major jobs will be patient and wait for the perfect opening, and not dirty their hands with the icky NC State job. Pitino doesn’t seem like that guy. Instead of waiting around, he jumped into the FIU dumpster fire, then jumped at the Minnesota job at age 31 despite all the negative history there. He’s not afraid of a challenge. I like that.

Compare Pitino to Will Wade. Both the same age. Wade had 2 good years at a low major, then took over a great position at VCU and kept its success going for two years. Pitino surely could have done something like that, but instead took a much harder road, went through some tough times at a tough P5 job, nearly got fired, but fought and emerged victorious on the other side. Yet everyone is in love with Wade while many would turn up their noses at Pitino because he had a crappy year last year. Does that make sense? I still like Wade a little more, probably, but it’s very close.

In the course of writing this profile, I have gained great respect for Pitino. I’d be very happy with this hire.

How would the fan base as a whole feel if he were hired?

As noted, you can read his track record positively or negatively. Which means that 90% of the fan base will talk themselves into this hire within a week, especially given the lure of Rick Pitino 2.0 captaining the program for the next 30 years (at least, until he leaves to coach the Brooklyn Nets in 2024).

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[midoriyasbones]

Vivirdian’s Story

So I’ve been hinting at the monstrous chapter all week on this account and I think I’m finally to post part one of Vivirdian’s story. However I’ve got 15,000 words to review, which is... a lot. So it may not be up tonight, but it SHOULD be up, if not by tomorrow, by the end of the weekend. Until then I’m giving you the most refined section of the story so far, which is 7189 words long. Enjoy and let me know what you think! Please send this to any Brave New World friends who don’t follow me!

Vivirdian’s Story

Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.

As a young boy, Vivirdian grew up having no real idea of what he wanted to do with his life. Everybody he knew had a good idea by the time they completed their primary formal educations. Judiallo wanted to be a teacher, and everyone agreed she’d be a wonderful teacher. Meyalian wanted to study farming and help develop new and more efficient ways to harvest melons. Everyone approved, saying he could do anything he put his mind too.  Everybody just knew what they were meant to do, everybody but Vivirdian. In school they’d get asked all the time what they wanted to be and everybody had a confident, concrete response. They just knew what their passion was and they knew what areas would suite them best, all except Vivirdian. Every single time that dreaded question was asked he would get flustered and mumble out a soft ‘I know not’ and promptly change the subject. Despite everybody’s reassurances that it was perfectly fine not to know he was still embarrassed by it. Everyone he knew had found their place in the universe, but Vivirdian was beginning to wonder if he even had one at this point.

When he confided this thought to his mother she waved him away with a little laugh. “Oh Vivi, you’re going to be a dancer. Is that not what you have been doing all your life?”

This was true. As a young boy his mother placed him in beginning dance classes and he never had the heart to tell her he didn’t enjoy them nearly as much as he told her he did. It just wasn’t what he felt called to do, but he wasn’t even sure what he was called to do. He didn’t know what that felt like, he only knew that it didn’t feel like this. But he stuck with dance. He faithfully attended rehearsals, performed in parades, and competed in small scale local competitions because even if it wasn’t his passion, it was his ticket to finding out what his passion was. But it wasn’t as if he was completely indifferent to the sport, because he certainly wasn’t. He loved dancing and moving his body to the beat of music.

Vivirdian grew up in a small farming settlement that mostly grew certain kinds of melons and vegetables. There were only around 100 or so kids in the town and everybody knew everyone. It was nice in that life was quiet. They lived peacefully away from the bigger problems of the world. But with a small town came small opportunities. The future prospects for most people were narrowed to farming or other manual and domestic careers. For many that was enough, that was all they needed to be happy, but not Vivirdian. He didn’t feel content in this small dinky town. He felt like he was always searching for something more, something he’d only find in another place. But as few opportunities as there were here there were even fewer ways out, and dance was the most feasible way for Vivirdian.

He began spending most of his days in the studio, focusing on his technique and balance, working his way to the top. He quickly built up a reputation as a formidable athlete with an impeccable work ethic, capturing the eye of his instructors. Finally, after working endlessly towards this goal he reached it. His instructors helped him apply for Darius Laurel Academy of Dance in Eternia City, the capital of Ambrusia. This was it, this was his way out. He could hardly sleep after submitting his video application, anxious to learn the results. It took an entire cycle before finally he was given a response. He was invited to audition for a scholarship and admittance into their school for the new semester. He could hardly contain his excitement, telling anyone who would hold still long enough to listen. He was going to the city and he was going to be free.

He practiced his moves in every free moment, not wanting to take a single risk. How would the audition work? Nobody from his settlement had ever gone to the city before. What was it even like? He had a few photos and information from the library, but he’d been living a very cloistered, sheltered life here in Rubianna and the city was so different. What if it was too much? What if there were so many things that he never found his passion? No, he couldn’t think like that, he couldn’t psych himself out. Everything would be fine if he just danced the way he had been taught. He’d make the cut and then he’d be able to explore the world.

Finally the blessed day arrived. He packed up his things in the family’s old battered suitcase and waited with his family in the station to catch a Hover Track headed north. What seemed like half the town of Rubianna showed up to send him off. They carried banners and hugged him, congratulating him on his success and wishing him luck at his audition. He felt a little overwhelmed at the support from his community and the assurances that they’d be proud of him no matter what. He felt a little guilty as his mother gave him a last hug, kissing the tips of ears. Here everybody was cheering him on to pursue his dream, or what they thought was his dream.

“You’re going to become the world’s greatest dancer,” She had whispered in his ears, clutching him tight to her chest one last time. “You’re living up to your name sake you know.”

One of his ears twitched at those words. His name, a very old Rubian word that was rarely used outside of the southern settlements, meant ‘Life in flight’. He sighed, inhaling his mother’s scent one last time before hearing the announcer call his car number. He pressed his hands to the glass and waved one last time to his family as the cart rose up to the track. Just before the tracks cut off his line of sight he saw his mother turn away to cry into his father’s shoulder. He felt tears of his own well up in his eyes.

It was the last time he’d see most of them in person ever again.

He ended up spending the first half of the train ride sleeping, wanting to get used to the time change in Eternia, but when the hover track hit a bump he woke up with a start. Outside it was raining. Soft water droplets speckled the glass and dripped down the outside walls of the train, disappearing to the ground far below the tracks. Most of the other travelers, mostly Ambrusians dressed in business attire commuting from one settlement to the next, were fast asleep. He figured he might as well try to doze off again, but he couldn’t. He was too full of nervous energy. According to the clock he would be arriving in Eternia in just half a sun. He fidgeted in his seat, trying to get comfy, but all he felt was jittery. Finally he gave up on sleep and tried to find a way to keep himself busy for the rest of the evening.

The hover car itself was nothing special, not like the big fancy ones he saw the royal family use on the Broadcast. It was just a long hallway with seats lining the edges and large spacious windows. That gave a wonderful view of the rolling forests below them. Soft crystals served as a light source, though they were dimmed for the night at this time. His luggage was safely tucked away beneath his seat and his coat draped over his shoulders as a blanket. He reached beneath his seat and grasped the rough handle of his suitcase and pulled it out, hoping to find something to keep him entertained.

He’d packed a three of his favorite books (Avians of Ambrusia and a mystery novel from his youth) but the setting sun was robbing him of all his reading light. There was a scrap book his family and friends had put together but without light he wouldn’t be able to make out the pictures. Eventually he decided to stretch out on the cart floor. When he got overwhelmed stretching out his body helped him focus more on the present. To get the most out of stretching he was forced to control his breathing, focus on how the tendons flexed and pulled at his muscles, making sure he wasn’t overdoing it.

He propped his foot up on the seat and slid his opposite leg, lowering himself slowly to the carpeted floor until he could feel the burn in his hips. He let himself sink lower until… there. That was perfect. He took in a deep breath of air mentally counting the moments in his mind as he leaned forward.

10

His sister, Emadia, used to help him stretch out every day before and after school, helping him balance as he used bands to pull his foot upwards to the ceilings of their small cottage. She was the town’s only athletic medical specialist and was more than happy to help her baby brother. When his foot was high enough she’d run her gentle fingers over the delicate skin, ensuring the muscles were stretching the right way to avoid an injury that could set his progress back by entire cycles.

“Ya aviada pico, gulla, careful, my little bird,” She would say as she pressed his back forward a bit to help even out his weight. “If you rely too much on your dominant leg you risk straining or tearing it.”

He’d nod and shift his weight accordingly, thinking more of the gleaming city skylines he’d seen in school that day than of his stretching.

9

He wasn’t exactly the universe’s most skilled dancer, far from it actually. He wasn’t coordinated or graceful or strong, he wasn’t even that flexible really. All his skill he’d earned through just sticking with his classes. Yes, he had two Southern Settlement Championship titles to his name, but the south doesn’t have too many dancers to begin with and even fewer places to learn dance. To be honest he wasn’t sure how he even won those awards. They’d been in the symbolistic dance category, a genre of dance that focused purely on dances for festivals and ceremonies. It wasn’t a very popular division as most of the dances were comprised of very traditional steps and music. Most people preferred the exciting upbeat routines in the jambi or kanyadan division. But Vivirdian didn’t really see the appeal for it. Both divisions were focused on flexibility, stunting, or partner work, skills that did not come easily for him. He liked the steady movements of the symbolistic dances.

8

His instructor began giving him private lessons to help make up for the talent he didn’t posses. After all hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. He’d have a new skill for Vivirdian to master as soon as they’d learned the last. He’d push Vivirdian to the limit in every practice, almost as if he was trying to find the breaking point, but Vivirdian didn’t have a breaking point. He was too invested in this to get discouraged by anything short of sudden limb amputation. When he stumbled in a new trick, tripped during a routine, or fell out of a turn he just stood back up and went at it again.

7

Come to think of it turns were always his work area. It was hard to get the power need to rotate and balance at the same time. It was a delicate balance and required more concentration than he had some days. If he pushed up with too much force he risked falling out of the turn or losing control. If he was too weak he wouldn’t be able to complete the move. The past few suns he’d worked on his turns relentlessly at every opportunity he could. It wasn’t uncommon to see him standing in front of their glass front cabinet (the closest things to a full length mirror they had in their house) and repeat the same turn again and again until he could hit it right.

6

And every time his mother saw him practicing she’d stop whatever she was doing and watch him, a look of pride swelling on her face. Every time he finished a move she’d clap and cheer for him. He would always give her a scolding look for disturbing his concentration, but really he was grateful for her support. Rubianna wasn’t exactly known for producing stunning talent and most parents weren’t very keen on encouraging pursuits in areas of the arts. With so few chances to break out and with so much work to do around the home it was considered wasteful to send your kid to an art, music, or dance class when they could be out in the fields. But his parents paid no mind to the disapproving looks they got when they introduced Vivirdian, still in his practicewear, and announced proudly that their son was a two time champion in symbolistic dance. Vivirdian was lucky to have parents like his.

5

He really was, they were so understanding and supporting of whatever far out dreams their children had. When Emadia had expressed her desire to attend a school of advanced study at a nearby settlement’s school of physical medicine and development they helped her earn the money needed to attend. Other parents would have talked their child into seeing the sense of staying on the farm. Why invest so much money and time into a farfetched career that may never repay the favor especially when there were plenty of perfectly fine job options right there in Rubiana?

4

He already missed his parents. Thinking about how much they had helped him, paying for extra lessons, calling him in sick for school when he’d really been at a competition. How they always smiled when he danced and bragged about him to all their friends. They didn’t force him to work in the fields like most other parents. As long as he helped out when he could they were fine with him skipping on melon pickling or weeding.

3

And he was leaving his family, his warm bed, his hometown, for a chance at a dream he didn’t even want. He essentially used his parents to get to the city for the slight chance of finding something that gave him a purpose. Everybody else had one. He just wanted to find his passion. His parents had been so supportive and even if he did attend the academy he was eventually going to let them down by leaving the program when he found his true calling.

2

If he found his true calling that was. No, he would find it. He needed to find it. No way was he going back to spend the rest of his life in a melon patch. He didn’t even like melons. They were too sweet for him.

1

He let out all the air in his lungs, sitting up straight again and switched his legs to stretch out his other side. Might as well stay  loose. Who knew what the day held for him.

When Vivirdian arrived in Eternia City Station the next evening he spotted the representative from the Darius Laurel Academy immediately. For one he was tall, towering over just about everyone who passed by. For another he had the lightest skin Vivirdian had ever seen, light enough that he could make out the faint outline of veins beneath it. He knew people in the north did have much lighter skin than those in the south, but he hadn’t known it was quite this light. His copper colored hair glinted in the artificial lighting of the station and he held up the sign bearing the Darius Laurel insignia. He beamed at him as he wheeled his suitcase forward.

“Darius Laurel candidate?” She asked brightly. Her voice was slightly accented, though he couldn’t pinpoint from where exactly. Certainly not from any part of the south that was for sure.

He nodded, managing a nervous smile. “I’m Vivirdian Cohen, from the Rubianna.”

He set down her sign and whipped out a small glass square, thinner than a sheet of paper. Vivirdian’s eyebrows shot up as he tapped the screen and it lit up, words flashing across the screen. He touched little pictures of letters that had popped up at the base of the object and he watched in awe as they appeared at the top. Then the screen changed to show his dancer’s portrait, the one they’d gotten done just for the application. Next to his picture was a display of statistics. His weight, his height, distinguishing features, and a brief summary of his achievements.

“Yes, I think you are the only border this year for auditions from the south.” He said after a few moments of deliberation over the glass thing. “Most of the others from the north and west arrived two suns ago to acclimate before auditions, but I imagine there are not too many hover tracks headed from Rubianna to Eternia city.”

“What is that?” Vivirdian asked in awe, pointing to the strange object.

“Oh, this?” He said, raising an eyebrow and lifting the glass square. “It is a Helio Glass, have you not seen one before?”

He shook his head, staring in open mouthed wonder. Back home in Rubianna they didn’t have many electronic devices, they had no need for them. It wasn’t as if they had the systems in place to support the Access, they barely got the feed required to view the Broadcast every week. He’d heard of the advanced technology found in more developed areas, but he’d never seen one in person.

“If you get into the academy you will be given one to assist with your studies.” He said, putting the pad back in his Darius Laurel Academy of Dance bag. “My name is Lumen. I am currently enrolled in the advanced apprenticeship program at the Darius Laurel Academy and for the audition process I will be your mentor. If you will follow me I will show you to the vehicle we will be riding back to the boarding house at Darius.”

Vivirdian followed Lumen closely, not wanting to get lost in the huge crowd of people moving through Eternia City Hover Track Station. He felt the urge to reach out and grab Lumen’s hand, just to be sure, but didn’t think that would go over very well. After all he was 10 now, 11 in a few common months. He could not let himself be seen as a baby.

Lumen led Vivirdian over to where a few other children his age are standing with suitcases and sleepy eyes. He could tell from their medium complexions and bright shades of hair that most of them came from the east. There were a few light skinned northerners though. He smiled tentatively at a boy who only stared at him. Vivirdian looked away quickly, feeling his ears burn red. Was he not supposed to smile at strangers? He wasn’t sure about the customs of other settlements, but in Rubianna it had been custom to smile or even wave at everybody one met whether you knew their name or not. Was that not something they did in other places?

Vivirdian could feel the boy staring at him but didn’t dare turn around to look. He instead kept his eyes trained on Lumen who was talking to a stern looking woman, pointing at something on her Helio Glass. She nodded briskly and tapped something with her fingers, waving Lumen away. He walked over to where another group of older kids in similar ‘Darius Laurel Academy of Dance’ shirt stood and began chatting amiably with them. Most appear to be his age, though some are slightly older or younger. He realized they all must be students or apprentices training at the academy.

“Isn’t this just so surreal?” Gushed a girl beside him. “We dream all our lives about coming here, train day and night just to get selected, and here we are.”

He glanced over at her. He could tell from her bright, pastel pink hair and pale skin that she came from the north. Her hair was pulled back into a long pony tail, held back by a big bow.

“I mean guess,” He murmured quietly.

“I am sure your enthusiasm will return to you after we dance out some of our nerves,” She said sympathetically. “I am Jey, by the way. I hail from Opalle settlement not too far from Eternia. What about you?”

“Vivirdian Cohen, I’m from Rubianna.” He said, looking up at Jey. She wore a soft lilac shaded knit dress that went down to her knees. Her bag read ‘Opalle Center for Creative Movement’ it glittery letters and he could see the strap of a dance leotard peeking out beneath the dress. Her bright gray eyes widened instantly. “No way! You are the Vivirdian? The Vivirdian who has two symbolistic titles to his name?”

At this some of his teammates turn around, curious to see what the fuss was about. Vivirdian bit his lip and nodded slowly, staring at her in shock and wondering why she, or anybody else here, would know his name. She squealed, clapping her hands together excitedly.

“I saw your performance last year on the Access video storage!” She grinned, speaking rapidly, words tripping up over her tongue. “You were amazing! I cannot believe I am speaking to you. This is so unreal, oh my suns! Tore! You will not believe who this is!”

Suddenly kids crowded around him, asking questions about his dancing. How could control his body through his routines? How could he stand moving so slowly for so long? Did he ever get bored of the traditional steps? How did he get the power to perform his leaps? He tried answering their questions, feeling a little overwhelmed. His body control came from having to stay up in trees for so long during the orchard seasons when you can only judge the ripeness of the fruits by hanging upside down on branches above to get a clear view of the top. If it’s green it’s not ready, but if it’s orange it is. He actually liked moving slowly because it gave him more time to assess his movements and make sure he wasn’t getting off task and no, the traditional steps weren’t boring to him. Each had a special meaning and action that he loved interpreting. His leaps, well, he’d always been great at jumps. His legs were strong from working in fields, and again, to reach those branches he’d had to leap up high from the ground and then wrap his hands around the thick limbs. Then he’d have to hoist himself up and grapple the branches with his legs to climb up and get a good foot hold.

“Candidates!” The woman snaps and the kids turn their attention to her. “Before we leave for the boarding house I am going to call your names just to ensure you are all here safe and sound. Please say ‘here’ or ‘present’ when your name is called. Let us see… Rell Alvu?”

A boy with lightly tanned skin and soft blue hair piped up. “Here!”

The woman continues to read off names from a list on her Helio Glass. Mostly the names are single or double syllables, few are longer than that. Names in the upper, more developed settlements tend to be shorter, usually short forms of longer more traditional names. They’re definitely more modernized too, some even being just words that Vivirdian had no idea could be names, like Havoc and Day. He blinked in surprise when he first heard them. It’s not that they’re bad, he’s just not used to them yet.  When his own name is called (“Vivirdian Cohen?”) he sees that the other candidates find his name to be just as odd to them and theirs were to him. A few mouth his name slowly, furrowing their brows and glancing around in confusion.

He cleared his throat and said weakly “Here,”. He felt the eyes of the other candidates flicker to him. This wasn’t a big deal, so why did he feel so panicky all of a sudden? He knew it wasn’t exactly common to see a dancer from the south, but it wasn’t something to gawk at.

He glanced up, just to see if they were still looking at him. They weren’t. He breathed a sigh of relief. Of course they wouldn’t be looking at him. They had more important things to focus on. He reminded himself if this as they walked to a bus to be taken to the boarding home. The boarding house itself is a huge mansion that lies on the sprawling grounds of Darius Laurel. The caretaker's, an elderly couple named the Jensens, inform them that the house once belonged to the founders of the academy several hundred years ago. It serves as the place of residence for all the first year students attending Darius Laurel academies.

Oh and that was the other thing, the Darius Laurel Academy isn’t just a dance school. It’s an advanced studies academy. Not only is there a Darius Laurel Academy of Dance, but there is also a Darius Laurel Academy of Art, Music, and Science. Each are dedicating to educating young Ambrusians in more extensive skills that they may have trouble finding lessons for in other settlements. The older students live in other boarding houses and dorms scattered across the campus and are encouraged to mix with the other academy kids. Something about diversity and well rounded friend groups, but when Vivirdian looked around the campus on their tour he didn’t see much diversity in friend groups. Kids in leotards stuck with other kids in leotards. Those hauling big instrument cases, large textbooks, and art folders huddled around like characters.

“If you are accepted into the dance academy you will attend your dance classes with your fellow candidates,” Mrs. Jensen said as they strolled through a sunny park that separated the school from the boarding homes and dorms. “But you will attend your academic classes with students from all four sections of the Darius Laurel students. You can also sign up for advanced courses in the other academies if you chose, not that I think many of you will.”

A few kids chuckled, but Vivirdian made a mental note to sign up for at least one course in each academy. The arts program in Rubianna had been practically nonexistent and while he doubted that’s where his passion was it was worth it to try.

The Jensens lead the small group of candidates through the campus. It was huge, much larger than even the upper school in Rubianna. It was comprised of several buildings that made up different parts of the school. There was a building for the music school, the art school, the science school, and the dance school each complete with the facilities to cater to their young charges. For example the science building was full of lab rooms, lecture halls, and a large library, the largest academic institution library in the world according to the Jensens. The music department and arts department were two identical buildings connected by a skybridge that crossed over a large courtyard. The dance building was the smallest, and contained several spacious studios, a large performance stage, and a tumbling facility. Vivirdian’s eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw the bright blue mats and foam pits.

“Never seen a tumbling mat before?” Jey asked with a little snicker, but it was more playful than malicious.

“Not one like this.” He breathed, staring longingly at the springy trampolines. In Rubianna they didn’t have this kind of equipment. He’d learned all his acrobatic moves on an old, battered mat from the local school’s movement classes.

After touring the special buildings they were given a tour of the academic facility that would ‘enrich the education of a young dancer and allow them to pursue any career after graduation’. The school was in an old building and looked like your traditional boarding school. It was probably built well before Vivirdian’s great grandparents’ grandparents were born, probably before that even. It was drafty, and some of the floorboards creaked a bit, and the keypads to open the doors weren’t always reliable as Mrs. Jensen proved when they were locked in the school’s cafeteria.

“Of course you will not be eating in here during the audition process,” She said, her voice becoming more shrill with anxiety as she kept tapping frantically at the keypad. “All your meals will be either at the boarding home or over in the studios.”

Vivirdian stifled his laughter as he watched her frantically try to remain calm whilst attempting to get the doors to work. Maybe he shouldn’t have laughed, but it was a ridiculous sight to him and it made him appreciate the simplistic way of life he was used to in Rubianna. They didn’t have many automatic doors, just the old fashioned hinge and handle. He’d heard of all this technology in the city spoken of with a tone of reverence and awe, but now he saw that despite how impressive it sounded it was just a hunk of metal when it didn’t work. Better to have a more reliable if somehow less convenient way of life.

“It is not funny!” Jey hissed in a frightened whisper. “If she cannot get the door to open again we shall be trapped here until somebody can release us!”

“My apologies,” Vivirdian mumbled softly.

“No need to apologize,” Sniffed a boy with a tone of mock sympathy. “You southern simpletons would not be able to comprehend such complex machines.”

Vivirdian felt rage well up inside of him. He longed to lash out against this boy, teach him a thing or two about ‘southern simpletons’, but he repressed it. He hadn’t been given the rules lecture yet, but he was sure it barred him from punching a fellow candidate even if that candidate was being a brat. He settled for a glare instead, making eye contact for a moment before turning away listening to Jey scold them for being ‘rude and intolerant of other’s ways of life’.

He’d show them. He’d show them all.

The next morning Vivirdian was handed what Mr. Jensen called a ‘bib number’ It read ‘89’ in big print and in smaller letters below his name and settlement.

Vivirdian Cohen

Rubianna

He carefully pinned it his front and headed down to the commons area where other kids are congregating. Most are as pale as Lumen. They vaguely remind Vivirdian of a congregation of those life sized circulatory system skeletons come to life and wearing leotards and shorts. Their hair is a mix of odd shades, ranging from bright yellow to vivid lilac to deep ocean blue. The north and east have those odd shades, leaving the more natural shades of brown, red, blonde, and the rare black or gray. His own hair sticks out both in this group of kids and back home. It’s a brilliant shade of white, brighter than snow and a little long compared to the others.

He stood out in a few more ways from his peers here. Most of these young dancers have a uniform body shape, tall and slender with supple limbs. He is a little short, not by much, but it’s definitely noticeable. His shoulders and hips are broad and he’s much more muscular from working in the fields. As far as he can tell he’s the only one with a deep skin tone as well. He spots a few dancers sporting medium complexion, but their skin is still much fairer compared to his own.

He suddenly felt a little intimidated as he waded through the sea of young dancers, each a perfect pale doll. They wear bright leotards and tights with fresh shoes and neatly combed hair. He looks down at his appearance and finally understands what his mother meant when she complained about being underdressed for an occasion. He was just wearing an old white shirt with his favorite pair of black shorts. His shoes are nearly a year old. He can see the seams coming apart at the soles, threatening to fall apart any day now. He decides that his appearance shouldn’t matter. At the end of the day they were giving slots to those who could dance, not color coordinate their outfits. He still makes a mental note to ask Lumen where he can purchase a new set of dancing shoes.

The stern looking instructor swooped on them from a hallway, snapping at them for being loud. She instructed them all to follow her to a studio to begin warm ups. The candidates have mutually decided that she is not one to cross and follow her instructions, chittering quietly with one another as they walk through the halls. Vivirdian walked alone, staring at the floor, speaking with no one. He stayed silent as they grouped up in numerical order in a studio and began stretching out for warm ups. He couldn’t risk getting distracted.

“Congratulations,” The woman said, looking at each and every candidate with beady eyes. “You are currently part of the 100 candidates we hand selected from over 5,000 video applications we received for this audition season. This number will be slowly reduced throughout the week until we are left with only 24 students, 12 girls and 12 boys. Furthermore there will be two partial scholarships and one full scholarship available for dancers who demonstrate flawless technique, commanding stage presence, and an advanced skill set. Earning a slot on our roster will be difficult enough, earning a scholarship will be near impossible. Prepare yourselves, the events of today will be the most important of your young dancing careers.”

Only after that little speech did she introduce herself as the head of Artistic Direction and preferred if you called her Ms. Bussel, not Miss Bussel, not Mrs. Bussel, Ms. Bussel. She was tall like many of the mentors Vivirdian had seen, with pale skin and skin that was beginning to wrinkle. She wore a long black skirt over her leotard and her silvery hair was pulled back into a tight bun held together with quite an alarming number of pins. She led them through warm ups, displaying an impressive amount of flexibility for someone so aged.

They were each partnered up for stretches with somebody according to their size, and since Vivirdian was the smallest boy he ended up being paired with the smallest girl: Jey. It meant spending a lot of time with Jey, time that when not spent dancing was filled with her chatter. She didn’t seem to mind that Vivirdian didn’t talk much, and Vivirdian didn’t mind that she did. She talked a lot about her life back home in Opalle. Through her mostly one-sided conversation Vivirdian learned a lot about life beyond the southern settlements.

Apparently dance and the arts were much bigger up here than he thought they were. Jey had been horrified when he informed her that he was the only one of his family to dance and that most of his family were farmers and had never even picked up a brush. When she asked why they hadn’t studied art in school he had to explain that art just wasn’t a subject offered in the local Rubianna school. Since school days were already cut short during the harvest season to allow kids to head home and help out with the melon picking, they didn’t need to clutter up the day with unnecessary lessons like music, art or dance. If you really wanted to study those topics there were ways you could such as clubs or other recreational venues, not there were many of either of those options in a small place like Rubianna otherwise.

As they went through partner work Jey informed him that in the more developed settlements everyone was required to take up an extracurricular study of some sort. Dance was a popular choice since it was easy to do. If you can move you can dance. She also said that dance offered the most opportunities to get out of class for competitions, recitals, and costume fittings.

“And obviously that attracts a lot of kids,” Jey said fixing her bun in one of the large mirrors.

“Less chatter more stretching Jey,” Jey’s mentor chastised, a smile playing at her lips. Jey’s mentor was a senior named Via who was soft spoken but she was not afraid to call one of them out when they messed up in their duet, but she was patient too.

“Right! My apologies!” Jey said lifting her back leg for Vivirdian. Vivirdian guided her foot up back to her free hand and placed a supporting hand under her thigh, helping her balance and lock out as she pulled her leg up into a needle stretch. She then pulled her foot even farther to overextend her leg and get a bigger stretch. Vivirdian realized Jey was incredibly flexible even by dancer standards.

As Vivirdian looked around the room he realized just how behind the other candidates he was. His body was more built for working in fields and other forms of manual labor rather than bending and stretching. As a dancer it did give him the benefit of being more durable. His body could stand more wear and tear than the slender forms of his instructor, but here it was working against him. He simply couldn’t twist or bend his body in ways the other candidates could. It wasn’t physically possible, but that didn’t stop him from trying.

After a little while more of stretching and warmups Ms. Bussel called for a break and Vivirdian let out a sigh of relief. His feet were stinging from dancing so much. He slipped down to sit on the floor and rubbed his feet through the fabric of his shoes.

“If your feet hurt it might be because the box of your shoe is dying.” Jey said sitting beside him.

Vivirdian looked down and saw with dismay that she was right. There were new creases in the box of his shoe from the stress of dancing in the exact same pair for so long. The seams were splitting and the box wasn’t able to support him when he went up on his toes. He slipped it off and frowned, turning the worn shoe over in his hand.

“I don’t have another pair,” He said quietly and Jey gaped at him.

“Why did you fail to bring another pair?” She asked in a horrified whisper. “Especially if these were in such bad condition to begin with? Surely even in a place like Rubianna you can find some.”

“It’s not that I didn’t bring another pair,” He scowled, annoyance pricking at the back of his neck. “It’s that I physically don’t have another pair. Rubianna doesn’t have very many dance supply stores as it is an underdeveloped settlement.”

He turned away from her, crossing his arms over his chest. He’d only been here a day and he just wanted to go home, finding his passion be damned. Nobody at home cared that they didn’t have advanced technology, nobody was obsessed with dance shoes, and nobody made fun of anyone for where they came from. He supposed part of it had to do that not many people were from anywhere else, but it wasn’t as if they poked fun at the few strangers they did get either.

Jey seemed to realize she’d struck a nerve. Her face softened a bit and she rested a comforting hand on his shoulder. “My apologies Vivirdian, I did not mean for it to sound like a jab at your place of upbringing.”

He felt a bit of his frustration and anger melt away. “It’s okay, I forgive you.”

“You know,” Jey scooted next to him and put her foot next to Vivirdian’s for comparison. The white fabric of her new shoes made the dirt stick out in Vivirdian’s old ones. “My feet look to be the same size as yours. You could try wearing some of my shoes.”

“You sure?” He asked as she grabbed her bag and rummaged around inside.

“Of course!” She grinned producing a pair of new white slipper. She scooched down and began to untie the shoe on this feet and slip on the new ones. “We are friends, and that means we help each other.”

He pondered this, flexing and pointing his feet to see how these new shoes fit. Jey had been right, they were about the same size. She nodded approvingly as his toes wiggled in the box of the shoe.

“But aren’t we competing against each other?” He asked, getting to his feet to test them out.

“I mean,” She chewed her lip in thought, scrunching up her freckled nose. “Technically we are, but that should not prevent me from helping somebody when I can.”

“Oh,” Vivirdian mumbled, performing a turn. “Thanks Jey. They feel great.”

“You are welcome!” She beamed standing up and twirling to make her sheer skirt flutter up as she moved.

Just then Ms. Bussel called them over, marking the end of their stretching and warm ups.

“First we will be learning one dance together as a group,” Ms. Bussel said cooly. “Then each of you will perform this dance in front of several judges who will determine whether or not you are a good fit for the Darius Laurel Academy of Dance. As I said, we are looking for hard workers with good technique as opposed to who can perform the most turns or the most difficult jumps. Because of that we’ve chosen a genre that reflects the qualities we are looking for as opposed to the gaudy, flashy styles of today’s modernized dance world. You will each be learning a symbolistic routine, the Yam Waltz!”

A murmur ran through the group of candidates at Ms. Bussel’s words. Symbolistic dance was not well liked as a genre as it was generally without leaps or super fast movements. As a result many kids avoided learning symbolistic dances even though it was probably the easiest division if you didn’t mind moving slowly and reworking the same traditional movements over and over again with little to no variation. Many kids voiced their displeasure in this through soft grumbling to neighbors, but Vivirdian did not partake in it. For the first time since arriving at Darius Laurel his heart began to soar. He was good at symbolistic dances, two championship titles good. Without all the fancy tricks and weird steps he was on an even playing field with these candidates who actually had the talent. He might just have a chance at doing this after all.

[junker-town]

Steelers are working to return to their Steel Curtain roots

Pittsburgh’s offense is as deadly as it has ever been. Now the defense needs to keep up.

With Ben Roethlisberger, Le’Veon Bell, and Antonio Brown in the lineup, the Steelers boast one of the league’s most devastating offenses. But the franchise, with a proud tradition of powerful defenses going back to the Joe Greene-led Steel Curtain of the 1970s, hasn’t been able to match on the other side of the ball. Now, with playmakers dotting the depth chart, Pittsburgh is trying to build its defense back up.

The Steelers have utilized a star-studded cast and an effective offensive line to power their way to the top of the AFC North. Pittsburgh ranked in the top 10 in scoring and total offense the past three seasons, earning three postseason berths and progressively better playoff results in the process. Each season ended the same way, however — with disappointment and big deficits.

In Pittsburgh’s last three playoff losses, opponents have put up an average of 29.7 points. The Steelers offense, suddenly deficient in the postseason, has been unable to keep up. The end result is a good, but not great, team approaching a crossroads. With Roethlisberger teasing retirement, how can Pittsburgh make the most of the waning years of his prime?

The Steelers are rebuilding their Steel Curtain defense

Pittsburgh has been traditionally stoic in free agency, preferring instead to develop its own prospects into superstars. That has paid off handsomely on the offensive side of the ball, but a handful of misses has left the Steelers’ once-fearsome defense treading water in the middle of the pack. Underwhelming returns from draftees like Ziggy Hood, Senquez Golson, Jarvis Jones, and Bud Dupree have mitigated the impact of homegrown standouts like Ryan Shazier, Stephon Tuitt, and Lawrence Timmons (who departed this spring for a big payday with the Dolphins).

The jury’s still out on last year’s big additions, defensive backs Artie Burns and Sean Davis, but early returns and the performance of FCS nose tackle Javon Hargrave are encouraging. Pittsburgh doubled down in 2017, adding two high-ceiling defenders, T.J. Watt and Cameron Sutton, in the first two days of this year’s draft.

The end goal is to surround the veteran heart and soul of the defense — ageless workout monster James Harrison, defensive end Cameron Heyward, and Shazier — with young, elite prospects. If Watt and Sutton work their way into the starting lineup, the 2017 Steelers will feature eight defenders drafted in the third round or higher since 2013. That’s a lot of raw talent the team is hoping will jell into a championship unit.

The additions of Tyson Alualu and Coty Sensabaugh this spring were a bit of a departure from standard operating procedure — they are the only two non-Steeler free-agent defenders to sign multiyear contracts with the club since 2014. They’ll provide a safety net should players like Burns and Watt fail to live up to expectations. More importantly, they’re examples of the team’s newfound commitment to defense.

The Steelers’ offense still needs to level up in the postseason

Over the last three years, Pittsburgh has scored 26.2 points per game during the regular season. In the playoffs, that number falls to 19.3. The team’s only wins have come while holding opponents to 16 points or fewer.

A short drop-off is excusable as the postseason schedule brings a lineup of better teams than the Bengals and Browns that dotted the Steelers’ regular season slate. A loss of nearly one full touchdown and extra point is worrisome. For comparison, the Patriots scoring output in the same span actually rose from 28.6 points to 32.1 from the regular season to the playoffs. The Packers improved from 26.8 to 28.0.

Injuries have played a role in Pittsburgh’s postseason problems. Bell’s first playoff appearance didn’t come until 2016. While he shredded Miami and Kansas City for 337 rushing yards in his first two appearances, a groin injury limited him to only six carries in an AFC title game loss to New England. Brown missed his team’s 2015 divisional round loss to the Broncos after suffering a vicious helmet-to-helmet hit from Vontaze Burfict.

Roethlisberger, who plays with a perma-limp after Week 5 each season but still manages to hobble his “big ass” onto the field when his team needs him, has dealt with his fair share of maladies as well.

When healthy, Brown and Bell have performed admirably in the playoffs. Roethlisberger, however, has been much less consistent. Since winning his second Super Bowl in February of 2009, the veteran passer is just 5-5 as a starter. In that span, he has a rating of 81.8 — roughly the equivalent of 2016 Carson Wentz — and a 10:11 TD:INT ratio in the playoffs.

Roethlisberger’s regression to below-average quarterback in recent years can be traced to a lack of production behind his stars. In the last five playoff games where Brown was available, he’s been responsible for 55 targets, 34 receptions, and 545 receiving yards, or 42 percent of the team’s total passing output. In that same span, and including the game he missed in 2015, no other Pittsburgh wide receiver has gained more than 66 yards through the air.

The Steelers have taken steps to add playmaking depth but largely came up short in recent years. The team’s free-agent ventures returned past-their-prime athletes like Jerricho Cotchery, Lance Moore, and the second coming of Plaxico Burress. Draft acquisitions like Markus Wheaton, Limas Sweed, Dri Archer, and Sammie Coates have failed to make long-term impacts.

Emmanuel Sanders developed into a Pro Bowl scoring threat after his four seasons in Pittsburgh, but his career didn’t truly blossom until he was signed by the Broncos. Martavis Bryant looked like the perfect deep threat to complement Brown, but missed the entire 2016 season thanks to a drug suspension. The Steelers drafted USC standout JuJu Smith-Schuster this April to give the team some extra receiving ammunition, but so far all that has managed to do is turn Bryant and Coates against each other.

Pittsburgh has also struggled to replace fan favorite tight end Heath Miller after his 2015 retirement. The Steelers signed Ladarius Green to a four-year, $20 million contract last offseason and then cut him after only six games after he failed a physical this May. Although former fifth-round draft pick Jesse James showed signs of improvement in 2016, a failure to address the position in free agency or the draft may come back to haunt the team.

On paper, there are several players who have the talent to fill the No. 2 role Pittsburgh has struggled with since Sanders left. Coates, Bryant, and Smith-Schuster are all dynamic athletes who provide home run potential every time they touch the ball. In reality, playoff teams will still allow Brown to get his share of yards while daring the Steelers’ other contributors to beat them.

Tweaks aside, the Steelers still look like one of the league’s elite teams

Roethlisberger’s uncanny ability to play through injuries and remain upright behind a solid offensive line — Pittsburgh allowed sacks on just 3.22 percent of its dropbacks last year, a mark that ranked second in the league — will once again make him a potent weapon despite his advancing age. He’ll be surrounded by talent, starting with Pro Bowl interior linemen Maurkice Pouncey and David DeCastro and ending with Brown and Bell.

The biggest questions the team faces are on the opposite side of the ball, where the Steelers are still waiting for their draft investments to pay off. Pittsburgh has invested its five last first-round picks and three of its second-round picks on defenders. However, the franchise hasn’t fielded a top-10 defense since 2012. While that unit has been solid in stretches, merely “above average” isn’t the Steeler way.

Pittsburgh has been using its explosive offense to cover those shortcomings, rising from .500 squad to AFC Championship Game participant over the past four years. Having a healthy Bell and Roethlisberger would be a major boost when it comes to overcoming the scoring lapses that have plagued the postseason defeats. Getting the most out of players like Burns, Dupree, and Watt would be even better.

[junker-town]

Falcons have figured out how to nail the NFL draft under Dan Quinn

Quinn has a vision for the types of players he wants to bring in, and it’s working for Atlanta.

Each year, teams dream of adding players through the draft who can put them in Super Bowl contention. The Falcons did exactly that over the last two offseasons, and a lot of Atlanta’s draft success is thanks to head coach Dan Quinn.

You can see Quinn’s influence in the selection of strong safety Keanu Neal in last year’s draft. Most mock draft projections had Neal pegged as a second-rounder, but the Falcons selected him with the 17th overall pick in 2016. The pick didn’t earn the team high draft grades, but the Falcons saw how Neal would fit in their defense. They were right. Neal finished his rookie season with 106 tackles and five forced fumbles.

Neal was second on the team last season in tackles, behind fellow rookie Deion Jones. Jones has blazing speed, but he’s undersized by conventional middle linebacker standards. Because of that and his limited starting experience at LSU, he was a third-round projection. Atlanta got him in the second round, but again, it worked out. Jones’ name even entered the Defensive Rookie of the Year conversation thanks in part to his three regular-season interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns.

Quinn isn’t doing this alone. He’s working alongside Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff to build the roster, and the partnership has been productive.

Dimitroff has been named the Sporting News Executive of the Year twice, and his way of evaluating talent and building the roster meshes well with Quinn’s philosophies. In two years, Quinn and Dimitroff have worked together to overhaul the team’s approach to the draft. The results are vastly different from when Mike Smith was the Falcons head coach.

Draft misfires during the Mike Smith era led to the Falcons’ decline

Smith and Dimitroff were hired by the Falcons prior to the 2008 season. They were tasked with turning around a franchise that had finished the 2007 season 4-12. Smith replaced Bobby Petrino, who left during the season to take the head coaching job at Arkansas. Michael Vick was in prison for dogfighting, and the Falcons had a lot of work to do to turn things around.

And they did turn it around, at least at first. Smith and Dimitroff’s first draft pick was Matt Ryan, 2016’s league MVP and Offensive Player of the Year. The Falcons made it to the playoffs in four out of the first five seasons of the Dimitroff and Smith era, but then things fell apart abruptly. One reason for the collapse was a disparity between the team’s needs and the players drafted to fill them, which gave the Falcons a lack of depth and talent that kept the team from being competitive.

Smith and Dimitroff had different priorities. Dimitroff preferred prospects with over-the-top speed and athleticism. Smith’s old-school approach on both sides of the ball wasn’t a good fit for many of those players. The Falcons plummeted from the NFC Championship Game following the 2012 season to winning only four games in 2013.

Atlanta’s entire 2012 draft class washed out of the NFL

In 2012, the Falcons were missing a first-round pick and a fourth-round pick thanks to the blockbuster trade with the Browns to move up to get Julio Jones in 2011. The team had needs on both sides of the ball, and without a full slate of picks, the pressure was on to use each one wisely. They didn’t.

The best example of Smith and Dimitroff not seeing eye to eye is free safety Dezmen Southward. At 6’2 and 210 pounds, Southward had the physical attributes teams want in the secondary, and with 4.38 40-yard dash speed and a 42-inch vertical at Wisconsin’s pro day, his athleticism was appealing.

But he only played one year of high school football, and his lack of experience was a warning sign for his NFL career. Southward was projected to go in the fourth or fifth round, but the Falcons grabbed him in the third round in 2014.

Southward played in all 16 games in his rookie season, but he only racked up 23 combined tackles and one interception. That was Smith’s final year as Atlanta’s head coach. Quinn shifted Southward to corner before the 2015 season, but the transition was a failure, and the team cut him midseason.

There was also Lamar Holmes, who had the physical tools to become a successful NFL tackle, but he was raw. Holmes was projected as a sixth- or seventh-round selection, but the Falcons took him in the third round of the 2012 draft. Holmes didn’t develop like he needed to, and the Falcons released him with an injury settlement toward the end of the 2015 season.

Holmes and Southward weren’t outliers, either. Not a single player from Atlanta’s 2012 draft is still in the NFL.

The consequences of missing on so many picks caught up with the Falcons, and Atlanta went 4-12 in 2013 and 6-10 in 2014. Smith was fired following the 2014 season, and his departure ushered in the Quinn era and a new approach to the draft.

Quinn’s influence is paying off

Quinn has a clearly defined vision for the players Atlanta needs. Almost immediately after he was hired as the Falcons head coach, he and Dimitroff focused on how to work together to build a team that could be in perpetual postseason contention.

"We went through every department along with culture in football ops and discussed, at multilayers, how we wanted to run this organization from a football-operations standpoint,” Dimitroff said in the week leading up to Super Bowl LI, via ESPN’s Vaughn McClure. “And it was the best thing that we could have done, because there's never any ambiguity about it.

“And if we ever do (disagree), we go back to our corporate-knowledge platform and discuss about everything that we've discussed and how we built the team. And if it needs to be adjusted, it's adjusted together. Again, I'm so proud of that."

One major change from Smith to Quinn is the division of responsibilities. Dimitroff had the ultimate say over the roster when Smith was with the Falcons, which led to him bringing in prospects who didn’t necessarily fit.

On Quinn’s side, it involves listening to his assistants and making sure they’re all on the same page about which players are the best fits in Atlanta’s schemes and why. Then it’s a matter of communicating that to the team’s talent evaluators.

Quinn has control over the 53-man roster and the practice squad now, and while Dimitroff is involved in evaluating prospects and making draft decisions, his primary responsibility lies in managing the salary cap.

Dimitroff also manages the scouting staff, which includes three former general managers — Scott Pioli, Ruston Webster, and Phil Emery. It’s not a “too many cooks” situation, either. This arrangement works because everyone has a specific role and a common goal.

Falcons’ new approach is paying off

Quinn and Dimitroff got off to a strong start in their first draft together. With the eighth overall pick, they selected Vic Beasley, who led the NFL in sacks with 15.5 and added four forced fumbles last season. Still, that’s the production you’d expect from a top-10 pick. It’s the under-the-radar picks Quinn and Dimitroff have teamed up on that really tell the story of their success.

In fact, Beasley’s college teammate, Grady Jarrett, may turn out to be the best pick of the entire 2015 draft for the Falcons. Jarrett had second-round-caliber talent, but he fell into the fifth round because at 6’1 and 304 pounds, he lacked ideal size for a defensive tackle.

Jarrett showed promise as a rookie but became a key contributor last season. He was on the field for nearly 57 percent of Atlanta’s defensive snaps and notched three sacks during the regular season. Then Jarrett matched that total in one night in Super Bowl LI against the Patriots, his breakout game. Jarrett played well enough that he could have been named Super Bowl MVP if the Falcons hadn’t blown a 25-point lead.

Cornerback Jalen Collins looked like a reach in the second round of the 2015 draft due to limited starting experience and some off-the-field concerns while at LSU. Still, he fit the prototype for a defensive back in Quinn’s scheme, and the team took a chance on him.

Last season, it paid off. When Atlanta’s top cornerback, Desmond Trufant, went down with a shoulder injury that landed him on injured reserve, Collins filled in admirably, showing everyone why the Falcons snagged him that early.

Falcons owner Arthur Blank said last year that he’d like to see the team come away from the 2016 draft with three immediate starters out of the first four rounds. Blank got his wish. Neal, Jones, and fourth-rounder De’Vondre Campbell all earned starting roles on the Falcons defense.

These young players developed quickly and turned in solid performances last season. Quinn and Dimitroff have figured out how to pinpoint players who will shine in Atlanta’s schemes.

Continuity makes a difference, and Blank wants to give Quinn and Dimitroff an opportunity to keep this momentum. Last November, the Falcons offered Dimitroff a contract extension through the 2019 season. That’s the same length as Quinn’s contract.

The partnership between Quinn and Dimitroff lifted the Falcons out of three years of obscurity to a Super Bowl bid last season. This week, Quinn and Dimitroff will focus on working together to get it right once again in the 2017 draft.