Here at the sports desk located somewhere below decks of the Good Pirate Ship RedState, we’ve been shuffling through our files, sorting out the top sports stories from the year that was … not much of a year. Referring to 2021 as a year when sports returned somewhat to their normal, we refer to it.
If you break it down sport-by-sport, professional football saw Tom Brady win one. He led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-9 to victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2020-2021 NFL Season. It helped that the Buccaneers defense didn’t give Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes time to so much as breathe, let alone make plays. Brady turned his win into defeat by making a terrible joke about Donald Trump during the Buccaneers’ visit to Washington in July.
Heading into the 2021-2022 season, the NFL maintained its fierce determination to go woke, but much to the annoyance of the “We need FYTERZ” brigade forgot to go broke. People whose whole lives are centered around living the Gospel According to St. Fauci’s teachings were critical of Aaron Rodgers, but they went three brass monkeys after dozens more vaccinated athletes tested positive. Urban Meyer was able to play better in a club than the Jacksonville Jaguars, so he became unemployed.
Alabama won the National Championship in college football’s first year. Alabama was poised to repeat the feat. Between, many games were canceled or had to be rescheduled because of COVID. Meanwhile, the Crimson Tide kept on a-rollin’.
Baseball proved it is second to none in knee-jerk stupidity by yanking the MLB All-Star Game from Atlanta following Georgia passing a voting reform law, moving the game to Denver, Colorado … where the voting laws are little, if any, different than Georgia’s. On the field, the season came down to the Houston Asterisks … er, Astros, who, to no one’s surprise, won the American League pennant, doing battle with the Atlanta Braves. The Braves, much to everyone’s surprise, won the National League pennant despite being without their best player for much of the season. In six games, the Braves won their first World Series title. Except in Houston, the fans were pleased. In its inimitable way of proving it can’t stand prosperity, baseball immediately went into total labor strife and a lockout.
NBA 2020-2021 saw the season’s major market stars and teams fall to the side in the playoffs. Pro basketball was shocked, and the NBA Finals were decided by the Milwaukee Bucks (or the Phoenix Suns). The Bucks saw their opponent with a lead of two to one before taking the series in six. Phoenix can console itself by knowing that at least people know it’s still in the league, Chris Paul is still an elite floor leader, and Devin Booker is a superb shooter. Booker also won the award for Best Impersonation of Tony Stark by, as soon as the Finals concluded, immediately hopping on a plane along with Bucks players Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday, crossing the Pacific, and helping the USA win the men’s basketball Olympics gold medal. Ah, youth.
The 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics took place in 2021. It didn’t matter that much. When the most memorable moment in an Olympics consists of a gymnast getting the yips, pulling out of the competition, then whining about being a victim … ’nuff said. Simone Biles is not the only person who was brave enough to crumble at an inappropriate moment. Naomi Osaka?
For a moment, let’s return to professional basketball. Booker was reminded by the Golden State Warriors’ Steph Curry that there are many great and good players, but he is still the best at shooting basketball. Damian Lillard was no stranger to scoring well from close and far. He expressed his desire to move to Portland to play in a team that is more focused on winning championships than the anti-fa lifestyle. The Lakers spent the off-season recruiting from the seniors tour, while the Warriors put on a copy of The Who’s “The Kids Are Alright” and brought in some young ’uns. So far, skill and youth are getting swept under the carpet by treachery and old age.
The 2021 college basketball season saw a lot of empty arenas. With a record 31-1, the Gonzaga Bulldogs ended their season. They lost the NCAA title game to Baylor, 86-70. Oops.
The Stanley Cup was won by the Tampa Bay Lightning, who had an abbreviated hockey season. Their opponent was the Montreal Canadiens due to their oddball divisional alignment. The 2021-2022 NHL season saw the Seattle Kraken’s release.
He was not the most fortunate athlete. He had also four legs. Medina Spirit won Kentucky Derby. However, before any mint juleps could wear off on the attendees, the win was taken away by Bob Baffert’s doping of his horse. Medina Spirit finished the year … actually, sadly he didn’t finish the year as he died on December 6, reportedly from a heart attack.
State Farm was the winner for non-sports activities. State Farm was able to sign Sabrina Ionescu as a client and produce a number of funny ads featuring Chris Paul. After Aaron Rodgers tested positive for COVID, the State Farm team didn’t succumb to temptation and declared they will keep Aaron Rodgers part of their advertising campaigns. A side note. The State Farm ads were an excellent antithesis for Chevrolet. They first broke us all and then made the Internet break with last year’s holiday advert.
In sports there was more success for old men. Helio Castroneves won Indianapolis 500. Phil Mickelson won PGA. Also, there were also losses. Tiger Woods was unable to control his vehicle when he exceeded the speed limit. The resulting injuries could have ended his career. We lost Hank Aaron and Floyd Little as well as Don Sutton, Tommy Lasorda. Don Sutton, John Chaney. Marty Schottenheimer. Marty Spinks. Marvin Hagler. Elgin Baylor. Bobby Bowden. Demaryius Thomas. John Madden.
Take 2022.
About Post Author
