The subject is football.
Those who follow this column might acknowledge that the subject was covered last week.
The state of the NFL leading into the critical month of December, and with the added game, into January.
But there’s much more than the NFL. Much more.
Football also means the race for the four spots to determine the College Football Champion.
It also means the World Cup.
The number one sport in the world is football.
We call it soccer.
But it’s football.
And the World Cup, contested every four years, is truly a spectacle.
It’s being held in Qatar. It’s the first World Cup players in the Arab world and the Muslim world. In four years it will be hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
The format is simple.
There are teams representing four countries in eight different groups. That’s a total of 32 teams.
Every team plays one game against the other three in their group.
The two top teams advance to the knockout round, which in reality is a tournament involving 16 teams. Win, you move on, lose, you go home.
The reason most average fans in our country watch is to follow the American team.
They didn’t even qualify four years ago, and they did this time, although they were young and not considered a threat.
The USA defeated Iran in their final group match and advanced to the knockout round where they were defeated by the Netherlands, 3-1, which was no surprise.
The Netherlands were solid favorites, but the American team shows definite promise for the future.
The 2022 World Cup has also produced its share of upsets.
In group play, Morocco beat a strong Belgium team, Japan edged always-powerful Germany, France, the defending World Cup champion lost to Senegal, and in the biggest surprise, Saudi Arabia knocked off Argentina.
But, with complicated tie-breakers, including goals for-and-against, Argentina and France advanced to the round of 16.
The World Cup is still in progress, and despite the elimination of the American team, there may be more shockers in store, and it is worth tuning in.
While I have never been a keen follower of soccer, I’ve been hooked more watching this particular competition. I have no explanation.
Those who have never been enamored of the sport claim there’s not much action, nor scoring, for that matter.
Actually there is much more action in soccer than in the football we know.
The clock never stops. They play 45 minute halves, with extra time tacked on each half, when there are injuries, or stoppages in play.
The clock stops constantly in American football, and the the actual action time would be shocking to know. Something like 10 minutes total. Maybe less.
The rules, with things like yellow cards from officials, throw-ins, corner kicks, penalty kicks from different areas, appear confusing.
In other words, soccer, to those with that opinion, is simply a great, big bore.
Now, for those who know and love the game, and have followed it on many levels for years, appreciate the nuances that have truly earned football, as played on the world scale, at the top of the list.
There is no doubt, that more of today’s youth play soccer as soon as they can, and are learning and appreciating what it’s all about.
Considering the obvious health risks of American football, soccer may be a better sport to play.
I will admit I don’t know all the rules and subtleties of soccer, but what I have done is watch and simply enjoy the match. Slowly, I am appreciating the way teams set up scoring situations with passes, headers, and other maneuvers., and at the same time the way defenses and the goaltender operate.
I will now return to calling the sport, football. It’s time for me to get with the program.
Funny, when I watch the NFL on TV, the last thing I want are crowd shots showing the fans going wild. I know why they are cheering. What I want to see is the field. I want to see what the fans I am looking at, are seeing.
But in viewing the World Cup, I am captivated by the fans who paint their faces with their nation’s colors, and lose their minds following a goal.
Yes, there is tremendous pride exhibited by the players and their fans in World Cup play.
After those years when pro football players were taking a knee with the playing of the national anthem, it is so refreshing.
I know it took a long while get attached to football as played in the World Cup, but here I am.
The USA may have been ousted, but I’m still watching.
And every youngster who is doing the same, may be inspiring another generation.
I’m also watching college football. Really, who isn’t.
It’s bowl season, and the four-team race for the national championship.
When I was younger, before the millions and billions of money became the name of the game, the bowl season was so simple.
Basically, there were just five.
The Gator Bowl in Jacksonville.
The Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
The Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.
The Orange Bowl in Miami.
And the grand-daddy of them all, as it was called, The Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
How times have changed. Here are just a few of the 43 bowl games that will be played between Dec. 16th and Jan. 9th.
The Cure Bowl in Orlando. The Lending Tree Bowl in Mobile. The Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in , where else, Boise. The First Responder Bowl in Dallas. The Guaranteed Rate Bowl in Phoenix, and the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in Charlotte.
You get the idea.
Now, to the final four.
It got interesting last weekend when number 3 TCU lost to Kansas State and USC, ranked fourth were beaten in their respective conference championship games.
It opened the door for Ohio State to get in, when it appeared their hopes were dashed when Michigan whipped them the previous week.
But the Buckeyes are in the fight, and will play unbeaten Georgia, while Michigan at No. 2, faces TCU which held its ground.
One unbeaten team, three with one loss.
It’s already been revealed that the college tournament will expand to 12 teams in two years. What took them so long?
Every sport has expanded its playoff field. We are living in the post-season world.
The more the merrier. Why not 16 for college football?
I think we’re headed there in the not so distant future.
As for this season. Can anyone beat the defending champion Georgia Bulldogs?
I say no.
And who will prevail in the 2022 World Cup?
I say Brazil.
Those two happen to be the favorites.
No getting out on that limb for me.
The subject is football.