In case you were too busy watching over annoying little kids at camp and all you could think about was whether there was a new water cooler picture, here’s what you missed…
NCAA Football – Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel became Johnny Hancock after a series of offseason escapades. After Texas A&M’s season ended, Mr. Hancock became a wild and reprehensible problem. He was sent home from the Manning Passing Academy for being ‘dehydrated’ after a late night in Louisiana. Mr. Dehydration was then suspended for one half after being paid for signing autographs, an explicit no-no for the NCAA. The legal ramifications of cases like Mr. Autograph’s are being fought over in the Ed O’Bannon Lawsuit. The lawsuit has the potential to reconfigure the landscape of college athletics in North America and force institutions to pay their athletes, which could spell doom for the NCAA.
Confederations Cup Soccer – In time honoured tradition, the victors of FIFA’s continental championships convened in the summer preceding the World Cup. The heavyweights were in attendance as host Brazil; reigning World Cup and Euro Cup winning Spain; and the ever dangerous Italy all qualified for the semifinals. The contingent from Tahiti became the Cinderella story that impartial viewers turned to throw their blind support behind. Sadly, the fairy tale never came to fruition as Tahiti surrendered 24 goals over three games. However, the final was an ideal matchup between Spain and Brazil, in which the host prevailed 3 – 0; essentially, we were provided a tantalizing teaser for what’s in store during the world’s best athletic competition.
NHL Stanley Cup Finals – The Chicago Blackhawks won the Big Drinker this past June, winning the Stanley Cup Finals in six games against the Boston Bruins. Blackhawks centre Dave Bolland scored the clincher with 58.3 seconds left in Game 6, boosting Chicago past Boston 3-2. With the victory, the Hawks became the first team in the salary-cap era to win the Stanley Cup twice. During the post-season, both Corey Crawford and Tuuka Rask proved their places amongst the best goalies in today’s game. Chicago has shown that they have the potential makings of a modern-day dynasty.
Wimbledon – It had become a running joke that a British male would never win Wimbledon in our lifetime. So when the world found out that it was Andy Murray, the British icon himself, playing Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon championships, the world had to rub both eyes and take a collective breath to steady itself. Tea cups shattered from sweaty hands, crumpets sailed across the room, and even Sherlock Holmes had to wipe down his monocle a couple of times during the most tense match in British history. Murray had the skill to prevail and lift the curse, and prevail he did. Hold on, I need to brew me some Earl Murray.
NBA Finals – The Miami Heat, home of the most annoying home-court anthem in sports history, prevailed over the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals, winning Game 7 by score of 95-88. This was Miami’s third consecutive Finals appearance, and second in a row with the trio of Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh. This Finals series had all the makings of a classic, with numerous storylines along with fantastic court play. Beyond the showdown of two generational Big Threes, each game featured outstanding basketball, making this one of the most enjoyable series in basketball history for both hardcore and casual fans alike.
