By William Hathaway
The National Football League held its First Round Wild Card games this past weekend. As expected, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Washington Football Team, 31-23. Leading Tampa Bay was QB Tom Brady, who threw for 2 TDs and 381 yards, the most ever for a quarterback his age. Also, the Buffalo Bills won their first playoff game since the 1990s, with their 27-24 win over the Indianapolis Colts. In a tight battle, the New Orleans Saints beat the Chicago Bears.
While those favorites won, there were some upsets. One saw the Los Angeles Rams go on the road and stun Seattle 30-20. Another upset saw the Baltimore Ravens win on the road at the Tennessee Titans 20-13. Finally, the most shocking upset saw the Cleveland Browns cross the border into Pennsylvania and defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers 48-37. Cleveland jumped out to a 28-0 lead early, thanks to multiple Pittsburgh turnovers.
In College Football, the person with the best week had to be WR DeVonta Smith, who not only won the Heisman Trophy, but joined the rest of his Alabama teammates in winning the National Championship. The Crimson Tide rolled over the Ohio State Buckeyes 52-24. It marked the seventh time that head coach Nick Saban has won a National Title, and the sixth time with Alabama, passing the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant for the most all-time.
In college basketball, the Seton Hall men’s basketball team has won 8 out of last 10, with one such win being a 76-68 road win over DePaul.
