JUST 7 SPORTS: Twins, Tebow, and The Best Month in Sports

HEADLINER

Every year, it seems like an AL Central team is poised on the brink of collapse. And this year, it was the Tigers turn to fall, with the Twins forcing a one-game playoff and winning in walkoff fashion. Lost in all the postseason banter was the fact that this run may have helped Joe Mauer seal another AL MVP nod. He finished the regular season 1st in batting average, slugging, and OBP - a non-traditional triple crown, but an offensive juggernaut of a year nonetheless. Now let's just see whether Super Mauer can keep the Twins from tumbling out of the playoffs in the first round against the steamrolling Yankees.


DELICIOUS DIGIT

7.5 points. That's how much of an underdog LSU is vs. Florida this week. With Tim Tebow questionable for Saturday's game, the No. 4 Tigers have a shot at dethroning the Gators. Not only will this be a tasty matchup regardless of the QB situation, but it could be a potential preview of the SEC championship game. This is what tailgates are made for.


THE 7

1. As Bill Simmons asserts, this is the best month in sports, with basketball and hockey kicking off, football in full swing, and baseball into the playoffs. But even with all those sports vying for your attention, you gotta keep your eye on baseball - or, in Matt Holliday's case, the baseball itself. Holliday's drop with two outs in the ninth of Game 2 was excused by many given his strong track record as a left fielder, but let's face it: he may have blown the season for his team. It probably wasn't for a lack of effort, but you have to wonder whether rental players like Holliday really feel any loyalty for their clubs. Mid-season acquisitions can be busts as often as betterment, and despite all Holliday has done, he failed when it counted most.

2. What's up with the magical Angels? They finally broke the spell that the Red Sox had cast on them, with John Lackey and the bullpen twirling a shutout to take a 1-0 lead in their ALDS series. Given that Anaheim had won 1 out of its 10 postseason games vs. Boston, its pitching and Torii Hunter's three-run blast are the biggest pleasant surprises since K-Rod's rise in 2002. But how long are those Sox bats going to stay silent?

3. Sam Bradford looks to be on schedule take the field against Baylor tomorrow. Although it is probably too late for the 2-2 Sooners to turn this into a national title season, getting Bradford in versus the Bears means that he'll be primed for the battle against Texas next week. But with Bradford and Tebow hampered by injuries, the bigger question is: who's the prime candidate for the Heisman? Don't count out the stellar QBs yet, but this race is more open than it should have been.

4. Big news coming out of the Olympics: golf and rugby are in for 2016, with baseball and softball having been ousted along with three other sports. Golfers in Hawaii and All Blacks in New Zealand celebrated, while everyone else started saving up for Brazilian vacations. Lost in the shuffle, though, is the fact that Tiger Woods stumped for golf and was successful, whereas Barack Obama couldn't even prevent Chicago from a last-place finish at the final IOC vote. Is that Nobel Peace Prize an "our bad" from the international community?

5. Johan Franzen has a torn ACL and is going to be out for 4 months, leaving the Red Wings without one of their biggest physical presences and clutch scorers to start the season. As if Detroit didn't get enough bad news this week already, its hockey team looks to be getting off to a bumpy beginning as well. But the Wings are deep, and as long as they can beat up on the rest of the division, look for them to remain in the upper echelon of the Western Conference. This may just be what the Blackhawks need, though, to make a strong run at their first division title since 1993.

6. In more injured QB news, Donovan McNabb and Eli Manning look set to play this Sunday, while the Detroit coaching staff is staying mum on Matthew Stafford's status. The Giants will probably do just fine against the Raging Raiders either way, but which team needs its QB more: the Eagles against a lackluster Tampa Bay team, or the Lions... just to stop the bleeding for the city of Detroit? (I wouldn't bet on it vs. the Steelers.)

7. In his autobiography, long-time Calgary winger Theoren Fleury details abuse by a former coach and talks about multiple failed drug tests that never prevented him from playing. By doing so, he opens up topics that are rarely discussed in hockey and provides intimate details to his readers. While "authors" like Jose Canseco have brought infamy to revealing sportswriting, Fleury's account promises to be an interesting one.


HORIZON

Tony Romo has come under greater fire than ever given the Cowboys' dismal start to the season. Although a game against the Chiefs seems to be a recipe for success, don't count out Kansas City just yet. Roy Williams is uncertain for the game for Dallas, and Matt Cassel is still looking to prove that he is a good quarterback even outside Bill Belichick's system. If you get this game on TV, it's worth a watch.


THE Q

Florida State alumni are up in arms about the Seminoles' poor start to the college football season, with many calling for Bobby Bowden's head. For now, FSU athletic director T.K. Wetherell is standing behind him. What would you do with the second winningest coach in college football history? Leave your comments below.


Tune in next week for your Just 7 Sports briefing.