Football is ... a collision sport. Not a contact sport, a collision sport. If we started a new sport today and we wrote up the rules and regulations and we called it football, they probably wouldn’t allow it. | | | | | Racked. (Eli Duke/Flickr) | | | | | | “Football is ... a collision sport. Not a contact sport, a collision sport. If we started a new sport today and we wrote up the rules and regulations and we called it football, they probably wouldn’t allow it.”
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| | rantnrave:// Things we learn from SPORTS ILLUSTRATED's massive "FOOTBALL IN AMERICA" project, for which two reporters spent a month traveling the US to try to paint a picture of what football means to the country in 2016: You can take a class in Religion of SEC Football at PRESBYTERIAN COLLEGE in CLINTON, S.C. The city of GREEN BAY has more professional football players than UBER drivers. Strippers who dance at clubs near football stadiums love PACKERS, SAINTS, PANTHERS and FALCONS fans. "Those guys like to spend money," one dancer says of the FALCONS crowd. One in five football fans say the sport is more important than their job. More than one in four say it's more important than their religion. College football is easier to bet on than pro football. NFL coaches hate going to injury-prevention talks, and "have a taboo about even talking to the team doctor," according to the REDSKINS' team doctor. ROGER GOODELL does not generally hear fans talking about concussions when he's on the road. "I hear guys that say, 'Just let them play.'" And fans across the country do in fact want to let them play. Except for the ones that don't. "Every single person that I talked to was conficted," reporter GREG BISHOP says in an accompanying podcast. "They were wrestling with football." The project is a massive collection of anecdotes and profiles of fans, coaches, players and any number of accessory personnel at all levels of the game, wrestling with such issues as concussions, politics, TV ratings, COLIN KAEPERNICK, betting, the nature of fandom and the allure of the game itself... Speaking of betting on football, here's an explanation of why you'll probably still be able to bet on RAIDERS games at LAS VEGAS sports books when and if the team moves to Vegas, despite the NFL officially being against sports betting and the state of NEVADA officially frowning on betting on Nevada teams... And here is *not* an explanation of why the DONALD TRUMP-endorsing developer of the stadium that would house the Raiders is more than happy to ask for two tax increases to help fund it. The CLARK COUNTY COMMISSION approved the tax hikes Tuesday. Next time you stay at the VENETIAN, you can enjoy the distinct pleasure of losing money at SHELDON ADELSON's blackjack tables and then giving him a few more dollars in hotel taxes as you're checking out... JOHN CALIPARI vs. SI FOR KIDS reporter... The best—and cutest—prize in all of sports... TOM BRADY makes fun of DEFLATEGATE in a genuinely funny FOOT LOCKER commercial... Has anyone seen the game-winning puck from the 1980 US OLYMPIC hockey team's MIRACLE ON ICE lately? | | | - Matty Karas, curator |
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| In 2016 the sport of football, like this country, finds itself somewhere between a crossroads and an existential crisis. SI spent a month traveling the U.S., interviewing hundreds of people touched by the many tentacles the game stretches through society. | | |
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| Lions linebacker DeAndre Levy is known for massive tackles, but what he's doing off the field is even more impressive. | | |
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| The three sports teams that everyone either loves or vehemently despises -- the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Cowboys -- have been struggling for a little while now. But it seems like we're in for a rude awakening. | | |
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| From belts to baggy shorts to tight sleeves, the clothing pro basketball players wear has gone through massive changes over the decades. | | |
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| The French word for chess is échecs. The French term for Tuesday’s game at the World Chess Championship is déjà vu. On Monday (Nov 14), world No. 1 and defending champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway fought his challenger, world No. 9 Sergey Karjakin of Russia, in a sweeping 78-move, seven-hour classic worthy of Terrence Malick — a draw for the ages. | | |
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| Dharam Pal Singh, a cow herder from India, credits herbal chutney and fruit for his sustained fitness. Sports officials do not believe his age. | | |
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| While NFL ratings are just recovering after an early season dip, college football’s numbers held steady throughout election season. Network execs explain why. | | |
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| Jordan Brand and its Jumpman logo are still popular but may be dulling customer demand. Can Russell & Co. come to the rescue? | | |
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| That Colin Kaepernick is feeling more confident as a player and as a person is evident in his play and in his emergence as a polarizing figure. | | |
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| Overnight, a section of B.C.'s best trails were closed by no-trespassing signs. Who did it? And who would stop them? | | |
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| Three University of Wisconsin basketball players discuss the challenges and opportunities of athletes agitating for change. | | |
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| It’s not about cheers or boos -- it’s about noise. | | |
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| With a market capitalization of $4.9 billion and 2015 sales of $3.1 billion, Russia-based PhosAgro is one of the world’s largest fertilizer companies. So why did it decide to become one of the major sponsors of the World Chess Championship? | | |
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| Zach LaVine of the Minnesota Timberwolves discusses Space Jam's impact on today's young NBA players. | | |
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| This isn’t the time to stick to sports. | | |
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| Apologies for this break in our normal programming. | | |
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| Trade minister Greg Hands presses the case for ‘creating a lasting, positive impact’, conveniently overlooking the appalling abuses suffered by migrant workers. | | |
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| As the city of Chicago celebrates its new world champions, many of the players, like Anthony Rizzo and David Ross, have become celebrities for life. | | |
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| The Tennessee School for the Deaf and the North Carolina School for the Deaf first faced off in 1903-a matchup that predates Cal-USC, Oklahoma-Oklahoma State, Florida-Georgia, Notre Dame-USC, and Bears-Packers. | | |
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| Now someone just needs to teach the Steelers how to convert one. | | |
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| © Copyright 2016, The REDEF Group |
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