Jameson's Sport Writing Portfolio

The soccer world was shaken to its core on Monday when it was announced by twelve of Europe's biggest clubs that they would be breaking away from the traditional Champions League competition and creating a new Super League, one that would completely alter the nature of football entirely. This new league would be closed off to these select twelve clubs in Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, Liverpool, Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid, would be a mid-week European contest similar to that of the Champions League, but instead of having a group stage where various clubs of different size and stature would compete, only these listed twelve would play each in a sort-of NFL style table. This announcement has been met with massive criticism, anger, and what may soon come, legal action. With so much news coming in day by day of developments of this debacle, I wanted to explain why this Super League could be one ...

The 2021 NHL season has shown how competitive the professional side of hockey is. If anything, this season has shown just how much certain analytics matter in building a contending team. With the new division alignments for travel purposes, there are some clubs that have emerged out of the ashes as your-easy-to-spot favorites, then you have your dark horses, your pretenders-or-contenders, and of course, your fringe teams, and the tank jobs.  The Blue Jackets are one such club that is struggling to find their identity this season. They are definitely a pretender-or-contender. While on paper, the Jackets look like a team that should be running the table with an absolute stellar side. Instead, they have been the equivalent to lukewarm hot cocoa: their play doesn't give that warm feeling that things are going right. Despite some dominant performances, they have been absolutely terrible in others. There is severe inconsistency in the lineup. On paper, this team should a Stanley Cup cont...

Here we are again, another college football season wrapped up. It was not an easy season to complete due to all the COVID spikes that struck down even the game's Socrates in Nick Saban not once but twice; fear not because he recovered swiftly and led his Alabama to another national title, his sixth with the school and seventh overall. This national championship was gassed up like it was going to be a game of epic proportions as we had the college game's version of the New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers battle for glory. In the end, it was one of the most one-sided affairs in the national championship game history. It would've felt better if the scoreline was a little bit closer, but it was all Bama. The part that is really funny to me about this Bama win is that nobody is happy unless they are a Tide fan. The reason? The college football playoff and championship have become stagnate.  Each year, the CFB landscape is supposed to change, because a new season offers a ...

It's the greatest time of the year. Hockey season is officially upon us, even though it's like four months overdue. I have been itching for the NHL to return since they completed the 2019-20 season in August-September, respectively. The new season is bringing a whole new batch of fun storylines to the table, in what is sure to be an exciting-yet-shortened season. So what should we be on the lookout for come January 13th? 1) Tampa Bay's Cup Defense Officially Starts With the new season comes the beginning of the quest for the Stanley Cup. 2020 was the year the Tampa Bay Lightning finally shed their demons and triumphed over the Dallas Stars en route to their first Stanley Cup since 2004. To think, the Bolts dominated almost every matchup they had in the playoffs, even though some of their series went to six games. Not to mention, they did it without star center Steven Stamkos. However, Stamkos has had plenty of time to recover from his knee injury and he will be needed now m...

If you've been watching the NBA playoffs this year, you were graced with some great basketball matchups and series, including the breakout postseason campaign of Luka Doncic, Jamal Murray, Nikola Jokic, Jayson Tatum, and Tyler Herro. You'd think all this young talent would make for an exciting new generation of NBA players eager for a title shot. But then you wake up from your fantasy and realize this new wave of NBA basketball is never going to win a championship because of one man: Lebron James. Yes, he is the root of this parity problem the NBA is facing. Now, I know I'm not the person to criticize the NBA; I'm much more of a hockey fan and because I lack a hearty knowledge of current NBA stats and rosters, I've tried to avoid this subject, but I feel like I have to say something. The NBA is screwed. It's becoming washed up, unoriginal, and might I say, outright boring to watch now. How is it Lebron's fault you ask? Quite simple: he keeps finding his way ...

The Premier League in the 90s and early 2000s was lauded on the physical nature and rough-n-tumble style of play that made it so difficult for teams to play against one another. The lads from the pub would also become regular professional footballers and we got to see exactly how they would defend the opposition. They did it with tough and grit; taking fouls and smacking attackers in the hopes of not getting a red card. We used to applaud guys like Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand for their defensive prowess. In the 2010s and now 2020s, defense has all gone out the window. More teams in this summer's transfer windows haven't signed a single defender, save Man City's security of Ruben Dias from Benfica. They have all been desperate to boost their attacking power rather than solidify the backline. Just look at the transfers completed this window and you'll notice there is a significant cause for concern.  The EPL is now at a crossroads in identity. It is still considered t...

  Manchester United are going into another season without winning a trophy. They have failed miserably to even get a little bit of silverware in competitions they usually dominate. The FA Cup and EFL Cup semi-final losses will sting a lot because those were very winnable contests, and they choked them away. They've done it again in the Europa League semi-finals, falling to a strong Sevilla team that exposed the glaring gaps in quality in the squad. I am looking directly at you, Victor Lindelof and Harry Maguire. For once, the defeat was not David De Gea's fault. It's becoming even more clear United are not at the level they want to be. They are performing at 75%. They are getting the contributions from Bruno Fernandes, their new golden boy, but they have to find ways to score outside of the penalty area. You can't rely on taking penalties to take you over the line. Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford at least tried to score. This loss to Sevilla was the wake-up call the...