Tradition's Finest Episode 65 - "The Lane Johnson Episode"

Welcome Back to the Tradition's Finest Podcast & Happy Thanksgiving to Our Listeners!! Episode 65 - “The Lane Johnson Episode” includes a discussion of the following sports-related topics:

• MLB: Last week, Atlanta Braves P Chris Sale won the National League Cy Young Award, while Detroit Tigers P Tarik Skuball won the American League Cy Young Award unanimously. . . New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge was voted the AL MVP, his second MVP award, tying Yankees legend Mickey Mantle as the only two Yanks' to win the award unanimously, while Los Angeles Dodgers Shohei Ohtani claimed his third unanimous MVP in the National League, and joined Frank Robinson as the only MLB players to win the MVP award in both the AL & NL. . . "The Rich Always Find a Way to Get Richer:" It was announced on Tuesday evening that LH pitcher & two-time Cy Young award winner, Blake Snell, is working on an agreement for a five-year deal with the MLB reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers worth an estimated $182 millions contract, sources confirmed to ESPN. . .
• NCAA Men's & Women's College Basketball: The University of Memphis stunned the MBB world when they upset the defending back-to-back NCAA Champion & No. 2-ranked UCONN Huskies 99-97 in OT of the opening game of the NCAA MBB Maui Invitational on Monday - Huskies HC Dan Hurley was not a "happy camper" at the postgame press conference, expressing his displeasure over a late offensive foul call called on Huskies' F Liam McNeeley, that led to UCONN's 17-game winning streak dating back to last season, being snapped - What were your thoughts on the costly "over-the-back" foul call on McNeeley?. . . On the following day, Tuesday, No. 2-ranked UCONN fell again in Maui, losing 73-72 to Colorado on Jakimovski's last second off-balance layup - the anger, rage & animosity for the Monday loss certainly carried over into HC Dan Hurley's postgame press conference as he fumed once again after the officials "missed" an over-the-back foul call late in the game. . . What are your thoughts on Dan Hurley's sideline antics & comments following the Huskies' two-game losing streak? (Send us your thoughts to [email protected]!). . .Center Johni Broome scored on a putback with a single second left to help No. 4-ranked Auburn Tigers rally for an 83-81 win over No. 5-ranked Iowa State Cyclones in a Maui Invitational quarterfinal game on Monday - the Tigers trailed by as many as 18 points after shooting 10-for-26 in the first half, but rallied after outrebounding the Cyclones 21-10 in the second half. . . No. 9-ranked Alabama defeated No. 6-ranked Houston on Tuesday night 85-80 in OT as Crimson Tide G Mark Sears found his "new groove" and finished the game with 24 points - the explosive plays by the Crimson Tide in the OT period proved to be the difference in the outcome as 'Bama outscored the Cougars 7-2 in OT. . . After defeating the Dayton Flyers 92-90 in the Maui quarterfinal game on Monday, the North Carolina Tar Heels ran into a "brick wall" on Tuesday evening when they played the No. 4-ranked Auburn Tigers in a Maui semifinal game - Auburn dominated the Tar Heels 85-72 as C Johni Broome posted his 4th consecutive double-double (64th in his career) after scoring 23 points & a career-best 19 rebounds as the Tigers remain undefeated at 6-0 - Auburn is vying to become the 3rd SEC Conference team to win the Maui Invitational, and will play an undefeated Memphis team in the Maui Championship Game on Wednesday. . . In "Terry's Chocolate Vegas Showdown," No. 1-ranked Kansas Jayhawks were able to hold off the No. 11-ranked Duke Blue Devils 75-72 after Jayhawks C Hunter Dickinson was ejected from the game for "kicking a Blue Devils player in the head" midway thru the second half of the game? Thoughts on Blue Devils freshman phenom Cooper Flagg's game performance?
• UCONN Women's Basketball HC Geno Auriemma tallied his 1,217th win to pass Tara VerDerveer for the most wins by any coach in NCAA basketball history. . . "All Good Things Come to an End?:" Did the defending NCAA Women's Basketball Champion & No. 1-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks LOSE a regular-season basketball game, ending their 43-game winning streak? by double digits?. . .
• NBA: Russell Westbrook became the first NBA player to record 200 triple-doubles in NBA history. . . The Cleveland Cavaliers 15-1?. . . The short-handed Philadelphia 76ers ended their five-game losing streak last Saturday night after defeating the Brooklyn Nets 113-98 after Rookie Guard & Tik Tok superstar Jared McCain's stellar performance, finishing the game with 30 points, while All-Star C Joel Embiid missed the game with "swelling in his left knee."
• NCAA CFB: News & Storylines: Five-star QB Julian "JuJu" Lewis - the No. 2 high school recruit in the country according to ESPN Class of 2025 - committed to the University of Colorado on Thursday live on "The Pat McAfee Show." - this announcement was made just four days after Lewis decommitted from USC on Sunday - What are your thoughts on Lewis' commitment to HC "Primetime" Deion Sanders & the Colorado Buffaloes? Does his commitment ensure that Deion plans to or will remain the HC at Colorado in 2025? (Let us know what you think!!). . . QB Bryce Underwood, the No. 1 high school football recruit in the ESPN Class of 2025 - flipped his commitment to his "home" state team of the Michigan Wolverines - Underwood has been committed to LSU since early January but was made a lucrative $10.5M NIL offer by UM to remain "home" for the next four years - What are your thoughts on Bryce Underwood's decision to flip his commitment from LSU to Michigan? and How will UM's $10.5M NIL offer affect the other NCAA programs & universities? . . .Following The Ohio State University's win over Indiana in Week 13, the University's 'Brutus the Buckeye' statue was viciously attacked on Saturday night, and Buckeye nation believes that Indiana or Michigan fans are the top suspects - Who do you surmise is behind the "vicious" attack on Brutus, and Why? (Share your thoughts on Twitter/X - @TraditionFinest). . . "Some Tweet-ers Will Never Learn:" The University of Florida is one win away from forcing a fellow Twitter/X user, a Tennessee Volunteers' fan, tattoo UF HC Billy Napier's face on his ass cheek (unless he pulls a @Noles321 & deletes his social media profile & vanishes, which could ultimately jinx his beloved Volunteers in the CFB Playoff in the process!). . . "The Iron Bowl" has Commenced: On Monday, Auburn LB Demarcus Riddick made a few interesting comments about the Tiger's upcoming matchup versus the Crimson Tide in the Iron Bowl - most notably about Crimson Tide WR Ryan Williams & QB Jalen Milroe - and he further indicated that he "will not lose to 'Bama while [he's at Auburn.]" - Auburn freshman & top-leading WR Cam Coleman also went on record to state that "Alabama is the next stop on Auburn's 'revenge tour," (the Auburn Tigers current record sits at 5-6) - Alabama QB Jalen Milroe was unfazed by the comments and responded blatantly "good for him." What are your thoughts on the Tigers' LB Demarcus Riddick & WR Cam Coleman's comments leading up to the Iron Bowl?. . . News broke on Tuesday morning per CBS & On3 Sports that North Carolina has fired HC Mack Brown - Brown's firing comes just one day after he stated his intentions were to 'return to UNC for the 2025 CFB season.' - the Tar Heels' record is 6-5 leading up to their regular season finale versus the N.C. State Wolfpack on Saturday, which Brown will coach. . .Do you agree with UNC's decision to fire Mack Brown? If so, is age a primary factor? (Brown is 73 years old, and will turn 74 next August). . .
• NCAA CFB Week 13: Review & Recap: Week 13 of the College Football season was an unbelievably wild & historic weekend that included a slew of upsets, and in one swell swoop - caused CHAOS across the CFB landscape - and knocked multiple team(s) out of contention for the CFB Playoffs. . . JD & Spencer discuss & provide detailed game breakdown(s) & player analysis - as well as the playoff implications for each game - for the following Week 13 CFB games:

Florida Gators vs. #9 Ole Miss Rebels #2 Ohio State Buckeyes vs. #5 Indiana Hoosiers Kansas Jayhawks vs. #16 Colorado Buffaloes #6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. #19 Army Black Knights Oregon State vs. #25 Washington State ("PAC-12 Championship" Game) Oklahoma Sooners vs. #7 Alabama Crimson Tide Auburn Tigers vs. #15 Texas A&M Aggies

• Other Notable Scores from CFB Week 13:

#3 Texas defeated Kentucky 31-14 LSU held off Vanderbilt in Baton Rouge for a 24-17 victory #22 Iowa State defeated Utah 31-28

• NCAA CFB Week 14 Preview & "Rivalry Week" Game Predictions: JD & Spencer preview the following CFB Week 14 games, and provide their individual game predictions:

"The Old Man River Rivalry Game:" Memphis at #20 Tulane (-14.5) O/U56.5 "The Egg Bowl:" Mississippi State at #9 Ole Miss (-26) O/U61.5 "Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate:" Georgia Tech at #10 Georgia (-19.5) O/U53.5 "The Border War or the Cascade Clash:" Washington at #1 Oregon O/U50.5 "The Duel in the Desert:" #21 Arizona State (-9.5) at Arizona O/U53.5 #11 Tennessee (-10.5) at Vanderbilt O/U48.5 "The Jeweled Shillelagh Trophy Game:" #6 Notre Dame (-7.5) at USC O/U51.5 "The Game:" #2 Ohio State (-21) vs. Michigan O/U42.5 "The Palmetto Bowl:" #18 South Carolina at #17 Clemson (-2.5) O/U49.5 "The Lone Star Showdown:" #3 Texas (-6) at #15 Texas A&M O/U48.5 "The Iron Bowl:" #13 Alabama (-11.5) vs. Auburn O/U52.5 #8 Miami (-11) at Syracuse O/U67.5

• NFL: Last Friday, New York Giants President John Mara released a statement that the team had "released" and "mutually parted ways" with QB Daniel Jones after Jones made the request earlier that morning. . . Update: Former Giants QB Daniel Jones has signed with the Minnesota Vikings after Jones had indicated that his intent was to sign with a "playoff contender." What are your thoughts on the Vikings signing QB Daniel Jones? Will Jones be the starter for the Minnesota Vikings in 2025?. . . "Can We All Agree that 'Snow Football' is the Best Type of Football?:" The Cleveland Browns stunned their division rival Pittsburgh Steelers 24-19 on Thursday night in a snowstorm & ended the Steelers' five-game winning streak - following the game, Steelers WR George Pickens took a literal swipe at the Cleveland Browns and blamed the team's loss "on the snow," and even downplayed the Browns' player's physical abilities - ESPN's Stephen A. Smith made a great point on the show "First Take," when he stated that he had "never heard a Steeler complain about the weather after a loss or win," - Do the Steelers have a "Pickens Problem?". . . The Washington Commanders lost their 3rd straight game in a row on Sunday after a "chaotic 4th quarter" to their NFC East rival Dallas Cowboys 34-26 - the teams combined to score 31 points in the 4th QTR, the most in an NFL game in more than a decade - the Commanders are now 7-5 this season, will they make the NFL Playoffs this season?. . .The Kansas City Chiefs secured their 5th walk-off victory of the season on Sunday after defeating the Carolina Panthers 30-27 - Panthers QB Bryce Young is back, baby? - and will "absolutely" remain the team's starting QB next week (and most likely, the remainder of the season!) according to Panthers HC Dave Canales. . . The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Los Angeles Rams 37-20 on Sunday night after RB Saquon Barkley exploded for an Eagles franchise record 255 yards rushing (302 total yards) while the Rams defense struggled - Does Eagles RB Saquon Barkley have to be the "favorite" to win NFL MVP this season?. . . Monday Night Football: Harbaugh vs. Harbaugh: "Who's got it better than us, Nobody!:" Baltimore Ravens & HC John Harbaugh defeat younger brother Jim Harbaugh & the Los Angeles Chargers 30-23 in the 'third Harbaugh Bowl," (John is now 3-0 over Jim) - Chargers lost RB J.K. Dobbins who suffered a knee injury & is currently week-to-week - The Ravens finished the game with 212 yards rushing & outgained the Chargers 389 yards to 285 - RB Derrick Henry rushed for 140 yards but does not score a TD for the first time this season - Are the Baltimore Ravens a legitimate threat as a Super Bowl contender? (Let us know what you think!)

Thanks for Listening!