If the past two years have taught us anything, it’s to expect the totally, completely and never-before-experienced unexpected.
Does 2022 have more of that in store for us? Will “normal” ever return to sports and life in general? The slightly cracked crystal ball tries to shed some light…
January 10th, Indianapolis:
After his Crimson Tide defeat Georgia 10-7 in the final of the College Football Play-off, Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban announces he will be retiring from coaching at the conclusion of the 2022 season. Current Jackson State Head Coach Deion Sanders is named as Saban’s replacement. No further details are given.
January 17th, Indianapolis:
NCAA President Mark Emmert announces the decisions and outcomes following the organization’s most recent “constitutional convention” that began last November. After weeks of deliberations, the NCAA had decided that given all the changes forced upon the organization by politicians in recent years, that a fourth division for college football and basketball will be formed and organized in time for the 2023-‘24 school year. This “Division Four” will be made up entirely of the current 69 Power Five institutions, who will play by a new set of rules and standards modeled entirely after professional sports minor league operations. The schools will be divided into five “conferences” (with two divisions) of 14 schools each and compete only with the other Division Four programs. There will be room for one additional school to join during the summer of 2023. There will be open bidding for the single “expansion” spot. Additionally, actual in-person or on-line attendance in any academic classes at the 69 schools will no longer be required.
Retiring Alabama football coach Nick Saban will serve as the first Commissioner of Division Four, and a new name will be decided upon at a later date. AFLAC has reportedly already signed on to be the major corporate sponsor for the new division.
February 13th, Inglewood, CA:
The Buffalo Bills shock the football world by winning Super Bowl LVI 38-36 when a last second field goal attempt by Tampa’s Ryan Succop is wide left at the final gun. Former Bills kicker Scott Norwood is given the game ball in the victorious locker room and is seen weeping uncontrollably in the hallway afterwards. In the losing locker room, Bucs QB Tom Brady announces that he had planned to retire if his team had won the game but was now going to sign a new five-year contract.
February 14th, New York:
Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred and MLBPA head Tony Clark appear at a joint press conference to announce the signing of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement and the end of the owners lockout of the players. In this agreement, the Players Union receives much of what they were seeking, including a reduction in the six-year requirement for players to become free agents (the new standard is five years) and a floor on salaries of $90 million per team. Ten teams were below that standard in 2021. After the press conference, Manfred is overheard telling a small group of upset owners, “I’m sorry but you’ll have to find a new way to tank.”
April 4th, New Orleans:
The Gonzaga Bulldogs finally capture the big prize when they defeat Iowa State 59-56 in the championship game of the NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament. The Cyclones reached the final when the heavily favored Baylor Bears were unable to play in the Final Four due to an outbreak of COVID-19 within the program. Baylor coach Scott Drew lamented the lack of mask and vaccine mandates and other policies designed to stop the spread of the virus in the state of Texas. “The one guy that could beat us this year was sitting in the Governor seat,” Drew says.
June 29th, New York:
Kevin Durant of the Brooklyn Nets wins his second NBA MVP Award after leading the Nets to the NBA Finals, where they fell to the Golden State Warriors – Durant’s former team – in seven games. The Warriors Steph Curry is second, while Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks is a close third. Defending NBA MVP Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets, who posted the best single season stat line in league history, finishes sixth in the voting, just behind Brooklyn’s Kyrie Irving.
July 18th, Los Angeles:
Reigning American League MVP Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels wins the All-Star game Home Run Derby competition in record fashion, blasting 95 homers during the competition to best the previous record of 91 set by Vlad Guerrero Jr. three years before. AL Manager Dusty Baker reportedly wanted to remove Ohtani from the competition after the second round, noting that the right-hander was also scheduled to start the game on the mound for the AL the next day and had reached his pregame “swings count.” Baker was overruled by ESPN Executives.
September 10, Austin, TX:
The unranked Texas Longhorns stun the college football world by upsetting top ranked Alabama 34-31 in an early season college football thriller. Beleaguered UT Head Coach Steve Sarkisian is carried off the field by his team after the game, and is barely able to shake hands with his former boss, outgoing Crimson Tide head man Nick Saban. As his team is carrying him away, Sarkisian is heard yelling back to Saban, “If Deion doesn’t work out, have them give me a call…”
November 26th, Columbus, Ohio:
Michigan’s reign as the champ of the Big Ten comes to a crashing end as Ohio State beats the Wolverines 42-16 to claim the league’s eastern division and a spot in the Big Ten Championship game. After the game it’s announced the Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh has accepted the head coaching position with the Denver Broncos, who had parted ways with former head coach Vic Fangio earlier in the season. Harbaugh was unavailable for comment, but later thanks his players and says his goodbye’s via text messages to his players.
December 10th, New York:
The 88th Heisman Trophy is awarded to Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud. Last season’s winner, Bryce Young of Alabama, finishes a distant third, even after posting a better statistical season than he had the previous year. Young was unable to attend the ceremony, having committed to shooting a TV commercial for Nissan prior to the announcement of the date of the ceremony. When asked about the scheduling conflict, Young, who has already brought in close to a million dollars in NIL deals and has a contract with the Creative Artists Agency replied, “Gotta pay the bills, man.”
Here’s hoping for a safe, entertaining and even fun 2022. That would be a nice change.
More from The Woody Paige Sports Network:
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- Who should end up where in College Football’s “Super Conference” – and who should be left out?
- Woody Paige: Pat Bowlen’s legacy doesn’t deserve longtime, clownish Kaiser claim
- Could Peyton Manning and John Elway co-exist in the same Broncos new ownership backfield?
