BY CHRIS LEWIS
October is widely known as one of the greatest sports months. It’s the only month of the year where nearly every major sport is in full swing. NFL starts ramping up, college football does the same. The NBA and NHL get underway, while MLB comes to a close with the playoffs. There are so many options for sports fans, the batteries of the remote get worn out. With that in mind, here’s my “power rankings” for the sports and how they fared in October.
1. MLB – No doubt, MLB had the best month of any sport. Baseball should always have a good October, because it’s the only sport in playoff mode. However, these playoffs have been absolutely bonkers. First of all, the teams/markets in the playoffs have been everything Commissioner Rob Manfred could’ve hoped. They’ve included New York, Boston, Los Angeles and Chicago. Not only that, but also the games have been nuts. Lead swings aplenty thanks to the record amount of home runs hit. The highlight was Game 5 of the World Series, which beat Sunday Night Football in the TV ratings. A bananas game that featured two aces getting lit up, seven combined home runs, and a 13-12 final score in 10 innings.
2. College football – It’s been another wild year, and October gave us some great highlights. The game results remain captivating because there is so much at stake for every game involving a top team. Earlier this month, there was a week where five ranked unbeaten teams lost, and four of the top 10. Ohio State and Penn State gave us one of the best games of the season. The big programs continue to be the teams near the top of the rankings, which means the most amount of people will be watching. Plus, the month ends with the first release of the playoff rankings Tuesday.
3. NBA – I don’t remember the NBA being discussed this much in October ever. Part of the reason is that the season got moved up two weeks, so there are more games in the month. But even so, this season has been juicy with more early storylines than ever, even the preseason was discussed. Part of it is the Lavar Ball factor. He continues to be loud and boastful, which is turning every Lonzo Ball game into takes galore. That has an effect on all the rookies, who have been suddenly in the spotlight. All of the offseason player movement has created intrigue on what the newly formed teams look like.
4. NHL – I must admit, I’m not the biggest hockey follower, nor have I seen many highlights or air-time dedicated to the season to this point. But, from what I can tell, there’s been nothing negative to happen in the league so far, so it gets this spot.
5. NFL – It’s been a rough October for the most popular sport in the country. Most of the discussion surrounding the league has been negative. Some people are upset because players aren’t standing for the national anthem. Other people are upset because the league hasn’t done enough to address the issues that are causing people to protest by kneeling for the national anthem. Other people are upset that Colin Kaepernick is still unsigned. The White House continues to antagonize the NFL. Meanwhile, the quality of play continues to be exposed with the lack of good quarterbacks. There’s been more shutouts already this season than the previous two years combined. The best QB, RB, WR and defensive player are out for the season. Ratings are continuing to slide backwards. And an NFL owner compared players to inmates at a prison. Not good.
Chris Lewis, the play-by-play voice of Boise State women’s basketball, co-hosts Idaho Sports Talk with Bob & Chris weekdays from 1-3 p.m. on KTIK 93.1 FM The Ticket. He can be found @ChrisLewisTweet (Twitter).
