Dancing in September

These powerful words from one of my favorite bands Earth, Wind & Fire are exactly what every sports fan should feel right about now. With September right around the corner, all sports are right around the corner too, with some already getting in full swing (i.e baseball). This is the most beautiful time of the year. You get to make fun of your friends who study at semester schools, while you have another 3.5 weeks until classes start, not to mention the imminent start of the US Open (tennis) and college football season. How can sports fans not be dancing in September? even if baseball, football, soccer, and tennis are not your cup of tea there is plenty of other stuff to be excited for! Basketball and hockey training camps are going to open up. The FIBA Eurobasket is taking place soon and features lots of talent and intrigue (and world champs/Olympic runner-ups Spain). With such great options, September seems like the greatest time of the year (October comes in close second). Here is what to look for this month:

US Open - Tennis's last major of the year and it takes place in New York. How will Andy Roddick respond after the epic Wimbledon final defeat to The Fed? Is a different Andy (Murray) going to steal the show? There is also the return of Rafa, now the world's #3. Let's not forget the women's draw as we will probably see another Safina choke, and perhaps another Williams victory (Serena is the defending champ).



College Football - Is superman going to wow us again? How will Pete's band of thugs do with pretty boy Matt Barkley behind center? Will the MWC be good or revert back to it's old ways? Will the NCAA actually screw anyone over who deserves it? and most importantly, will we all have Beaver Fever by the December?




NFL - The Steelers. New Cowboy Stadium. And unfortunatly, Brett Favre.







Eurobasket - Will Spain steal the show once again? Can the Eastern Europeans return to former glory? How many neutralized American players are we going to see play for new countries?

Golf - yeah, who cares.




MLB - Both Wild Card races are burning up, not to mention a few divisional races still undecided. This month is literally the make it or break it month unless you are the Nationals, D-Backs, Padres, or Pirates. For them, the make it or break it month is May; check that, April.



Soccer - all domestic leagues are back in action, with Liverpool already limping in England (thanks Rafa). The best part is that World Cup qualifiers are coming back, with two games for most teams in the next 10 days. Just like in the MLB, these are essentially make it or break it. Again, unless your country is named Luxemburg or Farroe Islands for whom they break every two years when they announce the draws for the World Cup or Euro.

With all this sporting goodness, it makes you wonder why Green Day ever wrote the song "Wake Me Up When September Ends"?