Author Archives: Vanessa Mazandi

This weekend, two mediocre teams from a mediocre state, which only gets media attention when presidential elections roll around (not like I can talk, being from Massachusetts and all) played a mediocre game that ended with a staggering score. The mediocre offenses of the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns scored a combined 68 points in »

On Saturday, the Harvard Crimson and the Yale Bulldogs will meet for the 121st playing of The Game. At a quick glance the battlefield does not appear to be even, as Harvard (9-0, 6-0 Ivy) enters the game undefeated while Yale (5-4, 3-3) has endured a much tougher season. Most say the measure of any »

This Sunday, Indianapolis Colts quarterback sensation Peyton Manning, passed for five touchdowns, which brings his season total after eight games to a staggering 26 touchdown passes, leading him well on his way to surpassing the 48 Marino threw in 1984. On the other side of the Manning family tree, Giants coach Tom Coughlin decided he’d »

I’m not going to lie. The original idea I had for my column this week was to write about Pittsburgh rookie quarterback Ben Rothbergersomethingorother (otherwise known as Roethlisberger) and about his incredible rise to stardom. He’s only been an active player in the NFL for a few weeks but if plowing past unbeaten Tom Brady »

It’s almost been a week, but historically, culturally and personally, the results of this year’s World Series have not yet sunk in. I wasn’t alive in 1946, 1975 or 1978 and was too young to pronounce “Buckner” or “Mookie” in 1986. My first true Red Sox disappointment wasn’t written down in the analogs of history »

This week’s NFL lineup presented Sunday viewers with a titanic battle, the likes of which the league had not seen in sometime. No, I’m not referring to the match-up between the 5-0 Jets and Pats, but rather the contest between their two former quarterbacks, Vinny Testaverde and Drew Bledsoe. It wasn’t the type of competition »

So how ’bout them Patriots! OK, so admittedly I was hoping to save that opening for when they’d win another Super Bowl or something. I wholeheartedly buy the Bill Belichick approach that this whole winning-streak record does not mean a thing without Vince Lombardi’s namesake legacy attached to the end of it. So if you »

I’ll give you five seconds to come up with the most passionate player in the NFL. Forget debating between the Michael Vicks and Willie McGinests. Forget the Priest Holmeses and Peyton Mannings who play because they’re talented or because their team has legitimate playoff chances. Forget the Brett Favres and Drew Bledsoes, taking snaps against »

This past Sunday, former Boston Globe columnist, Michael Holley, released “Patriot Reign: Bill Belichick, the Coaches, and the Players who Built a Champion.” Before you stop reading, rest easy because amazingly this column includes no rant on the Patriots. I know — it’s not entirely implausible that I’d find something worth writing about, even in »

This past week’s outcomes of NFL matchups came with some pretty hefty declarations. But amidst all the crystal balls, the biggest matchup of the night made no statements. But before we get to the main event, let’s begin with a few “declarations.” In a stunning turn of events, daaa Bears still aren’t expected to be »

To begin this week’s column, I’m just going to put it right out there and ask who’s the best athlete, dare I say– ever? Whenever I think of this question, the image that first comes to mind is that of Michael Jordan, 1998, making that 10 foot jumper over a fumbling, stumbling Bryon Russell with »

As the “Greatest Celebration in Humanity” wrapped up, signifying the closing of the 2004 Olympic Games, Greek officials were no doubt breathing a collective sigh of relief that the Summer Games went off without the security meltdown that safety experts such as Tracy McGrady and Shaquille O’Neal foresaw. However, on the other side of the »