College football championships kick off Monday evening. Alabama's Crimson Tide is taking on the Georgia Bulldogs. Last week's semifinals achieved one of cable history's highest viewerships, and ESPN saw double digit audience growth year-over-year. ThePostGame.com Senior Editor Jeff Eisenband and FiveThirtyEight's Senior Sportswriter Neil Paine explain their expectations for the final.
"It will be something special," says Eisenband. The game kicks off at 8:00 pm ET on ESPN, who is offering the event through multiple viewing platforms. College football has been a ratings success for the network who has faced layoffs and shifted gears in 2017.
This is also the first major sports event at Atlanta's new stadium. Paine says there is a concern nationally over interest in a game that is so regional in nature.The college championship is increasingly trying to market itself as the "super bowl" of college football.
Jason Sudeikis, in an interview, said this season is the last for its Apple TV hit "Ted Lasso" but hinted that the conclusion could set up a spinoff show.
Digit Murphy, President of the professional women's ice hockey team Metropolitan Riveters, joins Cheddar News' Hena Doba on a walk and talk to talk about how she's re-imagining the hockey experience for fans and players, and why it's critical to invest in women's sports.
So far, baseball's new speed-up rules are working. The first-ever major league pitch clock and other rules have helped cut more than 20 minutes from spring training games through the first weekend.