2021 NFL Preview: Another valiant attempt at predicting the NFL season, and my picks for Super Bowl LVI

September 8, 2021 ~ jrike10 ~ Leave a comment

The 2021 NFL season kicks off tomorrow night with one of the most electric matchups I can recall from my time as a fan — Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers against Dak Prescott and my Dallas Cowboys (I just want the Boys to escape Florida without any major injuries, though a miracle would be … Continue reading 2021 NFL Preview: Another valiant attempt at predicting the NFL season, and my picks for Super Bowl LVI

Bucs stop here: Brady completes legendary season in Tampa Bay with Super Bowl win

February 7, 2021February 7, 2021 ~ jrike10 ~ Leave a comment

When Tom Brady joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, I was in absolute shock. The look of 20-year New England Patriot and owner of a record six Super Bowl rings in the red and black of the Buccaneers was jarring, the rare instance of an all-time legend joining a small-market, side note of a team. When … Continue reading Bucs stop here: Brady completes legendary season in Tampa Bay with Super Bowl win

Week 17 Read Option: The Final Column

January 4, 2021 ~ jrike10 ~ Leave a comment

Option 1, 2020’s Burning Question: Which 10-win team is left out in the AFC? The NFL voted to expand the playoffs from six to seven teams per conference during the offseason. Yet entering Week 17, one double-digit team was guaranteed to miss the playoffs, a rarity even in a six-per-conference year. Baltimore left little doubt … Continue reading Week 17 Read Option: The Final Column

Coast 2 Coast Episode IV

October 15, 2020October 15, 2020 ~ jrike10 ~ Leave a comment

This fall I have been working on a variety of projects, from the Read Option column to film reviews for The Daily Northwestern. Today, I wanted to share the most recent episode of Coast 2 Coast, a weekly sports commentary show that I host with John Volk for 8 in the Box Productions. 8ITB is … Continue reading Coast 2 Coast Episode IV

Sports Pantheon: My Favorite Sports Books

May 11, 2020 ~ jrike10 ~ 1 Comment

A quick scan of my Goodreads profile will reveal a clear trend — I read a lot of sports books. That should come as no surprise, as I hope to be a sports journalist and have goals of writing books in the future. Reading about sports was as formative to my fan experience as watching … Continue reading Sports Pantheon: My Favorite Sports Books

Where’d the Love Go? The Ultimate Quarantine NFL Mock Draft

April 20, 2020 ~ jrike10 ~ 1 Comment

10 NFL megafans. 32 first round selections. 10 trades. 60 minutes. Zero Jordan Love. Unlimited fun. In the barren landscape of professional sports, the NFL Draft, which starts this Thursday on ESPN, is a tantalizing oasis. But even though the draft goes on, it will be a draft like no other. To prepare for the … Continue reading Where’d the Love Go? The Ultimate Quarantine NFL Mock Draft

Nostalgia Blast: Growing Up Riker

April 4, 2020 ~ jrike10 ~ Leave a comment

Northwestern’s spring quarter officially kicks off this Monday, and while NU has yet to officially decide about whether classes will be online for the entirety of the quarter until mid-June, all signs point toward a full quarter of remote work. To boil that down — my physical freshman year, my year of living in Evanston, … Continue reading Nostalgia Blast: Growing Up Riker

Fantasy Godfather: The Ascension of The Morey The Merrier

March 22, 2020December 4, 2020 ~ jrike10 ~ Leave a comment

In his 2007 book Fantasyland, Wall Street Journal sportswriter Sam Walker sets out to join and win the most prestigious fantasy baseball league in the world. While he is up against the foremost fantasy baseball experts, Walker believes he has an edge — his access to players and managers as a journalist. Though his quest … Continue reading Fantasy Godfather: The Ascension of The Morey The Merrier

Missing the Mark: Realism and the Modern Sports Video Game

March 12, 2020 ~ jrike10 ~ Leave a comment

The following is my final paper for my 398 Video Game Studies class, which explores the extent that mainstream sports-themed video games such as NBA 2K employ realism. “If it’s in the game, it’s in the game!” For years this phrase was the slogan of EA Sports’ video game franchises, an assurance that everything that … Continue reading Missing the Mark: Realism and the Modern Sports Video Game

Kobe: Loss of a Legend

January 27, 2020 ~ jrike10 ~ 1 Comment

I wasn’t a Kobe Bryant fan. Not at all. In the first-ever NBA game I watched in 2008, he was the villain leading the Lakers against my Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals, and the Celtics won. The next year, he handily defeated my new favorite team (and the one I have called my team … Continue reading Kobe: Loss of a Legend