You Talking About Soccer?

The Dodgers lead in the National League is now two and a half games after falling to the lowly Arizona Diamondbacks 4-3 last night. The Colorado Rockies have won six in a row, and show no signs of letting up their fantastic play of late. The Dodgers have the day off before heading to San Francisco for a huge three-game series with the Giants. The Rockies play host to Cincinnati Reds before traveling to San Diego for the weekend to take on the Padres.

The USA Soccer team is one win away from clinching a spot in the World Cup. The U.S. beat Trinidad & Tobago 1-0 last night in a qualifying game. Ricardo Clark scored the lone goal for the U.S., who can clinch a trip to South Africa when they play Honduras on October 14th.

I never thought I'd say this, but recently I've been very into soccer. It took me long enough to realize that it's a fun sport to follow and watch on tv. My appreciation for soccer began over the summer, when I started watching Spanish League powerhouse FC Barcelona. They came to the United States to play some MLS teams, and ESPN televised the games. I got to watch players like Lional Messi, Thierry Henry, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. My personal favorite is Carlos Puyol, who is one of the best defenders in the world. I would also argue he has the best player of any soccer player I've seen. I'll say right now that I have pledged my allegiance to Barcelona. They'll be the soccer team I'll be rooting for from now on. Call me a bandwagon fan, but rooting for Barcelona gives me a legitimate reason to follow soccer.

ASU Football has the week off, but I'm looking forward to watching Ohio State vs USC, which is this Saturday at the Horseshoe.

The NFL season starts tonight, as the Pittsburgh Steelers will play host to the Tennessee Titans. All I have to say is football is back, so life finally matters again.