Albany Events

Those NFL fans that believe you have to have a top draft pick to rebuild your team have not watched the New York Giants this year. So, why do some teams "appear" to tank a season to get the top pick, like the Jacksonville Jaguars "appeared" to do in 2020? The Jags ended up with the much-hyped quarterback out of Clemson, Trevor Lawrence, notably a franchise changing player. The Jags have a chance to make the playoffs this year. However, the tanking philosophy may have cost the Jacksonville fans at least 5 years of playoff football.

As reported here on December 6th, the New York State Legislature had passed a bill that would have allowed counties to opt-out of the 2021 'Holiday Hunt' law, which added a deer hunting period from December 26th through January 1st each year in the designated Southern Zone of New York State. For those non-hunters, the Southern Zone is just about everything south of the Adirondacks. Democratic State Senator, John Mannion sponsored the opt-out bill and another powerful democrat put an end to his endeavor.

Patrick Beilein was a shooting star in the collegiate coaching circles. He was a standout basketball player at West Virginia and his father, John, was a collegiate coaching legend, as well as having a stint leading the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA. The younger Beilein was beginning an ascent of his own in the coaching ranks by leading the Division II LeMoyne Dolphins to 3-straight NCAA tournaments. Patrick Beilein's "dream" came true when he was named the head coach of Niagara University's hoop team in 2019. 16 days prior to the start of the Purple Eagles season, without ever coaching a game, Beilein resigned.

Headlines from New York City aren't very positive these days. Shootings, unprovoked subway attacks, rats and despair fill the Big Apple media front pages on a daily basis. Even the New York sports world received an expected blow on Friday when Jacob deGrom left the Mets without so-much a goodbye. So, when Jon Heyman from nypost.com incorrectly tweeted on Tuesday that Aaron Judge had split from the Bronx to San Francisco, it felt like Gotham lost Batman for a better deal in another city.

Last year, a new deer hunting period was added to the Southern Zone, which includes most of Central New York, the Mohawk Valley, the Southern Tier, the Finger Lakes, and Western New York. It was introduced by lawmakers as the "Holiday Hunt," running December 26th of each year and running through New Years Day, January 1st. Hunters received the gift of an additional seven days of late season hunting with bows and muzzleloaders.

With Yankees fans impatiently waiting to see when their homegrown modern-day Babe Ruth, Aaron Judge, is going to sign a contract, one that will hopefully that will keep him in pinstripes for the rest of his career, another Bomber prodigy is waiting in the wings or the minors for his shot. Yankees' prospect Jasson Domínguez, nicknamed "El Marciaon" or "The Martian" because of his amazing 5-tool abilities, just finished his Arizona Fall league season and is getting closer to the Bronx.

Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Buffalo Bills fans clicked from day one. The journeyman quarterback was easy to relate to for the self-proclaimed blue collar fanbase. A deceiving love-affair because Fitzpatrick graduated from Harvard but antics like going shirtless in the stands, while cheering on the Bills, despite below-zero temperatures, made him a Bills Mafia icon for life. Even his buddy quarterback Josh Allen paid tribute Fitzpatrick prior to Thursday's division game vs. the New England Patriots by wearing a #14 Fitzpatrick jersey.

Back in October, a rare occurrence happened at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse. It was the first time that twin male Asian elephants were born and survived in a United States facility. Overall, the survival rate for twin elephants is about 1%, so this was a big deal. Now you can help name the twins!

New York Yankees fans can start to get excited. According to reports #99 indeed appears to be returning to the Bronx for a very long time. It also appears that Hal Steinbrenner was true to his word that the Pinstripes weren't going to let money get in the way of bringing the home run champion back home.

After the 2022 season, manager Don Mattingly parted ways with the Miami Marlins after seven seasons at the helm. Immediately following his departure from the sunshine state's southernmost MLB team, there was speculation that Mattingly may be reunited with the New York Yankees, in some capacity. However on Tuesday, Mattingly joined a Major League Baseball writer's podcast and indicated that he may be returning to the American League East but it may not be the Yankees.

If Tim Weah happened to be a point guard in the NBA or a wide receiver in the NFL, most sports enthusiasts would know A) who he is and B) that he is from New York. Weah (pronounced wee-uh) is probably known more around the world than in his home Empire State. That's okay. The native of Queens is busy rallying his Team USA to defeat Iran in the World Cup on Tuesday afternoon in Qatar.

Some may say that dishing out a record contract to your closer days after the conclusion of the World Series isn't playing your hand slowly. As New York Mets general manager Billy Eppler heads into his second off-season at the helm of Steve Cohen's team, he is well aware that one has to move fast at times and be patient at others to be successful. Eppler made some key acquisitions last winter, like right fielder Starling Marte, left fielder Mark Cahna and third baseman Eduardo Escobar. Those three moves, along with Eppler's hire of Manager of the Year, Buck Showalter, changed the culture of the Mets. Now it's time to continue the improvement. That is what Cohen expects.

Tigers don't change their stripes. Just like selfish people don't often change. It happens but not often. So, when former New York Giant, Odell Beckham Jr. was kicked off a plane on Sunday morning for nothing more or less than complete selfish behavior, red flags should have been flying for Big Blue general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll.

Sometimes people can be completely out of touch from the circumstances around them. New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson appears to be one of those people. Many know how Wilson hung his defense out to dry after Sunday's game. Those same people are aware of Zach's general lack of accountability when it comes to his failures on the field. So when Robert Saleh informed #2 of his decision to bench the team's second overall pick in last year's NFL draft, Wilson's response was as expected.

As we launch into the enjoyment of the Holiday Season, many of us will be meeting friends or attending functions at bars and/or clubs. Though these establishments can be focal points for fun and laughter, they can also be target locations for sexual predators. With a very forward-thinking partnership two local counties want to help put a stop to any potential problems. Albany and Schenectady have teamed up to help make "Safer Bars" and they are empowering bar owners and staff to make a difference.

The holiday season kicks off this week and along with a triple-header of NFL action on Thursday, the college football ranks often shine with storied rivalries. Those of us old enough to remember Doug Flutie's "Hail Mary" touchdown pass to propel Boston College over defending National Champion Miami, recall the magic happened on that Friday after Thanksgiving. Even the casual college football fan will enjoy some of the classic match-ups this weekend.

A victory on Sunday at Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots, will put the New York Jets on top of the AFC East with seven wins. With triumphs over the Miami Dolphins and the Buffalo Bills, Robert Saleh and his "all gas, no brake" crew own the needed tie-breakers that have Jets fans salivating for a potential playoff birth. 2010 was the last time Gang Green visited the NFL tournament in January. Now, one man in particular is out to ruin those dreams, as he has many times before. Bill Belichick.

There are plenty of reasons to question the Fédération Internationale de Football Association or FIFA, the governing body of professional soccer. The organization has been riddled controversy for decades. In 2015, more than two dozen FIFA officials were implicated in a 24-year corruption scandal that reached the highest levels of FIFA management. Bribery connected to the awarding of hosting rights for the 2018 World Cup to Russia and this year's 2022 World Cup to Qatar were big factors in the corruption. Now, two days prior to the start, fans are told they can not buy beer with alcohol in the stadium. What?

If the New York Mets want to be a perennial playoff team, then they have to make decisions with their head and not their heart. Faced with the prospect of paying their free-agent, ace right-hander, Jake deGrom for the next 3 or 4 years, at $40 plus million per, Amazin's general manager Billy Eppler had better think long and hard about the investments that he makes over the next year, as Mets president-in-waiting David Stearns bides his time, collecting checks from the Milwaukee Brewers and making notes on his future employees.

For decades New York Mets (and for many years Jets fans) always felt that the area in Queens surrounding Shea Stadium, now Citi Field, detracted from the fan experience. From the rows of auto repair shops to the barbed-wire fences surrounding the junk yards, there is basically nothing for fans to do outside of Citi Field, if they don't need work done on their car. However, that is about to change. New York City officials have reached an agreement to build the city’s first professional soccer stadium and it has benefits for Mets fans.

The New York Mets do not have a storied history of great managers. Gil Hodges was terrific for his few years prior to his passing in 1972. Davey Johnson did a great job winning games with his late 1980s teams but his undisciplined style rubbed management the wrong way. Terry Collins was terrific in 2015, especially if you want a guy to win with a sub-par roster. However, none of them was ever named National League Manager of the Year, like this year's winner, Buck Showalter.

What a difference a year makes. Carmelo Anthony played for one season at Syracuse University. In that 2002-03 season, Melo averaged 22 points and 10 rebounds, leading head coach Jim Boeheim's team to their third National Championship. Melo left a few months later in the NBA draft as the 3rd overall pick of the Denver Nuggets. However, Anthony will always be on the Mount Rushmore of Syracuse basketball. Now his son may continue that Orange legacy.

As the United States celebrated their 18 million veterans across the country, a group of active military members, deployed in Kenya are not receiving a designated tax break from the Federal Government and New York State. "The Fighting 69th", which includes "Charlie Company" from the New York National Guard’s 2nd Squadron, 108th Infantry in Utica, and a western New York's cavalry troop 2nd Squadron, is not receiving a "combat zone" tax exemptions.

For many fans of the iconic DC Comic book character, Batman, Kevin Conroy was the man that brought the animated Dark Knight to life. Conroy's deep, gravely voice that became synonymous with Gotham's super hero. Children and adults alike, shared a love of Conroy's verbal portrayal of Bruce Wayne and his vigilante alter ego. Kevin Conroy died on Thursday in Manhattan at the age of 66.

There are over 18 million veterans of United States military service living today. These are men and women that dedicated portions of their lives to "serving" our country, maintaining the freedoms that we enjoy as Americans, no matter what political party you align with. Yet, according to uso.org, over the last 21 years, four times as many military members died from suicide, then from combat wounds in Iraq and Afghanistan or any other military operation combined.

You don't expect rare elephants to be born in Upstate New York. However, that is exactly what happened at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse. Twin male Asian elephants were born and survived for the first time in a United States facility. The survival rate for twin elephants is about 1%. Mali and Doc are the proud elephant parents of the rare duo.

Buffalo Bills edge rusher extraordinaire, Von Miller, knows a thing or two about hitting an opposing quarterback. In a way, Miller has made his living off of disrupting and tackling quarterbacks, specifically. However, as the Bills Mafia paced nervously, awaiting news on Josh Allen's injured elbow, Miller offered Buffalo his services on the other side of the football.

At 5pm on Thursday, Major League Baseball teams will have an open opportunity to sign the predominant favorite to win the 2022 American League MVP, Aaron Judge. New York Yankees fans will sit on pins and needles, as organizations begin to make their offers to the larger than life #99. Early reports out of the general managers' meetings in Las Vegas were that "league personnel" believe Judge will return to the Bronx. However, there are a few teams ready to complicate that transaction and have the cash to do it.

New York Giants fans are enjoying their team's incredible turnaround. With a 6-2 record coming out of the bye week, Big Blue fans realize that a playoff birth is more than within reach. That is if the Giants can continue to play above expectations and win the games they "should" win, like against the Texans and then the Lions. If head coach Brian Daboll and company continue to hold serve, Thanksgiving Day at 4:30pm could be an epic holiday battle in Dallas. Who would have thought that at the start of the season??

The names on the front of the jerseys will be the same but almost everything about this year's Albany Cup between Siena and UAlbany in men's basketball will be different. Since 2001, the two institutions of higher learning, separated by about 5 miles, battled 17 straight years in men's hoops. 16 times the game has been played in downtown Albany, in what is now the MVP Arena, Siena's home court during the season. In 2016, the game was played the only time at the SEFCU Arena, on the campus of UAlbany.