Recently, many people in the world were focused on their television because of Super Bowl LI. Many of the athletes go through intense training to be the best of the best. But do your ever wonder what many athletes do when they’re done with their season? The answer is that most professional athletes take time to do things they aren’t able to do during their seasons.

One athlete, named LeBron James, is a professional basketball player. LeBron is the superstar guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers, and a four-time winner of the NBA’s most valuable player award. According to complexsports.com LeBron decided to travel to foreign countries in 2015, during his off-season, instead of playing basketball or working out, and he agreed to play a role in the movie Trainwreck. When he’s not playing sports he likes to act in movies.

Another athlete, Jen Rhines, is a 2000, 2004, and 2008 Olympian. According to running.competitor.com when she had an injury she had to take three weeks off in July, so she traveled to Italy with teammates and biked around Tuscany. When Jen Rhines isn’t running she doesn’t worry about what she eats and takes a mental break from her race schedule “You can’t be on your game all the time,” she said.

And lastly, athlete Larry Fitzgerald Jr., who is a wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals, likes to travel to foreign countries according to complexsports.com. Larry Fitzgerald Jr. has been to more than 80 countries total since first breaking into the NFL. He averages about two months of globetrotting every off-season. He has scuba dived nearly 30 sites worldwide, and has set foot on all seven continents.

Most athletes don’t usually practice all the time when it’s the off-season, so they can also enjoy some of the things we do everyday.

This year the NBA All-Star Weekend is set to take place in great city of New Orleans. A lot of drama, excitement, and effort has been put into this year’s All-Star Weekend. This year, the festivities will begin Friday night, February 17th, and promises to be a fun and exciting experience for both players and fans.

A lot of drama has surrounded the location of the All-Star festivities this year. The original location of the All-Star Weekend was Charlotte, North Carolina, which would have have been Charlotte’s 2nd time hosting. However, due to the implication of the HB2 bathroom bill, the NBA decided they wouldn’t have an All-Star Weekend there until the bill was repealed. The NBA decided to move the game to New Orleans, an All-Star favorite, this will be the city’s 3rd time hosting the game (the last time the city hosted was in 2014).

The NBA All-Star Weekend starts out on Friday with 2 events. The first one is the All-Star Celebrity game. This is a game played by retired NBA players, athletes from other sports, and various celebrities. The second event on Friday is the Rising Star game. This is a game played entirely by players new to the league. This year, the game features players like Joel Embiid, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Kristaps Porzingis.

On Saturday, there are 4 events. The first event is the D-League All-Star Game. This is a game played by the best players chosen from the NBA Development League. The second event is the Slam Dunk contest. The contest features some of the league’s best dunkers, who show off their most creative and impressive slam-dunks. The third contest is a Three-Point contest. Three of the league’s best shooters are chosen to participate, and they each get 5 shots from different points around the 3-point line. The player who makes the most shots wins. The fourth event on Friday is the Skills Challenge. For this event, players have to navigate their way through an obstacle course full of dribbling, shooting, and passing.

On Sunday, there is the actual All-Star Game. All of the best players from the league are chosen and placed on two teams. The two teams play each other, and this always makes for a very exciting game

The formula used for this year’s All-Star game has been changed. This year, and most likely for years to come, the fans made up 50% of the vote and the players and media each made up 25% of the vote.

The 5 starters have been announced for the West and the East already. Headlining the front court for the West is James Harden, of the Houston Rockets. Having an amazing season so far, Harden leads the NBA in assists, averaging 11.6 per game. Then we have the two teammates Steph Curry and Kevin Durant representing the Warriors, arguably the best team in the league. In the backcourt, there are the defensive stars Kawhi Leonard and Anthony Davis.

In the East, making his 13th All-Star appearance is the King, Lebron James. Accompanying Lebron is his teammate Kyrie Irving at Point Guard, and the Raptors Demar Derozan, at Shooting Guard. Also on the East, making his first appearance, is Giannis Antetokounmpo, and the Bulls super-star Jimmy Butler.  

This All-Star Weekend is shaping up to be a great one, so mark your calendars and get ready to watch some great basketball.  

The college football scene is alive and well at the end of November. With teams approaching their final games, the stage is set for another great bowl season. Coming into the third year of the College Football Playoffs, teams are waiting for the final poll to decide if they’re “in.” The final poll comes out on Sunday, December 4, and will decide the games played on Jan 1, and 2, of 2017.

The College Football Playoffs have been in place since the 2014-2015 season. The system has a specific way to choose who makes it to the playoffs. First, a committee chooses the top 25 teams. They choose these teams based on their record, their schedule, and overall talent of the team. From these 25 teams, the top four are chosen to go into the playoffs. The four teams play two semifinal games, and the winners play each other in a final championship game.   

The 7 teams in contention to win the championship this year have all had rollercoaster rides to get where they are now. The Alabama Crimson Tide are this year’s favorite to win it all. Coming off a great win against the Clemson Tigers in last year’s championship game, the Tide has kept rolling and finished the regular season with a perfect 12-0 record. Led by a stout defense and a more than capable quarterback in Jalen Hurts, Alabama is a sure bet to win it all as they haven’t moved from the No.1 ranking since 2015. Alabama plays No. 15 Florida this Saturday for the SEC Championship.

The next team with the most mojo coming into the College Football Playoffs is the Ohio State Buckeyes. Finishing with an 11-1 record the Buckeyes look to claim their second championship in 3 years. Led by their head coach Urban Meyer, and Senior quarterback J.T Barrett, the Buckeyes are on fire. Winning all of their games against ranked opponents, at the time of the game, the Buckeyes have a good resume with wins over #14 Oklahoma, #8 Wisconsin, #10 Nebraska, and #3 Michigan.  Ohio State is currently ranked No. 2 in the latest Playoff Poll.  

Runner up last year for the championship, the Clemson Tigers look for another shot at glory. Led by Heisman candidate Deshaun Watson the Tigers finished the regular season with a 11-1 record and are currently ranked No. 3 in the latest Playoff Poll. Clemson plays Virginia Tech in the ACC Championship Game this Saturday which could decide if they’re in or out of the playoffs.  

The last team currently ranked in the top 4 is the Washington Huskies. Finishing with an 11-1 record as well, the Huskies have had a magical season, but their playoff hopes might come to a close come Saturday. Washington plays Colorado on Saturday for the PAC-12 Championship. With a fairly weak schedule, Washington needs to win this game to get into the playoffs. If they don’t, three other teams might take their place.

The other three teams in contention all hail from the BIG-10. The Wisconsin Badgers, Penn State Nittany Lions, and Michigan Wolverines all are looking to sneak into the playoffs. The committee will have to make a tough choice if Clemson or Washington loses in their respected games this weekend. To increase their chances, Penn State and Wisconsin play each other in the BIG-10 Championship Game this Saturday.

This weekend will be a big weekend to decide the 2016-2017 College Football Playoffs.