bender's profile

bender
15449
Name: Jeff Zelek
Location: Clifton, VA
Gender: male
Member since: September 13, 2006
Last visit: March 16, 2023

bender has posted 21 links and 1,833 comments to SportsFilter and 0 links and 97 comments to the Locker Room.

Sports Bio

Spofi Contests:
NFL 2011 Playoff Pick 'em co-Costanza
Fantasy Baseball 2012 Costanza
CFL 2012 Pick 'em Champion
Women's World Cup 2015 Confidence Pool Champion
Fantasy Baseball 2015 Costanza
NFL 2015-16 Pick 'em Costanza
Euro 2016 Pick 'em Champion
CFL 2016 Pick 'em Costanza
CFL 2016 Playoff Pick 'em Champion
CFL 2017 Pick 'em Costanza
CFL 2018 Pick 'em Costanza
NFL 2020 Playoff Pick 'em Champion
NFL 2022 Playoff Pick 'em Costanza
NFL 2023 Pick 'em Costanza

My teams:
Ohio State Buckeyes
US Soccer
Washington Nationals
Tennessee Titans
Columbus Crew
Cleveland Indians
Vanderbilt Commodores
Washington Capitals
Nashville Predators

Significant sporting events I've attended:
1999 Cincinnati Bengals vs. Tennessee Titans (inaugural game for the Titans)
2001 and 2002 Memorial (golf) Tournaments
Ohio State vs. M*ch*g*n 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004 (and many other Ohio State games)
2004 Fiesta Bowl Ohio State vs. Kansas State
2006 World Cup USA vs. Ghana
2007 BCS National Championship Game Ohio State vs. Florida
2010 Rose Bowl Ohio State vs. Oregon
2013 Dos a Cero IV USA vs. Mexico WCQ
2019 NL Wild Card Game Milwaukee at Washington
2019 World Series Game 3 Houston at Washington
2021 USA vs. El Salvador WCQ

Stadia I've been to:

Football:
Neyland Stadium (University of Tennessee)
Vanderbilt Stadium
Adelphia Coliseum (Tennessee Titans)
Memorial Stadium (University of Illinois)
Notre Dame Stadium
Ohio Stadium
Cleveland Browns Stadium
Paul Brown Stadium (Cincinnati Bengals)
Hall of Fame Stadium (Canton)
RCA Dome (Indianapolis Colts)
Michigan Stadium
Carter-Finley Stadium (NC State University)
Kinnick Stadium (University of Iowa)
Ryan Field (Northwestern University)
Ross Ade Stadium (Purdue University)
Spartan Stadium (Michigan State University)
Sun Devil Stadium (Arizona State University)
Nippert Stadium (University of Cincinnati)
Hubert H Humphrey Metrodome (University of Minnesota)
FedEx Field (Washington R******s)
University of Phoenix Stadium (Arizona Cardinals)
Husky Stadium (University of Washington)
Beaver Stadium (Penn State University)
TCF Bank Stadium (University of Minnesota)
Rose Bowl (University of California-Los Angeles)
Byrd Stadium (University of Maryland)
Lane Stadium (Virginia Tech)
M&T Bank Stadium (Baltimore Ravens)

Baseball:
Municipal Stadium (Cleveland Indians)
Greer Stadium (Nashville Sounds)
Fulton County Stadium (Atlanta Braves)
Hawkins Field (Vanderbilt University)
Camden Yards (Baltimore Orioles)
Jacobs Field (Cleveland Indians)
Comiskey Park (Chicago White Sox)
Bobby Dodd Stadium (Ohio State University)
Cinergy Field (Cincinnati Reds)
Cooper Stadium (Columbus Clippers)
Great American Ballpark (Cincinnati Reds)
RFK Stadium (Washington Nationals)
Citizens Bank Park (Philadelphia Phillies)
Nationals Park (Washington Nationals)
Wrigley Field (Chicago Cubs)

Basketball/Hockey:
Memorial Gymnasium (Vanderbilt University)
Gaylord Entertainment Center (Nashville Predators)
Value City Arena (Ohio State University)
St. John Arena (Ohio State University)
Nationwide Arena (Columbus Blue Jackets)
Patriot Center (George Mason University)
Verizon Center (Washington Capitals)
Quicken Loans Arena (Cleveland Cavaliers)

Soccer:
Columbus Crew Stadium
Jesse Owens Stadium (Ohio State University)
RFK Stadium (DC United)
Frankenstadion (Nürnberg, Germany)
A. le Coq Arena (Tallinn, Estonia)
Audi Field (DC United)
Lower.com Field (Columbus Crew)

Recent Links

World Cup 2022 Draw: Group A: Qatar, Ecuador, Netherlands, Senegal Group B: England, Iran, USA, Scotland/Wales/Ukraine Group C: Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland Group D: France, UAE/Australia/Peru, Denmark, Tunisia Group E: Spain, Costa Rica/New Zealand, Germany, Japan Group F: Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia Group G: Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon Group H: Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea

posted by bender to soccer at 01:56 PM on April 01, 2022 - 8 comments

Big Ten nixes fall college football season, eyes spring: Big Ten conference presidents and chancellors voted Tuesday to postpone all fall sports seasons, including football, amid the coronavirus pandemic with the hopes of playing in the spring.

posted by bender to football at 10:17 AM on August 12, 2020 - 1 comment

An 82-game season? A universal DH? Key takeaways from MLB's 2020 proposal: MLB owners approved a proposal that aims to have Major League Baseball back in early July. Commissioner Rob Manfred reportedly plans to present the proposal to players Tuesday.

posted by bender to baseball at 09:31 AM on May 12, 2020 - 2 comments

VAR Has One Job, And It's Failing Miserably At It: The most common complaint against VAR—or any form of video review in sports—in one of aesthetics. If referees insist on stopping the game for several minutes to double check every key play, the thinking goes, all the drama and intensity and emotion of the biggest moments will be lost, and the celebrations of fans will be replaced by hesitance and trepidation while they wait to confirm that what they just saw with their own eyes actually happened. It’s a fine argument, one that at least a strong minority of sports fans would agree with. But most leagues around the world have chosen to ignore it. If the game gets delayed for a bit, they’ve decided, that’s okay, because it’s a small price to pay to avoid controversy and make sure officials are making an objectively correct call.

posted by bender to soccer at 04:34 PM on June 24, 2019 - 8 comments

Altuve Ruled Out on Fan Interference in ALCS Game 4: Mookie Betts tries to make a play at the wall on a Jose Altuve hit, and the umpires rule that a fan interfered and call Altuve out.

posted by bender to baseball at 09:22 AM on October 18, 2018 - 20 comments

Recent Comments

Report: Bears Trading No. 1 Pick to Panthers

The Bears, of course, already have their Ohio State QB, so they could move themselves out of the way of others in line. And at quite the hefty price!

posted by bender at 02:29 PM on March 13, 2023

SportsFilter: The Tuesday Huddle

They've also hosted 5 AFC Championship Games in a row. I agree that the Patriots and Brady are in another class, but Kansas City is remarkably consistently dominant.

posted by bender at 09:49 PM on February 14, 2023

SportsFilter: The Monday Huddle

That's an interesting suggestion. My guess is there's no rule against it, but the players either didn't think of it or weren't in position.

posted by bender at 11:05 AM on February 13, 2023

NFL Playoff Pickem: Super Bowl 0x39 Edition

Chiefs by 3
Most Passing Yards: Patrick Mahomes
Most Rushing Yards: Miles Sanders
Most Receiving Yards: Travis Kelce
Interception: CJ Gardner-Johnson
Sack: Haason Reddick
1st Turnover: Patrick Mahomes
MVP: Patrick Mahomes
Total Score: 81, Kansas City 42-39 Philadelphia

posted by bender at 04:24 PM on February 12, 2023

SportsFilter: The Sunday Huddle

Oh, I thought EBUG was going to be some sort of hockey riff on EGOT. Very cool that the Oilers were like "Let's get this kid on the ice."

posted by bender at 02:34 PM on January 29, 2023

NFL Playoff Pickem: Conference Championships Edition

My picks:

49ers by 7
Bengals by 4
Passer: Brock Purdy
Rusher: Christian McCaffrey
Receiver: Travis Kelce
Player with sack: Josh Sweat

posted by bender at 02:30 PM on January 29, 2023

NFL Playoff Pickem Week 2: Divisional Round

Revised picks:

Player with interception: Vonn Bell

Damn autocorrect

posted by bender at 12:18 PM on January 21, 2023

NFL Playoff Pickem Week 2: Divisional Round

My picks:

Chiefs by 14 (lock)
Giants by 3
Bills by 7
49ers by 7 (lock)
Passer: Patrick Mahomes
Rusher: Saquon Barkley
Receiver: Travis Kelce
Player with interception: Connor Bell

posted by bender at 12:17 PM on January 21, 2023

NFL Pickem Champion: Truthhurts

I did the opposite of Bender, as I went from the Costanza around the mid way point to finishing third (but still 100 or so points behind, so in no real danger of winning/lol.)

It corresponded with the Jaguars beginning to win, so look out next year, as I won't have that automatic loss each week.

What can I say, as a Titans fan, my epic fall from contention ran right alongside theirs. It seems there were points for one of us at a time, but not both, Jags.

Congratulations, Truth! Holding the top spot for 2/3 of the season is quite impressive.

posted by bender at 03:39 PM on January 17, 2023

Enter the NFL Playoff Pickem

My picks:

Seahawks by 7
Chargers by 7
Bills by 7
Vikings by 3
Bengals by 3
Cowboys by 3
Passer: Joe Burrow
Rusher: Dalvin Cook
Receiver: Tee Higgins
Player with interception: Vonn Bell

posted by bender at 04:59 PM on January 13, 2023

SportsFilter: The Monday Huddle

Heh, I saw that video yesterday, too. That's a fun one!

posted by bender at 12:03 PM on January 10, 2023

NFL Pickem Week 18: All the Marbles Edition

My picks:

Falcons by 4
Bills by 17
Vikings by 7
Bengals by 7 (lock)
Chargers by 13 (lock)
Lions by 3
Colts by 13 (lock)
Chiefs by 10
Dolphins by 4
Saints by 2
Eagles by 5
Browns by 7
49ers by 3
Seahawks by 7
Commanders by 3
Titans by 3

posted by bender at 12:08 PM on January 07, 2023

NFL Pickem Week 17: Zach Attack Edition

My picks:

Titans by 2
Falcons by 2
Lions by 14 (lock)
Chiefs by 27 (lock)
Dolphins by 6
Giants by 14 (lock)
Eagles by 17 (lock)
Panthers by 4
Commanders by 7 (lock)
Ravens by 13 (lock)
Jaguars by 7
49ers by 10 (lock)
Seahawks by 4
Packers by 3
Chargers by 6
Bengals by 3

posted by bender at 09:24 AM on December 29, 2022

NFL Pickem Week 16: It's a Tie Game Jakobi Edition

My picks:

Bills by 14 (lock)
Browns by 3
Titans by 7 (lock)
Chiefs by 17 (lock)
Giants by 10
Bengals by 7
Lions by 4
Ravens by 13 (lock)
49ers by 2
Cowboys by 7
Raiders by 3
Dolphins by 10 (lock)
Rams by 4
Cardinals by 3
Colts by 3

Man, there was a time when I was top score for a week or two and well up near the top of the standings. That sure has eroded over the past several weeks.

posted by bender at 12:18 PM on December 23, 2022

NFL Pickem Week 15: Homestretch Edition

My picks:

Seahawks by 7
Bills by 14 (lock)
Ravens by 7
Vikings by 7
Saints by 3
Commanders by 4
Eagles by 8
Jets by 17 (lock)
Steelers by 3
Cowboys by 12 (lock)
Chiefs by 21 (lock)
Cardinals by 3
Chargers by 5
Bengals by 5
Raiders by 3
Rams by 6

posted by bender at 04:56 PM on December 15, 2022