Women's Soccer

Ladies and Gentlemen, here we are: The 2015 NWSL playoffs. This Sunday, the best four teams from the regular season (The Seattle Reign, Chicago Red Stars, FC Kansas City, and Washington Spirit), will battle it out for a place in the final, and you will be able to catch it all on Fox Sports 1. 

You’re probably asking yourself, “but I don’t know anything about the NWSL? Why should I care when the Chicago Red Stars host FC Kansas City on Sunday, the 13th at 1:30 PM EST?”

Who do you think is better at kicking something, Carli Lloyd or Vince Wilfork?

The producers of HBO show "Hard Knocks" endeavored to find out the answer by having the World Cup Golden Ball winner take on the All-Pro defensive tackle in a friendly field goal-kicking contest. 

We won't spoil the ending, but we will say that Wilfork, who it can be assumed has far less kicking things experience than Lloyd impressed with his kicking things ablility.

We should have know this, though, because Vince Wilfork is always loose. He said so himself.

Not content with emmbroiling itself in match-fixing allegations and flying in $3 million in cash to pay its players mid-way through a World Cup, the Ghanaian FA has added chauvinism to its resume with the wholly serious suggestion that domestic teams entice “sexy girls” to their stadia in a bid to boost attendance.

It’s been just a few days since she announced her decision to retire, and Rachel van Hollebeke is busy. She starts medical school on Monday, August 31st, just six days after her announcement on the 25th. That’s six days until a transition that is four years in the making begins. 

Rachel has been deferring acceptance to medical school since 2011. Her decision means that her soccer career is ending, and as much as she has been looking forward to medical school, it was a hard choice to make. 

This is just too much soccer talent for one meeting. Lionel Messi, hands-down the best male soccer player in the world, was in Houston training with the Argentine national team. Carli Lloyd, hands-hown the best female soccer player in the world, was also in Houston, because she plays for the Houston Dash of the NWSL. A rendesvous seemed obvious. And it happened. 

Getting to know your favorite athletes as people is one of the great benefits of social media. People tend to forget that athletes are also everyday people. It’s refreshing to hear about their favorite hobbies, and even see one of them drop the “dougie” every now and then. 

Michael Oliver is a Premier League referee, so it was odd to see him running the sidelines at an Arsenal womens game. Turns out, he didn't start out the night indentding to ref.

Michael Oliver is in the crowd tonight. Weird to see him in civilian clothing somehow.....

— Tim Stillman (@Stillberto) August 27, 2015

You can chase a dream in college. That, more than anything else, is what separates it from the rest of life. There are options, new people, and new opportunities. This cavalcade of possibilities is present in almost all aspects of college, but no where more so than athletics. You can be a champion; you can be the best in the world, even if that world is only made up of people  in the general age range of 18-22. 

Very soon, Carli Lloyd wil be able to add the title "published author" to her already impressive list of accolades.

Lloyd signed a book deal with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for her memoir, set to be released later in 2016.

The book is expected to cover Lloyd's soccer career, including the time she almost quit the sport entirely.