The Ultimate Football Bachelor Party: 2018 The Ultimate Football Bachelor Party: 2018

The Ultimate Football Bachelor Party: 2018

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Football attracts a special kind of psycho at every level of the game, be it the head coach who sleeps three hours a night under a bench press, the quarterback who sleeps with All-22 footage acting as white noise, or the fan who has both of their signatures on official team bedsheets. Players will pay humble lip service to the fans, but it really is up to us who are willing to channel, embrace, and unleash our psycho-sides for football to be its best. For centuries, we fans have simply flocked to local sporting events. Eventually, with the advent of TV, air travel, and feelings, we could follow a team easier with both more knowledge and more passion. That spark led to sport-wide fanaticism, which then bred comradery with our fellow man, universal resentment of spring and summer, and, ultimately, this here endeavor designed specifically for your bachelor party contingent to have “The Best Football Weekend of Your Life!”  

High school football action

Most NFL cities have the alluring, reliable benefits that make an outstanding bachelor party weekend. What a select, elite group of those cities also have is a nearby college with a fairly decent football program and a whole other ecosystem of fandom needing to survive and thrive. That college/pro combo orchestrated correctly, could easily be nominated for a Best Bachelor Party Award. But when that city also has a coffee shop, a liquor store that sells whatever may fill that emptied disposable coffee cup, and a Friday night high school football game brimming with the hope and promise of bright futures ahead (and lacking the adequate security willing or able to check the contents of incoming coffee cups), then you have the potential for the greatest weekend imaginable, starring wall-to-wall football and the fanatical gentlemen necessary to make it all work.

If only someone would do the schedule-crunching legwork …

-By Rico Bronte

  • NFL WEEK 1

    Minneapolis, MN U.S. Bank Stadium, Chicago Avenue, Minneapolis, MN, USA
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    Wayzata at Minnetonka (Friday, 9/7)
    Fresno State at Minnesota (Saturday, 9/8)
    49ers at Vikings (Sunday, 9/9)

    Week 1 begins less than 20 miles from where Super Bowl LII left off in February. And while that game may have been for a ring, it’s the bell that’s at stake when the Wayzata Trojans visit the Minnetonka Skippers. The annual Battle for the Bay Bell—named for the shared nearby bays of Lake Minnetonka, whose purifying potential was noted by Prince but made unforgettable by Apollonia—has been fought since before those Super Bowl-losing Patriots were even a team, with the Skippers earning victorious bell-ringing rights each of the last two years. Wayzata still holds the rivalry’s winning record at 33-31-2 though, having also won three state championships to Minnetonka’s one. Rounding out the weekend, the Fresno State Bulldogs are in town to play the Minnesota Golden Gophers Saturday, then newly signed Kirk Cousins makes his Viking debut under center against freshly inked Jimmy Garoppolo and the 49ers in the best 1 o’clock game on the schedule. Too bad Minnesota Nice dictates you don’t talk about money, because they would have A LOT to talk about.

  • NFL WEEK 2

    Denver, CO Mile High Stadium Circle, Denver, CO, USA
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    Pine Creek at Valor Christian (Friday, 9/14)
    New Hampshire at Colorado (Saturday, 9/15)
    Raiders at Broncos (Sunday, 9/16)

    Last year’s No. 8 team in the state visits last year’s No. 2 team in a battle of Colorado squads who share the same mascot (Eagles) and who both won state championships in 2016. For Valor Christian, this is the first year with former Pro Bowl receiver Ed McCaffrey as the coach and final year with youngest McCaffrey son Luke as the quarterback. (Brothers Max and Christian are in the NFL while other brother Dylan is at the University of Michigan.) About an hour drive to Boulder, the New Hampshire Wildcats take on the Colorado Buffaloes at Folsom Field, one of only a few college stadiums with a playing-field elevation at least a mile above sea level. This is only relevant in that Denver’s Sports Authority Field at Mile High (where the Raiders play the Broncos that Sunday) only achieves its mile-highness at one of the upper suite levels. Absurdly misleading. We’ll see how smoothly that retired-boothman Gruden makes his sub-mile transition.

     

  • NFL Week 2

    Chicago, IL Soldier Field, Museum Campus Drive, Chicago, IL, USA
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    Libertyville at Warren Township / De La Salle at Mt. Carmel (Friday, 9/14)
    Akron at Northwestern … or USF vs. Illinois (Saturday, 9/15)
    Seahawks at Bears (Monday, 9/17)

    Whether you think back on high school in dramatic coming-of-age terms or in pathetic glory-days terms, it’s a memory no doubt encapsulated and brought to life by the work of fictional Chicagoland stories. John Hughes’ Shermer High didn’t actually exist and there was no Polk High for whom Al Bundy could score four touchdowns in one game, but the emotions high school evoked are undeniably real for both those characters and those of us who loved watching them.

    Libertyville High, fortunately, does exist. And when longtime coach Dale Christensen needed to motivate his Wildcats before a 1993 state semifinal, he dug into the ol’ playbook, saw that undeniable power of fiction, and staged his own death. Unfortunately, players got freaked, he lost his job, and the Wildcats lost that game. (If you prefer to stay in the city Friday night, De La Salle is visiting Chicago Mt. Carmel, winner of 12 state championships and home to numerous NFLers from Simeon Rice to Donovan McNabb.) The next day, there are two college games accessible from Chicago’s L train: Akron at Northwestern or USF at Illinois, being played at Soldier Field instead of Illinois’ usual home field a two-hour drive away. It’ll require an even more ridiculous three-hour drive to see any Sunday NFL action (Vikings at Packers) live, so instead, take in a sure to be gorgeous September Sunday at Wrigley Field (Reds at Cubs) or in Douglas Park (Beck, Blink-182, Elvis Costello, Cypress Hill, Blondie, Gwar, and Andrew W.K. are amongst the bands playing Riot Fest that weekend), then stick around for Monday Night Football when the Bears host the Seahawks.

     

  • NFL Week 2

    Bay Area, CA Levi's Stadium, Marie P DeBartolo Way, Santa Clara, CA, USA
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    Bishop Gorman at De La Salle (Friday, 9/14)
    UC Davis at Stanford (Saturday, 9/15)
    Lions at 49ers (Sunday, 9/16)

    Watching powerhouse high schools from different states face off seems like the sort of exhilarating promise that only cable TV can make. But even then, you can’t simply count on chase scenes from Planet Earth to just happen next to a concession stand serving walking tacos. Yet here, in real life and in Concord, California, two top-25 teams—the 2014, 2015, and 2016 national champion Bishop Gorman Gaels from Las Vegas, and three-time national champion and one-time holder of a 151-game winning streak, De La Salle Spartans—are pitted for what’ll no doubt be the Bay Area’s best football game all weekend. (Please put up a fight, UC Davis, and Detroit Lions.)

  • NFL Week 3

    Seattle, WA CenturyLink Field, Occidental Avenue South, Seattle, WA, USA
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    Bethel at Wilson (Friday, 9/21)
    Arizona State at Washington (Saturday, 9/22)
    Cowboys at Seahawks (Sunday, 9/23)

    Rain has been synonymous with Seattle ever since it won a supporting actor Emmy for its work on Frasier, but it’s the bodies of Washington water that should get more love. And nowhere can you begin to appreciate them better than at Stadium Bowl (home to Wilson High and Stadium High) and Husky Stadium (home of the Washington Huskies). Stadium Bowl looks out on Commencement Bay and Puget Sound in its north end zone, and one might recognize the formerly known Tacoma Stadium for its own co-starring role as a location on 10 Things I Hate About You. Further north, Saturday “sailgating” on Lake Washington will convince you that Husky fans have it all figured out … until they try to sell you on the idea that they invented The Wave. (If confronted by a Wave Truther, ask them why the crowd at an Oakland A’s playoff game weeks prior to Washington’s supposed Halloween 1981 creation were doing every seven-year-old’s favorite interactive cheer. Then ask them if they really believe the 12th Man started with the Seahawks as well. Perhaps don’t ask these questions while on the Wave Truther’s boat.)

  • NFL Week 3

    Atlanta, GA Mercedes-Benz Stadium, AMB Dr NW, Atlanta, GA, USA
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    Colquitt County at Grayson (Friday, 9/21)
    Clemson at Georgia Tech (Saturday, 9/22)
    Saints at Falcons (Sunday, 9/23)

    The nation’s top two recruits last year were both quarterbacks from high schools less than an hour northwest of Atlanta. For 2019, the nearby Grayson Rams have two of the nation’s Top 25 recruits—outside linebacker Owen Pappoe and offensive tackle Wanya Morris—and are coming off a season being ranked 75th in the nation. That Friday, they host the 56th ranked team in Colquitt County High, led by head coach Rush Propst. He’s perhaps most notable for (in ascending order of awesomeness) leading Colquitt County to state championships in 2014 and 2015; guiding Alabama’s Hoover High to five state championships before that; the fiery, lasting impression he made on MTV’s Two-A-Days; an Alabama-intense football scandal that involved charges of both grade-changing and secretly supporting a second family; and, best visually, for headbutting his (helmet-wearing) kicker during a 2015 state semifinals game and bloodying his head in the process. He was suspended for a year for that last one; after an appeal, the punishment was reduced to a reprimand. Once that crazy washes over you, allow southern hospitality to take over the rest of the weekend via Dabo Swinney’s Clemson squad, a sure-to-be-tough Saints-Falcons matchup, and everything else Gold that Atlanta (and its Clubs) have to offer.

  • NFL Week 4

    Phoenix, AZ University of Phoenix Stadium, Cardinals Drive, Glendale, AZ, USA
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    Desert Edge at Saguaro (Friday, 9/28)
    Oregon State at Arizona State (Saturday, 9/29)
    Seahawks at Cardinals (Sunday, 9/30)

    Under coach Jason Mohns, the Saguaro Sabercats have won five straight state championships, defeated in-state opponents in 35 straight games, and, just last year, score-boarded an average of 47 per game. On Friday, they host a Desert Edge Scorpions team that ranked 42nd in the state last year and won the Division III state championship in 2015. One has the crown, the other has the hunger…and they will both, assumedly, play to win the game. Speaking of, Saturday will see first-year Arizona State coach Herm Edwards leading the Sun Devils against an Oregon State team that finished 1-11 last year. As you look around Sun Devil Stadium, consider all the imagery and verbiage that was covered and removed when Pope John Paul II held Mass 30 years ago. As you look around the University of Phoenix Stadium the next day, consider all the monuments and praise that will commemorate whoever rises out of the Mike Glennon/Sam Bradford/Josh Rosen QB ash heap.

  • NFL Week 4

    Boston, MA Gillette Stadium MBTA Stop, Foxborough, MA, USA
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    Lawrence Academy at Nobles (Friday, 9/28)
    Temple at Boston College (Saturday, 9/29)
    Dolphins at Patriots (Sunday, 9/30)

    Before the reign of Goodell, before Boston College was established, before Temple was established, before the advent of jockstrap cups, before the addictive-advent of cups of Dunkin’, before the Dolphins made Hootie cry, even before Bill Belichick uttered his first grumble … there was the Oneida Football Club. The first organized football club, Oneida took on any willing competitors in Boston Common from 1862 to 1865, and according to a marble tablet that pays tribute to them in the park today, their “goal was never crossed.” Most of the players went to high schools that no longer exist or have been merged many times over, a convoluted family tree that nevertheless connects Oneida most prominently to Noble and Greenough School. (The school tried to pay tribute to Oneida with a bronze tablet in 1923, but that went missing shortly after it was put up.) Lawrence Academy, who won last year’s game 35-0 en route to a perfect season, is visiting that Friday.

  • NFL Week 4

    Nashville, TN Nissan Stadium, Titans Way, Nashville, TN, USA
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    Ensworth at Father Ryan (Friday, 9/28)
    TN State at Vanderbilt (Saturday, 9/29)
    Eagles at Titans (Sunday, 9/30)

    Ensworth won four consecutive state championships from 2010 to 2013. Father Ryan won one as recently as 1997. Tennessee State has the most Black College National Championships of any school in the nation. The Titans were inches away from at least extending Super Bowl XXXIV one more play, and the Eagles got more than enough inches from Nick Foles to win Super Bowl LII. Even without football, Nashville is an awesome weekend. And yet, it’s the albeit light hint of SEC football—the only whiff you’ll likely get here when trying to pair it with the pros —that makes this weekend shine.

  • NFL Week 5

    Los Angeles, CA StubHub Center, S Avalon Blvd, Carson, CA, USA
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    Long Beach Poly at Compton (Friday, 10/5)
    Washington at UCLA (Saturday, 10/6)
    Raiders at Chargers (Sunday, 10/7)

    The metrics by which to measure Long Beach Poly’s football greatness are many, from national rankings to league championships to the record-holding number of former Jackrabbits to have gone pro. But can there be any indicator greater than having Snoop Dogg not just as a superfan, but as a damned designer of your uniforms? Snoop walked the Long Beach Poly halls alongside Warren G and Nate Dogg, and what more fitting a game to attend than when the Jackrabbits visit Compton High School, the school former commish Pete Rozelle attended and also the recent recipient of a $10 million donation by Dr. Dre (to build a performing arts complex)?

    It won’t be Long Beach Poly’s first road-game run-in with a Snoop collaborator either. On September 6, 1996, Long Beach Poly played its first ever overnight away game, in Las Vegas. Checked out of Circus Circus and heading home the next day, the Jackrabbits’ stopped for food at an In-N-Out in Barstow, where they saw Tupac Shakur making his own food-stop as he traveled east for that evening’s Tyson fight at the MGM Grand. When a dozen players walked up behind the rapper, Shakur spun around with enough gusto to prompt two colleagues to pull Glocks on the young athletes. As was relayed to Jeff Pearlman, Tupac said, “Bloods, you can’t be walking up on me like that. You don’t know me like that!” Cooler heads prevailed, the groups talked football and Snoop, and, later that night in Vegas, Shakur was fatally shot. (For a more positive West Coast rap/burger experience, perhaps stop for a 2-in-the-morning Fatburger indicative of a good Ice Cube day.) However you pay tribute, show nothing but California Love as UCLA and first-year coach Chip Kelly welcome Washington, and as the Raiders return to take on the Chargers at the glorified soccer pitch that is StubHub Center.

  • NFL Week 6

    Dallas, TX Cowboys Stadium, AT&T Way, Arlington, TX, USA
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    Texas Tech at TCU (Thursday, 10/11)
    Odessa at Permian (Friday, 10/12)
    Southern Mississippi at North Texas (Saturday, 10/13)
    Jaguars at Cowboys (Sunday, 10/14)

    Texas Tech at TCU is a solid main course on any city’s menu, but when it’s a Thursday night game in Texas, it’s just an appetizer. And let’s not get cute here—of all the Texas lights turned on a Friday night, it only makes sense to go with the ones at Ratliff Stadium that inspired all that is best-selling, big-screened, clear-eyed, and full-hearted about high school football as we love it. The crosstown rivalry between Odessa and Permian is well-documented yet still somehow incomprehensible unless experienced firsthand, which only 19,302 lucky individuals get to do each year. See a town shut down, a game means everything, then just try to recalibrate your brain for a Saturday game hosted by a university whose mascot is The Mean Green … and a Sunday helping of Blake Bortles on the road.

  • NFL Week 7

    Philadelphia, PA Lincoln Financial Field, Lincoln Financial Field Way, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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    Central at Imhotep Charter (Friday, 10/19)
    Mastery Charter North Pickett at Overbrook (Saturday, 10/20)
    Cincinnati at Temple (Saturday, 10/20)
    Panthers at Eagles (Sunday, 10/21)

    Innnnnnnnnnn West Philadelphia, those born and raised to play football likely played Pop Warner, a program that began in Philly in 1929 and first got national attention when a local team beat a New York team sponsored by Frank Sinatra 6-0 in a 1947 game dubbed The Santa Claus Bowl. (Had he known that Eagles fans would boo him years later, perhaps Santa Claus would not have given up naming rights so willingly.) While history also notes that Will Smith was shooting some b-ball outside of his school, were the future Concussion star to have played football for his high school, he would have worn the orange and black of the Overbrook Panthers.

    Pray to both Santa and the scheduling gods that the start times of Overbrook’s and Temple’s Saturday games don’t coincide. If they do, Central High (the second oldest public high school in the country) visits Imhotep Charter (the 12th best team in the state last year) for a traditional Friday night slate. Wide receiver D.J. Moore, Carolina’s first-round pick this year, was an Imhotep Charter Panther before he was a Carolina Panther. Panthers—a slightly more common mascot name than (but in no way superior to the Phillie Phanatic.

  • NFL Week 7

    East Rutherford, NJ MetLife Stadium Drive, East Rutherford, NJ, USA
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    North Bergen at Union City (Friday, 10/19)
    Northwestern at Rutgers (Saturday, 10/20)
    Vikings at Jets (Sunday, 10/21)

    Nothing highlights the despair of tying football fates to the New York Jets quite like building in additional torment-time trekking up and down the Jersey Turnpike. But the saving grace of this particular Jersey weekend plan isn’t the reliable proximity to New York City or even the actually decent Northwestern team that’s visiting Rutgers a bit south. No, it’s the high school game almost exactly halfway between MetLife Stadium and Manhattan (as the jets fly). Whereas most football is not played on a rooftop, Union City High School football is. Part-necessity because Union City is one of the most densely populated cities in the nation…and obviously part-novelty, Soaring Eagles football comes with views of the NYC skyline, cramped quarters for bands and fans to wander, and all the other trappings of football played 28 feet closer to the heavens.

  • NFL Week 8

    Houston, TX NRG Stadium, NRG Parkway, Houston, TX, USA
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    Dolphins at Texans (Thursday, 10/25)
    Cinco Ranch vs. Katy (Friday, 10/26)
    USF at Houston (Saturday, 10/27)

    Texas is the reason that Friday night will again overshadow the rest of the weekend’s slate. Not to knock yet more visiting teams from Florida, but what chance do they have when paired against the matchup of Cinco Ranch (Texas’ 76th ranked team last year) and Katy (ranked 3rd in the state and 29th nationally)? Katy has eight state championships, a coach with a 190-18 record since taking over in 2004, and, like Cinco Ranco, a few annual games at the school district’s new Legacy Stadium, the most expensive high school stadium in the land at $70 million. (Only two of those millions went toward the 1,500-square-foot video scoreboard.) If you’re itching for Sunday action since the Dolphins and Texans are facing off on Thursday night, be sure to check the Rockets home schedule and ask if the Astros are still playing. It was this weekend last year that the Astros won thrilling Games 3 and 5 of the World Series at Minute Maid Park.

  • NFL Week 8

    Los Angeles, CA LA Memorial Coliseum, S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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    Mater Dei at Orange Lutheran (Friday, 10/26)
    Arizona St. at USC (Saturday, 10/27)
    Packers at Rams (Sunday, 10/28)

    What Los Angeles’ Week 5’s action had in rap battles, Pac-12 rivals, and a newly relocated team, Week 8 has in private religious schools, different Pac-12 rivals, and the other newly relocated team. Mater Dei is coming off a 2017 in which it was named national champion and scored less than 35 points only twice. Led by longtime coach Bruce Rollinson, who has had Matt Leinart, Matt Barkley, and future USC stud J.T. Daniels under center over the years, if the team wins out and our Pink’s Hot Dog napkin math is correct, he will have earned his 300th career win. Standing in his way are a handful of playoff games and thee Trinity League rivals Orange Lutheran they visit this Friday. How stacked is the Trinity League? Orange Lutheran went 0-5 in the league, losing to every other team in it, and was still ranked in the Top 100 nationally. (Honorable L.A. mention has to go to the Roosevelt/Garfield game, known outside the city as the East Los Angeles Classic and inside as simply “The Classic.” Both schools hold homecoming festivities before the game, which attracts more than 20,000 fans.)

  • NFL Week 8

    Bay Area, CA Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Coliseum Way, Oakland, CA, USA
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    Galileo at George Washington (Friday, 10/26)
    Washington at Cal (Saturday, 10/27)
    Washington St. at Stanford (Saturday, 10/27)
    UNLV at San Jose (Saturday, 10/27)
    Colts at Raiders (Sunday, 10/28)

    The San Francisco 49ers may have left what any sane San Fran fan would consider “San Francisco,” but the Eagles of George Washington High wouldn’t dare…not with the spectacular view of the Golden Gate Bridge that their stadium affords them. In addition to the larger-than-life postcard that awes beyond their north end zone, the field also boasts a 2,500-square-foot frieze packed with depictions of ancient and modern Olympic sports and philosopher quotes. If there are any Galileo knowledge-drops represented, one can assume they’ll be covered with sourdough when the defending Division 6-A champion Galileo Lions visit that Friday. The next day, there are three solid college games to choose from (in order here from proximity to Oakland Coliseum): Washington at Cal, Washington St. at Stanford, and UNLV at San Jose. We’d point out that it’ll be a homecoming of sorts for Stanford alum and Colts QB Andrew Luck, but that would imply a doctor clearing him for action, travel, or general movement.

  • NFL Week 8

    Pittsburgh, PA Heinz Field, Art Rooney Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
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    Pine-Richland at North Allegheny (Friday, 10/26)
    Duke at Pitt (Saturday, 10/27)
    Browns at Steelers (Sunday, 10/28)

    Baker and The Browns! The Duke Fall Sport Krzyzewskis! All the insufferable are coming to town this weekend! You never know what to expect in the Steel City…except everyone bringing up Western PA’s quarterback pedigree. Unitas, Blanda, Namath, Montana, Kelly, Marino—all of them grew up on a block where someone painted their garage door black-and-yellow, and their career achievements remain alive in the hopes of every pimply faced play-calling Pittsburgher. Pine-Richland was the best team in the state last year (nationally ranked at 16th) but if you’d prefer to spend your Friday concerned with laundry and imagining who wore that specific jersey in yesteryears, check out Namath’s Beaver Falls hosting Hopewell; Montana’s Ringgold hosting Belle Vernon; or Marino’s Central Catholic hosting Mt. Lebanon. (Non-QB-But-Out-of-Town-Bummer Bonus: Ditka’s and Revis’ Alliquippa will be across the state at Central Valley.)

  • NFL Week 9

    Miami, FL Hard Rock Stadium, Don Shula Dr, Miami Gardens, FL, USA
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    Miami Northwestern / Miami Jackson (TBA)
    Duke at Miami (Saturday, 11/3)
    Jets at Dolphins (Sunday, 11/4)

    Schedules haven’t been officially announced yet, but that first Friday in November has for the last few years been highlighted by the Miami Northwestern/Jackson game, known simply as The Soul Bowl. That Northwestern leads the all-time series 37-13 and has won 13 of the last 14 games vastly undersells how live-and-die both teams and their fans still care about this game. Back when the game used to be played at the Orange Bowl, drawing as many fans and probably more passion than any game featuring The U, a Jackson coach who would have punched his team’s ticket to the state championship with a victory over Northwestern instead submitted his resignation when they lost. Miami, in general, has a way of breeding college and NFL stars, and these two schools (which have seen players the likes of Teddy Bridgewater, Amari Cooper, Elvis Dumervil, and even Lee Corso) are no exception. Jackson can boast having had the first female head coach in state history — star of reality show South Beach Tow and former Miami Northwestern student, Lakatriona “Bernice” Brunson — while both schools can claim 2 Live Crew’s Luther Campbell as having walked their sidelines as a coach. (Uncle Luke actually serves as a solid Plan B should The Soul Bowl be a different weekend. In a pinch, just see whatever school he’s coaching/Instagramming about currently; at press time, it was Miami Edison. Plan C? Trek way up to Palm Beach County for their massive and equally NFL-productive rivalry: Glades Central at Pahokee.) Duke and the Jets taunt again!

  • NFL Week 12

    Tampa, FL...and beyond! Raymond James Stadium, North Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa, FL, USA
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    State Semifinals for Classes 4A, 3A, 2A, 1A (Friday, 11/23)
    UCF at USF (Friday, 11/23)
    49ers at Bucs (Sunday, 11/25)

    What this Thanksgiving weekend packs in uncertainty and driving, it makes up for in a lack of turkey-and-stuffing small talk. Thanksgiving football, you see, is an American institution all over the country, and high school rivalries dating back to the 1800s get settled with games on this day. Not so much in Florida though. Tampa, fortunately, has numerous dimly lit establishments with TV screens for enjoying the Thursday action. On-the-field-action picks up on Friday however, when State Semifinals for four different classes take place in four different locations… somewhere in this sprawling state…on the busiest travel weekend of the year. Should fortune smile upon the Tampa area, you’ll have UCF vs USF that Friday as well. If traveling is required for Friday, perhaps you’ll be closer to Boca Raton or Miami and their slate of Saturday games. Or maybe Saturday just becomes another productive day in front of screens and dancers. Either way, hightail it back to Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium for traditional Sunday football next to a pirate ship.

  • NFL Week 16

    Dallas, TX AT&T Stadium, AT&T Way, Arlington, TX, USA
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    High School Championships (Wednesday, 12/19 – Saturday, 12/22)
    Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (Saturday, 12/22)
    Bucs at Cowboys (Sunday, 12/23)

    This is the weekend you’ve been waiting for. This is the weekend you watch Texas football not only as it cripples towns, but as it grips an entire state. The 2018 high school championship games will be taking place at AT&T Stadium from Wednesday through Saturday. (If we knew who would be playing, we wouldn’t be dodging every steakhouse bookie in the state.) That Saturday is also the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth. Participants may be TBD, but passions are guaranteed to be strong AF! And capping off the extended weekend is Bucs-Cowboys back at AT&T Stadium, the absolute perfect place to complete our first-annual football road-trip breakdown. Because, sometimes, you just wanna veg out, sit back, and watch some football on your friend Jerry’s 11,393-square-foot $40 million big screen.