While most sports were silenced during the pandemic, the NFL was very busy.

There were plenty of free agent signings, led by Tom Brady going to the Bucs. The Colts added Phllip Rivers, the Panthers signed Teddy Bridgewater. The Saints re-signed Drew Brees.

In one day, several big names were traded. DeAndre Hopkins, David Johnson, Stefan Diggs and DeForest Buckner were all dealt.

Others like Todd Gurley were let go and signed elsewhere. Gurley landed in Atlanta.

March 12, 2020 is a day college hoops fans will never forget.

In fact, fans of all sports were shocked by various cancellations.

There was no other choice by the NCAA but to cancel Mach Madness.

My heart goes out to all the players, coaches and fans, etc. that dreamed of being part of this magical tournament. However, this is the time where sports had to take the back seat to the concerns of public health. Salute seniors like Markus Howard of Marquette, Myles Powell of Seton Hall, Payton Pritchard of Oregon and Cassius Winston of Michigan State, who played their last game.

Luka Garza of Iowa was a junior and Obi Toppin of Dayton was a sophomore. They have remaining eligibility, but odds are they will enter the NBA Draft.

I have often said March Madness is one of the greatest sporting events. This year it was sent to the sidelines.

There was other news as Rick Pitino is back on the sidelines. He accepted the Iona job and I believe he will have them as a mid-major power within three years.

I had a blast calling the Kansas-Texas Tech game. Lubbock had an electric atmosphere.

The Jayhawks have the best duo in America in Devon Dotson and Udoka Azubuike and they led Kansas to the winner’s circle for the 16th straight time.

Tickets were punched for the big dance. Congrats to Utah State, upset winners over San Diego State, and Belmont of the OVC for getting the first two.

I had a blast calling two games this weekend.

The atmosphere at Dayton was incredible. The Flyers extended their win streak to 18, clinching the A-10 regular season title by beating Davidson. Obi Toppin showed why he is a player of the year candidate, dunking, passing, defending, scoring. He was brilliant.

Then we called a great Duke-Virginia game. The Cavs moved to within a game of first in the ACC. It was a defensive duel and Jay Huff has a special performance, scoring and blocking shots. His 12 rejections were two short of Ralph Sampson’s school record.

Duke was held to a season-low 50 points.

It was an exciting sports weekend.

Baylor, Gonzaga and San Diego State saw long win streaks snapped. Kansas got a big win at Baylor, led by Uduoka Azuibuike with 23 points and 19 rebounds. BYU blew out Gonzaga while UNLV handed the Aztecs their first loss of the season.

I called the Florida-Kentucky game and I love going to Rupp Arena. Big Blue Nation is such a passionate fan base.

Tyson Fury was so impressive in a seventh round TKO over Deontay Wilder.

It was a busy basketball weekend.

The NBA All-Star game in Chicago had many memorable moments.

Team LeBron and Team Giannis put on a show.

The dunk contest had controversy with Derrick Jones Jr. of Miami beating Aaron Gordon of Orlando. Buddy Hield won the three-point shooting contest while Bam Adebayo won the Skills Challenge.

In college hoops, I called Duke’s impressive win over Notre Dame. Vernon Carey was impressive inside.

It was a very powerful, emotional and historic day as Robert Montgomery returned to Assembly Hall for the first time since September 10 , 2000!

Now Indiana needs to put a statue in from of Assembly Hall to honor The General.

Meanwhile I enjoyed calling the game which saw Purdue get a big road win.

The NBA trade deadline had a lot of activity. Among the players moving included Andrew Wiggins, Andre Drummond, Andre Iguodala, Marcus Morris, D’Angelo Russell, Clint Capela, Jae Crowder and John Henson.

The Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl in Miami

It was great for Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes and the comeback kids. They rallied from 20-10 down to prevail.

Congrats to the new class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Edgerrin James, Steve Atwater, Steve Hutchinson, Troy Polamalu and Isaac Bruce are worthy of the honor.

I had a great time at The Phog calling Kansas’ win over Texas Tech. Both teams are so well-coached.

The entire Sports World mourning the passing of Kobe and those with him in the helicopter crash including his 13 year old girl Gianna. What a terrible tragedy.

I was very impressed watching the number one team in America, the Baylor Bears. Scott Drew’s team was impressive in a win at Florida.

The Bears play hard on both ends of the court. They are outstanding defensively and do a great job on the offensive glass. Freddie Gillespie is one of the best stories in college basketball. He came from Division III Carleton College to become a factor.

I believe Baylor is a legitimate Final Four contender.

The Australian Open has had some drama. Roger Federer and Nick Kyrgios winning dramatic four=hour matches. Serena Williams was upset in the third round. It is the first major of the year.

One week til the Super Bowl. I like Kansas City to win the game.

The Tennessee Titans have become a huge story. Beating the Patriots and Ravens in consecutive weeks is special.

Derrick Henry has been putting up monster numbers. The Titan defense has been making big plays, including stopping Lamar Jackson twice on fourth-and-one plays.

Then there was Kansas City. The Texans led by 24 points, only to give up 51 and lose by 20.

College basketball saw a lot of great moments. Clemson snapped a 0-59 streak at Chapel hill, winning at North Carolina. Baylor won for the first time at Allen Field House, impressively beating Kansas. Syracuse won at Virginia after being humiliated by the Cavs earlier in the season.

I called the Memphis-South Florida game. Great to see Penny Hardaway and Brian Gregory. It was a tough loss for USF, which had a 14-point lead in the second half.

The Tennessee Titans have become a huge story. Beating the Patriots and Ravens in consecutive weeks is special.

Derrick Henry has been putting up monster numbers. The Titan defense has been making big plays, including stopping Lamar Jackson twice on fourth-and-one plays.

Then there was Kansas City. The Texans led by 24 points, only to give up 51 and lose by 20.

College basketball saw a lot of great moments. Clemson snapped a 0-59 streak at Chapel hill, winning at North Carolina. Baylor won for the first time at Allen Field House, impressively beating Kansas. Syracuse won at Virginia after being humiliated by the Cavs earlier in the season.

I called the Memphis-South Florida game. Great to see Penny Hardaway and Brian Gregory. It was a tough loss for USF, which had a 14-point lead in the second half.

The NFL playoffs provided lots of excitement.

The Titans, behind the running of Derrick Henry, shocked the Patriots. New England lost its last two games, both at home. Now there will be off-season questions about Bill Belichick and Tom Brady.

The Bills had a 16-0 lead but the Texans rallied and won in overtime. Deshaun Watson made the big play that led to the winning field goal.

The Vikings pulled off another upset, beating the Saints in overtime.

I called the Florida State-Louisville game and was so impressed by the Seminoles. Leonard Hamilton has something special with tenacious defenders and plenty of scoring threats. They are a top 10 team in my opinion.

The football national championship matchup is set. LSU and Clemson will meet for the title.

Joe Burrow through for eight touchdowns in a rout of Oklahoma. Clemson rallied from a 16-0 deficit to beat Ohio State.

The NFL saw a major shock as the Dolphins won at New England. The loss cost the Patriots a bye, meaning they play next weekend. Green Bay clinched a bye with a win over the Lions.

The Titans and Eagles secured the final playoff berths. The Cowboys, Steelers and Raiders fell short of the postseason.

I called the Kansas-Stanford college hoop game and Bill Self’s team was impressive. Devan Dotson showed his speed and Isaiah Moss hit several big threes for The Jayhawks.

Happy New Year to all of the fans out there.

What a weekend for the Big East. Villanova upset #1 Kansas. St. John’s stunned a ranked Arizona team at the Al Attles Classic. Butler beat Purdue, Providence blew out Texas, Creighton got past Arizona State. Then add Seton Hall’s shorthanded performance in upsetting Maryland.

The NFL saw the Patriots win the AFC East again, edging the Bills. The Rams were eliminated from the playoff picture. The Texans won the AFC South.

I’m proud to add that my grandsons, Connor and Jake, committed to Duke on tennis scholarships. I am so proud of them.

Merry Christmas to all of the fans out there.

The final four of college football is set. Ohio State, LSU and Clemson won their conference championships, as expected. The fourth spot was up for grabs and Oklahoma secured it.

So LSU meets Oklahoma and Clemson faces Ohio State on December 28.

I’m excited to be calling the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday as Connecticut meets Indiana. It is an important week as we try to raise funds to battle cancer.

I had a great Thanksgiving down at the Battle4Atlantis. It was a great tournament with North Carolina, Gonzaga, Oregon, Seton Hall, Michigan, Iowa State, Alabama and Southern Mississippi in the field.

Michigan won the championship, beating Gonzaga in the finals. Juwan Howard has an experienced team and his enthusiasm is exciting. Zavier Simpson, Isaiah Livers, Jon Teske and Eli Brooks form a solid nucleus.

The biggest shock of the week came when Duke lost at home to Stephen F. Austin of the Southland Conference. That snapped the Blue Devils streak of 150 straight non-conference home wins. Duke lost to St. John’s at Cameron on February 26, 2000.

In college football, Alabama fell from championship consideration with a loss to Auburn in the Iron Bowl.

The Dallas Cowboys continued to struggle. They gave up 26 straight points in a loss to Buffalo.

Ohio State is not going to lose. The Buckeyes beat Penn State, and up next is Michigan.

LSU and Georgia also rolled. Oregon was upset by Arizona State, costing them a playoff shot.

In the NFL, the Saints moved to 9-2 in a wild win over Carolina.

In college hoops, I am excited to call games at the Battle 4 Atlantis. North Carolina, Gonzaga, Oregon, Seton Hall, Iowa State and Michigan are among the participants.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

It was sad to see Tua Tagovailoa go down with a major hip injury in Alabama’s win over Mississippi State. I hope he can come back to true form as soon as possible.

Georgia stayed in the CFB playoff hunt with a big win over Auburn.

Joe Burrow continued his pursuit for the Heisman, throwing for 489 yards and five touchdowns in a win over Mississippi.

Cody Bellinger and Mike Trout took home the MVP awards in baseball.