February 9, 2015 Table Of Contents
GOLF PLUS
How's this for a youth movement? The PGA Tour is 11 events into the 2014--15 season, and at TPC Scottsdale, Brooks Koepka became the sixth winner under the age of 30. —Sal Johnson
By Sal Johnson
INBOX
SUPER BOWL XLIX
Deflated
The lead-up to Patriots-Seahawks defied logic (and maybe science). The game itself reversed the laws of probability (and maybe play-calling). But after an instant-classic win, this much can't be question: The place Tom Brady and the Pats hold in history.
By Greg Bishop
Maybe Julian Edelman shouldn't have been on the field—but he was, and that paid off big for the Patriots
With the game on the line, the least heralded member of New England's secondary, Malcolm Butler, saved the game
By Joan Niesen
Had the game's last minute played out differently, the Seattle coaches wouldn't be the ones second-guessed
By Andy Benoit
2015 THE YEAR AHEAD
The Season That Makes Next Season
By Andy Benoit
FREE AGENCY IS A BALANCING ACT: A TEAM'S NEEDS AGAINST ITS SALARY-CAP SPACE; A PLAYER'S DESIRE FOR MORE MONEY VERSUS THE SECURITY OF STAYING IN A SYSTEM HE KNOWS. WITH THAT IN MIND, HERE'S SI'S RANKING OF THE 40 MOST ATTRACTIVE FREE AGENTS. IF LAST YEAR'S CROP OF TOP FA'S IS ANY INDICATOR, ONLY HALF OF THE CLASS OF 2015 WILL CHANGE TEAMS. STILL, WHAT WOULD THE OFF-SEASON BE WITHOUT A LITTLE DREAMING?
By Andy Benoit
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF WESTERN MICHIGAN'S P.J. FLECK—THE YOUNGEST COACH IN FBS—SHOWS WHAT IT TAKES TO EXCEL IN THE CUTTHROAT GAME OF RECRUITING: MOUNDS OF CAFFEINE, DEEP CONNECTIONS, FANCY SOCKS AND AN ENTHUSIASM THAT KNOWS NO BOUNDS
By Pete Thamel
Signing Day spurs talk of impact players, sleepers and star ratings. Here's what it all means, with an eye toward the next level
By Tom Taylor
THE ASSISTANTS WHO GET IT DONE
By Thayer Evans
... YEAR?! SAVIOR?! LAST WE'LL EVER HEAR OF BILLY GOATS?! PROLONGATION OF THE LONGEST LIVING HELL IN PROFESSIONAL SPORTS?! WHATEVER IT IS, IT'S EXCITING. IT'S FULL OF HOPE. WELCOME TO JOE MADDON'S CHICAGO
By Tom Verducci
Three intriguing story lines to keep an eye on as pitchers and catchers get ready to report
By Joe Sheehan
POISED TO CHALLENGE RACING'S REIGNING OLD GUARD, 22-YEAR-OLD KYLE LARSON IS ALREADY ATTRACTING NEW FANS TO NASCAR—AT A TIME WHEN THE ALL-AMERICAN SPORT BADLY NEEDS A BOOST
A TENNIS SLUGGER, A SWIMMING PRODIGY, A FEDERER-LIKE PHENOM, A BRASH SOCCER STAR, A NEVER-AGING SPRINTER AND AN MMA FIGHTER ON THE MOVE: MEET SIX ATHLETES WHO WILL BECOME MAIN ATTRACTIONS IN 2015
BRASH? ABSOLUTELY. CONTROVERSIAL? NO DOUBT. BUT WITH THE HELP OF HIS FEARLESS WIFE, PATRICK REED BATTLED FOR HIS TOUR CARD THE HARD WAY AND, AT 24, HAS ALREADY SHOWN HE HAS THE GAME TO BACK UP HIS AMBITION
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU CHALLENGE A TEAM OF FUTURE LOTTERY PICKS TO PLAY THE GREATEST DEFENSE EVER? AT KENTUCKY, YOU GET A VERSATILE, TWO-PLATOON UNIT THAT'S ESPECIALLY EFFECTIVE
By Luke Winn
Led by their Hall of Fame coach, South Carolina has gone from perennial SEC doormat to title contender, a rise the whole nation is watching
RICK NASH IS A PROVEN SCORER‚Ñ¢—A BIG MAN WITH A SMALL MAN'S SKILLS—BUT HIS TOUCH ABANDONED HIM AT THE WORST POSSIBLE TIME LAST SPRING, WITH THE RANGERS PLAYING FOR THEIR FIRST STANLEY CUP IN 20 YEARS. NOW NASH HAS REDISCOVERED HIS PUCK LUCK AND HAS PUT NEW YORK RIGHT BACK IN THE CUP DISCUSSION
By Ben Reiter
Three players to keep an eye on as the league heads toward its second season
By Sarah Kwak
LIKE HIS HERO, NELSON MANDELA, RAPTORS GM MASAI UJIRI LEADS BY EXAMPLE, WITH PERSEVERANCE, INTEGRITY AND GENEROSITY. HIS APPROACH HAS RESULTED IN NOT ONLY A TEAM THAT'S CAPTURED THE HEARTS OF TORONTONIANS BUT ALSO A BRIGHTER FUTURE FOR HIS FELLOW AFRICANS
Five issues that will be crucial to how the second half of the NBA season plays out
By Chris Mannix
POINT AFTER
By Lee Jenkins
Departments
Being selected an NBA All-Star is a crapshoot wrapped in a popularity contest based on a snapshot—and it's also an honor that follows a player for life
Five former professional sports homes have found new life
Teams and their should-be anthems
Who would run 430 miles in the Arctic?
Edited by Alexandra Fenwick
Sports Illustrated HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE OF THE MONTH
By Interview by Dan Patrick
