"sports" news and stories

In the Krystal Square Off III World Hamburger Eating Contest in Chattanooga, Tennessee this past weekend, Takeru Kobayashi brought home another championship title by eating 97 hamburgers in 8 minutes. Joey Chestnut came in second, finishing with 91 hamburgers, followed by Patrick Bertoletti in third with 76. All the numbers are up hugely from last year's contest, in which Kobayashi narrowly beat Chestnut with a final total of 67-62 burgers. One other big change from previous years was that the contest was televised on ESPN2, which gives the sport a much wider audience and much more publicity than it enjoyed before.

The contest is known as the "square off" because the burgers that the competitors wolf down are square, but Krystal's burgers hosts the contest because they have been holding eating contests at their stores since the first one opened in 1932. According to company legend, the tradition was set when the second customer challenged the first customer to a head-to-head hamburger showdown.

Source

It looks like Ohio State isn't the only college football team that's going to get their own brand of cereal this season. The University of Florida Gators are getting a line of Frosted Flakes Corn Cereal, which are a limited edition item to commemorate 100 years of Gator football. The cereals will be available at 250 Publix markets throughout the state.

Some fans are buying it for the box, which could be something of a collectors' item to a die-hard fan, but others are simply buying the cereal because they like frosted flakes for breakfast. No matter what the reason behind the purchases, Publix says that the cereals are selling quickly and that they expect to see sales climb throughout the season or until the stocks, since it was produced in a limited run, run out.

Source

With football season starting up, you might want a few new ideas for snack foods because even though we all know that you're not supposed to be chowing down on munchies in front of the TV, it's probably going to happen when you have friends over and are watching your college football on ESPN. Wing It!: Delectable Recipes for Everyone's Favorite Bar Snack is a book devoted entirely to chicken wings - with an eye on snacking, of course. The recipes range from those you're probably familiar with already, like Classic Buffalo Wings, and ones that use some international flavors, such as Grilled Coconut Wings with Thai Peanut Dipping Sauce. Some of the recipes are battered in some way, while others are not, and a few make use of an alternative coating, like the Mexican-Style Tortilla Chicken Wings, which use tortilla chips to create a crispy coating. There are quite a few barbecued wings with delicious-sounding sauces, as well. Speaking of sauces, there are also a number of recipes for dips, so you won't have to be stuck with bottle bleu cheese or ranch on the side every time you serve the wings.

Source

If you just "watch" the game, this will be of little aid. Remember, it's early in the season; you'll have plenty of time to hone your hometown hand foods before the super bowl, which is sacred and has a its own set of game day gastro requirements. If you are an aficionado in for the season, take these tips and have a four hour tailgate party at home.

First of all you need a crockpot, a large T.V. at the very least, and probably cable. Where I live one of the Networks comes in unacceptably snowy via antenna. For quick, easy dishes check these crock recipes at Out of the Frying Pan. Use your imagination and plenty of cheese to personalize things. Food coloring, shaped or sculptured dipping foods, etc. Here are a few more tips:

• Watch with friends; if you drink, make it light beer. You'll get plenty of carbs and calories from all the snacks.
• Don't start throwing food at your friends until the third quarter. Don't throw cheese in any form, hors d'oeuvres dipped in cheese, or the crockpot.

A 20-year old Celtic supporter in Scotland is very devoted to his team and has taken his devotion far beyond the standards set be even the most die-hard tailgaters. He has vowed to eat only foods that are in the club's colors for the 2006/2007 season, meaning that he has eaten a diet of salad, green vegetables and white meat (mostly chicken and a little fish) since July.

Clearly, the young man, Scott Campbell, is lucky that there are actually quite a few foods that come in green and white. Had the team colors been blue and silver, he would have been wise to come up with another way to express his loyalty.

Does anyone else have any other dedication-through-food stories, or is Campbell the only one who has taken it this far?

Source