Sports Conversation Starters for Your Week

It's the best time of year to practice being wrong. 

I bet that sounds odd, so let me explain. The start of the football season usually includes a lot of predictions. Fans and media predict how many games each team will win and which teams are most likely to make it to the playoffs, or win a conference championship. 

No one gets it completely right. It's an exercise in using the information you have right now to make your best guess - which is a skill that's useful beyond sports fandom. If your best football guess turns out to be wrong, it's a low stakes way to practice admitting you were wrong. 

Just a way to think about sports small talk a little differently. Here are a few topics and questions that can get the ball rolling. 

NFL

NFL teams are in the process of trimming their rosters and signing players to their practice squads. The preseason ended Sunday. The regular season starts next Wednesday, September 9.

Talk Sporty Convo Starter: 

• What concerns do you have about your team after the last five weeks of training camp and preseason games?

NCAA

North Dakota State opened its season with a win. That wouldn't typically make news, because the powerhouse program has won 10 national titles. The significance of this win? It was their first in FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) play. NDSU had previously played in the FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) which has smaller budgets and fewer scholarships. The Bison are now in the Mountain West Conference and we could see them in a bowl game later this season. 

Talk Sporty Convo Starter: 

• Next week features a full slate of college football games. Which teams to you watch most closely?
• What are your predictions to start the season?

PGA

Scottie Scheffler won the final FedExCup Playoff event and won the Tour Player of the Year Award for a fifth straight season. The win helped reassert Scheffler as the top-ranked player in the world. The win also pushed Scheffler past Tiger Woods in PGA Tour career earnings. 

Talk Sporty Convo Starter: 

• Scottie Scheffler won just one tournament during the regular season, but is still the best player this season. What do you appreciate about Scheffler's consistency and style of play?

US Open

The US Open singles play is underway in New York. It's been 23 years since an American won a Grand Slam title on the men's side. On the women's side, Aryna Sabalenka starts her quest to be a three-peat champion. 

Talk Sporty Convo Starter: 

• What do you anticipate in the final Grand Slam event of the season?