Sport Prophecy

Sport Prophecy (Fall 1988)

This looks like it could finally be the Vikings' year, After coming within a game of the Super Bowl last season, Minnesota seems poised to make the trip in 1989. And, I think, contrary to their history, they will win the big one this time.

Sport Prophecy (Winter 1988)

In the NBA: New York in the Atlantic, Cleveland in the Central, Utah in the Midwest, Los Angeles in the Pacific. Other playoff teams that will be a threat in the spring: Denver, Dallas, Houston, Boston, Atlanta, and Detroit.

Sport Prophecy (Spring 1989)

Well, now for Pietisten's 1988-89 All-American Basketball Team

Sport Prophecy (Fall 1989)

Here are my pre-season All-Pro picks. Note that I picked twelve defensive players in an attempt to include players from both 4-3 and 3-4 defenses. I couldn't think of a punter or a kicker for this team, but punters and kickers aren't real players anyway.

Sport Prophecy (Winter 1989)

Here are my NBA picks for this season. Division winners: Boston, Detroit, Utah, and Los Angeles. Other teams to watch for in the playoffs will be Phoenix, Cleveland, New York, and Chicago.

Sport Prophecy (Spring 1990)

NBA—NFL All-Stars (Summer 1990)

Here are the NBA players I would like to see at these football positions

Sport Prophecy (Fall 1990)

Pre-Season All-Pro Picks

Sport Prophecy (Winter 1990)

Pre-Season All-American Picks

Sport Prophecy (Spring 1991)

NBA Picks

Ricky Williams Wins the Third Waldenstrom Trophy (Fall 1998)

This year's Waldenström Award for the top college football player goes to Ricky Williams (Running Back, University of Texas).

The Pietisten All-America Team (Winter 1999)

Chad Pennington of Marshall (Fall 1999)

The choice for this year’s Waldenström Trophy is quarterback Chad Pennington of Marshall. He has led Marshall to an undefeated season this year and has probably been more crucial to his team’s success than any other player in the country.

Pietisten 1999-2000 All America Basketball Team (Spring 2000)

Summer Doldrums—July, 2000 (Summer 2000)

I always hate trying to come up with a prediction in the summer.

Chris Weinke Wins the 2000 Waldenström Award (Winter 2000)

This year, against all odds, the trophy goes to another Twin Cities native—Chris Weinke of Florida State University. After leading the FSU Seminoles to the national title last year, it appears that he will again quarterback his team in the championship game. If that argument fails to sway the reader, the 33 touchdown passes he has thrown should be enough.

The Waldenstrom Award 2001: Cornhusker Eric Crouch (Summer 2001)

Pietisten Pre-Season NFL Picks (Summer 2002)

The 2002 Waldenström Award (Winter 2002-2003)

2003 Waldenström Award (Winter 2003-2004)

The Sport Prophet has been accused on occasion of having a pro-Minnesota bias. After some soul searching, the Prophet has concluded that, yes, there probably is a kernel of truth in this accusation.

NFL predictions (Fall 2004)

Troy Smith, Ohio State Quarterback, Chosen for 2006 Waldenström Award (Christmas 2006)

The NBA Draft (Spring 2007)

Maybe people think prophecy is simply a matter of inspiration given to the prophet in a momentary flash and all he has to do is say it.

The 2007 Waldenström (Christmas 2007)

The Waldenström Award is given for outstanding play to the college football player Pietisten selects. Again this year we are faced with a difficult decision.

Thoughts on the Jayhawks’ NCAA Championship (Spring 2008)

I will admit that I am a convert to Jayhawk basketball. I was once indifferent to their wins, losses, and frequent early exits from the NCAA tournament; however, the scales fell from my eyes shortly after I accepted a job at the University of Kansas Hospital and I have seen the light.

The Waldenstrom for 2008 (Christmas 2008)

Report from the YMCA Five-year-old Tee-ball league, Johnson County, Kansas (Summer 2009)

My daughter, Violet, has decided to play Tee-ball this year, largely because her friend, Macy, signed up for the team.

Sport Prophecy (Epiphany 2010)

In lieu of a sport prophecy, I would like to use this space to pay tribute to the retiring editor, Phil Johnson.

Sports Prophecy by Eric (Spring/Summer 2010)

The baseball world may quickly forget “HGH,” “Canseco” and “Yankee Stadium” in 2010, when “ballparka” becomes the term du jour across the national pastime. A “ballparka,” of course, is the outer jacket one wears to a chilly outdoor baseball game. And come October, fans will need one when the Minnesota Twins and Seattle Mariners square off for the American League pennant.

Sports Prophecy by Eric (Spring/Summer 2011)

Giving up professional football could save the average fan 3 to 18 hours per week, depending on the health of your addiction. So the pews may have a few more congregants on fall Sundays, lawns may be mowed and well-raked through autumn, and you may notice another game —which some people also call “fütbol” – on the tube more often.

Sport Prophecy (Spring/Summer 2012)

“I wish Christmas would come more often, don’t you?”

Sport Prophecy (Fall/Winter 2012)

Blessed be the poor in team spirit (Spring/Summer 2014)

Seattle’s still basking in the glow of winning the Super Bowl, the city’s first major sports title in decades. The 12th Man has swelled with pride, a victory lap downtown was the largest public event since the 1979 Seattle SuperSonics’ NBA crown, and most importantly, the Lombardi Trophy dropped Seattle’s fans from the list of most miserable.

Blessed be the poor in team spirit (Fall/Winter 2014)

There was a time when “rotisserie” only referred to roasting meat on a spit. As with so much of our society, sports dump-trucked the dictionary and took over the word, and from there only picked up speed.

Enjoy it while you can (Fall/Winter 2016)

A note about the Sports Prophecy: I was too busy watching baseball last fall to write a column, so instead we are reprinting a Sports Prophecy from a 1908 issue of Pietisten. It was written shortly after the Chicago Cubs won the 1908 World Series, and still feels relevant for today’s fan.

Sport Prophecy (Spring/Summer 2021)

The Sports Prophecy has a thing for names. They aren’t any easier to forecast than game outcomes, but guessing what’s coming next happens pretty infrequently. And you have to admit nicknames are fun. Who didn’t want to learn more about the “Kraken” after reading the last installment of the prophecy?

Sport Prophecy (Fall/Winter 2023-2024)

Traditions all have a starting point…and sometimes they come to a close. The tradition of a Rose Bowl football game between the Big Ten and Pac-12 (and their earlier conference iterations) stretches back over 100 years.