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Jeff Mezydlo

A Chicago native, Jeff Mezydlo has professionally written about sports, entertainment and pop culture for parts of four decades. He was an integral member of award-winning sports sections at The Times of Northwest Indiana (Munster, Ind.) and Champaign (Ill.) News-Gazette, where he covered the NFL, PGA, LPGA, NCAA basketball, football and golf, Olympics and high school athletics. Jeff most recently spent 12 years in the editorial department at STATSPerform, where he also oversaw coverage of the English Premier League. A graduate of Northern Illinois University, Jeff's work has also appeared on such sites at Yahoo!, ESPN, Fox Sports, Sports Illustrated and NBA.com. However, if Jeff could do it again, he'd attend Degrassi Junior High, Ampipe High School and Grand Lakes University

EXPERTISE:

NCAA football, NCAA basketball, PGA/LPGA, international soccer, sports history, rock music, film history

New York City's all-time greatest high school basketball players

Trying to pick the 25 best high school basketball players to come out of the five boroughs of New York City is pretty daunting. There are several Hall-of-Famers worthy of the honor, but we have our list.

The best musical acts from Southern California

Southern California has produced some of the greatest music ever recorded. Spanning all genres, it would seem impossible to narrow it down to the 25 best groups and bands from the region, but below is our best shot at it.

Chicago's all-time greatest high school basketball players

The city of Chicago has produced some of the best basketball players the game — at all levels — has ever seen. Trying to narrow them down to the 25 best is a chore, but we gave it a shot.

Most unlikely men's college basketball national champions

Not all NCAA men's basketball national championships are created equal. Some stunned the hoops world, others found their season prime a little later than others, while even more caught lightning in a bottle. Here is our ranking of 20 unlikely national champions.

Best college basketball play-by-play announcers and analysts of all time

Trying to nail down the best college basketball play-by-play announcers, analysts and color commenters can be extremely daunting, but also subjective in may cases. Well, we gave it a shot anyway.

The 20 best Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball players of all time

While it was only recently that Virginia blossomed into a perennial national championship contender under coach Tony Bennett — and won the whole thing in 2019 — the program has plenty of tradition to celebrate. Here is our list of the 20 best men's players in Virginia basketball history.

The 20 best fictional film rock stars

They may not be real, but many memorable rock stars have filled the big screen. While most have made us laugh, a good number of fictional rockers have been able to tug at our emotions. Here's our list of the 20 best.

The greatest players in Louisville men's basketball history

Here's our take on the 20 best players in the history of Louisville Cardinals men's basketball. Listed in chronological order.

Best men's and women's NCAA Tournament runner-ups

It's fun to debate the greatest NCAA basketball champions of all time. But what about those that fall just short, the runner-ups, who tend to be forgotten?

25 players to watch at the 2023 NCAA women's tournament

The women's NCAA tournament might have an unanimous favorite in South Carolina, but the Gamecocks are not the only ones who possess some of the best players in the college game.

25 players to watch at the 2023 NCAA men's tournament

From established stars to under-the-radar talents, the 2023 NCAA men's tournament will again showcase some of college basketball's best players. Here's our list of 25 to keep an eye on.

The most iconic cult classic movies

The true definition of a cult classic movie can differ. The gist of it is something that might not have been popular or critically praised upon introduction but draws a loyal and dedicated fan base over time. Below are our 25 best cult classic films.

The 25 funniest, weirdest, zaniest characters from Mel Brooks movies

Trying to narrow down the many remarkably brilliant and often memorable characters from Mel Brooks' directed moves might seem impossible; however, we gave it a try.

The most compelling fictional slackers in movie history

The art of being a slacker might seem easy, but it takes a special kind of person to truly master laziness, irresponsibility, and lack of concern for just about anything of value. There have been some memorable slackers on the big screen, and here's our list of the 25 best.

Ranking the 25 greatest Richard Linklater film characters

Here is our ranking of the 25 best Linklater film characters.

Was 1993 the greatest year in movie history?

The caliber of movies released in 1993 begs the question: Was it the most memorable year in the history of the big screen? Encompassing comedy, drama,

Was 1993 the greatest year for sports movies?

Some of the most successful and memorable movies were released in 1993. That includes many recognizable sports-themed films. Here's our ranking of the best sports-related movies released in 1993.

Ranking Clint Eastwood's 25 best roles

Of course, Eastwood has enjoyed an extremely successful career as a director, but he's also delivered some of the most memorable and legendary film roles. We narrowed it down to the top 25. Here we go.

The 30 most impactful drummers in music history

It's quite the task to limit a list to only 30 drummers who have paved the way for others, incorporated some trendsetting technique, or provided technically masterful playing. That said, we gave it a shot, listed in alphabetical order.

Ranking the 25 best artists' SiriusXM channels

Several musical artists and bands have received their own channels. We ranked the 25 best, included on SiriusXM as of February 2023, but subject to change. 

Ranking Nicole Kidman's most memorable performances

For parts of five decades, Kidman has been one of the biggest Hollywood actors and entertainers on the planet. And there are no signs of that changing any time soon. Here are our rankings of Kidman's 25 best roles.

Ranking Bruce Springsteen's studio albums

In 2022, Bruce Springsteen released his 21st studio album. January 1973 marks 50 years since he put out his debut record. In honor of all that, we've ranked each of Springsteen's studio albums. 

The 20 best 'Family Guy' supporting characters, ranked

There have been plenty of personalities on Family Guy through the years. Yet, those reoccurring supporting characters are some of the most memorable in the show's long history.

The 25 best 'Degrassi' characters, ranked

Since the 1980s, Degrassi has risen from the underground to mainstream cable popularity in North America and the rest of the world. In the spirit of everything Degrassi, here are our rankings of the franchise's 25 best characters.