Yardbarker

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

Top successful screen siblings

Brotherly and sisterly love in Hollywood is quite common, going all the way back to the Marx Brothers or Three Stooges. Through the years there have been plenty of memorable sibling entertainers who have enjoyed various levels of success on screen, television and behind the camera or with a pen.

Sports & Politics Intersect: Kanter nixes Knicks London trip due to fear of Turkish reprisals

The Turkish center will not travel with the Knicks out of fear for his life because of a years-long dispute with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. 

Storylines to keep an eye on for the 2019 golf season

From Tiger Woods to a new-look PGA Tour schedule to rules changes and so on, there is plenty of intrigue surrounding the new golf season.

The 10 most surprising college basketball teams in 2018-19

The usual suspects continue to rule the college basketball roost. Duke sits atop The Associated Press Top 25, Gonzaga is loaded with talent and North Carolina is starting to heat up.

Catching up with the top storylines from men's college basketball season

The college football season has officially ended. Clemson routed Alabama for the national championship, and Nick Saban is not happy. So what are college sports fans to do now? Turn their attention to hoops, of course.

Sports & Politics Intersect: Power of NFL's Rooney Rule called into question

“The Rooney Rule has been good for the league, and over the years we’ve seen clubs consider and hire candidates they might not have otherwise, but we’ve also seen clubs pay the rule lip service and go through the motions with no intention of ever considering the candidate of color."

10 most unlikely college basketball national champions

There has been a healthy amount of unlikely college basketball champions — men and women — through the years. Here's a look at 10 of the more notable ones.

Sports & Politics Intersect: MLB goes to bat for Cuban players

For years, Cuban-born athletes with dreams of playing Major League Baseball have literally put their lives in danger trying to reach the United States to make that a reality. That should no longer be the case.

The 25 best arenas in college basketball

There might not be a better experience for a sports fan than catching a college basketball game at a campus arena. Regardless of the team, the atmosphere has the potential to be electric, especially if the matchup is right.

The top seniors in college basketball

In the era of the "One-and-Dones" and fab freshmen, it's refreshing to see a college basketball player fulfill a commitment to his school. The four-year player, particularly at one school, is a bit of a rarity.

Sports & Politics Intersect: Oakland sues over pending Raiders departure

“Before a team is ripped from the fabric of a community, there needs to be a valid reason other than simply money. The City of Oakland deserved better

Bowl records for each team in every 2018 bowl game

The college football bowl season is just about to begin. It features 78 teams over 39 bowls, leading up to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game on Jan.

The 'Duke Blue Devils in the NBA' quiz

As of December 2018, the Duke Blue Devils have 23 former players currently playing somewhere in the NBA. How many of the 23 can you name in five minutes?

10 early-season developments in college basketball

One month in, and the college basketball season has been quite entertaining. We've already seen three different teams sit atop The Associated Press Top 25, and we've had our fair share of close games and exciting finishes — and that was just at the Maui Invitational.

Sports & Politics Intersect: NBA in the cold as hockey returns to Seattle

A little more than a century after the Seattle Metropolitans became the first U.S.-based franchise to win the Stanley Cup, hockey is headed back to the Emerald City.

2018 Yardbarker college football All-American Team

Trying to select the best of the best is never easy, especially when figuring out the best college football players in the land at each position. It can be argued that the three best players in all of the game are quarterbacks, while there are some defensive playmakers who are just as worthy of consideration.

2018 college football bowl preview

Let's have a look at all 39 bowl games featuring FBS schools and leading up to the National Championship Game on Jan. 7.

10 college assistants who could be head coaches in 2019

Coaches get fired; new ones get hired. It's a timeless tradition but one that's fun to keep an eye on. Already we've seen some huge hires — yes, we're talking Les Miles at Kansas. And there will be plenty more news by the time a national champion is crowned on Jan. 7.

Ranking all 39 bowl games

It's that time of year again — no, not just the holiday season. Bowl season. A college football junkie's dream, when it's OK to sit on the couch for hours watching heavily sponsored games — at mostly at half-filled stadiums.