For a few years now, we’ve been running a Burnside fantasy football team.  This year, we have between one and three openings.  It’s a Yahoo! league, and the draft is scheduled for 2pm PST on Saturday.  We need you to fill our openings. That came out wrong. Anyway, it’s a lot of fun. ...

Editor’s Note: Burnside contributor Chad Gibbs recently traveled to the twelve schools of the SEC to explore the intersection of faith and fandom. Chad recounts his journey in “God and Football” (Zondervan). The book is funny and insightful no matter what conference you belong to. It...

A few months after this site started up, which seems like 10 years ago, I received an emailed article about golf from some Alabamian named Chad Gibbs. “No one cares about golf,” I muttered.  But I read it anyway, and it was surprisingly funny, so we ran it. Then Chad sent another article,...

It’s probably not right for a pastor to watch MTV. Especially when it shows people getting beat up in an eight sided ring by professional cage fighters. So I’m confessing that my favorite show is an MTV reality series called Bully Beat Down. The premise of the show goes like this: guys who have...

I. Ugly American I went to the World Cup with the intent to follow the Spanish team.  I’ve been a supporter for a couple years now.  They’re a perennial powerhouse, fun to watch, and have the potential to underachieve and break your heart.  All the best ingredients for a team to watch...

Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of articles about impressions of South Africa and the World Cup from contributor and first time visitor to the country, Mark Petterson. South Africa, Week One. I came here for the soccer, but by the end of the week, I find I’ve been more distracted...

The death of John Wooden over the weekend has me remembering the life and legacy of a man who left his mark on me when I was addicted to basketball in Jr. High.  But this isn’t a post about basketball as much as what making God’s good reign visible looks like: Dear John - I’m not sure...

If you are a Major League pitcher, you dream about pitching in the World Series, winning the Cy Young, or pitching a perfect game.  That’s the pinnacle of your career.  That’s your ticket to the history books; perhaps even to the Hall of Fame. If you follow baseball at all, or if you witnessed...

When asked about the designated hitter, baseball purists will gag before lamenting the rule change in 1973 that allowed American League teams to designate one player as the replacement for the pitcher in his team’s lineup. They will cite the beauty of the sacrifice bunt, of pinch hitters, of double...

When I was a kid, I was a die-hard St. Louis Cardinals fan. My mom was from St. Louis and I was born in Columbia, so that was fairly automatic. But even as a Cardinals fan, I admired the heritage of the Yankees. I remember the day in 7th grade when a friend of mine handed me his sports almanac. I looked...