Good Morning, Stumpers!

Losing in the playoffs comes with a lot of emotions, but losing to the same team, every single time? How does that feel? Well, good for you, we have a Bills fan right here. Let him tell you exactly how he feels. It’s a beautiful day to have a day, we’re glad you woke up today.

Today’s Rundown

Everything you’ll get from today’s edition, and more:

• 😥 The pain of being a Bills fan, from a Bills fan

• 💸 The biggest deal in women’s soccer history

• 👋 Wave goodbye to Jimmy Butler in Miami

• 💯 A glueless GLUE guy

On This Day

On this day…

🏈 The CFL Expands into the US

On this day in 1995, the Canadian Football League expanded into the United States. The “Memphis Mad Dogs”, owned by FedEx founder Fred Smith, became the first team apart of the CFL’s attempt to expand into the American market.

The experiment only lasted one year, but they were ELECTRIC during their time in existence. Their mascot, ‘Alien’, was a Labrador retriever who was known for charging the field and retrieving the kicking tee following kickoffs.

Trivia Time

🧠 Test your sports knowledge…

Yesterday’s Trivia Answer: (D): Game-winning field goal! The Chiefs won the 2023 Super Bowl against the Philadelphia Eagles thanks to a Harrison Butker field goal as the clock expired.

Before We Dive In…

👀 Here’s Yesterday’s MUST-See’s

• 🏀 Look at this DUO sitting courtside at Madison Square Garden

• 🏈 So umm…We’re off to a HOT START in Jacksonville!

• 🏀 PUT LUKE KORNET IN THE DUNK CONTEST! NOW!

• ⛳️ Tiger and Rory exchanging putts!

The Hot Stove

A Fan’s Message…

🏈 24 Hours to Digest (Bills-Chiefs Edition)

What to know: I am a Bills fan, that is all.

What does it mean to be a fan?

I have typed and then deleted the first sentence of this little section about 8 times now. I have no idea where to start, where to middle, and where to end. The Buffalo Bills made it to their second AFC Championship in the Josh Allen era, and it ended in heartbreak; for all the reasons we already know.

I was scrolling around Twitter (not for very long at all) and came to a tweet saying something like ‘Bills fans shouldn’t be mad because they have a generational QB and they make the playoffs every year, how can they complain?’ It’s an interesting point. I’m sure fans of 20 teams are saying, “What more can you guys ask for? We’d kill to be in a Championship Game with the second-best QB in the league!”

And although this is a true point, whether you’re the worst team in the league or you lose the AFC Championship, at the end of the day, you lost. It’s a tough league. There are 31 losers and 1 winner.

I wore my Bills hat out on the streets today, and from the stares I was getting, you would thought my hat said: “STARE HERE”. Another tweet from today was, “I don’t know how you wake up today if you’re a Bills fan.”

This brings me back to my initial question: What does it mean to be a fan?

The day we find that one favorite team of ours, little do we know we sign a contract. A contract with no ink. A contract saying that there will be ups and there will be downs. There will be a rebuild and then there will be a prime. We aren’t guaranteed anything but we have no clue of that when we first put those colors on for the first time, or when we buy that first jersey.

Call me an absolute sicko, but that’s what’s special about sports. The bond that you have with your team. Through the ups. And through the downs.

How do you wake up? The same way you do any other day!

We will have our day one day, and it will be against that exact team, in that exact stadium, with that exact QB and Coach, I have no doubt about that!

Thanks for being part of my soapbox.

Go Bills!

Women’s Soccer

🤑 Naomi Girma Signs Largest Deal in Women’s Soccer History

What to know: U.S. Olympic Gold Medal winner Naomi Girma just signed the largest deal ever recorded in Women’s Soccer! It was a $1.1 Million transfer fee for her to be acquired by Chelsea. The star defender is headed to one of the world’s most storied clubs!

24-year-old Naomi Girma just made history! After spending the last two years with the San Diego Wave in the National Women’s Soccer League, she has now signed a four-year deal with Chelsea worth $1.1 Million. She burst onto the scene when she helped the United States win Gold in the 2024 Paris Olympics. She has officially gone to a new level.

One of soccer’s best young defenders has now possibly reset the market when it comes to the future of Women’s soccer! This is a landmark signing that will hopefully be looked back on during the next 10 years as the deal that changed the sport of Women’s Soccer!

Jimmy Butler Saga…Ep. 359

🏀 Heat Suspend Jimmy Butler Indefinitely

What to know: The Miami Heat are currently the 8-Seed in the Eastern Conference, just 3 years ago they made the NBA Finals as an 8-Seed! Management and star Jimmy Butler cannot put their differences aside and it looks like it is officially over.

What is going on in Miami? Well, they are the 8-Seed right now, and there has been trouble in paradise caught in the public eye for a couple of months now. Jimmy Butler has expressed multiple times that he isn’t “having fun playing basketball” anymore.

He’s already served two different short suspensions and then came back to the team and played games… now he’s probably played his last game as a member of the Heat organization.

The Heat have now suspended their star again, but this time “indefinitely”, meaning that there is no set time for his return. Unless some big kumbaya happens, it’s likely that Butler will find a new home. It’ll be interesting to see what the Heat can get in return for a guy who’s this disgruntled, but only time will see.

Quick Hitters

• 🏈 New Jets management are non-committal on Aaron Rodgers!

• 🍿 Tiger vs Rory in virtual golf

• 🏈 Where do the Steelers go with their QB situation?

• 🔥 Klay Thompson hit SEVEN three’s in the first quarter last night

What We’re Watching

🏀 TNT Double Header in the NBA:

• Lakers @ 76ers (7:00 PM): The first of a TNT double-header showcases two star studded rosters, but Philly continues to struggle with injuries. Embiid is a game-time decision and Paul George is out with a finger injury.

• Bucks @ Trail Blazers (10:00 PM ET): It’s always fun to watch Damian Lillard go back to Portland. He always puts on a show for the fans, but can the Blazers young stars spoil his homecoming?

🏒 If you’re a little bit of a night owl or just like to fall asleep with something on in the background, may I recommend two of the best in the NHL? Stars @ Golden Knights (10:00 PM on ESPN+/Hulu) is MUST-SEE TV!

🏀 College Basketball ranked action:

• Men’s: (12) Kentucky @ (8) Tennessee (7:00 PM on ESPN), (15) St. Johns @ Georgetown (6:30 PM on FS1), (9) Marquette @ Butler (8:30 PM on FS1)

The Moment You’ve Been Waiting For

Can’t thank you enough for sticking to the end of this thing we call The Daily Stump. If you know anybody who might want this bit of daily juice in their life, send them this link, it would go a long way. Appreciate the hell out of you all!

Trees may get chopped. Stumps hold strong 🌴