1. Any kid can dress up as a ghost. Why not be your favorite sports anti-hero? 

  2. Michigan State is more popular than the University of Michigan in just three of the state’s 83 counties, according to Facebook. This is based on how many likes each school’s football or athletics page has received within the state. The Wolverines were more popular statewide by a 64%-36% margin.

  3. It’s back: The Wall Street Journal’s third-annual College Football Grid of Shame rates how good all 125 teams are, and how embarrassed their alumni should be. 

  4. A problem that’s unique to Alabama football: Nick Saban’s team is now so good that its fans are getting bored.

  5. Looking back through stadium promotions this year, The Count found that a bobblehead giveaway increases a team’s attendance by an average of 4.8% over what the team draws each day of the week. No doll had a bigger impact than that of former Seattle great Ken Griffey Jr. The Mariners saw 46,027 fans vie to get their hands on one of 20,000 Junior dolls on Aug. 10. This was up almost 50% from the typical Saturday at Safeco Field.



  9. The Giants are playing the Jets in the preseason on Saturday. This, of course, means nothing. So we decided to take a look at a matchup that does matter: Which team does the New York area prefer? Based on Facebook data, it isn’t much of a contest.


  10. "According to a Yahoo survey of search activity, Fargo, N.D., had more searches per capita for “fantasy football” than any other region in the country."