Connor Smith is a junior news journalism/telecommunications major attending Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. From Naperville, Illinois, he is the assistant sports editor of The Ball State Daily News and the newspaper's primary football, baseball and secondary men's basketball reporter. He loves finding stories and topics that go above and beyond the box score, court and field, and is thrilled to provide engaging coverage with SPBNation this spring.
No. 11 UCLA Men’s Basketball has done the unthinkable. From Loyola Chicago in 2018 to Florida Gulf Coast in 2013, March Madness is notorious for its Cinderella teams. However, the Bruins’ surprise success is unprecedented. After losing its final three regular season games, No. 5 Oregon State defeated the Bruins 83-79 in the quarterfinal round […]
The best day of the year is almost here. After a turbulent offseason, Opening Day 2021 is just hours away. Nearly all 30 teams will host fans in some capacity, a breath of fresh air after empty ballparks personified 2020. Some teams, such as the Chicago Cubs, took a step back this winter and retooled. […]
In spite of a 19-24 record and 10th place standing in the Eastern Conference, the Chicago Bulls made the first necessary move Thursday pushing the team toward contender status. Taking a huge step forward, the Bulls acquired two-time All-Star center Nikola Vucevic and Al-Farouq Aminu from the Orlando Magic in exchange for Wendell Carter. Jr., […]
Amid a season full of uncertainty, something that won’t change is the annual buzz surrounding the NHL Trade Deadline. Love it or hate it, deadline day is one of the most polarizing days of the NHL season, and the right (or wrong) moves can have a significant impact. Just look at what the Tampa Bay […]
MLB Predictions written by Jonathan Papp and Connor Smith. The MLB is (almost) back. After a lengthy offseason, Opening Day is just around the corner. Following last year’s pandemic-abbreviated season, the MLB is set to start on time in 2021. Nearly every team will host fans at some capacity, too, after they were shut out […]
The year was 2011. Barack Obama was in the White House, and social media was still on the rise. That was also the last year the Buffalo Sabres made the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Since then, the Sabres have endured eight straight losing seasons — soon to be nine this spring. Buffalo has also undergone six head […]
Just more than a year ago, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Days later, life changed as we knew it. A chain reaction of live events — from March Madness to the NBA season — were abruptly canceled. Months later, professional sports finally began returning, but not in the way we knew them […]
Loyola University’s campus stands in Chicago. Following its surprising Final Four run three years ago, can the Ramblers do just that again in 2021?
Coming off of last season’s monster breakout, this offseason’s moves beg the question: Are the San Diego Padres baseball’s most powerful team?
With just more than 10 minutes remaining in the Chicago Blackhawks’ 7-2 blowout of the Detroit Red Wings Feb. 28, Patrick Kane fired a snipe past Detroit goaltender Thomas Greiss. But it wasn’t just any goal — it was the 400th of Kane’s career, as he became the 100th player in NHL history to reach the […]