The Non-Sports Fan’s Guide to Surviving the Holidays

Some say the holidays are the best time of the year. Households are filled with laughter, gifts and of course, games on the television. With hockey, football and basketball all in full effect, it’s the sports fans ultimate gift. But, for those who didn’t ask Santa for all things sports, here’s a guide to surviving holidays with the sports fanatics in your lives. 

Know the Schedule

The key to surviving the holidays with the sports fans in your lives is essentially knowing the schedule. Understanding the pandemonium and variety of sports the fill December is half the battle. Get the fans in the kitchen early so that perhaps the both of you can enjoy the game over turkey and stuffing!

Basketball Fever

Basketball fans have been on pins and needles for more than 150 days, holding their breath for an NBA season. Now that the NBA lockout is lifted and the regular season is scheduled to tip off on Christmas Day, the NBA is not looking to disappoint with five games scheduled. You can catch the likes of Kevin Garnet, Amare Stoudemire, Dwayne Wade, Lebron James, Kobe Bryant and Blake Griffin playing. Even the average NBA fan will be salivating over the first day of the regular season. Games start as early as 9 a.m. PST and close with a night cap game at 7:30 p.m. PST. Christmas Day and holiday game schedules can be found on the NBA's website. 

Let them go “Bowling”

College football welcomes their post-season games, also known as Bowl Games, for their school’s bragging rights and to determine the outright college football national champion. Fans can enjoy games from December 17 to January 9. For some players, these are the last games of their athletic career, so fans will definitely be glued to their television. For a complete list of all collegiate football bowl games, visit ESPN's website.

NFL Serves a Healthy Helping 

With Christmas falling on the weekend, the National Football League satisfies fans appetite by supplying a juicy helping of games on Thursday, Saturday (Christmas Eve), Christmas Day and capping off Christmas week with a Monday Night Football game. With the NFL playoffs right around the corner, the stakes are high and every game has huge importance. You can find a list of crucial holiday match-ups on the NFL's site. 

Hockey Fans get their Post Christmas Serving

The National Hockey League hits the ice with ten games after Christmas to help hockey fan’s turkey hangover. Hockey has been in full swing since October and looks to turn the corner into the halfway mark of the season. For a full schedule of NHL matchups visit the NHL's site. 

With the abundance and variety of sports infiltrating the airwaves during the holidays, it can surely convert the non-sports lover to a couch potato, jersey wearing fanatic.

For a cheat sheet to sports, catch Gyasmine George on the Female Field Guide airing Sunday nights at 8 p.m. PST at www.blogtalkradio.com/female-field-guide.