The REAL. BIG. Blog

Congratulations to the New York Yankees on winning their 27th World Series title. The exhausting MLB season has finally come to a close, along with the best time of the year for sports…

October and November are some of the most exciting months for sports fans. It is the only time of the year that all 4 major sports are on at the same time.

The MLB Playoffs are nearing the end, where every pitch, every catch and every move matters. This year in the playoff you had two of the more storied franchises in all of sports with the Yankees and Dodgers. Let’s not forget the Red Sox and Cardinals who have both won a World Series title in the past 3 years. And then there are the two most consistent teams in baseball: the Twins and Angels. Year after year, those two teams always seem to be near, or at the top of their respected divisions. After starting 19-28 and firing their head coach, the Rockies came back and made another impressive run to the postseason.

The NFL is in full swing with intriguing story lines, bone-crushing hits and highlight reel plays. There are always surprises with the NFL. Who would have thought that at age 40, Brett Favre would be playing as well as he is… who would have thought that in week 9 we would still have two undefeated teams (Indianapolis and New Orleans both 7-0)… Who would have thought that the Wildcat would make defensive coordinators cringe… From the Ram’s, Lion’s and Buccaneers to the Saints, Colts and Vikings, Sunday’s are days where you can always find excitement with any team.

The NBA season tips off. A clean slate for every team. The Clippers look to spring forward with Blake Griffin, Stephen Curry looks to show off his sweet shot at the professional level, and the rest of the NBA Rookies look to make their mark on the league. This is a league full of superstars. From LeBron and Kobe to Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade, each player brings a different dynamic to the court that can only be classified as incredible.

And finally, the puck drops in the NHL. After a come from behind win against the Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Penguins are looking for the first repeat since the Red Wings went back to back in ‘97 and ‘98. With all the free agent moves and offseason trades, the tides may be turning for some teams in the NHL.

Of course, I cannot forget College football. Every sports fan has a favorite NCAA team. With tailgaiting, face painting, BCS discussions, conference title hopes, stadiums with 100,000+ people, and bowl games… College football definitely demonstrates the true passion of fans and athletes.

Ah yes, it really is a great time of year!

We’re a pretty deeply engaged bunch of folks here at Fathead by which I mean we don’t just live with our products at work, we go home to them. Which we think is perfectly normal. In fact, we wonder what it would be like not to. Which brings up a point – you. Do you go home to your Fathead? If not, why not?

Well, it occurs to us that maybe you just haven’t found the right Fathead for your home. That’s why we’ve been busting our butts here the last few months creating more and more product for you. Seriously, have you checked out the huge new lineup of MLB players, team logos and classic logos? What about all the new NHL stuff – no excuses now, every team’s being represented. And MLS too – every team. And the NBA? Well, if you were waiting for that 80’s look Cavs logo, Brandon Roy, or Ray Allen to complete your Boston Three Party, look no more. Only you should, because in addition to all that, there are about 100 other new images.

Which brings me back to the Fathead home. Not everyone’s a sports nut. We’ve known that for a long time. That’s why we offer Disney, Marvel, DC, and other great entertainment products. But lately, we’re thinking maybe you just want something you can use to decorate – like animals and general sports graphics. We’ve got Dolphins and Frogs, Turtles and Snow Leopards. Just want some sports themed graphics like a collection of player silhouettes or sports balls? We’ve got it. Maybe we haven’t always made the point strongly enough but Fathead is an awesome home decorating solution.

Look at your options. You can paint; that means a lot of time, a lot of money and it smells. You can wallpaper; messy, time-consuming, pretty difficult even if you’ve done it before, and generally expensive. There are posters; you have to use tape (tacky) or tacks (ugly, and they damage the wall), plus posters are always getting beat up and looking pretty shoddy in no time. Of course you can do nothing, which is pretty boring and basically says you have no imagination whatsoever.

And then there’s Fathead. Hundreds and hundreds of images to choose from. Very affordable, especially when you compare it to wallpaper or paint. Takes about five minutes to put up – get a friend though because a Fathead is HUGE! You’ll probably spend more time figuring out where to put all the free extra images that come with the main image than you will putting up the big one. And here’s the kicker – you can move a Fathead and reuse it. You’re not stuck with one look.  And when you move it you don’t have to worry about the holes that the tacks or nails left behind, or the paint that the tape took off. If you live in an apartment this is a major advantage – no worries about getting charged for repairs plus you can take the Fathead with you when you move.

So, I’m just saying, we’re working really hard to get you the Fathead that works in your home because we think (and we’re right) that Fathead is an amazing decorating solution. If you still haven’t found the Fathead that works for you, just tell us – a lot of what you see at www.fathead.com was created because someone like you told us you wanted it.

We know the Celtics made it past the Bulls in round one of the NBA playoffs but they had to play as many overtimes as games to do it – seven games, seven overtimes. Are the Bulls rising or did the Celtics just find out what it takes to win without Kevin Garnett? Speaking of Garnett, word is that the Orlando Magic have been watching film of KG as they prepare for their series with the Celtics. Well, when you have an extra day or two, why not. On the other hand it’s not like Garnett is going to walk onto the court one day and everybody’s going to wonder “who’s that?” Orlando lost both games against Boston in the regular season with Garnett in the lineup. They won both when he was out or playing limited minutes. So the question is, do we see another seven game series with multiple overtimes in this next round between the Magic and the Celtics? I mean, overtime is pretty cool and admit it – wouldn’t you rather have your team win a close one in triple overtime than be 20 points ahead at the end of the first quarter and coast to a 10 point win. And what about that twofer we got yesterday when the Red Wing and Ducks played what amounted to two games worth of hockey in a single afternoon!

So two questions for you today: 1) Will the Magic and Celtics go the full seven games, and 2) What’s the greatest overtime game you remember? Fathead wants to know.

With all the new products we’ve been putting up at Fathead, everything from NBA and MLB Classic Logos, to new NHL, MLB and NBA Players, to Xeko Animals, you may not have noticed that we now have a full complement of MLS Logos.  If you follow soccer then you know that MLS stands for Major League Soccer. If you don’t follow it, you should. Why? Not because it’s the most popular sport in the world. That would be easy. MLS is great because of what it represents for sports in America – an opportunity. Isn’t that what every American kid hopes for – a chance?

America keeps giving soccer a chance and I’m confident we’re going to get it right. It’s not something we can just tune in for every few years during the World Cup or sneak a peek at on Entertainment Tonight because they’re talking about David Beckham. We have thousands of kids playing soccer in this country and we have fifteen teams now in the MLS; the latest, the Seattle Sounders, has fans in that city turning up in droves. There are great players, great teams and great fans of soccer in America right now.

So I challenge you. Give soccer a chance. Give MLS a chance. And, if you have a story about your love for soccer or your experience with MLS, share it with us.

One of the coolest things about working for Fathead is that we get to see new products come together from start to finish.

After an athlete is deemed Fathead-worthy, it can be a very difficult process finding a suitable photograph. The resolution has to be amazing, the pose should reflect the athlete at his/her best, and we always want to include the athlete’s face.  I think our designers do an extraordinary job selecting the best images.

With that in mind, I present to you what I believe are the top 5 Fathead images.  Whether you agree or disagree, feel free to post your comments here.  After the overwhelming response to my last post, I’m predicting a huge reaction.  Please note:  Because we can’t do justice to the images on our blog, I didn’t want to post them here.  You’ll have to click through the links to see each image.

Number 5:  Tim Lincecum

In the heart of his wind-up, his eyes staring you down, this shot of Lincecum is great:  Exactly what the fans in the seats behind home plate see.

Number 4:  Nate Robinson

Taken from the Slam Dunk Contest, this may be our only top-view image.

Number 3:  Jonathan Toews

Right in the middle of a slap shot, and the look on his face shows how much effort he is putting into it.

Number 2:  Joe Mauer

Mask off, chasing down a ball popped foul.  You can see in his eyes exactly where that ball is.

Number 1:  LeBron James

One of our first NBA images, and still one of the best sellers:  King James about to throw it down, captured at the height of intensity in amazing high-def clarity.

Dear Detroit Tigers,

After months and months of cold winter, spring has finally arrived, and, with it, the start of the baseball season.  I’ve been earnestly waiting for this moment—following every offseason move, scouring last season’s stats, and planning my entire summer, including weddings, baptisms, and funerals, around your schedule.  I don’t think I’ve ever been more excited to be alive, and I just thought you should know that.

I’m not sure how to properly say this without making you feel awkward, so I’m just going to be blunt:  I think I’m in love with you.  I think about you all the time.  When you’re on the TV, I can’t take my eyes off of you; when you’re not on the TV, I wish you were.  You complete me.  You make me want to be a better man.  I’m scared of walking out of this room and never feeling in my whole life the way I feel when I’m with you.

I know I haven’t always been perfect.  There have been other teams—I’ll admit that.  The Pistons, the Lions, the Red Wings.  And these teams will always hold a special place in my heart.  But I’m ready to dedicate myself to you, or at least I will be after the NBA and NHL playoffs are done.

And let’s face it, you haven’t been perfect either.  Remember last season?  Remember in March how you offered the promise of a great season and how you completely reneged?  Have you forgotten how much love I showed you, and how you reciprocated with one of the most disappointing seasons in the history of baseball?

I haven’t forgotten.  The final tally of 74-88 is burned into my brain and probably will be forever.  But I’m willing to look past it.  Let’s let bygones be bygones and focus on our relationship moving forward.  I’ll focus on being a better fan for you, and you can focus on being a better team for me, and we can make this work.  After all, love means never having to say you’re sorry.

Tonight, I’m moving my Tigers logo Fathead into the center of my rec room.  I’m taking down all of the silly sports posters and concentrating my fan efforts on you.  I’m ready to give you all I’ve got, and I hope you’re ready to do the same.  Let’s forget about the 0-2 start and focus on us.  We’re too right for each other to let this slip away.

Forever yours,

Jake

P.S.  We’ll always have ’84.

I’m sure you can imagine how much time we spend here at Fathead talking about the sports, players, and entertainers we represent and the ones we’d love to bring on board. Provided they’re Fathead worthy that is. March Madness has us speculating about which basketball players we expect to make the Fathead roster once they turn pro. We can’t do a Fathead of a college athlete no matter how good they are so let’s not even go there. Still, we’ve been throwing some names around here at Fathead Central and we thought we’d open up the forum to all of you out there in Fathead Nation. Tell us which players you’ve been watching this past week that you think are Fathead worthy and why. You never know what might sway us.

By Matthew Martz

Reminiscent of the Florida Central Voter File that spawned controversy surrounding the US presidential elections in 2000, and hockey scrub Rory Fitzpatrick finishing 3rd among defensemen during a grass roots movement to get him into the 2007 All-Star game. The NHL is looking into voting irregularities in this year’s all-star voting process. It seems that some Canadiens hockey fans were not being honest. Really?

Apparently a scheme by Montreal Canadiens fans to flood the NHL All-Star Game ballot box with artificial votes was uncovered, in which a computer script augmented vote totals for Alexei Kovalev, Saku Koivu, Alex Tanguay, Andrei Markov, Mike Komisarek and Carey Price. Les Robots du Montreal.

Entering week 16, the AFC East remains locked in a three-way tie.  The New York Jets, New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins, all with 9-5 records, are battling for the title of division leader with just two remaining games in the regular season.

Each of these teams has there own little Cinderella story upon arriving to this point.  The New York Jets finished last season with a woeful 4-12 record.  But BIG off-season acquisitions (perhaps the biggest being the arrival of Brett Favre to be posted behind a revamped o-line) have helped them snap back from last season’s demise.  The Miami Dolphins almost succeeded in achieving the dreaded winless season last year, but instead finished with a 1-15 record. 

By Shawn Lucas

I was very surprised this week when reading a small article in “The Hockey News.”
Being a lifelong hockey fan, I was completely shocked when reading the names of the top ten active leaders in career points - not so much by the names as  their nationalities….

The NHL has traditionally been dominated by Canadians.  In 2007-08, more than half (52%) of all NHL players were from Canada.  The top ranks of the NHL, though still full of Canadians, is no longer a league dominated by players from The Great White North.

Today’s domination comes from stars such as Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin, Washington’s Alex tandem of Semin and Ovechkin and who can overlook what has been the strongest team of the last decade, the Detroit Red Wings, whose team boasts the likes of Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk, Marian Hossa and the league’s best defenseman in Nicklas Lidstrom?

The future of hockey definitely looks bright on the global stafe.  On the list of active NHL leaders in career points, there are only 3 Canadians - while the USA is represented 4 times, the most of any country on the list.  There are a few developments that could re-define the list this year.

If Brendan Shanahan, 1340 (CAN) or Mats Sundin, 1321 (SWE) can catch on with a team, then each would bump someone off the list.  As they are not currently active, here is the list of active players and their respective nationalities

1.    Joe Sakic, Colorado Avalanche, 1641 (CAN)
2.    Mark Recchi, Tampa Bay Lightning, 1393 (CAN)
3.    Mike Modano, Dallas Stars, 1294 (USA)
4.    Jeremy Roenick, San Jose Sharks, 1207 (USA)
5.    Teemu Selanne, Anaheim Ducks, 1176, (FIN)
6.    Sergei Fedorov, Washington Capitals, 1155, (RUS)
7.    Rod Brind’Amour, Carolina Hurricanes, 1127 (CAN)
8.    Keith Tkachuk, St. Louis Blues, 996 (USA)
9.    Doug Weight, N.Y. Islanders, 985 (USA)
10.    Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings, 950 (SWE)