Hype is in overdrive today around two of the most anticipated Championship games in memory. ESPN’s Sal Paolantonio: “We've got Manning versus Brady. It is Ali versus Frazier. It is Beatles versus Stones” (“SportsCenter,” ESPN, 1/19). CBS' Bart Scott: “This is Bird versus Jordan. This is the matchup that everybody wanted" (“That Other Pregame Show,” CBSSN, 1/19). ESPN's Colin Cowherd: "This is the greatest championship weekend of all time" (“Colin’s New Football Show,” ESPN2, 1/19). CBS' Rich Gannon: "It's the way it should be. Even in September and October, you got the sense that these were probably the best four or five teams in the league" (BOSTON GLOBE, 1/19).

Modell's Sporting Goods CEO Mitch Modell said that his stores in the greater New England area "already had" Patriots AFC Champion merchandise in stock as of Friday, taking "a roughly $500,000 gamble" in inventory. Modell said, "We took a tremendous risk, but you know what? People expect us to have the merchandise" (BOSTON HERALD, 1/18). 

Elsewhere, the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce released a YouTube video using game audio of Broncos QB Peyton Manning's "Omaha" audible calls. A message at the end of the video reads, "Best of luck, Denver. XOXO Your neighbor, Omaha."

Fox, CBS and ESPN have "submitted bids for the rights to broadcast as many as eight" Thursday night NFL games, according to sources. The bidding for the league's Thursday night package is expected to be "highly contested," and NBC was "expected to join the bidding" before bids were due on Friday (REUTERS, 1/17). A source said that Turner Sports also "planned to submit a proposal." The NFL is "accepting offers for six, seven or eight games in what would be a one-year deal" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 1/18).

The NFL Network is suspending analyst Darren Sharper "without pay until further notice" after he was arrested on rape charges on Friday. LAPD said that the former NFLer "has been linked to two sexual assaults," one this month and one in October. Sharper was "released on $200,000 bail late Friday night," and the investigation "is ongoing" (NFL.com, 1/18).

NASCAR is "planning a vast restructuring of the points system" in the Sprint Cup Series that would "greatly emphasize winning races and feature eliminations" during the Chase for the Cup, according to sources. Changes would include "expanding the Chase field from 12 to 16 drivers." The Chase would then feature a round of eliminations "similar to the NCAA tournament," culminating with the "championship determined by a winner-takes-all season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway."

NASCAR VP & Chief Communications Officer Brett Jewkes in a statement acknowledged the series is in "the final phase of a multi-year process that has included the review of extensive fan research, partner and industry feedback and other data-driven insights" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 1/18).

In an interview with THE NEW YORKER, President Obama comments on the dangers of playing football by saying, "They know what they're doing. They know what they're buying into. It is no longer a secret. It's sort of the feeling I have about smokers, you know?" He goes on to add, "I would not let my son play pro football" (THE NEW YORKER, 1/20 issue).

The crowd of 19,631 at last night's Heat-Bobcats game "was the largest ever to see a Bobcats game at Time Warner Cable Arena on a night in which the team began selling its Hornets gear for the first time" (AP, 1/18). A line outside the Bobcats' team store "wrapped around the front of the arena, and it took almost an hour for all of the customers to get in after the doors opened." Bobcats President & COO Fred Whitfield said, "To tell us loudly they wanted to see purple and teal, and then to see the store the first night we're putting our product on the shelves, is just amazing" (WCNC.com, 1/18).

Brewers LF Ryan Braun is "among the nearly 30 players listed as participating in the 'Brewers On Deck' fan event" today, marking his "first official interaction with fans en masse" since being suspended for the final 65 games of the '13 season for his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal. There "was no indication from the Brewers as to whether fans will be charged for Braun's autograph at the event" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 1/18).

Cubs Chair Tom Ricketts yesterday at the club's annual convention called last season a major "inflection point" in the development of the franchise, and vowed better days would soon arrive for the franchise. Facing only mild criticism from fans, Ricketts said the Cubs' commitment to rebuild its farm system is beginning to take root. "There's only one way to do it and you have to do it the right way and you can't take shortcuts," he said. "We're fully aware that 2013 wasn't the kind of result on the field we were looking for."

Meanwhile, Cubs execs said the construction timeline for the Wrigley Field renovation could be compressed from five years to four, with a new videoboard in place for the '15 season. New TV and radio contracts could be in place by Opening Day this year.

Yankee Stadium hosts two upcoming Coors Light NHL Stadium Series games, and as of yesterday afternoon, the boards for the rink "were being installed and the ice pans had been put down, but the ice had not been made yet." NHL Senior Manager of Facility Operations Mike Craig on Wednesday said that the goal "was to start making ice" yesterday. The ice pans "keep the ice near its ideal temperature of 22 degrees Fahrenheit," and the rink "runs horizontally from foul line to foul line in the middle of the field" (ESPN.com, 1/18).

A crowd of almost 5,000 people yesterday "gathered at Petco Park for an 80-minute memorial ceremony" for Broadcasting HOFer Jerry Coleman. MLB Exec VP/Baseball Operations Joe Torre was among many who spoke during the service, saying, "If you loved baseball, if you loved this country, you loved Jerry Coleman. Character, courage, modesty." Padres Exec Chair Ron Fowler: "Jerry's was a life well lived" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 1/19). Broadcasters, execs and players also shared their memories of Coleman (UTSANDIEGO.com, 1/18).

Last night's episode of "Saturday Night Live" opened with a skit featuring host Drake impersonating suspended Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez, asserting, "My attorneys and I are currently suing Major League Baseball for gross misconduct. We’re also suing the players’ union for failing to trick Major League Baseball. I’m also suing steroids for being inside of me, and I’m suing Jackie Robinson for breaking into the major leagues, which really led to this whole situation in the first place" ("SNL," NBC, 1/18).

The Dolphins on Friday interviewed Buccaneers Dir of Player Personnel Dennis Hickey for the team's GM vacancy, marking the "seventh candidate to sit down" with team Owner Stephen Ross (MIAMI HERALD, 1/18).

A gay Russian protester yesterday was detained for "unfurling a rainbow flag during the Olympic torch relay as it passed through his hometown of Voronezh, 560 miles north of Sochi, where the Games will begin Feb. 7" (AP, 1/18).

A crowd of 45,021 attended Friday's Ohio State-Minnesota game at TCF Bank Stadium, the "largest ever to watch a hockey game in Minnesota" despite 10-degree weather (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 1/18).

Japanese newspaper Nikkan Sports yesterday reported that the Yankees, Dodgers, D-Backs, White Sox and Cubs "made offers" for Japanese Pacific League Rakuten Eagles P Masahiro Tanaka, with most of the offers higher than $100M over six years (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 1/19).

The PGA Tour on Friday announced its 25-event Web.com Tour schedule, "adding new tournaments in Oregon, Nova Scotia and Ohio" (ESPN.com, 1/17).

Yesterday's deflation of the Metrodome's "signature fabric roof" went off "without a hitch." The 35-minute deflation provided "both a symbolic end of an era as well as a meaningful start to the construction" of the team's new $1B stadium (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 1/19).

"Seattle is a city down on its sports luck. We lost the Sonics. The Mariners stink. But Pete Carroll has brought a new attitude to this town. And the city has bought in" – Seattle-based KJR-AM host Brian Abker (S.F. CHRONICLE, 1/19).

"We wouldn't have Lucas Oil Stadium without Peyton Manning. We wouldn't have had the Super Bowl, which was such a rousing success here in Indianapolis. And quite honestly, I don't know that we would still have this franchise in Indianapolis" – Indianapolis Star's Bob Kravitz, on Manning's impact on the city (“OTL,” ESPN2, 1/19).

"I love it. I absolutely love it" – 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh, on QB Colin Kaepernick's Beats by Dre ad that upset some Seahawks fans (SACBEE.com, 1/17).

"It works poorly. Someone once said that it’s such a good idea that no other sports league adopted it, so that tells you how good of an idea it is" – Reds VP & Assistant GM Bob Miller, on MLB's salary arbitration process (CINCINNATI.com, 1/17).

"I don't go out much, to be honest. When I do, I’ll gladly pay. My daily life hasn't changed since the Series" – Red Sox manager John Farrell, on how free meals he has received since winning the World Series (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 1/19).

"We know all the precedents, we know the risks. A big part of this, for us, was getting as much protection from insurance as we could" – Dodgers President & CEO Stan Kasten, on the team getting insurance to cover part of its losses if P Clayton Kershaw is injured during his seven-year contract (ESPNLA.com, 1/17).

"It'll be a blip instead of a cacophony or Clark-cophony" – Cubs President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein, on the controversy surrounding the introduction of the team's new Clark the Cub mascot (ESPNCHICAGO.com, 1/17).

"Clark is a good example of what we're trying to do to make the Cubs more accessible to kids" – Cubs co-Owner Laura Ricketts (ESPNCHICAGO.com, 1/18).

Notre Dame will induct ESPN analyst and former basketball coach Digger Phelps into its Ring of Honor on the 40th anniversary of the school's '74 victory over then-No. 1 UCLA. Phelps will be the sixth inductee and the first coach. Several former players are expected to attend, including Bulls Exec VP/Basketball Operations John Paxson.

The P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon and Half Marathon will be held, with a projected 24,000 runners in the field.

The Magic in conjunction with the Indian-American Chamber of Commerce hosts India Day as part of an annual appreciation of the team's diverse fan base.

The N.Y. TIMES' Joe Drape in a front-page piece notes, "The idea for the X Games was born at the magazine rack of a Barnes & Noble" in '93. Today, the "cachet more than the cash that the event has bestowed on action sports stars has allowed ESPN to ... subdue criticism" that the network is "profiting from the broken bones and debilitating injuries of others."

With Super Bowl XLVIII just two weeks away, the Newark STAR-LEDGER's Ted Sherman looks back at "how New Jersey scored the championship game." It has been a "a long march up the field already, marked by quiet, behind-the-scenes lobbying and phone calls, getting the enthusiastic support of the state’s governor, and raising millions from sponsors for what will be the most expensive Super Bowl in history."

The K.C. STAR's Rustin Dodd writes high-end residence halls that cater to athletes "have the feel of a growing trend" in college sports' "arms race." It may not "speak to the values upon which college sports were built, but to the coaches and administrators who have become wealthy" on the performances of student athletes "it may be the least they can do."

Elsewhere:

• Today's Patriots-Broncos matchup comes 53 years after they played the first AFL game.
• Super Bowl XLVIII "turns spotlight on New Jersey," which has lived in N.Y.'s shadow.
• Four key IndyCar Series storylines to follow in '14, as it emerges "from a deep freeze."
• The Australian Open is criticized for its "nothing-to-see-here approach" to a heatwave.

Horizon Media Research Dir Brad Adgate: "Of the 4 NFL teams playing today Patriots have the most Facebook likes 4.4 million followed by 49ers 2.4MM, Broncos 2.1MM & Seahawks 1.3MM."

ESPN's Michele Steele: "Team won't disclose numbers but Blount sells four times as many jerseys as any other player - Bills game spiked demand #Patriots."

SI's Richard Deitsch: ".@jimrome is living the dream of anyone who loves horse racing. His horse, Shared Belief, just won Eclipse Award for top 2 year old male."

Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban, after NBA Commissioner David Stern announced he would be fined $100,000: "I couldnt let the commish go without a proper farewell. Its been a fun 14 years of trying to create change and donating to the donut fund !" 

 If you see a tweet we will not want to miss, send it to us at editorial@sportsbusinessdaily.com.