By Adith Gopal It all started in January of 2018, when the Philadelphia Eagles edged the Atlanta Falcons 15-10 in the Divisional Round of the Playoffs. Little did anyone expect, but that was the starting point of the Eagles’ Super Bowl run. One month later, a Brandon Graham strip sack and an amazing performance from QB Nick Foles sealed the deal for the Eagles, giving them a 41-33 win over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII, giving them their first SB win ever, and finally rewarding . Unlike the Eagles, however, the Villanova Wildcats MBB team was one of the few teams expected to be contending for the National Championship come March Madness. One month after Nova beat ___ in the first round, Nova was in the final, pitted against Michigan, who arrived to the National Championship above all odds and crazy upsets in the South and East region of the brackets. A crazy game played by G Donte DiVincenzo, who had 31 points, led Nova to their second championship in three years. And the Philadelphia 76ers have finally been showing that “Trusting the Process” leads to substantive results, making the playoffs as the #3 seed. The Sixers, led by the “Future King of Basketball” PG/SF Ben Simmons, the Rookie of the Year favorite, and C Joel Embiid, a Defensive Player of the Year candidate and posterboy of the “Trust the Process” campaign, are pitted in an ECQF series against the Miami Heat, with the series tied at 1-1 as of April 17. Regardless of the results of this series, Sixers fans have the right to be hopeful of their team’s future, as Simmons and Embiid will be superstars in the NBA, while rookie Markelle Fultz will return next year healthy and refreshed. Although these two teams highlight the success of Philadelphia sports in 2018, other teams have had some success. The Philadelphia Flyers, led by Claude Giroux, are pitted in an intense playoff series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, led by Sidney Crosby. This is the second Flyers’ playoff appearance in as many years. Although down 2-1 in the series, the Flyers have shown intensity and made it very hard for the Penguins to win. The Philadelphia Phillies have not made the playoffs in about 8 years, but their future looks very bright. As of April 17, the Phillies are pitted in 3rd place in the NL East, and while they are out of the intital playoff race, they will continue to be in the hunt for the playoffs after years of constant disappointment and consistently having records that are at (or near) the bottom of the MLB. Led by newly-acquired star Jake Arrieta and promising, young Aaron Nola, the pitching staff is dominating opposing hitters, while young stars Rhys Hoskins, JP Crawford, and Aaron Altherr are showing that this Phillies lineup is not to be taken lightly. Phillies fans are expecting a bright future for this team, with high expectations for this team in the future. Although sports in Philadephia are finding huge success in 2018, most people expect this success to last in the near future. The Eagles’ future is set for at least a decade with young QB Carson Wentz returning from ACL surgery and DT Fletcher Cox anchoring the defensive line. The Sixers are set for a decade with superstars Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. The Phillies have young future centerpieces on both the pitching staff and the lineup, with P Aaron Nola and 1B/OF Rhys Hoskins. With Philadelphia, the present is a bright light of success in a multitude of their sports, while the future of Philadelphia sports presents a beaming, eye-piercing bright light of promise. Expectations will be high, but there is no city that can handle high expectations like Philadelphia.
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Dylan EdelmanWilson Senior Archives
February 2020
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