Enjoy this time of year, there is no equal

I feel bad for non-sports fans at this time of year. They don't know what they are missing.

This is the best time of the year for a sports fan (Okay, you can make the case for March Madness, that's cool with me). There is no equal to late October/ early November in the amount of major sports going and at important points.

The highlight of this time of year is obviously the MLB Playoffs and the World Series. This is the time when moments you will not forget are created, whether it be an infielder jumping after making the final out of a Game 7, a pitcher getting pumped up (or lit up) or even a late-inning home run, a la Aaron Boone.

The second big thing is football season. We're smack dab in the middle of both NCAA football and NFL seasons. It's past the first weeks of easy matchups in college, now we get to see the meaty conference games. In the NFL, the men are being separated from the boys (or from the Cowboys).

Also, the NHL season is upon us. While most might not use hockey in a column to say a time of year is good, I will because it's such a great spectator sport. Sure, sitting at a hockey game isn't like sitting at an MLB playoff game, but it is still quite enjoyable. Also, the NHL seems to be making a bit of a comeback now, but my colleague Trever Fehrenbach could probably tell you all about hockey as I am certainly not the expert.

NASCAR is trying to find a champion right now, too. There are four races left in the Chase for the Cup and that makes for an exciting time watching the sport. Even if you aren't a NASCAR fan, you can appreciate the process of finding a champion.

NBA season starts Oct. 28 with a game between Boston and Cleveland as the marquee game (plus, it's on TNT, so does that mean Reggie Miller will commentate it? One can only hope). The NBA is a bounce-back league in its own right. After Michael Jordan (and Miller around here) retired, interest in the NBA waned, but it is bouncing back, mainly fueled by talented young players. Along with that, NCAA basketball is waving at us from November.

Think of the fantasy sports at this time of the year, too. Fantasy sports are a driving factor in sports interest anymore. Right now, fantasy football - the most popular fantasy sport - is in full swing and people are trying to position themselves for the playoffs. Fantasy baseball is just over and people are either gloating from their victories or trying to figure out where it went wrong (in case you care, it was when I traded Josh Hamilton before the season for me). Also, fantasy basketball and fantasy hockey provide a good bridge for people between fantasy football and fantasy baseball if they just stick with them.

( Ben Corn is a senior journalism major. He can be reached at sascamed@isugw.indstate.edu.)