Past performance is no guarantee of future success, but scouts are becoming increasingly adept at predicting how new talent will fare in the NFL. Here are five players that all the experts expect to make a big impact immediately and for a long time in the NFL.

Andrew Luck

If his name says anything at all, he is destined for some kind of greatness. He was the first overall pick, drafted by the Colts to replace legend Peyton Manning. Experts consider his two best assets as his strong and surprisingly accurate throwing arm, and his ability to read the defense. If he can combine those two qualities throughout the season, he could take the team that picks him to the playoffs.

Robert Griffin III

This Baylor QB has super throwing strength and a quality passing form. Combine that with his speed, and you may have a superstar on your hands. The Redskins gave up a lot to land Griffin, and Coach Shanahan is looking to utilize his versatility to lead the team to a much improved season, a la Cam Newton and the Panthers last year. 

No sports fan wants to miss out on the latest scores and stats from their favorite teams and players. Thanks to the many apps available for both iPhone and Android, you can always be connected to your favorite sports and stay up to date with the latest happenings. Here are some of the “must-haves” for any true sports fan.

ESPN ScoreCenter

There is a version for both iPhone and Android, and this should be on every sports lover’s list. It provides you the latest scores, news, and standings from over 500 sports leagues. You can request text updates anytime your favorite team makes the news. You can know what’s going on in major sporting events like MLB, NFL, and college basketball, as well as other sports like cricket and rugby.

Watch ESPN

This is another great app for fans. You can turn your mobile device into a portable TV and watch any game that is currently being aired on ESPN or one of its affiliates. Now, never miss your favorite game, no matter where you are. You can watch regular season basketball and the playoffs, college football and basketball, the Grand Slam tennis events, and thousands of other programs. Best of all, it is free if you have a TV subscription with one of the networks.

Of the four major golf championships each year, the Masters Tournament has the smallest field as it remains an invitation only event. Held every year on the first weekend of April, the Masters is open to golfers who qualify and are invited by the private Augusta National Golf Club. Currently, invitations are being issued to players across the world.

Criteria for Qualifications

Since invitations are based on certain criteria, it’s easy to predict who will be invited to play in this year’s tournament. A few of the criteria are listed below:

-Previous Masters Champions 

-U.S. Open Champions 

-British Open Champions

-PGA Champions

-Winners of the Players Championship

-Current U.S. Amateur Public Links, U.S. Mid-Amateur and U.S. Amateur Champions, and the Amateur Champion runner-up

It was a decade of variety in music, as American Idol became popular and younger generations became famous, while older artists still turned out albums for their fans. Here is a list of ten most popular albums from that decade.

The College Dropout

This was the debut album of Kanye West, the beginning of an incredible career. He took rap to a whole new level and introduced a new group of fans. He combined hip hop and R&B with rap to create a new sound that was unique and popular.

Stankonia

This album by Outkast was released in 2000. The album was their edgiest, and it gave a fresh look to hip hop. The music was fun while the lyrics could often be serious.

Modern Times

With this album, Bob Dylan showed that he was still a force to be reckoned with. The songs kept with his unique style and could have been hits from any part of his career. It proved that if something is great, it doesn’t matter what else is popular.

We enjoy the competition and get a thrill from impressive plays, but what sticks in our minds long after the lights go dark, are the athletes. The names we’ll remember years later may not be the greatest of all time, but they are the most entertaining. Here is a list of six such athletes who entertain us the most.

Hulk Hogan

Whether you love him or hate him, you will remember him. WWF has gotten a reputation for being a joke, but it cannot hide the personality of Hulk Hogan. It’s obvious that his fans can’t get enough of him from his television and movie appearances, not to mention his reality show.

Muhammad Ali

Ali took boxing to a new level and brought in new fans to the sport. His personality was even greater than the sport he played. His rhymes and trash talk became as anticipated as the event itself. Ali was named the “Sportsman of the Century” by Sports Illustrated, and “The Sports Personality of the Century” by the BBC.

The Grammys were memorable this year as they always are, and two names were on the forefront for two very different reasons.  There were also plenty of other highlights throughout the show, along with entertaining performances.

Whitney Houston

The tragic news of the death of Whitney Houston came just the day before the Grammys.  A tribute was quickly put together and performed by Jennifer Hudson.  She sang “I Will Always Love You”, the masterpiece of Houston’s career.  It was a memorable moment for an unforgettable icon.  Whitney had won 6 Grammys throughout her career.

Adele

The British songstress took home six awards and gave an outstanding performance.  She won Record of the Year and Song of the Year for Rolling in the Deep, which she also sang live.  The powerful performance showed fans that she had recovered from her surgery.

The biggest sporting event of the year is just days away. Here's what you can expect when the Giants take on the Patriots on Super Bowl Sunday. 

Peaking at the right time

The Giants finished the regular season with a lackluster 9-7 record, barely qualifying for the playoffs.  Throughout the first half of the season, the Giants were inconsistent, despite the often brilliant play of quarterback Eli Manning. In the second half of the season, the offense began to click as breakout receiver Victor Cruz came out of nowhere to set a franchise record for receiving yards in a season (1,536). The defense, led by Pro Bowl defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul came alive late in the season, providing one of the most feared pass rushes in the league. In the last few weeks, the Giants have been getting better and better on both sides of the ball, and seem poised to play their best football when it matters most this Sunday. 

Moving target

The Patriots have looked exceptional on offense all year long. Tom Brady opened the season with a 500+ yard passing performance and didn't slow down all year long, finishing the season with 5,235 yards, 39 touchdowns, and a 105.6 quarterback rating. Early in the year, wide receiver Wes Welker looked unstoppable, breaking small 5-yard out patterns for touchdowns. But, as the season progressed, the spotlight shifted to tight end Rob Gronkowski. Gronkowski set NFL single season records for a tight end in receiving touchdowns (17), total touchdowns (18), and receiving yards (1,327).

After seventeen weeks of regular-season football and two epic weeks of playoff football, only four teams remain: The Baltimore Ravens, the New England Patriots, the New York Giants, and the San Francisco 49ers. This Sunday, the Ravens will square off agains the Patriots in New England, and the Giants will take on the 49ers in San Francisco to decide the two teams that will play in this year’s Super Bowl. Here’s a look ahead at these two exciting matchups. 

The Baltimore Ravens and the New England Patriots

Sunday January 22 at 1:00PM MT on CBS

The Patriots and Ravens were seeded first and second respectively heading into the playoffs. After successfully defending their home fields agains the Broncos and Texans respectively, the Ravens and Patriots both seem to be peaking at just the right time. The Patriots posted 45 points against the Broncos top-tier defense last week and the Ravens looked solid on both sides of the ball--frustrating the Texans rookie quarterback, while Ravens running back Ray Rice ran up and down the field at will. 

In a 2010 playoff game, the Ravens held off Tom Brady and the Patriots to win 33-14, so both teams will be ready to play again in the playoff spotlight. The Ravens have a solid advantage at defense, with future hall-of-famers Ray Lewis and Ed Reed leading the way. The Patriots are on fire 

If you just received a new portable device, or your New Year’s resolution is to read more, you may be wondering how to find audio books and eBooks that won’t break your budget. Depending on the format and site you choose, you can read or listen to books on your PC or Mac, download books to a portable device, or burn a CD. Here are the best free and legal sites to find free audio books and eBooks.

You may want to start by familiarizing yourself with the audio book or eBook format that your portable device uses. You can consult the NOOK Book FAQs, Kindle Assistance, or OverDrive’s Device Resource Center. Once you know which format to download (Epub, Mobipocket, MP3) for your specific portable device, you will be ready to start downloading books from these sites.

Project Gutenberg

Project Gutenberg is the best place to find more than 36,000 free eBooks from the public domain. The books have been previously published, but their copyright has expired, so they are free in the United States. You will find classics like The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain, and The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci. You can also access more than 100,000 free eBooks from the partners, affiliates, and resources of Project Gutenberg.

These are the eleven books that had reviewers buzzing, authors signing copies and accepting awards, and readers reading in 2011:

Bossypants by Tina Fey

Some books by celebrities can be a little lacking, but this book by comedic writer and actor Tina Fey is not lacking at all. Tina Fey made the rounds to promote the book on TV shows, including her visit with former SNL co-star Jimmy Fallon on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

11/22/63: A Novel by Stephen King

Jake Epping time travels to the past to stop the assassination of John F. Kennedy, save the family of one of his students, and along the way he may even find love. If you are a true Stephen King fan, you will notice previous character (and even new character) “Easter eggs.” 

The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach

Baseball fans and fans of fiction alike will love this book. The book tells the story of what happens to five characters after a meaningless play in a baseball game. Chad Harbach discusses the book further with Baseball Nation.

If you aren’t quite in the holiday spirit yet, here are the top ten Christmas movies of all time that will put you in a great mood.  

1. It’s a Wonderful Life

This one is at the very top of the list for being the most loved and most watched movie according to the national media. If you’ve watched it, you know why it’s such a winner; if you haven’t, prepare to be enchanted from the beginning to the heart-warming end. Fans of Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed count on this Christmas classic as a treasured and integral part of their holiday experience.

2. Miracle on 34^th Street

This movie is a time honored treasure on Thanksgiving Day; it opens with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and follows the journey to Christmas. It stars Maureen O’Hara as a divorced mom with a young daughter, Natalie Wood, the mysteriously wonderful Kris Kringle, and a supporting cast of helpful co-workers and friends.

If you're looking for a good laugh, you don't need to find a comedy club or go to a funny movie. Your computer is full of hilarious content that is available 24/7. Here are five websites that will have you in stitches. 

The Onion

The Onion is a fake news empire. The content found at theonion.com is consistently hilarious and deviously clever. The Onion publishes a newspaper, two television shows, and a plethora of web content including video podcasts. The Onion's scathing satire spans nearly every topic from national politics to local sports. 

Funny or Die

Funnyordie.com is like the YouTube for funny videos. It was started by Will Ferrell's production company in 2007, and has produced some of the funniest viral videos in the last few years. Some of the videos are user-generated, while others are created by the Funny or Die comedy team; often consisting of celebrity guests such as Judd Apatow and James Franco.