It’s training time! Get Nike’s Mens Shox Turbo shoes for $49.98 on Black Friday

We hope it isn’t true, but your football season is probably over by now.

Just a handful of teams remain in state high school playoff brackets around the country, and college squads are wrapping up their regular seasons. That means for most of us, it’s time to start preparing for next season.

When you start training, do it in style and in comfort. Wear a pair of Nike Men’s Shox Turbo running shoes, which you can get for dirt cheap on Friday.

With an outsole of quality carbon rubber and Nike’s Shox cushioning in the heel, the Nike Men’s Shox Turbo running shoes will keep you injury free while you train.

With a lightweight mesh upper portion of the shoe that comes in a variety of slick designs and colors, your training will never be boring.

The Nike Men’s Shox Turbo running shoes usually retail for $114.99. You can buy them now online for $79.98.

Or if you come by our retail stores in San Antonio or Laurel, Md., on Black Friday, you can get them for $49.98! That’s a 57% discount from the original price!

Related: Browse our entire selection of football training shoes.

Black Friday deals at the Football America retail store

If you’re in the neighborhood, head down to a Football America retail store this Friday.

Shake off the turkey hangover and visit one of our stores in San Antonio or Laurel, Md., to take advantage of some serious Black Friday deals. Here is an e-mail flier with some of the details:

Click for bigger

Both stores will be open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Visit us in San Antonio:
1003 E. Nakoma Ste 104
San Antonio, TX 78216

Or Laurel:
9375 Washington Blvd.
Laurel, Maryland 20723

Related: Didn’t get the flier? Sign up for e-mail updates at the Football America homepage.

Today and tomorrow: Get free shipping and 10% off your order

The holiday season is creeping closer and closer, which means there is less time for shopping.

Get a head start on your gift giving this week.

For 48 hours only — from today through Tuesday — you can get free shipping and 10% off your order at Football America. There is no minimum purchase.

Just enter the coupon code JGEBAN9 at checkout.

Speaking of discounts, the biggest shopping day of the year is coming up at the end of the week. And we’ve got a heck of a Black Friday coupon to pass along to you.

And we’re going to post it a day early.

Check the Football America blog, our Twitter page or our Facebook page to see the coupon code on Thursday.

Related: Get the New York Giants fan in your life an Eli Manning jersey.

Counting down college football’s greatest rivalries

It’s time to dust off your “O-Who?” t-shirt and rehearse those obscene chants.

It’s rivalry week.

The most-anticipated week of the regular season kicks off this weekend with some of college football’s greatest annual showdowns, and it continues through the following week — with some big games on and after Thanksgiving — through the end of the season.

There are some big games, and here are our favorites:

No. 5 — Stanford vs. Cal

Series record: Stanford leads 55-45-11

Trophy: The Stanford Axe (The answer to yesterday’s trivia question)

Game time: 6:30 p.m. on Saturday (Versus)

Legendary moment: “The Play.” The year was 1982, and Stanford quarterback John Elway led the Cardinal on a last-minute scoring drive to take a 20-19 lead with four seconds to go. In what was to be a formality in the Cardinal’s victory, Stanford squibbed the ensuing kickoff, but Cal advanced the ball upfield, lateraling the ball five times in the process. Cal’s Kevin Moen caught a crease and ran in the game-winning touchdown — through the Stanford band — before bopping a trombonist on the head.

The scoop: There is a lot of tradition surrounding the Cal-Stanford game, from bonfires to theater plays and parodies that are typically performed around this time of year.

At the heart of it is a rivalry between two top-notch schools in California’s Bay Area. There have been a number of close games between the two teams, most notably the one in 1982 that ended with “The Play.”

No. 4 — Harvard vs. Yale

Series record: Yale leads 65-52-8.

Game time: 11 a.m. on Saturday (Versus)

Legendary moment: “Harvard beats Yale, 29-29.” Harvard pieced together a miraculous, 16-point comeback in the last 42 seconds of the 1968 game to force a 29-29 tie with the Bulldogs. The result left Yale 8-0-1 on the season, essentially snapping a 16-game winning streak. In the next day’s edition, Harvard’s Crimson newspaper printed the now-famous headline “Harvard beats Yale, 29-29.”

The scoop: The early days of this rivalry were especially brutal. Back in the late 19th Century, football was essentially a combination of rugby and brawling.

As one observer noted: “Few players wore helmets, and a close observer declared that as Harvard and Yale pummeled each other, “It was the most magnificent sight … every lineman’s face was dripping with blood.””

In 1892, Harvard introduced the “Flying Wedge” formation. The formation was so dangerous and it caused so many injuries that it was promptly banned. No joke — it’s now mostly used by riot police.

It’s said that before the 1908 game, Harvard coach Percy Haughton strangled a bulldog to death in the locker room to motivate his players.

Now that’s a rivalry.

No. 3 — Michigan vs. Ohio State

Series record: Michigan leads 57-42-6.

Game time: 11 a.m. on Saturday (ABC)

Legendary moment: The opening shot of the “Ten Year War.” Former Ohio State assistant Bo Schembechler is hired at Michigan in 1969, and he leads the Wolverines to a 24-12 upset of Woody Hayes and the Buckeyes. Ohio State was intercepted six times in the loss, as Michigan snapped the Buckeyes’ 22-game winning streak.

The scoop: In addition to the bitter animosity between fans of the rival schools, this game is usually a late-season championship of sorts.

For most of the last few decades, the winner of this game has gone on to win the Big Ten and earn an invitation to the Rose Bowl. Michigan has slipped as of lately, but this game is still the biggest of the regular season for a lot of folks in the Midwest.

No. 2 — Texas vs. Oklahoma

Series record: Texas leads 59-40-5.

Trophy: The Golden Hat.

Game time: Texas won 16-13 on Oct. 17.

Legendary moment: There are many to pick from, but the 15-15 tie in 1984 ranks among them. UT entered the game a consensus No. 1, and OU was 2/3. Sooners coach Barry Switzer came to the game wearing a cap that said “Beat Texas,” and he had future UT head coach Mack Brown by his side (as OU’s offensive coordinator). Texas rallied and kicked a last-second field goal to secure a tie.

The scoop: The road to the national championship frequently goes through Dallas.

Five of the last nine UT-OU games has featured one of the participants in the BCS Championship Game. In 60 of the last 65 games, one or both of these teams has been ranked in the Top 25.

No. 1 — Army vs. Navy

Series record: Navy leads 53-49-7.

Trophy: The Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy

Game time: 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 12 (CBS)

Legendary moment: “The Game of the Century.” Top-ranked Army defeats No. 2 Navy 32-13 in the 1945 edition of the game.

The scoop: This is what it’s all about. The modern era of college football may have left the service academies in its dust, but Army-Navy still embodies the true spirit of college sports.

Virtually none of the players in this game will go on to play professional football. Instead, they’ll do something even more important. Graduates will move on to fulfill their service requirements, defending America and her interests at home and abroad.

These two schools may be heated rivals, but when the final whistle blows, they return to being brothers. At the end of every Army-Navy game, both teams stand side by side and sing each other’s alma mater.