What is a PUP list?

February 22, 2018 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment Filed Under: What does it mean?

Could a PUP list be an assortment of baby doggies selected for a canine beauty pageant? Of course not. If the meaning of the word PUP was even remotely related to our furry friends, then it wouldn’t make it onto the Sportsocratic “What is it… ?” page.

It’s an acronym, of course

As you might have guessed, PUP is an acronym. As we know, Americans love acronyms. American sports administrators and coaches especially love acronyms. So, lets start off with pointing out that PUP is an American sporting term. But what does it mean?

Well I am going to have a crack at explaining it, but, in truth, I am not one hundred percent sure on the details of what PUP means myself so forgive me if the explanation only partially clarifies the matter.

Americans not only love acronyms, they also love rules (and they love rules in sport even more) and the rules that govern PUP lists and reveal the meaning of the term are so detailed and complex that I am not even sure that the sport administrators who use PUP lists fully understand them. My layman’s run down of what a PUP list is and how it is used follows.

US Football officials love rules… and acronyms

The acronym PUP stands for Physically Unable to Perform (play or practice). A professional American (AFL) football team can maintain (in the rules) a roster of 53 players. If a player injures himself prior to the football season he can be placed on a PUP list during pre-season training without being counted as part of the team’s 53-man roster. While on a PUP list the player can attend team meetings and work out at team facilities but he may not participate in any team practice at all without being returned to the active 53-man roster.

It’s a lot more complicated than that, of course. Players can be designated as inactive, active, IR, PUP (regular season), PUP (pre-season) or even NFI but if you want a detailed explanation, go check out Wikipedia. For our purposes its sufficient to say that a PUP list is a way of keeping a player on a team without impacting the approved size of the team’s roster. Got that? Not sure that I have.

SOCRATES

Short, fat, slow, uncoordinated and clumsy, ancient Athenian Socrates had very few of the physical quality required of the elite athlete. He did have, on the other hand, a better than average brain between his ears and a mouth that could talk opposing players, referees and coaches half into their graves. Socrates, as a sport analyst, is what the world needs and misses. He is an opinionated so-and-so that actually thinks deeply about sport and adventuring and likes nothing better than provoking others into deep thought. Socrates is the antithesis of the sporting jock or the West Sydney soccer supporter.

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Dar Es Salaam to Zanzibar – reviewing a short (but lonely) journey

February 20, 2024 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

Socrates takes us back in time when he spins a travel yarn about his journey from Tanzania capital Dar Es Salaam to the beautiful island of Zanzibar. As an Aussie expat with years of living in cushy Europe he initially finds his destination intimidating. Find out whether things got better for the intrepid sissy adventurer as he settles into his guest house in the ancient and exotic “old town” of the city of Zanzibar.

To Jambiani – Exploring Zanzibar (travel destination review)

February 18, 2024 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

Shy and nervous Aussie Socrates doesn’t know what to make of unfamiliar and intimidating Zanzibar old town. The absence of the woman he is starting to fall for doesn’t help. Things make an unexpected turn for the better when the Netherlander heartthrob arrives at his hotel door and lets him know that she will be joining him on his exploration of the beautiful East African island after all. Join them in their journey from the bustling and eye-catching, ancient old town to the simple fishing villages of the Jambiani coast. Will the adventuring pair become an adventuring couple?

When is cheating okay?

July 4, 2024 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

When Socrates found out that Rugby League legend Wally Lewis had pulled off an outrageous State of Origin scam without a soul even realizing, it occurred to him that sometimes pulling a swifty should be tolerated. Here Socrates explores the history of sport and tries to establish the circumstances under which a little bit of rule book stretching is okay. Click the pic and see if you agree with him.

Wallaby v France test – the moment that soared above all the others

July 20, 2021 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

There were many great moments in the final Wallabies versus France rugby test last week but according to Socrates, one stood our far above all the others. Was it a great try? A brilliant tackle? A perfect scrum or line-out? A fantastic bit of work at the break-down? According to the rotund Greek hooker it was none of those things. He reckons that the highlight of the game was a much quieter, simpler and more subdued moment. A moment that might have escaped the attention of millions of spectators. Find out about Socrates favorite moment of the test. Click the pic.

JUST SIX WORDS…

January 8, 2026 By SOCRATES NEWS DESK 1 Comment

Socrates reaches into his archive and selects a bunch of stories he considers his favourites. This is the first in his list of sagas he considers the most memorable. JUST SIX WORDS – Have you ever wished that you could meet and have a conversation with someone you idolize? What would you say to your idol to convince them to want to stay in the conversation? What would they say in response to your brilliant social skills? How would the conversation go? How would it leave you feeling? An Australian ex-professional athlete who had played with and against some of the greatest basketball talent that this country has ever seen (Andrew Gaze, Ricky Grace, Shane Heal, Phil Smythe) once, by chance, had a meeting with possibly the greatest and most famous professional sports person that has ever lived. The superstar he bumped into, in a New York elevator, just happened to be the Aussie basketballer’s idol. How did the meeting turn out? Click the pic and discover the six most memorable words in this Australian point guard’s life.

Want to surf at The Pass, Byron Bay? Perhaps you should reconsider.

December 9, 2025 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

There are lots of good reasons for surfing at The Pass. Beautiful environment. Gorgeous people. Lovely waves. There are a few good reasons why plenty of locals avoid the place like the pox. The crowds of wave-hungry surfers are one reason. But even nastier than the crowds are the assortment of annoying characters who frequent the place. Discover the ratbag types that you can meet at any time at the Pass. There are lots of them, Click the pic and read about them all.

JUST SIX WORDS…

January 8, 2026 By SOCRATES NEWS DESK 1 Comment

Surfers and melanoma – how great is the risk?

November 21, 2024 By TIMOTHY EDWARDS Leave a Comment

We all know that surfers are at greater risk of skin cancer than the average non-surfer. It’s obvious. They spend more time in the sun. Should that be of real concern to surfer? Is it really that big a risk? Recent research from Southern Cross University indicates that it is a way bigger risk than most surfers… and people… imagine. Going through treatment for skin cancer lesions, even when the treatment is successful, is not fun. Surfers should be aware of the risks and take precautions. Click the pic to get the full story.

“Pressure? Pressure is a Messerschmidt up your arse. Playing cricket is not!”

Keith Miller

One of the greatest cricket “all-rounders” of all time, Keith Miller was not only an exceptional performer in multiple elements of test cricketing (batting, bowling and fielding) but he was also gifted in numerous other aspects of his life. Witty, entertaining, handsome, a renowned war time pilot and gifted Australian Rules Footballer, Miller was famed for calling a spade a spade and acknowledging that there was much more to life than elite sports. Having flown fighter bombers in the Second World War under life threatening circumstances he was not one to take the “pressure” of high level sport too seriously!

Want to surf at The Pass, Byron Bay? Perhaps you should reconsider.

December 9, 2025 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

What is Elvis leg?

Admit it. You’ve never heard of “Elvis leg,” have you? What the blazes is “Elvis leg?” As is the case with every other “What does it mean…” story we have ever posted, the answer is not directly related to the name itself. It is indirectly related to Elvis, though. Have a guess what the relationship is… then click here and check out whether your were correct. Find out for certain which sport uses this term and what it means.

What is a liberator?

Of course most you aviation buffs will think that a liberator is an American WW2 heavy bomber. Fair enough. But in a sporting context does it have a completely different meaning? Indeed it does. You are going to have to click here to find out what a liberator is and does in the world of sport.

It’s an acronym, of course

US Football officials love rules… and acronyms

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