Diehard Sports Fan
Ranked #5,347 in Sports & Recreation, #133,855 overall
The Die-Hard Sports Fan: Why We Say "We"
You hear it all the time, the die-hard sports fan, not necessarily a fanatical fan, but just one who is consistently into his or her team, will say, "we are not playing so well," or "we're going to the playofffs," or, what every devoted sports fan wants to say, "we're going to the Super Bowl," or, "We're headed to the World Series."
Why do we say, "We?"
Have you ever seen the movie "Fever Pitch" featuring outstanding comical performances by stars Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon? Go to Blockbuster, check it out, the synopsis reads like this:
According to Red Sox super-fan Ben Wrightman (Jimmy Fallon), finding romance is about as unlikely as his beloved team winning it all. But when Ben scores a beautiful new girlfriend named Lindsey (Drew Barrymore), suddenly anything is possible. That is, until baseball season begins, and Lindsey finds herself competing with an entire baseball team - the Boston Red Sox - for her boyfriend's heart and soul. Will Ben's obsession with the Sox put his passion for Lindsey on the bench, or will love win out? And can his team finally break the curse of the Bambino?
This romantic comedy defines what it means to be a die-hard sports fan and how sports can and often does alter a persons life. A loyal fan, year-in and year-out says "We" for a reason and deserves the right to say so, and this Lens will tell you why.
Why do we say, "We?"
Have you ever seen the movie "Fever Pitch" featuring outstanding comical performances by stars Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon? Go to Blockbuster, check it out, the synopsis reads like this:
According to Red Sox super-fan Ben Wrightman (Jimmy Fallon), finding romance is about as unlikely as his beloved team winning it all. But when Ben scores a beautiful new girlfriend named Lindsey (Drew Barrymore), suddenly anything is possible. That is, until baseball season begins, and Lindsey finds herself competing with an entire baseball team - the Boston Red Sox - for her boyfriend's heart and soul. Will Ben's obsession with the Sox put his passion for Lindsey on the bench, or will love win out? And can his team finally break the curse of the Bambino?
This romantic comedy defines what it means to be a die-hard sports fan and how sports can and often does alter a persons life. A loyal fan, year-in and year-out says "We" for a reason and deserves the right to say so, and this Lens will tell you why.
Contents at a Glance
Diehard Sports Fan Credentials
It's important to share my sports journey to give the reader an idea of where my information originates from and my level of expertise on the subject.Like the late Howard Cosell, I will have to begrudgingly admit, "I never played the game," at least not officially. As a kid, I played street football on the block, a brief stint at organized flag football in my early 30's, and with a company basketball league for a couple of years (the team was atrocious as we won one game in 2 years). I never played on the High School, Collegiate, or Professional level.
The best two weeks of my life was spent as an Olympic Volunteer in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. In those two glorious weeks I met avid sports fans from all over the world. It's an experience I will cherish forever.
The Volunteer uniform, the straw hat and pins collected from various countries (the hat became a 'casualty of divorce' - sure would like to get that back, hint-hint).
Essentially, I am a lifelong aficionado of sports, specifically football, basketball, boxing, track, baseball, and a few others. I have been a season ticket holder for the Golden State Warriors for a couple of years and a season ticket holder for the Atlanta Falcons during the Michael Vick tenure.
Having been born in Oakland, CA, I gravitated toward the Oakland Raiders football team (shut-up, keep your comments to yourself). My mom and dad were both die-hard sports fans. My mom was an avid Dallas Cowboys fan back in the days of Roger "the Dodger" Staubach, "Bullet" Bob Hayes, Calvin Hill (Father of Grant Hill), up to the beginning of the Tony Dorsett era. Dad would secretly root for any team playing against the Boys, to my mom's chagrin. The Raiders became my team and I have been a loyal fan for over 30 years. At 6 years of age (so it's closer to 40 years as a solid fan) I fell in love with the Oakland Raiders. Currently, and for the past 5 years, the Raiders have been one of the worst teams in the league, but are still, and will always be my number one football team (in spite of Al Davis).
Living in Atlanta for the past 19 years, I've also become an Atlanta Falcon, Braves, and Hawks fan. So that's a little about my credentials on being a true sports fan and this hub will explain to the non-die-hard fan, why we say "we."
The 12th Man
Texas A&M Aggies
The concept of the "Twelfth Man" is a tradition that was started by the Texas A&M Aggie football team back in the early 20's. The entire student body at A&M is the Twelfth Man, and they stand during the entire game to show their support.When you look at the home records of most teams, regardless of the sport, the majority of teams have a winning home record. Unless the team is just a doormat most are tough to beat at home. There is a concrete reason behind the success at home and that is because of the 12th man.
Fans are extremely knowledgeable about the sport they love. For example, when the home team's offense is on the field the fans will keep the noise down as much as possible, (or what's feasible in a stadium filled with thousands of people) in order for the offense to hear the signals being shouted out by the quarterback. On the other hand, when the visiting teams offense is on the field the crowd will be as loud as possible, doing all they can to keep the other team from being able to communicate before the ball is snapped (or before the start of any given offensive play). This has created numerous penalties for the opposing team and their offense. A loud, boisterous crowd, at the end of the game, could very well have directly attributed to some of the points on the scoreboard.
Another major contribution fans make is paying the rather exorbitant prices for tickets, food and drinks at the stadium, and team paraphernalia. This is directly related to the amount of money a player can earn. He's payed by the owner and the owner gets a big chunk of his earnings from the fans.
Great Moments in Sports
These are just some of the reasons why we say "We." Sports has always been a major part of the International landscape and has tied countries, people, and families together. Two true sports fans who don't even know each other can start a conversation about sports and talk for hours. It binds us together like no other social dynamic has ever or will ever do in the future.Great moments in sports are very similar to sad and happy periods in World and American History. The similarity is that you typically know where you were when grand events occurred in sports, just like we knew where we were when tragic events happened outside of sports. The major difference of course is that in Sports, no one perished, no one was physically hurt; emotionally maybe, but usually not anything that you could not recover from.
Case in point, the "Emaculate Reception," when Franco Harris caught the ball on the last play of the game and scored the winning TD, I remember like it was yesterday. Sad to say, I've still not let that go. I was a kid then, watching the game over a relative's house. The game was in the bag for the Raiders; all the Steelers had was the "Hail Mary" play, which rarely works. It worked this time, in 1972, on a fluke play; I went to the bathroom and cried. To this day, that play still hurts.
Cleveland fans have lots of misery to recall, the Erynest Byner fumble, the Michael Jordan shot, I could go on, but I won't. Besides, LeBron, if he stays long enough will bring a championship to Cleveland.
Here are a few others that you may remember where you were, especially if you were a fan of the team:
- 2004 Yankees - Up three games to none on the arch rival Boston Red Sox in the ALCS, the '04 Yankees pulled the ultimate choke job by losing four straight and the pennant (and the Red Sox were down to their last out, bottom of the 9th, down 3 games to zero). The movie "Fever Pitch" is based on that series.
- 1986 Red Sox - The champagne was on ice, Bob Costas was ready for the post victory interviews, and Red Sox nation was poised for the biggest celebration in Boston history. It all fell apart when the Mets Mookie Wilson's slow ground ball rolled through Bill Buckner's legs. To this day, Bill Buckner is the poster boy for "Sports Goats" and the ultimate goat in sports history. The city of Boston forgave him, finally, two decades later when they won the World Series.
- Reggie Miller hits two consecutive 3's to tie the game in 1995 Playoff Game 1. Anthony Mason should have called a timeout, or at least threw the ball further up the court, away from the Pacers basket and away from Reggie Miller. Ultimately, the play means nothing because it didn't equate to a championship for the Pacers.
- Tiger Woods becomes the youngest Masters Champion and first golfer of color to win the Masters.
- United States Hockey Team "Miracle on Ice" speaks for itself.
- Ali vs. Frazier I,II,III - the greatest boxing rivalry in history.All 3 fights were classics. It's a shame that the two are not friends, hopefully the two will bury the hatchet before one passes away.
- The Catch - the winning touchdown reception from Joe Montana to Dwight Clark in the January 10, 1982 NFC Championship game between the Dallas Cowboys and the San Francisco 49ers. One of the most memorable plays in NFL history.
- Immaculate Reception - one of the most famous plays in the history of the NFL. AFC divisional playoff game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Oakland Raiders at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on December 23, 1972. As a die-hard Raiders fan, even in 1972 at 12 years of age, this one hurt then, and still stings today.
Greatest Racehorse of All Time
Secretariat
Like the Superbowl for football, and the World Series for baseball, the Kentucky Derby is the creme de la creme of horse-racing. However, these fantastic animals/athletes take their legacy to another level if they can win the elusive "Triple Crown."
There have been a total of 11 Triple Crown winners dating back to the first winner, "Sir Barton" in 1919; the last three were: "Secretariat," 1973; "Seattle Slew," 1977; and "Affirmed," 1978.
The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing consists of three races for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses. Those three races are:
Secretariat is considered the greatest racehorse of all time. Here are some facts about Secretariat:
In the fall of 1989, Secretariat was afflicted with laminitis, a painful and often incurable hoof condition. When his condition failed to improve after a month of treatment, he was euthanized on October 4 at the age of 19. Popular both as a Triple Crown champion and in retirement, Secretariat was mourned by millions and buried at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky, given the rare honor of being buried whole; usually only the head, heart, and hooves of a winning race horse are buried, and the rest of the body is cremated.
At the time of Secretariat's death, the veterinarian who performed the necropsy, Dr. Thomas Swerczek, head pathologist at the University of Kentucky, did not weigh Secretariat's heart, but stated, "We just stood there in stunned silence. We couldn't believe it. The heart was perfect. There were no problems with it. It was just this huge engine." Later, Swerczek also performed a necropsy on Sham, who died in 1993. Swerczek did weigh Sham's heart, and it was 18 pounds. Based on Sham's measurement, and having necropsied both horses, he estimated that Secretariat's heart probably weighed 22 pounds, or about two-and-a-half times as large as that of the average horse.
from Wikipedia
Watch the video of Secretariat's 31-length victory in the Belmont stakes, guaranteed to give you goose bumps. What an amazing horse!
There have been a total of 11 Triple Crown winners dating back to the first winner, "Sir Barton" in 1919; the last three were: "Secretariat," 1973; "Seattle Slew," 1977; and "Affirmed," 1978.
The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing consists of three races for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses. Those three races are:
- Kentucky Derby, run over 1-1/4 miles dirt track at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky
- Preakness Stakes, run over 1-3/16 miles dirt track at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland
- Belmont Stakes, run over 1-1/2 miles, the longest dirt track in thoroughbred racing, at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York.
Secretariat is considered the greatest racehorse of all time. Here are some facts about Secretariat:
- In the 38 years since Secretariat wont the Triple Crown his winning time in the Belmont Stakes and his margin of victory have never been approached.
- Penny Chenery, Secretariat's owner, made the decision to breed their mare Somethingroyal to Bold Ruler twice. The first mating in 1968 produced the filly The Bride. The second breeding, in 1969, resulted in Secretariat.
- In 1983, Penny Chenery, Martha F. Gerry, and Allaire du Pont became the first women to be admitted as members of The Jockey Club.
- In addition to breeding Secretariat, Chenery bred Saratoga Dew, who became the first New York-bred horse to ever win an Eclipse Award when the filly was voted the 1992 American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly.
- In 1973 Secretariat became the first U.S. Triple Crown champion in twenty-five years, setting new race records in two of the three events in the Series-the Kentucky Derby (1:592%u20445), and the Belmont Stakes (2:24) - records that still stand today.
- Like his famous predecessor Man o' War, Secretariat was a large chestnut colt and was given the same nickname, "Big Red."
In the fall of 1989, Secretariat was afflicted with laminitis, a painful and often incurable hoof condition. When his condition failed to improve after a month of treatment, he was euthanized on October 4 at the age of 19. Popular both as a Triple Crown champion and in retirement, Secretariat was mourned by millions and buried at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky, given the rare honor of being buried whole; usually only the head, heart, and hooves of a winning race horse are buried, and the rest of the body is cremated.
At the time of Secretariat's death, the veterinarian who performed the necropsy, Dr. Thomas Swerczek, head pathologist at the University of Kentucky, did not weigh Secretariat's heart, but stated, "We just stood there in stunned silence. We couldn't believe it. The heart was perfect. There were no problems with it. It was just this huge engine." Later, Swerczek also performed a necropsy on Sham, who died in 1993. Swerczek did weigh Sham's heart, and it was 18 pounds. Based on Sham's measurement, and having necropsied both horses, he estimated that Secretariat's heart probably weighed 22 pounds, or about two-and-a-half times as large as that of the average horse.
from Wikipedia
Watch the video of Secretariat's 31-length victory in the Belmont stakes, guaranteed to give you goose bumps. What an amazing horse!
curated content from YouTube
ESPN's Top 20 Sports Movies
- Bill Durham
- Rocky
- Raging Bull
- Hoosiers
- Slap Shot
- The Natural
- Field of Dreams
- Caddyshack
- The Hustler
- The Longest Yard
- North Dallas Forty
- Jerry Maquire
- Hoop Dreams
- Breaking Away
- White Men Can't Jump
- The Bad News Bears
- Chariots of Fire
- Brian's Song
- Eight Men Out
- When We Were Kings
Great Sports Movies
Crazy, Drunk Fans on the Field
One of the oddest results of the rabid fan to hit the field was on May 3, 2010, Philadelphia Phillies vs. St. Louis Cardinals, Citizens Bank Park. Fan waving rally towel runs into outfield, avoids security until getting tased. Probably the first and last time we'll see someone tased on the field.Another video features multiple people on the field. The first gets all the way around and manages to slide into home before being tackled. The other just gets tired of running and lays down on the ground where the out-of-breath security guys finally manage to round him up.
The best part of this takedown was how the guy had to take himself down. Maybe the Padres should invest in better security. Or a treadmill...
In another, a Tigers fan gets all the way to the middle of the field before appearing to give up, but he's playing possum and takes off again.
Then there's the fan who stole the ball from Bret Favre and really made some nice moves with the ball along with an above average stiff arm, then he's blindsided by a pretty good hit by security.
The funny thing about most of the fans running on the field, most are so drunk that they don't even remember being on the field.
Michael Jordan
Modern Day Sports Icon
In a culture with an inexhaustible passion to rank, to quantify, to compare and contrast everything, Michael Jordan became the universal measuring device for appraising greatness. Jordan the athlete, as well as cultural icon, had such an effect on global society that descriptions of standout athletes in other sports, as well as top artists, business executives and elite achievers in any field, began with: "He/she is the Michael Jordan of ... "The person being described was never quite "the Jordan of ..." but it was a point of reference almost universally understood. The standard response? "Oh, really? Wow."
Jordan so dominated the basketball world that, for the second half of a pro career that spanned 1984-98, there was no debate about the game's supreme player -- an astonishing distinction in a time when superb athletes proliferate. Previous eras argued Wilt versus Russell, Robertson versus West, Magic versus Bird. But Jordan stood alone, so far ahead of his peers that individual rivalry ceased.
He was so far apart that he even broke a basic rule of literature: All protagonists must have antagonists. Jordan remained a great drama despite the lack of a persistent adversary. With attention unsplintered, the focus went to the ultimate player instead of the ultimate battle.
He even undid team rivalries. His Chicago Bulls won six of the eight championships from 1991-98 against five different teams from the Western Conference. The Bulls' misses were in 1994 and 1995 when Jordan missed most of two seasons while playing baseball. It was the only period in Jordan's pro athletic career when the phrase "minor league" could be attached with accuracy.
Even his Bulls teammates had a hard time keeping up. In spanning the decade of the '90s with championships, he had only a single teammate for the entire time -- Scottie Pippen. The Bulls' roster was remade several times, but the Jordan-Pippen axis was invulnerable to any basketball force from outside or inside.
Written by Art Thiel, from nba.com
Football Movies
Baseball Movies
Serena Williams
To say that Serena is at the top of her game would be an understatement. She's dominating tennis like Tiger once dominated golf, pre-personal-meltdown. As of this writing the younger Williams sister just won Wimbledon for the 4th time and her 13th major championship.From Wikipedia: Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is a professional tennis player who is currently ranked World No. 1 in both singles and doubles. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked her World No. 1 in singles on five separate occasions. She regained this ranking for the fifth time on November 2, 2009. She became the World No. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002.
Williams is the reigning champion in both singles and women's doubles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon and in women's doubles at the French Open and the US Open. Her 26 Grand Slam titles places her ninth on the all-time list: 12 in singles, 12 in women's doubles, and 2 in mixed doubles. She is the most recent player, male or female, to have held all four Grand Slam singles titles simultaneously and only the fifth woman in history to do so. Her 12 Grand Slam singles titles ties her with Billie Jean King for sixth on the all-time list. Williams ranks Fifth in Grand Slam women's singles titles won during the open era, behind Margaret Court with 24 titles Steffi Graf with 22 titles and Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova with 18 titles each. She has won more Grand Slam titles in singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles than any other active female player.
Williams has won two Olympic gold medals in women's doubles.
Williams has won more career prize money than any other female athlete in history.
Williams is the younger sister of former World No. 1 Venus Williams. They have played each other in 23 professional matches since 1998, with Serena winning 13 of these matches as of October 2009. As of July 2009, they have met in eight Grand Slam finals, with Serena winning six times. Between the 2002 French Open and the 2003 Australian Open, they met in all four Grand Slam singles finals, the first time in the open era that the same two players had contested four consecutive Grand Slam finals. The pair have won 12 Grand Slam doubles titles together.
Lenny Bias Tragedy
Less than two days after being selected by the defending champion Celtics as the second overall pick in the 1986 NBA Draft, Bias flew in to Maryland from Boston at around 11:00 PM, and ate crab with some teammates and a member of the football team. He left at approximately 2 a.m. on the 18th, drove to an off-campus gathering, which he attended briefly before returning to his dorm at 3:00 a.m.Bias, who consumed large quantities of cocaine at some earlier point, was talking with teammate Terry Long when he collapsed sometime between 6:25 and 6:32. According to Bias's sister (who only had a secondhand account of the story), the player was sitting on a couch and leaned back as though he was going to sleep, but instead began to have a seizure. Bias died of a cardiac arrhythmia, related to the cocaine overdose.
Len Bias represents to the NBA, and especially to the Celtics organization, one of the greatest "what-ifs" in basketball history. Many considered Bias to be the perfect complement to the Larry Bird-led Celtics, a potential backup for both Bird and Kevin McHale who would have limited their minutes and perhaps in turn extended their careers.
Some, including Red Auerbach and Johnny Dawkins, a Duke assistant who was a high school and college contemporary of Bias, believed that the inclusion of Bias could have allowed for the Boston Celtic organization's continued dominance well into the 1990s. Mike Krzyzewski and Dean Smith have both stated that Michael Jordan and Bias were the best players ever to come through the ranks of the ACC.
Hank Gathers
On the morning of March 4, 1990, Gathers awakes with excitement. LMU is on its way to the West Coast Conference tournament championship and a NCAA tournament berth. He arrives at Gersten Pavilion at 3:30 p.m. Game time is 5 p.m.
He begins his pregame regimen by jogging around the track outside the basketball arena. The jog quickly turns into a sprint as he circles the track three times.
Game time arrives. Gathers walks onto the court with his best friend, Bo Kimble, LMU's other brilliant player. Gathers wins the game's opening tip and LMU is off and running, building a huge lead over outmatched Portland State.
Gathers runs the break in LMU's fast-paced attack and takes a long lob pass from Terrell Lowery. He grabs the ball in mid-air and slams it through the hoop. The crowd rises to its feet in mad hysteria. It's the "Hank and Bo Show" at its finest. Gathers is running full speed, dazzling the crowd by scoring eight points with ease in the game's opening minutes.
Standing near midcourt, Gathers gives Kimble a high-five, then gets in position as LMU goes into a full-court press. There is 13:34 left in the first half and LMU leads 25-13. Suddenly, Gathers falls to the court. The crowd gasps. He tries to get up, but slumps back to the floor, unable to muster enough strength.
Portland's Josh Lowery, standing over Gathers, extends his hand, attempting to help him up. But Gathers can't acknowledge it. LMU trainer Chip Schaefer flies off the bench. When he arrives, Gathers' body starts to go into convulsions.
continued on ESPN.com
He begins his pregame regimen by jogging around the track outside the basketball arena. The jog quickly turns into a sprint as he circles the track three times.
Game time arrives. Gathers walks onto the court with his best friend, Bo Kimble, LMU's other brilliant player. Gathers wins the game's opening tip and LMU is off and running, building a huge lead over outmatched Portland State.
Gathers runs the break in LMU's fast-paced attack and takes a long lob pass from Terrell Lowery. He grabs the ball in mid-air and slams it through the hoop. The crowd rises to its feet in mad hysteria. It's the "Hank and Bo Show" at its finest. Gathers is running full speed, dazzling the crowd by scoring eight points with ease in the game's opening minutes.
Standing near midcourt, Gathers gives Kimble a high-five, then gets in position as LMU goes into a full-court press. There is 13:34 left in the first half and LMU leads 25-13. Suddenly, Gathers falls to the court. The crowd gasps. He tries to get up, but slumps back to the floor, unable to muster enough strength.
Portland's Josh Lowery, standing over Gathers, extends his hand, attempting to help him up. But Gathers can't acknowledge it. LMU trainer Chip Schaefer flies off the bench. When he arrives, Gathers' body starts to go into convulsions.
continued on ESPN.com
curated content from YouTube
The Brown Bomber
Joe Louis
Joe Louis burst onto the professional boxing scene in 1934 with style and skill such as the boxing world has seldom seen. Known to many as the "Brown Bomber," Louis emerged victorious from his first 27 fights, all but four of which he won in knockouts. In the early days of his career, he destroyed such great heavyweight fighters as Stanley Poreda, Natie Brown, and Rosco Toles. It was here that Louis delivered to the entire world a premonition of the reign of domination that he was to begin.Joe Louis Barrow was born on May 13, 1914. His father, "Mun Barrow," was a cotton picker from Alabama and his family fought with poverty for most of his childhood. His family moved to Detroit in 1924, at which point Joe first became involved in boxing. Having grown up in the Old South, Louis had acquired the instinct and anger of a true fighter, even amidst the evils of racial discrimination and intolerance. His early career was a period of hard work and determination, and was one without glamor or fame. Ten years after his arrival in Detroit, Louis won the Golden Gloves as a light heavyweight. Following this win, Louis turned professional and won twelve contests within the first year.
The first few years of Louis' pro career involved a steady ascension up the pyramid of the Heavyweight class. His boxing prowess, as well as his reputation, was growing at an incredible rate. In June of 1935, he fought Primo Carnera, the former heavyweight champion, before a Yankee Stadium crowd of 62,000. Louis followed this fight with a pairing against Max Baer, who he defeated by knockout in the fourth round. Ernest Hemingway described this fight as "the most disgusting public spectacle outside of a public hanging" that he had ever seen.
continued
Top 5 Most Exciting Players in Pro Football History
from ListMyFive.com
Jerry Rice and Barry Sanders are arguably the best ever at their respective positions but this list is about the top five most exciting players, two of which happen to be Rice and B. Sanders. Jerry Rice
Dazzling receiver with deceptive speed and could go the distance from anywhere on the field. He won 3 Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers and was named Super Bowl MVP in 1989.
Barry Sanders
Barry could cut on a dime. He had the moves of a gazelle, the power of a bull, and the balance and grace of a ballet dancer. He was an incredible runner with a less than mediocre offensive line his entire career.
Gale Sayers
A phenomenal talent that was actually before his time. Gale Sayers, with his speed and agility could play today and still be the best player on the field. If his career had not been cut short due to injury Sayers would have re-written the record book.
Deion Sanders
Flamboyant, "Prime Time" is what he dubbed himself. However, he could back up every word. Deion was the ultimate "shut-down-corner" and his play is why the particular phrase was created. Opposing offenses played on one side of the field the majority of Prime's career. If a QB dared to challenge Sanders, especially with a long pass, he usually intercepted it, and once he got his hands on the ball, anywhere on the field, he was a threat to take it to the house.
Michael Vick
Many will ask why put Mike Vick on this list? Especially in light of his legal woes. He's served his time, now lets talk football. There's no doubt that he is the most exciting QB of all time, and one of the most dynamic players the NFL has ever seen. That's true whether you like him or not.
Boxing
Derek Jeter
The Captain of the New York Yankees, Mr. Derek Sanderson Jeter has been one of my favorite players for the past decade. He's always ranked right up there with MJ, Marcus Allen, Walter Peyton, and Jerry Rice.Speaking of Jerry Rice, I actually had the pleasure of meeting the great wide receiver when he was in his prime playing with the San Francisco 49ers. Mr. Rice was extremely nice and appeared to be very down-to-earth. I was actually looking at how fine his wife was and turned around to look at her figure and realized, "hey, that's Jerry Rice!" So I made a 180-degree turn, approached him and his spouse, shook his hand and told him how much I admired him as an athlete. I did not ask for an autograph, as I've never been an "autograph" type of guy. As a sports fan, when I've run into a "celebrity" I'm ok with just saying hello and a hand shake. Besides, superstar athletes are human just like me, they just make tons more money than I do. That's pretty much how I look at it.
Most of the athletes I've come across over the past 20 years have been cordial, with the exception of Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson. I saw Mr. Jackson in downtown Oakland some 20 years ago. I passed by him on the road as he headed to a Goodyear. I parked across the street, ran over to the Goodyear, extended my hand, and Reggie stated, "I don't have time," and walked away. I wasn't humiliated by the experience because there was really no one close enough to know what was said, but I was a little taken aback with how curt and rude he was. From that day to today, I'll never be a Reggie Jackson fan. I had heard rumors about Reggie being hot-tempered and somewhat belligerent, and in that brief exchange 20 plus years ago, I could see how those accusations could have been true. It's all good Mr. Jackson, you were one of the greatest home-run hitters the game has ever seen. It's your choice to be whatever type of human being you care to be. End of story.
This article is about the great Derek Jeter. Here's a guy who has been a class act his entire career, on and off the field. This guy has been so great for the Yankees, for baseball, and for athletes in general. He's humble, obviously well-grounded, and you never hear about anything negative going on off the field. It's almost as if women, and the press have given Jeter a pass. Women certainly admire him but you've never heard a woman tyring to slam his character. He's certainly a great interview, a sought after interview, but you rarely, if ever, hear the press criticize him.
Derek Jeter exudes class to the highest degree and as a diehard sports fan, I'd really like to see other athletes follow in his footsteps.
Article from Player Press by workhomeunion
3000 Hits!
New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter joined Major League Baseball's elite 3,000-hit club Saturday on a home run, marking a perfect day at the plate at Yankee Stadium.
The dramatic, milestone-reaching blast was part of a performance that included hitting safely in all five at-bats and driving in the winning run against Tampa Bay.
And, with his third hit of the day, Jeter moved past Roberto Clemente - whose career ended at 3,000 hits - and alone into 27th place on the all-time hits list. He has the most hits of any active player.
In achieving the milestone, Jeter, who has played with the Yankees his entire career, accomplished a feat that eluded Yankee greats like Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and Lou Gehrig.
Jeter hit a single for number 2,999 in his first at-bat of the game in the first inning. Then, in the third inning he launched the homer, his third of the year, into left field off Rays starter David Price.
Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Casey Kotchman tipped his cap to Jeter as he rounded first on his way to a big welcome celebration at home plate from his teammates. Several of the Rays stepped out of the visitors' dugout to applaud. The game was halted as the crowd of nearly 50,000 stood and roared. Jeter took several curtain calls from the dugout.
CNN.com
The dramatic, milestone-reaching blast was part of a performance that included hitting safely in all five at-bats and driving in the winning run against Tampa Bay.
And, with his third hit of the day, Jeter moved past Roberto Clemente - whose career ended at 3,000 hits - and alone into 27th place on the all-time hits list. He has the most hits of any active player.
In achieving the milestone, Jeter, who has played with the Yankees his entire career, accomplished a feat that eluded Yankee greats like Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and Lou Gehrig.
Jeter hit a single for number 2,999 in his first at-bat of the game in the first inning. Then, in the third inning he launched the homer, his third of the year, into left field off Rays starter David Price.
Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Casey Kotchman tipped his cap to Jeter as he rounded first on his way to a big welcome celebration at home plate from his teammates. Several of the Rays stepped out of the visitors' dugout to applaud. The game was halted as the crowd of nearly 50,000 stood and roared. Jeter took several curtain calls from the dugout.
CNN.com
The Captain: The Journey of Derek Jeter
Amazon Price: $6.01 (as of 05/30/2012)
Tim Brown
.. should be in the Hall of Fame
Not only should Tim Brown be in the Hall of Fame but he should have been selected on the first ballot. He rarely dropped passes and never wore gloves. He won the Heisman trophy at Notre Dame. His college career has nothing to do with his pro career however it does point out that Tim has been a winner on every level.
Brown finished his career fourth in NFL history in receptions. He accomplished this feat playing most of his career with average and under-average QB's.
Career Stats: 1094 Receptions, 14,934 receiving yards, 100 Touchdowns (receiving/rushing), 3 punt returns TDs, and 1 kickoff return TD.
Brown finished his career fourth in NFL history in receptions. He accomplished this feat playing most of his career with average and under-average QB's.
Career Stats: 1094 Receptions, 14,934 receiving yards, 100 Touchdowns (receiving/rushing), 3 punt returns TDs, and 1 kickoff return TD.
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Barry Shaw, founder of Work Home Union, over 25 years in Information Technology, web/graphics design, network marketing. WHU aka taskeinc has written... more »
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