|
Outsports
Home
Moments
Home
E-mail your
list of favorite sports moments to us at outsportsatyahoo.com
|
We all have those moments. The
ones when we're watching a triple overtime unfold, or we're hitting
the last-second jumper ourselves - the ones that stay with us the
rest of our lives. They remind us of why we're passionate
about sports - why everything from the Tallahassee Little League
Championships to the Super Bowl can get us excited. Some
of us here at Outsports, and some of our readers, have put together
our lists of our Top Moments In Sports. We hope some of these
lists remind you of "where you were when..." and that they
inspire you to create your own list. Whether you have 3, 5,
10, or any number of favorite sports moments, e-mail
them to us and we'll post them here. Robert:
Tate High School at Woodham High,
Pensacola, Florida, 1985
I don't remember the date or the final score, but I do remember that
it was the first time I showed emotion because of a sporting
event. My school, Tate, was down by 2 points with seconds
remaining. Our field goal unit was sent out to kick the
winning field goal. The kick went up and sailed wide to the
right. We lost and Woodham went on to the state
playoffs. I cried all the way home. It hurt like nothing
had before, and even though we lost, I knew I was hooked on football
and sports.
1994 Orange Bowl, Florida State vs. Nebraska, January 1, 1994,
Miami, Florida
After years of waiting, the Seminoles finally took home their
first National Championship, beating the Nebraska Cornhuskers
18-16. A group of friends and I made the long trek down to
Miami from Tallahassee to witness history. The game was close
down to the very
end, but it was one of the best feelings ever when the clock hit
0:00.
Miami, Florida at Florida State, October 9, 1993
This was more about the adventure getting tickets to the game than
the actual game. Back in 93, students were given tickets to
all FSU home games. 21,000 students had coupons, only 18,000
tickets were available. So the line formed early Saturday, for
the coupon turn in on the Monday before the game. I got in
line for my residence hall, and was 14th in line. The line got
longer as the weekend progressed. It turned into a really big
camp out. Hundreds of people waiting in line and I was
14th. On Sunday night, a friend of mine and I got the idea to
go to the back of the line and offer to turn in tickets for others
(those who didn't stand a chance in hell of getting a seat) for a
modest fee of $2 a coupon. We made over $400 just by turning
in coupons.
The game was incredible, with Florida State winning 28-10 over the
then #3 ranked Hurricanes. It was a great and profitable week,
but the thing I'll always remember is the big camp out for tickets.
Birmingham Bulls at Tallahassee Tiger Sharks, East Coast Hockey
League, October 1994
After months of waiting, the Tiger Sharks played the best game in
their history. It was a great night. The fans were excited,
the action was fast, and my love of hockey was reborn. I grew
up as a Washington Capitals fan, but living in the south did not
provide much of an opportunity to see the game live. Since
then I have attended a number of ECHL games and a few NHL games to
see my Caps play.
Anaheim Angels at Kansas City Royals, May 26, 2000
My partner and I traveled to Kansas City for our best friends'
wedding. The bachelor party was the game at Kauffman
Stadium. The heavens opened up and rained for about 45
minutes, but once the skies cleared the weather couldn't have been
better. My Angels were
playing great until they gave up 4 home runs in one inning.
And while Anaheim lost the game, it was still great just being there
with other guys, both gay and straight, enjoying baseball and all
the hot dogs that went with it. It was heaven.
1992 National League Championship, Pittsburgh Pirates v. Atlanta
Braves
Back when the Braves were a likeable team because they had always
been bad, the Braves were locked in a battle with Pittsburgh for the
NL pennant. Game seven came down to a bottom of the ninth
single which allowed Stan Breen to score and send the Braves to the
World Series. This game was memorable because it happened
while I was in college in Alabama. When Breen scored, the dorm
I lived in went nuts and everybody was high-fiving and
hugging. Added to the fact that I lived on a hall populated
mostly by baseball players didn't hurt either.
1998 Eastern Conference Finals, Buffalo Sabres vs. Washington
Capitals
My beloved Capitals had finally made it to the Eastern Conference
Finals, just one step away from the Stanley Cup Finals. This
was the series that also solidified my hatred for Dominik Hasek.
Sure he's one of the best goalies NHL history, but that doesn't mean
I have to like him. When the slap shot from the blue
line went through his legs to end Game 7, I think the entire
state of Iowa could hear me shout!
And my favorite of all time . . . NCAA
Women's Basketball Tournament Mideast Regional Semifinal, Iowa State
vs. UConn, March 20, 1999
Of all the great moments I could have chosen from the Iowa State
women's basketball team, the one I selected put Iowa State on the
national map. Number 4 seed ISU was not expected to give
Number 1 seeded UConn much of a fight, after all, this was mighty
UConn. But in Cincinnati is was an Iowa State crowd.
While only about 200 UConn fans made the trip, Iowa State fans came
in droves, top the tune of about 2,000, including my partner and
myself. We drove all night from Ames to get to Ohio the next
morning. Exhausted, we arrived at the Shoemaker Center hoping
for a miracle, we weren't disappointed.
The first half was extremely tight, with neither side able to build
a large lead. At the half, the score was tied and ISU fans
could sense that an upset could occur. The second half brought
on the UConn pressure and they built a lead that could have spelled
the end for the Cyclones. But Monica Huelmann hit the
three-pointer heard round the world, which sparked a rally for which
UConn had no answer. Iowa State went on to a 64-58 win over
the Huskies and advanced to the Regional Finals. While Georgia
beat ISU in the finals, the win over UConn and the euphoria it
brought, stands as my greatest sports memory ever.
|