Which win meant the most?

[KamaAina]

The true meaning of Sunday's Super Bowl triumph may not be immediatley apparent to those who, unlike myself, have no personal connection to the World's Most Interesting City. For comparison, here are a few similarly epic sporting events:

[joeybee12]

1. Red Sox!!! 43 years is only half of 86....

RED SOX! AMERICA'S TEAM!!!!!!!!

:loveya:

[Captain Hilts]

2. As a Sox fan it pains me to say...US over Soviet hockey team in '80. Right after Afghan invasion.

Professionals vs. college kids.

When I went to the Soviet Union a month later, folks would walk up to me on the street and say, "We're glad your hockey team won."

Priceless.

[Upton]

3. I have to go with the Red Sox...

though it might not have been a bad idea if you had included "the Catch" game as one of your options..for it started one dynasty and ended another.

[KamaAina]

4. Not shabby, but it wasn't for a championship

the Niners still had to win the Super Bowl. Which they did.

[madinmaryland]

6. Douche Three!

:mad:

:hi:

[KamaAina]

10. I think I'll name my band "Douche Three".

:eyes:

[Jack Rabbit]

31. Ah, yes. That moment when the cosmos was in perfect order

That magic moment when Dwight Clark reached into the heavens and pulled down a football. The team from San Francisco, the city that represents cosmic order, peace and brotherhood, defeated the team from desolate north Texas which pretends to be America's team.

[DaveinMD]

5. Anyone

that doesn't vote for the Olympic hockey choice is probably too young to fully appreciate what that meant to the entire country at the time.

[Upton]

7. Give me a break..

:eyes: :eyes: :eyes:

[DaveinMD]

11. you certainly need one n/t

[madinmaryland]

8. Best EVER...

CLASSIC!!

[Upton]

9. Mazeroski was big all right..

my mom was a big Pirates fan, her family was from the Pittsburgh area...when I was a kid she used to tell me about 1960 and she'd still get tears in her eyes..

[DaveinMD]

12. is that supposed to bother me

I'm glad they won a couple of times. It was nice for them.

[DaveinMD]

14. I do remember this one

RW McQuarters clinches the Giants playoff win over the Cowboys on the way their Super Bowl championship.

[madinmaryland]

15. I remember EIGHT trips to the Super Bowl and coming home with FIVE

championships!

I also remember this...



The Fumble..

[DaveinMD]

17. I don't

I started watching football in 1981. Cowboys and Giants have the same titles since that point. If we want to got total titles, there is no reason to start with the Super Bowl era. The Giants have fared quite well in NFL history.

I do know this, Michael Strahan certainly enjoyed that playoff game in Dallas.

[madinmaryland]

19. Kind of like they fared in NFL history in 1958...

[DaveinMD]

20. won

in 1956 and a bunch of times before then. That 1958 game saved established the NFL. You should be thankful the Giants were in that game or it wouldn't have been televised like it was.

7 League Championships
10 Conference Championships
15 Division championships

[KamaAina]

28. Note that the guys with horseshoes on their helmets in that pic are the BALTIMORE Colts

NOT the impostors who honked on Sunday!

[Upton]

16. How about this...

Jan 2003....Tai Streets scores the game winning touchdown in the 4th quarter as the 49ers complete the second largest comeback (24 points) in NFL playoff history by defeating the Giants 39-38...:toast:

[DaveinMD]

18. how about this

And then of course the game winning kick

[joeybee12]

48. I still have that game on tape...ah, before the Giants had a sniveling

little rodent at QB...they were a good team back them.

[DaveinMD]

51. bitter bitter bitter

Eli is wonderful. I think I'll watch his comeback in Super Bowl 42 again.

[Auggie]

13. U.S. Olympic hockey team n/t

[cherokeeprogressive]

21. Buster Douglas over Mike Tyson.

[Captain Hilts]

58. That was a HUGE shock. I remember getting off a train in NYC and seeing the headline. nt

[joeybee12]

22. For those of you voting for the US Hockey Team oevr Russia...

...remember, they didn't beat them in the gold medal game...they beat the Czech Republic (Czechoslovakia at the time) who was the odds-on favorite to win the gold that year...that was the real upset.

[DaveinMD]

24. wrong

they beat the Czechoslovakia earlier in the tournament. They beat Finland in the Gold Medal game. They beat the USSR in the semi's. It was an upset of epic proportions.

[joeybee12]

33. Well, you're right about them beating Finaland, but the "upset" of Russia

was not the real upset...Russia was not favored that year...it's just that we were in the Cold War and sort pre-Senile-Reagan years yet we still considered them the Evil Empire. Every team they beat int he tournament was an upset since they were just a group of kids...still, with all the arrests after, hard to say it still means that much.

[DaveinMD]

34. we are way off base

Russia was a huge favorite. They were coming off destroying a team of NHL all stars. If its on again, watch the HBO documentary. That Russian team was the clear favorite and loaded with talent.

[Upton]

36. The media has built this up over the years

into some kind of major cold war victory...whatever.. but that's one of the main reasons why most people really DO believe that the win over the USSR came in the Gold Medal game..

[Captain Hilts]

61. I was in Moscow/Leningrad a month later. THEY thought it was a big deal and dissidents would

tell me "we're glad your hockey team won."

[Forkboy]

41. Sorry, Joey, it was a huge upset.

The US team was just college kids thrown together with no experience together as a team. The Russian squad was a permanent National team that routinely came to America and beat NHL squads, the best of them. It was filled with numerous people who are now in the Hall of Fame for their NHL careers that followed, and they had arguably the best goalie ever, Vladimir Tretiak, the only non NHL player in the Hall of Fame. The US team had no right to even avoid a blowout, let alone win. You do the team a great disservice by downplaying what they did.

[joeybee12]

46. Yes, it was an upset, but it wasn't the Gold Medal game, and Russia

was not the favored to win the gold...it's more the Evil Empire mythology...the major upset came against Finland and CR.

[DaveinMD]

47. you are just incredibly wrong about this

even more wrong than usual. The US was expected to beat Finland. The USSR was the overwhelming favorite to win the Gold.

[Forkboy]

49. Russia most certainly WAS favored to the win the Gold that year.

They had won all but one Gold medal in ice hockey since 1956. The year previous that exact same Russian team beat a team comprised of NHL All-Stars 6-0. In an exhibition game a week before the Olympics Russia beat the U.S. 10-3. They were the best hockey team in the world, bar none. The U.S. wasn't even expected to make the medal round.

The politics came after, and the team isn't to blame for the context they played that Olympics in. It's not a "mythology" in the hockey world. It's the single biggest upset in ice hockey history, and the men involved deserve all the credit in the world for it. It was the equivalent of the Northeastern Huskies knocking off the Gretzky led Oilers of the 80's on the world's biggest stage.

[joeybee12]

50. It's ONLY hockey!

It's NOT a real sport!

[Forkboy]

63. You watch tennis!!!

:P

[joeybee12]

64. I play it too!

Hey, it makes over-the-air stations, not ESPN42, like ice hockey!

[Forkboy]

65. Is it 42 now?

They're movin' up, baby! :)

[Captain Hilts]

60. Biggest sporting event in my lifetime. And I'm a Sox and Redskins fan. nt

[Forkboy]

66. Same here.

I just figured it was my hockey bias. :)

[hughee99]

52. They may have been the Evil Empire,

but Carter was president at the time. Not sure if I'm just misunderstanding what you wrote, so I'm just throwing that out there.

[joeybee12]

62. No, my point was it was before Raygun coined the phrase, but we still

(or many of us) saw them as evil so it was sort of a triumph of good over evil, which, is pretty stupid when you think about it.

[NoGOPZone]

53. It was Finland, but not actually a Gold Medal Game

There were no semi finals and finals back then. There were two divisions, and each division advanced two teams to the final round. In this final round, each team played games against the two teams from the other division, having already played the other team from its own division in the opening round. The gold went to the team with the best record in the three game total. The Soviet Union wound up with the silver even though they lost to the US. After losing to the US, Finald didn't even medal.

[Captain Hilts]

59. IT. DOES. NOT. MATTER. nt

[MadBadger]

23. Cubs World Series win..oh wait....

[caraher]

25. Olympic hockey 1980 because

all the other examples are pro teams playing in pro leagues against foes with broadly similar resources. In 1980, you had a bunch of mostly college players, a few solid pro prospects among them, playing against a juggernaut that had been together for years, demolishing every team they played short of the NHL all-star teams assembled to play them essentially to a draw over many series.

It was literally unbelievable - except it happened.

[MrSlayer]

26. Easily the "Miracle on Ice".

That was an upset that would most likely never, ever happen again. They play that game 100 times after and the Russians win 100 times. We're talking a college team beating a team comprised of NHL all-stars.

[Condem]

27. Iowa's Orange Bowl victory.

Ended 50 years of futility.

[Onceuponalife]

30. And no one outside of Iowa cared. n/t

Why are you looking here? Dintcha see the n/t thingy?

[Upton]

35. I agree Condem

winning an Orange Bowl once every 50 years is a remarkable achievement. :eyes:

[Condem]

38. Man. Where's the love??

You Californians just a wee bit jealous of us forward thinking Iowans? Nice work on that Gay Marriage Bill, Golden Staters. No wonder it's the Hawkeye State that gets to choose the Democratic nominee every four years! Nice comment by the Governator concerning Iowa. Like anyone wants to move to your broke ass State. LOL!

[Upton]

39. Some of what you say is true Condem..

and let me add that the real estate prices in the Bay Area are just outrageous. Which is one of the main reasons I moved to Washington state a few years back..

Yep, Washington state, we've got a Democratic governor and both senators are Democrats..In fact, all three are women..We passed a medical marijuana initiative years ago. Got the right to medical pot in Iowa?

I'll put Washington up against Iowa anytime..

[Condem]

40. My bad, Upton.Thought you were a fornion.

Washington's ok. But, hey you ever heard of a thing called sunshine?

[Onceuponalife]

29. The Sox

That was a shocker. And didn't they come back from down 3-0 against the Skanks in the ALCS? That was totally unheard of.

[H2O Man]

32. "Other"

Ali winning the title (Liston), and/or regaining the title (Foreman).

[KamaAina]

42. In a similar vein, Joe Louis over Max Schmeling

the first time white Americans rooted for an African American fighter. One said to an AA acquaintance, "Congratulations. It's about time somebody beat that Nazi."

Also, Jesse Owens at the '36 Berlin Olympics.

[H2O Man]

43. The Great Joe Louis's

victory in their return match remains one of the most intense performances in sports' history. That single round represents not only Louis's prime, but a huge political-social statement.

And I agree 100% on Jesse Owens.

[KamaAina]

44. I almost forgot...

the esteemed MrScorpio rarely if ever ventures into the sports forum, but he is, in fact, related to Joe Louis.

[JonLP24]

37. I don't have any

None of my teams win championships. :(

[Bluzmann57]

45. Other

Cubs in 2010! Hey a guy can dream can't he? On your list, I'll say Saints winning the Super Bowl.

[Awsi Dooger]

54. There was no anticipation of the 1980 hockey game

That's what diminishes it somewhat, IMO. It wasn't even televised live to most of the country. I have that VHS tape and ABC didn't fully feature the hockey game on its prime time coverage until mid third period when the USA had a chance. An all time accomplishment should accompany great build up but seemingly low odds. It was my first year at USC and I remember it very well. My roommates were kidding me about following the Winter Olympics so closely, to the point I was carrying a pocket radio onto campus. Then suddenly word spread on campus about the hockey result late on Friday afternoon and there was an incredible buzz, due to the political climate.

The fights H2O Man nominated are much better choices, particularly the win over Foreman. Ali was an extremely well known and polarizing figure but a massive underdog in both fights. The Foreman fight had tremendous publicity leading up to the fight, partially due to the strange location, and also because the fight was delayed for about a month due to a minor injury to Foreman. Everyone knew it was Ali's last chance. He was expected to be easily dispatched, most likely an early knockout, a sad ending to his legend. Instead, it jump started a second reign, including the Thrilla in Manilla over Frazier.

Other than my favorite teams winning football titles, I've never felt as exhilarated over a sporting outcome as Ali defeating Foreman in 1974. A win like that did not have geographical boundaries like the majority of nominations in this thread.

[DaveinMD]

68. there wasn't a great buildup

because no one thought we had any chance at all to win the game. The fact that we did changed everything. It was the most meaningful sporting event of my lifetime and nothing comes close.

[devilgrrl]

55. Politics aside, the USA beating USSR in Lake Placid is one of the greatest upset victories EVER!

College kids beating seasoned veterans that skated circles around the NHL All-Stars a year earlier. Still amazes me after all these years.

[KamaAina]

69. For a pure upset, I'd have to go with Chaminade over Virginia

that was the UVA team with Ralph Sampson. Chaminade is a tiny Catholic school in Honolulu with maybe 1,000 students. Its campus is built around St. Louis School, a prep football powerhouse. It currently plays in Division II! And yet it beat the No. 1 Cavaliers 77-72 in 1982, after having just knocked off UH.

[JonLP24]

70. +1

Also Virginia beat Georgetown w/ Ewing before that game. Chaminade prepared for Ralph Sampson by having players stand on chairs and other players try to score over them. Also I've read that newspapers checked there sources several times to make sure they had the correct score.

[Awsi Dooger]

71. The 1980 hockey game was not an all time upset

Not in betting terms. Hockey games do not carry huge odds due to the nature of the sport. I was told by Las Vegas oldtimers that the odds were in the 8/1 to 10/1 range, which is substantial but not overwhelming.

Chaminade over Virginia would have been exponentially higher. They were favored by upwards of 30 points, which equates to an out price, i.e. no straight up odds. Caesar's Palace booked college basketball tournament games in the '90s and the 30+ point favorites reached 40/1 to 60/1.

The greatest single game upset I've ever seen from an odds perspective was Stanford over USC in 2007 college football. USC was a 39.5 to 41 point favorite, depending when and where you shopped. There are a couple of offshore sportsbooks that deal money line (straight up) odds on games like that. USC was 120/1.

[TZ]

56. US Hockey Team...no question

Oh btw, there is an incredibly inspiring movie called "Miracle" about it. Has there been any inspirational movies about these other sports events? No. I think that really tells the tale of how culturally important that win was. That was WAAAY more than a Hockey game.
Oh and I'm only a very casual fan..

[MaineDem]

57. I like no team more than my Red Sox but...

...The 1980 Olympic hockey win over the USSR was, by far, the most exciting game I have ever seen. People were out in the streets after that game. It was fantastic! I still get chills just thinking about it.

But the 2004 Sox Series win is a close second.

[Captain Hilts]

67. Yep. And I'll add seeing the ODU women's basketball team play the Soviet team

in December of '80 was thrilling. A narrow, 10 pt. victory by the USSR team that hadn't lost a game in 20 years.

ODU's "Team from Mars: Nancy Lieberman, Inge Nissen and Anne Donovan. Tied at halftime. I sat four rows behind the ODU bench. The most thrilling athletic event experience I've ever had.