The 100 Greatest Games of My Life: 90-81

Note: If you missed part one, it is right below it. Scroll down.

** - in attendance


#90 Point Shaving In Person**
Syracuse 45, Boston College 17 (10/26/96)

God only knows how many games are being fixed or how many players are shaving points these days. It's most likely happening. But, until something new becomes public, this seemingly harmless game on a chilly October day in Chestnut Hill is the last game in which players bet on their own team to lose. No one could have known. It looked pretty much like any other game. BC staked to an early lead. Syracuse took control at the end of the first half and Donovan McNabb lead the Orange to a convincing win. It wasn't until months later that it was revealed that at least 13 BC players were involved in gambling and that some number of them placed substantial amounts of money on Syracuse. Now the 38-3 finish to the game looks sketchy. The 17 points scored by SU in the final two minutes of the first half looks suspicious. How much the point-shaving affected the game, we might not ever know. Still interesting that it happened right in front of me and it is so easily disguisable. Also the first of 4 games (4-0)in which I have seen Syracuse beat BC convincingly.

#89 Flutie Beats RJ
Chargers 27, Bills 24 (10/28/2001)

Classic Flutie Magic that defined his career. This is one of the most-anticipated games of my lifetime. The controversy had waged on for almost 2 years. The Chargers had become Bills west with nearly a dozen former Bills on the roster. Flutie got the Bolts off to a 4-2 start. The Bills and Rob Johnson limped in with one win. The local Boston CBS market successfully petitioned the NFL to get the game on TV (a staple of Flutie games from 98-02). The game played out as though it was scripted. The Chargers got on early lead on a Flutie touchdown pass. The Bills cut the lead to 13-10 and were driving when Rob Johnson threw an exruciating interception returned for a touchdown. Somehow, Johnson, who had already gone to the locker room with a boo-boo, came back and "corageously" lead the Bills to two scores and went up 24-20 with a minute and a half remaining. Did anyone really think that that was going to hold up? Of course not. Ronnie Jenkins (who was simply electric at times) returned the ensuing past to the 41 and Brian Moorman tacked 28 yards on with two penalties. On the first play from the 13, Flutie seemingly waited for the pocket to collapse and dove into the endzone for the winning score. It was an emphatic shove in the face to Rob Johnson, Ralph Wilson and "Bills East." Rob Johnson would lose his job to Alex Van Pelt and the Bills would finish a spectacular 3-13. He's currently out of football. Doug Flutie, 43, is still playing. And I still have my Chargers #7 jersey.

#88 Carter's Late Goal
Bruins 4, Hurricanes 3 (2OT) (4/30/99)

"Nothing beats playoff hockey" has become a cliche this days. But it is really true. The intensity of a playoff hockey game in overtime is nearly unmatched. For me, the most memorable of these games in which the Bruins came out on the winning side was Game 5 of the 1st round in 1999. The B's, the underdogs, had to travel to (hockey heaven) Greensboro for the game and appeared to be going quietly into the night, down 2-0 after 2. Ray Bourque then started a barrage of three goals in two minutes to get Boston the lead. The 'Canes tied it late, though, and sent it to OT. Carolina had the crowd and the chances but just couldn't push one past Lord Byron Dafoe. After the horn sounded, everyone else went to bed, but I hung in there and got to see fourteen more minutes of free hockey. Finally, off a brilliant feed from Joe Thornton (no surprise there), Anson Carter put home the winner and silenced the building. After playing even for nearly 100 minutes, the Bruins had taken a commanding 3-2 lead in the series. Classic playoff hockey.

#87 Ruiz Wins Title
John Ruiz def. Evander Holyfield by Unanimous Decision (3/3/01)

Unless you are from Puerto Rico or Massachusetts, you probably hate Johnny Ruiz. I love the guy. I recognize his faults. He's not fun to watch. He's not even very good. But I root for him. His ascension to the top of the heavyweight ranks began with a very controversial loss to Evander Holyfield in 2000. There is no doubt that Ruiz, a heavy underdog, won that fight. In boxing, though, it was used to set up a rematch. Ruiz dominated the second fight. Maybe it wasn't pretty but he pounded the one-time proud champion and won convincingly. Critics of Ruiz should see this performance. It was a pretty big deal in Massachusetts, which has a pretty storied boxing history (Marciano, Hagler). People swarmed him at the airport. A parade was held. It almost seems silly considering how hated the guy is these days. One of the most classless thing that I have ever seen was the way Jim Lampley handled the Roy Jones fight. He basically spent the whole fight discussing how happy he was to rid Boxing of Ruiz. Lampley came off as a whiny baby and, like him or not, had no reason to blatantly discredit a heavyweight champion of the world. Anyways, I still watch every Ruiz fight and root for the guy and, hook or by crook, he's had a belt around his waist for most of the 5 years since. Hopefully, he'll get another shot at Nikolai Valuev. Lampley will love that.

#86 Reggie Faints**
Celtics 112, Hornets 101 (4/29/93)

My memories of this game are very shady. I remember seeing the Celts play the Hornets. I remember it being the playoffs. I remember Reggie Lewis missed the remainder of the series. Outside of that, I don't remember much. I got to see a bunch of games at the old Garden when I was younger. My Dad would take me and my brother and, until we were old enough to need our own tickets, we would just sneak under the gates and get in for free. It seems ridiculous now, but it is 100% true. I don't remember specific games well, but I do remember the Garden and it really was an incredible place and I was sad that it was going to be gone. Anyhow, I know I was at this game and, on that day, wasn't affected much by it. Reggie died three months later. I don't think many people realize just how good Lewis was. He averaged 21 points his final season. He was 27. He was going to be a star. With Reggie Lewis, the Celtics never would have had to deal with the Marty Conlon/Todd Day era. He was also, by all accounts, an incredible guy. If you have Nexis access, I'd suggest you read Bob Ryan's obituary in which he says that "With Reggie Lewis, there was simply nothing not to like."

#85 The Phantom Tag**
Yankees 9, Red Sox 2 (10/17/99)

ESPN called this the worst call in sports history. Trailing 3-2 in the 8th inning, with Chuck Knoblauch's glove four feet from Jose Offerman, Tim Tschida imagined a tag, killing a rally and killing another Sox' season. The anger in that stadium after that call is unlike anything you'll ever see. Debris rained down onto the field. The Yankees had to flee to the clubhouse. Call me misguided, but it was all justified. To be considered a professional umpire and make such a blatant mistake is unacceptable. Had Offy got to 2nd, Nomar Garciaparra was due up and the game could have been tied. Tschida decided the Yankees were going to win the series and that's what happened. The umpiring went NY's way all series. The other aspects of the game are forgettable at this point. Troy O'Leary, John Valentin and the immortal Butch Huskey had the big hits for the Sox. The Yankees poured it on in the 9th inning. The Sox lose Game 4. The Yankees win the World Series. All because that fat, mustached bastard can't see straight.

#84 Playoff Atmosphere at the Fleet**
Pacers 92, Celtics 87 (3/30/01)

A personal favorite. After nearly 6 years of rooting for losers, finally a meaningful game in Boston. Those days, the few that went to Celtics games were in for a bad product in a stale arena. Until this night. Anyone who was a Celtics fan had to be there. The Celtics had a one game lead on the Indiana Pacers for the last playoff spot in the east. And the hated Pacers, lead by Isiah Thomas, were in town. We got into Boston early and still had to pay more than usual for tickets. It was a sell-out. Shaq wasn't in town. Jordan wasn't in town. Nobody's jersey was being retired. Just meaningful basketball in Boston. Incredible. The building wasn't stale. It was alive. The young Celts fed off the energy and staked to a 16 point lead. Unfortunately, Austin Croshere decided to have the night of his life. Earlier in the night, I had gone on record as saying that a Toine for Croshere-Bender-Draft Pick wouldn't be a horrible deal. It turned out to be a foreshadowing. AC scored 32 points. The Pacers won. They got the 8th spot. The Celtics weren't ready. They'd be ready the following year. Since that day, nearly every game at the Fleetcenter has had meaning. That was the first one and I'll always remember it.

#83 Flutie-Brady**
Patriots 29, Chargers 26 (OT) (10/14/2001)

The last time I would see Flutie start a regular season game in person and it was a classic. However, it wasn't only a coronation for Flutie, it was an introduction for Brady. He had already won a couple big games, but most people think Brady became the Patriots' starting quarterback on this rainy Sunday. Flutie looked like Flutie also, though, and San Diego established a late 26-16 lead. It looked like Doug was going to win in Foxboro again. But, Brady did what we are now accustomed to him doing. He engineered two scoring drives in the last four minutes to tie the game. With 36 seconds, he found Jermaine "Wiggy" Wiggins wide open and the game headed for overtime. With help from a pass interference call, Vinatieri hit a 43 yard field goal to win it. It may not have been his last big kick that season. The game lived up to its billing as a game between two special QBs. Terry Glenn even managed to play, making the only contributions he would ever make to a Championship team. Brady, however, in beating Flutie in dramatic fashion, had established a legacy he would only build on.

#82 Syracuse Beats Notre Dame**
Syracuse 38, Notre Dame 12 (12/6/2003)

Enjoyable football moments have been few and far between since I got here. This is probably the best one that doesnt involve Boston College. We weren't good. Notre Dame was worse (somehow). But it was on ABC. It was Notre Dame. And it had some roundabout impact on the BCS. If we won, in some way, we helped LSU and hurt USC. This lead to the legend that is Jim Stammers making two signs, one congratulating LSU, the other a derogatory message for USC's Pete Carroll. The game probably meant a miniscule fraction of a point on some computer screen. But, it had some importance and that was good enough for us. The game was a rout. Heisman Trophy Candidate Walter Reyes actually suited up for this one and ran for 5 TDs. The game was never close. R.J. Anderson (the only three year starter at a big-time football school that couldn't even get an Arena2 tryout) gave the ball away three times, but the Irish couldn't do anything on offense. It should be noted that the skill position players for Notre Dame read like this Quinn-Julius Jones-Stovall-Fasano. Jones became a quality Rookie NFL back, while the other three played in the BCS this past season. This was a quality win. It ended memorably with Stammers dancing and chanting in the Notre Dame section. Considering we lost at home by 25+ points to Rutgers and USF last year, those were the glory days.

#81 The NASCAR Experience**
Jimmie Johnson wins UAW-DaimlerChrystler 500 (3/12/06)

First NASCAR race. In Vegas. Last-lap, turn 3 pass. The eve of my 21st birthday. Spring Break in Vegas. To-win action on the winner. Vegas. It all adds up to an unforgettable experience. Clearly, NASCAR is not my favorite sport. I'm a late-joiner to this whole extravaganza, thanks largely to a Harvick-crazed roommate nicknamed "Cowboy." It really is true, though. Seeing it in person is a completely different ballgame. Instead of seeing the #8 car battle for 28th place or seeing Jeff Hammond explain to us what a "wheel" is, you get to watch what you want to watch. You get to see everything that happens live, not what happened "while we were in break." Las Vegas isn't the most exciting of tracks, but there were a few different leaders and more than just two cars in contention. I stayed focused on Johnson for much of the race and was able to watch him reel in car after car en route to victory. The experience could be compared favorably to that of an NFL game: Tailgating, expensive merchandise, 80,000 caucasians. It's worth giving a shot even if you aren't a NASCAR guy.