OK, so here’s the post where I explain why I think the Immaculate Reception is the greatest play ever … and will always be the greatest play ever unless at some point, on the last play of the Super Bowl, a team is trailing five and the quarterback throws a Hail Mary pass that is caught by The Great Gazoo from the Jump The Shark Flinstones year, he promptly fumbles it into the mouth of a circus lion riding a unicycle, the lion runs into a referee, eats him, and coughs up the football into the hands of Siegfried or Roy (doesn’t matter which, either one could work, I don’t know which one is which anyway) who runs down the open field with it — open field because defenders are blinded by the sequins — and who then hand the ball to Jerry Rice, who only moments before came out of retirement and limped on the field like Willis Reed.
Unless that happens, it’s the IR. And here’s my opinion why:
– To be the greatest play ever, it has to be in a hugely important game.
The most importable play I ever saw live — and nothing else is even close — happened in Cleveland in 2002. The Chiefs trailed the Browns by two points with seconds remaining. Quarterback Trent Green dropped back to throw, appeared to be sacked, but a milli-instant before he was downed he somehow pitched the ball backward to offensive lineman John Tait, who somehow rumbled for 28 yards all the way to the Cleveland 25. As absurd and fun to watch as that was, the clock still ran out while he was running, ending the game except … uh … NO … Cleveland’s Dwayne Rudd, thinking the game was over, took off his helmet and threw it in celebration. This was illegal in 2002, a 15-yard-penalty, which was tacked on to the end of the run, and so was one untimed play. Chiefs ancient kicker Morten Andersen made the 30-yard field goal, the Chiefs won. The Cleveland headline was “Down the Dwayne,” which is good.
But, since this was a game between two mediocre teams who really had no beef with each other … it doesn’t qualify for greatest play ever. The greatest play has to happen in a crucial game … and more points for the more crucial game.
The Immaculate Reception happened in an NFL playoff game, which is worth quite a few points. It’s not a Super Bowl, of course, or even a championship game. But it was important. And because it was Pittsburgh vs. Oakland, what turned out to be a big 1970s rivalry, and because it featured an upstart Steelers team and Al Davis’ bad guys, it has some star power.
Clearly, the two Super Bowl plays on the list — the Tyree Connection and the the Tackle — get mega points here.
– To be the greatest play ever, it has to be more than brilliant … it has to be utterly unrepeatable.
This is just my opinion, of course. Bo Jackson’s into-the-tunnel run on Monday Night Football was so breathtaking that I included it on the list even though it wasn’t an especially meaningful game, and even though the play was pretty basic. It was just a pitch play, really. I included it because it was the most amazing display of sheer athleticism I believe I have ever seen. Still, as amazing as it was — and it was amazing — you could imagine that if Bo had stayed healthy he might have made a run like it again. Same goes with some of Barry Sanders’ best runs or Gayle Sayers beautiful moves or one of Roger Staubach’s brilliant 35-yard passes on third and 28.
This goes for most great plays. Even the behind-the-back handoff that clinched Boise State’s victory over Oklahoma — and let me just say this is far-and-away my FAVORITE single play in football history — is repeatable. True, you would expect the defense to handle it better a second time, but the play itself was just a beautiful, and beautifully timed, trick play. Same goes with the Miami hook and ladder, the Music City Miracle, the catch and so on.
But the way I look at things, the greatest play has to be something that could never happen again. Once-in-a-lifetime. The Tyree Connection — Manning to Tyree in the Super Bowl — is singular. You could never make that play work again, not the same way, not with Manning tearing and twisting away from all the hands in “Night of the Living Dead,” not with him heaving up a desperation pass that really had no hope, not with Tyree catching the football on his helmet. No, that’s never going to happen again.
The Play — Cal-Stanford — is, of course, singular too. You couldn’t recreate that play, not without a whole bunch of extras playing band members, and several blind extras to play officials.
And then there’s the IR — exceptional, unique, impossible to copy — fourth down and 10, 22 seconds left, no timeouts remaining, Steelers down 7-6 to Oakland. Coach Chuck Noll called 66 Circle Option, a play that had no chance to work, none, Bradshaw was supposed to throw the ball to Barry Pearson, a backup receiver who did not make a catch all year. No chance. Plus, Bradshaw was terrible that year, he completed 48 percent of his passes. Bradshaw* couldn’t find Pearson, probably didn’t even know what he looked like and instead threw the ball up for grabs, it hit Jack Tatum and/or Frenchy Fuqua, bounced back 10 yards, ended up in the hands of Franco Harris who ran the remainder of the 60 yards for the touchdown. That ain’t ever happening again.
The IR also has the bonus of being controversial … the NFL had that stupid rule back then that a football could not hit two offensive players. Raiders fans and players STILL insist the ball hit Pittsburgh’s Fuqua which would have nullified the play.
*This has nothing to do with this post … but I was looking up a stat and saw that Terry Bradshaw made only three Pro Bowls. Did you know that? I followed Pittsburgh pretty closely as a hater back as a child, but I had no idea. Heck, Jim Hart made four Pro Bowls.
– To be the greatest play, it has to decide the game.
Based on the first two qualifications, I think we’re down to three plays … IR, Tyree and The Play. The Tackle could be in there too, I suppose. And I think this is where we leave Tyree behind. As amazing as the Manning-Tyree Connection was — and it was flat amazing, one of the most remarkable things I’ve ever seen — the Giants STILL had to score the touchdown to win the game afterward. If the Giants had not scored the touchdown, the Tyree play goes down as a great but finally irrelevant catch.
Not only that, but had Tyree dropped the ball, the game was not over. The Giants still would have had a fourth down and five play with more than a minute left to win the game. Would the Giants have won it without the Tyree play. I say no. You say no. We all think no. But that’s not the same thing as saying the play DID win the game. It did not. The play was not decisive, and it did not have the deadly weight and tension of a last chance.
The Tackle ended the game. But had Kevin Dyson scored, the game would have gone into overtime.
The Play, of course, was Cal’s last chance to win the game. Nobody thought Cal could win the game, including Cal.
And the IR … definitely, last chance, it was fourth and 10 with 22 seconds left. And it was decisive, Franco scored. Game was won.
So, finally, for me it comes down to The Play and the Immaculate Reception … and I choose the IR because it mattered more. Yes, Cal-Stanford is a big game — in fact, they call it the Big Game — but let’s face it. I don’t give a rat about it and neither do you unless you went to Cal or Stanford or grew up around the Big Game. Hey, I’m thrilled that Cal won because that was a John Elway Stanford team, and it’s nice to know that he felt some pain in his life. But all in all, that game meant nothing except to Cal and Stanford fans.
The Immaculate Reception, meanwhile, launched a dynasty, it started two Hall of Fame careers, it crushed Al Davis, it spurred on NFL Films. It really kicked off a whole new era of football, I think. I’ve been a virulent Steelers hater all my life*, I came by it honestly growing up in Cleveland, but there is no doubt in my mind that the Immaculate Reception is the greatest play in NFL history. Then again, that’s just me. The poll is open.
*OK, had an odd and yet familiar experience watching Game 4 of the NBA Finals Thursday night. Maybe this has happened to you in your sports watching life. I started watching the game without no partiality whatsoever — I despise both the Celtics and the Lakers, and I have for quite a long time (including the first three games of this series). I have despised the Celtics my whole life, going back to ‘76, when they beat the Cavaliers in the playoffs.
I especially despised those 1980s Celtics — you know, this is a weird point to make but I’ll make it anyway: I never once saw Kevin McHale miss a free throw. Ever. I remember coming to this conclusion at some point in the mid-80s, and I told my friend Robert, “You know, I have never seen that son of a gun miss a free throw. Ever.” He said, “Come on. No way.” And from that point one, whenever we watched a Celtics game together, we would watch to see if McHale missed a free throw. And he never did. The guy wasn’t even THAT good a free-throw shooter — I mean, 80% is certainly good, but the guy wasn’t Rick Barry, he wasn’t Mark Price, he wasn’t Calvin Murphy. But he missed those 20% when I wasn’t looking. I never saw him miss one. Hated McHale. Hated Parish. Hated the uniforms. Hated those Celtics.
I liked the Lakers then because I wanted those Celtics to die, but even more because I liked Magic Johnson. Once he was gone, once Showtime ended, I had no use for them. And, later, well, let’s just say that I never liked Kobe.
So I have watched this Series as an entirely impartial viewer, as someone who used to love the NBA but now doesn’t like it at all, as someone who used to have strong feelings about teams and players but now thinks the whole league is run badly, as someone who used to live and die with the NBA Finals but now watches them more out of obligation than anything else.
That was my feeling when I started watching Game 4. And here’s when the odd yet familiar part happened … Los Angeles took the big lead, and for reasons that I cannot explain here, I started VIOLENTLY rooting against the Lakers. You’ve had this happen to you right … an event you began watching passively suddenly become crucial and emotional? I cannot tell you why it happened, why it kicked in Game 4, why those emotions came on so strongly. During a commercial break, I found myself going: “Wait a minute. I don’t care about this game. Why am I so caught up in this?” I still don’t know. Maybe it’s my utter distaste for anything Kobe. Maybe it’s because I wrote quite a lot about Boston’s Paul Pierce at Kansas and I’ve always liked him a lot. Maybe it’s because I want this freaking series to end, and Los Angeles tying the series would probably mean a seven-game death match. Maybe it’s my utter distaste for anything Phil Jackson. Maybe it’s because I do like Kevin Garnett, and I do like Ray Allen, and I’d like to see those guys win championships. Maybe it’s because, childhood emotions aside, I’m much more a Boston guy than an LA guy. Maybe there’s an underdog thing going here. Maybe, maybe, maybe …
The truth is, there is no right answer … at least I don’t think there is one. The truth is that one of the best part of sports is that they sometimes grab you by the throat, and carry you along, and there’s no logic to it, no depth to it, just an intensity that surprises you. I found myself silently but seriously cheering for the Celtics to come back and win the game. When Ray Allen made that unbelievable reverse layup — I cannot BELIEVE ABC only replayed that sick play one time; from my perspective that was about as good as Michael’s famed switch-the-hands layup — I jumped off the bed. I went crazy. Heck, I’m going crazy right now. The Celtics are up 3-1. I have no idea why I’m so happy about this. But I am.
**I originally had a bit here about us staying in a hotel (on points — I have LOTS of hotel points) because our air conditioning blew up again, and because we love taking free, random family vacations, but the bit wasn’t as funny in the morning as it seemed the night before. We’ll do a whole post on this at some point.
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61 Comments, Comment or Ping
wcw
C’mon. The Play. Precisely *because* the stakes were so low. Also, I grew up in the ’70s loving Cal. Precisely because they sucked so very, very much. And then I went there and somehow got a degree, so..
Sorry. Cleveland rocks, sure, but The Play is something that the most pathetic Hollywood hack would never in a million years script, and yet it happened. Which is, I am afraid, more than you can say for the IR.
After all, only the former involves a trombone.
Jun 13th, 2008
Aaron B.
Boise State hook and lateral/ladder
Zabransky to James to Raab to the house
’nuff said
Jun 13th, 2008
JeffSol
One other key element of the Immaculate Reception is that it is unclear who it bounced off, and, based on the rules at the time, if it bounced off the offensive player, the catch wouldn’t count and the play would have been properly called dead. I’m embarrassed to say that I remember Madden (the opposing coach) elaborating on this in his first or second book, that to this day he’s not sure if the play should have been allowed. This potential ruling/misruling and the inability on replay to determine what happened, adds, in my opinion, the one more layer of intrigue (which wouldn’t exist today — the rule was changed decades ago) that makes it the greatest play ever.
Jun 13th, 2008
McKingford
I voted for The Play, but I had to comment on the Dolphins hook and ladder play, because, IMO, it was during the greatest football game ever.
I was about 11 at the time - and a *huge* Charger fan. They were pretty infuriating to follow, because they had the world’s most potent offence, combined with the world’s most porous defence. This game was true to form. They jumped out to a 24-0 lead, but if my memory serves correctly, the hook and ladder play just before the half tied it.
So, being 11, I started to get pretty upset, thinking the Chargers were blowing this huge lead. The offences settled down a bit in the second half, but the Fins were lining up to kick the game winner on the last play of the 4th. I was in tears. Except Kellen Winslow blocked the kick.
In OT, the Fins got a second chance to kick the game winner. But Kellen Winslow blocked it, again(!). The Chargers drove downfield and missed their own chip shot FG (I’ll never forget Rolf Benershke). Finally, after seemingly forever, the Chargers drove downfield - powered by a lumbering catch and run by Winslow, during which he dragged about 4 defenders, and finally won the game. They had to carry Winslow off the field, because in the high heat and humidity he was suffering exhaustion.
Naturally, the next week they travelled to Cinci, and played the Championship game in -30 weather, and got their assess handed to them…
Jun 13th, 2008
Melody
That WAS a great basketball game… I’m not a huge basketball fan (I prefer baseball), but I’ve been following the Celtics a bit since moving to Boston last summer. They just looked inspired in the second half– I don’t think they made a mistake in 24 minutes of play. Agree with you on Allen’s unbelievable reverse–amazing. I thought the announcers were much too excited about the wrong stuff… and they spent most of the game jeterating Kobe despite his subpar performance.
As a side note– “jeterating” seems to be taking off! I got 101 results for it on google.
Jun 13th, 2008
Jon Morse
I think you may be giving the tackle short shrift here.
Now, let’s be upfront and note that “stopping the ball carrier on the 1/2 yard line on the final play of the game” isn’t, in and of itself, a non-repeatable play. I can see this happening in the context of a goal-line stand.
But… receiver in the open field, only one defender with any shot at all of making the play, the result of the game unequivocally relying on the result OF THIS PLAY… and the defender makes the play in the nick of time with the receiver heroically trying to stretch himself into the end zone. Really, we’re never gonna see that again. Not on the final play of a Super Bowl.
Do I think The Tackle trumps La Reception Immaculata? Nah, probably not. But I do think it needs to be in the end of the discussion.
Jun 13th, 2008
dusty
i don’t think the boise state ending could ever repeated. that is by far the greatest sequence of events i have ever in my life seen. but maybe that is why it doesn’t qualify as the greatest (since the amazing set of plays BEFORE that final play also contributed to the aura of everything). still, i voted for that, as i think that was probably the most amazing finish to a game in the history of all sports.
Jun 13th, 2008
dusty
which has me wondering.. i’d like to see a poll of greatest game finishes of all time. boise state and that jets/dolphins monday night game from like 4 years ago where jumbo elliott made that amazing catch immediately come to mind. and the cardinals game from 2 years ago where the bears came back to win in the 2nd half despite grossman’s -50000 qb rating (as an aside, i had that same feeling as you’ve had in your royals losses, watching that game. i just KNEW the cards would blow it in the 2nd half. i KNEW it and only watched the end to find out how they would lose. working in the sports department for the az republic only added to the misery of that loss. it’s tough being a cardinals fan, maybe harder than being a royals fan). not to mention the patriots snow field goal and the rams/titans or the cowboys’ romo-field-goal-blunder. there have been some amazing finishes in just the past decade.
i remember watching that browns game in disbelief on tv. the thing is, i have seen SO MANY PLAYERS TAKE THEIR HELMETS OFF ON THE FIELD as games ended. and never once were they ever called. that penalty was such a strange aberration. such a strange game.
Jun 13th, 2008
Steve
Judging by your criteria, wouldn’t Flutie’s hail mary pass in the Orange Bowl to beat Miami be one of the final contenders? Huge stage, decided the game…I suppose it could be repeated (I’ve seen hail mary’s work since then), but for the WR to be just completely wide open in the back of the scrum in the endzone, and the ball JUST passing right through the defender’s hands…that’s a pretty unique event.
Jun 13th, 2008
tex
You are right–sports can draw you in for reasons you don’t understand. You can be driving past a park where there is a softball game going on, the batter swings, the runners take off, some guys you have never seen before and will never see again, in a game you don’t even know the score of, and you find yourself wrapped up in it, waiting to see how the play will turn out.
Jun 13th, 2008
Craig
OH MY YOU ARE SUCH A SISSY!!! Don’t get me wrong I love air conditioning, but seriously A HOTEL STAY??*
*notice the use of two questionmarks
ANYWAY… I have gone virtually my whole life without air conditioning, and if mine were to go out tomorrow, I honestly would say “That sucks” and man up, oh man, and its not like Kansas City heat is Arizona heat.
Jun 13th, 2008
Daniel
I gotta side with Craig on this one - no AC means going to a hotel? If the AC not only broke down, but also came to life and began eating your children, then I could understand the hotel stay. But cmon, it’s just heat. You can’t live with it for a couple days? I live in SoCal, my house has no AC, and it’s gotten to 105 degrees around here. But we’re not staying in a hotel…cmon Joe, I thought you were tougher than that.
Jun 13th, 2008
Kevin
I used to think that this blog had the most intelligent readers on the web until i noticed that a Bo Jackson TD run in a random MNF game had received for votes than the Immaculate Reception for the greatest play in NFL history. Odd to say the least.
Jun 13th, 2008
roarke
What always bugs me about “the tackle” is that people continuously get the circumstances wrong. They always say that the Titans were one yard away from winning the Super Bowl - which is not accurate. If they had scored, they would have only tied the game with the extra point (I suppose they could have gone for two - and wouldn’t that have been excited to see - but the point is that the touchdown would not have won the game for them). I don’t know why, but it irritates me to no end that every time this play is mentioned on ESPN or elsewhere, they make this mistake.
Jun 13th, 2008
roarke
err - exciting to see
Jun 13th, 2008
paul
The Boise State play probably can’t compete in meaning with NFL playoff and Super Bowl games.* But, that game did have a lot more meaning that usual for a lot of people. The BCS conferences are big bullies and there are lots and lots of people who attend, work at, root for smaller conference teams who dream of knocking off the big boy. And OU is one of the biggest/most arrogant. And almost everyone - small conference folks included - figured OU would KILL BSU. So, pulling that play off, the way they did it, to finally punch the bully on the nose meant a ton. It said, “Look! We really CAN win.”
To me, that gives that play a lot of meaning. It wasn’t just for BSU, it was for all the little guys. If it had been OU pulling it off to beat BSU, it just wouldn’t have been the same.
Jun 13th, 2008
paul
Dang, forgot my posterisk.
*Okay, of course, it can’t.
Jun 13th, 2008
kj
“Not only that, but had Tyree dropped the ball, the game was not over.”
If Manning wouldn’t have evaded the sack, though, the game would effectively been over–since it would have been 4th and maybe 15.
From the worst case scenario to the best case scenario (how the play actually ended), I have to believe that play swung the Giants odds of winning game by at least 50 percent.
Jun 13th, 2008
Chris
I think that entire last DRIVE by the Giants might have been the greatest drive in NFL history (I know, blasphemous to Elway lovers…Joe, you’re probably happy to have THAT one off the top of the list), with the Tyree catch the ultimate highlight of that drive. I can remember three distinct plays from that drive. The near interception, the Tyree catch, and the touchdown fade.
But as far as single plays go, the IR takes the cake. People will always refer to it as the Greatest Play, just as Giants v. Colts ‘58 is the Greatest Game, and Bobby Thompson hit the Greatest Home Run.
Also…what’s with the Boise State Statue of Liberty getting all the pub all the time?? Does anybody forget that they had to run a Hook and Ladder on FOURTH DOWN to force overtime?? Or that the touchdown prior to the Statue Play was a Halfback Pass?? The Statue was a two point conversion in the 1st OT (incredibly risky) and deserves all the credit in the world, but WOW…that entire Fourth Quarter/OT was the most amazing thing I have seen on a football field since Frank Reich was slinging it to Don Beebe and Andre Reed…
Jun 13th, 2008
Curtis
Speaking of getting totally hooked on random sporting events, I remember being at a buddy’s house flipping channels probably close to ten years ago and finding the US Open on USA, and it was a match between this tall Russian doubles specialist named Max Mirnyi against a clay-courter - Magnus Norman. I followed tennis intensely as a kid in the late seventies and early eighties, and had followed it loosely since, but I had heard of the Swede, who seemed to lurk around the top ten for a few years then, but I had never heard of the Russian.
It was one of the greatest match-ups of strength against strength and see who wins I have ever seen. It went five sets, and they put up the net statistics in the fifth set, and Mirnyi had won something like 186 out of 324 approaches, and Norman had won 4 of 7. The Russian’s charisma against the stoic Swede/Swiss won us over, and his relentlessness. He could be passed five times in a row, but he was coming in for the sixth one. It was scintillating, one of the greatest matches I have ever seen. We watched rapt for three hours.
(IR is the greatest American football play of all-time.)
Jun 13th, 2008
Noel
Hey Joe
I can relate regarding getting involved into a game that you (theoretically) don’t care about. I think I am incapable of watching a game without become emotionally involved. As a long-time Cubs and Bears fan, I have vast experience watching playoff games where my teams are also at home watching said playoff games.
But time and again I find myself cheering like crazy for the Anaheim Angels or Jacksonville Jaguars or whoever. I went nuts when Mario Chalmers hit that 3 even though my only tie to Kansas was that I did a “state project” on them in 5th grade. Go figure.
Jun 13th, 2008
Corey
Joe, I was at that 2002 Browns-Chiefs game too. I assume you were there to cover the game from the Chiefs’ persepctive, but wasn’t the Browns fan inside you heartbroken? I would love to hear your account of that experience some time.
Jun 13th, 2008
Devin McCullen
Here’s the problem I have with the argument that the Tyree catch “didn’t decide the game”. When you argue for the IR, part of the argument is that it was the start of the Steelers dynasty. But just like the Giants still had to score the touchdown, the Steelers still had to go win 4 Super Bowls. And I understand why people say it was the start of the dynasty, but it is worth noting that in the year of the IR, the Steelers lost the next game to Miami.
I think the odds are better that the 70s Steelers would still have been a great team (although maybe not as great) if Franco had dropped the pass than the Giants would have still won the Super Bowl (and stopped the Pats from going 19-0) if Tyree had.
Jun 13th, 2008
Mike Williams
Have to agree with Steve - the Flutie pass to Phalen has to at least merit a spot in the poll, doesn’t it, Joe?
Jun 13th, 2008
Steve
One thing, I think, that separates a sports fan from someone-who-watches-sports is that thing where the game sucks you in and you’re rooting hard for a team you don’t care about (or you’re rooting for a different team than you thought you would going in). I had a girlfriend in college who went to UT (Texas) and she thought I should just be able to choose before the game which team I would pull for and that was that and would be offended that I didn’t root for UT. It just doesn’t work that way. Unless it’s a game where you have established rooting interests, you never know who you’re rooting for until the game begins.
Jun 13th, 2008
Chris C.
i wasn’t alive for the IR, so im probably not qualified to say whether Eli to Tyree is definitively greater or less great. but i do feel it is being sold short and possibly mischaracterized. two things about that play i’d like to point out are:
1) its unnameable. i’ve heard “the great escape”. i’ve heard “the helmet”. “the tyree connection”? since the play contained two miracles, it may be impossible to come up with an all-encompassing title. i think a play deserves a few points for being so indefinably great that it can’t be named.
2) i disagree with the decisive play criterion. the unrepeatability of a play implies an impossibly (literally) low level of likelihood. so impossibly low, in fact, that the play is considered miraculous, a function of fate or destiny. the name “immaculate reception” reflects this. i don’t like the band play as greatest because its more a result of chaos than anything else…a confluence of silly events. if the requirement that the play be literally decisive is replaced with a fate/destiny element (the cosmically decisive), eli-ree gets a bump.
no one, giants fans included, thought the giants would win (or admitted it if we did). lots of giants fans picked the pats for the spurious reverse jynx points, and we agreed with Brady’s arrogant chuckle at plaxico’s prescient scoring prediction. we watched the whole game talking about how 19-0 was just destined to happen, they were too good. this patriots franchise had too much destiny on their side, from the tuck rule, to the timeout in the ravens game, to every stupid play where patrick pass was wide open on the sideline for no reason (or maybe because they knew the other team’s plays in advance…that could be it too). when moss scored his touchdown we all talked glowingly of how valiantly the giants D had fought, and how we gave it our absolute best, and how brady was just too great. and the giants last drive looked shakey. but when tyree caught that ball, we all knew it was over. we just knew. eli escaped, tyree caught it on his helmet, the giants won the super bowl. maybe im just a biased giants fan, and everyone else didn’t have the same “holy shit, this is going to happen” reaction. but from my perpsective, even though it wasn’t technically decisive, it was cosmically decisive. no points for a play so powerful that it makes the result of a game a forgone conclusion in spite of its technical indecisiveness?
Jun 13th, 2008
Noah
“– To be the greatest play, it has to decide the game.”
Joe, normally I blindly agree with everything you say, but this criterion reeks too much of RBIs. Hey, it’s not David Tyree’s/Eli Manning’s fault that it didn’t decide the game, and it’s not because of Harris’s athleticism that his play DID decide the game. These plays were amazing because of / in spite of things that were largely outside of the players’ control. In other words, these play(er)s are remembered mostly because of the timing, so I think it’s unfair to penalize some plays because they didn’t decide the game.
That being said, the greatest play I ever saw was the Ozzie Smith play against the Braves on April 20th, 1978, the play that put him on the map.
Jun 13th, 2008
Mikey
While you make a great case for the IR, I think you have to take into consideration whether the play in question ultimately contributed to winning a championship. The Steelers, as noted by another poster, lost their next game.
To cite a baseball example, two of the greatest home runs I’ve ever seen live were the Martinez and Brosius home runs in Games 4 and 5 of the 2001 World Series. Game-tying homers with two out in the bottom of the ninth of the WS on CONSECUTIVE NIGHTS. Doesn’t get much better than that. Yet because the Yanks went on to lose that Series, when you talk about the absolute, drop-dead greatest homers of all time I don’t think they’re in the mix.
If you could calculate win probability in football (maybe you can and I just don’t know how to) I can’t imagine that any single play had a greater impact on the probability of winning not just a game but the championship as Manning-to-Tyree.
Jun 13th, 2008
erik
A/C
Having lived in Arizona, LA, NY, and points between, I will say of those places I’ve just named that none has summer heat like Kansas does. Texas gets worse, as do other places in the Southeast and Nevada. But over 100 with 50%+ humidity? Kansas City Summers will absolutely kill you. These guys just wish they had your hotel points, Joe! (I voted for the tackle. Best Super-Bowl I’ve been alive for, until this latest one…)
Jun 13th, 2008
tza
I was at the winking lizard on coventry for the ‘02 chiefs-browns tilt (the girlfriend was at CWR at the time). Being cleveland, everyone was a good sport - I remember watching tait rumbling down the field, everyone having a good laugh; then I saw the flag. I turned to my girlfriend and very quietly said, “I think we should be leaving now.”
Jun 13th, 2008
Doug
It’s got to be a Cleveland thing - aways rooting for the underdog. We’re just so used to it. How often is was Cleveland NOT the underdog in the 70’s and 80’s (my formative years)?
Jun 13th, 2008
will
I was going to go with the Cal-Stanford play but you’ve convinced me here to go with the IR.
Jun 13th, 2008
Josh in DC
I totally agree with what Steve said about sometimes not know who you’re rooting for until the game begins. It’s even worse for me occasionally, perhaps unique to college hoops. By the time the finals come around, I’ve already lost my brackets, so there’s no money at stake anymore. And there’s always a moment in the second half that someone hits or misses a big shot, and I say, “YES!” and then I think, “Huh, I guess I’m rooting for ______.”
Jun 13th, 2008
JO'C
In addition to the Flutie pass I’m surprised the Kordell Stewart Hail Mary to beat Michigan isn’t on the list.
If “The Play” wins it will add to the absolute hatred I have for this abomination. We have been subjected to over 25 years of having to watch this crap because of a blown call. Garner’s knee was down. The game was over. I say this having no dog in the fight, I just can’t stand it when a game is decided by shoddy officiating.
Jun 13th, 2008
Josh in DC
I’d vote for Gibson’s homer off Eckersly, if it were an option.
Arguing against any of these plays to make your case is unseemly. They were all terrific in rather different ways. I’m voting for The Band Played On, though, partly for the comic value.
Also, when you mention Boise State, the fact that one of the winning players got engaged after the game ended has GOT to figure into the discussion.
Jun 13th, 2008
AMR
My experience in rooting unexpectedly was the 2005 playoffs. As a Twins fan, I passionately hated the White Sox all season long and so wanted the Indians to pass them and make the playoffs. But once I started watching the playoff games, I just got drawn in to that team, Orlando Hernandez’s relief outing, AJ running out the dropped third strike. I noticed theat by cheering so hard against them all season, and watching them beat my Twins, I learned who they were and got invested in them pretty well.
Jun 13th, 2008
Chad
My recollections of the immaculate reception, which I watched on live TV as a young teen. “We” loved the Raiders then, Al had not moved the team yet; I was amazed by the Steeler D, the Raider O seemed helpless to move the ball all game, just before the last series an unlikely and awkward looking lefty rookie QB named Ken Stabler had somehow rushed in a TD to make it 7-6. I don’t remember if Madden put him in because of an injury to Lamonica or out of desperation…The TD seemed a miracle…and then…
Oakland would have lost to the Dolphins (as well), anyways… So I don’t think the game “changed anything” in terms of setting a “future path”…
The “play” was awesome because of the slam to the sense of entitlement to the Stanfurd boys;Elway claimed that game “ruined” his college career.
Jun 13th, 2008
Daniel
The beauty of sports is that this question can be answered in a number of different ways. Joe’s approach is interesting and makes it pretty objective, although not entirely. Unlike evaluating players, which should be as objective as possible, I like taking the subjective route for this question.
Which play can I watch over and over and over again and never get tired of it? The IR is cool, but looks kind of awkward – I mean, the ball hits two dudes who collided and bounces to someone else randomly. “The Play” used to be amazing, but it’s been overdone I think. The Boise State play is amazing, and is probably second on my list right now, but my guess is that it will fade over time since it wasn’t even the coolest play in that game (the hook and ladder was) and the game itself isn’t historically significant.
I vote for The Catch. I can watch Mays catch that ball over his shoulder, spin, and huck it into the infield as many times as you’re willing to show it to me.
Jun 13th, 2008
skott
i have to say, Flutie. that was iconic.
i wish the USA “do you believe in miracles” game could be one moment. THAT’s mine.
Jun 13th, 2008
Mikey
What the heck is the Miracle at the Meadowlands? The Herm Edwards fumble recovery?
As a Jersey resident, I’d say any of the following qualifies as a miracle at the Meadowlands:
-The home team not getting booed
-Spotting two attractive girls in the entire stadium
-Getting out of the parking lot in under two hours
Jun 13th, 2008
Creston
My problem with the Immaculate Reception is that it was PLAIN STUPID LUCK. Harris was sort of running around like a chicken without its head, the ball bounces off a guy, and lands in his hands like a feather, it completely threw off the defense and so he could run unopposed into the end zone.
How can something that’s 100% pure luck be considered the greatest play ever? Manning at least evaded 37 Patriots all by himself, threw a 40 yard bullet while having 900 pounds of steroids hanging off him, and Tyree fingertips a ball against his helmet with a defender in his grill, and managed to HOLD ON TO IT after slamming into the ground.
At least they did that all themselves.
Franco Harris was probably running around thinking “Well, I’m glad the game is finally over, I could go for some pizza!” and suddenly, “Holy heck, how did this football wind up in my hands?! Wait… RUN!!!!”
I guess if all the defenders chasing Manning had fallen down because of a miraculous earthquake on the field, making it a luckier play, it would count more?
Oh well, I don’t actually even really care.
The Cal-Stanford play still stands as the ultimate epitomy of referee uselessness. “Hey the play is still going. Is that the band? Wait. Those are fans! They’re all on the field! What should I do?! There’s 800 illegal participants on the field, throwing unintentional blocks! Oh, touchdown! Game over! I need a Bud Light…”
How the BLEEP did that play ever stand? How on earth was there never an official protest on it?
If I was a college coach and my team needed one touchdown to win the game on the final play, I’d call a “24 Left, Band Rush!” play, and have my band trample the defenders so I could score. Apparently that is legal in college football.
Jun 13th, 2008
James
[S]omeone who used to love the NBA but now doesn’t like it at all, . . . someone who used to have strong feelings about teams and players but now thinks the whole league is run badly . . .
Boy, that sums me up, too. As for your inexplicable newfound Celtics fandom, Joe, I think that can be explained largely by this team not really having anything to do with the old Celtics. They were crummy for so long that most of the sheen of the ’80s and all those earlier titles wore off, and it’s hard to root against the idea of KG and Ray Allen finally winning a title.
My experience with random rooting came during the 2002 World Series. I have no attachment to either the Giants or the Angels, but as I watched those games I was desperately keen to see the Giants win. I was crushed when they blew game 6 and the series. For a week afterward, I’d wake up in the middle of the night because I was still spinning the game in my head. Dusty, oh Dusty, why’d you pull Ortiz? Why’d you pull Worrell? Why’d you pull Rodriguez?
Jun 13th, 2008
Brett
My pick would be one that most people don’t care about. We also call it “The Catch,” but it was in the 2005 Capital One Bowl. Iowa had lead virtually the whole game, including a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter. But then LSU’s backup quarterback, a guy named JaMarcus Russell, had two TD passes in the fourth quarter, giving LSU the lead with 46 seconds left to play.
It was a surprise that Iowa was in the Capital One Bowl in the first place. Iowa was coming off of a couple of pretty good years, but they had a first-year starter at quarterback, and the running back corps was plagued with injuries all season long. The Hawkeyes had the nation’s worst rushing game that year due to all the injuries, but Drew Tate took it all on his shoulders, and led Iowa to a 9-2 record in the regular season, and a share of the Big Ten title.
So after LSU took the lead, I was thinking, “that’s okay, we’ve got some timeouts left, we just need a couple of good passes to get into range for the game winning field goal.” Whether lack of communication or mental lapse, no timeouts were used, so it ended up with Iowa lining up for their last snap with the clock running out. Tate takes the snap, and thanks to busted coverage, finds Warren Holloway open down the field. Holloway was a little undersized and half a step slow for a Big Ten receiver, but he worked hard and got rewarded with a starting spot his senior season. He ran clean routes, threw good blocks, but to most Iowa fans he was an unknown, with less than 250 yards receiving that season. But in those last seconds of the Capital One Bowl, Tate found Holloway, and 56 yards later, Holloway had his first career touchdown in his last game, Iowa had their third consecutive 10-win season, and Nick Saban had a bad taste in his mouth as he left LSU to (breifly) become the coach of the Miami Dolphins.
Jun 13th, 2008
D.B. Cooper
In theory, I should be rooting for the Celtics, for purely anti-Kobe, and pro-KG reasons. But geez, I’m finding it impossible to root for anything Boston. Like Simmons and Sully and the boys need anything else to bloviate about.
Jun 13th, 2008
SBG
My vote goes to “The Catch”. You know, Montana to Dwight Clark, the game that launched the 49ers into the Super Bowl and their Dynasty, which produced 5 Super Bowl titles.
Jun 13th, 2008
SBG
BTW, as an enormous KG fan (I saw his first professional pre-season game and said that night — this kid’s a player :)), last night’s game was sah-weet. KG’s always been about team and the scoring in the fourth quarter was KG: 6, Posey 6, Pierce 5, Allen 4, House 3, and Powe 2. An amazing team effort.
Jun 13th, 2008
rodg12
That’s mine as well Brett. I went absolutely freaking nuts when I saw the pass go in the air and Holloway wide open behind the defenders. I thought for sure it was over because of our mismanagement of the clock making the game come down to the last play. I still can’t believe that play to this day. A Senior catches his first career touchdown on the last play to win his last game? Unbelievable. I’ll tell you one other thing, Warren Holloway will never have to buy a dinner in the state of Iowa again!
Jun 13th, 2008
rodg12
Oh, and Joe, why use ‘Behind the Back’ for the BSU play when everyone knows it as the Statue of Liberty play?????? (That’s the one I voted for BTW
)
Jun 13th, 2008
truth
Joe, you hate Robert Parish so much that you are misspelling his name (one R for the big man, please.)
And of course you were rooting for the Celtics last night; it’s the classic matchup of good v. evil, and the Celtics do that thing that so few in the league do any more: play defense.
Bye by Fakers. You can’t handle The Truth!
Jun 13th, 2008
Daniel
James - Of the two teams you could have picked in that series, why the Giants? Two huge egos (Bonds and Kent) against a team that had never even been to the Series with a guy like Salmon who was one of the most respected players in baseball for his leadership and demeanor. I’m just curious why the Giants appealed to you.
Jun 13th, 2008
Justyo
That was an incredible game for Kobe haters. Here he was, at home, in his MVP season up 24 points, about to take control of the finals and win a ring without Shaq, putting him on a pedestal with the one and only 23. But no… Too much Pierce, too much Ray Allen. I loved the reverse lay-up and couldn’t agree more that it is right up there with the 23 hand switch, if not BEYOND, the switch because a) I always though the switch wasn’t totally necessary and b) Ray was starting to come down when he spun that thing up there. Incredible. There was 4 distinct decisions while in the air at a critical moment and he scored. But the guy has been so cool the whole series, so committed. In all the deserved hoopla of KG coming to Boston, Ray sometimes gets overlooked but the truth is the Lakers do not have answer for the Celtics big three. At this point I don’t even think Bynum helps.
YET it was Ray’s complete dusting of Sasha at the end of the game, when he snapped both of the kids overhyped ankles with a subtle move and scored the game winner that was truly amazing. Sasha was so revered here in L.A. after game 3, the kid was ready to have his number enshrined, he was the new Michael Cooper, tough D, all 3’s. Um, I don’t think so.
Another observation - is it just me or does it seem like KG hyperventilates a lot and has trouble with his breathing during the game. He seems to be constantly talking to himself, shaking his hands and I heard him mention how Yoga has helped him but man… There is not a Laker alive that can hang with him on the post. If he had Kobe’s assassin attitude he would be a legend.
Looking at the Eastern conference I say the Celtics have more than one in them. So all the Celtic haters better take a deep breath along with KG.
But it is so very nice to see Kobe and Phil and the Lakers eat this one. I bet one Shaquille O’Neal is happy this morning.
Jun 13th, 2008
jjf3
I feel like an idiot because I voted for “the catch” thinking in all-sports terms. While the other choices should have made it obvious to me that you were talking football, my brain immediately jumped to May’s catch, turn, and throw from deep center. Guess that shows just how much my brain has checked out on the NFL…
judging on football terms, I’ll go IR 1, the play 2, and Boise State-OU as the greatest single “run” of plays ever (ahead of even the “Drives”) - they finally cemented what will eventually be the next-to-last nail in the BCS coffin…ultimately making life better for all of us…
Jun 13th, 2008
wcw
..and as the first commenter, I think I can (perhaps) end this string of lovely comments with a new ‘play’: my favorite strikeout.
It was this: http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1998/B08050OAK1998.htm at the tail end of Tom Candiotti’s nice little career. Exiting the Hated Dodgers (and this from a kid from Walnut Creek, birthplace of my brother and a place for As and Giants and not Bums, seemed wholly appropriate), he was at the end of his career and pitching his usual adequate season. And of course with the knuckler. Nothing special.
Except he was facing the Yankees, whom if I were an AL fan I might hate more that the Dodgers. And inexplicably was pitching really well. Preposterously well, really, for a guy everyone knew was near the end of the line. He was headed for a complete-game win, when who comes up in the ninth — with two out, one on, potential to tie the game — but one Darryl Strawberry. You know, The Darryl, before there was The Barry. Career OPS+ of 140 or something. A hitter. Facing some knuckleballer. Here’s the pitch..
It was slow, even for Candiotti, who was slow, even for a knuckleballer. Strawberry takes a mighty cut. The Darryl is perhaps three seconds early. The ball is still hanging in the air as he finishes his followthrough. The catcher does not put a glove on the ball until after the ump signals the strike. I mean, slow. I was just some schlub watching on the television, and yet I was thinking ‘wow!’ to myself and the ball still was not in the glove. Slow.
Straw waggles his bat. ‘Homer At The Bat’ is long past, glory is long past, but he can still hit. And this would be nice. The pitch. It dangles in the air. It is slower than the last. It gives you time to polish your glasses, adjust your stance, and swing mightily.
Strawberry does.
All air.
I mean, it’s like a fairy tale. Since Strawberry can still hit (OPS+ that year? 132), and these balls are slower than you or I could probably throw on purpose.
Candiotti takes the ball, toes the slab, all that junk. And delivers. The oh-and-two pitch. A waste pitch, usually. Not this time.
This is the slowest knuckleball I have ever seen. It is like some caricature of a knuckleball. Even the crappy teevee cameras can focus on the stitches of the seams of the baseball. They hover. It darts — slowly. Very slowly. I feel like I could drive to the Coliseum, park the car, walk to the plate, borrow the bat, take a swing, and get a hit, on the selfsame pitch. The Darryl thinks so, too. He gathers himself, you can see it, waits on the pitch, waits some more, checks his watch, sends out his drycleaning. Swings.
Do I have to speak the obvious? It was the strikeout to end all strikeouts, by a journeyman knuckler who fashioned a career against a supremely talented, deeply flawed man who in the depths of his troubles today could probably still hit better than a dozen of the more-mediocre talents on the field today. As the man said, it was gorgeous, and it was terrible, and I wasn’t sure I had seen it correctly.
Strike three, game over.
Jun 14th, 2008
Brian Gunn
Couldn’t agree more with Creston — the Immaculate Reception was essentially a fluke. An amazing, awesome fluke, but it said virtually nothing about the athleticism of anyone on the field, and it happened only b/c a couple different players screwed up (badly). To me it’s akin to the famous play where Isiah Rider leaped to save a ball from going out of bounds, flung it over his shoulder, and watched as the ball went through the net. Cool to watch, but really, at the end of the day, a product of randomness rather than greatness.
With the Tyree play, on the other hand, you had a great pass rush, great downfield coverage, but even greater evasion by Manning and, greatest of all, the catch itself. And of course it was on the biggest, greatest stage in modern sports history. I hate to say it, but the Immaculate Reception doesn’t even deserve to be mentioned in the same paragraph as the Tyree play.
Jun 15th, 2008
David Wintheiser
There probably is no fandom purer than that of an 11-year old, which I think is why the plays we see when we’re young burn themselves into our consciousness as much as they do.
With that said, I’d like to propose, not the greatest play in NFL history, but the greatest back-to-back plays in NFL history.
The Minnesota Vikings had been, probably not a dynasty, but a very solid franchise during the 1970s. Unfortunately, by 1980 the franchise was showing the results of a steady decline in fortunes and talent: Fran Tarkenton had been replaced by Tommy Kramer, Chuck Foreman had been replaced by Ted Brown, the Purple People Eaters were gone, replaced by guys that nobody outside of the Upper Midwest could name today. (Randy Holloway? Mark Mullaney?) But Bud Grant was still the coach, and in 1980, his club stood at 8-6 going into the final two weeks of the season. The Vikings only needed to win one of those two games to clinch the NFC Central title, but the problem was the two games were against the top two teams in the AFC Central, the Cleveland Browns and the Houston Oilers. The game against the Browns was perceived as slightly easier, strictly because it would be played at home rather than on the road.
Though the Vikes managed to grab a lead late, the Browns pushed down the field and scored to take a 23-21 lead very, very late — there was less than a minute left when the Vikings took over at their own 20 yard line following the kickoff with no timeouts.
Kramer took the Vikes to the line of scrimmage, dropped back, and fired a long pass over the middle to tight end Joe Senser (who, if his career had not been shortened by injury, would have taken his place among the great NFL tight ends); Senser almost immediately flipped the ball back to Ted Brown in a perfectly-executed hook-and-ladder and took his defender out at the knees with nearly the same motion. The Browns were in a prevent, though, and Brown realized that if he were tackled inbounds, the game would likely be over before the club could line up for another play, so he took off for the sidelines, getting out of bounds at about midfield.
One last play, and everybody knows what’s coming: the Hail Mary. Kramer drops back, heaves the ball toward the end zone, and what looks like sixteen Browns leap into the air at the two yard line after the ball in flight. The ball bounces off a defender, though, and Viking receiver Ahmad Rashad reaches out, one-handed, and cradles the ball into his gut as he falls backward into the end zone for the game-winning touchdown.
The stadium went berserk. When my mother heard the news, she called me to make sure the house was still standing.
The combination certainly loses some points for being a regular season contest, and not even the final game of the regular season (though the Vikes would go on to lose the final game in Houston, so the win was crucial to their playoff chances). More to the point, the Vikings opening round playoff opponent, the Philadelphia Eagles, squelched them 31-16 en route to their own Super Bowl defeat.
But in terms of sheer improbability, take the Dolphins-Chargers hook-and-ladder and multiply by the Doug Flutie BC Hail Mary — that’s some serious points right there, folks.
And of course, I was 13, not 11, so I can’t possibly be overemphasizing the significance of the plays through youthful exhuberance…
Jun 15th, 2008
MattieShoes
I had to vote for “The Catch” based purely on emotion. I was too young to see the play or the IR live, so it always felt like more of a sports bloopers reel. But I remember being a small kid, watching “The Catch” live, and thinking “Holy crap, did that just happen?!”
Tangent alert!
I recently watched the 1982 NCAA Mens Basketball finals, and that has my vote for the coolest basketball game ever. Some reasons:
1) It’s college basketball which is far cooler than NBA basketball. It just is.
2) It’s the NCAA finals
3) It was neck and neck the entire way, with something like sixteen lead changes
4) Michael Jordan, James Worthy, and Sam Perkins on the SAME TEAM!
5) This was probably the last time in Michael Jordan’s career that he wasn’t the star of the team. He was a freshman, and Worthy was a senior and the go-to guy. Early on in the game, Jordan was catching and immediately passing it away like the role players usually do. It was bizarre to watch, knowing what was coming in future years.
6) The announcers were actually talking about Jordan’s high school baseball skill. Ha!
7) Dean Smith had been the NC coach since 1961, had made it to six final fours, but never won the big game. He was the Marty Schottenheimer of college basketball. The man revolutionized how basketball was played and was an amazing man off the basketball court as well, so it was extra cool to see his first NCAA championship.
9) NC’s first FOUR scores came off Patrick Ewing goaltending violations (hopped up on speed, I tell you!). They benched him, and as soon as he came back into the game, he picked up a fifth goaltend. Something like 1 in 6 points scored by NC in the game were off Ewing goaltending violations. It was just surreal.
10) Six players in this game went on to the pros, and accumulated 77 years in the NBA, 33 all star games, collected 9 championship rings, and seven Finals MVP awards. How is that even possible? Is it worth mentioning that all 9 chamionship rings and all 7 Finals MVP awards came from the same team, North Carolina?
11) This is the game where it all started. Late in the second half, Jordan makes his first crazy impossible surrounded-by-defenders can’t-see-the-basket layup in a big game, giving his team a three point lead with time running out. Georgetown came back to take a one point lead, then with seconds left, Jordan nails the game winning shot in the biggest college game there is. At the time, I’m sure the sentiment was more like, “Wow, that freshman really came through!” but in retrospect, this is where the legend of the best basketball player of all time began.
12) This is just trivia, but… Worthy of course went to the Lakers (and played with Jabbar, who crushed Dean Smith’s hopes for a NCAA championship in 1968). In 1990, Perkins also went to the Lakers and played with his old teammate. They made it all the way to the finals, where Sam Perkins hit a game winning three pointer in game 1 of the finals. Alas, that was the only game they won. You see, this time they were playing AGAINST their old teammate, Michael Jordan. Together though, I think the three of them averaged something like 65 points a game in that Finals series.
13) One of the NBA players from that game whose name hasn’t come up yet is Sleepy Floyd. He grew up in the same town as Worthy, always second fiddle. He never won a championship and only made one all-star game, but he was no slouch. He would have led the league in assists one year if it weren’t for that pesky Magic Johnson. He holds the NBA record for the most points in a quarter in the playoffs (29!), and the most in a half (39), hit 12 consecutive shots in the 4th quarter, and finished the game with 51 points. Oh yeah, and that game was against James Worthy and the Lakers.
Jun 16th, 2008
Ankit
The Tyree Connection for me for the following reasons:
The play was a not a random/fluke event
The play occurred in THE Championship game — Super Bowl — against an UNDEFEATED team (major ultra-mega points)
The play occurred despite perfect execution by the defense (pressure/rush the QB/cover the receivers downfield)
The reason why the IR is not the greatest: it was a random/fluke play, did not occur in a Championship game, the Steelers lost the next game.
Reason why any of the college plays are not the greatest: its not a professional event, too wide of a disparity in the talent of players from one team to the next and one position to the next even on the same team.
Jun 16th, 2008
Josh in DC
Since no event even approached 50 percent, I think Joe needs to set up another poll with the top 4, and keep narrowing it down until something get 50 percent. There’s a lot of anti-The Play out there. It can’t the The Winner.
Jun 16th, 2008
Omar
Yes, the Immaculate Reception is without a doubt the greatest most legitimate play ever. And will always be.
Jul 7th, 2008
Lt. Dangle Soltez
the tuck rule and the immaculate reception. the NFL owes Raider Nation 2 Rings. BTW - Steelers are fanooks!!
Jul 7th, 2008
Lt. John Dangle
the tuck rule and the immaculate reception. the NFL owes Raider Nation 2 Rings. BTW - Steelers are fanooks!!
Jul 7th, 2008
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