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How about the 1972 playoff game between the Raiders and the Steelers, when a rookie named Franco Harris caught a fourth down deflected pass just before the football hit the ground and ran it in for a touchdown as time expired. Only Franco Harris knows for sure if the football actually hit the ground or not. The Immaculate Reception!!
As a New York Giants fan, two memories come to mind that will last with me forever. To give this appropriate backdrop, I grew up in the 1970s. NFL football was probably at a high water mark in those days. Many of the allegiances NFL football fans have today can be traced to those days, because there were a few ‘superteams’, that dominated throughout the course of that decade. I grew up in Northern New Jersey, near New York city. I was in elementary school in the mid to late 70s when I became obsessed with NFL football. My friends all had their favorite teams: the Dolphins, Steelers, Vikings, and most notably, the Dallas Cowboys. No exaggeration, very few kids in my school were fans of either the Giants or the Jets, for that matter. However, I stuck with my Giants, and never missed one televised game. I stuck with them throughout 1976, 1977, 1978, through players long come and gone: Beasley Reece, Doug Kotar, John Mendenhall, Gary Shirk, Ray Rhodes. I was even present at the now famous “Miracle of the Meadowlands” on November 19th, 1978, in the stands. My dad was good enough to get these tickets, a rarity, since every game was sold out. This was the first regular season Giants game I’d ever attended. We were also some of the few remaining when Herman Edwards scooped up the ball from Larry Csonka, and ran back 25 yards with under 30 seconds remaining. I’ll never forget the scene in the parking lot after the game, as those who were tailgating celebrating the Giants victory became violent as the remaining fans came out into the parking lot to inform the tailgaters what had happened. An Eagles fans charter bus was vandalized right in front of me, several fights broke out, I remember a drunken fan actually urinating on someone else’s hibachi. Almost immediately, the Giants fired their offensive coordinator, shortly after the game had ended.
The next day, I went to school and received full consternation from others, the ones who were smitten by the Roger Staubachs and the Terry Bradshaws, rooting for those teams in Northern New Jersey, as I wore my Giants wool hat to school, undaunted. I never wavered from my Giants. The fans were burning tickets a few weeks later when the Cardinals came to Giants stadium, and a plane was chartered over Giants stadium flying the message “15 years of lousy football, we’ve had enough”. The fans were chanting “We’ve had enough”, higher and higher. It was a low point, and as a rabid NFL fan, it would have been very convenient to jump ship to the Oakland Raiders, the Dolphins, Vikings, or Rams. I stayed the course, and continued to watch every Giants game. 1979, another 6-10 season. 1980 was even worse, 4-12, but something happened that year that I thought I would never see: the Giants actually beat the Dallas Cowboys in an actual NFL game, 38-35. The year previous, I thought the Giants were actually going to beat the Cowboys, and they choked away the game (and the season) by allowing the Cowboys to score 10 points in the last 5 minutes of the 4th quarter. The Giants had won 4 straight games previous to rebound to 4-5, after losing their first 5 games, and were about to even it up at 5-5. Instead, they blew the game, and lost every game remaining in the season, save for one. But in this case, the Giants had actually beaten the Cowboys, and I thought even with a 4-12 team, there was hope for 1981, because the Giants had lost more players to injury that year than almost any team in the history of the game.
1981, as it turns out, was the year when I finally received payback for being a loyal fan. The playoff drought had reached 18 years, but it was to end. 22 year old Lawrence Taylor was the second overall pick of the 1981 draft, and he almost single-handedly propelled the Giants to one of the best defensive squads in the league. They allowed only 257 points the entire season, which I think was good for third best in the league. In spite of this, the team was in a three game losing streak in the middle of the season which saw them drop to 5-6. Then, in week 11, they went to Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia and defeat the defending NFC champions 20-10. The following week, they dropped a hard-fought game to the eventual Super Bowl champion 49ers, 17-10. From that point forward, they won their next 2 games to make it to 8-7. Week 16 was upon the NFL, and the Giants needed to beat the Dallas Cowboys at home, while hoping the Jets could beat the Packers at Shea Stadium. Only this combination would ensure the Giants of breaking the 18 year playoff drought. The Giants were to play the Cowboys on Saturday. As the Eagles did the year previously, the Giants broke out their road white jerseys to wear at home, as the Cowboys were in the throes of the “blue jersey” curse, where their record was 1-13 over the past 14 games. The Cowboys were 13-2, but had incentive to win, as they would capture the #1 seed if they won, and the 49ers were to lose.
The first half of the game was played in the usual Meadowlands wind tunnel, and the Giants defense, as they had the entire year, stepped up, and held the Cowboys scoreless. I think the Cowboys had less than 40 yards of total offense. However, the Giants offense fared no better, with backup Scott Brunner, who was starting for Phil Simms, who was lost for the season. The game was scoreless at halftime. Finally, towards the end of the third quarter, the Giants got on the board with a questionable TD. If there was instant replay reviews today, the play would have probably been overruled, as their tight end Tom Mullady, appeared to juggle the ball in the end zone as he was tackled. The Cowboys wasted no time responding on the next drive with a TD of their own. Then, the Giants threw an interception and the Cowboys looked poised to put the game away. However, the Giants defense stiffened, and held the Cowboys to a field goal, so now the game is 10-7 Cowboys. Things looked worse when the Giants went 3 and out on the following drive. I was very bummed out. The Cowboys got the ball back with about 5 minutes left and began to run the clock out. One more first down, and the game was over. The Cowboys QB, Danny White pitched the ball back to Tony Dorsett, and I can still remember the Giants George Martin recovering the ball. I about touched the ceiling as I jumped up cheering. However, the Giants offensive line was called for holding, and two more plays netted back 7 yards. It was 4th and 13, and the Giants were forced to go for it. That set the stage for a play that pre-dates the David Tyree play, when Scott Brunner broke out of the pocket and hit wide receiver John Mistler who was cutting left over the field for a gain of over 20 yards. I was never more excited. The Giants were able to position themselves for a tying field goal, however, it was pretty long, and the Giants kicker had missed two shorter attempts earlier in the game, due mainly to the wind conditions at Giants Stadium. However, Joe Danelo tied the game up at 10-10 on the final play of regulation. The game was to go into overtime. A tie would not be enough for the Giants to have a chance at the playoffs, they would have to win it outright.
The Cowboys won the coin toss, but chose to kick off. The Giants went 3 and out, and the Cowboys took over. And wouldn’t you know it, but Tony Dorsett fumbled again. However, Danelo hit the upright on a short field goal, and the Giants were stymied again. The Cowboys took over deep in their own territory, and this time the Giants defense stepped up again, and forced Danny White to throw an interception. The Giants kept it on the ground, and this time Danelo didn’t miss. The Giants had won 13-10, and I had reached my football Mt.Everest. Even if the Jets didn’t win the following day, the Giants had beaten what I thought was the best team in the NFL, and had finally, finally, finished with a winning season. I remember wearing that same hat, as my parents got my sister and me in the car, and we drove down the Garden State Parkway to visit some friends. I had the window open, even though it was freezing outside, and was swirling my hat in the air, like it was a pom-pom. There were other cars that were beeping their horns enthusiastically as my dad drove. That was an incredible, uplifting feeling for myself personally, as I felt that 7 years of dedicated patronage had finally paid off.
As a postscript, the Jets did beat the Packers the following day. And the Giants had broken their playoff drought. They played back in Philadelphia against the Eagles the following week, and jumped on the Eagles in the first quarter, and held on to win 27-21. They went on to San Francisco and lost to the eventual world champions, but even in defeat, I felt vindicated for sticking with a team that was putrid for years.
Five years later, it would all pay off. The 1986 NFC Championship game, the last few minutes of it, when I knew the Giants were going to Super Bowl XXI to face the Broncos was one of the warmest feelings a long suffering fan can experience. Here’s a clip of the end of that game. For those of you on this thread who are Giants fans and are old enough to remember, you will have a smile on your face as you watch this:
10 years of crap for me, and I knew during this period of the game, as did all those fans, that our time had finally come. The absolute greatest thrill of a lifetime. No disrespect to David Tyree and Eli Manning, but this can never be topped. Nothing can. I was a younger person then, and more idealistic. This was a more innocent time. You can't experience something like this when you get older, more mature.
The Giants defense that year had knocked out Danny White, twice, Tommy Kramer, Ron Jaworski, and Joe Montana. Now Jay Schroeder. That defense, though not considered in the realm of the Bears defense the year previous, should have been, for they were every bit as dominant.
Last edited by Mike from back east; 08-05-2010 at 03:09 PM..
Reason: spacing
Mike, that was some darn good writing as well! Good stuff!
Yea, from what I remember of the Giants of the late 60's, Allie Sherman was being serenaded by the Giant fans in his last season as head coach "Good bye Allie, Good bye Allie, Good bye Allie, it's time to see you go." I remember Alex Webster taking over and bringing a few good seasons to the organization, then he was dismissed after a lousy season.
And Bill Arnsparger definitely did not work out! From the early 70's to the early 80's the Giant fans didn't have much to cheer about, that's for sure.
I wish I had this book still, don't know about its collectibility, but back in the 1970's when I belonged to the Sports Illustrated book club, I got a book from them that was a GREAT read, considering the time. It was called "Seven Days to Sunday". It was basically covering a week of the 1968 NFL season with the New York Giants. It was written by Eliot Asinof, one of my favorite authors.
The Giants had loyal fans, in that decade they were really suffering through some brutal years. Ask Fran Tarkenton. And Craig Morton! Ask Earl Morrall!
And they had a bad luck streak about them as well. They drafted a running back number one in 1964, I believe, by the name of Tucker Frederickson, and by the next year he tore the hell out of his knee and just never was the same player. He was out of Auburn, a heck of a back with a lot of potential. Sad.
So you used to be an Eagles fan and jumped off the bandwagon? Go figure
No I was in pain that day and could not sleep for days after that but as tme went on I realized how great of a comeback that was and that the Eagles had every opportunity to quit and never did.
I also watched this entire game again yesterday because of how exciting the 4th qtr was. Greastest NFL game of all time IMO
As a Colts season ticket holder, I've been fortunate to personally witness some great games with Peyton Manning under center. My faves of the games I've attended:
1. 2006 AFC Championship Game vs. Patriots - Colts come from 18 down and eventually overtake the Pats. Marlin Jackson picks off Tom Brady to seal the deal. The crowd was insane and the floor shaking underneath me after that INT.
2. 2009 Colts vs. Patriots - Colts down by as much as 17 before mounting the comeback, highlighted by Belichick's infamous 4-and-2 call.
3. 2004 regular season vs. Chargers - Manning hits Brandon Stokely on a slant route to take over the regular-season TD pass record from Dan Marino.
4. 2009 AFC Championship Game vs. Jets - Not as memorable as the championship game vs. the Pats, but it got us to another Super Bowl.
5. 2007 regular season vs. Baltimore Ravens IN Baltimore - Colts punk the Ratbirds 44-20 after Baltimore almost spoils NE's perfect regular season. The older Baltimore fans are so bitter, and I heard it from them, believe me. They were all gone by halftime, though.
Of course, I've also been a witness to some bad losses, notably:
1. 2005 Divisional Round loss to Steelers - I will never forgive Vanderchoke for the wide right miss, but to be fair to him, Manning launched an ill-advised deep ball to Reggie Wayne that kept us from making the kick closer. Oh, and why did Nick Harper have to cut inside? I hate his wife, too.
2. 2007 Divisional Round loss to Chargers - Billy Frickin' Volek leads the Chargers on the final drive, but it shouldn't have come down to that. Marvin Harrison fumbles early in the game on what would've likely been a drive that would've put Indy up 14, and Kenton "Stone Hands" Keith killed a later drive that would've made the difference for Indy.
As for games I only watched on TV:
1. Super Bowl 42 - David Tyree's catch and Eli-to-Burress to drop the Pats to 18-1 and no ring.
2. 2003 regular season Colts vs. Buccaneers - Dungy returns to Tampa. Colts down 21 with under 5 minutes in the game only to mount one of the most memorable comebacks in history.
3. 1995 AFC Championship Game vs. Steelers - Colts overachieve that season but had their chance to make the Super Bowl. Quentin Coryatt has the ball bounce off his chest on what would've been a pick-6. Instead, Pittsburgh gets another chance and winds up scoring the game-winning TD. Oh, and Bailey caught the ball.
4. Super Bowl 23 Bengals vs. Niners - I grew up a Bengals fan (the days before Mike Brown destroyed the franchise), and I still have nightmares over Montana-to-John Taylor.
As a Colts season ticket holder, I've been fortunate to personally witness some great games with Peyton Manning under center. My faves of the games I've attended:
1. 2006 AFC Championship Game vs. Patriots - Colts come from 18 down and eventually overtake the Pats. Marlin Jackson picks off Tom Brady to seal the deal. The crowd was insane and the floor shaking underneath me after that INT.
2. 2009 Colts vs. Patriots - Colts down by as much as 17 before mounting the comeback, highlighted by Belichick's infamous 4-and-2 call.
3. 2004 regular season vs. Chargers - Manning hits Brandon Stokely on a slant route to take over the regular-season TD pass record from Dan Marino.
4. 2009 AFC Championship Game vs. Jets - Not as memorable as the championship game vs. the Pats, but it got us to another Super Bowl.
5. 2007 regular season vs. Baltimore Ravens IN Baltimore - Colts punk the Ratbirds 44-20 after Baltimore almost spoils NE's perfect regular season. The older Baltimore fans are so bitter, and I heard it from them, believe me. They were all gone by halftime, though.
Of course, I've also been a witness to some bad losses, notably:
1. 2005 Divisional Round loss to Steelers - I will never forgive Vanderchoke for the wide right miss, but to be fair to him, Manning launched an ill-advised deep ball to Reggie Wayne that kept us from making the kick closer. Oh, and why did Nick Harper have to cut inside? I hate his wife, too.
2. 2007 Divisional Round loss to Chargers - Billy Frickin' Volek leads the Chargers on the final drive, but it shouldn't have come down to that. Marvin Harrison fumbles early in the game on what would've likely been a drive that would've put Indy up 14, and Kenton "Stone Hands" Keith killed a later drive that would've made the difference for Indy.
As for games I only watched on TV:
1. Super Bowl 42 - David Tyree's catch and Eli-to-Burress to drop the Pats to 18-1 and no ring.
2. 2003 regular season Colts vs. Buccaneers - Dungy returns to Tampa. Colts down 21 with under 5 minutes in the game only to mount one of the most memorable comebacks in history.
3. 1995 AFC Championship Game vs. Steelers - Colts overachieve that season but had their chance to make the Super Bowl. Quentin Coryatt has the ball bounce off his chest on what would've been a pick-6. Instead, Pittsburgh gets another chance and winds up scoring the game-winning TD. Oh, and Bailey caught the ball.
4. Super Bowl 23 Bengals vs. Niners - I grew up a Bengals fan (the days before Mike Brown destroyed the franchise), and I still have nightmares over Montana-to-John Taylor.
I could not believe the Pats defense let Tom Brady down and allowed the Colts to come back from a 21-3 deficit
There is a game out there a long time ago that was quite memorable, not only from what happened during the game but its impact on the future of the game, especially from the standpoint of television. And the innocent bystander to all this "AFL history" was a young actress by the name of Jennifer Edwards. I'm referring to the made for television movie "Heidi".
By 1968 the AFL had grown up. Though the league was just 8 years old, it had just the year previous joined in to a merger with the National Football League. The Oakland Raiders and the Kansas City Chiefs were clearly the class of the AFL, but in the eastern division the New York Jets were starting to emerge as a team to be on the lookout for.
The NFL for the most part was still a "three yards and a cloud of dust" league. But the AFL always favored a wide open style of play. And by 1968 the best teams in the league favored that type offense, with the Oakland Raiders having Daryle "The Mad Bomber" Lamonica with Warren Wells and Fred Biletnikoff at wide receivers and the New York Jets with Joe Namath at quarterback and Don Maynard and George Sauer Jr. at wide receivers. It was a great matchup that took place on week 10 of the AFL season.
It started as a slugfest right off the get go with penalty flags flying. There were several skirmishes during the game and one big one with Jets db Jim Hudson getting tossed out for fighting in the third quarter. But like two heavyweight fighters trading licks the score never got anymore than seven points up until about 2:50 left in the game as the Jets kicker Jim Turner booted a field goal to make the score 32-29. Then the real 10 round fight started.
Curt Gowdy and Al DeRogatis were NBC's top football broadcasting team and were doing the game on the tube, and suddenly the game was shifted to a series of commercials (yes, even in 1968 the networks were good about bombarding tv viewers with them). And after that, NBC went to a three hour childrens movie called "Heidi". In the meantime Oakland went down the field in no time and the one db Lamonica had in his sights was Mike D'Amato, who was Jim Hudson's replacement. Lamonica worked on his side of the field that last quarter, hitting Biletnikoff, Wells, and tight end Billy Cannon repeatedly on short passes. What hurt the Jets as well was the fact a number of Jet defenders were carted off the field with injuries in different parts of the game, lb Ralph Baker and lb Larry Grantham were two that I remember. Lamonica hit rb Charlie Smith on that same side and scored the go ahead touchdown with less than a minute left. On the ensuing kickoff, the Jets Earl Christy fumbled on the kickoff, the Raiders fell on the ball in the end zone, and the Raiders had gone up 42-29 in 15 seconds. And the game ended that way.
That collapse was nothing as to what happened later, such as what happened to the NBC switchboard. It collapsed as well as probably 80% of the nation was watching Heidi herd goats up the hill instead of Charlie Smith running around end for the go ahead touch down in a game that was every bit was it was billed earlier- a shootout. The fans went ballistic with NBC for doing this, and they let NBC know about it for days and days and days. The only part of the nation who was able to watch the game in its entirety was the west coast (I don't know about ALL the west coast though)
And the fans kept complaining. I remember reading in the Rocky Mountain News and the Denver Post lots and lots of people were complaining about what had happened. The AFL offices heard about it for weeks. The local sport talk shows were buzzing on this as well. This went on for weeks, if memory serves.
That game became famous in more ways than one. It was memorable indeed.
Last edited by DOUBLE H; 08-12-2010 at 08:02 PM..
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