Skywalker's Top 40 (36-40)

I’m pretty proud of this list. I always wanted to put together a list like this. My top 3 or 4 were set in stone, but I was curious as to how the remainder of this list would look like. Not gonna lie, it was kind of fun. I recommend doing this to anyone who enjoys sports.

Here are my criteria for making it on the list:
1) Must have been playing during my lifetime. Straight forward. To be eligible, all you had to do was play when I was alive.
2) I must have seen you play. Dr. J was still playing in 1985, but, I never watched him. Sorry Julius. You would have made the list otherwise. Tough luck. Should have thought about that before you called it quits in 1986. I bet you are regretting it now.
3) Like over skill. This is probably the most important point of them all. If I liked you and rooted for you then you were eligible for the list. John Elway was a great quarterback (I really wouldn’t mind you getting run over by a train), but since you did what you did to the Browns, you were not even a thought of for this list. Not happening. Whereas lesser athletes, as you are about to find out, made my list because I rooted for them. So in essence, this is my favorite sports figures during my lifetime. The ones I wanted to see win. The ones I enjoyed watching the most.

I ranked my top 40, because that is exactly the number of people I wrote down. I will release the list to everyone five spots at a time. This is my attempt to keep the suspense growing. For those of you that really know me, you know who will be one and two, but I’m sure I will surprise each and everyone of you with some of these names. So lets get to it. Starting with #40.

#40 – Jeremy Miller
I am almost positive that each and every one of you does not know who this guy is. Okay, maybe one or two of you do, but that is being generous. Seems like I have some explaining to do.

Jeremy is currently a junior at Xavier University, but that is not where the story starts. Rather, it begins my sophomore year on a road trip to Sandusky St. Mary’s for a tennis match. This was my first of three years playing number one singles for good old Tiffin Calvert. It was probably our fourth or fifth match of the year. I had wiped through all of our previous matches and was feeling good going into Sandusky. I had heard that Jeremy was a really good player, but I felt I had a chance to shock the world. Well, once we started playing, that thought disappeared in like 30 seconds. This kid killed me. Really knocked me down a notch or two. It was probably the quickest double bagel in the history of tennis. 6-0, 6-0, done deal.

If that was the whole story then it wouldn’t have been that good. That year Jeremy went all the way. He won the Division II singles title. My dad took me to the tournament where I got to watch Jeremy play all of his matches, including the final where he beat the typical stuck-up from Cincinnati Indian Hill. It was a cool experience. I was lucky enough to play Jeremy three more times, with the last score being 6-3, 6-2.

Jeremy finished his high school career with a 130-2 record in singles. Not too bad. His first loss came at the state tournament final, his sophomore year. He also lost in his bid to repeat as champion in the 2nd round his senior year. I am not sure what happened to him in that match.

He is the number one player at Xavier for the third consecutive year. What put him on this list, other than all of what was mentioned previously was a little comment he made to a Calvert alum at UX. He lived across from this TC alum and when he found out what high school she was from, asked if she knew who I was. He then went on to say I was a pretty good tennis player. Hey, for a kid who never made it to the state tourney, this was as good as it got. It made me like Jeremy even more, and also grants him #40 on the list.

#39 – Bo Jackson
This was a late edition to the list. It was a classic case of me forgetting someone and then having to update the list accordingly. Some of you might laugh at who I had in this spot before I remembered Bo. Here is a hint: he has a lot of hair, and speed ice skates. You can figure it out from there. Anyways, focus is on Bo now.

“Bo Knows Bo” was probably the very first major book I read that I didn’t have to for school. It was a great book. Well, any book I read at that point in my life (4th grade) would have been an upgrade. It’s going up against “Farmer’s Boy,” I mean come on.

Bo very well could be the best athlete on this entire list. The first athlete to be named an All-Star in both football and baseball, it would be hard to argue against him. Just listen to this list of accomplishments, its amazing: Heisman Trophy winner in 1985, first pick of the NFL draft in 1986, All-Star MVP in 1989, and ran for 221 yards on Monday Night in 1987. This guy was Mr. Sports for about five years. Unfortunately, in 1991, against the Bungles (in the playoffs, go figure, Cincy?), he had a serious hip injury. He would never play football again, and his baseball career would never be the same.

I don’t have too many memories about Bo. With me being only 6 when he got injured, it would be tough to. But I do remember seeing him play with the White Sox in 1993, so he is eligible. “Bo Knows Bo” helped him tremendously in getting on here, but I don’t mind having him on my list at all. How could you? Bo can do it all, and he knows it.

#38 – Charlie Weis
This list is ever changing. A couple years ago, you might have found a certain Tyrone Willingham in this spot, but not now. This spot also represents the great Lou Holtz. I didn’t throw Lou in here, but he is remembered always.

Coach Weis is just one of two coaches on this list. The second will come much later. Any guesses?? Weis re-established Notre Dame Football last season. He instantly made Brady Quinn a Heisman candidate and possible future number one pick. Even when Coach Willingham went on his early run, the team never played this way. They would grind out games, and rely on their defense. With Weis, the offense is much more productive, and players want to play for him. Recruits will come, and Notre Dame will be in good hands for a long, long time.

I especially enjoyed the story of Coach Weis visiting the sick child in the hospital. The kid was a huge Notre Dame fan, and Weis allowed him to call the very first play of scrimmage in their upcoming game. The kid said “Pass Right.” On Notre Dame’s first offensive play, with the ball on their own one yard line, Brady Quinn rolled out to his right, and passed it to Anthony Fasano. A great story and a great coach.

#37 – Riddick Bowe
Maybe another surprise with the selection of Bowe? I bet so. Bowe was simply the product of being at the right place at the right time. That is how he got here.

Riddick Bowe was a great boxer; some of you are just un-educated to how good he was in his prime. In 1992, Bowe defeated Evander Holyfield in 10 rounds to win the heavyweight title. Bowe went on to defend his title a couple more times before facing off against Holyfield again in November of ’93. This fight, I was lucky enough to witness first hand on television.

My dad knew I liked to watch heavyweight boxing. Mostly because of what you will find out much later in this list. He took me to the bowling alley (my home away from home for much of my childhood) and we watched the fight on the big screen. Holyfield won the fight, but it was much disputed. I was only 8 at the time, so I didn’t understand all of the rules, but I knew it was not a popular decision when all the guys around me started cussing a storm and throwing stuff around. It was great. From that point on, Bowe became my 2nd favorite fighter.

I got to watch Bowe come back and beat Holyfield again two years later. Evander was suffering from Hepatitis, so that helped Riddick, but he took advantage of his situation, by knocking him out. Bowe might be better remembered from his two title fights against Andrew Golota. Golota, in both matches was DQ’d due to low blows, which the bowling alley guys thought were hilarious. I remember this following scenario by heart. Their first match was in July of ‘96, the second in December of the same year. A couple weeks before their rematch, Dad and his friends got a pool going on what round Golota would get warned for low blows. Not too sure who won, but just the fact that they had the pool, gave me hope that I would end up that way when I was their age. Good news everyone, I’m well on my way.

#36 – Eric Turner
Today, I gave a sneak preview of my list to some buddies, and none of them had ever heard of this guy. I couldn’t believe it. A couple of them were even Cleveland fans. Again, I couldn’t believe it. Allow me the privilege of filling you on this great Cleveland Brown talent.

If I asked you who was the last first round pick by the Cleveland Browns to make it to the Pro Bowl who would you say?? Tim Couch, Courtney Brown, Jeff Faine, William Green (more on him later), Kellen Winslow?? I should stop, I’m hurting myself just thinking of all these first round talents. The answer my friends is Eric Turner. He was the second pick overall of the 1991 draft, and made it to the Pro Bowl in 1994.

Turner, a cornerback, was tied for the lead in INT’s back in ’94, when he brought down nine of them. What made me like Turner, besides the fact he was the best player for the Browns, was that my cousin Tony liked him. Tony was the older brother I never had, and I imitated everything he did. Tony is the source for my number one on this list, as well as some others. Tony had a poster of Turner on his wall, and that was all that took.

Here is a little flashback for some of you. Sports Illustrated for Kids was starting to come out around this time (’93-’95), and I was a subscriber. For their Halloween issue, they had NFL stars dressing up in scary costumes. Turner was in their, wearing what I’m not sure, but I remember the issue to this day. Other stars they featured were Troy Aikman, Reggie White, and Emmitt Smith. Go Browns.

Well that wraps it up for this post. Sunday we will have our next five up there, and on and on it goes. Hope you are enjoying reading it as much as I am writing it. Honestly, this is a great idea for all you sports fans to do. Until next time, “read it, roll it, hole it.”