Skywalker's Top 40 (6-10)

I don't think the Cleveland Browns are going to win a game this year.

Notre Dame kept their season alive last weekend with a big come from behind victory at Michigan State. In sloppy conditions, Brady Quinn performed well enough to throw for five touchdown passes. Coach Weis has still not lost a road game, and I don't anticipate him losing one this year as well.

On a personal note, I finally made some decisions about what the future will hold for me. I have a good plan put in place. Some might not like how quickly this plan will start up, but I have to do what's best for me. It sounds selfish, but it is what it is. I mean, it's MY life. I'm not going to tell you exactly what the plan is here, but if you want to know, just ask. You know where to find me. On we go.

We have reached the top ten. For those of you that have been following this from the beginning, give yourself a pat on the back. It has been a long journey to make it to this point, and we are almost home. Not going to lie, I didn't think I would make it this far. Usually I start a lot of things but very rarely follow through on them. We aren't done yet, but the end is in sight. Now to the list.

#10 - Bob Knight
The last of the two coaches on my list gets a spot in the top ten. "The General" is my favorite coach by far. Not only is he a great basketball coach, but he is a great interview as well. He has had several memorable moments. Let's take a look.

Coach Knight was the head basketball coach at the University of Indiana. Indiana is a basketball school, similar to Duke. They both expect to win each and every season. When Knight was coaching the Hoosiers, they were winning a lot. He started coaching Indiana back in 1972. By 1976, he had won a national championship. He won the whole thing again in 1981, and then one more in 1987. He also coached the Olympic team that won gold in 1984. Going into this season, he is 10 wins short of breaking Dean Smith's record of most NCAA basketball wins of all-time.

Without going into too much detail about things, Knight has a reputation for being a disciplinarian. He doesn't take too much crap and is a straight shooter. He also has provided several moments I'm never going to forget.

1) He threw a chair across the floor in protest of a referee's call in 1983.
2) His interview when asked about "game-faces." Knight went on to demonstrate what he thought a "game face" was. Hilarious.
3) His interview when he brought a whip in. "Right here is the key to success in coaching. Probably no motivational device I've ever come across is as good as this." He demonstrated the proper technique and then asked if the reporters minded if he prepared for the next practice during the interview. He then soaked the tips of the whip in water.
4) "When my time on Earth is gone and my activities here are past, I want that they should bury me upside down so my critics can kiss my ass." - Awesome.
5) "All of us learn to write in second grade, and most of us go on to better things." - Knight commenting on his dislike for journalists.
6) "Hell, I don't even watch the pros. If the NBA was on Channel 5 and a bunch of frogs making love were on Channel 4, I'd watch the frogs--even if they came in fuzzy." - when asked if he would ever coach in the NBA.
7) Reporter: Did Luke Recker only play 10 minutes in the second half because he was tired? Knight: "I was tired of watching his defense."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ukj6Qi5W_k - Check it out for yourself. This is why I wish I could have played for The General.

#9 - Albert Belle
As you may or may not have picked up by now, for some of the members on this list, performance on the field overshadows character problems off the field. Belle fits this description perfectly, but, we are not going to talk about him running over kids during Halloween.

My very first baseball game at Jacobs Field was back in 1995. The Cleveland Indians were playing the Kansas City Royals. Albert came up to the plate, and hit his 50th home run of the year. This was in a shortened season too, they only played 144 games. This was also back when 50 home runs meant something. This is why Albert Belle is my all-time favorite baseball player, unfortunately.

With that home run, Belle became the first player in major league baseball history to hit 50 homers and 50 doubles in one season. Willie Stargell back in 1973 was the last person to hit 40 and 40. How did Belle not win the MVP that year? Apparently the media likes to hold grudges, and voted for Mo Vaughn instead. They just overlooked the fact that Belle led the AL in runs scored, homers, RBI, slugging percentage, and total bases.

Albert never won an MVP award, but he did finish in the top three for three consecutive years (1994-1996). Belle was the power behind the Indians during the mid-90's. He has had some very memorable moments on the field, including running over Fernando Vina on a force out and pointing at his muscles while the umpires checked his bat to see if it was corked.

Belle was a five time all-star and hit for over 100 RBI's in 9 consecutive seasons. He had power, but he also had mental problems. Either way, I loved him for his bat and his unique batting stance. Quick trivia question: What is Albert's real name?

#8 - Lance Armstrong
I guess I have a soft spot in me somewhere. It was very hard not to root for this guy. If Lance's story does not inspire you somehow, then you might want to check to see if you have a pulse.

Lance Armstrong was diagnosed with testicular cancer back in 1996. He was told he had less than a 40 percent chance of survival. Not only did Lance survive but he thrived.

Before his cancer, Lance was a well-known cyclist. He was not known for his victories, but for his attitude. He was a young, brash Texan who thought the world centered around him. However, after defeating cancer he became a well-spoken and mature individual. I don't care what the Hershey bar says, "Change is good."

Lance Armstrong completed his comeback in 1999 when he won the Tour de France. For those of you who do not know, the Tour de France is the Super Bowl of cycling. Lance didn't stop there either, he won it again in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005. That is seven in a row, which is an all-time record.

Lance was the only reason I cared about the Tour de France. Before Armstrong, and even since he retired after his '05 win, I haven't watched. However, when Armstrong was racing I was glued to the tv set and was cheering him on. I think we all were.

#7 - Joe Montana
Did I cheat on this one a little? Nope, if you remember the rules all I said was that I had to have remembered watching the person play. Do I remember Montana playing for the Irish? No. Do I remember watching Joe play for San Francisco? No. Do I remember him playing for Kansas City? Yes, on we go.

Many consider Montana as the greatest quarterback of all-time. I'm not getting into that conversation, but he is definitely my favorite. Montana is one of the most clutch football players and he is also a winner. Joe led the 49ers to four Super Bowl titles and is the only player to win 3 Super Bowl MVP's.

What helps put Montana on this list is the fact he played his collegiate ball for Notre Dame. He was the winning quarterback against the top ranked Texas Longhorns back in 1978 which vaulted the Irish to a national championship. His best performance for the blue and gold was a year later in the Cotton Bowl. Down 22 in the fourth quarter to Houston on a bitter cold day, Montana left the game in the 3rd quarter due to hypothermia. He came back in the fourth and won the game 35-34.

Joe was drafted by the 49ers and the rest was history. His most memorable moment is back in 1981 when he threw the game winning touchdown pass to Dwight Clark against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Championship game. That pass became known as "The Catch."

Everything I know of Montana has come from ESPN Classic and history books. However, Montana stuck around until 1994, which allowed me to watch and remember his last year with the Chiefs. Good thing for me.

#6 - Mario Lemieux
We all know that I have no specific reason for my love of the Penguins. This however does make sense: if you take the best player from the Penguins and add a nice little comeback, you have Mario at #6.

Mario, also known as "Super Mario," is the second best hockey player of the last 30 years. Only Wayne Gretzky has been better. That is a proven scientific fact.

Lemieux scored 199 points in 1989, coming up just one point short of the prestigious 200 club. Gretzky is the only member of that club. Lemieux also holds the record for scoring a goal in the five possible scoring situations, all in one game. I'll fill you in on them: short-handed, even-strength, power-play, empty net and penalty shot. Not too shabby for one game.

Mario led the Penguins to back to back Stanley Cup titles in 1990 and 1991. However, during their quest for a third title, Lemieux was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. He missed several games, but came back in time to get bounced out of the playoffs. He probably came back too soon, because he sat out the entire next season.

However, after he was fully recovered, he came back and was the same old Super Mario. He led the league in scoring, and also won his third MVP (Hart Trophy) as well. I don't think you can do too much better than that.

Personally, Mario was unstoppable in the video games. #66 was better than everyone else. Faster, stronger, and yeah, just better. When you put him and Jagr on the same line in those games, forget about it. It was over before it started.

Well, I know this post is a little overdue, but I managed to take care of business. My next post will be numbers 5-3. The top two will have their own separate posts.

I'm going to invite all of you who are still reading this to guess who you think my top five is. For those of you that really know me, you should probably get 3 or maybe 4 of them. If you can get all 5, then I will build you a cake or something. But, give it a shot. The worse thing you can do is be wrong, and trust me, I've been wrong a lot. I mean I have Albert Belle in my top ten.

Skywalker's Top 40 (11-15)

Yesterday was the five year anniversary of 9/11. I thought it would be fitting to start this post with my experience of that tragic day. I was a sophomore at Calvert High School. I was in Communications class with Ms. Lanham. She said that she wanted to end the lesson early because she heard a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. After our abbreviated lesson, we turned on the TV to find two planes had crashed into both of the towers. At the time I was very confused. Starting off, I didn't know anything about the World Trade Centers. I had no idea what was going on. In every class we watched the news. There was another plane crash at the Pentagon, and another in the middle of Pennsylvania. I'll never forget sitting in Mr. Stover's Pre-Calculus class watching the towers collapse. A class that would go down in history for its rowdiness was held silent, for the entire period.

Five years ago. Has it really been five whole years? I'll never forget. God Bless.

This past weekend was filled with football. I'll only touch on a couple topics before getting right back into my list. First of all, Notre Dame looked good. They looked very good. Brady Quinn and the offense scored 41 points, and the defense held its own. Big game coming up this weekend against Michigan. If they win that one, watch out.

The Ohio State Buckeyes looked good as well. Now, I'm not trying to take anything away from their accomplishment. They went down to Texas and beat the defending national champs and in the process, ended their 21 game winning streak. However, that Texas team is not the 2nd best team in the nation. They only got that ranking from what they did LAST year. They start a true freshman quarterback. They really had no chance of winning that game. I don't see them winning the Big 12 let alone competing for another national championship.

Finally, I was in attendance for the Cleveland Browns opener. Unfortunately. Charlie Frye showed moments of brilliance, yet looked uncomfortable in the pocket. The defense had its bend but don't break mentality that kept the Brownies in the game until the end. Kellen Winslow looked solid, finally. But, they lost, to the saints. To a team that doesn't have a home, they lost. The Browns need help, lots of it. I see them winning no more than 5 games this year.

All right, enough football, on to the list. We're getting close to the top.

#15 - Tom Brady
Two years ago, this guy would not have been anywhere near my top 40 list. Now, he sits comfortably in the top 20, and with a few more solid years he might find himself within the elite status of the top 10. I have one person to thank for the addition of Brady. That would be the one, the only, the Joe Barrett.

Joe loved Brady well before I started to. Joe's love for Tom was so strong that I began to feel the same way for Brady. Joe has made whatever team Tom Brady is on, my second favorite team behind the Browns of course. There is one story in particular that I remember that made me a Brady fan for a lifetime.

Joe is a very good NFL gambler. Last year we each bet on games throughout the season. Whenever Joe won, he would put all that money on a game the following week. He continued that process until he had quite a lot of money. I'm guessing he had over 125 bucks riding on this game. The game was the New England Patriots versus the Miami Dolphins. I believe the Dolphins were getting six points. Joe came downstairs to watch the game, which turned into a tight contest. With under 2 minutes to go, the game was tied. Joe needed a touchdown. Joe screamed and screamed, and with each scream it seemed Brady was completing another pass. Right on down the field he went, and the next thing I know ... touchdown Patriots. Brady had delivered again. Joe had just won 125 bucks.

Tom Brady is the best quarterback in the NFL, hands down. He is better than Peyton Manning, Donovan McNabb, and even Ben Toothlessberger. With one game to play to win it all, who do you want throwing the passes for your team? If you don't answer Brady, then you are kidding yourself.

Brady has won three Super Bowls, and was the MVP in two of those. In his first two Super Bowl wins, he had to lead the Patriots down the field on its last drive to win the game. He won his first 10 playoff games. That is a remarkable feat. 10 in a row!

He is the modern day version of Joe Montana. Never before has their been more of an accurate comparison of players from different generations. Both were the best clutch quarterbacks of their time. Both were picked after the first two rounds. Montana in the third, and Brady in the sixth! And finally, both are winners. My entire life might have changed had the Browns not drafted Spergon Wynn, and instead drafted Brady. Either way, thank you Joe.

#14 - Silver Charm
It took me until now to get my first non-human on my list. This might be the only place in the entire world where you will see Silver Charm ranked ahead of Tom Brady. Welcome to my life.

The year was 1997. I was an eager 11 year old. The Kentucky Derby was coming on, and our entire family was gathered around to watch it. We had all made our picks. Dad and Josh both went with Jack's Flash. Mom chose Celtic Warrior, while I picked Silver Charm. I knew I was going to win. I just felt it.

Trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Gary Stevens, Silver Charm went on to win the Derby and gave me bragging rights for an entire year. The next big race was the Preakness. I again watched and cheered for Silver Charm, who again went on to win. This was getting too good to be true now. He was just one race away from winning the Triple Crown.

No horse had won the Triple Crown since 1978, when Affirmed beat runner-up Alydar in each race. It had been almost 20 years, and Silver Charm was going to be the next.

On the day of the Belmont Stakes, my mom and dad went away for some reason. Instead of bringing in a cousin or a grandmother to baby-sit me and my brother, they took us to my aunt JoAnn's. I was not too happy about this. I had watched Silver Charm win the first two races in my living room. At 11, I was already superstitious about these things, and watching the last and most important race in a new location made me feel uneasy.

My aunt put on the race, and I was ready to watch history. Silver Charm had the lead for most of the race. During one point on the backstretch I said, "He's going to do it." However, the Belmont is a bit longer than the previous two races, and he fell short. Touch Gold came on strong at the last moment to win by half a length. I was crushed.

Since that time numerous horses have won the first two legs but have failed to win at Belmont. Real Quiet in 1998, Charismatic in 1999, Funny Cide in 2003, and Smarty Jones in 2004. Silver Charm was the first of this recent wave of close calls, but more importantly, he was my horse.

#13 - John Daly
Jared is going to hate me for this. He says Daly is an overweight and lazy hill-billy. For every reason Jared hates him, I in turn, love him.

I don't know when or how I ended up liking Daly. He is a two-time major champion. He won with his mullet back in the 1991 PGA Championship. He won his second major in 1995 at St. Andrews for the British Open crown. I don't remember any of those titles. I do remember his swing though. It is un-mistakable.

"Long John" swings past parallel on his backswing, with the club nearly touching the ground. It is unconventional and indistinguishable. It also generates a lot of power. He has led the PGA Tour in driving distance a record 11 times.

Daly's life resembles the song by Gary Allen, "Life Ain't Always Beautiful." John's career has been interrupted with problems in his household, problems with drinking too much, and problems with gambling too much. That is the beauty of JD however, and what Jared fails to see.

John has defied conventional thinking in that golf is a rich man's game. He is an everyday "Joe" who has tremendous talent on the golf course. Despite all of his problems in his past, JD has rose above them and still managed to thrive with his golf game. In 2004, JD outplayed Vijay Singh to win the Buick Championship. Daly is an inspiration to all those who have had similar problems in their lives.

Another aspect that I love about Daly is the fact that he hardly ever practices. He doesn't spend time with a swing coach, or time on the driving range or putting greens. He just goes out there and hits the ball long. He hardly takes any time preparing before he hits the shot. When star players like Sergio Garcia take 10 minutes to hit a shot, its refreshing to see JD go out there and just hit the damn thing.

One last upside to Daly. He is sponsored by Hooters. They have great wings. Not liking that is un-American.

#12 - Michael Johnson
In the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, this guy had a performance that will not soon be forgotten, or repeated. It was so great that one single moment propelled him to this spot on my list.

In those Olympic games, Johnson was attempting to be the first man ever to win both the 200 and 400 meter races. This was thought to be impossible due to the conflicting time schedules in both of the races. Johnson was out to prove them all wrong, which he did. He won the 400 meter race by nearly an entire second. As impressive as this was, his 200 meter race was more so.

The world record for the 200 meters was 19.66 seconds, set by Johnson himself. That record was previously held for almost 17 years. It would take 3 months for Johnson to break that record twice.

The race was held on a Saturday night, and I will never forget sitting in my living room watching this enormous event. All eyes were on Johnson and his "golden shoes." He did not disappoint. Hardly. All he did was run a record that I truly believe will never be broken. He won the 200 meters by running a world record time of 19.32 seconds.

He ran the opening 100 meters in 10.12 seconds, reached a max speed of 25 miles per hour and then ran the closing 100 meters in 9.20 seconds. The current world record for 100 meters is right around 9.8 seconds. If you ran that twice in a row, you would have ran 200 meters in about 19.6 seconds, still well short of the mark Johnson put up. Like I said, it will never be broken. No one has come close since.

Johnson ended up with 5 gold medals when his career was all said and done. He made a special appearance on TV when Donovan Bailey (then world record holder in the 100 meters) challenged him to a 150 meter race. It was a pretty big deal, with the winner getting 1.5 million. Johnson lost because he pulled up lame.

Johnson will not be remembered for that event, but rather for his unique style of running, his golden shoes, his double gold in 1996, and for a 200 meter record that will stand for many lifetimes.

#11 - Chris Thomas
Not my first basketball player by far on this list, and not my first Notre Dame athlete on my list either. However, Thomas is my first Notre Dame basketball player on my list.

Like I have previously mentioned throughout the last several posts, I was never a big Notre Dame basketball fan. It was very hard for me to be one. They were never on television and they were never in a conference. That all changed when Thomas came around.

Notre Dame finally entered the Big East Conference in basketball back in 2000. They were not very good the first couple of years. In the 2001-2002 season, a freshman point guard named Chris Thomas started to play, and I started to follow.

Thomas, whose #1 jersey I bought a few years ago, immediately made an impact on the entire Notre Dame program. The Irish actually made it into the NCAA tournament in 2002, with Thomas winning the Big East Freshman of the Year award. They won their first tournament game against Charlotte by almost 20 points. Their next game was against the number one seeded Duke Blue Devils. They played that game on a Saturday, and it was the only game on at the time.

I watched that game in our recently added addition to our house by myself. I lived and died with each shot. Notre Dame outplayed Duke that day. They were winning late in to the second half, but couldn't come up with the big plays in the last few minutes, losing 84-77. I was ready for next year.

Thomas, as a sophomore had an outstanding season. He led Notre Dame to a #5 seed in the tournament. It could have been much higher had it not been for a slow stretch towards the end. Their first game was against UW-Milwaukee. It was a back and forth game with Notre Dame surviving 70-69. Their next game was against the 4th seeded Illinois Fighting Illini. The Irish played a complete game and smoked Illinois. That run came to an end in the sweet 16, losing to Arizona.

Thomas was debating about entering the NBA Draft after that season. He decided to stay. The next two years were tough on Thomas as he and the Irish failed to make it to the NCAA tournament in either of those years. However, Thomas would end up the career assist leader for Notre Dame. He is also 8th in points scored and third in steals.

Chris Thomas was the reason I became a fan of Notre Dame basketball. After he graduated, he did not get drafted in the NBA. He currently plays overseas in a professional European league. Last summer I sent Thomas an e-mail, thanking him for his 4 years at Notre Dame. He responded by telling me what he was up to and how much he appreciated my support. The Notre Dame basketball program will never be the same without him.

Well, that wraps it up for now. 30 down and only 10 to go. My next five include a memorable coach, a felon, a suspected druggie, a domer, and a penguin. If you can guess the next five, then you might be qualified for the upcoming series titled "Heroes" on NBC. Judging by the previews, don't watch it.

Anyways, God bless, and "Read it, Roll it, Hole it."

Skywalker's Top 40 (16-20)

"I'm back." Something makes me think these two words are not going to have the same effect that they did when Michael Jordan used them to announce his return to basketball (the first time). Nonetheless, they mark the return of yours truly after a lengthy layoff. Buckle in.

I thought I would finish up where I left off, by completing this much anticipated list of my top 40 favorite sport figures. I compiled this list back in May, and to my surprise, it hasn't changed at all. Now, I'll put a disclaimer on that: If Notre Dame wins a national championship this year, then Brady Quinn (#21) and Charlie Weis (#38) will make a pretty big jump. Go Irish. Please Coach Weis, do NOT bust out those green jerseys this year. No matter how badly you want to, and no matter how loudly you know the crowd will cheer when they see them, don't do it. USC would have lost last year had you not brought those cursive uniforms out. So take the anti-Nike approach and "just don't do it."

Well, I have some house cleaning to perform before I jump back into my list. On a personal note, I decided not to pursue a degree in broadcast journalism. I had intended to go straight to education, but I've become hesitant. A big part of me wants to keep writing, which would involve a simple switch to print journalism. I really haven't made up my mind yet. More on that to come I'm sure. Congrats to Alex a.k.a "Coach" Lucius who was the only one to correctly answer the question of the most recent N.D quarterback to win the Heisman. The answer: John Huarte, back in 1964. You are the man Lucius.

Just thought I would throw out the fact that God hates the Browns. Our stud center goes down on the very first play of the very first practice. I mean, at least with Winslow it was the second game of the year, and with Edwards, sometime in December. God decided not to wait this time. I bet he was up there laughing his ass off when he pulled that stunt. "Hey guys, watch this ... injured knee (out for season) ... this is just too easy." The last laugh might be on God however. If Cleveland somehow lands Brady next year, then that will be a HUGE conflict of interests for the Almighty One. Okay, enough messing around, onto the list. Let's do it to it.

#20 - Allen Iverson
"The Answer," or "A.I.," if you will, grabs the first spot in the top twenty. His presence here comes from all the stars lining up at the right time. Let's try to explain how he got here and then how good he is. Like it or not, that's the order and I'm sticking to it.

I never had a big brother. I blame my parents, but what can you do. I did however have an older cousin, Tony, who I looked up to quite a bit. He was probably about as close to a big brother as I had. One of the main responsibilities of an older brother is to provide clothes that no longer fit and hand them down to the younger one. I was the recipient of Tony's old clothes. One of the better things I received, was a Georgetown outfit. It was a button up shirt, with a pair of matching shorts. When I had this outfit on, you could not tell me anything. It just so happened, that Iverson was in his 1st year of college at G'Town at about the same time. Next thing you know, I'm following Iverson, and I've liked him ever since.

Iverson starred for the Hoyas for two years (1994 and 1995). He had many memorable moments, including one of the best NCAA games I've ever been lucky enough to watch. The setting was 1995 and it was the Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden vs. the Connecticut Huskies. I'll get more into details later due to one of the players on that UCONN team just happens to show up at spot #18. To sum it up for now, it was a very good game. The other moment comes from a game against the Bulls in 1996; the year he won the NBA Rookie of the Year. Michael Jordan was in uniform as he came back in mid-season that year. Iverson promptly came into the game, and gave MJ his patented crossover, which faked Jordan right out of his shoes and allowed for "A.I." to drill a jumper from the top of the key. Money.

Allen Iverson has been an NBA All-Star for the last 8 consecutive seasons. He won the leagues' MVP title back in 2001. He never will be the biggest guy on the floor, but he will probably out hustle you, and more than likely outplay you. "The Answer" can out shoot you both on and off the court. Okay, that last comment might have been too far, but I couldn't pass it up. My apologies to "A.I."; please don't kill me.

#19 - The Fab Five
I have to admit, I kind of cheat my own system here with this decision. The Fab Five isn't a sport figure, they were a team. However, I haven't followed Michigan basketball before or since they have left. So, they get to stay, sorry.

After reading Charles Woodson (#23), you know that my mother is a big Michigan fan. She might not know all the players, or the coaches of the current teams, but she still roots for them. With The Fab Five however, she knew the players. She could rattle them off no problem. She followed the games with great interest, knew their record, and knew who they were playing next in the NCAA tournament. She even played a classic April Fools joke on me. She told me that Kentucky's head coach, Rick Pitino, decided to forfeit their Final Four game against Michigan. I believed her, I got excited, and then I got pissed when I found out she had just got me. I hate to be gotten.

The Fab Five included: Chris Webber, Juwan Howard, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King, and Ray Jackson. They were probably the best freshman basketball recruiting class ever compiled. They all came into Michigan and started their freshman year. How did this young team do? Oh, they made it all the way to the NCAA Title game, only to lose to Duke. Not too bad.

Not only did I like these guys because of my mothers' enthusiasm, but also because they looked so cool in those big baggy shorts. I wanted to be just like them. My mom liked them in spite of those baggy shorts; if I had a nickel for everytime she said, "those shorts are going to fall off." Mothers being mothers I guess.

Coach Steve Fisher brought these guys in with the aspirations of a national championship. Following their runner up season in 1992, Michigan was supposed to be a dominant force the very next year, as the entire Fab Five were coming back. Chris Webber was the best player on the team by far. Now, the other four were no slouches, but Webber brought it all together. Without Webber, there is no way Michigan makes it to back to back championship games, absolutely none. Now, with all that said, Chris still managed to break my mothers heart in 1993. It all happened so fast.

In 1993, Michigan again found themselves in the title game. Their opponent: the North Carolina Tar Heels, led by the legendary coach Dean Smith. The best player for UNC was a big tall white guy named Eric Montross. Insert enormous amount of laughter here. Nonetheless, it was going to be a tight contest. My dad even let me stay up to watch this game. At that time, it was a big, big deal that I was allowed to stay up. It came all the way to the end, with Michigan trailing by two and less than 15 seconds on the clock, Webber grabbed a missed free throw. Chaos soon followed. After getting the rebound, Webber looked to outlet the ball, a UNC guard made a dash to the passing lane, causing Webber to fight off the pass, which made him travel. The refs did not call it. It was obvious. The play went on. Webber dribbled it all the way down the court only to call timeout when he was trapped. Only thing was they had no timeouts. Technical foul and end of game. Awesome.

Webber left school and entered the NBA draft after that game. Howard and Rose stayed one more year, while King and Jackson played four years. Webber, Howard, Rose all had decent NBA careers. King played for 2 seasons, while Jackson never made it. Four out of five ain't bad.

#18 - Ray Allen
I guess I had basketball on my mind during this section of the list. First three so far, and one more to follow yet. I warned you it was my favorite sport.

Ray Allen can shoot the ball, and he can shoot it well. It looks so pretty when it drains nothing but the bottom of the net. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, Allen has the "prettiest looking shot in the game."

Let's start from the beginning to find out exactly how Allen made it this high on the list. First of all, Notre Dame had no basketball team back in the day. Well, they had one, but it wasn't in a conference, so they meant absolutely nothing. I decided to go with UCONN. Why the Huskies? Similar to the Penguins, I have no idea. I can't pinpoint one exact moment or reason, but I did, and so the story continues.

Allen played for the Huskies from 1993-1996. I fell in love with him when he hit the game winning shot against Iverson (#20) in that very Big East Tournament game I previously mentioned. After Iverson had hit a shot to put the Hoyas up one with under 5 seconds left, Allen took the inbound pass, got to the lane, jumped, had no where to go, and floated the ball into the basket for the game winning score. I went nuts and Allen became a favorite. That's how easy it happens when you are younger. One shot.

Ray was drafted by the Timberwolves in 1996, but was traded to the Bucks. He has had a very successful NBA career. He currently ranks second on the all-time list of 3 pointers made. He's a six-time NBA all-star, and holds the record for most 3 pointers made in a season. Another trivia opportunity has arrived: Whose record did Ray Allen break? Same rules as the last one.

Allen also was in the movie He Got Game as Jesus Shuttlesworth. If you haven't seen this movie, I highly recommend it. It's got Denzel Washington in it, so you know it's good. It's good like Allen's jumpshot. Okay sorry, that would make it the best movie then. Although He Got Game is good, it's no Cool Runnings. Now, that would be the best.

#17 - 1999 UCONN Basketball Team
Yeah, okay, I can here the crap coming right now. "You can't pick a single team in a single season!!" You know what, it's my list, and I can do whatever I want with it. So, the Huskies from 1999 get to stay. This all stems from one amazing tournament that concluded with one amazing night.

Again, N.D did not play in any conference this year, and as I have already mentioned, UCONN took its place. Ray Allen, for as great as a player as he was, could not deliver me a final four appearance, let alone a national championship. Chris Webber couldn't keep track of timeouts, so he blew my shot as well. Leave it to the bunch of underdogs to deliver. That's where these Huskies, led by coach Jim Calhoun come into play.

Richard Hamilton, Khalid El-Amin, Jake Voskuhl, and Ricky Moore (the defensive stopper) were the main ingredients to this winning team. All season long, UCONN was solid, but they were never ranked #1. That distinction went to the Duke Blue Devils. They had Elton Brand and Trajan Langdon. They were supposed to be unstoppable. Ha, hardly.

UCONN made its first appearance into the Final Four by escaping the Washington Huskies during the early rounds. They were trailing by one, and had three or four attempts to win the game, but continued to miss. Finally, Hamilton grabbed the rebound, faded away, and threw up the winning basket as time expired. Enter the Final Four.

In that Final Four they beat the Ohio State Buckeyes. Next up was Duke. Playing inspired basketball, UCONN pulled off the upset, beating Duke 77-74. At the time, I was in the 8th grade and had a little TV in my room. I stayed up, against my moms wishes and watched UCONN get the lead and control the game from beginning to end. It was unbelievable. My mom yelled at me many times during that night for making too much noise. I couldn't help it, I finally had my national championship.

#16 - Bernie Kosar
I know some of you were getting tired of all this basketball. I know I sure was. After I made the list, I saw that this one was definitely top-heavy in basketball. Well, insert Bernie and everything is fine. Oh Bernie.

Bernie Kosar was the quarterback of the Cleveland Browns from 1985-1993. After a tremendous career as the quarterback of the Miami Hurricanes, Kosar declared himself eligible AFTER the NFL Draft, so the Browns could draft him in a later supplemental draft. Kosar grew up in Ohio and wanted to play for the Browns. Go figure.

Kosar immediately became the most popular sports figure in Cleveland. He led the Browns to back to back championship games against Denver in the late 1980's. I won't get into the details of those games for obvious reasons.

Bernie doesn't get a lot of credit that he deserves. First of all, he would have won the Heisman trophy back in 1984 if it wasn't for Doug Flutie's miracle throw against him. If you don't remember, Bernie had an amazing game against Flutie's Boston College Eagles. Unfortunately, Flutie chucked it up, it got caught, and with it, Kosar's Heisman was stolen. If not for Byner's fumble and the drive, Bernie would have played in two Super Bowls. Might have won them, might have not. Either way, he would have led the lowly Browns to 2 Super Bowls. If Charlie Frye leads them to the playoffs now, he would be considered in some circles a god.

I don't remember watching Bernie play too much. I do remember Bill Belichick cutting him loose for Vinny Testaverde in 1993. That didn't make too many people happy. At the time, it didn't matter to me because of one reason. Testaverde won a playoff game for the Browns!! I've lived for 20 years, and only one time have I witnessed the Browns win a playoff game. It was 1993 against Bill Parcells, Drew Bledsoe, and the New England Patriots. Anyways, back to Bernie.

I'll never forget Drew Carey's impression of Bernie. Unfortunately for Kosar, it's not flattering. Drew stands by the microphone, says here is an impression of Bernie Kosar, and then knocks the microphone stand over. You got to admit, it's kind of funny.

Okay, thanks for hanging with me through that long one. It had been several months since I had last written anything, so I had a lot pent up in me. Well, we are in the home stretch now. Just 15 to go. The plan is to get the next 10 in 2 posts. That will leave me with my top 5. I'll put 5,4,and 3 in one post. For my top 2, I will do 2 separate posts. Which makes for a total of 5 more posts. I've never used the word post so frequently than in that last paragraph. It happens.

Until next time, don't drink and drive, and as always, "Read It, Roll It, and Hole It."