Hall of Famer Harold Grange, All-American running back at the University of Illinois in the early 1920's, then for the Bears until 1935, was known as "Red Grange" or "The Galloping Ghost." He was so dominating in a 1924 game against Michigan--gaining 262 yards and scoring 4 touchdowns in just 12 minutes--that he inspired Grantland Rice to write the following poem which spawned his famous nickname:
A streak of fire, a breath of flame
Eluding all who reach and clutch;
A gray ghost thrown into the game
That rival hands may never touch;
A rubber bounding, blasting soul
Whose destination is the goal.
Cy Young pitched 749 complete games over the course of his 22-year career. Only three pitchers have even started that many games: Young, Don Sutton, and Nolan Ryan.
In what is widely regarded as one of the greatest races of all time, Secretariat won the 1973 Belmont Stakes by 31 lengths.
It's not every day a 44-year-old coach comes off the bench and ends up playing goalie for his team in the Stanley Cup final, but that's just what Lester Patrick did for the Rangers back in 1928. Not only that, but he gave up only one goal, and the Rangers went on to defeat the Montreal Maroons in overtime.
Toward the end of a midseason game against the 49ers in 1964, Vikings defensive end Jim Marshall scooped up a Niners fumble and raced toward the end zone nearly 70 yards away--the wrong end zone. With both teams chasing him down the field, and his own teammates screaming from the sidelines, Marshall ran into the end zone untouched and tossed the ball out of bounds, resulting in a safety for San Francisco--and heaps of scrutiny from the media.
Drafted into the NBA sixth overall by the Boston Celtics in 1978, Larry Bird played his entire professional career for Boston, winning three NBA championships and two NBA Finals MVP awards. He then served as head coach of the Indiana Pacers from 1997 to 2000, and in 2003 assumed the role of president of basketball operations for the Pacers.
In the first World Cup final, held on July 30, 1930, 93,000 spectators looked on as Uruguay defeated Argentina 4-2 in a rematch of the 1928 Olympic gold medal game.
At a key point in the fifth set, teenager Michael Chang shocked the crowd (and Lendl) by delivering an under-arm serve.
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