November 26, 1994: The Choke at Doak

November 26, 1994: The football team at the University of Florida leads their arch-rivals, Florida State University, 31-3 going into the 4th quarter of their game at Doak Campbell Stadium, on FSU's campus in Tallahassee.

Doak Sheridan Campbell (1888-1973) was, from 1941 to 1957, President of Florida State College for Women and its successor coeducational school, Florida State University. He oversaw the creation of the combined new University. His opposition to the admission of African-American students has caused controversy about the naming of the University's stadium in his honor.

The Florida Gators, coached by Steve Spurrier, who had won the Heisman Trophy as their quarterback in 1966, won the Southeastern Conference Championship, going 9-1, losing only to Auburn. They were ranked Number 4 in the country.

The Florida State Seminoles, coached by Bobby Bowden, won the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship, also going 9-1, their only loss being to their other major rivals, the University of Miami. They came into this game ranked Number 7. So this game should have been close.

It didn't start out that way. The Seminoles scored first, on a field goal by Dan Mowrey. But Danny Wuerffel, who would win the Heisman Trophy 2 years later, threw 3 touchdown passes, and led drives for a 4th touchdown and a field goal. With 13 minutes left to play, it was 31-3 Gators. The Seminoles were getting humiliated, not just at home, but on live national TV, on ABC.

A funny thing happened on the way to the Gators' big win: The win disappeared. With 12:59 to go, Zack Crockett ran 5 yards for a touchdown. 31-10. The Seminoles forced the Gators to punt, and, with 10:04 left, Danny Kanell threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Andrew Cooper. 31-17.

The Seminoles forced the Gators to punt again, and, with 5:25 left, Kanell took the ball in himself for a 3-yard touchdown run. 31-24.

The Seminoles forced the Gators to punt, and, with 1:45 left, Rock Preston ran the ball in from 4 yards out. Gators 31, Seminoles 30. Bowden overruled his entire coaching staff, who all wanted to go for the 2-point conversion for the possible win, and decided to kick the extra point for the tie. Mowrey's kick was successful: Seminoles 31, Gators 31.

The Gators still had time, and they only needed a field goal. But, once more, they had to punt. The Seminoles didn't have enough time to get within field goal range, and the game ended, 31-31. It became known as "The Choke at Doak."

In 1946, Navy trailed Army 21-18 with time for one more play, and had the ball on Army's 1-yard line, but Navy coach Tom Hamilton went for the winning touchdown instead of the tying field goal. When asked why, he coined a phrase that has lived on in American sports: "A tie is like kissing your sister."

For Seminole fans, this tie was more like kissing your sister's really hot best friend. For Gator fans, it was like kissing your sister's other friend. You know the one: The one with the "great personality."

Florida beat Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. So a rematch was ordered for the Sugar Bowl, as the SEC Champion always received a bid, while the ACC Champion was not locked into a bowl. Florida State won it, 23-17.

The Choke at Doak was a major reason why the NCAA instituted overtime for bowl games in 1995; and, with success there, for regular-season games in 1996. But that 1996 season would see another chapter in the UF-FSU rivalry: The Number 2 Seminoles beat the Number 1 Gators, but the Gators won the SEC Championship Game, and fans at that game held up signs reading, "GOD WANTS A REMATCH." Regardless of that God really wanted, a rematch was granted in the Sugar Bowl, and the Gators blew the Seminoles out, to win their 1st National Championship.

*

November 26, 1994 was a Saturday. Among the other college football games played that day:

* Number 1 Nebraska beat arch-rival Oklahoma, 13-3 at Owen Field in Norman, Oklahoma. Nebraska won the Big Eight Conference title.

* Number 2 Penn State beat Michigan State, 59-31 at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. Penn State won the Big Ten Conference title, in only their 2nd season in the league.

* Number 3 Auburn, coached by Terry Bowden, Bobby Bowden's son, were not scheduled for that weekend, and were ineligible for a bowl game, due to violations committed by Terry's predecessor, Pat Dye.

* Number 5 Miami beat Number 25 Boston College, 23-7 at the Orange Bowl in Miami. Miami won the Big East Conference title, but Nebraska beat them in the Orange Bowl, avenging their 1984 Orange Bowl defeat, and finally winning Coach Tom Osborne his 1st National Championship.

* Among rivalry games, Number 17 Southern California and Notre Dame played to a 17-17 tie at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum; Number 19 Mississippi State beat Mississippi, 21-17 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford; Tennessee beat Vanderbilt, 65-0 at Vanderbilt Stadium (now FirstBank Stadium) in Nashville; Louisiana State beat Arkansas, 30-12 at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas; and Rice beat the University of Houston, 31-13 at the Astrodome.

* The day before, Number 16 Arizona beat Arizona State, 28-27 at Arizona Stadium in Tucson; and Georgia beat Georgia Tech, 48-10 at Sanford Stadium in Athens.

* And the day before that, Thanksgiving Day, Number 22 Syracuse were upset by West Virginia, 13-0 at Mountaineer Field (now Milan Puskar Stadium) in Morgantown, West Virginia; and Texas beat Baylor, 63-35 at Floyd Casey Stadium in Waco, Texas.

The baseball players were on strike, and the season would have been over by this point, anyway. The NHL players were locked out, meaning that 2 of the "Big Four" sports in North America were stopped cold due to management's unfairness to the players.

But there were 8 games played in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks lost to the Charlotte Hornets, 105-95 at Madison Square Garden. Alonzo Mourning had 27 points and 18 rebounds.

* The Boston Celtics beat their arch-rivals, the Philadelphia 76ers, 108-99 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.

* The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Washington Bullets, 112-96 at the Capital Centre in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland.

* The Seattle SuperSonics beat the Houston Rockets, 98-94 at The Summit in Houston. (The arena has since been converted into the Central Campus of the Lakewood Church, Dr. Joel Osteen's "megachurch.")

* The Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Golden State Warriors, 101-87 at the Gund Arena (now the Rocket Arena) in Cleveland.

* The Orlando Magic beat the Milwaukee Bucks, 113-105 at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee.

* The Dallas Mavericks beat the Denver Nuggets, 124-123 in overtime at the McNichols Arena in Denver. Jim Jackson scored 50 points.

* And the Phoenix Suns beat the San Antonio Spurs, 111-108 at the America West Arena (now the Mortgage Matchup Center) in Phoenix.

And in English soccer, Arsenal and Manchester United played to a 0-0 draw at Highbury in North London.

November 8, 1980: "Run, Lindsay!"

November 8, 1980: The University of Georgia, ranked Number 2 in the country, faces one of their biggest rivals, the University of Florida, currently ranked Number 20, at the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville. Thus far, Georgia has gone 8-0, and is threatening for the Southeastern Conference and National Championships, thanks to sensational freshman running back Herschel Walker.

But Florida leads 21-20 with time running out, and has the Bulldogs on a 3rd and long from their own 7-yard line. Quarterback Buck Belue gets flushed out of the pocket, into his own end zone. He sees Lindsay Scott in the middle of the field near the 25-yard line, and throws. Scott hauls it in, reaches the sideline, and, with just seconds left on the clock, Georgia's radio announcer, Larry Munson, says this:

Florida in a stand-up five. They may or may not blitz. Buck back, 3rd down, on the 8. In trouble, he got a block behind him. Gotta throw on the run. Complete to the 25! To the 30, Lindsay Scott, 35, 40, Lindsay Scott, 45, 50, 45, 40! Run, Lindsay! 25, 20, 15, 10, 5, Lindsay Scott! Lindsay Scott! Lindsay Scott!

Munson was so excited, he forgot to say, "Touchdown!" Final score: Georgia 26, Florida 21.

That same day, Georgia's other major team, Georgia Tech, held Number 1-ranked Notre Dame to a 3-3 tie, unwittingly sending the Bulldogs, their arch-rivals, to the top of the polls, where they stayed the rest of the way. The "Run Lindsay Run" game (which Munson didn't quite say) is the most famous installment of the rivalry known as "The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party."

But Georgia and Notre Dame remained on a collision courts. Georgia won the Southeastern Conference Championship, and so a matchup between them, ranked Number 1, and Notre Dame, ranked Number 7, was set up for the 1981 Sugar Bowl. Georgia won, 17-10, with Walker scoring 2 touchdowns. It was Georgia's 1st National Championship since 1942.

*

November 8, 1980 was a Saturday. Among the other notable college football games that day were these:

* Number 3 Florida State was an independent, and beat Virginia Tech, 31-7 at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida.

* Number 4 University of Southern California beat Stanford, 34-9 at the original Stanford Stadium in the San Francisco suburb of Palo Alto, California. Losses in their next 2 games, to Washington and arch-rival UCLA, knocked USC out of the Pacific-Ten Conference and National Championship picture.

* Number 5 Nebraska beat Kansas State, 55-8 at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska. A loss to arch-rival Oklahoma knocked Nebraska out of the Big Eight Conference and National Championship races.

* Number 6 Alabama beat Louisiana State University (LSU), 28-7 at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. A quirk in the schedule meant that 'Bama, winner of the last 2 National Championships, did not play Georgia in 1980. But, the week before, they lost to Mississippi State, ending their school-record 28-game winning streak, and their record 27-game winning streak within the SEC. The week after this, they lost to Notre Dame. They were invited to the Cotton Bowl. 

* Number 7 Ohio State beat Illinois, 49-42 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus. A loss to arch-rival Michigan cost them the Big Ten Conference title.

* Number 8 University of California at Los Angeles lost to Oregon, 20-14 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. This, plus the previous week's loss by then-Number 2 UCLA to Arizona, knocked them out of the Pac-10 and National championship races.

* Number 9 University of Pittsburgh beat the University of Louisville, 41-223 at Pitt Stadium in Pittsburgh. Pitt only lost 1 game, away to Florida State, but that, and being an independent despite going 5-0 against teams with whom it would eventually join the Big East, hurt them come bowl invitation time. Despite being Number 3, they were only invited to the Gator Bowl, where they beat South Carolina.

* Number 10 Penn State beat North Carolina State, 21-13 at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. Having previously lost to Nebraska, Penn State got back up to Number 5 before being beaten by arch-rival Pitt, getting invited to the Fiesta Bowl -- the last time that game was a minor bowl. The following season, it was moved to New Year's Day. This time, Penn State beat Ohio State.

* Number 11 Oklahoma beat Kansas, 21-19 at Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, Kansas. Oklahoma won the Big 8 title, then beat Florida State in the Orange Bowl. 

* Number 12 Michigan beat Wisconsin, 24-0 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin. Michigan went on to win the Big 10 title.

* Number 16 Baylor beat Arkansas, 42-15 at Baylor Stadium (later renamed Floyd Casey Stadium) in Waco, Texas. The previous week, Baylor had suffered its only loss of the regular season, to non-conference opponent San Jose State. They ran the table in the Southwest Conference, and won the Championship. Despite having a lesser record and not having won their league, Alabama were favored over Baylor, and won decisively, 30-2.

* Washington beat Arizona, 45-22 at Husky Stadium in Seattle. Washington went on to win the Pacific-Ten Conference title, but lost the Rose Bowl to Michigan. 

* Among the service academies, Army beat Air Force, 47-24 at Michie Stadium in West Point, New York; and Navy beat Syracuse, 6-3 at the Carrier Dome (now the JMA Wireless Dome) in Syracuse, New York.

* And Rutgers represented New Jersey by beating Virginia, 19-17 at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Virginia. 

Also on this day, Madison Central High School of Old Bridge, Middlesex County, New Jersey beat East Brunswick, 32-7, and clinched the Middlesex County Athletic Conference title. The school eventually known as Old Bridge went on to reach the Central Jersey Group III Final at Giants Stadium, but lost to Hillsborough of Somerset County.

For East Brunswick, later to be my high school, this was the only game they lost in the regular season. They gained the top seed in the Central Jersey Group IV Playoffs, their 1st Playoff berth, but lost the Semifinal to Raritan of Hazlet.

There were 9 games played in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks beat the Utah Jazz, 109-102 at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City. Adrian Dantley scored 38 points in defeat.

* The New Jersey Nets beat the Atlanta Hawks, 115-111 at the Rutgers Athletic Center (now the Jersey Mike's Arena) in Piscataway, New Jersey. John Drew scored 37 in defeat for the Hawks.

* The Detroit Pistons beat the Dallas Mavericks, 101-73 at the Silverdome in the Detroit suburb of Pontiac, Michigan.

* The Denver Nuggets beat the Chicago Bulls, 130-126 in double overtime at the Chicago Stadium.

* The Kansas City Kings beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 111-106 at the Kemper Arena (now the Hy-Vee Arena) in Kansas City.

* The Phoenix Suns beat the Houston Rockets, 116-115 at The Summit in Houston. Moses Malone scored 36 points and had 17 rebounds. (The arena has since been converted into the Central Campus of the Lakewood Church, Dr. Joel Osteen's "megachurch.")

* The San Antonio Spurs beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 112-109 at the HemisFair Arena in San Antonio.

* The Golden State Warriors beat the Indiana Pacers, 118-111 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena.

* And the San Diego Clippers beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 110-106 at the Portland Memorial Coliseum.

There were 8 games played in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers lost to the Vancouver Canucks, 6-4 at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver.

* The New York Islanders beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 7-3 at the Nassau Coliseum.

* The Montreal Canadiens beat the Los Angeles Kings, 3-0 at the Montreal Forum.

* The Philadelphia Flyers beat the Hartford Whalers, 5-4 at the Hartford Civic Center (now the PeoplesBank Arena).

* The Buffalo Sabres and the Washington Capitals played to a tie, 3-3 at the Capital Center in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland.

* The Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Detroit Red Wings, 5-3 at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh.

* The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Colorado Rockies played to a tie, 3-3 at the McNichols Arena in Denver.

* The Calgary Flames beat the St. Louis Blues, 4-2 at the Stampede Corral in Calgary.

* And the Boston Bruins, the Minnesota North Stars, the Quebec Nordiques, the Winnipeg Jets and the Edmonton Oilers were not scheduled.

And in English soccer, North London team Arsenal went to Yorkshire, and beat Leeds United 5-0 at Elland Road.

November 6, 1976: Fourth and Dumb

November 6, 1976: The University of Florida play their rivals, the University of Georgia, in their annual neutral-site game, at the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida. Neutral? It's not, really: Not only is Jacksonville in the State of Florida -- the most populous city in the State, although not even close to being the most populous metro area -- is 81 miles northeast of the UF campus in Gainesville, and 341 miles southeast of the UGa campus in Athens.

The Georgia Bulldogs come into this game 7-1, having lost only away to Mississippi by 4 points, and ranked Number 7 in the nation. The Florida Gators come in 6-1, having lost only to North Carolina by 3 points in a neutral-site game in Tampa -- An omen? -- and ranked Number 10. The game was nationally televised on ABC.

Florida led at halftime, 27-13. Georgia closed to within 27-20. With 4th-and-1 on their own 29-yard line, Florida coach Doug Dickey went for the 1st down instead of punting, and his team was stopped short. Georgia then scored 3 unanswered touchdowns, and won 41-27.

Dickey admitted, "We were not outplayed. We were outcoached. I made some dumb calls." Georgia fans and sportswriters have called it "Fourth and Dumb" ever since.

Florida lost the next week, too, away to Kentucky. They had beaten another of their rivals, Florida State; and went on to beat their other main rival, the University of Miami. They finished 8-3, and went to the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas, where they lost to Texas A&M.

Georgia ran the table, winning the Southeastern Conference Championship, and beating their other major rival, Georgia Tech. They finished 10-1, and went into the Sugar Bowl ranked Number 4. Had they won, they had a shot at being voted the National Champions, since their opponents, the University of Pittsburgh, were ranked Number 1. But Pitt beat Georgia. 

It was the 3rd SEC title for Georgia coach Vince Dooley, and he would eventually win 5, including the 1980 National Championship. In 1989, he was succeeded as head coach by his 1976 quarterback, Ray Goff. Dooley died on October 28, 2022.

Dickey, who had grown up in Gainesville, and had been Florida's quarterback, had coached the University of Tennessee to 2 SEC titles, but could not do the same at his alma mater. As of November 6, 2022, he is still alive.

*

November 6, 1976 was a Saturday. These other notable college football games were played that day:

* Number 1 Michigan were upset by Purdue, 16-14 at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana. This would be Michigan's only loss in the regular season, as they won the Big Ten Conference title.

* Number 2 University of Pittsburgh beat Army, 37-7 at Pitt Stadium in Pittsburgh. An independent at the time, Pitt, with Heisman Trophy-winning running back Tony Dorsett, were invited to the Sugar Bowl, where they beat Georgia, completed an undefeated season, and won the National Championship.

* Number 3 UCLA beat Oregon, 46-0 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. But they lost their rivalry game to USC, and blew the Pacific-Eight Conference title, and shots at the Rose Bowl and the National Championship.

* Number 4 USC beat Stanford, 48-24 at Stanford Stadium in the San Francisco suburb of Palo Alto, California. USC won the Pac-8 title, went to the Rose Bowl, and beat Michigan.

* Number 5 Texas Tech beat Texas Christian University (TCU), 14-10 at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas.

* Number 6 Maryland beat the University of Cincinnati, 21-0 at Byrd Stadium (now SECU Stadium) in the Washington suburb of College Park, Maryland. Maryland won the Atlantic Coast Conference with an undefeated regular season.

* Number 8 Ohio State beat Illinois, 42-10 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus. But a loss to Michigan cost Ohio State the Big 10 title. With the Big 10 finally having dropped their dumb rule of only going to the Rose Bowl, Ohio State were invited to the Orange Bowl, where they beat Colorado.

* Number 9 Nebraska beat Number 13 Oklahoma State, 14-10 at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska. But they lost their next 2 games, and blew the Big Eight Conference title.

* Number 11 Notre Dame lost to Georgia Tech, 23-14 at Grant Field in Atlanta.

* Number 14 Colorado lost to Number 16 Missouri, 16-7 at Faurot Field in Columbia, Missouri. But losses by Missouri and Nebraska allowed Colorado to back into the Big 8 title.

* Number 19 University of Houston beat Number 20 Texas, 30-0 at Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas. Houston won the Southwest Conference title, and then beat Maryland in the Cotton Bowl, ending Maryland's undefeated season and its longshot hope at the National Championship.

* Navy beat Syracuse, 27-10 at Archbold Stadium in Syracuse, New York.

* Air Force beat Arizona State, 31-30 at Sun Devil Stadium (now Mountain America Stadium) in the Phoenix suburb of Tempe, Arizona.

* And in New Jersey, Rutgers, Princeton

Baseball season was over. There were 7 games played in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks beat the Golden State Warriors, 112-111 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena.

* The New York Nets lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers, 101-93 at The Coliseum in the Cleveland suburb of Richfield, Ohio.

* The Washington Bullets beat the Boston Celtics, 109-103 at the Capital Centre in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland. Elvin Hayes led all players on the day with 36 points.

* The Detroit Pistons beat the Atlanta Hawks, 110-105 at The Omni in Atlanta. John Drew scored 35 points for the Hawks.

* The Buffalo Braves beat the Houston Rockets, 117-102 at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.

* The Denver Nuggets beat the Milwaukee Braves, 105-103 at the Milwaukee Exposition, Convention Center and Arena, or "The MECCA." Since 2014, it has been named the UW-Panther Arena.

* The San Antonio Spurs beat the Indiana Pacers, 113-94 at the HemisFair Arena in San Antonio.

There were 4 games played in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers and the Los Angeles Kings played to a tie, 3-3 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

* The New York Islanders beat the Minnesota North Stars, 5-2 at the Nassau Coliseum.

* In an "Original Six" matchup, the Montreal Canadiens beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 11-3 at the Montreal Forum. Steve Shutt scored 3 goals. Guy Lafleur had 2 goals and 2 assists.

* And the St. Louis Blues beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-2 at the St. Louis Arena.

There were 3 games played in the World Hockey Association: 

* The Quebec Nordiques beat the Birmingham Bulls, 6-5 at 

* The Cincinnati Stingers beat the Winnipeg Jets, 7-3 at the Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati. 

* And the San Diego Mariners beat the Houston Aeros, 4-1 at the San Diego Sports Arena (now the Pechanga Arena).

Also on this day, Pat Tillman was born. The Arizona Cardinals safety left the NFL to enlist in the U.S. Army after the 9/11 attacks, and was killed in action in Afghanistan in 2004.

September 9, 1965: The Debut of Gatorade

Dr. Robert Cade

September 9, 1965: Gatorade is first given to football players at the University of Florida. The first player to try it was senior guard Larry Gagner. He takes one sip, and says, "This stuff tastes like piss!"

It was developed by a team at the University, led by Dr. Robert Cade, on the request of assistant coach Dewayne Douglas, a former offensive tackle at Florida who had played for the New York Giants in 1953. Practicing in the heat and humidity of Florida Summer led to extreme dehydration.

Cade's research team discovered that football players were losing up to 18 pounds during the 3 hours of a college football game, and that 90 to 95 percent of that loss was water. A player's plasma volume could decrease as much as 7 percent and blood volume by 5 percent, and sodium and chloride were excreted in the sweat.

So Cade's team produced a drink to replenish the carbohydrates that they burned, and the combination of water and electrolytes that they lost in sweat during vigorous sports activities. It was a mixture of water, salt, sodium citrate, fructose and monopotassium phosphate. In other words, Gagner wasn't far off: The players were basically drinking sweat. Cade's wife, Mary, offered a suggestion: Add lemon juice and cyclamate, an artificial sweetener.

Cade and his team (and his wife) must have done something right: In 1965, coached by Ray Graves, and quarterbacked by Steve Spurrier, Florida went 7-4, and, with Number 1 Alabama choosing the Orange Bowl, went to the Sugar Bowl, where they lost to Missouri. They ended the season ranked Number 12.

In 1966, they went 9-2, and beat Georgia Tech in the Orange Bowl. They were ranked Number 11, and Spurrier won the Heisman Trophy. Tech coach Bobby Dodd said the reason Florida beat his team was, "We didn't have Gatorade. That made the difference." That publicized the stuff nationwide, and a legend was born.

The Stokely-Van Camp company acquired the rights to produce and market the Gatorade brand. The company was purchased by Quaker Oats in 1983, and PepsiCo in 2001. Eventually, multiple flavors would be developed, sold by superstar athletes such as Michael Jordan, Derek Jeter, Sidney Crosby and Peyton Manning -- and one particularly notably non-athlete, golfer Tiger Woods.

Dewayne Douglas died in 2000. Robert Cade died in 2007. Ray Graves died in 2015. Mary Cade died in 2021. As of September 9, 2022, Larry Gagner and Steve Spurrier are still alive.

*

September 9, 1965 was a Thursday. Future basketball star Dan Majerle was born. Hurricane Betsy hit the Gulf of Mexico region, including Florida, killing 81 people, although it's not clear whether it had any effect on the UF campus in Gainesville, other than heavy rain and high wind.

This was also the day that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development was created. I have a separate entry for that event.

There were only 5 major league baseball games that night:

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs, 1-0 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Sandy Koufax pitched his 4th career no-hitter, and it was a perfect game. Bob Hendley of the Cubs only allowed 1 hit, and the Dodgers' run scored on a walk, a sacrifice bunt, and an error. I have a separate entry for this event.

* The New York Mets lost to the Cincinnati Reds, 3-2 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Rookie Tug McGraw, not yet converted into a reliever, started for the Mets, and allowed 2 runs over 7 innings. The Mets tied the game in the 8th, but Tony Pérez won it with a home run off Gordie Richardson in the bottom of the 9th. Frank Robinson -- as it turned out, in his last month with the Reds -- went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Chicago White Sox, 10-4 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Jim Kaat outpitched Joe Horlen. Harmon Killebrew did not play. The Twins were about to win Minnesota's 1st major league Pennant, the franchise's 1st since 1933, when they were the Washington Senators. But they would lose the World Series to the Dodgers.

* The California Angels beat the Kansas City Athletics, 7-2 at Kansas City Municipal Stadium.

* And the San Francisco Giants beat the Houston Astros, 4-0 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Juan Marichal, having returned from his suspension after hitting John Roseboro with his bat on August 22, pitched a 4-hit shutout. Tom Haller hit a home run. Willie Mays went 0-for-3. 

April 3, 2006: The Rise of Florida Gators Basketball

April 3, 2006: The University of Florida defeats UCLA 73-57 at the RCA Dome (formerly the Hoosier Dome) in Indianapolis, to win its 1st National Championship in basketball.

In so doing, they become the 1st school ever to hold the National Championship in football and basketball at the same time.

Billy Donovan had played on the Providence College team that reached the NCAA Final Four under Rick Pitino in 1987. Pitino then signed to coach the New York Knicks, and signed Donovan for the 1987-88 season. It would be his only season as an NBA player. Pitino went to the University of Kentucky in 1989, and Donovan joined him as an assistant coach.

He wasn't there when Pitino led Kentucky to the National Championship in 1996, because he was named head coach at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia in 1994. But Pitino's '96 title made colleges look at his former players and assistant coaches. The University of Florida wanted to succeed Kentucky as the dominant basketball program in the Southeastern Conference, and hired Donovan.

It worked wonders: He led them to the SEC regular season title in 2000 and 2001, the Final Four in 2000, and the SEC Tournament in 2005. In 2005-06, with center Joakim Noah, forwards Al Horford and Corey Brewer, and guards Taurean Green and Lee Humphrey, they had a 24-6 regular season. (Noah was the son of French tennis champion Yannick Noah. Horford was the son of former NBA player Alfredo "Tito" Horford. Green was the son of former NBA payer Sidney Green.)

They started 17-0, then lost back-to-back games, by 4 away to Tennessee and 6 away to South Carolina. After 3 wins, they lost to South Carolina again, this time by 4 at home at the O'Connell Center in Gainesville. After 2 more wins, they lost 3 straight: By 4 away to Arkansas, by 4 at home to Tennessee, and by 5 away to Alabama.

At what's now known as the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, they struggled in the SEC Tournament, beating Arkansas by 4, blowing out Louisiana State, and, given a 3rd chance to beat South Carolina, beating them, 49-47, to take the title.

In the NCAA Tournament, they had little trouble with South Alabama and the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. But against Number 23 Georgetown, they could only win, 57-53. Against Number 3 Villanova, they won, 75-62, to get back to the Final Four, at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis. There, they ended the "Cinderella" story of George Mason University, of Fairfax, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, D.C., beating them, 73-58.

Their opponents in the Final would be the University of California at Los Angeles. UCLA have won more National Championships in basketball than any other school: 11, most recently in 1995. Indeed, the school has won more NCAA Championships in all sports combined than any other school. Coach Ben Howland's team was ranked Number 7, led by guard Jordan Farmar, who later played on back-to-back NBA Championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. Each school came into the game with a 32-6 record.

But the game was no contest. No Gator scored more than Noah's 16, but he also had 9 rebounds, and essentially controlled the game. Florida led 36-25 at the half, and won, 73-57. They had their 1st National Championship.

They won the National Championship again the next year, beating Ohio State in the Final, with Brewer succeeding Noah as the Tournament's Most Outstanding Player. They had also won the SEC title, both in the regular season and in the Tournament.

In between, Florida's football team beat Ohio State in the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game, making them the 1st team ever to hold the National Championships in football and basketball at the same time. They had become the 1st team to win the basketball title, then the football title; then, the 1st to win the football title, then the basketball title. Through the 2022 NCAA basketball tournament, they remain the only school to achieve any of these.

Noah was a 2-time NBA All-Star with the Chicago Bulls. Horford was a 5-time All-Star, for the Atlanta Hawks and the Boston Celtics. Brewer won a NBA Championship with the 2011 Dallas Mavericks. In 2020, he was named head coach of the New Orleans Pelicans.

Donovan would win the SEC regular-season title again in 2011, '13 and '14; and also won the SEC Tournament and reached the Final Four in 2014. In 2015, he left to become the head coach of the NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder; in 2020, of the Chicago Bulls.

UPDATE: In 2022, Taurean Green rejoined the University of Florida basketball program, as director of player development. In 2023, he was named an assistant coach under Todd Golden. In 2025, they won another National Championship.

In 2024, Al Horford won an NBA Championship with the Celtics, having lost in the Finals in 2022.

*

April 3, 2006, as NCAA Final nights tend to be, was a Monday. The NBA played no games on the day. Football was out of season. It was Opening Day for most teams in Major League Baseball:

* The New York Yankees beat the Oakland Athletics, 15-2 at the McAfee Coliseum, as the Oakland Coliseum was then known. Randy Johnson, whom Yankee fans would like to forget ever played for them, was the winning pitcher, while Barry Zito didn't get out of the 2nd inning.

Alex Rodriguez went 3-for-5 with a home run, a walk and 5 RBIs. Hideki Matsui went 4-for-4 with a home run, 2 walks and 4 RBIs. Johnny Damon, whom the Yankees signed away from the Red Sox, went 3-for-7 with an RBI. Derek Jeter went 2-for-6 with a walk and 2 RBIs. Frank Thomas, in his 1st major league game away from the Chicago White Sox, hit his 489th career home run for the A's.

* The New York Mets beat the Washington Nationals, 3-2 at Shea Stadium. Tom Glavine was the winning pitcher. David Wright hit a home run. Xavier Nady went 4-for-4 with an RBI.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 13-5 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Chris Carpenter outpitched Jon Lieber. Albert Pujols hit 2 home runs, and former Phillie Scott Rolen hit 1. For the Phils, Pat Burrell and Ryan Howard hit home runs, and Chase Utley went 3-for-5 with an RBI.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, 9-6 at Camden Yards in Baltimore.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds, 16-7 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. Matt Murton hit a home run for the Cubs. He and Todd Walker each had 3 RBIs. Both men had 3 hits, along with Juan Pierre.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 5-2 at Miller Park (now American Family Field) in Milwaukee.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals, 3-1 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Texas Rangers, 7-3 at Ameriquest Field (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. David Ortiz cheated his way to 3-for-5 with a home run and 3 RBIs.

* The Houston Astros beat the Florida Marlins, 1-0 at Minute Maid Park (now Daikin Park) in Houston. Roy Oswalt pitched 8 innings of 5-hit shutout ball, and Brad Lidge finished the 5-hit shutout, outpitching Dontrelle Willis and 3 Marlin relievers. The only run came in the bottom of the 7th, when Joe Borowski threw a wild pitch, allowing Craig Biggio to score with Morgan Ensberg at bat.

* The Colorado Rockies beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 3-2 at Coors Field in Denver. In the bottom of the 11th inning, Brad Hawpe grounded into a fielder's choice that scored Matt Holliday with the winning run.

* The San Diego Padres beat the San Francisco Giants, 6-1 at Petco Park in San Diego. Barry Bonds went 1-for-4.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 11-10 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Andruw Jones went 2-for-4 with a home run, a walk and 4 RBIs.

* The Los Angeles Angels beat the Seattle Mariners, 5-4 at Safeco Field (now T-Mobile Park) in Seattle.

* The Chicago White Sox and the Cleveland Indians opened the night before, at U.S. Cellular Field (now Rate Field) in Chicago. The White Sox won, 10-4. Jim Thome, who eventually returned to Cleveland and became their all-time home run leader, hit one in his Pale Hose debut.

* And the Minnesota Twins and the Toronto Blue Jays were scheduled to open the next day, at the Rogers Centre in Toronto. The Jays won, 6-3.

And there were 10 games in the NHL:

* The Carolina Hurricanes beat the Washington Capitals, 6-5 at the RBC Center (now the Lenovo Center) in Raleigh, North Carolina. Ray Whitney scored the winning goal, 1:25 into overtime.

* The Tampa Bay Lightning beat their arch-rivals, the Florida Panthers, 4-1 at the St. Pete Times Forum (now the Benchmark International Arena) in Tampa.

* The Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Nashville Predators, 3-1 at the Gaylord Entertainment Center (now the Bridgestone Arena) in Nashville.

* The San Jose Sharks beat the Dallas Stars, 3-2 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. Joe Thornton scored the winning goal, with 21 seconds left in overtime.

* The Ottawa Senators beat the Atlanta Thrashers, 6-4 at Scotiabank Place (now the Canadian Tire Centre) in Ottawa.

* The Buffalo Sabres beat their arch-rivals, the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-2 in a shootout at the Air Canada Centre (now the Scotiabank Arena) in Toronto.

* The Colorado Avalanche beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 4-3 at the Pepsi Center (now the Ball Arena) in Denver.

* The Detroit Red Wings beat the Calgary Flames, 2-1 in a shootout at the Saddledome in Calgary.

* The Edmonton Oilers beat the Phoenix Coyotes, 7-1 at Rexall Place (as the Northlands Coliseum was then known) in Edmonton.

* And the Los Angeles Kings beat the Vancouver Canucks, 1-0 at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles.

April 3, 2000: Izzo & the Flintstones

April 3, 2000: Michigan State University defeats the University of Florida, 89-76 at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, and wins its 2nd National Championship.

Jud Heathcote had coached Michigan State to the National Championship in 1979, led by Earvin "Magic" Johnson. In 1983, he took Tom Izzo on as an assistant coach. Heathcote retired in 1995, and Izzo was named head coach.

Izzo led a team that included guards Mateen Cleaves and Charlie Bell, forwards Andre Hutson and Morris Peterson, and center A.J. Granger. Cleaves, Bell and Peterson were from Flint, Michigan, and were known as the "Flint Stones." Hutson and Granger were from Ohio. Ohio State fans could console themselves with saying at least they didn't go to the University of Michigan, arch-rival to both Ohio State and Michigan State. (And, arguably, to Notre Dame, too.)

Michigan State got back to the Final Four the next year, and has gotten there 8 times under Izzo. Through the 2021-22 season, he has led them to win the Big Ten Conference regular-season title 10 times, and the Conference Tournament 6 times. (UPDATE: He won the regular-season title again in 2025.) Florida would win the title in 2006 and 2007.

Cleaves, the team's star player, would only last 4 seasons in the NBA, although he nearly reached the Finals with the 2002 Sacramento Kings. He is now a studio analyst for Fox Sports Detroit.

*

April 3, 2000 was a Monday. It was Opening Day for most Major League Baseball teams:

* The New York Yankees beat the Anaheim Angels, 3-2 at Edison International Field (now Anaheim Stadium). Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez pitches 7 strong innings, and is backed by home runs by Paul O’Neill and Shane Spencer.

* The New York Mets beat the San Diego Padres, 2-1 at Shea Stadium. Tony Gwynn went 0-for-3.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Montreal Expos, 10-4 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Baltimore Orioles, 4-1 at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Bartolo Colón (cough, steroids, cough) outpitched Mike Mussina. Cal Ripken went 1-for-4.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Colorado Rockies, 2-0 at Turner Field (now Center Parc Stadium) in Atlanta. Greg Maddux (5 hits over 7 2/3rds innings) and Mike Remlinger combined on a 6-hit shutout.

* The Florida Marlins beat the San Francisco Giants, 6-4 at Pro Player Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida. Barry Bonds went 1-for-4.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Kansas City Royals, 5-4 at the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre) in Toronto.

* The Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds were tied, 3-3 at Cinergy Field (formerly Riverfront Stadium) in Cincinnati, after 6 innings, when the game was called due to rain. Ken Griffey Jr., making his Reds debut, went 0-for-2.

* The Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Minnesota Twins, 7-0 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Steve Traschel pitched 7 innings of 5-hit shutout ball, and 2 relievers completed an 8-hit shutout.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs, 7-1 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Now, why would you schedule your arch-rivals for Opening Day? Why waste Opening Day on a game that would probably be a sellout, anyway? Mark McGwire was injured, and did not play. Sammy Sosa went 0-for-4.

* The Texas Rangers beat the Chicago White Sox, 10-4 at The Ballpark (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Oakland Athletics, 7-4 at the Oakland Coliseum (then known as the Network Associates Coliseum).

* And the Boston Red Sox, the Seattle Mariners, the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Houston Astros, the Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates opened their seasons the next day.

January 8, 2007: The University of Florida's Unique Double

January 8, 2007: Florida beats Ohio State 41-17, at the University of Phoenix Stadium (now State Farm Stadium) in Glendale, Arizona. The Gators win the National Championship.

In so doing, the University of Florida becomes the 1st school ever to hold the National Championship in football and basketball at the same time.

Urban Meyer had become coach the season before, replacing the much-mocked Ron Zook, who had succeeded UF's greatest figure, Steve Spurrier. Cliché Alert: You don't want to be the guy who succeeds the legend, you want to be the guy who succeeds the guy who succeeds the legend.

Meyer's quarterback was Chris Leak, who was frequently spelled by a lefthanded freshman, Tim Tebow. Leak and Tebow passing to All-American receiver Percy Harvin gave the Gators the top offensive attack in the country. They had a defense that featured linebacker Brandon Siler, cornerback Ryan Smith, and safety Reggie Nelson.

In the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game, Ohio State scored first, leading 7-0. But Florida scored the next 3 touchdowns. Ohio State got to within 21-14, but did not score again, and Florida pulled away.

To take it a step further, less than 3 months later, Florida repeated as National Champions in basketball. The team they beat in the Final? Ohio State.

Meyer went on to lead Florida to another National Championship in 2008. In 2014, he won another National Championship -- with Ohio State.

*

January 8, 2007 was a Monday. Baseball was out of season. The NFL was between rounds of its Playoffs. There were 3 games played in the NBA:

* The Houston Rockets beat the Chicago Bulls, 84-77 at the United Center in Chicago.

* The Los Angeles Clippers beat the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets, 100-90 at the Ford Center (now the Paycom Center) in Oklahoma City. As a result of their having to vacate New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, they made a deal to play most of their home games in Oklahoma City for 2 years.

* And the Denver Nuggets beat the Milwaukee Bucks, 104-92 at the Pepsi Center (now the Ball Arena) in Denver.

There was only 1 game in the NHL: The Edmonton Oilers beat the Los Angeles Kings, 2-1 at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles. Jan Heida scored the winning goal, with 3:46 left in overtime.