December 22, 1984: The Subway Vigilante

December 22, 1984: Bernhard Goetz shoots 4 men on a New York Subway train, and becomes known as "The Subway Vigilante."

In the 1960s, '70s and '80s, crime had escalated in American cities due to rising poverty and drug use, and New York City seemed to be its symbolic capital. And with personnel cutbacks in police departments due to budget shortfalls, it seemed like no one was doing anything about it.

In New York, Subway stations and trains were seen as particularly bad. The graffiti that stained the stations and the trains didn't help. I grew up in Central Jersey, a 45-minute bus ride from Midtown Manhattan.

When my mother let me go into The City, it was always with her, and we always took taxicabs. Never mind that taxis were dangerous, because the drivers tended to be maniacs, and we once got into 3 accidents in a single ride: She said the Subway was unsafe. (Disclaimer: Her father had driven a taxi in The City, so she may have been biased.) Only once before I turned 15 did she let me go to a Yankee game via the Subway, and she went with me, hating every minute of both the ride up and the ride back.

Goetz was born in Queens, and grew up Upstate before being sent to boarding school in Switzerland. He came back for college, and became an electrical engineer. In 1981, he was attacked by 3 young black men in the Canal Street subway station, injuring and robbing him. The attackers were caught, but never served time. This angered him, and he applied for a permit to carry a concealed weapon. He chose a 5-shot .38-caliber revolver.

He was setting himself up to be life imitating art. In the 1974 film Death Wish, Charles Bronson played Paul Kersey, a man whose wife was killed and his daughter raped during a home invasion and robbery, and took to shooting criminals. He ended up shooting and killing 2 would-be muggers on a AA Train. Of course, in order to avoid the charge of racism, white actors were cast as the muggers.

(The AA was relabeled the K in 1985, and discontinued in 1988. Someone once asked me what would have happened if Kersey had met the titular gang from the 1979 film The Warriors on the Subway. The answer is obvious: Nothing would have happened. The Warriors, too, only wanted to get home safely, and would not have disturbed Kersey. So he would have left them alone, too.)

On December 22, 1984, 4 African-Americans from The Bronx boarded a downtown Number 2 Train. James Ramseur was 18 years old. The other 3 were all 19: Barry Allen (definitely not to be confused with the comic book character of the same name, the superhero known as The Flash), Troy Canty and Darrell Cabey. They told the police they were on their way to rob a video arcade in Manhattan.

When the train got to 14th Street and 7th Avenue, it was about 1:30 in the afternoon. Goetz, then 37 years old, boarded, and sat across from the 4 teenagers. They surrounded him, to prevent anyone from interfering, and Canty said, "Give me five dollars." He later told the police it was an attempt at panhandling, not a mugging. None of them had pulled any kind of weapon.

Goetz did, and fired it. He ended up wounding all four. Cabey was paralyzed, while the others' wounds were not nearly as serious.

Goetz got off the train, went home, gathered some belongings, and fled the city. He rented a car, and drove 185 miles to Bennington, Vermont, destroying the evidence: He burned his recognizable blue jacket, and dismantled the gun, scattering the pieces in the woods.

For a few days, the shooter's identity was unknown. But people praised him for standing up to criminals and taking action against them. Christmas came and went, and his identity was still unknown.

But on December 26, someone called the New York Police Department's anonymous tip line, and mentioned Goetz' name and his previous mugging. On December 29, the police got a warrant and searched his apartment. On December 31, New Year's Eve, having heard of these developments, Goetz knew the game was up. He drove to Concord, New Hampshire, and turned himself in to the police there. By the time the ball dropped in Times Square at 12:00 Midnight, the world knew his name.

He told the Concord police that New York City was "lawless," and that the criminal justice system was "a joke," "a sham," and "a disgrace." On January 3, 1985, he was extradited to Manhattan.

It was between Ronald Reagan's re-election as President and his Inauguration for a 2nd term. It was the time of action films starring Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Chuck Norris, and the aforementioned Charles Bronson. Except this was real, and Bernhard Goetz became a folk hero for the time, at least among right-wingers, angry at crime and bigoted toward black people in general. For liberals, he was no hero, but they had to admit that there had to be a better way to fight crime than what was being done.

Goetz would end up convicted of "criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree," but acquitted of the attempted murder and first-degree assault charges, due to his claims of self-defense. He was sentenced to 1 year in jail, 1 year of psychiatric treatment, 5 years of probation, 200 hours of community service, and a $5,000 fine (about $14,000 in 2022 money). He ended up serving 8 months.

A civil trial found that Goetz had "acted recklessly and had deliberately inflicted emotional distress on" the paralyzed Cabey. Cabey was awarded $43 million (about $121 million today) -- $18 million for "pain and suffering," and $25 million in "punitive damages." Goetz soon declared bankruptcy. In a 2004 interview with Fox News host Nancy Grace, he admitted -- bragged? -- that he hadn't paid a penny.

Crime peaked in New York in 1990, then finally began to go down a little bit. In 1994, President Bill Clinton signed the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, a bill sponsored in the Senate by Joe Biden of Delaware, later to be President himself; and in the House by Chuck Schumer of New York and Richard Durbin of Illinois, both later to be elected to the Senate. Its provisions, including the hiring of new police officers, changes in tactics, and tougher penalties for crimes led to a huge dropoff in crime, especially in New York.

During the 1996 World Series, just 2 years later, the NYPD revealed that, despite being in the South Bronx, which had been one of the most crime-ridden neighborhoods in America, 96 percent of the crime within a block of Yankee Stadium was ticket scalping, a nonviolent offense. In 2006, New York ranked 194th out of 210 American cities with at least 100,000 people in terms of violent crime. By 2014, crime rates were comparable to those of the early 1960s, before the big wave began.

In 1986, James Ramseur was convicted of rape and robbery, served 14 years in prison, and died in 2011 of a drug overdose. He was 45 years old. Darryl Cabey remains paralyzed and brain-damaged, supposedly with the cognitive ability of an 8-year-old. Barry Allen also went to prison for an unrelated robbery, serving 4 years. Troy Canty went to drug rehab and got clean. I can find no reference as to what Allen and Canty are doing now. The 3 survivors are all 57 years old.

Goetz is 75. In 2013, he was arrested for selling marijuana, but the charges were dismissed the next year. He has became a vegetarian activist. In 2019, he publicly announced that he would no longer do interviews.

Also in 2019, the film Joker premiered. Director Todd Phillips delivered a variation on the story of the comic book villain, traditionally the nemesis of Batman. Setting it in 1981 in fictional Gotham City, he included a scene reminiscent of the Goetz case, and also of the Subway shooting scene in Death Wish.

Not counting individuals implied as being part of a group, like the Beatles and the performers at Woodstock, "Bernie" Goetz is 1 of 4 people mentioned in Billy Joel's 1989 song "We Didn't Start the Fire" who are still alive at the end of 2022. The others are Brigitte Bardot, Chubby Checker and Bob Dylan. Goetz is easily the youngest of them, and is likely to be the last survivor.

I'm hoping he turns out not to be. He was no hero.

*

December 22, 1984 was a Saturday. It was the off-season for Major League Baseball. An NFL Playoff game was played that day: The Seattle Seahawks beat the Los Angeles Raiders, 13-7 at the Kingdome in Seattle.

Three college football bowl games were played that day:

* Florida Citrus Bowl, at the Citrus Bowl (now Camping World Stadium) in Orlando: Georgia and Florida State played to a 17-17 tie.

* Sun Bowl, at the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas: Maryland 28, Tennessee 27.

* Cherry Bowl, at the Silverdome in the Detroit suburb of Pontiac, Michigan: Army 10, Michigan State 6.

There were 9 NBA games played that day. The New York Knicks were not involved in any of them, but the New York Tri-State Area's other team was:

* The New Jersey Nets lost to the Philadelphia 76ers, 107-93 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia. Moses Malone led all scorers with 26 points, Andrew Toney scored 25, former Net Julius "Dr. J" Erving scored 20, and Otis Birdsong scored 24 in defeat.

* The Atlanta Hawks beat the Washington Bullets, 119-101 at The Omni in Atlanta. Dominique Wilkins, "The Human Highlight Film," scored 31 points.

* The Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Indiana Pacers, 106-103 at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis. Phil Hubbard scored 30 for the Cavs.

* The Chicago Bulls beat the Boston Celtics, 110-85 at the Chicago Stadium. Danny Ainge led the defending NBA Champions with 16 points, and Larry Bird only scored 10. Leading all scorers in the game, with 32 points, was a Bulls rookie named Michael Jordan.

* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the San Antonio Spurs, 101-90 at the Milwaukee Exposition, Convention Center and Arena, or "The MECCA." Since 2014, it has been named the UW-Panther Arena.

* The Kansas City Kings beat the Detroit Pistons, 129-123 at the Kemper Arena in Kansas City. (It's now named the Hy-Vee Arena.) This would be the Kings' last season in Kansas City, as they soon moved to Sacramento. Mike Woodson, the future Knicks coach, scored 31 for them in this game.

* The Houston Rockets beat the Denver Nuggets, 125-107 at The Summit in Houston. (It's now the Lakewood Church Central Campus, the "megachurch" of televangelist Joel Osteen.) 

* The Dallas Mavericks beat the Utah Jazz, 113-96 at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City.

* And the Phoenix Suns beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 110-108 at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix.

There were 9 NHL games that day, and all 3 of the New York Tri-State Area's teams were in action, 2 of them against each other:

* The New York Rangers beat the New Jersey Devils, 5-3 at the Brendan Byrne Arena. Pierre Larouche scored 2 goals for the Broadway Blueshirts. The Devils' scorers were Captain Mel Bridgman, Dave Pichette and Doug Sulliman.

* The New York Islanders beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, 5-2 at the Nassau Coliseum.

* The Washington Capitals beat the St. Louis Blues, 7-5 at the Capital Centre in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland.

* The Quebec Nordiques beat the Buffalo Sabres, 3-1 at the Colisee de Quebec.

* The Montreal Canadiens beat the Hartford Whalers, 10-5 at the Montreal Forum.

* In an "Original Six" matchup broadcast live on CBC's Hockey Night In Canada, the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Boston Bruins, 6-4 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

* The Minnesota North Stars beat the Detroit Red Wings, 5-4 at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

* The Winnipeg Jets beat the Los Angeles Kings, 6-2 at the Winnipeg Arena.

* And in the HNIC nightcap, in the Battle of Alberta, the defending, and soon to be again, Stanley Cup Champions, the Edmonton Oilers, clobbered the Calgary Flames, 7-1.

Also, Arsenal drew with Watford, 1-1 at Highbury in North London.

December 10, 1989: Sam Wyche Stands Up for Cincinnati

December 10, 1989: The Seattle Seahawks defeat the Cincinnati Bengals 24-17 at Riverfront Stadium. Bengals fans, in protest of what they perceived to be a bad call by the officials, began to throw snowballs onto the field at the referees and the Seahawks, who were at their own 4-yard line and an easy target from the bleachers. The Seahawks refused to continue until they stopped, and play was halted by the officials.

In order to stop the onslaught, Bengals coach Sam Wyche was given a house microphone to try to calm the crowd. The result was an epic rant, which also ramped up the nasty intrastate rivalry with the Cleveland Browns, famous (or infamous) for their rowdy bleacher fans, a.k.a. the Dawg Pound:

Will the next person that sees anybody throw anything onto this field, point 'em out, and get 'em out of here. You don't live in Cleveland, you live in Cincinnati!

The much-cheered comment had its roots in the traditional rivalry between Cleveland, in Northern Ohio, and Cincinnati, in Southern Ohio. The cities are in the same State, but they are not the same. As much as Cleveland is an NFL rival of Pittsburgh, those cities are much more alike than Cleveland and Pittsburgh.

Cleveland is a city that is based on steel, oil, shipping and labor unions, with a population that is more ethnically diverse and more Catholic. Cincinnati is more homogenous, with a strong German influence, with fans of baseball's Reds formerly described as "the gingery Germans of Zinzinatti." It's a more conservative city, home of the Taft political family, and not one given to innovation. In the late 19th Century, Mark Twain was quoted as saying, "When the end of the world comes, I want to be in Cincinnati because it's always 20 years behind the times."

The cities also seemingly defy regional status. Cleveland is unquestionably Midwestern. Cincinnatians call their hometown "the Queen City of the Midwest," but it's right across the Ohio River from Kentucky, and so there is a Southern influence.

(Buffalo, New York is "the Queen City of the Lakes." Charlotte, North Carolina, named for the wife of Britain's King George III, is "the Queen City of the Southeast." Springfield, Missouri is "the Queen City of the Ozarks." Seattle is "the Queen City of the Northwest.")

There is some sports overlap: Fans of the Reds, especially when the subject of their 1970s "Big Red Machine" comes up, tend to share an arrogance with fans of the University of Kentucky basketball program -- as Rupp Arena in Lexington is only 81 miles from Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, as opposed to the 249 miles to the Cleveland Guardians' Progressive Field. If rural Pennsylvania is "Pennsyltucky," then Cincinnati can be "Cincitucky."

The comparison can be seen in the most famous TV shows ever set in each city. WKRP in Cincinnati, which had already wrapped up its run by this point, was about employees of a radio station trying to give it rock and roll's music and attitude despite the innate conservatism of the city, the station's owning family, and even some of its on-air talent. In contrast, The Drew Carey Show, which hadn't yet begun, was about working-class people trying to have a good time against all odds, and the people standing in their way weren't necessarily conservative. Some of them were equally rockish, but were jerks about it.

But Wyche's comment also had roots in his franchise's beginning. Paul Brown, long after his death, is Mr. Ohio Football. He coached State Championship teams at Massillon High School. He coached Ohio State to the 1942 National Championship. He was the 1st head coach and general manager of the Cleveland Browns, winning the All-America Football Conference title in 1946, 1947, 1948 and 1949. He then took them into the NFL, and won the NFL Championship in 1950, 1954 and 1955, losing the Championship Game in 1951, 1952, 1953 and 1957.

But he was fired by new owner Art Modell in 1963. In 1967, Brown got an expansion franchise in the American Football League. He named them the Cincinnati Bengals, a name used by a previous Cincinnati pro team. It just so happened to have the same initials as "Cleveland Browns." Brown gave them the same colors, too: Black and orange.

In their 1st 3 seasons, 1968 to 1970, the last of them being their 1st in the NFL after the merger, Sam Wyche was Brown's quarterback. Wyche was the last head coach Brown hired, in 1984. He got them to the 1988 AFC Championship, though they lost Super Bowl XXIII. Brown died in 1991, and that would be Wyche's last season as head coach, as Paul's son Mike Brown fired him. Wyche died in 2020.

*

December 10, 1989 was a Sunday. These other NFL games were played on that day:

* The New York Giants beat the Denver Broncos, 14-7 at Mile High Stadium in Denver.

* The New York Jets lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers, 13-0 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh.

* The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Dallas Cowboys, 20-10 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

* The Washington Redskins beat the San Diego Chargers, 26-21 at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in Washington.

* The Miami Dolphins beat the New England Patriots, 31-10 at Joe Robbie Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida.

* The New Orleans Saints beat the Buffalo Bills, 22-19 at Rich Stadium (later Ralph Wilson Stadium) in the Buffalo suburb of Orchard Park, New York.

* The Indianapolis Colts beat the Cleveland Browns, 23-17 at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis.

* The Detroit Lions beat the Chicago Bears, 27-17 at Soldier Field in Chicago.

* The Minnesota Vikings beat the Atlanta Falcons, 43-17 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

* The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Green Bay Packers, 21-3 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay.

* The Houston Oilers beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 20-17 at the Astrodome in Houston.

* The Los Angeles Raiders beat the Phoenix Cardinals, 16-14 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

* And the next night, on ABC Monday Night Football, the San Francisco 49ers beat their arch-rivals, the Los Angeles Rams, 30-27 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim).

There were 2 games played in the NBA. The expansion Orlando Magic defeated the defending Western Conference Champion Los Angeles Lakers, 108-103 at the Orlando Arena. And the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 107-104 at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee. Clyde "the Glide" Drexler scored 36 points in defeat for the Blazers.

And there were 5 games played in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers lost to the Philadelphia Flyers, 4-2 at Madison Square Garden.

* The Los Angeles Kings beat the Quebec Nordiques, 8-4 at the Colisée de Québec.

* The Buffalo Sabres beat the Washington Capitals, 4-3 at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.

* The Chicago Blackhawks beat the Vancouver Canucks, 7-1 at the Chicago Stadium.

* And the Winnipeg Jets beat the Calgary Flames, 4-1 at the Winnipeg Arena.

November 26, 2013: Stephen A. Smith's Pronouncement: "Stay Off the Weed!"

November 26, 2013: Seattle Seahawks cornerback Brandon Browner is suspended by the NFL for marijuana use.

Regardless of its progressive decriminalization, marijuana use is still illegal in the NFL. Why? Because it makes people lazy and less aggressive, and interferes with clear thinking, 3 things that are not good for football players.

I am completely with Stephen. A Smith on this issue. It was on this day that Stephen A., part of the panels of NFL and NBA shows on ESPN, began a legend with this advice: "Stay off the weed!"

Or, as he drags the E sound out, and adds a syllable at the end: "Stay off the weeeeeeee-duh!"

He points out that every single major league sports contract in North America prohibits marijuana use, and that, if a player gets caught, he will get punished. For example: In the NFL, the penalty for a 1st offense is a $15,000 fine; a 2nd offense means $20,000; a 3rd offense is a full-game pay; and for a 4th, a 2-game fine.

That's an expensive hobby. Sounds like some guys need to make a choice: Either play in the NFL, or smoke pot, but you can't do both. And Stephen A. says, "Stay off the damn wee-duh! And they don't listen! Stupid!"

It's gotten to the point where Stephen A. is best known not for having once been a great sports columnist for The Philadelphia Inquirer, or for his hosting performance, or for his NFL banter with Skip Bayless, or for his fandom for the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, or for his fandom for the NBA's New York Knicks, but for his catchphrase. Even fans who see him in an arena try to get him to say it -- and he indulges them.

One more thing: People who use marijuana say it's a safe drug, because it calms you down and makes you peaceful. Let the record show that, in 2018, Brandon Browner was sentenced to 8 years in prison for attempted murder. At the time of his arrest, he was under the influence of... cocaine.

Marijuana activists claim it is not a "gateway drug," leading to the use of other drugs. Not always, but, sometimes, it is.

*

November 26, 2013 was a Tuesday. Baseball was out of season. Football was in midweek. There were 4 games in the NBA:

* The Brooklyn Nets beat the Toronto Raptors, 102-100 at the Air Canada Centre (now the Scotiabank Arena) in Toronto.

* The Washington Wizards beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 116-111 at the Verizon Center (now the Capital One Arena) in Washington. John Wall of the Wizards led all scorers on the night with 31 points.

* The Orlando Magic beat the Atlanta Hawks, 109-92 at the Philips Arena (now the State Farm Arena) in Atlanta.

* And the Golden State Warriors beat the New Orleans Pelicans, 102-101 at the New Orleans Arena (now the Smoothie King Center).

And there was 1 game in the NHL: The Dallas Stars beat the Anaheim Ducks, 6-3 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. 

November 11, 1889: Washington Is Admitted As the 42nd State

November 11, 1889: Washington is admitted to the Union as the 42nd State. It is the only State named after a President, George Washington. It is also the only State with a green State Flag, and the only State with a State Flag with the face of a real person on it, rather than a representation of some principle or other.

Other States have been named after people, but not Presidents:

* Delaware: Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, a colonial administrator.

* Pennsylvania: William Penn, its founder.

* Georgia: King George II of England.

* Maryland: St. Mary, mother of Jesus.

* South Carolina and North Carolina: King Charles I of England.

* Virginia: Queen Elizabeth II of England, "the Virgin Queen."

* New York: James, Duke of York, brother of King Charles II of England. James succeeded his brother, becoming King James II.

* Louisiana: King Louis IX of France, a.k.a. St. Louis, "the Crusader King." The City of St. Louis, Missouri was also named for him.

Washington was in the Northwest. It had been acquired as part of the Oregon Treaty of 1846. It has become known for its rainy climate; but, when the weather is good, it is known for its outdoor activities: Bicycling, camping in its forests, climbing Mount Rainier, riding the ferry from Seattle (including to Victoria, the Provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada), skiing in the Winter.

Its largest city, Seattle, is particularly known for the U.S. Navy base in nearby Bremerton; the accompanying aviation industry, as the birthplace of aircraft manufacturer Boeing; the computer industry, as the birthplace of Microsoft; and the coffee industry, as the birthplace of Starbucks. The State Capitol is Olympia.

Politically, Washington tends to vote Democratic. However, as with neighboring Oregon, and fellow Pacific Coast State California, the further inland you get, the more conservative people get. This is particularly true of "The Palouse": Eastern Washington (including Spokane), Eastern Oregon, and Northern Idaho, the State's Panhandle. The highest-ranking politician produced by the State has been Thomas S. Foley, who was Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1989 to 1995.

That political divide is evident in the 2 major colleges with sports programs: The University of Washington, in Seattle, is generally thought of as liberal; while Washington State University, in Pullman, 288 miles to the east, is considered conservative. The annual Thanksgiving weekdn football game between "U-Dub" vs. "Wazzu" is known as the Apple Cup, named for the State's best-known agricultural product.

Seattle was home to the 1st American team to win the Stanley Cup, the 1917 Seattle Metropolitans. But after their league failed in 1926, the city, and therefore the State, didn't return to the major leagues until 1967, when the NBA expanded to include the Seattle SuperSonics. 

After decades with the Pacific Coast League, with teams called the Siwashes, the Turks, the Giants, the Purple Sox, the Indians, the Rainiers and the Angels, baseball tried the Seattle Pilots in 1969, but they were bankrupt and failed after 1 season. When the Kingdome opened in 1976, the NFL expanded to the Seahawks, and MLB expanded to the Mariners.

The Sonics won the 1979 NBA title, but were moved in 2008. There were new stadiums for the Mariners in 1999 and the Seahawks in 2002. The Seahawks won Super Bowl XLVIII in 2014. The Sounds won the MLS Cup in 2016 and 2019.

The Seattle Sounders played in the North American Soccer League from 1974 to 1983, and MLS expanded to include a new Sounders team in 2009. In 2021, the NHL expanded to include the Seattle Kraken, and the movement to bring in an expansion or moved team to become the new Sonics remains strong.

*

November 11, 1889 was a Friday. Baseball was out of season. Basketball was 2 years away from being invented. Hockey barely existed. There was 1 college football game on this day: Lehigh University beat Penn State, 106-0 at the Athletic Association's Grounds in South Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Lehigh coach Jake Robeson mercifully offered to stop the game with 5 minutes left on the clock, and it remains the worst loss in Penn State football history.

This was a long time ago: Teams would sometimes play 2 games in less than 1 week, and Penn State had played Lehigh's nearby arch-rival, Lafayette, just 2 days before, and lost that, 26-0. They did play 2 other games that season, and win both, also against Pennsylvania teams, Swarthmore and Bucknell. Penn State was not yet the power that it would become, and, because of the diversion of the schools' footballing prowess, Penn State have not played Lehigh since 1942, and Lehigh haven't beaten them since 1936.

October 27, 2002: Emmitt Smith Becomes the NFL's All-Time Rushing Leader

October 27, 2002: The Seattle Seahawks beat the Dallas Cowboys, 17-14 at Texas Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Irving, Texas. Rian Lindell wins it with a 20-yard field goal with 25 seconds left.

But the game was memorable for another reason. The Cowboys' Emmitt Smith rushed for 109 yards, including a 1-yard touchdown that tied the game with 5:35 left in regulation. Those 109 yards enabled him to surpass Chicago Bears legend Walter Payton as the NFL's all-time rushing leader, breaking the record of 16,726 yards.

Drafted out of the University of Florida in 1990, Smith had helped the Cowboys win Super Bowls XXVII, XXVIII and XXX. He made 8 Pro Bowls, and in 1995, he set a new single-season record with 25 rushing touchdowns. (That record is now 28, set in 2006, by La Dainian Tomlinson of the San Diego Chargers.)

Smith, a native of Pensacola, in the Florida Panhandle, remained with the Cowboys through the 2002 season, and played 2 more seasons with the Arizona Cardinals. He still holds the NFL career records for most rushing attempts, 4,409; most rushing yards, 18,355, with Payton still 2nd; and most rushing touchdowns, 164.

In 1999, before he broke the record, The Sporting News ranked him 68th on their list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. In 2010, the NFL Network ranked him 28th on their list of the 100 Greatest Players. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor.

*

October 27, 2002 was a Sunday. These other NFL games were played:

* The New York Jets lost to the Cleveland Browns, 24-21 at Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands.

* The Denver Broncos beat the New England Patriots, 24-16 at Gillette Stadium in the Boston suburb of Foxborough, Massachusetts.

* The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Baltimore Ravens, 31-18 at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.

* The Washington Redskins beat the Indianapolis Colts, 26-21 at FedEx Field (now Northwest Stadium) in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland.

* The Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Carolina Panthers, 12-9 at Ericsson Stadium (now Bank of America Stadium) in Charlotte.

* The Houston Texans beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, 21-19 at Alltel Stadium (now EverBank Stadium) in Jacksonville.

* The Atlanta Falcons beat their arch-rivals, the New Orleans Saints, 37-35 at the Superdome in New Orleans.

* The Buffalo Bills beat the Detroit Lions, 24-17 at Ralph Wilson Stadium (formerly Rich Stadium) in the Buffalo suburb of Orchard Park, New York.

* The Tennessee Titans beat the Cincinnati Bengals, 30-24 at Paul Brown Stadium (now Paycor Stadium) in Cincinnati.

* The Minnesota Vikings beat the Chicago Bears, 25-7 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

* The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Oakland Raiders, 20-10 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.

* The San Francisco 49ers beat the Arizona Cardinals, 38-28 at Candlestick Park (then named San Francisco Stadium at Candlestick Point) in San Francisco.

* The next night, on ABC Monday Night Football, the Philadelphia Eagles beat the New York Giants, 17-3 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The Giants are the Eagles' geographical and longest-lasting rivals, but most Eagle fans consider the Cowboys to be the team's true arch-rivals.

* And the Green Bay Packers, the Miami Dolphins, the St. Louis Rams and the San Diego Chargers had a bye that week.

In baseball, Game 7 of the World Series was played. At the ballpark then known as Edison International Field of Anaheim, the team then known as the Anaheim Angels beat the San Francisco Giants, 4-1. The team now known as the Los Angeles Angels, playing at what's now named Angel Stadium of Anaheim, having already won their 1st Pennant in 42 seasons of trying, had now won their 1st World Championship.

The NBA season started 2 days later. There were 3 games played in the NHL:

* The Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Los Angeles Kings, 5-1 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus.

* The Chicago Blackhawks beat the San Jose Sharks, 3-2 at the United Center in Chicago.

* And the Minnesota Wild and the Colorado Avalanche played to a tie, 3-3 at the Pepsi Center (now the Ball Arena) in Denver.

October 1, 1990: Walmart Goes National

October 1, 1990: Not satisfied with having wrecked the "mom-and-pop shops" in the rest of the country, Walmart -- then usually stylized as "Wal-Mart" -- opens its first stores in the Northeastern U.S. This makes them the largest retailer in America.

By 2014, the 2nd half of the photo at the top of this post was true. But it wasn't just that. In 1964, a GM worker could afford to buy the product he made, and the product was good. (This was the era of good Corvettes, Pontiac GTOs, Olds Delta 88s, and it was the last year of big Caddy tailfins.)

In 2014, a Walmart worker could barely afford the crap his store sells, and the only thing Walmart actually makes is poverty.

*

October 1, 1990 was a Monday. Because of the players' strike during Spring Training, what had been originally scheduled as a day of between the regular season and the postseason became a day of rescheduled games:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Detroit Tigers, 2-0 at Yankee Stadium. Frank Tanana pitched 7 1/3rd innings of 3-hit shutout ball, and Mike Henneman and Jerry Don Gleaton finished the 3-hit shutout, outpitching Chuck Cary. Travis Fryman drove in all the runs with a home run in the top of the 6th inning. Don Mattingly went 0-for-4.

* The New York Mets beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-1 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. David Cone outpitched Zane Smith. Barry Bonds did not play.

* The Montreal Expos beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 15-9 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Chicago White Sox, 4-3 at Fenway Park in Boston.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Chicago Cubs, 7-6 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 6-3 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Cal Ripken went 1-for-4.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Houston Astros, 4-3 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati.

* The Texas Rangers beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 4-2 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Robin Yount went 1-for-3 with a walk. Paul Molitor did not play.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Seattle Mariners, 7-5 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Ken Griffey Jr. went 2-for-5.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres, 2-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Tony Gwynn did not play.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the San Francisco Giants, 5-3 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.

* And the California Angels beat the Oakland Athletics, 2-0 at the Oakland Coliseum. Joe Grahe pitched 8 1/3rd innings of 3-hit shutout ball, and Bryan Harvey finished the 3-hit shutout, outpitching Dave Stewart.

And on ABC Monday Night Football, the Seattle Seahawks beat the Cincinnati Bengals, 31-16 at the Kingdome in Seattle.

February 8, 2026: A Super Bowl of Redemptions

Sam Darnold (left) and Kenneth Walker III

Siri, what is Super Bowl Sunday?

Liberal Siri: It is America's annual tribute to violence, unregulated capitalism, and cholesterol.

Conservative Siri: It's the most wonderful time of the year!

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NOTE: While these entries are dated 2022, I decided to backdate the posting dates of events from 2023 onward to the same date in 2022.

February 8, 2026: Super Bowl LX was played, at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, home of the San Francisco 49ers, although it's 43 miles from downtown San Francisco, and 7 miles from downtown San Jose.

It was a chance at redemption for the Seattle Seahawks, after their loss to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX, 11 years earlier, when their head coach at the time, Pete Carroll, made the dumbest play call in the history of football.

It was a chance at redemption for their quarterback, Sam Darnold, who had previously washed out with the New York Jets, the Carolina Panthers and the San Francisco 49ers, and had been rejected by the Minnesota Vikings, despite getting them to a 14-3 regular-season record last season, before failing in the Playoffs. It was even a chance at redemption for his Southern California hometown, San Clemente, which is where Richard Nixon moved after he resigned the Presidency in disgrace.

Some people thought it was a chance at redemption for the Patriots: For the 1st time in 29 years, they were playing in a Super Bowl without Bill Belichick as head coach and Tom Brady at quarterback. They had been 6-3 in Super Bowls when suspected of cheating, and 0-2 in them before that when not.

There would be no redemption for the New York Jets or their fans. If the Patriots won, that would be the Jets' arch-rivals winning it -- again! If the Seahawks won, that would be Darnold winning it, reminding them of how their team totally mishandled him.

Unfortunately, for most of the game, it was looking like the worst-played Super Bowl, both teams combined, ever. For the 1st 46 minutes of the game, into the 4th quarter, the score was Seahawks 12, Patriots 0. Being a Yankee Fan, and thus hating all New England sports teams (though not the region of New England itself), and being a fan of fairness, and thus hating all cheating, I was happy about the score.

But, despite the fact that there were no turnovers until a Patriot fumble in the last 15 seconds of the 3rd quarter, the level of play was terrible. The Patriots had 4 1st Downs, while the Seahawks had 4 field goals, and neither team had scored a touchdown. There was a decent shot at the 1st shutout in a Super Bowl, and it wasn't even because the Seattle defense was so strong: It was that the New England offense, coached by Mike Vrabel and quarterbacked by Derek Maye, was so inept. They had not gotten further downfield than the Seahawks' 43-yard line.

Seahawk kicker Jason Myers was beginning to look like he would be the 1st placekicker to be named the Most Valuable Player of the Super Bowl. He ended up becoming the 1st man to kick 5 field goals in a Super Bowl, matching his uniform number; and scoring 17 points overall. (James White of the Patriots scored 20 -- 3 touchdowns and a 2-point conversion -- in Super Bowl LI, and Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles tied that record in Super Bowl LVII.)

Finally, with 13 minutes and 24 seconds to go, Darnold threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to AJ Barner, to give the Seahawks a 19-0 lead. Very briefly, the Patriots started to make it interesting, getting to 19-7 and driving for a 2nd touchdown, and we were all, "Oh, here we go again: No Belichick, no Brady, but are the Patriots cheating again? Is this gonna be another comeback like Super Bowl LI between the Patriots and the Atlanta Falcons, 28-3 becomes a Patriot overtime win?

But, no: That drive ended with 8:37 to go, with an interception by Julian Love that led to Myers' 5th field goal. It was then that I saw in the eyes of Maye the look of a quarterback who knew he was going to lose the Super Bowl. I had seen it before, in the eyes of Craig Morton in 1978, Ron Jaworski in 1981, Joe Theismann in 1984, Dan Marino in 1985, Tony Eason in 1986, John Elway 3 times in the late 1980s before he finally won two in the late 1990s, Jim Kelly 4 times in the early 1990s, Kurt Warner in 2002, Peyton Manning in 2014, and even 3-time winner Patrick Mahomes last year.

And on the Pats' next drive, Uchenna Nwosu intercepted a weak Maye pass, and returned it 45 yards for, Cliché Alert, the nail in the coffin. These 2 turnovers were a quick redemption for the Seahawk defense, which people were beginning to doubt. Final score: Seattle 29, New England 13.

The Seahawks had won their 2nd Super Bowl, and Seattle's 4th World Championship, following their win in Super Bowl XLVIII in 2014, the 1979 NBA Championship of the now-on-hiatus Seattle SuperSonics, and the 1st Stanley Cup won by an American team, in 1917, but the long-defunct Seattle Metropolitans. If you count Major League Soccer, add 2 for the Seattle Sounders: 2016 and 2019. If you count the WNBA, add 4 for the Seattle Storm: 2004, 2010, 2018 and 2020. So that would be 10 titles for the Queen City of the Northwest.

Mike McDonald, at 38, became the 3rd-youngest head coach to win a Super Bowl, following Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams in LV and Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers in XLIII, who were each 36. Kenneth Walker III rushed for 135 yards, the most in a Super Bowl in 28 years, and was named the MVP. And Darnold joined a select group of quarterbacks who had been mishandled by teams before being signed by teams willing to take a chance on them, and leading them to Super Bowl glory: Len Dawson, Earl Morrall, Jim Plunkett, Doug Williams, Brad Johnson, Drew Brees and Matthew Stafford.

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As for the entertainment: The opening ceremony was led by Bay Area-based rock band Green Day, who played the title track of their best-known album, American Idiot. It was written in reflection of the President at the time, George W. Bush. Who knew that, one day, we would have a President whose words and actions would make him look even more idiotic?

Openly lesbian singer Brandi Carlisle sang "America the Beautiful." Black singer Coco Jones, daughter of 1990s Patriots player Mike Jones, sang "Lift Every Voice and Sing," a.k.a. "The Black National Anthem," to which Trump and conservatives have objected in the past. The actual National Anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner," was sung by Charlie Puth, a white singer; but he was accompanied by saxophonist Kenny G, who is Jewish; and 3 multicultural groups: The Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir, the Sainted Trap Choir, and the Color of Noize Orchestra. All 3 songs were signed for the hearing impaired by men of color: "America the Beautiful" by Julian Ortiz, Hispanic; the other 2 by Fred Beam, black. It was multicultural, it was intersectional, and regardless of whether it was designed to make Trump angry, it surely did.

The halftime show was led by Puerto Rican singer Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, a.k.a. Bad Bunny. When it was announced that he would be the halftime performer, Donald Trump lost whatever passes for his mind, seeing him as an immigrant who doesn't speak English, and doesn't represent American values. Puerto Ricans have officially been American citizens since President Woodrow Wilson, a man not exactly known for his tolerance of people of color, signed the Jones-Shafroth Act in 1917.

Did Bad Bunny make a political statement? Puedes apostar lo que quieras. (That means, "You can bet whatever you want." Apparently, there is no proper Spanish translation for the old Laugh-In phrase, "You bet your sweet bippy.") His delivery was almost entirely in Spanish. The show began with a stage full of people working in sugarcane fields, emblematic of Puerto Rico's poverty. He made a reference to Puerto Rico's troublesome electrical power grid, which the federal government has a responsibility to maintain, and doesn't.

He had a stage set of a block in a Puerto Rican city neighborhood, showing that Latinos and Latinas are just like Anglos, and just like any other immigrants. At one point, he fell through the stage, and seemed to crash into a private home, which the viewing audience took as a swipe at ICE's illegal entries.

In the show's most-talked-about moment, he handed an actual Grammy Award to a little boy. Officially, the boy was supposed to represent the boy he had once been, dreaming of stardom. But millions of people thought the boy was supposed to represent Liam Ramos, the 5-year-old Minneapolis resident detained by ICE for 12 days. Millions of those thought it actually was Liam, inadvertently bringing up the old racist trope of "They all look alike to me."

Guest stars included an earlier Puerto Rican singer, Ricky Martin; Dominican-American rapper Cardi B; Mexican-American actress and businesswoman, and Bay Area native, Jessica Alba; and the only English-first performer of the show, Lady Gaga, who had been the halftime performer at Super Bowl LI. Bad Bunny closed by holding up a football printed with the words, "TOGETHER, WE ARE AMERICA," surrounded by the flags of every nation in the Western Hemisphere -- including, it should be noted, the United States -- and, emblazoned on the main scoreboard in big capital letters, "THE ONLY THING STRONGER THAN HATE IS LOVE." The message was inescapable.

So this Super Bowl also provided a moment of redemption for all of us, not just those of Spanish heritage, because we are all descended from immigrants. I understood maybe 1 word out of 5 that Bad Bunny sang, and I am not a fan of Latin music. And I didn't immediately understand every message that he was trying to send. But I certainly understood that he was sending messages.

And Trump got the message. Instead of watching the "alternative halftime show" put on by Turning Point USA, the organization run by the recently assassinated bigot Charlie Kirk, Trump clearly watched the Bad Bunny show, and called it "disgusting," and saying it didn't uphold American values.

This has now been said so often, I have to issue a Cliché Alert for it: With Donald Trump, every accusation is a confession.

The alternative show was watched by about 6 million people. The main show, and the game it paused? About 135 million. The game itself had an average of about 125 million, slightly under last season's all-time record.

The Seahawks have a Ring of Honor. The inductees are:

* From the 1980s: Quarterbacks Jim Zorn and Dave Krieg, running back Curt Warner, receiver Steve Largent, defensive end Jacob Green, cornerback Dave Brown, safety Kenny Easley, head coach Chuck Knox, and broadcaster Pete Gross.

* From the 1990s: Defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy.

* From their 2005 AFC Champions: Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, running back Shaun Alexander, offensive tackle Walter Jones, head coach Mike Holmgren, and team owner Paul Allen.

* As of yet, no members of the Super Bowl XLVIII winners, and obviously not from their Super Bowl LX winners, have yet been inducted.

Zorn, Warner, Holmgren and Gross have been elected to the State of Washington Sports Hall of Fame. So have 1992-93 running bach Rueben Mayes and 1995-98 head coach Dennis Erickson (both elected mainly on their performance at Washington State University), 1997-98 quarterback Warren Moon (a University of Washington graduate who starred elsewhere), 1970s to 2000s executive Gary Wright, 1980s and '90s executive Chuck Allen (no relation to Paul, but a UW graduate), and 1970s receiver and 1990s-onward broadcaster Steve Raible.

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February 8, 2026 was, like all Super Bowl days, a Sunday. Of course, there were no other football games. Baseball was out of season. The NHL was on its Winter Olympic hiatus. There were 4 games in the NBA:

* The New York Knick beat their arch-rivals, the Boston Celtics, 111-89 at the TD Garden in Boston. Jalen Brunson scored 31 points.

* The Miami Heat beat the Washington Wizards, 132-101 at the Capital One Arena in Washington.

* The Toronto Raptors beat the Indiana Pacers, 122-104 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

* And the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves, 115-96 at the Target Center in Minneapolis. Kawhi Leonard scored 41.

February 5, 2006: Last Stop for the Bus

February 5, 2006: Super Bowl XL is played at Ford Field in Detroit. The Seattle Seahawks were making their 1st appearance, having won the NFC Championship, after having played in the AFC from 1977 (after their 1st season, 1976, in the NFC) to 2001. They were coached by Mike Holmgren, who had coached the Green Bay Packers to victory in Super Bowl XXXI.

The Pittsburgh Steelers were making their 6th appearance. They had won their 1st 4, but had won their last in 1980, and thus sought "One for the Thumb In '81," but couldn't get it. They lost their most recent appearance, in 1996.

Head coach Bill Cowher had Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback. "Big Ben" had faced controversy over his treatment of women. Among his blockers was future Hall of Fame guard Alan Faneca. And a new edition of the "Steel Curtain" defense included linebackers James Farrior and Joey Porter, and future Hall of Fame safety Troy Polamalu.

But the leading figure on the team was running back Jerome Bettis. "The Bus" was retiring after 13,662 rushing yards, 200 receptions for 1,449 yards, and 94 total touchdowns. And he was playing his last game in his hometown of Detroit.

The Seahawks scored first, on a field goal by Josh Brown. They thought they had a touchdown on a 16-yard pass from Matt Hasselback to Darrell Jackson. But the officials called a penalty on Jackson for offensive pass interference, nullifying the score. The Seahawks and their fans were furious with this call, but replays showed it was correct.

The only score in the 2nd quarter was a 1-yard run by Roehtlisberger, and it was 7-3 Steelers at the half. Early in the 2nd half, Willie Parker broke off a 75-yard touchdown run to put the Steelers up 14-3. Hasselback threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to Jerramy Stevens, and the 3rd quarter ended with Seattle down just 14-10.

In the 4th quarter, Seattle right tackle Sean Locklear was called for holding Steelers linebacker Clark Haggans, nullifying a deep pass that would have put the Hawks in position to take the lead. Seattle and their fans were furious with this call as well, but, again, the replay proved the call to be correct. Also disputed was a penalty called on Hasselbeck for an illegal block below the waist, while making a tackle during Ike Taylor's interception return.

With 8:56 left in the game, the Steelers tried some trickery: A reverse got the ball to receiver Antwaan Randle El, who had been a quarterback at Indiana University. He threw an option pass to Hines Ward, who took it 43 yards for a touchdown. It was the 1st touchdown pass by a receiver in a Super Bowl, and it made the score 21-10 Pittsburgh. That score held, as good clock management on offense and strong defense got the Steelers their "One for the Thumb."

The retiring Bettis rushed 14 times for 43 yards. He did not score a touchdown, but he converted a key first down, and allowed his team to run time off the clock late in the 4th quarter.

The Seahawks had more 1st downs, 20-14; more net yards, 396-339; fewer turnovers, 2-1; and more time of possession, 33:02-26:58. It was argued that the difference was penalties: The Hawks were penalized 7 times for 70 yards; the Steelers, 3 times for 20 yards.

But there were also 2 questionable calls that hurt the Steelers, and these were equally justified by instant replay. It wasn't the officials that cost the Seahawks the game: It was the Steelers getting the job done that did that.

The Steelers won a 6th Super Bowl 3 years later. The Seahawks finally won their 1st Super Bowl in 2014.

UPDATE: The Steelers have a team hall of fame, calling it the Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Honor. From their Super Bowl XL winners, they have inducted team owner Dan Rooney, executive Art Rooney Jr. (Dan's brother), head coach Bill Cowher, assistant coaches Dick Hoak and Dick LeBeau, scout Bill Nunn, broadcaster Tunch Ilkin; quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, running backs Jerome Bettis and Willie Parker, receiver Hines Ward, tight end Heath Miller, guard Alan Faneca; defensive end Aaron Smith, defensive tackle Casey Hampton; linebackers Joey Porter, James Farrior and James Harrison; and safety Troy Polamalu.

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February 5, 2006 was, like all Super Bowl days, a Sunday. Baseball was out of season. There were 3 games played in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks lost to the Houston Rockets, 93-89 at Madison Square Garden.

* The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Toronto Raptors, 115-113 in overtime at the Air Canada Centre (now the Scotiabank Arena) in Toronto.

* And the Sacramento Kings beat the Utah Jazz, 96-78 at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento.

And there were 2 games in the NHL. The Montreal Canadiens beat the Philadelphia Flyers, 5-0 at the Bell Centre in Montreal. And the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Boston Bruins, 4-3 in a shootout at the TD Banknorth Garden (now just "The TD Garden") in Boston.

February 2, 2014: The Super Bowl In New Jersey

February 2, 2014: Super Bowl XLVIII is held at MetLife Stadium, at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, Bergen County, New Jersey. It is not just the 1st time the NFL has held its championship game in the Garden State. It is the 1st the NFL Championship Game, under any name, has been played in the New York Tri-State Area in 51 years, since the 1962 season, when the Green Bay Packers beat the New York Giants at the original Yankee Stadium.

More than that, it is the 1st time the NFL has placed the Super Bowl, intended to be at a neutral site, in a cold-weather city whose stadium does not have a dome, risking not just cold weather, but snow.

Traditionally, the Super Bowl is played in a warm-weather city. Of the 47 previous games, 10 were in the Miami area, 10 were in New Orleans, 7 were in the Los Angeles area, 5 in Tampa, 3 in San Diego, 2 in Houston, and 1 each in Jacksonville, Phoenix and the San Francisco Bay Area.

And of the previous 47, 15 were under domes: 7 in New Orleans, 2 each in Atlanta and the Detroit area, and 1 each in Minneapolis, Houston, Dallas and Indianapolis.

Aside from the games in Detroit and Minneapolis, all under domes, the coldest Super Bowl had been Super Bowl VI, outdoors, at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, 3 years before the Superdome opened: 39 degrees. (The Dallas Cowboys beat the Miami Dolphins, 24-3.)

For years, the NFL debated whether to put a Super Bowl in a cold-weather city without a dome, risking another "Ice Bowl" like the 1967 NFL Championship Game at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin. In 2005, the NFL voted to award New York the rights to host Super Bowl XLIV in 2010, dependent upon the planned West Side Stadium being finished by 2008. It would have had 75,000 seats and a retractable roof, and been home of MLB's New York Yankees and the NFL's New York Jets, and would have been the centerpiece of the 2012 Olympics.

But within a few months of this award, the International Olympic Committee awarded the 2012 Olympics to London. The U.S. Olympic Committee announced that the U.S. city that would bid for the 2016 Olympics would be Chicago. Shortly after that, the New York State government withdrew funding for the stadium, giving a whole new meaning to the term "political football."

And so, for only the 2nd time -- the 1st was when the NFL took Super Bowl XXVII away from Phoenix, following Arizona's refusal to recognize the Martin Luther King Day holiday, giving them Super Bowl XXX after a reversal -- the NFL took a Super Bowl away from a metropolitan area.

The Yankees then began negotiations for a new Yankee Stadium across 161st Street from the existing one. The Jets and the New York Giants began negotiating for a new stadium, next-door to Giants Stadium, at the Meadowlands, 7 miles west of Midtown Manhattan. Unlike Giants Stadium, which was owned by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA), what became MetLife Stadium would be owned by the Giants and the Jets, 50/50.

No more would the NJSEA award favorable home dates to the Giants: The 2 teams would work together to decide who would host, and when. And no longer would taxpayer money fund the operations and maintenance of the stadium: Both teams' sets of fabulously wealthy owners would fund it out of their own bottomless pockets. The stadium opened on April 10, 2010. On May 26, 2010, 46 days later, the NFL awarded it Super Bowl XLVIII, to be held on February 2, 2014.

With 3 1/2 years of lag time, everyone wondered if it would be terribly cold, or windy, or snowy. Indeed, in the week leading up to the game, weather forecasts suggested that snow was a possibility for the day or the night.

But on the morning of the game, it looked like the snow would hold off until the next day. As it turned out, that's what happened. At kickoff, there was no precipitation, the field was perfectly dry, and the temperature was 48 degrees, not cold enough to produce snow. It didn't drop by much during the game, and no rain or snow fell.

Former Beatle Paul McCartney and English soccer legend David Beckham weren't at a Premier League game that weekend. Nor were they watching the England national play rugby at the Six Nations tournament, which was also in progress at the time. They were at the Super Bowl. I’m just sayin'.

The AFC Champions were the Denver Broncos, in their 7th Super Bowl, having won 2. John Fox was the head coach of a Super Bowl team for the 2nd time, having gotten the Carolina Panthers into Super Bowl XXXVIII, although they lost. He had also been an assistant for the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV, but they lost, as well.

Peyton Manning, having previously led the Indianapolis Colts to win Super Bowl XLI -- the only Super Bowl among the 1st 56 to get rained on, interestingly enough -- was seeking to become the 1st quarterback to lead 2 different teams to Super Bowl wins; and the 1st quarterback since Norm Van Brocklin, with the 1951 Los Angeles Rams and the 1960 Philadelphia Eagles, to lead 2 different teams to NFL Championships. Sports Illustrated had named Manning their Sportsman of the Year for 2013. Many viewers were expecting this Super Bowl to be something of a coronation for him, placing him on the level of Otto Graham, Johnny Unitas and Joe Montana for the title of "greatest quarterback of all time."

The NFC Champions were the Seattle Seahawks. An AFC team until the NFL's 2002 realignment, they had lost Super Bowl XL to the Pittsburgh Steelers, and, with stars such as quarterback Russell Wilson, running back Marshawn Lynch, and cornerback Richard Sherman, were seeking to win Seattle's 1st major league sports championship since the Seattle SuperSonics won the 1979 NBA Championship. (Unless you count the WNBA, where the Seattle Storm had already won the title in 2004 and 2010.) Pete Carroll, who had coached the University of Southern California to National Championships in 2003 and 2004, was looking to join Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer as only the 3rd coach to win both a National Championship and an NFL Championship. Both teams finished the regular season at 13-3.

At the time, in spite of his younger brother Eli Manning having quarterbacked the Giants to 2 upset wins over the New England Patriots, 6 and 2 Super Bowls earlier, Peyton was the most popular player in the NFL, due less to his performances than to his personality and TV commercials. In part because of him, the Broncos were 2-point favorites.

But on the game's 1st play from scrimmage, Peyton began calling signals out of the shotgun formation, and center Manny Ramirez -- making some people wonder if he'd been replaced by the weird-thinking, steroid-addled Boston Red Sox slugger of the same name -- sent the snap flying over Peyton's right shoulder, right into the end zone. Bronco running back Knowshon Moreno recovered the ball, but was touched, resulting in a rare game-opening safety. The Seahawks led, 2-0, just 12 seconds in, the fastest score in the history of NFL championship games, under any name.

That was the game, right there. The Broncos recovered just enough to hold the Seahawks to field goals by Stephen Hauschka on their 1st 2 drives, making the score 8-0. But Lynch ran for a touchdown, and then, Malcolm Smith ended all Denver hope by intercepting Manning, and returning it 69 yards for a touchdown. At the half, Seattle led, 22-0.

It got worse to start the 2nd half: Percy Harvin returned the kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown. And Wilson threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Jermaine Kearse. It was 36-0, which remains the biggest shutout lead in Super Bowl history.

On the last play of the 3rd quarter, Manning threw a touchdown pass to Demaryius Thomas, and got the 2-point conversion. But a 10-yard pass from Wilson to Doug Baldwin made it 43-8 early in the 4th, and that would be the final score.

Richard Sherman (left) and Peyton Manning

The Broncos actually got more 1st downs, and had half as many penalties for less than half as many yards. Manning set a Super Bowl record with 34 pass completions, and Thomas one with 13 catches. But the Broncos turned the ball over 4 times, the Seahawks not at all, and so the Broncos lost by the equivalent of 5 touchdowns. The Seahawks had their 1st title.

Knowing that car traffic in and out of the Meadowlands Complex had been nightmarish since its 1976 opening, New Jersey Transit had built a rail spur from the Secaucus Junction train station to the stadium, to provide easier access from Manhattan, and rain additional trains to and from the game. But it turned out not to be enough trains, and NJT faced thousands of complaints about its service.

And while the snow held off on the calendar day of the game, it arrived in the middle of the night, dropping 8 inches of white stuff, causing about a quarter of the next day's flights out of Newark, John F. Kennedy and La Guardia Airports to be canceled, stranding thousands of people. Probably including lots of Bronco fans, who were already miserable.

The next year, the Seahawks were one yard away from back-to-back titles, but Carroll called a pass instead of a run, and they lost to the New England Patriots. The year after that, the Broncos won, beating Fox's former team, the Panthers. Manning then retired, going out a champion like a previous Bronco quarterback, by then the team's general manager, John Elway.

With Super Bowl sites having been chosen through the 2024 season, this will, at least through then, remain the only Super Bowl played in a cold-weather stadium without a dome.

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February 2, 2014 was, of course, a Sunday. There were no other football games. Baseball was out of season. The NBA was smart enough to schedule only 1 game for the day, and it was a day game: The Boston Celtics beat the Orlando Magic, 96-89 at the TD Garden in Boston.

The NHL also avoided a TV ratings wipeout, by scheduling only 2 games, both in the afternoon. The Winnipeg Jets beat the Montreal Canadiens, 2-1 at the Bell Centre in Montreal. And the Washington Capitals beat the Detroit Red Wings, 6-5 at the Capital One Arena in Washington. Alexander Ovechkin scored the winning goal with 2:23 left in overtime.

But English soccer's Premier League stops for no man, and for no country. It does, of course, alter its schedule -- sorry, forgot to speak English there, its fixture list -- for the sake of British television, moving Saturday games to Sunday. On this Sunday, its games included Arsenal hosting South-East London team Crystal Palace at the Emirates Stadium in North London. Arsenal won, 2-0.