What a snowy, crazy weekend of athletics.
We waited, grocery-shopped and battened-down the hatches for the snowstorm that final came while we slept Saturday night. Meanwhile, strange sports happenings had already started to happen.
Army beat Navy for the third straight year after losing 14 in a row to the Midshipmen. Army’s record of 10-2 and Navy’s 3-10 were what we got used to in this series of mismatches from 2002 to 2015.
That afternoon, Oklahoma produced the Heisman Trophy winner for the second straight year. Kyler Murray, who was a virtual unknown for most of the season, followed Baker Mayfield, who now plays for the Cleveland Browns and would deal the Panthers a fifth straight loss. Saturday night, the Boston Celtics demolished the Chicago Bulls and their new coach Jim Boylen, 133-77. The 56-point differential was the largest win in Celtics’ history and the worst loss ever for the Bulls, who we remember once won six NBA titles with Michael Jordan.
Then came Sunday. If you lost your power, like I did, finding a sports bar to watch the NFL proved challenging as the snow and sleet pounded us. Hickory Tavern was open, because it has a powerful generator. So a small crowd turned into SRO as the games unfolded. Besides the Panthers probably playing them self out of the post-season, here is what else happened.
The Patriots lost to the Dolphins on a 69-yard desperation hot-potato lateral fest, scoring the winning touchdown as time expired, the same way Miami’s college team did in Duke a few years ago. The Chiefs converted two almost-impossible fourth-down plays to tie the Ravens and then win in overtime. The Cowboys led the Eagles 6-0 at the half and then beat them in overtime on a deflected TD pass as the teams combined to score 46 points in the second half.
For local flavor, Mitch Trubisky and the Bears stunned the once-beaten LA Rams. And, in college hoops, Tennessee upset Gonzaga 76-73; so the Zags won’t be the No. 1-ranked team in the nation Saturday when they visit Chapel Hill. That forecast calls for mid-50s and only rain.
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