Last week I took a look at my top ten local sports stories of 2007, this week I’ll take a look at the national stories I found the most captivating in 2007.

1. Boise State’s Fiesta
   I was {this} close to going to Boise State for college. Even though I didn’t end up going to BSU, they’ve been my favorite college team apart from the Ducks for many years.The excitement of the 2007 Fiesta Bowl was unmatched by any sporting event I’ve ever watched. Pat Forde of ESPN.com said it best:

   When the Broncos scored the tying touchdown on a 50-yard hook-and-lateral trick play with seven seconds left, we roared in amazement. When the Broncos scored in overtime on a fourth-down halfback pass, by 5-foot-9 Vinny Perretta who hadn’t thrown a pass all year, we howled at the improbability. And when the Broncos lined up and went for two points and the win, and quarterback Jared Zabransky faked a pass and slipped the ball behind his back, and running back Ian Johnson grabbed it and sped around the left end and scored and won the biggest game in Boise history and wound up on one knee on the sideline proposing to his cheerleader girlfriend right there on live national television …

   … We all lost it.

2. Upset Special: App. St. to Pittsburgh & beyond?
   What a year in college football. Football finally found the “march madness” magic that has been missing from the sport without a playoff. And even though my headline implies that it started with Appalachian State the first weekend of September, it really began with my number-one story in Arizona at the Fiesta Bowl in January. Even without a playoff, this year sure felt as if the entire season was one huge tournament. Every time a ten team suited up, we expected upset — and more times then not (it seems), we got it. In the end, 13 unranked teams beat a team in the top five. However, it might not be over, as bowl season is just beginning…
3. The Pride of Florida
   Coming off a 2006 National Title in mens basketball, not many thought the Florida Gators would repeat as national champions in 2007, they did — but before they could the universities football team helped the Gators achieve something that had never been done in history: One school holding the national titles in both football and mens basketball simultaneity. If that wasn’t enough, quarterback Tim Tebow became the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy.
4. Mitchel Report
   I heard one commentator say just after the Mitchel Report, which released names of major league baseball players who used performance enhancing drugs, that “this must have been what the Black Sox scandal was like.” I’d have to agree. It’s such a dark shadow over the sport, some wonder if it will ever recover. I’m not so bleek on my outlook of the sport. I love baseball period — it’s such a poetic sport, the period of darkness just enrich the its history. While the steroid era is a shame, it’s will become just that, an era — not much unlike the deadball era, or any other.
5. Barry Bonds — A record & shame
   Everyone’s got an opinion on Barry. Mine? Let him keep the record. I won’t write my arguments on why, here. Most of those (made by others) can be found all over the internet. But, just like above, Bonds was part of the steroid era of baseball. The Hank Aarons of baseball’s past will still have that romantic association to their names whether they hold records or not. Lets be honest, who hasn’t been memorized at one time or another by Bonds, or McGuire, or Sosa’s sheer power to hit a ball hundreds of feet. Steroids or not, it is an impressive feat.
6. Michael Vick
   I’ve never been much of a Michael Vick fan, but it was sad to see his fall from grace. I’m sure I’m going to get stoned for saying this but, does anyone else think the media’s criticism of him was a little harsh? He financed a dog fighting operation. I agree with everyone out there, that was awful, but the media made him out to be a serial killer. I love dogs as much as the next guy, but lets be honest here, they were dogs, not people. Why can everyone get upset with cruelty to dogs, but not genocide in a foreign land, or even something closer to home like women who endure physical or sexual violence in their neighborhood. None-the-less, this was still a huge story this year, and thus deserves a spot in my list.
7. From Spygate to an undefeated season?
   The New England Patriots get caught cheating in week one, but through week 15 are still undefeated. Not only are they undefeated, they are dominating the usually parody driven NFL. They are an absolute joy to watch play football. Most have made the Patriots out to be villains, I however hope they achieve the impossible, finishing undefeated and finally forcing Don Shula and the Dolphins to shut up.
8. Colorado’s Rocktober
   The Rockies September and October were absolutely incredible. Even though they’re a division rival of my Arizona Diamondbacks, they were a joy to watch, and hard to cheer against, even in the NLCS where they played the Dbacks. They ended up winning 21 of 22 straight games (the one was to Arizona that clinched the NL West Title for the Dbacks). Despite losing the World Series to Boston, Colorado is my 2007 MLB team of the year — not only for on the field, but off the field, the team donated a share of their playoff earnings to the widow of a coach of their Double-A team, Mike Coolbaugh, who died in July after being hit in the neck with a line drive.
9. Payton finally wins the big one
   Payton Manning finally won the Super Bowl. It probably won’t be his last. There’s really not much else to say here.
10. Beavers are champions, again
    How is my #4 local story #10 on the national list? It was just that captivating for me this year, and has a national impact. Not only did the Oregon State Beavers prove they could win two consecutive national-championships, they created a paradigm shift in the sport of college baseball. As the sport gets more and more popular, the impact of the Beavers titles can be felt nation-wide. No longer do you have to be a traditional baseball power in the southern United States. You can be from a rainy or cold region and win.

This post is tagged , 2007 recap, Baseball, Boise State, College Basketball, College Football, NFL, OSU Baseball, Sports, Top Ten