Stan's Sports Page

Soccer

Teams I root for	Since when	Reasons

Holland	World Cup '98	Nice orange uniforms; successful and pleasing brand of soccer.
Nigeria	World Cup '94	Flashy, exciting, offensive-minded soccer from the home country of Hakeem Olajuwon
NY/NJ Metrostars	1st MLS season, 1996	Local club in the young Major League Soccer league

Players I root for	Reasons/Comments

Patrick Kluivert	Forward, Holland; if this talented Dutch striker had made more of his opportunities against Brazil in the '98 World Cup, Holland would have been playing in the finals vs. France.
Jay Jay Okocha	Nigerian midfielder; the flashiest of the Super Eagles, the blonde-haired JJ has got some creative dribbling moves.
Mark Chung	Newly acquired Asian midfielder for the Metrostars; underwent inexplicable scoring slump in '98 after brilliant '97 season.
Carlos Valderrama	This veteran Colombian midfielder's precision passing in open space is the original reason I became interested in soccer.

Football

Teams I root for	Since when	Reasons

Philadelphia Eagles	Late 80s	Their intimidating and dominating "Gang Green" defensive unit with Jerome Brown, Clyde Simmons, Reggie White, Seth Joyner, Byron Evans, Eric Allen, and Andre Waters captivated me as a fan. Have underachieved many years now, sometimes labeled as the best team in the '90s never to reach a Super Bowl.
Seattle Seahawks	Mid 80s	Took interest in them during the Curt Warner/Kenny Easley years. Then Chris Warren carried the torch through the 90s.
New England Patriots	Late 80s	Took interest when they made that improbable Super Bowl run as a wild-card team before losing to the Chicago Bears. Recently returned to the spotlight under Drew Bledsoe and Curtis Martin.
Cleveland Browns	Mid 80s	The Browns were a good team in the late 80s who were thwarted several times in their quest to reach the Super Bowl. Stars included Bernie Kosar, Kevin Mack, Earnest Byner, Webster Slaughter, Ozzie Newsome, Frank Minnifield, Hanford Dixon, and Clay Matthews. And who can forget the rabid Dawg Pound?
Atlanta Falcons	Mid 80s	The Falcons were an entertaining team throughout the Steve Bartkowski/Billy "White Shoes" Johnson years, and then when Deion Sanders came aboard while the Run 'n Shoot offense was in place.

Players I root for	Reasons/Comments

Eric Metcalf	This tiny speedster is a delight to watch any time he gets his hands on the ball through the air, whether returning kicks or catching passes. Especially electric when he gets into open space.
William Andrews	This promising, versatile running back retired early from a knee injury in the early 80s while playing for the Atlanta Falcons. A rugged runner with excellent pass-catching ability.

Basketball

Teams I root for	Since when	Reasons

Houston Rockets	Mid 80s	I've had an interest in this franchise ever since they drafted Hakeem Olajuwon. With this cornerstone center, they've always been playoff contenders, but they finally reached the top during two straight glorious seasons ('94-'95, '95-'96). First they overcame the rugby-style Knicks and then the upstart Magic.
New Jersey Nets	Early 90s	Usually second-best to area rival Knicks, the Nets are headed in the right direction with a good coach and young core player group. First started following the team back in the early 90s, when they were quite competitive with the trio of Derrick Coleman, Kenny Anderson, and Drazen Petrovic. Unfortunately the untimely death of Petrovic, an uncanny perimeter scorer, put an end to that.

Players I root for	Reasons/Comments

Hakeem Olajuwon	Sweeter than sweet low-post moves. Began following career of this dominating force at the University of Houston during the Phi Slamma Jamma years. Immensely enjoyed crowning moments during back-to-back championships in '94-'95, during which he was the top player in the league.
Chris Webber	Well-rounded big man from Michigan; game face scowl
Jalen Rose	Versatile swingman from Michigan; game face smirk
Sam Cassell	Clutch, fearless player with a knack for scoring; alien-like head features
Clyde Drexler	The Glide first made his mark with Portland, exhibiting aerial acrobatics and a head-down dribbing style on the fastbreak. Had several chances to experience team success, but lost in the Finals twice, once to Michael Jordan. But in the later years of his career, a trade to Houston reunited him with college teammate Hakeem Olajuwon, and Drexler looked rejuvenated as the Rockets went on to win the championship.
Hank Gathers Bo Kimble	These two Philadelphia hoopsters are linked forever due to the unfortunate death of Gathers prior to the NCAA tournament in 1990. Prior to that, they were the two biggest guns in the revolutionary Loyola Marymount offense, which was breakneck in pace and totally lacking in defense. The 6'7" Gathers led the nation in both scoring and rebounding one year. He had no perimeter game whatsoever, but had an ability to score over taller defenders with ease. However, his untimely passing set the stage for the 6'5" Kimble to carry his emotional team to unexpected triumphs. During that memorable tournament run, Kimble played like a man possessed.
(others)	Glen Rice, Gary Grant, Jimmy King, Stanley Roberts, John Wallace, Doug West

Baseball

Teams I root for	Since when	Reasons

Pittsburgh Pirates	Late 80s	Glory years with Bonds, Bonilla, Van Slyke, ... before facing troubles of being a small-market team; in 1998 they are a decent bunch with strong pitching and weak offense

Players I root for	Reasons/Comments

Barry Bonds	Talented two-way player who started career with the Pirates. Sweet, fluid left-handed home run swing.
Eric Davis	This guy was going to be big. Started with Cincinnati in the mid-80s, putting up some worthy numbers (30-30, etc.). Unfortunately, injury hit and he was denied stardom. However, is having a nice comeback year in '98 for the Orioles, including a 30-game hitting streak.
Dave Winfield	Great all-around player with power, speed, and fielding prowess. Some of his most spectacular plays were reaching over outfield walls to snare opponents' home runs.

College Sports

Teams I root for	Reasons

Michigan Wolverines	(Basketball) Started following them in mid/late 80s when Gary Grant ran the point. Then Glen Rice led a future NBAers Terry Mills, Loy Vaught, and Rumeal Robinson to the championship in 1989. Then that unforgettable Fab Five squad. The Wolverines continue to attract top schoolboy talent.
Auburn Tigers	(Football) The school that produced fine running backs (and lots of other positions as well). Bo Jackson, William Andrews, Joe Cribbs, James Joseph, Tommie Agee, Stacey Danley, Stephen Davis. Nice logo. Perennial football power.
Syracuse Orangemen	(Basketball) First became a fan when John Wallace led his overachieving team to the championship game in 1997, supported by Adrian Autry and Otis Hill. They overcame several higher-seeded teams, but succumbed to Kentucky even though Wallace played gallantly.
Pittsburgh Panthers	(Basketball) In the late 80s/early 90s, Brian Shorter was the big man on campus. Unfortunately his low post prowess was not enough to land him in the NBA.
Villanova Wildcats	(Basketball) Their stirring upset over Georgetown made me a fan in 1984. Kept following them with Harold Pressley, Doug West, and Kenny Wilson in the late 80s and early 90s to the present day with Kerry Kittles.

Horse Racing

Favorite Thoroughbreds:

Temperence Hill (sired Templar Hill, Imbibe), Track Barron, Houston,
Cefis, Carson City, Farma Way, Thirty Six Red,
Proud Truth, Air Forbes Won (Blew By Em), Caveat, Free House, Wallenda

Tennis

Players I root for	Reasons/Comments

Yannick Noah	Charismatic dreadlocked Frenchman had a flair to his game.
Michael Chang	I remember the day I started to root for him - when he faced fan favorite John McEnroe on center court of the US Open in the early 90s. The crowd was openly siding with Mac, and I had a problem with that. So I rooted for Michael. From my living room. And ever since.
Jennifer Capriati	The former teen prodigy has traveled a rough road, and I hope she can get her game back together again.

Hockey

Teams I root for	Reasons/Comments

Philadelphia Flyers	Started following the "Broad Street Bullies" in the late 1980s when they were (and still are) rivals with the New York Rangers. Ron Hextall was the netminder then.

Favorite Sports Memories

(these memoirs of a sports junkie are in no particular order)

Croatia's Drazen Petrovic going off on USA's Dream Team 1994 in the first half of their gold medal game. There was no way any team was going to beat the original edition of basketball's greatest team, but "Petro" was putting on a shooting display to keep his team from being blown out.
The Houston Rockets winning their back-to-back championships in 1995 and 1996.
In the 1995 playoffs, Mario Elie saved the Rockets from elimination in game 7 by kissing off the Suns with the dagger corner three-pointer. Then facing old rival Patrick Ewing of the Knicks in the Finals, Hakeem Olajuwon totally dominated him on both ends of the floor to win his first title. Spry jumping jack small forward Robert Horry supported memorably by dunking over the rugged Knick frontline frequently.
The following year in the 1996 playoffs, the Rockets were seeded 6th (out of 8), yet reached the Finals by topping three consecutive higher-ranked opponents. Hakeem again continued his stellar clutch play, outdueling both league MVP David Robinson and Shaquille O'Neal in the last two rounds.
Villanova upsetting Georgetown in the NCAA title game in 1984. The Wildcats were heavy underdogs, but played nearly a perfect game to topple the dominant Hoyas. Unheralded 'Cats center "Easy" Ed Pinckney held his own against all-world Patrick Ewing.
Michigan's "Fab Five" era. People either loved or hated the brash young group of Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King, and Ray Jackson. But they had two exciting runs to the NCAA title game in the two years that they played together in 1992 and 1993. In the first year they knocked off higher-seeded teams with fearless play before falling to Duke. But that set up higher expectations for the second year, which they were not able to fulfill against North Carolina.
The University of Houston's "Phi Slamma Jamma" era. This group of athletic showmen, led by Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon, specialized in basketball's most exciting play - the slam dunk. My recollections of the 1982 Final Four game against Louisville are hazy, but I just remember witnessing breathtaking basketball for the first time.
Loyola Marymount's spirited NCAA tourney run in 1990. After the tragic death of star power forward Hank Gathers, the Lions played with pure emotion to win three straight tourney games. Bo Kimble played like a man possessed, and Jeff Fryer rained down 3s. Run ended with a loss to UNLV with a Final Four berth at stake. Of special note was the Round 1 game against New Mexico State. Kimble struggled mightily in the first half, but he spearheaded an explosive second half run which blew the game open. The following year, with Kimble graduated, point guard Terrell Lowery (now playing professional baseball in the Cubs organization) took charge of the frenetic fast-break style and wound up almost leading the nation in scoring.
LSU vs. LMU basketball game in 1990. LSU boasted such talent as sophomore point guard Chris Jackson and freshman frontcourt behemoths Shaquille O'Neal and Stanley Roberts. Loyola Marymount countered with racehorse-style basketball led by thoroughbreds Hank Gathers and Bo Kimble. It was pure hardwood entertainment. LSU prevailed in overtime, 151-144 or something like that. I think Gathers scored 48 with about 17 rebounds (?).
Byron Evans leveling Boomer Esiason with a game-winning tackle. It was the Eagles taking on the Jets in an early 1990s early regular season game. The Jets jumped all over the Eagles from the start and led by a comfortable margin. Randall Cunningham had suffered a season-ending injury somewhere in there. However, the Eagles put together a great comeback. One highlight was Eric Allen intercepting a pass near his own goal line and returning it for a touchdown with some outstanding evasive running in his own territory. Probably the best interception touchdown return I've ever seen. But the Jets still had a chance to pull it out and were driving down the field in the final minutes when Esiason faced a fourth down in Eagle territory. Seeing excellent downfield coverage, he decided to run for the first down marker on the left sideline. Out of the screen comes linebacker Evans, who puts a flying, body-jarring tackle which knocks the hapless QB several yards back short of the marker. The Eagles take possession and hang on to win.

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