Hirsch Hits

There won't be a Cram Session this week due to their not being any games in the Top 25. Cram Session will return next week with the beginning of my bowl predictions series. However, I have decided to begin a column called Hirsch Hits. I have written about many different subjects for different sports websites and wanted to share them with my loyal readers. Today's edition is the greatest games and moments I have witnessed in person.

Even in the days of HD TV, high ticket prices, and the ability to see just about any game you want from the comfort of your living room, there is still nothing like attending a sporting event live. I have been fortunate enough to attend many different sporting events. Some have been more memorable than others, below are the most memorable sporting events I have attended.

2006 NCAA Final Four in Indianapolis, IN

I never thought I would make it to any sort of championship for a major sport but the miraculous run that my alma mater, George Mason, made to the Final Four in 2006 changed that. Despite Mason playing at the Verizon Center for the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight, I didn’t make much effort to get tickets. However, as soon as Mason finished beating mighty UCONN, I knew that no matter the cost I had to make it to Indianapolis to see Mason in the Final Four. Despise being a graduate of a year I still had my student ID, which doesn’t expire until 2010, so I was able to get the discount the school was offering for a bus ride to Indiana, 3 nights in a hotel, and tickets to all 3 games. I was able to get all of this for about $600, which I considered a great deal. Even better, I was friends with a girl in the Mason ticket department and she hooked us up with courtside seats. Mason ended up losing to Florida but that didn’t dampen my excitement at being able to see it live. UCLA destroyed LSU in the other game, and then Florida killed UCLA in the championship game. I was disappointed that all 3 games were blowouts but still would never trade that experience for anything.

1991: Last Baltimore Orioles Game at Memorial Stadium, Detroit Tigers at Baltimore Orioles

This game is memorable to me not only because it was the last baseball game ever played at Memorial Stadium but also because of a personal story that happened at the game. The Orioles were getting routed by the Tigers and us fans were looking for anything to be excited about. Longtime Oriole Mike Flanagan had resigned with the team that year and was beloved in Baltimore. We wanted to see Flanagan get the final defensive outs for the Orioles at Memorial Stadium. My step dad started to chant “We Want Flanagan”, eventually the chant spread across the entire stadium. Flanagan entered in the top of the 9th and mowed down the Tigers batters, striking out 2 of them. Despite being 8 years old the memory of that day is still very vivid for me.

1997: New York Giants at Washington Redskins at Jack Kent Cooke Stadium

This game is more famously known as the “Gus Frerotte head butt game”
It was a key game in the NFC East as the Redskins (6-5) and Giants (7-4) were battling neck and neck for the division. Even better it was a primetime game, making the atmosphere even more intense. The game was a defensive struggle, with the scored tied 0-0 in the 2nd quarter. Gus Frerotte changed that when he scored a 1-yard touchdown run. The stadium was going crazy and I actually missed Frerotte head butting the wall. Frerotte played the remainder of the first half but then the second half started with Jeff Hostettler at QB for the Redskins. It wasn’t until I got home late that night that I saw what Gus had done. The Giants would score a TD in the 3rd quarter to tie the game at 7. In Overtime the clock was winding down and the Redskins had one last chance to score. Redskins WR Michael Westbrook had had a tremendous game, 9 catches for 125 yards; however, he ended up costing Washington dearly. Westbrook took off his helmet while complaining about an official not giving him a catch on a play near the sideline. The Redskins were at the Giants 38 yard line before the penalty and would have had a chance at moving in position for a makeable field goal. Westbrook’s gaffe moved the Skins back to their own 47-yard line. The Redskins were later forced to try a 54-yard field goal, which missed and the game ended in a 7-7 tie. Stupid plays cost the Redskins the game and later on would be the reason they missed the playoffs that year. That game pretty much encapsulated Norv Turner’s run as head coach in Washington.