Watching the NFL highlights this morning, I was struck by a question. Who was the best player or performance I have ever witnessed LIVE? Watching the replays by Donovan McNabb, Hynes Ward, Michael Vick,  Michael Westbrook, Steve Smith, and the rest this morning got me thinking...

As a country boy growing up, I never got to go see the superstars of my youth in any major sports. That era would have encompassed circa 1980-1992. After that point I was out on my own, had a job, and some disposable income to go out and see some professional and big time college events.

The most talented college football player I ever saw LIVE was Jeff George. My senior year in high school, I was awarded tickets to the Michigan/Illinois game as part of a recruiting weekend. Michigan owned the first half, but "Rocket" Jeff came out in the second half and made throws all over the field; the likes of which I had never seen before. The Illini still lost to Bo's last great team, but the buzz when we were walking out was that we had seen a real talent in George.

A few years on, I was at the last game Derrick Thomas of the Kansas City Chiefs ever played in. It was the last game of the year, and with a win, the Chiefs were in the playoffs, and with a loss, they were done... Needless to say the Raiders last minute field goal eliminated the Chiefs, and I think to this day, that was the last time the Raiders won in KC.

Although we lost the game, there was a consolation prize... Some classless group of Raiders fans were giving us all the business on the way out of the stadium. One of the face painters went into the "Lu" shall we call it? Not ten seconds after the "occupied" sign had gone up, a pissed off bunch of KC fans decided to dump over the porta potty... The river flowed blue... I walked through the parking lot back to our shuttle with a smile. Later on I felt a little bit bad about reveling in this, but hey, it was the frickin' Raiders, and their ####-hat fans...

5 weeks later Derrick Thomas was killed, I believe in a car crash, during super bowl weekend. He had a decent game that day, but the most talented player on the field that day was a young guy named Tammerick Vanover. He returned a kick in that game, and was probably the fastest human being I ever saw run.

I watched Randy Johnson when he was pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks; he threw a 4 hit shutout that day against the Cubs, in Wrigley Field with the wind blowing out. I will never forget the sight of the dust blowing out of the back of the mit when Johnson would fire a "crypt keeper" fast ball. There was just a distinct difference between what he was able to do that day, and yikes, Steve Trachsel if memory serves. Johnson would have recieved diety status from me that day, until I saw him "run out" a slow roller to third when he was hitting.

I never made it see Michael Jordan. I never saw Dale Earnhardt Sr. drive. I never got to see Walter Payton break a tackle in the backfield and turn it into a 4 yard gain. I've been to a few games here or there, but am curious what your experiences have been and who was the best player in any sport that just made you go "Wow."

Laterz,

LJ4PREZ   

Below Please find this week's top 10 Thin Books according to the New York Tymes. Reviews available by clicking the comments section at the bottom... Trying to get read here people!!! Lets have some fun with this!

10. "Situational Awareness and Discipline... Shaping America's Youth" by Larry Coker, and Donna Shalala

9. "Tackling 101" by Gunther Cunningham

8. "How to Win With at least a 14 Point Lead in the Second Half " by Dennis Green

7. "My Ego Isn't the Problem; You Are!" Co-Authored By Brian Billick, and Billy Beane

6. "Matching the Right Manager with Your Talent Level" by Jim Hendry

5. "Verborhea; Being Consistent in the Booth" by Joe The is Man

4. "My life as an AssClown" by Nick Buoniconti  

3. "Some Cheese to go with that Whine? a Satire" by Jeff Gordon and Jimmy Johnson

2. "Senility and Money; The Winning Edge" by George Steinbrenner

1. "Crown Their ####; Podium Ettiquette and How to Address the Media" by Dennis Green