The 10 Biggest Sporting Events in Jacksonville History

[Captain Zissou]

The man was a heckuva  coach, from '87 to 2000.

87? Try 1977. He won 85 games from 77-86.

81-86 Were good years?

[copperfiend]

The man was a heckuva  coach, from '87 to 2000.

87? Try 1977. He won 85 games from 77-86.

81-86 Were good years?

They weren't bad year. They were ranked in the top 20 most years and played about the toughest schedule in the country.

[ac]

What was the point of re-posting the same things as above without any comment AC?


OCKLAWAHA

I put my response in the wrong place and it got lost in the quote.  I've fixed it.

[ac]

The man was a heckuva  coach, from '87 to 2000.

87? Try 1977. He won 85 games from 77-86.

81-86 Were good years?

They weren't bad year. They were ranked in the top 20 most years and played about the toughest schedule in the country.

It's OK.  I've given up convincing Gator fans there was Gator Football, let alone College Football, before Spurrier was the coach.

[Coolyfett]

this topic is worded wrong it should be MOMENTS  not EVENTS.....this is a list of moments.

[stjr]

this topic is worded wrong it should be MOMENTS  not EVENTS.....this is a list of moments.

Topic name mirrors the T-U article its based on.  Please contact the T-U customer service department to make your complaints known.  This is a recording..... 

[Coolyfett]

One the list the Biggest moment for me is the missed Field Goal!....My brothers and I watched that whole game...when he miss that kick we went crazy! we jumped around the den for like 10 minutes str8 yelling!

Moments not on list...

Jags vs Dolphins 99 playoff game

The BullDog Celebration...thats gonna be in the highlight reel forever no matter what the Gators do...That was Evil yet so Amazing

Daytona 500 Death of Earnhart...I know its not Jax but its near the Jax Metro...Id bet there are more Nascar fans in Jax than Orlando. Im not a Nascar fan...but dude dieing in his ride was a terrible feeling...unexpected kinda ruined that season.

The Olympic game was lame...the MJ game vs the Suns was great,

[blizz01]

How about the inaugural USFL Bulls game?  What about the "friendly" played at Alltel in which the United States was able grab a (3-0) victory vs. Germany (certainly gained international attention)?  The Gators run to the National Championship (Basketball) in the first round on the NCAA tourney?  Bowdens' final game?

[charlestondxman]

What about the NCAA first/second round this year and in 2006. Duke won its first two games to go to the regional, Wisconsin was almost upset by Wofford, Cornell made its cinderella run, and Louisville lost to California.

In '06, half the Final Four (Florida and LSU) came from Jacksonville, including national champions Florida.

[KenFSU]

I wasn't living in Jacksonville at the time, but does anyone remember if Roy Jones Jr.'s 1996 fight was a big deal locally? Nationally, I remember it being an interesting story, as he played in a paid basketball game on the same day. If not the Jones fight, you'd think boxing might have showed up on this list somewhere.

Also, I know its classification as a "sport" is dubious at best, but I think people overlook how huge pro wrestling was in Florida, especially during the 60s, 70s, and early 80s. Guys like Dusty Rhodes and Jack Brisco were icons in this state. The WWE is so goofy these days that I think people forget about the days when guys like Harley Race, Ivan Koloff, and Dick Murdock were just such tough, unbelievable athletes that people really believed in what they were doing out there.

[ProjectMaximus]

It will end, just not in the next 5 years!!!  Even if UF wasn't so amazing, that wouldn't make FSU good. 

The Gator Bowl was about Bobby's entire career, not just the pathetic end of it.  You sound like we did back in 2000, BTW.

Yeah, FSU's dominance in the 90s has been pretty much un-paralleled in modern day college football. That's right, I said it. Now to wash my mouth out. Go Gators!

[ProjectMaximus]

How about the inaugural USFL Bulls game?  What about the "friendly" played at Alltel in which the United States was able grab a (3-0) victory vs. Germany (certainly gained international attention)?  The Gators run to the National Championship (Basketball) in the first round on the NCAA tourney?  Bowdens' final game?

I was just thinking about that when I saw the start of this thread and found this before I got to your post.

http://www.ussoccer.com/News/Articles/1999/02/Inspired-U-S-National-Team-Stuns-Germany-3-0.aspx

I remember the media (albeit soccer media) was quite nice to us and our stadium.

[Ocklawaha]

Unfreaking believable, where is Jacksonville's star basketball player Artis Gilmore, our friendly 7' 2" giant? And if you go by what Gilmore did in two Division I seasons at JU Jacksonville, where he still holds the NCAA record of 22.7 rebounds per game, his case for Hall inclusion becomes as formidable as his post presence was to every opponent who had to contend with him.

Bob Hayes "almost" got into the Football hall of fame in 2004, but almost only counts in horseshoes! Gilmore and Hayes both deserve much more then what they have gotten from their fans. At the very least let's add their full size likeness in bronze and place them on the riverwalk.


OCKLAWAHA

[blizz01]

What about Bob "Bull" Hurley?  Seriously, he's quite possibly THE most famous athlete of ALL time from Jacksonville.  In theory, he must have dominated the Jacksonville arm wrestling scene......



http://seriousexploitation.blogspot.com/2010/03/over-top-1987.html

"I drive trucks, break arms, and arm wrestle. It's what I love to do, it's what I do best."- Bob "Bull" Hurley, Jacksonville, Fla.

[fieldafm]

I don't know how you could leave out any of the NCAA basketball tournaments into the discussion???

I would also submit the 1984 Jax Bulls vs NJ Generals game... biggest attendance of ANY USFL game in the history of the league(and a major catalyst to the NFL's interest in our market).

The US Soccer game when Alltel was first rebuilt had a packed house and major international media coverage.

JU/FSU basketball in '73, JU/UNC basketball in '85, JU/Georgetown basketball in '87, and JU/UF basketball in '98 were all very big time college basketball games in this city.

WWF once held a scaffold match at the old Colliseum which was a BIG pay-per-view event at the time.

The innaugaral ACC Championship game with FSU/VA Tech was a pretty big event.

There are SEVERAL Gator Bowl games that were left off their list that could have garnered consideration.

I agree with about 6 of their listings, but I think 4 of their choices were VERY weak.  But that's to be expected from the TU Sports section... which has always been very poor ever since I can remember learning how to read.