# Are ESPN Classic writers high? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 8, 2005, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396 "2005-06-08T02:23:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/1 "2005-06-08T02:23:06Z")
Or just stupid Ok, I’m not a big sports guy. I rarely watch ESPN but I was surfing and I came across a show on ESPN Classic that I had to watch. The Top 25 blunders in Sports. Now I know what the number one blunder in sports is. Anyone who even just likes sports as much as I do know it. So as they played number two I thought to myself. Wow, they are going to leave out the Stanford Band? I can’t believe they are going to leave out the Stanford band. I knew they must be leaving out the Stanford band because there was only one spot left and I knew what was going to go there. I was a bit bummed because I wanted to see the tape of the Stanford band. So I was really suprised when they came back and said that the Stanford band was the number one sports blunder of all time. Which means, according to who ever put together this list, that Bill Buckner letting the ball go through his legs didn’t even rate the top 25. So are they high or just stupid? I would link to ESPN Classic but they don’t have the list posted. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/2 "2005-06-08T02:30:41Z")
My vote is for stupid. Buckner will hold down the #1 spot forever. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/3 "2005-06-08T03:40:48Z")
I know next to nothing about sports (although I have become quite the devotee of “Cheap Seats” even though I miss most of the actual sports-related jokes) but IIRC wasn’t there another game to be played after the infamous ball through the legs game, which the team collectively blew? Perhaps that’s a mitigating factor. ---
**Author:** ![Hyperelastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Hyperelastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hyperelastic)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/4 "2005-06-08T03:44:13Z")
I think a blunder usually means a mental mistake, i.e. player does something intentional but wrong. Buckner’s goof is famous for how bad it was and the critical conditions under which it occurred, but I don’t think he did it on purpose. Did they mention when Jim Marshall ran a fumble back for a touchdown - to the wrong end zone? Now _that_ was a blunder. ---
**Author:** ![Agent\_Foxtrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc29f/32.png) [@Agent\_Foxtrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agent_Foxtrot)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/5 "2005-06-08T03:45:43Z")
Anyone know where I can view a clip of Buckner’s blunder? Adam ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/6 "2005-06-08T04:01:45Z")
> [@Hyperelastic](#): > > I think a blunder usually means a mental mistake, i.e. player does something intentional but wrong. Buckner’s goof is famous for how bad it was and the critical conditions under which it occurred, but I don’t think he did it on purpose. > > Did they mention when Jim Marshall ran a fumble back for a touchdown - to the wrong end zone? Now _that_ was a blunder. No, I don’t think they had that one. Spots two and three were by the same person, a Dallas Cowboy who in one play went after the ball of a blocked field goal agains Miami and cost Dallas the game and number two on the list was him getting a fumble against Denver and running it back to the end zone only to have the ball batted out because he started to slow down and he held the ball out for easy pickings. Also on the list was a baseball coach that let his 3 year-old be a bat boy at the world series and the kid almost got trampled at the plate. Bobby Valentine putting on a cheap disguise and returning after he had been ejected from a game, Conseco’s head bonk, a golfer that wiffed an easy putt that added the stroke that cost him the tournement, some young girl forgetting the words to the national anthem and the coach of one of the B-ball teams stepping up and helping her out, two different times with outfileders gave away a fly ball when the ball was still in play, A punter that wiffed a punt against the Bears, another kicker that did a happy dance after a field goal and injured himself, that outfielder who threw fits all the time but this time he bobbled a fly and then kicked the ball to first base, the time the ball got stuck in the glove of the pitcher and he threw his glove to first to get the out, that baseball player who took his pants off when he was brushing the dirt off, Tommy Lasorta getting hit by a bat during the All-star game, something Met pitcher Cone did but I’m not sure what, the boxer who’s mother came in the ring and beat his opponet with a shoe. That’s all I can remember right now. (now you guys have a challenge to name all those sports moments) ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/7 "2005-06-08T04:09:47Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > No, I don’t think they had that one. Spots two and three were by the same person, a Dallas Cowboy who in one play went after the ball of a blocked field goal agains Miami and cost Dallas the game and number two on the list was him getting a fumble against Denver and running it back to the end zone only to have the ball batted out because he started to slow down and he held the ball out for easy pickings. This was Leon Lett. His fumble was against Buffalo in the Super Bowl, BTW. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/8 "2005-06-08T04:12:47Z")
I think these shows are limited to only those things which have happened since ESPN went on the air, which lets Jim Marshall off the hook. ---
**Author:** ![Raygun99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Raygun99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raygun99)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/9 "2005-06-08T04:31:46Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > something Met pitcher Cone did but I’m not sure what Allowed two runs to score while arguing with an umpire. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/10 "2005-06-08T04:47:48Z")
I think the number one blooper ever has to be the home run off Conseco’s head. Not only for the spectaular novelty of seeing a comic strip gag come to life, but because it happened Jose Conseco, the greatest guy it possibly could have happened to. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/11 "2005-06-08T05:25:09Z")
Moving thread from IMHO to The BBQ Pit. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/12 "2005-06-08T05:51:56Z")
I’ve got to agree about Canseco. That play should be on _every_ baseball bloopers reel from now until the end of the world. As for his being a world-class jerk, no less an authority than _The Simpsons_ writers and producers would back us up. They did a softball episode featuring Roger Clemons, Mike Scioscia, Don Mattingly, Steve Sax, Ozzie Smith, Wade Boggs, Darryl Strawberry, Ken Griffey Jr., and Canseco. On the DVD commentary, they said that all of the ballplayers were very friendly and a joy to work with, with one exception. They didn’t want to name names, but they did say that it rhymed with “Nanseco.” It is odd that they would leave Buckner off the list, but apparently they were mainly going for dunder-headed plays, not ,merely significant physical mistakes. As an aside, I don’t think he could have beaten Mookie Wilson to first in any case. Actually, let me rephrase: I _know_ he couldn’t have beaten Mookie to first (he was on the edge of the outfiled, he had bad knees, and Mookie could fly), and I don’t think the throw could’ve beaten him either. ---
**Author:** ![DKW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dkw/32/3118_2.png) [@DKW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DKW)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/13 "2005-06-08T07:26:08Z")
The way the Red Sox lost the '86 World Series in games 6 & 7 was such a monumental train wreck with plenty of guilty parties, I find the eternal villification of one man involved to be downright bewildering. (Um, didn’t BLOWING A THREE RUN LEAD IN THE NINTH mean anything back then?) This is like blaming the Titanic tragedy on one of the lifeboats that was only half-filled. Leon Lett. Damn, I feel sorry for this guy. Lessee, the first hideous horrific unforgivable blunder came in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl. And he still managed to put the Bills in a huge hole. Which was perfectly fine, inasmuch as the Cowboys had an enormous lead. If the 'boys were _behind_, I could see the problem, but as it was, the net effect on his team was nothing more than nothing. The second was an extremely unusual situation (partially blocked FG trickling toward the end zone…in the snow), and resulted in the Cowboys losing…a regular season nonconference game. A bad mistake, perhaps, but understandable…and completely forgivable in the end because _the Cowboys won the Super Bowl that season too._ Look, I know they looked silly at the time, but **no harm, no foul.** What about the dropped pass in the end zone that _cost_ the Cowboys (IIRC…either them or the Steelers) a Super Bowl? Think something like that should rate a little higher? There have been a number of incidents where a ball went off a player and over the wall for a home run. Why single out the one instance where the head was involved? Just my opinion, but knocking it over after getting a _glove_ on it is far more egregious (which I actually saw a Sportscenter highlight of…Dan Patrick said it might’ve been a single had it stayed inside). I have no problems with “The band is on the field!” getting the #1 spot. Truly a one-of-a-kind moment. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/14 "2005-06-08T07:35:05Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > Also on the list was a baseball coach that let his 3 year-old be a bat boy at the world series and the kid almost got trampled at the plate. Dusty Baker, then manager of the Giants. Yeah, he almost got his son flattened. > [@](#): > > some young girl forgetting the words to the national anthem and the coach of one of the B-ball teams stepping up and helping her out The guy who helped was Maurice Cheeks of the Trailblazers. Classy move, which is probably why he didn’t last with that team. If they threw that in there, I don’t know why they didn’t have Carl Lewis “uh oh” version of the national anthem. > [@](#): > > another kicker that did a happy dance after a field goal and injured himself Bill Gramatica. Idiot. > [@](#): > > that baseball player who took his pants off when he was brushing the dirt off Steve Lyons. About Lett: yeah, it didn’t affect the game, but it was so freaking stupid, and it was during the Super Bowl. And he proved to be repeat offender, so that didn’t help. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/15 "2005-06-08T07:40:51Z")
I’m not a sports fan at all, but the one blunder I remember that was so big that I heard about it for _years_ afterward was some basketball player calling a time out when he didn’t have any time outs left and this apparently somehow cost his team the game. I’m pretty sure it earned the guy the nickname “Timeout” and I know that fans did the little “T” symbol with their hands at him after that. I _think_ it was Christian Laettner (sp?) playing for the Tarheels but I could be wrong. Did they show that? ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/16 "2005-06-08T07:42:39Z")
Not one mention of Randy Johnson nailing the bird with his pitch? Are you kidding me?!? I didn’t see the show, but the lack of mention here makes me very, very sad. And I was having a great day till now. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/17 "2005-06-08T07:44:15Z")
**Cisco** , CL played for Duke. Not sure whom Timeout is, though. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/18 "2005-06-08T07:47:52Z")
That was Chris Webber of Michigan. He called a timeout late in the national championship game, resulting in a technical foul and sealing the win for North Carolina. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/19 "2005-06-08T07:48:04Z")
> [@duffer](#): > > **Cisco** , CL played for Duke. Not sure whom Timeout is, though. Sorry, like I said, I’m not a big sports fan. A little googling says that “Timeout” is Chris Webber. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2005, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396/20 "2005-06-08T10:01:17Z")
> [@DKW](#): > > Leon Lett. Damn, I feel sorry for this guy. Lessee, the first hideous horrific unforgivable blunder came in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl. And he still managed to put the Bills in a huge hole. Which was perfectly fine, inasmuch as the Cowboys had an enormous lead. If the 'boys were _behind_, I could see the problem, but as it was, the net effect on his team was nothing more than nothing. The second was an extremely unusual situation (partially blocked FG trickling toward the end zone…in the snow), and resulted in the Cowboys losing…a regular season nonconference game. A bad mistake, perhaps, but understandable…and completely forgivable in the end because _the Cowboys won the Super Bowl that season too._ Look, I know they looked silly at the time, but **no harm, no foul.** What about the dropped pass in the end zone that _cost_ the Cowboys (IIRC…either them or the Steelers) a Super Bowl? Think something like that should rate a little higher? A blunder is a sign of incompetence. Dropping a catch is fairly normal, in that all receivers drop the occasional pass. Lett’s blunders were not normal mistakes. In fact, he is the only player (to my knowledge) to ever make that specific mistake on special teams. It was obvious he didn’t know/understand the rules, and that boneheadedness cost his team a game. Unlike other sports, in the NFL, a single game is quite important. As far as the Superbowl situation, first off, mad props to Don Beebe. The reason that was such a blunder is because Lett was showboating. He was dancing his way to the endzone trying to make a mockery of the woefully overmatched Bills, and Beebe made him pay for it by making him look like a classless tool in front of a hundred million people. The other thing that gives the Lett blunders such legs is that they both happened in the same calendar year. A cursory googling turned up [Pro Football Talk](http://www.profootballtalk.com/1-15-04to1-31-04.htm): > [@](#): > > Super Bowl XXVII: Though Leon Lett’s 1993 Thanksgiving Day blunder determined the outcome of the game, his NFL Street-style showboating kept the ‘Boys from hanging 59 total points on the Bills, thanks to an admirable dose of heart and hustle from Bills receiver Don Beebe. Beebe rocked. So basically, after making an embarassing gaffe on the biggest stage in American professional sports, 10 months later, halfway into the next season, he cost his team a game by being a friggin’ idiot. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-espn-classic-writers-high/307396.md?page=2)