# Nicknames for sports plays or games **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 19, 2009, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161 "2009-11-19T16:22:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/41 "2009-11-20T16:12:08Z")
> [@TheBoltEater](#): > > How did we get this far without The Music City Miracle? You misspelled "how did I get 43 words into the OP and stop just short of “Music City Miracle”. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/42 "2009-11-20T16:28:07Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Well, here in Minnesota Viking country, some of us still remember Jim Marshall’s [Wrong Way Run](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Marshall_%28American_football%29). [Jim Marshall wasn’t the first to do it in a big game.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1929_Rose_Bowl) ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/43 "2009-11-20T17:32:49Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > nothing as egregious as the Big Eight’s refs allowing a [Fifth Down for Colorado](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_Down_Game)against Missouri to score a touchdown. Colorado would then go on to win the National Championship later that season. That wasn’t as egregious as CU coach Bill McCartney’s refusal to forfeit the game to its rightful winner, as the Cornell coach did in an identical situation in a 1940 game. McCartney went on to a career preaching ethical conduct as the founder of Promise Keepers. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/44 "2009-11-20T17:44:34Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > Refs in the Big 10 Conference get a lot of grief these days for being terrible, but nothing as egregious as the Big Eight’s refs allowing a [Fifth Down for Colorado](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_Down_Game)against Missouri to score a touchdown. Colorado would then go on to win the National Championship later that season. As a Ga Tech alumnus, I will say that Colorado **shared** the National Championship with Ga Tech. Tech was voted number #1 in the Coaches Poll, Tech was undefeated with one tie (to UNC). FTR, Colorado had one loss (to Illinois) and one tie (to Tennessee). ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/45 "2009-11-20T17:52:05Z")
This 2001 win for Michigan State over Michigan supposedly led to a rule where the timekeeper is part of the officiating crew. I give you [The Clock](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoFZIBY-IVU) Oh, and the voice is that of the Michigan radio broadcaster, not the ABC TV crew. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/46 "2009-11-20T17:57:56Z")
For basketball: [The Hershey Hundred](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilt_Chamberlain%27s_100-point_game) ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/47 "2009-11-20T17:58:41Z")
There’s the Choke at Doak, where Florida led Florida State 31-3 in the fourth quarter but had to settle for a 31-31 tie in 1994. :mad: Luckily for me, I was at swim practice and therefore didn’t have to suffer through the fourth quarter. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/48 "2009-11-20T21:08:54Z")
re: The Raiders/Chargers “Holy Roller” play. > [@TheBoltEater](#): > > Even as a die-hard Chargers fan I can admit that the play-by-play call was fantastic (and very funny…now… many years later). What I can’t understand is how that play was ever allowed to stand in the first place. Raider fans will tell you that “fumbling forward” wasn’t made illegal until the next year - precisely because of this play. But if the same play happened today, the correct call would still not be an illegal forward fumble, _because he didn’t fumble the ball._ > > It was then, and would be today, nothing more than an incomplete pass. When you throw the ball forward, overhand OR underhand, and the ball hits the ground, it’s an incomplete pass. The referees _really_ blew it with that one. The fact that it was the Raiders just makes it that much more galling. The refs blew it twice, as Bolt-Eater said, and because they didn’t flag Raiders’ RB Pete Banaszak for an illegal forward pass. Banaszak was past the line of scrimmage and yet he illegally threw the ball forward. The fact his throw was an underhand pitch instead of a more normal throw doesn’t change the fact that it was against the rules in place at the time. Back on topic, there’s the Raiders/Patriots “Tuck Rule” game. I’ve got issues with the refs in that one too but I won’t belabor them here. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/49 "2009-11-20T21:36:36Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > That wasn’t as egregious as CU coach Bill McCartney’s refusal to forfeit the game to its rightful winner, as the Cornell coach did in an identical situation in a 1940 game. McCartney went on to a career preaching ethical conduct as the founder of Promise Keepers. :rolleyes: Yes, it was a fifth down, but Colorado spiked the ball on fourth down to stop the clock. It wasn’t as if they were taking five chances to get into the end zone. If they’d run a play instead, they score 95% of the time anyway. It wasn’t that big of a deal in terms of the football played on the field. > [@notfrommensa](#): > > As a Ga Tech alumnus, I will say that Colorado **shared** the National Championship with Ga Tech. Tech was voted number #1 in the Coaches Poll, Tech was undefeated with one tie (to UNC). FTR, Colorado had one loss (to Illinois) and one tie (to Tennessee). Yes, but if Nebraska coach Tom Osborne hadn’t been such a petty bitch by not voting Colorado anywhere in the top 20 on his ballot, Georgia Tech wouldn’t have won the coaches poll. ---
**Author:** ![HubZilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ccd318/32.png) [@HubZilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HubZilla)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/50 "2009-11-20T21:38:52Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > That wasn’t as egregious as CU coach Bill McCartney’s refusal to forfeit the game to its rightful winner, as the Cornell coach did in an identical situation in a 1940 game. McCartney went on to a career preaching ethical conduct as the founder of Promise Keepers. :rolleyes: I’m not going to forfeit because the field was slippery. What a maroon. Ask a Husker fan, we have the Flea-Kicker in the same Mizzou end zone. The WR kicked the ball as he was falling and other WR caught it. Some say it was a lucky bounce, others say it was illegal to kick it. Probably a bit of both. It actually didn’t win the game, it only tied it. Both teams still had an equal chance to win in OT. ---
**Author:** ![HubZilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ccd318/32.png) [@HubZilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HubZilla)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/51 "2009-11-20T21:42:08Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > Yes, it was a fifth down, but Colorado spiked the ball on fourth down to stop the clock. It wasn’t as if they were taking five chances to get into the end zone. If they’d run a play instead, they score 95% of the time anyway. It wasn’t that big of a deal in terms of the football played on the field. > > Yes, but if Nebraska coach Tom Osborne hadn’t been such a petty bitch by not voting Colorado anywhere in the top 20 on his ballot, Georgia Tech wouldn’t have won the coaches poll. :rolleyes: (not even going to bother asking for a cite). On an interesting note, Osborne was accused of the same thing when Michigan split the title with NU in 1997. I bet he also helped Bush with Florida in 2000. Both “instances” were before coaches made their picks public, so I don’t know how “they” could’ve known how he voted. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/52 "2009-11-24T19:42:14Z")
> [@GreedySmurf](#): > > but got to share this rugby League one [Miracle Try](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0YDW-_kIGM&NR=1) I watched that, but it seems to be “just” a very well executed play. Why is this in particular a “miracle play”? ---
**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:** [November 24, 2009, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/53 "2009-11-24T20:48:31Z")
The [Midnight Miracle](http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/sports/2001/10/11/2001-10-11_dolphs_can_t_shake_miracle_j.html). Dolphins @ Jets, Jets came back from 30-7 down in the 4th to win it in overtime. So named because it was the longest game in MNF history, ending at 1:20am on the East coast. I was actually at that game live, stayed to the end (screaming my lungs bloody) and didn’t get home until after 3am. Showed up to work around 11am on Tuesday to great envy from my coworkers and boss who couldn’t believe I was diehard enough to stay when it was 30-7 in the fourth quarter. ---
**Author:** ![5\_time\_champ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/278dde/32.png) [@5\_time\_champ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5_time_champ)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/54 "2009-11-24T22:42:11Z")
In Super Bowl 34, Mike Jones of the St Louis Rams made “The Tackle” on Titan’s Kevin Dyson to seal the Rams SB victory with no time left on the clock. ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/55 "2009-11-24T22:52:57Z")
> [@5\_time\_champ](#): > > In Super Bowl 34, Mike Jones of the St Louis Rams made “The Tackle” on Titan’s Kevin Dyson to seal the Rams SB victory with no time left on the clock. Good lord…I can’t believe I left that off my OP.Used it as my Wallpaper for a few years even. I watched that game with 3 other people.A passed out drunk guy(at the time of the tackle),A former drug addict, turned preacher, and his Chilean wife who spoke very little English and had never seen an NFL game before.Her reaction to my reaction of “The Tackle” was amusing. ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/56 "2009-11-24T23:27:17Z")
There’s “that try” from the 1973 Barbarians v. All Blacks game in Cardiff. 40secs into [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1l13ZDeXXy8) video, although it’s worth watching it from the start, just to witness the lamest Haka I’ve ever seen (seriously its like Dads dancing at a wedding, compare to [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eGCsEQ15L4)!), and to see how much rugby union has changed in 40 years :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/57 "2009-11-24T23:30:33Z")
> [@Cardinal](#): > > I watched that, but it seems to be “just” a very well executed play. Why is this in particular a “miracle play”? You normally get flattened after running 2 metres in rugby league. ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/58 "2009-11-25T00:50:19Z")
Cool thread. Most I can think of have been mentioned. So, I’ll take another direction. The standard bearers for each sport. The Immaculate Reception - NFL Shot heard 'round the world - MLB Miracle on Ice - Hockey NBA - I hate the NBA. 😃 (all I can think of is Havlechek stole the ball!, but I don’t know if any name was given to it) By the by, Pittsburgh Pirate Bill Mazeroski hit the ultimate walk-off bottom of the ninth homerun in the 1960 World Series against the Yankees. I don’t remember it having any name given to it. Is there one out there? (maybe the smartass NY writers were too busy crying in their typewriters to come up with something memorable) ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/59 "2009-11-25T01:09:51Z")
Heck, if there’s going to be a name given to a miracle NBA play, one of the top contenders has to be Derk Fisher hitting a 3 from an inbounds pass with .4 seconds to go to win a playoff game against the Spurs. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161/60 "2009-11-25T03:07:00Z")
> [@Cardinal](#): > > Heck, if there’s going to be a name given to a miracle NBA play, one of the top contenders has to be Derk Fisher hitting a 3 from an inbounds pass with .4 seconds to go to win a playoff game against the Spurs. Well - the Spurs were involved, so nothing exciting can be reported. I’d go with either MJ or Reggie Miller with their playoff winning shots. For college - who do you go with? Laetner? Curry? Super Mario? 'Nova? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nicknames-for-sports-plays-or-games/518161.md?page=4)