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Jarrett HuffFormer sports editor at the Northern Star and NIU men's basketball beat reporter and photographer. I was listening to the Bill Simmons podcast as I started my morning route for work the other day. I spend a lot of my day in the car traveling from account to account, so essentially Mr. Simmons helps me get through my mornings. While listening to his recent episode in the wake of Tom Brady’s retirement, he brought up the 12 greatest sport moments of his life, and it got me thinking: What are the 12 greatest sport moments of my life? So I did some thinking and put together a list, albeit a much more historically-condensed list (I’ve only been around about 24 years, the first two I don’t have much of a recollection of, so no 1998 Bulls), with a lot less-significant moments of success than the Podfather out of Boston. However, it’s a list nonetheless, one of which I expect to grow in the next 24 years (I’m looking at you Justin Fields and Zach LaVine), but until that time, these are my 12 greatest sports moments of my life. Honorable mentions:I’d like to start with a few honorable mentions, one of which is Bobby Labonte winning the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Championship. I was only 2 when this occurred, but I can swear on my life I have specific memories of sitting in my basement and watching Labonte edge out Rusty Wallace to win the Brickyard 400 that season. NASCAR was a big part of my life as a kid, and Labonte was my first sports hero. I only have this as an honorable mention because to be honest, I’m not entirely sure all of the memories from this season are actual memories, so for that reason I have to place my favorite all-time driver’s Cup title here. My second honorable mention goes out to the Chicago Bulls' 2014 NBA offseason. I began believing again that the Bulls were primed to contend for a title in the NBA again, now that Derrick Rose was returning and the Miami Heat "Big Three" were no more. In addition to Rose's return, Jimmy Butler was primed for a breakout season, Joakim Noah was coming off a near-MVP season and we added a wealth of talent in All-Star Pau Gasol, Aaron Brooks, Nikola Mirotić, Doug McDermott and E'Twaun Moore. Believe it or not, this is my favorite Bulls team all-time. My third honorable mention goes out to the Bulls' 2021 offseason. The Bulls new front office ended the rebuild by adding superstar (yes, he is one this season) DeMar DeRozan, former Lakers Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso, Ayo Dosunmu (should've gone in the lottery) and Derrick Jones Jr. among others to join Zach LaVine and Coby White; the only returning players from the start of the 2020-21 season worthy of remaining on the roster. While injuries and the lack of defense at time because of said injuries have been problem so far, this has been one hell of a season. Bulls basketball is back baby!!! 12. Devin Hester scores during kickoff in Super Bowl XLINot only is it an amazing privilege to watch your team play in the Super Bowl, but witnessing your star rookie kick returner taking it all the way back to the house to kick off Super Bowl XLI is an unforgettable moment. Devin Hester had us Bears fans believing it was finally our time! I choose to forget everything else after this play (Won't ever forget Rex Grossman slipping twice though, no matter how hard I try). 11. 2010 Chicago Bears' Week 15Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher (right) looks down at Vikings quarterback Brett Favre (bottom), who lays on the ground after being hit Dec. 20, 2010, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The game was played at the University of Minnesota's TCF Bank Stadium, now called Huntington Bank Stadium. (Associated Press) The Bears and Devin Hester take the next spot on my list with their performance in Week 15 of the 2010 NFL season. It’s always great when the Bears get a win over a division rival, but combine that with a 40-14 blow-out victory, a clinched NFC North title, Hester’s NFL record-breaking 14th career return for a touchdown and putting an end to long-time rival Brett Farve’s career (hate to see players get hurt though), the promising 2010 season reached an all-time high. Corey Wooten sent Farve into retirement for good (after years of back-and-forth) with a toss to the turf. Joe Webb would take over for Farve and graciously throw two passes to the Bears’ defense. Despite the tough day for quarterbacks wearing purple, Jay Cutler found no such trouble, having a solid three-touchdown night. As for Hester, he caught a pass for a touchdown, returned a kick 79 yards to set up a field goal and then returned another kick for a touchdown a few minutes later. What I wouldn’t give to be in 2010 again. 10. Eugene German breaks NIU's scoring recordFor many people potentially reading this, you may not know who Eugene German is. You may not know what or where NIU is (Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL). That’s fair, since NIU is sort of a smaller D1 school not particularly known for its sports beyond football (congrats Coach Thomas Hammock and the 2021 Huskies!). Eugene German was the star point guard for the NIU men’s basketball team, an undersized guard with a quick first step that could score from anywhere on the floor. This night makes my list because it was an event I covered as a journalist; writing, photographing and all. On this particular February 1st night back in 2020, before the dark times – before the pandemic, the NIU Convocation Center was packed (for once) with fans. There was a ton of energy and anticipation that night, as German was set to break NIU’s 20-year-old scoring record. NIU was also in the midst of their Mid-American Conference West Division championship season, so the Convo drew larger crowds like these more often late in the season. German broke the record by his 18th point, prompting play to stop and the Convo crowd rising to their feet to pay tribute to the history made in front of their eyes. NIU men’s basketball hasn’t been the same since. 9. Kenseth wins 2003 championship, Labonte wins raceFor my non/anti-NASCAR crowd do not worry – this is the last time you’ll see racing on this list. Despite my young age, I remember this race as clear as day. Final race of the season; the Ford 400. The final true NASCAR WInston Cup Championship (miss me with the Chase and Playoffs). Sitting at my uncle and aunt’s house in Lake Geneva, WI, I watched Bill Elliot blow a tire on there final lap, giving the race up to the second-place driver, none other than – you guessed it; Bobby Labonte. Labonte drove into turn 3 and out of turn 4 as the birds-eye cam slowly panned down to track him across the finish line to win his second race of the 2003 season; the 21st and final win of his Hall of Fame career. My second-favorite driver, Matt Kenseth, brought home the final Winston Cup for Ford and Roush Racing, which my family was pretty excited about, since he was basically our hometown driver, if someone from Cambridge, WI, can qualify as your hometown driver when you live 2.5 hours away in Wonder Lake, IL (okay fine – backoff. I know I’m reaching. Still a win for Ford!) I can’t say why the image of that green and black Monte Carlo racing down the front stretch has stayed ingrained in my brain nearly 2 decades later. Maybe it's because somehow subconsciously I knew this would be the last time I’d see my favorite driver – my hero – in victory lane? I spent the final 10 full seasons of his NASCAR career waiting for another win that never came. I attribute this as the beginning to the general feeling I have that nothing will really ever go right for me – on the sports side of my life. 8. Bears start 2006 with Packers shutout victoryMost people may wonder “why does a 24-year-old man remember a random-ass season-opener from when he was eight years old?” I’ll tell you why: we shut out the Green Bay Packers. For what feels like 99.99% of my lifetime, the Bears’ kryptonite has been our rivals to the north; the Packers. To make matters worse for myself, I’ve spent more time than most Chicagoland-area people in Wisconsin, and know far too many Wisconsinites for that reason. Those summers after a rough season were traumatic. So when my Bears get one over on Green Bay, that shit sticks with you, and you hold on to those memories of happier times tight. It was the first shutout of Brett Farve’s career, and to make things so much sweeter, it was at Lambeau Field! It was a pleasure to watch the Mike McCarthy-era start off with a 26-0 loss for the Packers, as the Bears began their campaign toward Super Bowl XLI. The game also featured the first-ever Devin Hester return for a touchdown. 7. Derrick Rose banks game-winner over CavsDerrick Rose (center) shoots a three pointer in the final seconds over Tristan Thompson (left) May 8, 2015, at the United center in Chicago, Illinois, during the Bulls' 99-96 victory over the Cavaliers. The shot would bank in to win Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. (Bill Smith | Chicago Bulls) You came to Huff’s Hoops, so I’m sure you’re a little surprised at this point to find the first NBA entry this far into the list. For those who know me, believe it or not, I’ve had other loves before NBA basketball. This list however, would be incomplete without mentioning the game-winner that forever immortalized Derrick Rose into Chicago sports history. The 2014-15 season was a rough year for Rose. He came back to a team that had essentially gone two full seasons without him; it wasn’t really his team anymore, especially with the emergence of Jimmy Butler. Rose had to figure out his role on the team when he could no longer be “MVP Derrick Rose” night in and night out. Many of the fans and even the media were also down on Rose, having grown frustrated and impatient with his recovery. There was a lot of negative energy pushing down on the man. The season for Rose took an even worse turn when he tore his right medial meniscus for the second time in less than a year and a half. On the bright side, it was a minor tear, which meant he’d be back before the Playoffs. Fast-forward to Game 3 of the 2015 Eastern Conference Semifinals; the game is tied 96-96. Mike Dunleavy has the ball on the sidelines looking for an open teammate. Rose came streaking across the half court to receive the ball. Clock starts with three seconds left. He dribbles past the top of the key and launches a three over Tristan Thompson. Shot banks in. Bulls win. Rose jogs back down court with all the swag of a Windy-City Assassin and leaps into the arms of an exhilarated Joakim Noah, with a face that said “there was never a fucking doubt the second I touched that ball.” “The Redemption of Derrick Rose, Part One.” Had the refs not given Cleveland an extra timeout in Game 4, I’m confident to this day LeBron James doesn’t hit that shot, the Bulls win that game, and then the series. 6. Bulls take Derrick Rose first overall in 2008 NBA DraftWell it wouldn’t be a list of Jarrett Huff’s greatest sports moments without multiple Derrick Rose entries, c’mon now. The first pick of the 2008 NBA draft will forever be a moment that changed my life – I just didn’t know it yet. The Chicago Bulls had a 1.7% chance of obtaining the first overall pick of the draft via the NBA Draft Lottery; impossible odds essentially. By some miracle, act of God, fate of destiny, the Bulls landed the first pick, which by that point everyone knew; The Bulls would draft Memphis’ Derrick Rose, the hometown product from Simeon Academy. The rest is history. I don’t care about how it ended. I don’t care about the lows and the what-ifs; I wouldn’t change a second of it. Rose was meant to come to the Bulls. He was meant to inject life into a dying perennial NBA franchise and fanbase. Without Derrick Rose playing for the Bulls, I wouldn’t have fallen in love with basketball most likely, which in turn means I wouldn’t likely be pursuing the path of sports media now. Thank you Derrick. 5. Derrick Rose scores 50 on HalloweenOh look, another Derrick Rose entry! You’re welcome readers. As I sort of outlined in the game-winning shot over Cleveland entry, Rose’s career post-ACL tear was headed in the wrong direction. In July of 2016, he was dumped to the New York Knicks, where he struggled at times on and off the court. His 2016-17 season ended prematurely with another meniscus tear. His career was “rescued” by the Cleveland Cavaliers for the 2017-18 season, but found himself out of the NBA by February 2018 after a trade to the Utah Jazz. Then came his knight in shining armor to the rescue; Tom Thibodeau. Thibs landed on his feet in Minnesota following his unceremonious exit from Chicago, and was looking to get the band back together. The Timberwolves, or “Timberbulls,” featured a few Thibodeau-era Bulls, like Jimmy Butler, Aaron Brooks and Taj Gibson (Luol Deng would join the team for 2018-19). Rose on the open market wouldn’t last long with Thibs on the prowl. Rose finished the season with the team as it headed to its first Playoffs appearance since 2004. Rose returned to the team for 2018-19, a rocky season for the T-Wolves that saw Butler leave the team in soap opera-like fashion. However, the peak of the team’s season came on Halloween night, 2018. Derrick Rose dropped a career-high 50 points on the Jazz (the team that waived him, remember?) in what became one of the all-time feel-good moments in NBA history. I was working at a local Beef Shack restaurant, as college students do, and my phone started blowing up like crazy. Messages from Bleacher Report, NBA.com, friends, family (I am the well-known resident Rose fan to my social circle), all letting me know one thing; Derrick Rose was going off. I believe the notification said he had 35, which for Rose at the time, was a lot of points. I started to feel myself tearing up. I was so happy for the guy. More notifications; 40 points, 45 points, 50 points and the game-saving block. Tears of joy streaked down my face over the sink well of a Chicago-style sandwich shop. I raced home immediately after my shift to watch the entire game. The confidence was back. The swagger was back. The joy he had playing basketball seemed to be back. No player in the history of sports deserved this moment more than him. Since that night he’s been a different player; the new Derrick Rose. He was even the best player on the Knicks in the Playoffs last season, and received an MVP vote. “The Redemption of Derrick Rose, Part Two.” My rant for everyone that hopped back on the Rose bandwagon will be saved for another article. 4. Kobe scores 60 in final NBA gameI put this one on here because like Derrick Rose, Kobe Bryant was a major influence on my early love for basketball. When it came time for his career to close, it wasn’t a question I’d be watching his final game at the Staples Center (like the Sears Tower, I refuse to call it by any other name) – his final NBA game ever, despite the then-72-9 Golden State Warriors soon-to-be record-breaking game taking place on the same night. I sat in our living room with my brother, a couple of his friends and my mom – even my mom was watching, despite never showing much interest in the NBA outside the Bulls. That’s the kind of impact Kobe had on people. Staples was a spectacle to see that night; even from watching on TV. It seemed like all of Los Angeles was in the building. Former Lakers seemed to be in just about every camera shot not focused on the game. Celebrities seemingly packed wall-to-wall, and Jack Nichlson in his seat with little doubt. Kobe had a slow start but somehow had 22 points by halftime. It was amazing. “Could he score 30?” He got 30, but the Lakers were down 10 in the third quarter. Early in the fourth he had 40, but the Lakers were down 12. No one was watching for the Laker win, we wanted to see what Kobe could do. Kobe Bryant had other plans. He somehow managed 45 with the Lakers still down 10 with just over three minutes left. The Mamba Mentality was on full display in those final three minutes. We were going crazy after he hit shot after shot. By the time the dust settled in a game the Utah Jazz needed to win, Kobe buried them with about 30 seconds remaining, capping his night off at 60 with in the same fashion his first NBA points were scored; at the charity stripe. Shaq joked a few nights before about Kobe getting 50 in his final game, to which the Mamba laughed off. Maybe he laughed because 50 was too low? Didn’t matter how many shots it took. Didn't matter that it was an otherwise-meaningless game for the Lakers: Kobe Bryant showed us one last time why he was one of the greatest athletes to ever play any sport ever, one last time. I watched the game again on ESPN a couple nights after he died. The weight and reality of Jan. 26, 2020 hadn’t hit me yet. I was balling my eyes out by the time three minutes were left in that fourth quarter, and even now I can’t write or think about it without those feelings hitting me now. Thank you Kobe, and bless you and GiGi. We miss you. 3. Derrick Rose wins 2010-11 MVPI have a little bit where “3” or “33” is the greatest number in sports, so it comes as a pleasant surprise to me that Derrick Rose’s 2010-11 MVP sits at number three on my list. I didn’t plan this. What can be said about the youngest MVP.'s season that hadn’t been said? Rose led the Bulls to an NBA-leading 62-20 record, clinching the top seed in the East and eventually the Bulls’ first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 1998. His numbers that season were great, even if nowadays they look average for an NBA superstar, but I want to remind you the pace was slower than it is today, and that Bulls team was among the slower teams. Rose brought back to the United Center the feeling that the Bulls were a title contender – and we were. Unfortunately, we peaked the year LeBron James made super teams fashionable, and the rest is history. Rose undoubtedly deserved the MVP that season, because he did more with less, compared to LeBron James and Dwight Howard, whose names are often thrown into the 2011 MVP debate. The best part was the trophy was given to Rose at the United Center in front of a packed house, which he lifted up to the city. I wish the MVP award was still given out to the winning players in front of the fans. These NBA awards shows ring hollow. 2. 2006 Bears win NFC ChampionshipThe 2006 Bears will always hold a special place in my heart. Around 2005 my parents began to show my brother and I other sports beyond baseball and auto racing, which coincidentally around that time Head Coach Lovie Smith and company resurrected the “Monsters of the Midway” moniker through their exceptional defensive play. The Bears dominated the NFC for the first time in nearly two decades, culminating in their 39-14 victory over the New Orleans Saints in the 2007 NFC Championship game. It was exciting as a newer football fan and young kid to have my team headed to the Super Bowl. I’ll always be appreciative of guys like Smith, Lance Briggs, Devin Hester, Olin Kruetz, Brian Urlacher, Thomas Jones, Charles Tillman and Robbie Gould (he’s still going!!!) for what they did for the franchise and the city. Also, Rex Grossman slipped twice in the Super Bowl. Twice. Will never not be mad about it. 1. 2016 World Series Game 7If you didn’t think this would be my number one as a non-White Sox Chicago sports fan, then you should’ve checked the scouting report on me. I’m a major basketball fan; no sport really comes close to matching the excitement I get from watching it. However, Game 7 of the 2016 World Series was the single-greatest sporting event I have ever watched in my life – my Chicago Cubs fandom aside.
Never have ever felt a rollercoaster of emotions during a game like I did that night and into the early morning hours of November 3, 2016. From Dexter Fowler’s home run to open up play, to the Cleveland Indians tying the game at one each in the third. From the Cubs tacking on two more each in the fourth and fifth, to Chicago’s near-meltdown in the bottom of the fifth. From David “Grandpa” Ross’ homer in the sixth, to the collapse in the eighth while having two outs after Rajai Davis’ home run tied the game at six. I’ll never forget the image of LeBron James in one of the boxes flexing as if he’d just hit a game-winner. Now this guy was demoralizing me in two sports. Cubs go scoreless in the ninth, but hold the Indians to force a 10th. Then came the rain delay. Then came Ben Zorbrist’s near-baseline drive into left field with two runners on, helmet flying as he made it to second, and a stunned Anthony Rizzo on third base. Then Miguel Montero sends Rizzo home; 8-6 Cubs. Then it’s the Indians turn, and Davis bats in another run; 8-7 Cubs, who now have to pull Carl Edwards Jr. Weren't Joe Maddon's pitching decisions after he pulled Kyle Hendricks terrifying? Then, finally, the play I’ll never forget, forever immortalized by the words of Joe Buck: “Here's the 0-1. This is gonna be a tough play, Bryant ... the Cubs… WIN THE WORLD SERIES! BRYANT MAKES THE PLAY! IT'S OVER, AND THE CUBS ... HAVE FINALLY WON IT ALL! 8-7 IN 10!" Words I’d never thought I’d hear in my lifetime, as several generations of Cubs fans had come and gone since 1908 without hearing “Cubs win the World Series.” Beyond a game that was so perfect it had to have been scripted like a movie – especially factoring in Chicago having faced a 3-1 deficit in the series – I got to share this experience with my family. My mom, a lifelong Cubs fan, who lived through the torture of the Cubs falling to the St. Louis Cardinals ahead of the World Series in the 1980s – while attending Illinois State University (healthy mix of Cubs and Cards fans) – which resulted in being locked in their dorms as students rioted and tore down ISU’s goal posts, finally got to see her Cubbies win it all, and share that moment with her two sons. It’s a moment I’ll forever treasure for the rest of my life: The three of us sitting at the McHenry Buffalo Wild Wings until midnight, cheering with the rest of the McHenry Cubs fans, and then sitting silent in a packed restaurant after Davis’ homer. Then heading home during the rain delay just in time to start the tenth inning, and then that final play, followed by my brother and I racing into the garage, yelling at the top of our lungs as we pulled out bags of fireworks from the previous Fourth of July to begin setting off in our backyard. Fast forward to the championship parade a few days later in Chicago, standing on a packed train for nearly two hours to get down to the city, where I met up with my friends as we made a day of the entire experience; the largest human gathering in North American history. It was and forever will be one of the best weeks of my life. Go Cubs, go.
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