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Not-so-subtle Brag Time: Bucket list sporting events you have checked off attending

Menace Sockeyes

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Sep 2, 2010
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Inspired by the other thread. Going with my top ten…

1) At White Sox walk-off home run at first Field of Dreams Game.
2) At Iowa win in a top ten matchup BCS/NY6 Bowl.
3) At Iowa Football winning a B1G title game: Iowa vs Wisconsin in 2004, before it was a regular occurrence. (Was also there when Iowa beat Purdue to win the B1G West in 2015).
4) Copa America game. Leo Messi scores a hat-trick as substitute vs Panama.
5) USMNT World Cup Qualifier: A few. Favorite was USMNT comeback vs Honduras at Soldier Field.
6a) Ireland national team rugby match. Faced Italy in Chicago.
6b)All-Blacks match vs USA (doubleheader after)
7) US Open Cup Final: Chicago over Columbus in ‘98 with a golden goal winner.
8) NBA Finals - Game 3 last season in Milwaukee.
9) Cedar Rapids Roughriders winning Clark Cup on home ice, with multiple future NHL players, including a star in Justin Abdelkader.
10) AVP Tour Championship Match: Kiraly and Steffes back in their prime.

1 was a one-time only event, so obviously it went straight to the top of my bucket list for only a short time.
 
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My older brother has won 4 national titles as a head coach in basketball, D2. Every single one of those games cannot be beat because of close family ties. The sense of euphoria when a close relative is about to achieve the pinnacle of success is a wonderful and unique feeling.
 
I didn’t just want to watch, that wasn’t worth putting on a bucket list. I was attending the NBA Finals, and ran out on the court and stole the ball. The crowd was like who the hell is this asshole, that was until I dribble flawlessly between my legs. They all thought to themselves that maybe he should be out there. A famous basket ballplayer came to guard me but I gave him a spin move and a stiff arm and flatten him then do a reverse dunk and the crowd lost it. The owner of the NBA, Howard Stern, walked out onto the floor and gave me an All Star jersey and said I could play for any team I pick. Naturally, I picked The Iowa Hawkeyes which were promoted to the NBA because it would be unfair to play in college with me on the team. The NBA Finals were cancelled that year as you all remember and we started the new season that day. Iowa went undefeated in the amount of games in an NBA season and won the championship with my skills on the court. After the Hawkeyes won the NBA Championship I retired as I had reached the pinnacle of sport and I got abducted to the Hall of Fame where I am being forced to live out the rest of my life. Send help.
 
Been to two FSU appearances in National Championship games - one win, one loss. A number of other major bowl games, as well.
Watched the Bucs lose an NFC championship game, as well as several playoff wins.
Hockey, been to a couple of conference finals games. Not a finals round game, might remedy that next week.
NBA, went to a couple of conference finals games between Magic’s Lakers and Gervin’s Spurs.
 
My older brother has won 4 national titles as a head coach in basketball, D2. Every single one of those games cannot be beat because of close family ties. The sense of euphoria when a close relative is about to achieve the pinnacle of success is a wonderful and unique feeling.
Damn that's awesome. Is he going to move to D1? You gotta assume teams are interested in him
 
Damn that's awesome. Is he going to move to D1? You gotta assume teams are interested in him
He has been offered at schools like UMKC and UNO and even Evansville recently. But he’s a stubborn sob and doesn’t want leave his current situation he built unless it checks all his boxes. He’s only 40 and has kids in grade, middle and high school which I think has some bearing on him staying for now as well. Suppose the record is five national titles at the D2 level so maybe after that mark. He was offered the associate head coach job at Texas tech recently and tuned that down. I believe he’ll take one of the Dakota jobs or Drake if they ever open up or a high level D1 associate head coach. But he’s in no rush.
 
  • 2003 Orange Bowl
  • Christian McCaffrey Rose Bowl
  • 2019 Penn State Game
  • Conference USA officials Outback Bowl
  • Not the Moises Alou game but another L in that series
 
That 2015 game against Purdue was freeeeeeeeeeeeeeezing. Worth it
Didn't it snow 6 inches the night before? By the end of the game where I was standing was solid ice. I remember an older couple who sat on the end of the aisle bringing some ice melt. I thought that was smart.
 
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Rose Bowl is about it. Really the only sports bucket list thing I have is a track & field finals at an Olympics. Not much else really seems like a “must do.”
 
Not sure if these are/were bucket list items, but they were pretty darn cool. In a 3 month span (1988, just realized I forgot to list the year), I got to see the following

Aryton Senna win the German GP (at Hockenheimring) and the Belgium GP (at Spa), Kevin Schwantz win the German 500cc GP (at Nurburgring), Eddie Lawson win the Austrian 500cc GP (at Salzburg) and Wayne Gardner win the Dutch TT at Assen.

That was a fantastic summer. The cheap rail systems in Germany and surrounding countries and (fairly) cheap tickets to the races. Plus a bunch of 4 day weekends that gave me the time to go do things.
 
Probably the biggest, as a child Dad took me to 1981 Iowa vs. MSU game. Win and OSU loss made Iowa go to the Rose Bowl. Both happened. When I got on the roller coaster that is known as Hawkeye athletics.
 
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I still have a lot on my list that I haven't done.

Cool things I've been to:
Orange Bowl
Wimbledon
White Heart Lane to see Spurs v Arsenal (2)
F1 race at Silverstone
Cubs in Atlanta, a bunch
Da Bears in New Orleans and Tampa
Kinnick, Fieldhouse, and Carver
Jamsil Stadium to see the Doosan Bears (2)

It's a modest list, but mine.

Edit to add TPC at Sawgrass and multiple Hawkeye bowl games in Florida (including the catch)
 
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Season ticket holder to Iowa football since 1980, I was 5. So I've seen all the big ones 81 Nebraska, UCLA, Michigan St, 85 Michigan & Michigan St, etc etc. At Iowa St with my son and Penn St with my son, college buddies, and my mom and dad this past year will stay close to my heart for ever; not many of those left sadly.

97 NBA Finals game 2 in Chicago. Pippen missed an uncontested lay up in the last minute to deny 23 a triple double, adding to the love/hate relationship with Scottie.

84 OLYMPIC team exhibition at Carver vs NBA stars. Jordan, Mullin, Ewing vs Lester, Walton etc.
 
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2010 Orange Bowl

Saw Jordan's fourth-to-last game at Miami. Scored 25 points. The game was meaningful as the Wizards were still in the playoff hunt but that night were eliminated by another team's win.

Been to three random Marlins games in the last 18 years. One of them was the perfect game pitched by Roy Halladay.
 
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  • Conference USA officials Outback Bowl
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NLCS Game 7 @ Wrigley (the game after the Bartman game)
Iowa in the Rose Bowl (f*ck Stanford)
Ryder Cup @ Whistling Straights
The Players @ TPC Sawgrass
The Bears @ Lambeau (twice)
UFC PPV @ United Center
Several Blackhawks and Bulls games (home and away)
Countless Iowa football and basketball games over the last 20+ years
 
The Rose Bowl is really the only one.

On the list, but not achieved: Winning a Big Ten title game and getting into/winning a football playoff
 
I'm not sure my list is great, but I've gotten to go to some things I thought were pretty good.

Texas/OU
Maybe 10 different Cotton Bowls
PGA Championship (2016 at Baltusrol)
Preakness (2015 - the year American Pharaoh won the Triple Crown)
Chelsea - Real Betis Champions League match at Stamford Bridge
Manhattan Beach Open (pro beach volleyball) - in between matches I got to do a tug-of-war competition (which I won) that got me entry into a season-end drawing for a Sea-Doo (which I did not win)
Been to 21 of 20 MLB parks

Those are the ones I can think of for now. There are other things that may be cool to me (like a big Australian Rules football game) that probably aren't a big deal to most anyone else.
 
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1994 Superbowl
2000 Superbowl
1999 World Series
The worst to first Braves 1991
3 College Football National Championships, many bowl games, great road games (51-31) #1 FSU @ #3 Mich was one of the favs)
1996 Summer Olympics (numerous events)
Bundesliga soccer championship game in Munich
I imagine I've leaving off a few

I've been lucky...
 
In no particular order

- Bulls (MJ) vs. Lakers (Magic) - meet MJ and BJ Armstrong after the game
- Iowa Rose Bowl
- Iowa Orange Bowl
- US Open golf tourney
- Masters practice round
- Cubs game at Wrigley, Sox at old Comiskey the same day
- Cubs game in CF bleachers with Bill Veeck
- Packers/Bears night game in Lambeau
- Played Pebble Beach
- Played the Old Course in St. Andrews
- Played Cypress Point
 
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Attended 4 Masters Golf Tournaments
Attended PGA Championship (2001)

Played Kapalua, Doral (Blue and White), TPC Sawgrass
Played golf with Bubba Watson (3) and Boo Weekley (2)
Played in Florida HS State Basketball Semi Final
Got a hole-in-one while playing golf with my pop
Played on 3 North Carolina Knights of Columbus State Basketball Championship teams, one with my son
Played on a couple Church C softball national championship teams

Attended lots of FSU football, basketball, baseball games, but none really are bucket list worthy.
 
I didn’t just want to watch, that wasn’t worth putting on a bucket list. I was attending the NBA Finals, and ran out on the court and stole the ball. The crowd was like who the hell is this asshole, that was until I dribble flawlessly between my legs. They all thought to themselves that maybe he should be out there. A famous basket ballplayer came to guard me but I gave him a spin move and a stiff arm and flatten him then do a reverse dunk and the crowd lost it. The owner of the NBA, Howard Stern, walked out onto the floor and gave me an All Star jersey and said I could play for any team I pick. Naturally, I picked The Iowa Hawkeyes which were promoted to the NBA because it would be unfair to play in college with me on the team. The NBA Finals were cancelled that year as you all remember and we started the new season that day. Iowa went undefeated in the amount of games in an NBA season and won the championship with my skills on the court. After the Hawkeyes won the NBA Championship I retired as I had reached the pinnacle of sport and I got abducted to the Hall of Fame where I am being forced to live out the rest of my life. Send help.
You are even greater in my mind than you were before. Have you ever thought about running for president? Republican, of course.
 
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4 National Championship games (2 wins - '93 & '99 and 2 Losses - '98 & 2000)
ACC Tourney Championship game (2012 win vs. UNC)
Numerous trips to East Lake for the Tour Championship
U.S. Open (tennis)
Lebron's first home game back in Cleveland after he left Miami.
'91 FSU/Miami at Doak
'96 FSU/UF at Doak (my favorite FSU game of all-time)
 
Masters multiple times
Kentucky Derby multiple times
US Open Golf multiple times
NBA Finals last year in Boston
Rose Bowls
Monaco Grand Prix this year
 
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