Sports Fact of the Day 11/7-11/14/2008

Nov. 7:
11/7/1962:
Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Glenn Hall's extraordinary streak of 502 straight games, encompassing 30,060 consecutive minutes, ends when he's forced from the lineup with a pinched nerve in his back. Hall tries to give it a go but must be replaced by Denis DeJordy early in the game. He'll miss the next several games, bringing to a conclusion a feat of longevity on a sporting par with baseball's Lou Gehrig and, later, Cal Ripken Jr. In a dramatic conclusion to tonight's game, Johnny Bucyk of the Boston Bruines scores with only seven seconds left to forge a 3-3 tie at Chicago Stadium.

Birthdays:
Al Attlees b. 1936
Jim Kaat b. 1938
Joe Niekro b. 1944
Glendon Rusch b. 1974
Mark Philippoussis b. 1976

1962:
A back injury during an NHL game against Boston forced the Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Glenn Hall to end his incredible games-played streak after seven seasons.

"Hall holds the record of records, a mark we will swear, on the good book of Guinness, won't ever be broken. Between the start of the 1955 season and Nov. 7, 1962, Hall played 502 consecutive complete games in goal." -E.M. Swift, SI Classic, FAll 1992

Packers Fact:
Before Brett Favre took over as the full-time starting quarterback in 1992, Mike Tomczak was the last player to lead the Packers in passing. He had 1,490 yards through the air in 1991.

Nov. 8:
11/8/1964:
Mickey Wright shoots an LPGA record 62 in the final round of the Tall City Open golf tournament in Midland, Texas, to overcome a 10-stroke deficit and win her 10th tourney of the year. Wright beats Sherry Wheeler on the second hole of sudden death after Kathy Whitworth, the leader at the start of play, blew up to a 76. Wright's 62 betters the previous LPGA mark of 64 shared by Patty Berg and Rurth Jessen.

Birthdays:
Bobby Bowden b. 1929
Satch Sanders b. 1938
Angel Cordero Jr. b. 1942
Ed Kranepool b. 1944
Jimmie Giles b. 1954

1964:
Mickey Wright set an LPGA record for carding the lowest 18-hole score with a 62 in the first round of the Tall City Open in Midland, Texas.

"Mickey Wright, the best woman golfer of all time, is an Alexander the Great in Bermuda shorts. She is only 29, but for her there are very few records left to break, frontiers to push back or worlds to conquer." -Gwilym S. Brown, November 23, 1964

Packers Fact:

Former NFL great and 1958 Packers coach Scooter McLean's given first name was Ray.

Nov. 9:
11/9/1984:
Larry Bird, having a fabulous night (42 points in less than three quarters), and Julius Erving, having a miserable night (only 6 points), get tangled up and come to blows at the Boston Garden. With Bird and the Celtics leading the 76ers handily, 95-75, late in the third period, the two superstars square off and Bird throws a wild punch at Dr. J before Philadelphia center Moses Malone grabs Bird in a headlock and both benches empty. The sight of the two All-Star rivals losing their cool stuns everyone into a conciliatory mode, and order is quickly restored. After Bird and Erving are both ejected, Boston wins easily, 130-119.

Birthdays:
Bob Gibson b. 1935
Tom Weiskopf b. 1942
Teddy Higuera b. 1958
David Duval b. 1971
Adam Dunn b. 1979

Nov. 10:
11/10/1948:

Overstocked with starting pitchers, the Detroit Tigers make a tremendous blunder when they deal 21-year-old left-handed prospect Billy Pierce to the Chicago White Sox for catcher Aaron Robinson. Pierce will blossom into one of baseball's best pitchers over the next 16 years, winning 208 games, 186 of them with the White Sox. At various times, he'll lead the American League in ERA, complete games and strikeouts, and post two 20-win seasons.

Birthdays:
Norm Cash b. 1934
Jack Clark b. 1955
Mike Powell b. 1963
Isaac Bruce b. 1972
Shawn Green b. 1972

1983:
"Marvelous" Marvin Hagler successfully defended his world middleweight boxing title with a 15-round decision over Roberto Duran.

"Duran is an imaginative actor onstage, an orginal who creates ring drama by the mere feint of his head. Hagler is [a stalker] whose ring presence can be likened to that of a mechanic in a garage - speak softly and carry a big wrench." -William Nack, November 21, 1983

Packers Fact:
Billy Howton led the Packers in receiving for six consecutive years from 1952 to 1957. But when he made contract demands in 1959, Vince Lombardi shipped him to Cleveland.

Nov. 11:
11/11/1964:
Seven-year-old Kelso wins the Washington D.C. International at Laurel Race Court in Maryland in record time by four and a half lengths over Gun Bow. Kelso's time for the mile and a half on turf is an American record 2:23-4/5, just edging the 2:24 set by Pardo at Santa Anita last year. It's Kelso's first win in this event after placing second three years in a row. The magnificent gelding's triumph caps a remarkable and unprecedented run of five straight years being named Horse of the Year (160-64).

Birthdays:
Rudy LaRusso b. 1937
Fuzzy Zoeller b. 1951
Roberto Hernandez b. 1964
Damion Easley b. 1969
Oksana Baiul b. 1977

1944:
Doc Blanchard and Glenn Davis led the U.S. Military Academy football team to a 59-0 whitewash over Notre Dame. The loss was the worst in Fighting Irish history.

"Blanchard and Davis are destined to march in lockstep through time, inseparably bound by mutually extraordinary deeds. They will forever by what George Trevor of the old New York Sun called them long ago in a moment of matchless inspiration, Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside. It is almost impossible for those who remember them to say one name without the other." -Ron Fimrite, November 21, 1988

Packers Fact:
The Packers have won Super Bowl I, II and XXXI.

Nov. 12:
11/12/1977:
President Jimmy Carter has mixed emotions as he watched Navy upset Georgia Tech, 20-16, at Annapolis. A native of Plains, Georgia, Carter attended Georgia Tech before transferring to the Naval Academy in his undergraduate days. Today, he sits for one half on each side of the field and watches midshipman Joe Gattuso rush 38 times for 142 yards to anchor a ground attack that leads to a Navy victory. Glenn Flanagan's interception near the goal line with time running out preservers Navy's winning margin.

Birthdays:
Tuffy Leemans b. 1912
Ken Houston b. 1944
Nadia Comaneci b. 1961
Sammy Sosa b. 1968
Corey Maggete b. 1979

1994:
The Olympic sprinting championn Wilma Rudolph died. Rudolph overcame childhood polio and won three gold medals at the 1960 Summer Olympics.

"A sprinter's world is measured out in 10ths of a second, a mayfly's dance between the starter's gun and the tape. For Wilma Rudolph, the most elegant and revered woman sprinter of all, life was more a distance race, an often hard road, well and courageously run." -Alxander Wolff and Richard O'Brien, November 21, 1994

Packers Fact:
More than 60 years after his retirement, end Don Hutson still ranks third on the Packers' all-time list with 488 career catches.

Nov. 13:
Winning a college football national championship often boils down to fortuitous circumstances or just plain good luck as Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden admits: "To have the kind of year you want to have, something has to happen that you can't explain why it happened. Something has to happen that you just can't coach."

Birthdays:
Steve Bilko b. 1928
Gil Perreault b. 1950
Vinny Testaverde b. 1963
Pat Hentgen b. 1968
Ron Artest b. 1979

1985:
Lynette Woodard, an All-America basketball player at Kansas and a member of the gold medal-winning 1984 U.S. Olympic team, scored seven points to make history as the first woman to play for the Harlem Globetrotters.

"She [has] the prototype women's basketball structure, muscles and curves perfectly coordinated. She's the one who floats, gazelle-like, at wing guard or small forward; who hungers for penetration and offensive rebounds; who leads by a quiet presence and wokraholic's sense of duty." -Curry Kirkpatrick, July 23, 1984

Packer Fact:
The Bears beat the Packes in the first divisional playoff game in NFL history. Green Bay and Chicago tied atop the NFL's Western Division in 1941 with 10-1 records. The Bears won the playoff 33-14 to earn a spot in the league championship game.

Nov. 14:
11/14/1973:
Legendary Celtics center Bill Russell returns to Boston Garden for the first time as an opponent as head coach of the Seattle SuperSonics. He receives a warm, almost reverent reception, but the Celtics overcome the emotion and win the game, 110-104. After serving as a player-coach for the last three seasons of his Celtics career, Russell will put in four years in Seattle, compiling a 162-166 record before moving on. He'll never take a coaching job again.

Birthdays:
Jimmy Piersall b. 1929
Jack Sikma b. 1955
Curt Schilling b. 1966
Dana Stubblefield b. 1970
Lawyer Milloy b. 1973

1981:
In a game against Washington, Marcus Allen of Southern California became the first collegiate running back to gain 2,000 yards rushing.

"He did it early in the first quarter, on his fourth carry, when he cruised around end on the oh-so-familiar Student Body Right. He eluded several tacklers and slogged on for 13 yards before being decked by Husky linebacker Ken Driscoll. That run brought him to 2,000 yards exactly." -Douglas S. Looney, November 23, 1981

Packers Fact:
Chester Marcol is the only pure kicker in Packers' history to lead the league in scoring more than once. He was the NFL's best in both 1972 and 1974.