At the onset of the coronavirus shutdown, the Hotline asked readers to share their favorite Pac-12 memory — a game or play, coach or player, from the sport of your choice … something that might bring a smile during these stressful times.
The response was overwhelming, to the point that we’ll be rolling out the ‘Your Voices’ series for many weeks through May and June in general chronological order of the date they were received.
(Here’s the first installment.)
If you’re interested in sharing a personal experience, details are at the bottom of this article.
Many thanks to the readers who have participated.
* Note: Submissions have been lightly edited.
Chris Burdick
I grew up in Palo Alto and was a Junior Indian Rooter, in section AA. This was probably 1955-59 or so. Then I got to be an unpaid usher. The student rooting section was divided by gender and the girls wore red skirts and white blouses and a red feather in their hair
These were all day games starting at 1 PM and the team would walk from Encina Gym to the stadium through a phalanx of drunk frat guys and us faithful 12 year olds looking for an autograph or just a smile. By the 4th quarter, the sun was in the eyes of the guys at the south end, so the choice of direction was key. And Stanford in October, in the late Fall sun and the breeze, the warmth and then the chill, was magical. No stupid 8 PM TV kickoffs, no extended time outs, just football.
So 8 years later, I was a sophomore at Stanford and not much had changed, still gender segregated rooting sections, still drunk frat guys with their shirts off in the golden Fall sun (including me), still the Indians, still rotten teams (“It’s Lewis on a keeper, he’s hit, he fumbles, it’s USC ball on the Stanford 20 …”).
Steve Smith
January 9, 1971, Mac Court, Eugene: Cal v Oregon basketball. This was the first game in which the scoreboard and backboards shook from crowd noise. Before the next game, earthquake inspectors were brought in to make sure the “Pit” was fit for occupancy. BTW, the Ducks won 100-81, rare century mark in non-shot clock era. 4th level was also shaking pretty good.
Jeff Duncan
Each school has an iconic moment. Few are better than Bledsoe to Bobo during the Apple Cup/Snow Bowl of 1992 in Pullman. The win put WSU in the Copper Bowl vs Utah. #GoCougs
R Sloss
My addiction to men’s college basketball began at the Cal-UCLA game in Harmon Gym in 1964. Harmon Gym held 5,600 people then. In the last row, you could touch the ceiling and in the first row you could put your feet on the court. Cal was not good enough to lose half of its games in 1964, but it did. UCLA was undefeated and would go on to win its first NCAA Championship, led by Walt Hazzard and Gail Goodrich. The Pete Newell era ended in 1960. Rene Herrerias, a Newell assistant, was Cal’s head coach (who returned to his alma mater, Hayward High School, after Cal.) The 1964 Cal team had a seven-foot center, Camden Wall, a starter with a sweeping hook shot who kept opponent scoring under 70 points. Compared to the halcyon days of 1959 and 1960, when Cal played in back-to-back NCAA Championship games, Cal basketball was a disappointment, but Harmon Gym was always full. If the game was close, the crowd yelled and stamped on the wooden floor until either the visiting team turned the ball over or the referee called a time out and threatened a Cal forfeiture. I left those games with a splitting headache and a big smile.
Cal lost that UCLA game by the halftime difference of two points. I sat in the fourth row just above the key. Walt Hazzard dove for a bad pass and his head ended up next to me, in my roommate’s lap; he looked down at Hazzard and yelled, “Hazzard, you are the ugliest man I have ever seen.” We laughed hard, but Hazzard handled it with alacrity — unlike Jim Barnett from Oregon, who flipped us off every time he turned his back to the rooting section.
You might guess my favorite memory was the 1993 second round NCAA March Madness game in Chicago, where No. 6 seeded Cal with Jason Kidd, Lamond Murray, Alfred Grigsby and now Stanford head coach Jarrod Haase upset No. 3 Duke with Bobby Hurley (career high 32 points) and Grant Hill by 82-77. Cal advanced to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time in 33 years and the last time in 23 years. It was incredibly exciting, but it is my second favorite memory because I watched from a Salt Lake City sports bar.
I have been to great games like the Tyus Edney buzzer beater against Missouri saving the UCLA’s (1995) National championship; the 2002 Oregon (Luke Ridnour) wins over Wake Forest and Texas in Sacramento on their way to the Elite Eight; and Shaquille O’Neill‘s 1992 triple double against Wake Forest in the NCAAs. But the no-name 1964 Cal team almost upsetting undefeated rival UCLA in Harmon Gym 56 years ago, is my sharpest sports memory.
Dave Bloomer
The 2001 Rose Bowl. Why?– Attended my first Rose Bowl– Took my daughter, a big Husky fan, too– Attended the New Year’s Eve Alumni Association Husky Bash in Anaheim– Game day, parked on the adjacent golf course, next to a roped-off green (isn’t that a sacrilege for golfing purists?)– Attended the pregame Alumni Gala (Husky Band, Cheerleaders, burgers, balloons, and hoopla)– At the national anthem conclusion, saw four Navy F-18 Hornets fly over the field, followed by a fifth that came in really low and, at the 50-yard line, hit the after-burners and went ballistic; the noise was thunderous and shook the stands; fans were stunned; one guy nearby said, “What was that?”; a neighbor responded, “That was the sound of freedom.”– What a game! Saw two great QB’s play their final college games – Marques Tuiasosopo and Drew Brees– At the on-field Husky victory celebration (Huskies 34 – Boilermakers 24), I saw coach Rick Neuheisel, holding the Rose Bowl Trophy and Red Roses, pay special tribute to wheelchair-bound safety Curtis Williams, who attended way up in the press box – “This one’s for you, baby!”
John Nelson
I have been a season ticket holder since 2001, after being a student from 1995-2000. I have seen some descent to great Oregon teams, but the game against USC in 2009 was the jumping-off point from good to great under Chip Kelly. It was Halloween night, which made Autzen that much more animated with Oregon ranked #10 and USC #5. There is nothing more fun to be in a stadium as the underdog and then not just hold your own, but overwhelm your opponent. The plays that stick out are LaMichael James’ runs in the second quarter, which showed Oregon’s speed held the kryptonite to USC’s strength over the past decade. This is when Oregon showed what they were about to become for the next 5 years.
Andy Riches
THE BEST APPLE CUP NOBODY EVER MENTIONS
In 1968 at Joe Albi Stadium, WSU, then a running team, started a little used senior quarterback named Hank Grenada. Granada was a pocket passer and not much of a runner.
By relying on a passing attack the Cougs won 24-0, with Granada involved in all of the scores. He threw for two touchdowns, ran for another, kicked the extra points, and a field goal.
My favorite memory from my time in Pullman.
Sam Boot
In the 2016 Rose Bowl, my alma mater, Stanford played Iowa with Kevin Hogan (Stanford’s winningest quarterback) and Christian McCaffrey. On the very first play of the game Christian circled out of the backfield, took a pass out in the right flat and raced past the Iowa defense to the end zone. Stanford fans were ecstatic and the Iowa people were stunned silent. The final score — Stanford 45 and Iowa 16. A great day for Stanford fans and the Pac 12.
Tony Williams
My favorite Pac-12 football story happened on Nov. 21, 1998. OSU 44, Oregon 41 in 5 OT’s.
I am a very proud Beaver – 1987 alum in Technical Journalism. I was the sports editor of the campus daily for several quarters, The Daily Barometer. I was a football season ticket holder for 20+ years (even while we lived in D.C.) and only gave those up recently because we just can’t make it to the games – our boys have busy lives and the scheduling of games these days just makes it hard for fans like us to attend. I am on the OSU Foundation board and have been for over a decade and support the university and the athletic department financially. So, I am all in. But that isn’t the story.
My first son, Joshua, was born on Sept. 16, 1998. He was born with a very serious heart condition – no pulmonary valve and other problems. And he was born with special needs -i.e. autism and other disabilities. My wife and I learned all of this during her first ultrasound and then spent several months preparing for his birth and then open-heart surgery. His open-heart surgery was done at Boston Children’s Hospital (we lived in D.C.) in early November 1998 and he had a long, hard, complicated surgery and recovery.
During his recovery, my wife gave me a reprieve for a few hours on Saturday night, Nov. 21st, so that I could meet up with an old friend and watch the Civil War from the famous Cask and Flagon bar next to Fenway Park. Lots of games were on TV that day, but you can be sure we were the only ones in that bar that asked for the OSU-Oregon game. The bartender sort of reluctantly set us up in a corner and turned on the game for us – this was 1998 so it wasn’t easy to get the game on TV as it is today – and we were able to watch the whole thing on this small TV in the corner of the bar. During the game, some people sauntered by and saw the OSU on the scoreboard, and asked “who is Ohio State playing today?”
And what a game – ending with Ken Simonton’s 17-yard dash for a game winning TD.
I was so happy and that win was such a great stress relief for me after many weeks and months of hard times with our son. I said goodbye to my buddy after the game and literally ran all the way back to the hospital hooting and hollering. I stopped a few times and called Beaver friends of mine who also knew what was going on with Josh and we celebrated and I cried with them. I’ll never forget that night and that game, and how nice it was to have a moment of fun and lightness and distraction during what was a great period of crisis for my wife and me.
My son, Josh, is now 21 and in a great program for the kids with special needs at the University of Iowa.
I am writing about my life with him this year on medium. If you’re interested you can find me medium – I have written three stories this year. They are called Journeys with Josh.
To submit your favorite Pac-12 memory …
• Craft an email that’s either a few sentences or a few paragraphs long. (Consider how much you would want to read from someone else and use that as a guide.)
• Make sure to include 1) enough detail to inform readers unfamiliar with the event, person or circumstance and 2) why it means so much to you. If you have a picture, send it along, although I can’t guarantee it will be used.
• Send the email to pac12hotline@bayareanewsgroup.com with this subject: Pac-12 memory
• Include at the beginning or end of the email the following sentence: “The Pac-12 Hotline has my permission to publish.” (This is essential.)
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