USC vs. Notre Dame this past Saturday afternoon. One of the best games I've ever seen in any sport. It caused me to literally bolt up from my seat several times and start dancing and cheering around the living room by myself like a madman.

Great moment #1. First half, Reggie Bush leapfrogs over a helpless Notre Dame middle linebacker on his way to a glorious touchdown romp. At this point in the game, it looked like the Trojans would make short work of the Irish and I for one, was hardly surprised.

Great moment #2. Fast forward a few quarters and inexplicably, Notre Dame is still hanging around in the game. With under five minutes to play, Brady Quinn leads the Irish on a long drive culminating in a QB scramble for the end zone where he just reaches the goal line. Suddenly, the number one, undefeated for two years, national champion is staring defeat in the face.

Great moment #3. Under two minutes now, USC is facing 3rd and 20 and then 4th and 9 deep in their own end. Somehow, in the din of a raucous ND stadium, last year's Heisman winner Matt Leinert has the gall to call an audible when he reads the blitz coming and sends one of his WR streaking down the sideline. He then proceeds to lob a soft, feathery bomb over that results in a 60+ yard completion. Over at my house, one man pandemonium breaks out in the living room!

Great moment #4. With under fifteen seconds left and goal to go, Leinert takes the snap and then starts to take off for the end zone. Unfortunately, Matt is not one of the faster players on the team and as he ambles towards the left end zone corner, it's apparent that he's not going to make it. He dives... and he doesn' t make it. The clock ticks to zero. Students flood the field. USC is done. Long live the Irish. But then... the game's not over!

Great moment #5. Given a 7 second reprieve, Leinert lines up to apparently spike the ball and stop the clock. But somehow, he gets it in his big head that he's going to try another sneak! Reggie Bush sees the play coming and sees the massive ND linebackers heading towards his QB so he does the only thing possible, he gives Leinert a little nudge...200 pounds worth, and the Heisman winner falls backwards into the end zone, victory finally in his grasp. The Irish are done. Long live USC!

Whew! What a game. So what did we learn from this game that was decided with a fortuitous fumble? 1. ND is back to prominence. 2. South Bend is a great place for football. 3. USC is vulnerable. 4. Reggie Bush is awesome. 5. Matt Leinert is slow. 6. College football kicks ass.

This game made me think about the other great sporting moments I've witnessed in this lifetime. There aren't many, sad to say. The criteria are vague, but essentially, it needs to be an event of some significance that has enough intrigue to have made me jump out of my seat and still be memorable years later. Here's the short list.

1. Canada Cup 1987. Wayne Gretzky hits Mario Lemieux with a pass late in the 3rd period as Canada beats the USSR. We beat the USSR man!!!! We beat the Union of Soviet Socialized Republics or whatever! WOOHOO!!!

2. Duke vs. UNLV Final Four 1991. Larry Johnson passes on a three point look and then Anderson Hunt chucks up a 30 foot 3 that misses as the undefeated season is gone and Duke is on its way to the national championship.

3. Duke vs. Kentucky, Elite Eight 1992. Another doozy. Much has been said about Christian Laettner's jumper with 2.1 seconds left. I just remember throwing a rolled up wad of paper the length of the classroom to my buddy who would then do a turnaround jumper for MONTHS thereafter...

4. Toronto Blue Jays vs. Philadelphia Phillies, 1993. Joe Carter smacks a 3 run blast to win the world series for the home town Jays. Pandemonium erupts in the household living room again!

Sadly, there doesn't seem much else worth adding to the list since then. I'll have to think about it more, but I don't remember caring about many other sporting events... Oh yeah, 1 more.

5. Tour De France 2003. Stage 15. Lance Armstrong's having a bad tour. He's gone off the road, he's been sick, he's even ridden with a faulty brake. So today's the day he's gonna make his move and then BAM! his bike gets tangled with a spectator and he's down at the foot of the biggest climb of the day. It looks like the Tour's over and the dream of five peat is over. NOT! Lance drops the hammer and then crushes his competitors on the way back up the hill. Done.