What a bittersweet day in Philadelphia sports. The Phillies officially became sellers at the trade deadline, sending Hunter Pence to San Francisco and Shane Victorino to the Dodgers. It's a shame, because Victorino was one of the few players remaining from that 2008 World Series team, and he made his mark with two of the top 20 moments on this list. Which two are they? Read on to find out.
#20. Shane Victorino slams C.C. Sabathia-October 2, 2008
Before the NLCS or the World Series in 2008, the Phillies had to get past the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLDS. Milwaukee was a bit of a surprise team in the 2008 season, but they had a potent offense, led by a younger Prince Fielder and pre-MVP Ryan Braun. They also established themselves as buyers at the end of July, picking up C.C. Sabathia from the Cleveland Indians. Sabathia dominated the National League, going 11-2 with a 1.89 ERA in just two months in Milwaukee. The Brewers needed Sabathia down the stretch to even make the playoffs, but had him ready for Game 2 against the Phillies in Philadelphia.
Brett Myers, who spent part of the season in the minor leagues to get his command back, started for the Phillies and ran into trouble in the first inning. The Brewers loaded the bases and scored a run on a bases loaded walk, but Myers got Corey Hart to ground into an inning ending double play that ended the threat. Sabathia set the Phillies down in the bottom of the inning, and Myers worked a quick top of the second before the bottom of the inning, and the next moment on this list, came to pass. After a Pat Burrell fly out to start the inning, Jayson Werth doubled and came around to score on a Pedro Feliz double. Carlos Ruiz, who was still not quite Chooch at that point, grounded out, and Brett Myers stepped to the plate with two outs.
I'm not going to lie; this at-bat could have been a moment itself on this list, but I've chosen to put the entire second inning of the game in as a single moment. Myers made Sabathia work more than any batter had up to that point in the game. He fouled off pitch after pitch in a nine pitch at-bat. Finally, Sabathia walked Myers, and he was clearly rattled. Jimmy Rollins walked on four pitches, and Shane Victorino came to the plate. Sabathia started to get his control back, and got ahead of Victorino in the count. With the count 1-2, Sabathia threw what he hoped would be the last pitch of a very long and trying inning.
Instead, Victorino turned on the pitch and sent it flying into the seats in left field. With one swing of a bat, all of C.C. Sabathia's aura, all the momentum that he had coming into the playoffs as the savior of the Brewers, it was all gone. The Phillies took a 5-1 lead and never looked back in Game 2. Milwaukee would score once more in the seventh inning, but Brad Lidge came in and worked a scoreless ninth inning to finish off a 5-2 Phillies win.
The best part of this moment wasn't the actual grand slam. No, the best part was the crowd. There are a few rare times that you can tell that a crowd got to and broke a pitcher in a big game, and this was one of those times. After the walk to Brett Myers, Sabathia was broken by the Philadelphia crowd. It was just a matter of whether or not the Phillies could step up and finish him off, and Victorino did. Sabathia didn't make it out of the fourth inning, and didn't pitch again in the series against the Phils. The Phillies went on to win the NLDS in four games, and things could have been a lot different if Victorino didn't hit that grand slam. He may have just been traded, but man, I'll never, ever forget this moment.
#19. Allen Iverson scores 60 points against the Magic-February 12, 2005
Allen Iverson might have the most moments out of any individual athlete on this list, but very few people have made an impact on Philadelphia sports in the past 28 years like Iverson. While he pushed the Sixers to an NBA Finals appearance and an MVP award four and a half years prior, his greatest single game performance happened in the middle of his last full season with the Sixers in a midseason game against the Orlando Magic.
In NBA history, only 20 different players have scored 60 or more points in a single game. Wilt Chamberlain leads the pack with 32(!!!) games of 60 or more points, and before February 12, 2005, he was the only member of the Sixers to ever get to the 60 point mark. Allen Iverson had come close with a few 50 point showings, but he had never reached the 60 point plateau. Against the Magic, he got off to a fast start, scoring 17 points in the first quarter and 12 in the second for 29 points at the half. For a player that averaged over 30 points a game during the regular season, it wasn't an odd performance, but it had the crowd buzzing almost as much as the 18 point lead the Sixers had over the Magic at the half.
Another 11 points by Iverson in the third quarter put him at 40 for the game. The Sixers had their lead cut to 14 points heading into the fourth quarter, but Iverson wasn't done, not by a long shot. In the fourth quarter, Iverson saved his best for last. He scored 20 of the team's 27 points in the quarter, with his last four coming at the free throw line. The Wachovia Center crowd was cheering like it was a playoff game with Iverson at the line, and when he hit the foul shot that gave him 60 points, you would have thought that the Sixers had won the NBA championship.
The Sixers went on to win the game by a 112-90 score. Iverson finished with his 60 points, including 24 free throws made out of 27 attempts. He also found a way to squeeze in four rebounds and six assists, but that's not what this game was about. This game was about Allen Iverson reaching a level that only 21 other players in NBA history have ever reached. Sixty points in a single game is like a no-hitter in baseball, or a shutout streak in football or hockey. You know it can be done, but it's rare enough that you think you'll never get to see it happen, and even if you do, your team won't be on the right side of it. Well, for Philadelphia 76ers fans on that night, they got a chance to see history. Iverson still has one more moment coming on this list. If you don't know what it is, you'll remember when you see it.
#18. Jeremy Roenick finishes the Maple Leafs in OT-May 4, 2004
I already said it going through this list, but the 2003-04 Flyers are one of my favorite teams in any Philadelphia sport. I loved watching them play, but man, did they break my heart when they lost to Tampa Bay in the Eastern Conference Finals. That doesn't mean that I didn't have fun watching them get there, and their semi-final matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs may have been one of the best series that I've ever had a rooting interest in.
After taking out the New Jersey Devils in five games, the Flyers were set to face a very tough Toronto team. The Maple Leafs had survived a physical seven game series against their Canadian rivals the Ottawa Senators, and the rust showed at first as the Flyers took the first two games in Philadelphia. When the series shifted back to Toronto for the next two games, the Maple Leafs stole the momentum, and the series was tied at 2-2. Philadelphia jumped all over Ed Belfour in Game 5 as Keith Primeau scored a hat trick in a 7-2 win that put all the pressure on the Maple Leafs heading back to Toronto for Game 6.
The Flyers carried their Game 5 momentum through the first period of Game 6. Radovan Somik (don't ask, I haven't head of him either), and Jeremy Roenick each scored in the first period to put the Flyers up 2-0. Neither team could score in the second period, but Toronto came back with two third period goals, the second by Mats Sundin to tie the game with just five minutes to play. The game would go to overtime with the Maple Leafs now firmly in control and their crowd as loud as they had been the entire series.
The overtime period saw the Flyers slowly take control, but they were still unable to get a puck past Ed Belfour and end the series. With about 12 minutes to play in the overtime period, Darcy Tucker unleashed a punishing hit on Sami Kapanen that just about everyone that has ever watched a hockey highlight reel has seen. What most of those people haven't seen though is when Jeremy Roenick jumped onto the ice to replace Kapanen. Roenick was ahead of the Maple Leaf defense and got a nice pass from Joni Pitkanen and led a two on one break the other way. With Tony Amonte on the other side, Roenick fired a shot that went past Ed Belfour and into the top corner of the net, ending the series and sending the Flyers to the Eastern Conference Finals.
While the moment doesn't seem as important to some as others, I've always held it in high regard. The Flyers and Maple Leafs had one of the most physically demanding series that I can remember, and you knew that it was going to end in dramatic fashion. The hit by Tucker, followed by the defensive stop by the Flyers and great shot by Roenick just make it that much better. There are other goals that other people might like more, but this one is special to me.
#17. Dr. J says goodbye-May 3, 1987
For all intensive purposes, the Philadelphia 76ers have been divided into three eras that I can think of. For the older generation, there was the Wilt Chamberlain era. My generation has had the Allen Iverson era, and for the generation in between, there was the Dr. J era. You can say what you want about Charles Barkley, but those three players were the Philadelphia 76ers, and while Chamberlain and Iverson had their fans, there were few players in NBA history that seemed more loved than Julius Erving.
After helping the Sixers win the NBA title in 1983, Erving was starting to slow down. All of his high flying moves and physical play had taken their toll on his body, and by the time the 1986-87 season came around, Dr. J had announced that it would be his last in the NBA. Teams throughout the league celebrated his career, and every game that the Sixers had that season was a sellout, whether it was on the road or at home at the Spectrum. Everyone wanted to see the Doctor one more time before he went off into the sunset. The Sixers ended up making the playoffs that season as the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference and squared off against the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round. The two teams engaged in a back and forth, entertaining series that came down to a deciding Game 5.
Milwaukee had the luxury of playing at home, and the home atmosphere did them well as they jumped out to a seven point lead after one quarter of play. The Sixers tried to chip away at the lead, but the Bucks continued to hold their ground, and with just three minutes left to play in the fourth quarter, Milwaukee had a 96-78 lead, and it was clear that these were the last three minutes in Dr. J's amazing NBA career. One by one, head coach Matt Guokas took his starters out of the game, saving Dr. J for last. With 40 seconds left to play, Julius Erving was taken out of the game to a standing ovation from the Milwaukee crowd. Remember, this was an away game for the Sixers, but Erving was being cheered like a hometown favorite. The emotion in his face was clear, and he knew just as well as anyone else did that his career was over.
The Bucks held on to beat the Sixers by a 102-89 score, but the bigger story was the end of Dr. J's career. When he was taken out of the game, the CBS announcers actually stayed focused on him, even with the action on the court still taking place. That's what kind of impact he had on the game of basketball. For all the things that people say about Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and others like them, they wouldn't have been able to do nearly as much without Dr. J doing it first. He set the bar for what athletic play could be, and he did it while in the Sixers uniform. The respect he had from everyone around the league was amazing, and for an opposing team's fans to give a player a standing ovation, at the end of a playoff game...that is something special.
#16. The Scramble-November 15, 2004
It's no secret that the 2004 Eagles were the best Eagles team this decade. After dropping three straight NFC Championship games, Andy Reid went out and added the wide receiver everyone knew the team needed in Terrell Owens. Through the first seven games of the season, things were great, as the Eagles ripped through everyone they played, only scoring less than 27 points twice on their way to a 7-0 start. Then, cracks started to show in a terrible loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Eagles were dominated in every facet of the game, and Owens and Donovan McNabb seemed to have words on the sideline at one point.
Following that loss, the Eagles had to travel to Dallas, where the Cowboys were sitting with a 3-5 record, but every Eagles fan knew that they would like nothing more than to knock off the birds on Monday Night Football with the entire country watching. With new drama between McNabb and Owens, a lot of people were nervous about what might happen if this game went the same way that the Pittsburgh game went the week before. A loss to Dallas might splinter the bond between quarterback and wide receiver and send the season into a free fall.
Luckily, things didn't take long to start going the Eagles' way. The first time Terrell Owens caught a pass, it was a 59 yard touchdown bomb from McNabb to put the Eagles up 7-0. From there, the Eagles started to pound the Cowboys, going up 28-7 in the second quarter before Dallas scored again to cut the lead to 28-14. With just over three minutes to play in the first half, and the Cowboys getting the ball to start the second half, the Eagles wanted to score again to prevent any idea of a comeback from gaining momentum. Two quick McNabb incomplete passes didn't help matters, but then on third and ten, McNabb dropped back to pass again. Lineman Leonardo Carson was able to break through the offensive line, forcing him to scramble.
With Carson chasing him, McNabb broke to the right, then turned around and cut back across the field. The offensive line managed to keep the Cowboy defenders from getting to McNabb, and that gave him enough time to run all the way to the left side of the field, where he launched a perfect pass, on the run, about 55 yards downfield. Waiting for it was Freddie Mitchell, who made the catch and then gained another five yards before being brought down at the Dallas 15 yard line. From the time the ball was snapped to the time McNabb threw the pass, 14.1 seconds had gone off the clock. It honestly looked like something out of a video game by the time the play was over.
Even though most of the focus on the play landed on Donovan McNabb, a lot has to be said for the play of the offensive line and the wide receivers as well. Normally, on a play like that, at least one offensive lineman will be illegally downfield, negating the play. This time, all five guys stayed at home and continued to block for McNabb, giving him enough time to scramble all over the field and make the pass. I can't believe I'm doing this, but I'm giving credit to Freddie Mitchell as well. Wide receivers have a tendency to stop running their routes once a quarterback is under that much pressure, but Mitchell kept going and allowed McNabb to find him downfield for a huge gain. Without those two pieces coming together, it wouldn't have mattered how long McNabb scrambled for, the play wouldn't have happened.
Of course, the drive wasn't over yet. Brian Westbrook would score from a yard out with 32 seconds to play in the half, putting the Eagles up 35-14. Philadelphia would add two more touchdowns in the second half and go on to a 49-21 romping of the Cowboys. McNabb finished the game completing 15 of 27 passes for 345 yards and four touchdowns, and the Eagles finished the 2004-05 season with a 13-3 record and a trip to the Super Bowl. A lot of fans only seem to remember the bad moments with McNabb, but this showed what kind of quarterback he was, and how good he could really be.
#15. Curt Schilling pitches a World Series shutout-October 21, 1993
The 1993 Phillies have had their share of moments on this list as well, but I've saved their best moment for last. The 1993 World Series was one that ended in probably the most heartbreaking fashion ever for Philadelphia fans, but the road there was one that I would go down over and over again, even if I knew the end result.
After stealing Game 2 in Toronto from the Blue Jays, the Phillies found themselves on the losing side of back to back games, including the highest scoring game in World Series history in Game 4. Their dream season was about to come to a harsh end, but they still had one final punch left in them. Team ace Curt Schilling was set to pitch Game 5, the last game of the season at Veterans Stadium win, lose or draw, and he knew that he didn't want the season to end on his watch.
The Phillies scored a run in the first inning and a run in the second inning off of Juan Guzman, and that would be the only runs that Schilling needed. For the rest of the night, Schilling looked every bit like the top ace in baseball, setting down the Blue Jays without a run every single time they came to the plate. Toronto had one of the best overall lineups in baseball during the 1993 season, and their 847 runs scored were second most in the American League during the regular season. It didn't matter against Curt Schilling in Game 5.
Schilling didn't have his best strikeout stuff that night, but he did everything else perfectly. The Blue Jays managed just five hits and three walks off of Schilling, who pitched a complete game shutout to keep the hopes of a Philadelphia championship alive. Schilling struck out six and threw 147 pitches to get through the game, and he gave it every last bit of effort that he had. We all know how the 1993 World Series ended, but I'm not focusing on that right now. What I'm looking back on is the dominance that was Curt Schilling in Game 5, and how one pitcher managed to shut down one of the best lineups in baseball and keep the hopes of a city alive.
That 1993 team sure was fun, wasn't it?
#14. Ron Hextall loses the Stanley Cup, but wins the Conn Smythe-May 31, 1987
Coming into the 1987 Stanley Cup FInals, there had only been three players from losing teams to ever win the Conn Smythe trophy for MVP through the playoffs. I've been through some of the other moments from the 1987 playoffs that involved the Flyers, so I'm not going to go into their entire story here. What I will touch on is how good Ron Hextall was during that Stanley Cup Final.
After the tragedy involving Pelle Lindbergh, the Flyers were looking for a goalie to fill the void, and Ron Hextall did just that. In his rookie season of 1986-87, Hextall won the Vezina Trophy as the top goalie in the NHL and the Flyers made it back to the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time in three seasons. The Edmonton Oilers were waiting again, but this time, thanks to Hextall, the Flyers were able to push the series to a seventh and deciding game.
Game 7 didn't go the way of the Flyers, but no one blamed Hextall for any of it. In fact, going into Game 7, Wayne Gretzky, arguably the greatest hockey player of all time, called Hextall the "best goalie I've ever played against in the NHL." That was high praise from the hands down best player in the NHL during the 1986-87 season. The Oilers were the highest scoring team during the regular season, but never scored more than four goals in any game of the Stanley Cup Finals. That doesn't seem like much now, but you have to remember how much more open and fast paced hockey was back then in the 1980s. Think about the series between the Flyers and Penguins this past season. That's how every series in the playoffs used to be.
Even with the loss in Game 7, Ron Hextall was named MVP of the playoffs and won the Conn Smythe Award in recognition. This was a Stanley Cup Finals that featured some of the best players of the decade, and a rookie goalie from the Flyers ended up being the most valuable player out of all of them. Hextall became only the fourth player from a losing team to be named playoff MVP, and it was well deserved. Hextall finally did get his Stanley Cup, but it came this season as a front office member of the Los Angeles Kings. Still, I rooted for him to get a ring, not just because he played for the Flyers, but because he always gave it his all when he wore the orange and black, and the 1987 Stanley Cup Finals were the best example of that.
#13. Mike Schmidt's 500th home run-April 18, 1987
If you're reading this list, then there's no need to talk about Mike Schmidt's career. You already know how good he is. He was the best position player in Phillies history and the only Philadelphia player to reach the amazing 500 home run mark for his career. Eight times in his career, Schmidt led the National League in home runs, and by the time the 1987 season came around, he was just five home runs away from his 500th home run.
Two weeks into the 1987 season, and the Phillies were struggling, and that's being nice. Coming into their game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 18, the Phillies were 2-8 and looked like they were heading for another season under the .500 mark. Clearly the glory days of the early 80s were gone, but there was still the matter of Schmidt's 500th home run. Schmidt had started the season very well, and was 2-3 going into the ninth inning of the day's game, but the Phillies were trailing Pittsburgh by a score of 6-5 with two on and two outs when Schmidt came to the plate again.
Facing pitcher Don Robinson, Schmidt took three straight balls before getting a green light to swing. When he did, the ball took off into the left field stands for a three run home run. Not only did the Phillies take the lead, 8-6, but Mike Schmidt had hit his 500th home run. Back before the steroid era took over baseball, that mark meant more than almost anything, and Schmidt had gotten there. The Phillies held on to win by that same 8-6 score, but that wasn't the story.
Very few players in baseball stay with one team their entire career, which makes it almost impossible for a player to hit 500 home runs with one team. Even Babe Ruth played for more than one team during his career. Mike Schmidt didn't. He played his entire career for the Philadelphia Phillies, and when he started to slow down in the 1989 season, he retired and walked away from the game he loved. The Phillies have never found that third baseman like Schmidt again, and they might not ever find him. Just like Dr. J did with the Sixers, Schmidt defined an era for the Phillies. When you watched the Phillies play, you watched Mike Schmidt bat.
If you've never seen or heard Schmidt's 500th home run, you need to find it. It's another excuse to listen to a great Harry Kalas call, and it's a piece of Phillies history that everyone should already know about. The Phils didn't have many great moments between 1983 and the late 2000s, save for the 1993 season, but this one takes them all.
#12. Matt Stairs hits a moonshot-October 13, 2008
On August 30, 2008 then general manager Pat Gillick made a move that was considered a late waiver wire deal, at best. He acquired 40 year old Matt Stairs from the Toronto Blue Jays for a player to be named later. Stairs had been in the major leagues since 1992, and the Phillies were his 11th team, so he was used to moving around, but the Phillies brought him in for one reason and one reason only: to hit home runs off the bench. The Phils needed a power bat to come off the bench, and Stairs was that. He hit two home runs in 16 games with the Phillies, and because he was picked up before September 1, he was allowed to join the Phils in the playoffs.
After cruising through the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLDS, the Phillies were set to take on the Los Angeles Dodgers, who had swept the Chicago Cubs in their first round series. The Dodgers had only won 84 games during the regular season, but a trade deadline deal for Manny Ramirez had turned their season around. With Manny leading the way, the Dodgers cruised through the NL West. Manny hit .389 with 17 home runs in just 53 games with the Dodgers, and was the main reason why some people had favored Los Angeles over the Phillies in the NLCS.
The Phillies quickly showed that they were not afraid of the Manny mojo, winning Games 1 and 2 in Philadelphia. However, when the series moved back to Los Angeles, the Dodgers turned things around, pounding Jamie Moyer for a 7-2 win in Game 3 that involved a benches clearing incident. As Game 4 approached, Phillies fans had a feeling that the series, and the season, would rest on how this game played itself out.
Things started out well, as Chase Utley and Ryan Howard drove in first inning runs off of Derek Lowe, but the Dodgers would chip away at Joe Blanton. Los Angeles took a run back in the first inning on a James Loney double, then took the lead in the fifth inning with a Manny Ramirez single and a Russel Martin RBI groundout. Even when the Phils tied the game in the top of the sixth inning, the Dodgers build a two run lead up in the bottom of the inning, thanks to a home run by Casey Blake and a Ryan Howard throwing error. Suddenly, the Dodgers had the momentum, and the Phillies were running out of outs. It looked certain that the series would be tied, and even with Cole Hamels pitching Game 5, things were looking bleak for the Phillies.
Things didn't get any better in the seventh inning, as Hong-Chih Kuo retired the side in order. Then came the top of the eighth inning. Ryan Howard started things off with a single, and Kuo was replaced by rookie Cory Wade. After getting Pat Burrell to pop out, Shane Victorino, whose reaction to being thrown at sparked the dugout clearing incident in Game 3, took the first pitch he saw from Wade over the right field fence. The game was tied at five, but there was still work to be done.
Wade bounced back, getting Pedro Feliz to line out to left, before Carlos Ruiz singled. Los Angeles manager Joe Torre had seen enough, and called for big Jonathan Broxton. The young righthander struck out 88 batters in just under 70 innings in 2008, and the Phillies responded by sending Matt Stairs out to face the hard throwing Broxton. Stairs was up there to do one of two things: either strike out and end the inning, or launch a pitch into the California night that would give the Phillies the lead.
After Broxton ran a 3-1 count on Stairs, everyone had their answer.
Broxton hung a belt high fastball right over the plate, and Matt Stairs didn't miss. From the moment the ball hit the bat, everyone watching the game knew that ball wasn't coming down until it landed well into the stands in right field, and that's exactly what happened. A sea of blue coated Dodger fans began shuffling collectively to the exits as the Phillies had taken a 7-5 lead. All the momentum, everything that the Dodgers had gained throughout Game 3 and most of Game 4, had just shifted back to the Phillies side of the diamond. J.C. Romero and Brad Lidge worked scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth, and the Phillies had taken a 3-1 lead in the series.
The best part of this home run was the crushing reality it brought to anyone that wasn't a Phillies fan. The Phillies were going to the World Series. I knew it, and anyone that actually knew baseball knew how the series was going to end. Cole Hamels shut the door in Game 5, and any hopes of a Joe Torre/Manny Ramirez vs. Boston World Series went up in smoke. I could see Matt Stairs walking down the street today and I'd offer to buy him a beer. Without his, and Shane Victorino's game tying home run, who knows how that series would have ended? More importantly, who cares? The Phillies won and beat Jonathan Broxton for the first time in the NLCS, and it was amazing to watch.
#11. Lito Sheppard welcomes Terrell Owens back to Philadelphia-October 8, 2006
To say that the time Terrell Owens was in Philadelphia was interesting would be an understatement. His first year was a picture of perfection, as Owens scored 14 touchdowns and went for 1,300 receiving yards. After the Eagles lost in Super Bowl XXXIX to the Patriots, things started to go downhill. Owens signed Drew Rosenhaus as his agent, and began demanding a new contract, despite the fact that he was just about to start the second year of a seven year deal that he had signed when he was traded to the Eagles. From there, things began to roll downhill quickly. He called out Donovan McNabb, was sent home from training camp, did sit-ups in his driveway, called the Eagles "classless" for not acknowledging his 100th touchdown catch, fought Hugh Douglas in the locker room and was then suspended for four games and deactivated for the rest of the season. The Eagles released Owens on March 14, 2006 and he wasted little time signing with a new team.
Four days later, Terrell Owens signed with the Dallas Cowboys. He started out the 2006 season with eight catches and a touchdown against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but then injured his finger against the Washington Redskins and allegedly overdosed on medication not long after. He vowed to be ready for the game against the Philadelphia Eagles, and as Week 5 of the NFL season arrived, he was once again at Lincoln Financial Field, only this time, he was a member of the Dallas Cowboys. It was one of the most hyped early games in NFL history, and for the most part, the game lived up to the hype.
The Eagles struck first, building a 10-0 lead thanks to two turnovers by Dallas quarterback Drew Bledsoe. The Cowboys came back with the next 14 points on a Marion Barber touchdown run and a fumble recovery for a touchdown by DeMarcus Ware. Donovan McNabb struck back with a 60 yard pass to L.J. Smith that put the ball on the Dallas one yard line, and then scored on a quarterback keeper to once again put the Eagles on top. The Cowboys answered back with a long touchdown drive that was capped off by a seven yard run from Drew Bledsoe, of all people, and they took a 21-17 halftime lead.
The Eagles would take the lead back midway through the third quarter, thanks to an 87 yard touchdown bomb from Donovan McNabb to then rookie wide receiver Hank Baskett. Dallas would tie the game early in the fourth quarter on a Mike Vanderjagt field goal, but McNabb would answer once again. This time, he connected with Reggie Brown on a 40 yard flea flicker to put Philadelphia up 31-24. The Cowboys would get into Philadelphia territory on their next drive, but Lito Sheppard intercepted a Drew Bledsoe pass that was intended for Terrell Owens at the Philadelphia seven yard line. However, the Eagles could not put the game away, and with four and a half minutes to play, they punted the ball back to the Cowboys, who had to go 84 yards to tie the game.
They almost got there, but it wasn't without some help. Dallas moved the ball to their own 45 yard line, but back to back sacks by the Eagles pushed them back to their 27. A ten yard pass from Drew Bledsoe to Marion Barber put the Cowboys in a fourth and 18 hole, and Bledsoe launched a deep pass to Terry Glenn that ended up falling incomplete. However, pass interference was called on safety Michael Lewis, putting the ball at the Philadelphia six yard line with just 35 seconds to play. It looked like a tie game was inevitable, and just about everyone in the stadium knew who Bledsoe would be looking at to score the game tying touchdown.
The first pass attempt to Terrell Owens was incomplete. On second down, Bledsoe instead attempted a pass to tight end Jason Witten. For the second time in the fourth quarter, Lito Sheppard stepped in front of the pass, and this time, he took it to the house. His 102 yard interception return sealed the game for the Eagles and sent Terrell Owens into a tirade afterwords. He reportedly stormed into the Dallas locker room after the game and asked why the Cowboys even bothered signing him. Of course, his three catch, 45 yard performance during the game might have had something to do with that as well. Donovan McNabb finished the game with 354 passing yards and two touchdowns, as well as a rushing touchdown. The Eagles intercepted Drew Bledsoe three times and sacked him seven times. Two weeks later, Bledsoe was benched at halftime of a game against the New York Giants and a kid named Tony Romo took his place.
I loved watching Terrell Owens during the 2004 season in Philadelphia, but his attitude after that soured me on having him with the Eagles. All the talent in the world can't fix a big mouth, and that's what Owens has. Shutting him up in his first game back against the Eagles is going to be one of my favorite sports memories of all time, and nothing is going to change that.
That wraps up the second to last portion of the Top 100 Philadelphia Sports Moments of the Past 28 Years. There's only the Top 10 left, and while you all know what's in there and what number 1 is, you still have to see what the other nine are. There's playoff history, an improbable play made by the unlikeliest of players, two Roy Halladay moments, the day every Eagles fan was waiting for, and of course, the longest game in World Series history. Ten moments left, be sure to read them.
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