OVER TIME WITH:
SPORTS AND REDEMPTION

As this collection of bootstrappers shows, Eli and the Giants are hardly the first jocks to go from outhouse to penthouse.

1925 — MINER MIRACLE
Invited to join the NFL mostly to pad the records of existing teams, the Pottsville (Pa.) Maroons,a motley crew of coal miners and ex-college players, shock the world by downing the Chicago Cardinals in the title game. The win helps put pro football, if not Pottsville, on the map.

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Jimmy Braddock proves that it's never too late.

1929 — BROAD SHOULDERS
Bullied a sa kid, Charles Atlas hits a Brooklyn YMCA and creates the "dynamic tension" system that will make him an icon. Future bullies think twice before kicking sand in pasty pencilnecks' faces.

1935 — AFTER MIDNIGHT
Amateur champ James J. Braddock loses 16 of 22 bouts starting in 1929, shattering his right hand and landing on the dole. But a last-minute cancellation gets him one more shot, and two bouts later the Cinderella Man—a 10-1 underdog—beats Max Baer to become heavyweight champ. His evil stepmother still says he's a bum.

1938 — STORMY SEAS
Smally and knobby-kneed, a young Seabiscuit is the butt of stable jokes. He shows spark as a 3-year-old, but becomes a legend after winning 11 of 15 the next year, followed by a head-to-head win over War Admiral in 1938. It's the Match of the Century (but can't inspire a movie of the year).

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The '69 Mets silenced all critics.

1949 — CASEY AT THE HELM
In his first 10 seasons as a skipper, Casey Stengel never finished better than fifth. Joining the Yanks after a gig in the minors, he begins a still-unmatched run of five straight titles and makes the Bombers loveable. Almost.

1961 — BAY WATCH
After 11 straight losing years, Green Bay hires Vince Lombardi to save the franchise. Three years later the Pack win the NFL championship. They never suffer a sub-.500 season under Lombardi. Subzero temps? Another story.

1969 — ONE GIANT LEAP
The Mets didn't win more than 73 games in their first seven seasons and never finished higher than ninth in the 10-team NL. Which explains why, in the year when men first walk on the moon, the Amazins' Series win is considered the more miraculous achievement.

1971 — FOILED AGAIN
After 2,495 straight L's, the Washington Generals—playing as the New Jersey Reds—beat the Harlem Globetrotters on a halfcourt shot. They lose every game after that before disbanding in 1995. Admit it, though: 1–5,012 sounds way better than 0–5,013.

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Come on. No one can lose every game.

1992 — WHO'S THE BOSS?
Fay Vincent resigns after three seasons as MLB commish following a no-confidence vote by owners that paves the way for Bud Selig's reign. Vincent's strong views in the succeeding years have some calling him the conscience of baseball. You know, if baseball had one.

1994 — SHARP SKATE
After learning his sister has died of leukemia, speed-skating favorite Dan Jansen falls at the 1988 Olympics. A stumble foils him again in 1992. But in '94 he sets a world mark in the 1000m—and dedicates the gold to his sister.

1995 — SAFETY SCHOOL
While Northwestern sets D1 football's consecutive-loss record, its fans take to chanting "We're the worst!" Fourteen seasons later, a stirng of upsets earns the Wildcats their first Rose Bowl bid in 47 years. They lose to USC, and no chant can comfort them.

1999 — GREEN MACHINE
The best golfer without a major, Phil Mickelson sinks a 20-foot, final-hole birdie at the 2004 Masters to shake his choker's handle. Then he double-bogeys 18 on Sunday at the 2006 U.S. Open. Choker.

2008 — MIRACLE IN THE DESERT
After an 0–2 start and inconsistent season, the Giants overcome the odds, perfection and impending history to stake their claim to the title of Best (Playoff) Team Ever.

REDEMPTION DENIED

• 1908 — MERKLE'S BONER Rookie Fred Merkle fails to touch second in a key game, blowing the Giants' pennant hopes. A .273 average over 16 seasons doesn't erase the muff.
• 1951 — SHOT HEAR 'ROUND THE WORLD Ralph Branca becomes a TV quiz show wiz after tossing his famous gopher ball. It doesn't make nearly as much noise.
• 1970 — AGONY OF DEFEAT Vinko Bogataj is bakc on the slopes one day after falling in his first-ever ski jump comp. But the epic crash remains the highlight of his career.
• 1986 — OWN GOAL Oilers rookie D-man Steve Smith puts the puck in his own net in the deciding game of a playoff series. Few remember his three subsequent Cup wins.
• 1991 — WIDE RIGHT Scott Norwood comes back from his classic miss to nail big kicks in Buffalo's next Super Bowl run. Nobody cares.

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