History Of Sports Final Exam

UCLA Dynasty

John Wooden built a powerhouse at UCLA in the 1960s and 1970s, winning 10 NCAA titles in his last 12 seasons before he retired in 1975. From 1967-73, the "Wizard of Westwood" guided the Bruins to a record seven straight national championships. Starting in 1971 and ending in 1974, UCLA won 88 straight games, an NCAA record that hasn't come close to falling. Wooden's teams also compiled four 30-0 seasons and won 19 conference championships, including eight undefeated Pacific Conference seasons.

"Race Man"

A black man, especially one who strongly advocates the rights of black people; a supporter of Black Nationalism.

"Up Close and Personal"

Came from a segment on ABC Sports where they would show an Olympic athlete in their everyday surroundings or whilst training for the 1972 Olympic games in Munich. ABC sports and news broadcasting pioneer Roone Arledge came up with the concept and is sometimes credited with the term as well, but a 1984 article says ABC promotion executive Don Foley thought it up.

"Green Light" Letter

FDR said in response to the outbreak of WWII, "I honestly feel that it would be best for the country to keep baseball going." Roosevelt stated that baseball could be a source of relaxation for American workers, whose hard work and well-being would be essential to victory. He continued to explain that, "Baseball provides a recreation which does not last over two hours or two hours and a half, and which can be got for very little cost. And, incidentally, I hope that night games can be extended because it gives an opportunity to the day shift to see a game occasionally."

Frank Merriwell

He is a fictional character appearing in a series of novels and short stories by Gilbert Patten, who wrote under the pseudonym Burt L. Standish. The model for all later American juvenile sports fiction, he excelled at football, baseball, basketball, crew and track at Yale while solving mysteries and righting wrongs. He played with great strength and received traumatic blows without injury.

Jim Brown

He is a former professional American football player and actor. He was a fullback for the Cleveland Browns of the NFL from 1957-1965. Considered to be among the greatest football players of all time,Brown was a Pro Bowl invitee every season he was in the league, was recognized as the AP NFL Most Valuable Player three times, and won an NFL championship with the Browns in 1964. He led the league in rushing yards in eight out of his nine seasons, and by the time he retired, he had shattered most major rushing records. In 2002, he was named by The Sporting News as the greatest professional football player ever.

Larry Bird

He is an American professional basketball executive, former coach and former player, most recently serving as president of the Indiana Pacers in the NBA. Drafted into the NBA sixth overall by the Boston Celtics in 1978 out of Indiana State, Bird started at small forward and power forward for thirteen seasons. Bird was a 12-time NBA All-Star and was named the league's MVP three consecutive times (1984-1986). He played his entire professional career for Boston, winning three NBA championships and two NBA Finals MVP awards. He was a member of the 1992 United States men's Olympic basketball team ("The Dream Team").

Bill Walton

He is an American retired basketball player and television sportscaster. Walton became known playing for John Wooden's powerhouse UCLA Bruins in the early 1970s, winning three successive College Player of the Year Awards, while leading the Bruins to two Division I national titles. He then went on to have a prominent career in the NBA where he was a league MVP and won two NBA championships. His professional career was significantly hampered by multiple foot injuries. Walton was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on May 10, 1993.

Magic Johnson

He is an American retired professional basketball player and current president of basketball operations of the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA. He played point guard for the Lakers for 13 seasons. After winning championships in high school and at Michigan State, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA draft by the Lakers. He won a championship and an NBA Finals MVP Award in his rookie season, and won four more championships with the Lakers during the 1980s. Johnson retired abruptly in 1991 after announcing that he had contracted HIV, but returned to play in the 1992 All-Star Game, winning the All-Star MVP Award. After protests from his fellow players, he retired again for four years, but returned in 1996, at age 36, to play 32 games for the Lakers before retiring for the third and final time. Johnson's career achievements include three NBA MVP Awards, nine NBA Finals appearances, twelve All-Star games, and ten All-NBA First and Second Team nominations. He led the league in regular-season assists four times, and is the NBA's all-time leader in average assists per game, at 11.2. He was a member of the 1992 United States men's Olympic basketball team ("The Dream Team").

Lew Alcindor

He is an American retired professional basketball player who played 20 seasons in the NBA for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers. During his career as a center, Alcindor was a record six-time NBA MVP, a record 19-time NBA All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA selection, and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. A member of six NBA championship teams as a player and two as an assistant coach, he was voted twice as the NBA Finals MVP. In 1996, he was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. After winning 71 consecutive basketball games on his high school team in New York City, Alcindor was recruited by Jerry Norman, the assistant coach of UCLA, where he played for coach John Wooden on three consecutive national championship basketball teams and was a record three-time MVP of the NCAA Tournament. He changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar due to his Islamic faith becoming a big part of his life. He is the NBA's all-time leader in points and career wins.

Michael Jordan

He is an American retired professional basketball player. Jordan played 15 seasons in the NBA for the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards. His biography on the NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time." Jordan was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his generation and was considered instrumental in popularizing the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s. He is currently the principal owner and chairman of the Charlotte Hornets of the NBA. Jordan played three seasons for Coach Dean Smith at the University of North Carolina. As a freshman, he was a member of the Tar Heels' national championship team in 1982. Jordan joined the Bulls in 1984 as the third overall draft pick. He also gained a reputation for being one of the best defensive players in basketball. He is a 6-time NBA champion (1991-1993; 1996-1998). He collected 5 MVP Awards, ten All-NBA First Team designations, nine All-Defensive First Team honors, fourteen NBA All-Star Game appearances, three All-Star Game MVP Awards, ten scoring titles, three steals titles, six NBA Finals MVP Awards, and the 1988 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award. He is one of the most popular global athletes ever in history.

Bill Russell

He is an American retired professional basketball player. Russell played center for the Boston Celtics of the NBA from 1956-1969. A five-time NBA MVP and a twelve-time All-Star, he was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty, winning 11 NBA championships during his 13-year career. Russell ties the record for the most championships won by an athlete in a North American sports league (with Henri Richard of the National Hockey League). Before his professional career, Russell led the University of San Francisco to two consecutive NCAA championships in 1955 and 1956, and he captained the gold-medal winning U.S. national basketball team at the 1956 Summer Olympics.

Pete Rozelle

He was an American businessman and executive. Rozelle served as the commissioner of the National Football League for nearly thirty years, from January, 1960 until his retirement in November, 1989. He is credited with making the NFL into one of the most successful sports leagues in the world. One of Rozelle's early accomplishments was helping the league adopt profit-sharing of gate and television revenues. The revenue-sharing was a major factor in stabilizing the NFL and guaranteeing the success of its small-market teams. Another important contribution was Rozelle's success in negotiating large television contracts to broadcast every NFL game played each season. In doing so he deftly played one television network against the other.

Wendell Smith

He is credited with recommending Jackie Robinson to Brooklyn Dodgers general manager Branch Rickey who was searching for the individual with strong character to successfully execute the integration of baseball. The Courier offered to pay for Smith to travel with Robinson, who had to stay in separate hotels from his teammates due to segregation policies prevalent at the time. Smith traveled with Robinson in the minors in 1946 and with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. In 1948 Smith released his book, Jackie Robinson: My Own Story. Later Smith moved on to Chicago and joined the white-owned Chicago Herald-American. Smith left his baseball beat and covered mostly boxing for the American. In 1948, his application to join the BBWAA was approved, and he became the first African American member of the organization, though he would become the second member of the BBWAA behind Sam Lacey. Smith moved to television in 1964 when he joined Chicago television station WGN as a sports anchor, though he continued to write a weekly column for the Chicago Sun-Times.

Ray Dennison

He was a right guard for the Fort Lewis A&M Aggies in 1955. In a football game, the ball carrier's knee slammed into Dennison's helmet. The impact fractured the top of Dennison's skull and shattered the base of his skull against the top of his spine. Dennison was taken by ambulance to the Trinidad hospital, but he soon slipped into a coma from which he would not recover. He dies. Later, his wife said that she deserved compensation because he worked for the university.

Malcolm X

He was an African-American Muslim minister and human rights activist. To his admirers he was a courageous advocate for the rights of blacks, a man who indicted white America in the harshest terms for its crimes against black Americans; detractors accused him of preaching racism and violence. He has been called one of the greatest and most influential African Americans in history. He promoted black supremacy, advocated the separation of black and white Americans, and rejected the civil rights movement for its emphasis on integration. He used Muhammad Ali as a gigantic promoter of Islam.

Marvin Miller

He was an American baseball executive who served as the Executive Director of the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) from 1966 to 1982. Under Miller's direction, the players' union was transformed into one of the strongest unions in the US. He negotiated MLBPA's first collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with the team owners in 1968. That CBA, covering the 1968 and 1969 seasons, was a short document. It won the players a nearly 43 percent increase in the minimum salary from $7,000 to $10,000, as well as larger expense allowances. More importantly, the deal brought a formal structure to owner-player relations, including written procedures for the arbitration of player grievances before the commissioner. By 1980, the average salary had jumped to $144,000.

Curt Flood

He was an American baseball player. He was a center fielder who played 15 seasons in the major leagues for the Cincinnati Redlegs, St. Louis Cardinals, and Washington Senators. Flood was an All-Star for three seasons and Gold Glove winner for seven consecutive seasons. He batted over .300 in six seasons. He led the National League in hits (211) in 1964 and in singles, 1963, 1964, and 1968. He also led the National League in putouts as center fielder four times and in fielding percentage as center fielder three times. Flood retired with the third most games in center field (1683) in NL history, trailing Willie Mays and Richie Ashburn. Flood became one of the pivotal figures in the sport's labor history when he refused to accept a trade following the 1969 season, ultimately appealing his case to the U.S. Supreme Court. Although his legal challenge was unsuccessful, it brought about additional solidarity among players as they fought against baseball's reserve clause and sought free agency.

John Wooden

He was an American basketball player and head coach at UCLA. Nicknamed the "Wizard of Westwood," he won ten NCAA national championships in a 12-year period as head coach at UCLA, including a record seven in a row. No other team has won more than four in a row in Division 1 College men's or women's basketball. Within this period, his teams won an NCAA men's basketball record 88 consecutive games. Wooden was named national coach of the year six times. He also won a Helms national championship (which was decided by a poll) at Purdue as a player 1931-1932 for a total of 11 national titles. As a 5'10" guard, Wooden was the first player to be named basketball All-American three times, and the 1932 Purdue team on which he played as a senior was retroactively recognized as the pre-NCAA Tournament national champion by the Helms Athletic Foundation and the Premo-Porretta Power Poll. Wooden was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a player (1960) and as a coach (1973), the first person ever enshrined in both categories. As a coach, Wooden was renowned for his short, simple inspirational messages to his players, including his "Pyramid of Success." These often were directed at how to be a success in life as well as in basketball.

Wilt Chamberlain

He was an American basketball player. He played for the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, the Philadelphia 76ers, and the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA. He played for the University of Kansas and also for the Harlem Globetrotters before playing in the NBA. The 7 foot 1 inch Chamberlain weighed 250 pounds as a rookie before bulking up to 275 and eventually to over 300 pounds with the Lakers. He played the center position and is widely considered one of the greatest and most dominant players in NBA history. Chamberlain holds numerous NBA records in scoring, rebounding, and durability categories. He is the only player to score 100 points in a single NBA game or average more than 40 and 50 points in a season.

Paul Robeson

He was an American bass baritone concert artist and stage and film actor who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his political activism. In 1915, Robeson won an academic scholarship to Rutgers College, where he was twice named a consensus All-American and was the class valedictorian. Almost eighty years later, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. He received his LL.B. from Columbia Law School, while playing in the (NFL). At Columbia, he sang and acted in off-campus productions. After graduating, he became a figure in the Harlem Renaissance with performances in The Emperor Jones and All God's Chillun Got Wings.

Lamar Hunt

He was an American businessman and promoter of American football, soccer, basketball, tennis and ice hockey in the US. He was the principal founder of the American Football League (AFL) and Major League Soccer (MLS), as well as MLS's predecessor, the North American Soccer League (NASL), and co-founder of World Championship Tennis. He was also the founder and owner of the Kansas City Chiefs of the NFL, the Kansas City Wizards of MLS, and at the time of his death owned two other MLS teams, Columbus Crew and FC Dallas. In Kansas City, Hunt also helped establish the Worlds of Fun and Oceans of Fun theme parks.

Walt Hazzard

He was an American college, Olympic and professional basketball player and college basketball coach. He was best known for his association with the men's basketball team at UCLA, having been a star player for that team when it won its first national championship in 1964 and having served as the team's head coach in the 1980s. He played 10 years in the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Tony Butkovich

He was an American football fullback from the University of Illinois and spent his last year at Purdue. He was drafted by the Cleveland Rams in the first round of the 1944 NFL Draft, but never played professional football. Instead, he enlisted in the US Marines and fought in World War II (died at Okinawa). He led the nation in rushing in 1943; 833 yds, 142 carries (5.9 avg), scoring 16 touchdowns (still tied for a Purdue single season record) and led the Boilermakers to a record of 9-0 and a share of the Big Ten Title. The Boilermakers finished the season as the No. 4 team in the nation. In conference play alone, he led the conference in rushing (629 yrds over 95 carries) and scoring (13 touchdowns, 78 points). He was selected All-American by the Associated Press (AP), International News Service, The Sporting News, United Press International (UPI) and Stars and Stripes; he was also First Team, All-Conference.

Vince Lombardi

He was an American football player, coach, and executive in the NFL. He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years, in addition to winning the first two Super Bowls at the conclusion of the 1966 and 1967 NFL seasons. Following his sudden death from cancer in 1970, the NFL Super Bowl trophy was named in his honor. He was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, the year after his death. Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach in football history, and he is more significantly recognized as one of the greatest coaches and leaders in the history of any American sport.

Ted Williams

He was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year MLB career as a left fielder for the Boston Red Sox from 1939-1960, only interrupted by service time during World War II and the Korean War. Williams is regarded as one of the greatest players in baseball history, despite being a below average defensive left fielder. Williams was a nineteen-time All-Star, a two-time recipient of the American League MVP Award, a six-time AL batting champion, and a two-time Triple Crown winner. He finished his playing career with a .344 batting average, 521 home runs, and a .482 on-base percentage, the highest of all time. His career batting average is the highest of any MLB player whose career was played primarily in the live-ball era, and ranks tied for 7th all-time.

Pee Wee Reece

He was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers from 1940 to 1958. A ten-time All Star, Reese contributed to seven National League championships for the Dodgers and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984. Reese is also famous for his support of his teammate Jackie Robinson, the first modern African American player in the major leagues, especially in Robinson's difficult first years.

Jackie Robinson

He was an American professional baseball second baseman who became the first African American to play in the MLB in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when the Brooklyn Dodgers started him at first base on April 15, 1947. When the Dodgers signed Robinson, they heralded the end of racial segregation in professional baseball that had relegated black players to the Negro leagues since the 1880s. Robinson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962. Robinson had an exceptional 10-year MLB career. He was the recipient of the inaugural MLB Rookie of the Year Award in 1947, was an All-Star for six consecutive seasons from 1949 through 1954, and won the National League MVP Award in 1949—the first black player so honored. Robinson played in six World Series and contributed to the Dodgers' 1955 World Series championship.

Cassius Clay

He was an American professional boxer and activist. He is widely regarded as one of the most significant and celebrated sports figures of the 20th century. From early in his career, Ali was known as an inspiring, controversial, and polarizing figure both inside and outside the ring. He was born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky, and began training as an amateur boxer when he was 12 years old. At age 18, he won a gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome and turned professional later that year. At age 22 in 1964, he won the WBA, WBC, and lineal heavyweight titles from Sonny Liston in a major upset. Clay then converted to Islam and changed his name from Cassius Clay, which he called his "slave name", to Muhammad Ali. He set an example of racial pride for African Americans and resistance to white domination during the Civil Rights Movement. In 1966, two years after winning the heavyweight title, Ali further antagonized the white establishment by refusing to be drafted into the U.S. military, citing his religious beliefs and opposition to American involvement in the Vietnam War. He was eventually arrested, found guilty of draft evasion charges, and stripped of his boxing titles. He successfully appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, which overturned his conviction in 1971, by which time he had not fought for nearly four years and thereby lost a period of peak performance as an athlete. Ali's actions as a conscientious objector to the war made him an icon for the larger counterculture generation. Ali is regarded as one of the leading heavyweight boxers of the 20th century, and remains the only three-time lineal heavyweight champion.

Sonny Liston

He was an American professional boxer who competed from 1953-1970. A dominant contender of his era, he became the world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson in the first round, repeating the knockout the following year in defense of the title. In the latter fight, he also became the inaugural WBC heavyweight champion. Liston was particularly known for his toughness, formidable punching power, long reach, and intimidating appearance. Although Liston was widely regarded as unbeatable, he lost the title in 1964 to Cassius Clay (later known as Muhammad Ali), who entered as a 7-1 underdog.

Roone Arledge

He was an American sports and news broadcasting executive who was president of ABC Sports from 1968-1986 and ABC News from 1977-1998, and a key part of the company's rise to competition with the two other main television networks, NBC and CBS, from the 1960s-1990s. He created many programs still airing today, such as Monday Night Football, ABC World News Tonight, Primetime, Nightline and 20/20. He publicized football into a drama show. There were 3 announcers instead of 2. The camera would follow the football. He was the founder of World Wide Sports and received the rights to the Olympics.

Jesse Owens

He was an American track and field athlete who won four gold medals and broke two world records at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. Owens' athletic career began in high school, when he won three track and field events at the 1933 National Interscholastic Championships. Two years later, while competing for Ohio State University, he equaled one world record and broke three others before qualifying and competing in the 1936 Olympics.

Walter Byers

He was the first executive director of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. He served from 1951 to 1988. He also helped start the United States Basketball Writers Association in 1956. Byers expanded the NCAA men's basketball tournament in 1951 from 8 to 16 teams, the first step in expanding the tournament to the spectacle it is today. The number of teams fluctuated over the next few decades, but never went below 16 again and eventually expanded further under Byers' leadership. Byers went on to negotiate lucrative TV contracts that preempted individual colleges' rights on the way to building a billion-dollar business, leading to a 1984 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that freed the colleges to negotiate on their own. He was a big proponent of thinking that collegiate athletes are not deserving of getting paid (in response to the Ray Dennison incident). Students aren't employees and athletes can have lower GPAs, as well.

West Point Scandal

In the spring of 1951, a massive honor code academic violation was revealed. There were accusations that football players were distributing unauthorized academic information. It was a "cribbing" scandal. People cheated on tests. 90 cadets were dismissed and over ½ were football players.

The Color Line

It excluded players of Black African descent from Major League Baseball and its affiliated Minor Leagues until 1947 (with a few notable exceptions in the 19th century before the line was firmly established). After the line was in virtually full effect in the early 20th century, many black baseball clubs were established, especially during the 1920s to 1940s when there were several Negro Leagues. During this period some light-skinned Hispanic players, Native Americans, and native Hawaiians were able to play in the Major Leagues. The color line was broken for good when Jackie Robinson signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers organization for the 1946 season. In 1947, both Robinson in the National League and Larry Doby with the American League's Cleveland Indians appeared in games for their teams. By the late 1950s, the percentage of black players on Major League teams matched or exceeded that of the general population.

NFL Films

It is a Mount Laurel, New Jersey-based company devoted to producing commercials, television programs, feature films, and documentaries for and about the National Football League (NFL), as well as other unrelated major events and awards shows. Founded as Blair Motion Pictures by Ed Sabol in 1962, and run by his son Steve Sabol until his death, it is currently owned by the NFL and produces most of its videotaped content except its live game coverage, which is handled separately by the individual networks.

NIT

It is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Played at Madison Square Garden in New York City each March and April, it was founded in 1938 and was originally the most prestigious post-season showcase for college basketball. Over time it became eclipsed by the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament - known today informally as "March Madness". The NIT has since been regarded more as a "consolation" tournament for teams that did not receive a berth in the NCAA tournament

The Gentleman's Agreement

It is an informal and legally non-binding agreement between two or more parties. It is typically oral, though it may be written, or simply understood as part of an unspoken agreement by convention or through mutually beneficial etiquette. The essence of the agreement is that it relies upon the honor of the parties for its fulfillment, rather than being in any way enforceable. It is, therefore, distinct from a legal agreement or contract, which can be enforced if necessary.

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)

It was a committee of the U.S. House of Representatives, investigated allegations of communist activity in the U.S. during the early years of the Cold War (1945-91). Established in 1938, the committee wielded its subpoena power as a weapon and called citizens to testify in high-profile hearings before Congress. This intimidating atmosphere often produced dramatic but questionable revelations about Communists infiltrating American institutions and subversive actions by well-known citizens. HUAC's controversial tactics contributed to the fear, distrust and repression that existed during the anticommunist hysteria of the 1950s. By the late 1950s and early 1960s, HUAC's influence was in decline, and in 1969 it was renamed the Committee on Internal Security. Although it ceased issuing subpoenas that year, its operations continued until 1975.

The Game of the Century

It was a historic NCAA game between the University of Houston Cougars and the UCLA Bruins played on January 20, 1968, at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. It was the first NCAA regular season game broadcast nationwide in prime time. It established college basketball as a sports commodity on television and paved the way for the modern "March Madness" television coverage. In the end, the Cougars pulled the upset, 71-69, ending the Bruins' 47-game winning streak.

Vietnam War

It was a long, costly armed conflict that pitted the communist regime of North Vietnam and its southern allies, known as the Viet Cong, against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. The divisive war, increasingly unpopular at home, ended with the withdrawal of U.S. forces in 1973 and the unification of Vietnam under Communist control two years later. More than 3 million people, including 58,000 Americans, were killed in the conflict.

Virginia Slims Pro Tour

It was a tennis tour consisting of a group of originally nine female professional players (Billie Jean King being one of them). Formed in 1970, the Virginia Slims Circuit eventually became the basis for the later WTA Tour. The players, dubbed the Original 9, rebelled against the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) due to the wide inequality between the amount of prize money paid to male tennis players and to female tennis players.

1958 NFL Championship Game

It was the 26th NFL championship game, played on December 28 at Yankee Stadium in New York City. It was the first NFL playoff game to go into sudden death overtime. The final score was Baltimore Colts 23, New York Giants 17, and the game has since become widely known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played". It marked the beginning of the NFL's popularity surge, and eventual rise to the top of the US sports market. A major reason was that the game was televised across the nation by NBC.

Super Bowl III

It was the third AFL-NFL Championship Game in professional American football, and the first to officially bear the name "Super Bowl". The game, played on January 12, 1969, at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, is regarded as one of the greatest upsets in American football history. The heavy underdog American Football League (AFL) champion New York Jets defeated the National Football League (NFL) champion Baltimore Colts by a score of 16-7.

Free Agency

It's the process in which a player is eligible to sign with any club or franchise. They are not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is allowed to solicit offers from other teams. In some circumstances, the free agent's options are limited by league rules.

Joe Namath

Nicknamed "Broadway Joe", he is a former American football quarterback and actor. He played college football for the University of Alabama under coach Paul "Bear" Bryant from 1962-1964, and professional football in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) during the 1960s and 1970s. Namath was an AFL icon and played for that league's New York Jets for most of his professional football career. He finished his career with the Los Angeles Rams. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.

Joe Louis

Nicknamed the "Brown Bomber", was an American professional boxer who competed from 1934 to 1951. He reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1937 to 1949, and is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time. He is widely regarded as the first African American to achieve the status of a nationwide hero within the United States, and was also a focal point of anti-Nazi sentiment leading up to and during World War II. He beat Max Schmeling.

Scandal in the Bluegrass

On October 20, 1951, 4 Kentucky players were arrested for taking bribes from gamblers to shave points during the NIT game against the Loyola Ramblers in the 1948-49 season. This game occurred during the same year that Kentucky won their second straight NCAA title under Adolph Rupp. Rupp and the university were criticized by the presiding judge, Saul Streit, for creating an atmosphere for the violations to occur and for "failing in his duty to observe the amateur rules, to build character, and to protect the morals and health of his charges". Rupp denied any knowledge of the point shaving and no evidence was ever brought against him to show he was connected to the incident in any way. At the conclusion of this scandal, a subsequent NCAA investigation found that Kentucky had committed several rule violations, including giving illegal spending money to players on several occasions, and also allowing some ineligible athletes to compete. Because of these actions, Kentucky was forced to cancel the entire 1952-53 basketball season.

The Battle of the Sexes

On September 20, 1973, women's tennis star Billie Jean King faced off against Bobby Riggs in an exhibition match. The 55-year-old Riggs, a former Wimbledon champion, believed he could still beat any woman player, and, after much prodding, King eventually took him up on the challenge. King ended up eviscerating him 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 in front of more than 30,000 fans at the Houston Astrodome, then the largest crowd ever to watch a tennis match. King's victory—along with the passage of Title IX, an anti-gender-discrimination law—is often credited with sparking a boom in women's sports.

"League Think"

Pete Rozelle thought of this philosophy. The commissioner persuaded owners to view their teams not as separate businesses but as parts of a whole. That ideology enabled him to negotiate a national television contract with CBS in 1962 that created greater revenue and greater exposure for each franchise. More lucrative broadcast contracts followed, including in 1970 a deal with ABC to broadcast Monday Night Football, a national "game of the week" played during the prime evening hours that became one of the most popular sports programs on television. He also established the NFL's merchandising arm, NFL Properties.

The Sanity Code

Prior to 1948, there were no real regulations to enforce the "amateurism" of college athletics. Schools and their boosters offered all sort of benefits to high school stars in order to convince them to enroll and play football. Until 1948, when the NCAA unanimously passed what was called "the Sanity Code," a dramatic limitation of the benefits that athletes could receive. Athletes could be provided with free tuition and one free "training-table meal" per day while they were in season. There was no Committee on Infractions or other enforcement mechanisms.

Billie Jean King

She is an American former World No. 1 professional tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. King won the singles title at the inaugural WTA Tour Championships. King is an advocate for gender equality and has long been a pioneer for equality and social justice. In 1973, at age 29, she won the "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match against the 55-year-old Bobby Riggs. King was also the founder of the Women's Tennis Association and the Women's Sports Foundation. Regarded by many in the sport as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, King was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987.

1936 Olympics

The Berlin Games are best remembered for Adolf Hitler's failed attempt to use them to prove his theories of Aryan racial superiority. As it turned out, the most popular hero of the Games was the African-American sprinter and long jumper Jesse Owens, who won four gold medals in the 100m, 200m, 4x100m relay and long jump. The 1936 Games were the first to be broadcast on television. Twenty-five television viewing rooms were set up in the Greater Berlin area, allowing the locals to follow the Games free of charge. Basketball, canoeing and field handball all made their first appearances. The Berlin Games also became the first to introduce the torch relay, in which a lighted torch is carried from Olympia in Greece to the site of the current Games.

Rocky Balboa

The character was created by Sylvester Stallone, who also portrayed him in all seven Rocky films. He is depicted as an everyman who started out by going the distance and overcoming obstacles that had occurred in his life and career as a professional boxer. While he is loosely based on Chuck Wepner, a one-time boxer who fought Muhammad Ali and lost on a TKO in the 15th round, the inspiration for the name, iconography and fighting style came from boxing legend Rocky Marciano. The character is widely considered to be Stallone's most iconic role and is often considered the role that started his film career. He received critical acclaim for his performance in the first movie, earning Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nominations.

Title IX

The law protects people from discrimination based on sex in education programs or activities that receive Federal financial assistance. It states that: "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."

The Silent Majority

The term is defined as an unspecified large group of people in a country or group who do not express their opinions publicly. It was popularized by Richard Nixon in a November 3, 1969, speech. In this usage it referred to those Americans who did not join in the large demonstrations against the Vietnam War at the time, who did not join in the counterculture, and who did not participate in public discourse. Nixon along with many others saw this group of Middle Americans as being overshadowed in the media by the more vocal minority. John Wooden embodied these virtues with his team. He believed in law and order and was a symbol of moral authority.

Tommie Smith and John Carlos

These two African-American athletes conducted a political demonstration during their medal ceremony on October 16, 1968, at the 1968 Summer Olympics in the Olympic Stadium in Mexico City. After Smith and Carlos won gold and bronze medals, respectively, in the 200-meter running event, they turned on the podium to face their flags, and to hear the American national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner". Each athlete raised a black-gloved fist, and kept them raised until the anthem had finished. In addition, Smith, Carlos, and Australian silver medalist Peter Norman all wore human rights badges on their jackets. In his autobiography, Silent Gesture, Smith stated that the gesture was not a "Black Power" salute, but a "human rights salute". The event is regarded as one of the most overtly political statements in the history of the modern Olympic Games.

Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier

They battled three times. The first match (The Fight of the Century) was on Monday, March 8, 1971, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Frazier won in 15 rounds via unanimous decision. It was the first time that two undefeated boxers fought each other for the heavyweight title. The second match (Super Fight II) was a non-title boxing match. It took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City on January 28, 1974 with Ali winning in 12 rounds via unanimous decision. The third match (The Thrilla in Manila) was on October 1, 1975. The bout is often ranked as one of the greatest fights of all-time and is the climax to the bitter rivalry between Ali and Frazier. Ali won by technical knockout (TKO) after Frazier's chief second, Eddie Futch, conceded the fight prior to the 15th round.