Top 10 State of Washington Sports Moments of 2007

People will remember the sports world of 2007 for its trials, judges, and indictments as much as they will remember it for its touchdowns, home runs, and 3-pointers. While the legal battles stayed mostly out of Washington, the battles on the court, field, diamond, and links make up the State of Washington’s Top 10 moments of 2007.

10. Ryan Moore finishes 2nd at Dublin, Ohio - Puyallup native Ryan Moore had the best finish of his young career when he came in second to K.J. Choi at The Memorial Tournament hosted by Jack Nicklaus. During the offseason Moore is said to be working hard to earn a cameo appearance in Tin Cup 2, as he’s a big Kevin Costner fan.

9. Apple Cup 2007 - The 100th Apple Cup, coincidently the 100th meeting between the best two college football teams in the state of Washington, although it recent years that distinction has started to mean less and less. Cougars won 42-35 and as of yesterday, the UW secondary was still trying to find Brandon Gibson.

8. UW fires Tyrone Willingham - After 3 seasons and a 11-25 record the University of Washington decided it was moving in a different direction.....wait, they didn’t fire Willingham? They decided to give him another year because they were encouraged by his recruiting? On a side note, Jake Locker has decided to give that baseball thing a try, not wanted to endure another 4-9 season, instead aiming for a 4-9 day in a June double-header.

7. Mariners still in playoff talk in August - On August 25 the Mariners were 73-54, 1 game back of the Angels and tied in the loss column. Then they played the Angels in a huge series at Safeco Field, got swept and finished 6 games back. We Mariner fans had to endure another October without playoff baseball, instead dealing with the side effects of listening to Dave Sims talk all summer.

6. #’s 3, 4, and 5 for Cougar Basketball - Let’s just say it: the University of Washington is a volleyball school. Not only did the Cougars take back the Apple Cup Trophy for the 3rd time in 4 years, but they beat the Husky basketball team for the 3rd, 4th, and 5th straight times. The presence of 10th overall pick Spencer Hawes could not scare the Cougar trio of Derrick Low, Kyle Weaver, and Robbie Cowgill. If you wanna be scared, see Derrick Low up close on HDTV.

5. Locker plays 1st game in Purple & Gold - Jake Locker, the savior of the floundering UW football program, made his debut against Syracuse on August 31. The Huskies won the game easily 42-12, but it turned out to be costly because Locker left his accuracy in Syracuse, NY. It is still M.I.A.

4. Skyline comes from Behind to be Champs - The 3A football championship game was the spread, passing attack against the in-your-race running attack. For most of 3 quarters it looked like O’Dea and RB Johri Ferguson were going to be bringing the title back to First Hill. Then a horrible fake FG, some beautiful throws, and a little luck and Skyline had won its 3rd state title. We are taking bets on how Skyline coach Steve Gervais is going to celebrate his 6th state title. Currently off the board, hunting trip to Northern Alaska.

3. Super Bowl Curse is Broken - Shaun Alexander suffered the Madden Curse, but the Seahawks broke the Super Bowl Loser Curse. Before last season, the last 5 Super Bowl losers failed to make the playoffs the following season. Not only did Seattle win the division, make the playoffs, and beat the Cowboys in the 1st round, they got a little good karma when Tony Romo fumbled the FG snap. After the season, Romo received his good karma when he dated Carrie Underwood, Sophia Bush, and Jessica Simpson.

2. Washington State Basketball - Bennett ball took on a whole new meaning last season. Before, it was known as a slow-it-down defense with an even slower run-the-set offense. In 2007 it still had the same basic principles but now it was leaving the Cougars on the winning side of the final score. The students of WSU caught Wazzu basketball fever, and January games that normally would have drawn 800 fans were now drawing 8,000. Half the crowd (the boys) were there to watch the game, the other half (the girls) were there to checkout Tony Bennett.

1. Sonics get #2 pick; select Kevin Durant - The lottery balls bounced Seattle’s way, allowing them to select a future superstar in Kevin Durant. With the future of the team in Seattle uncertain, it puts a lot of weight on Kevin Durant to bring the fans to the arena. Considering Durant can bench press 185 lbs. exactly zero times, Sonics fans may be in big trouble.