The 5: Memorable quotes in Arizona sports history
Jul 1, 2016, 6:15 AM | Updated: 12:46 pm
On Tuesday morning, former NFL coach Buddy Ryan passed away at the age of 85.
Among his many stops, Ryan spent two seasons with the Arizona Cardinals. After leading the team to an 8-8 record in 1994, the team slumped to 4-11 in 1995. Ryan left the field with time still remaining in the team’s Week 17 defeat to the Dallas Cowboys, and was dismissed just days later.
While Ryan’s tenure in the desert was brief, it was certainly memorable. He ran the team his way, and was not afraid to make headlines in the process.
In fact, the Ryan era began with one of the best quotes in Arizona sports history, and in honor of him, we’ve decided to identify five of the most memorable the state’s teams have had to offer.
“You’ve got a winner in town.” – Buddy Ryan
On Feb. 4, 1994, Buddy Ryan was introduced as the new head coach of the then-Phoenix Cardinals. Known for his defensive schemes as well as his brash personality, he introduced himself to the Valley in a way that did nothing but fire up fans who desperately wanted something to get excited about. Unfortunately, Ryan’s words proved in no way prophetic, as the Cardinals were solid in his first season but tanked in his second.
“So we’re down 0-2, and I suppose the next question is: `Are the Suns dead?’ No. We’re going to win this series. We’ll win Tuesday night, and then we play again Thursday. We’ll win that one and then come back here and win, and everyone will say what a great series it was.” – Paul Westphal
The Phoenix Suns finished the 1992-93 season with the best record in the NBA. They had the league MVP in Charles Barkley along with a loaded roster that included Kevin Johnson, Dan Majerle, Cedric Ceballos and Danny Ainge. They were expected to run through the Western Conference on the way to the NBA Finals, yet very quickly found themselves trailing the Los Angeles Lakers 2-0 in the first round of of the playoffs. Never before had a No. 1 seed falling to a No. 8 seed, and with the next two games coming in L.A., it seemed as though it would happen here. Westphal, though, was confident his team would rally to win the series, and rally to win the series they did.
“The Bears are what we thought they were. They’re what we thought they were. We played them in preseason — who the hell takes a third game of the preseason like it’s *******? *******! We played them in the third game — everybody played three quarters — the Bears are who we thought they were! That’s why we took the damn field! Now if you want to crown them, then crown their ***! But they are who we thought they were! And we let ’em off the hook!”
To say the Arizona Cardinals were not supposed to beat the Chicago Bears on Oct. 16, 2006, would be an understatement. The Cardinals, at 1-4, were hosting a 5-0 Bears team on Monday Night Football and, well, it was supposed to be a blowout. No one knew the game would lead to a blowup. Led by rookie QB Matt Leinart, the Cardinals raced out to a 20-0 halftime lead and extended their advantage to 23-3 in the third quarter. However, a series of unfortunate plays, including a pair of fumbles that were returned four touchdowns and then an 83-yard punt return for a score by Chicago’s Devin Hester, put the Bears on top. Leinart drove the Cardinals down to the Chicago 23 in the final minute, but Neil Rackers’ kick sailed wide, securing the crushing defeat. After the game, Cardinals coach Dennis Green was asked what made him think his team could compete with the mighty Bears and, well, yeah.
‘When you use the words mystique and aura, those are dancers in a nightclub. Those are not things we concern ourselves with on the ball field.” – Curt Schilling
The Arizona Diamondbacks entered the 2001 World Series as the upstart franchise who was playing for baseball’s biggest prize in just its fourth year of existence. Their opponent, of course, was the New York Yankees, a team that had become synonymous with winning. How could a young franchise with no history expect to compete with the most storied franchise the game has ever seen? Never one to shy away from sharing his opinions (a trait that still holds true today), D-backs co-ace Curt Schilling responded to a question about his opponent’s history in the most Schilling way possible.
“You’ll be sorry you ever booed this young man.” – Cotton Fitzsimmons
In all fairness, booing a team’s draft pick is a fan base’s rite. And sure, every team believes it made the right choice in the moment, so if you asked them to defend their choices, no doubt they would. But still, Fitzsimmons’ declaration after the Suns tabbed Central Michigan guard Dan Majerle with the 14th pick in the 1988 NBA Draft stands out. Majerle, of course, went on to become one of the best players in Suns history, and is currently a member of the team’s Ring of Honor. As for the players the Suns passed up on, well, you can check out this list and judge for yourself if the team made the right call.
Comments