The most memorable near misses and close calls in sports history

Gordon Hayward announced his retirement from playing basketball on Thursday, ending his NBA career after 14 seasons.

Arguably the most memorable moment of Hayward’s career, though, came before he turned pro. In his second and final season at Butler, Hayward led the Bulldogs to the national title game in a surprise March Madness run.

As the Final Four was held in Butler’s home city, Hayward nearly made what would’ve been one of the most memorable shots in basketball history. But his half-court heave attempt to try and beat Duke at the buzzer wound up being one of the most memorable misses of all time. 

With Hayward announcing his retirement, let’s take a look back at some of the most memorable near-misses and close calls in sports history. 

Gordon Hayward’s missed shot at the buzzer in 2010 National Championship game

Butler’s Cinderella run in 2010 was just inches away from finishing in a national championship. The fifth-seeded Bulldogs trailed top-seeded Duke, 60-59, with 3.6 seconds remaining when Blue Devils center Brian Zoubeck went to the free-throw line. Zoubeck made his first free throw to put Duke up by two before intentionally missing the second to make Butler’s ensuing shot more difficult.

Hayward gathered the rebound off the miss, dribbling up to halfcourt before heaving a shot off at the buzzer. As the horn sounded, Hayward’s shot hit the backboard and bounced off the rim, giving Duke that national title.

Kevin Dyson tackled at the 1-yard line in Titans’ Super Bowl XXXIV loss to Rams

The “Greatest Show on Turf” needed a key defensive play to clinch their first Super Bowl win in franchise history in the 1999 season. The Rams took a 23-16 lead with 1:56 remaining, giving the Titans one last chance to tie the game and send it to overtime.

As Tennessee got the ball at its own 12-yard line at the start of the drive, Steve McNair gave the Titans a solid chance to tie the game. He completed four passes for 39 yards and had a 12-yard carry, drawing a 15-yard facemask penalty on that play.

Those plays got the Titans to the Rams’ 10 yard-line with just six seconds left. Instead of throwing the ball to the end zone, McNair hit Dyson on a slant a few yards in front of the goal line. Dyson stretched out to try and get the ball over the plane, but his effort fell just short as Rams linebacker Mike Jones tackled him when time expired. 

Rangers an arm’s length away from getting final out to win World Series in 2011

Twelve years before the Rangers won their first World Series in franchise history in 2023, they were one out away from securing a title. Up 3-2 in the series and holding a 7-5 lead in the ninth inning of Game 6, the Rangers only needed one more out after Neftali Feliz got Allen Craig to strike out. But Texas’ star closer allowed two Cardinals hitters on board earlier in the inning, still giving them a chance.

David Freese capitalized, hitting a fly ball the opposite way that went over an outstretched Nelson Cruz’s glove by just a matter of feet. The ball hit off the wall, bouncing around long enough to allow both Albert Pujols and Lance Berkman to score and send the game to extra innings.

To make matters worse for the Rangers, they were an out away from winning the World Series again in the 10th inning following Josh Hamilton’s two-run homer in the top of the frame. But the Cardinals rallied again in the 10th, scoring a run before Berkman’s RBI single with two outs tied the game.

St. Louis went on to win Game 6 in the 11th inning with Freese’s solo home run. It won Game 7 the next night as well, robbing Texas of a World Series title.

The Bears‘ double doink missed field goal 

Chicago’s 2018 season was full of promise before it came to a sudden end. In the Bears’ wild-card game against the Eagles, Chicago held a 15-10 lead in the fourth quarter before Philadelphia went up, 16-15, with 56 seconds remaining. 

The Eagles weren’t able to convert the ensuing two-point conversion following the touchdown that gave them the lead. Mitchell Trubisky completed just two passes to Allen Robinson to set the Bears up at the Eagles’ 25-yard line, setting up Cody Parkey to kick the game-winning field goal with 10 seconds left.

Parkey’s 43-yard field goal wound up being one of the most unusual missed field goals in NFL history, hitting the upright and then the crossbar before the ball landed in the end zone.

Patrick Ewing’s missed finger roll sends Knicks home

The Pacers finally conquered the Knicks in the 1995 postseason, but it didn’t come without trouble. In Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, Indiana held a 97-95 lead with five seconds left. 

The Knicks turned to their star big in hopes of sending the game to overtime. Ewing got to the rim with relative ease, getting off a layup that it appeared would tie the game.

But Ewing’s finger roll bounced around the rim and out, securing a series win for the Pacers after losing to the Knicks in the postseason the previous two years.

Wide Right I

The Miami–Florida State rivalry has had several memorable games and moments over the years, but none were more memorable than what happened at the end of the 1991 showdown between the two teams. Second-ranked Miami took a 17-16 lead over top-ranked Florida State after scoring a touchdown with 3:01 remaining.

The Seminoles were able to set themselves up for a 34-yard field goal attempt in the final seconds. Instead of taking one more play to try and move the ball down the field, Florida State coach Bobby Bowden sent kicker Gerry Thomas out to win the Seminoles the game.

After making his first three field goals earlier in the game, Thomas’ fourth attempt went wide right by the length of a football. The missed field goal left the Florida State crowd stunned while Miami remained undefeated with the late-season win. It went on to win its fourth national championship that season.

Scott Norwood misses kick to give Bills first Super Bowl win

Just 10 months before Florida State went wide right, Super Bowl XXV ended in a kick that also went wide right. 

The Giants, who were seven-point underdogs in Super Bowl XXV, went back and forth with the Bills for much of the title game for the 1990 season. New York eventually took a 20-19 lead with just over seven minutes remaining.

The high-powered Bills’ offense was able to get the ball down the field on their final possession, with Jim Kelly and Thurman Thomas picking up chunk plays. Buffalo got to New York’s 29-yard line before having to set up for a field-goal attempt in the final seconds.

Scott Norwood’s ensuing 47-yard field-goal attempt had the power to give the Bills the lead, but it went wide right by a foot, giving the Giants the win. The missed field goal marked the first of four straight Super Bowl losses for the Bills.

Ohio State‘s field goal against Georgia sails wide left

As there have been several memorable field goals that went wide right over the years, Ohio State had one miss in the other direction in a pivotal spot in the 2022 Peach Bowl.

After Georgia took a 42-41 lead with 54 seconds left, Ohio State marched down the field with ease. It got to Georgia’s 31-yard line, but wound up losing a yard over the next three plays.

Ohio State’s inability to move the ball past Georgia’s 31-yard line came back to bite them. Noah Ruggles‘ 50-yard field goal sailed wide left with three seconds remaining, sending the Bulldogs to the title game. As Georgia won the title game in a historic blowout, it’s hard not to imagine that Ruggles’ field goal would’ve lifted Ohio State to a title that year had he made it.

Malcolm Butler denies Seahawks Super Bowl with interception at the goal line

The Seahawks appeared primed to win back-to-back Super Bowls in the final moments of Super Bowl XLIX. Trailing 28-24 with 1:14 remaining, Jermaine Kearse made a miraculous 33-yard grab to set the Seahawks up at the Patriots‘ 5-yard line. Marshawn Lynch ran for four yards on the ensuing play, moving Seattle a yard away from taking a late lead.

Instead of giving the ball back to Lynch, though, Pete Carroll opted to pass on second-and-goal. That wound up being a colossal mistake. Russell Wilson’s pass to Ricardo Lockette was intercepted by Butler at the goal line with 20 seconds remaining. The Patriots kneeled the clock to win their fourth Super Bowl title, while a debate over the Seahawks’ playcall continues to rage on nearly a decade later. 

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