Never Forget When Al Michaels Gave Us The Greatest Call In The History Of Sports Broadcasting
Al Michaels has been catching a ton of shit over the past 12 hours for his final call on the Jaguars capping off a ridiculous comeback with a walk-off field goal last. And to be fair, yes, the call fucking sucked. The broadcast the entire night sucked. Whoever decided that Tony Dungy needs to be in the booth to call a live sporting event should never be allowed within 5 miles of a room where those types of decisions are made ever again.
But here's the thing...
Al Michaels can do whatever the hell he wants. Al Michaels has earned a lifetime pass in this game. Because on February 22, 1980, Al Michaels delivered the greatest call in the history of sports broadcasting and it ain't even close.
"You've got ten seconds, the countdown going on right now!.Morrow, up to Silk. Five seconds left in the game. Do you believe in miracles?! YES!!!"
Nothing, and I mean nothing, can ever top that. This wasn't just a hockey game, this was a world event. One of the most important and influential sporting events we've ever witnessed as human beings, and Al Michaels delivered the perfect call for the perfect moment. You give us "do you believe in Miracles", you get the lifetime pass.
I genuinely feel bad for Al Michaels. I mean how do you expect a guy who called the Miracle on Ice to be able to get himself up to call a Jacksonville Jaguars vs Los Angeles Chargers game in the wild card round? Improbable comeback or not, it's still the Jaguars and it's still the Chargers. No offense to Chaps. At the end of the day, there's no world history involved there. There's not significant impact on humanity at stake there.
Al Michaels gets a pass. He always has and he always will. But yeah, I think society would be much better off if we've heard Tony Dungy's voice for the last time ever.