August 11, 2003

R.I.P. Herb Brooks

Posted by pete at August 11, 2003 10:50 PM

Herb Brooks, long time hockey coach and architect of the United States' "Miracle on Ice" against the Soviet Union at the 1980 Winter Olympics, died in a car wreck today.

Brooks was behind the bench when the Americans pulled off one of the greatest upsets ever, beating the mighty Soviets with a squad of mostly college players.

That shocking victory, plus beating Finland for the gold medal, assured the team a place in sports immortality.

The young U.S. team was given no chance against a veteran Soviet squad that had dominated international hockey for years and had routed the Americans 10-3 in an exhibition game at Madison Square Garden the week before the Olympics.

On Feb. 22, 1980, the U.S. team scored with 10 minutes to play to take a 4-3 lead against the Soviets and then held on. As the final seconds ticked away, announcer Al Michaels exclaimed, "Do you believe in miracles? Yes!"

It remains one of the most famous calls in sports broadcasting history.

Hell yeah, it does. I still get chills when I watch a replay of the game and the clock runs down those final seconds.

I don't know why I watched the US-USSR matchup that day. I was 11 years old, not really a hockey fan, and probably ended up on the station because there wasn't anything else on. That, or Mom was listening from the kitchen (I don't think Dad was home). And while I can still remember a few of the Super Bowls and World Series games prior to that, and have watched countless games of most every sport since, the "Miracle on Ice" remains the greatest sporting event I've ever seen. It represented a unique covergence of localized and global factors (the low ebb of American morale in the face of the Iran hostage crisis, heightened tensions following the USSR's invasion of Afghanistan, the arrogance of the Soviet team), the likes of which are unlikely ever to be duplicated.

I still remember Ken Dryden saying, "They're relying too much on Jim Craig, he's making too many great saves," and less than a second later, almost as if it was scripted, Mike Eruzione making the winning goal. I was lying on the living room floor as I watched, and I think I went from prone to airborne in about half a second (no big deal for a pre-teen, but I'd probably double-herniate myself if I tried it today). I spent the rest of the third period cringing every time the Soviets touched the puck. Even after Michaels' legendary call, the full impact of that game didn't really seep into my pre-adolescent mind at the time. I'm just glad I got to see it.

ESPN.com as a nice write-up here. And I'll bet you anything HBO airs it's own documentary again some time in the next couple days.

So long Herb. I wish you'd worn your seat belt.