by Webb » Mon Oct 18, 2010 12:48 pm
The last time the Florida Gators lost three straight regular-season games was October 1988, when they fell to Memphis State, Vanderbilt and Auburn. How long ago was that? Here are some other things that happened in 1988.
*The most famous player on that Florida team was Emmitt Smith, now an NFL Hall of Famer and the league's all-time leading rusher. He was a sophomore.
*Galen Hall was the Florida's head coach. Steve Spurrier wouldn't become head coach for another two seasons.
* Ronald Reagan was president.
*The five films nominated for Best Picture that year were The Accidental Tourist, Dangerous Liaisons, Mississippi Burning, Rain Man and Working Girls, Rain Man, which starred Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman, won. Many sports fans would say the best movie that year, though, was Bull Durham, starring Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon and Timothy Robbins. Sarandon and Robbins were not yet married. Die Hard came out that year, too.
*The Dodgers won the World Series over the Oakland A's. That was the World Series in which Kirk Gibson hit a ninth-inning, two-run homer in Game 1 to win.
* Phil Collins' "Groovy Kind of Love" was No. 1on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on Oct. 29. The week before it had been UB 40's Red, Red Wine. The week after it was The Beach Boys' Kokomo.
* Nintendo released Tecmo Bowl.
*In an October vice-presidential debate, GOP candidate Dan Quayle of Indiana insisted he had as much experience as Jack Kennedy had when he was elected president. Democratic candidate Lloyd Bentsen of Texas replied "Senator, I knew Jack Kennedy. I served with Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy."
* Tim Tebow was one year old.
* Urban Meyer was 24 years old and linebackers coach at Illinois State University. He wouldn't get his first head coaching job for 13 more years.
*Barry Sanders was on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy at Oklahoma State.
*Roseanne premiered on ABC. Magnum PI was in its final season.
* Barack Obama was preparing to enter law school at Harvard.
* Mike Tyson was heavyweight champion of the world.
* Nirvana, with singer Kurt Cobain, had not yet released its first album. It did that in 1989.
* Mikhail Gorbachev is named head of the Supreme Soviet.
*The Saturday night live cast included Dana Carvey, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller and Phil Hartman.
*Kansas' Danny Manning was the first pick of the NBA draft by the L.A. Clippers. The Miami Heat took Syracuse's Rony Seikaly ninth. The Orlando Magic did not exist.
"Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!" - Sen. John Blutarsky
You know, this used to be a helluva good country. I don't understand what's gone wrong with it. - George Hanson, 1969
A bad day at golf is better than a good day at work.
Jim
