January 2, 2012 was a sports fan’s miracle.  Only two days into the New Year and the best possible sports day has already occurred.
    The excitement started Sunday night with a NFL game that was a win or go home, unofficial playoff match-up between the NewYork Giants and Dallas Cowboys.  Much to Jerry Jones’ disappointment, Eli Manning and the Giants  pulled out the victory and will play in the Wild Card playoffs.  Then, after a good nights sleep, it was time for a full day of sporting events that were nothing short of exciting.
    My personal favorite bowl games were on in the morning.  Those games included the Outback Bowl, the Capital One Bowl, and the Gator Bowl.  The Capital One Bowl had its fair share of exciting plays, including a halftime Hail Mary by South Carolina that I truly did not think was real.  The Gamecocks defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers easily 30-13.  I was effectively employing my clicker skills by going back forth between the South Carolina game and the Outback Bowl.  In the end the Outback Bowl won because of the three overtime drama.  After playing a miserable first half, Michigan State picked their game up and forced the game into the overtimes.  In the end the Georgia Bulldogs suffered a difficult defeat when their third overtime field goal was blocked, ending the game.  Georgia, who has most of their starters coming back, will no doubt be one of the top teams next year.  Lastly, in the Taxslayer.com (not my favorite sponsorship) Gator Bowl, the nightmare season for Penn State ended at the hands of Case Keenum and the Houston Cougars.
    At 3 o’clock in the afternoon the NHL’s most popular regular season game, the Winter Classic, was held in Philadelphia.  The outdoor game was held in Citizens Bank Ballpark, home of the Philadelphia Phillies.  The Flyers jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead against the New York Rangers.  However, Rangers’ goalie Henrik Lundqvist settled in and, behind two goals from Mike Rupp and a third from offseason free agent splash Brad Richards, the Rangers won the game 3-2.  The Flyers' Danny Briere had a chance to tie the game up when he was awarded a penalty shot with 19 seconds left in the third period, but he could not net the puck.  A smile was brought to my face when the Flyers' forward and longtime Bruins nemesis Scott Hartnell acted like a six-year old child after the final buzzer.
    Soon after the Winter Classic had concluded I switched to watch the high-scoring Rose Bowl between the speedy Oregon Ducks and the Big 10 Champion Wisconsin Badgers.  Badger quarterback Russell Wilson looked as though he was about to lead Wisconsin to a win; however, the game ended in the most anti-climatic way possible.  Unknowlingly, Wilson spiked the ball with no time remaining, ending the game and handing the win to the Ducks.  In the highest-scoring Rose Bowl ever head coach Chip Kelly and the Ducks won the game for the first time in 91 years.
    To roundout the night, Oklahoma State and spectacular wideout Justin Blackmon defeated the Stanford Cardinal in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.  Though he took the loss, Andrew Luck had a spectacular game and looked more than ready for the NFL.  Lets just cross our fingers that he does not go to the Indianapolis Colts.
    Though they were definitely on the backburner, there were still a few NBA games including a match-up between the Boston Celtics and Washington Wizards that I had absolutely no interest in.  Well hopefully this is a sign for things to come in the New Year.