Top moments of the decade

Honorable mention:
Louisville wins it for Ware (2013)
Loyola and Sister Jean makes Final Four (2018)
Dallas Braden throws perfect game on Mother's Day (2010)
American Pharoah wins Triple Crown (2015)

10. No ordinary Joe (2018)

Joe Mauer was well on his way to being one of the greatest catchers to ever play baseball, winning three batting titles and an MVP following the 2009 season. However, concussions took its toll and he was forced to make the switch to first base. But in the last regular season game of his career, Mauer put on the catcher's gear one more time. Shortly after he doubled in his last plate appearance, Mauer went out for one pitch against Chicago's Yoan Moncada. There was a deal where Yoan would not swing at the pitch to Mauer and Matt Belisle delivered a ball before Mauer left and rode off into the sunset after a Twins 5-4 victory.

9. 38-1 (2015)

This was the most anticipated semifinal game in a long time. In the previous season, Aaron Harrison hit a deep 3-pointer from the left wing to give Kentucky a 74-73 national semifinal victory. Kentucky was also in the midst of a historic season. At 38-0, they were aiming to become the first undefeated team since the 1975-76 Indiana Hoosiers. Also, in the KenPom rankings, Wisconsin had the best offense since his rankings began, while Kentucky had the No. 1 defense. Game on in Indianapolis.

Kentucky fell behind early, but came back to tie the game at halftime. Wisconsin jumped out to a 52-44 lead, but the Wildcats came back with an 18-4 run to take a 60-56 lead with six and a half minutes left. But the Badgers showed the fight of champions, outscoring the undefeated Cats 15-4 the rest of the game. Sam Dekker scored on a layup and then Nigel Hayes scored on a controversial putback. That set the stage for the kill shot, a Dekker triple from the top of the key over the outstretched arm of Karl-Anthony Towns. Wisconsin salted the game away at the free throw line and there was no undefeated season.

8. This was for Skaggs (2019)

On July 1, Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs was found unresponsive in his hotel room when LA was in town to play the Texas Rangers. In the first home game after Skaggs' death, the Angels took on the Seattle Mariners on July 12. Taylor Cole pitched two perfect innings to begin the game before giving way to Felix Pena. He pitched seven innings, and only allowed a walk to Omar Narvaez in the fifth inning. It was just that walk away from a combined perfect game, but they'll settle for a combined no-hitter. It was a great tribute to Skaggs and he was looking down smiling at the result.

7. The Captain with a great send-off (2014)

New York is one of the greatest organizations in sports, and one of the most famous players on said organization was Derek Jeter. In the last game at Yankee Stadium in Jeter's career, New York played Baltimore. In a 2-2 game, New York scored three in the bottom of the seventh to take a 5-2 lead. However, the Orioles hit a pair of homers off David Robertson to tie the game at 5. Even though New York blew a three-run lead, it set the stage for the one of the decade's signature moments.

Jose Pirela led off the inning with a single to left, and was pinch ran for by Antoan Richardson. A bunt moved him over to second, which brought up Jeter. On the first pitch against Evan Meek, the Captain lined a single to right and Richardson came racing around third and beat the throw home and Jeter had a storybook ending with a walk-off in his last at-bat at Yankee Stadium.

6. LeBron brings championship back to Cleveland (2016)

It had been a long time Cleveland had won a championship. The Indians won in the 40s and the Browns in the 60s, but nothing else until 2016. Cleveland lost the NBA Finals in 2015 and it seemed like it would in 2016, as the Cavaliers trailed the Golden State Warriors 3-1 in the Finals. No team had ever come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the NBA Finals. If that weren't daunting enough, the team they have to do it against finished 73-9. After an incident at the end of game four, Draymond Green was suspended for game five. With Green out, Cleveland won going away in game five and then came back home and won convincingly in game six, setting up a winner-take-all game seven in California.

In game seven, it was a tight game throughout. With the clock winding down, the Warriors were in transition and Stephen Curry found Andre Iguodala, but Iggy's shot was blocked by LeBron to keep the game tied at 89. With less than a minute left, Kyrie Irving drilled a 3-pointer from the right wing to give the Cavs the lead, one they would not relinquish and LeBron made good on his promise to bring Cleveland a championship.

5. What were you doing in 1908? (2016)

Back in 2004, the Boston Red Sox ended their curse at 86 years with a sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals. In 2016, the Chicago Cubs had a chance to end their curse at 108 years. Just like LeBron and Cleveland, the Chicago Cubs trailed 3-1 in a series. Chicago won 3-2 in game five, but had to win twice at Progressive Field to win the whole thing. A blowout in game six set up a game seven and complete the same thing the Cavaliers did four and a half months earlier.

Game seven was a really good game. It looked like Chicago would run away with the game, as it jumped out to a 5-1 lead against Indians ace Corey Kluber. With the Cubs holding a 6-3 lead in the bottom of the eighth, an unlikely hero stepped up for the Tribe. After the first two batters were retired, the Indians hit a single and a double to cut it to 6-4. Then stepped in Rajai Davis. After a long seven-pitch at-bat, Davis hit a line drive off Aroldis Chapman that barely cleared the left field wall. The two-run homer tied the game at 6, and the game went into extras.

But not before a rain delay. When play came back, the Cubbies jumped all over Bryan Shaw, scoring two runs in the top of the 10th. Davis again did damage in the bottom of the inning with an RBI single, but that was all and Chicago celebrated its first championship since 1908 when the Cubs defeated the Tigers. They made seven appearances between 1910 and 1945, but lost each time.

4. Kobe being Kobe (2016)

Kobe Bryant had a legendary career and is one of the best players in the history of the NBA. He had down years in his last few, but he was primed to go back to vintage Kobe in the last game of his career against the Utah Jazz. It wasn't an 81-point performance like he had earlier in his career, but he dropped 60 in an incredible farewell by the Black Mamba.

The Lakers, wrapping up their worst season in franchise history, needed something to smile about. Kobe did just that. He dropped 60 points in a comeback victory over Utah, his first 50-point game since February 2009. The Lakers were down by as many as 15 and nine heading into the fourth. But Kobe scored 23 of his 60 points in the fourth, as LA outscored Utah 34-21. With LA down 96-86, Kobe went on a personal 13-0 run to put his team in front 99-96. He hit a triple with 59 seconds left to cut it to one and hit a jumper with 31 seconds remaining to put Los Angeles in front for good. He added a pair of free throws to cement a 101-96 comeback win. He exited the game to a much-deserved standing ovation with four seconds left. It was hard for anybody to not be happy for Kobe, as he ended his career on a very high note.

3. Dee Gordon hits a HR for his friend (2016)

Late in September 2016, Miami Marlins star pitcher Jose Fernandez was killed in a boating accident. In the first game after Fernandez' death, the Marlins hosted the New York Mets. On the first swing of the game by Miami, infielder Dee Gordon launched a shot to right field off New York's Bartolo Colon. It was hit well over the right field wall for a homer. It was the ninth career home run for Gordon and it was the only one in 2016. As he crossed the plate, he had to wipe tears off his face. Gordon was quoted as saying "I told the boys, 'If ya'll don't believe in God, ya'll might as well start. I ain't ever hit a bad that far, even in batting practice. We had some help.'" It was a great tribute by Gordon. Miami blew out New York, but the leadoff homer is what anybody will remember, and rightfully so.

2. 16 over 1 (2018)

The Virginia Cavaliers had become a dynasty in the ACC under head coach Tony Bennett. It was not only a No. 1 seed once again, it was the No. 1 overall seed after winning both the ACC regular season and tournament titles. The 31-2 Cavaliers' first round matchup was against 24-10 UMBC of the America East. No 16 seed had ever beaten a 1. But that string had to end sometime. However, how it happened was incredibly surprising.

The game was tied at the half, but the Retrievers went on a 17-3 run to begin the second period to open up a 38-24 advantage and Virginia could not get it to single digits the rest of the way. A 16 over 1 was bound to happen sometime, but UMBC won by 20 (!!!). The 74-54 win is the biggest win in NCAA Tournament history, and school will remembered forever.

1. He's back. (2019)

Tiger Woods had won a few tournaments in the decade, which was a rough one for him. However, he had not won a major yet. In the early 2000s, it just seemed like a matter of time before Tiger overtook Jack Nicklaus' record for major wins at 18. But Tiger had a bad decade, some of which it was his own doing with his affairs. Then, there were the injuries. He has never been the same, but in 2019, he won his first major of the decade. Woods won coming back after 54 holes for the first time in his career as Francesco Molinari faltered down the stretch. He won by one shot over fellow American Xander Schauffele. It is a story of redemption and the country loves those types of stories. That is why this is the No. 1 moment of the decade.

Top 10 games of the decade

Honorable mention:
Super Bowl LII (2018)
Baylor/TCU (2014)
Twins/Yankees (2019)
NBA Finals game six (2013)
SEC Championship game (2012)

10. Alabama wins the All-SEC title game (2018)

For the first time in the College Football Playoff, two teams from the same conference made it to the final four: Alabama and Georgia. After Alabama clobbered Clemson and Georgia outlasted Oklahoma in a classic Rose Bowl, the All-SEC title game was set. The underdog Bulldogs dominated in the first half, jumping out to a 13-0 advantage at halftime. Of Alabama's five first have possessions, the Tide went three-and-out three times. At halftime, Nick Saban made a switch. Jalen Hurts, who had so much success with Alabama, was benched in favor of true freshman Tua Tagovailoa. On Bama's second drive of the second half, Tua found Henry Ruggs for a 6-yard score. He then found Ridley with a 7-yard toss to tie the game at 20 with less than four minutes to play. The Tide had a chance to win in regulation, but Andy Pappanastos missed a 36-yard field goal and it went into overtime. Georgia lost nine yards on its overtime possession, but Rodrigo Blankenship drilled a 51-yard field goal to put UGA in front 23-20. It would appear that the Dawgs would pull out the win after Tua was sacked for a loss of 16 on first down and Alabama had a kicker problem. Never fear, though. Tua went back to pass and found a wide open DeVonta Smith down the left sideline for a 41-yard score. It was the rise of Tua Tagovailoa, and it showed the genius of Nick Saban.

9. Look away, Falcons fans (2017)

Most dangerous lead in sports? 28-3. Atlanta started it and Michigan State and Baylor have joined the dubious club. Each team breezed into the Super Bowl, as the Falcons won their two playoff games by an average of 19.5 points per game and the Patriots won their's by an average of 18.5. After a scoreless first quarter, the Dirty Birds outscored the Patriots 21-3 in the second. With Atlanta already in front 14-0, Brady was picked off by Robert Alford and he returned it 82 yards for a score that have the Falcons a commanding 21-0 lead. New England got on the board with a field goal at the end of the half to pull within 18. Tevin Coleman punched it in from six yards out with eight and a half minutes left in the third to make it 28-3. Yes, 28-3.

New England responded with a 13-play drive, converting on a fourth down in the process. James White caught a 5-yard touchdown to cut it to 28-9 after Stephen Gostkowski missed the extra point. It was the first of three scores for White. A field goal on the Pats next drive cut it to 16. Then, Atlanta fumbled and it set up a Danny Amendola touchdown. White scored the two-point conversion with a run and it was 28-20. The Dirty Birds drove down the field, but attempted a pass on second down from the New England 23. Matt Ryan was sacked. Then, an offensive holding pushed them back even further and were forced to punt. Tom Brady had 91 yards in front of him and 3:30 to work with. No problem. Brady drove his squad down the field in 10 plays. The biggest moment came on an improbable catch by Julian Edelman for 23 yards down to the Atlanta 41. Four plays later, White plowed in from a yard out and a Brady to Amendola two-point conversion tied it up. In overtime, Brady led his team down the field without even facing a third down. White scored on a toss to win the exciting game and the choke job by Atlanta has made the Falcons a punch line for the rest of time.

8. Godgers (2017)

Three weeks before Super Bowl Sunday, the Green Bay Packers played at the No. 1 Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. The Packers were once a 4-6 team and Aaron Rodgers made the famous "Run the table" comment. After that, Green Bay won its final six games to win the NFC North and then beat New York in the Wild Card round to force a game at top-seeded Dallas. Against New York, Packers top wide receiver Jordy Nelson got hurt and missed the game in Dallas. Green Bay jumped out on Dallas, punching the Cowboys in the face right out of the gate. Dallas kicked a field goal on the opening possession, but the Packers scored 21 straight. Aaron Rodgers connected with Richard Rodgers for 34 yards for the score to put Green Bay in front. Then, converted wide receiver Ty Montgomery ran in two scores. The Cowboys scored 10 consecutive points to end the half to cut it to 21-13 at the half.

Jared Cook had a big day and caught a touchdown to make it 28-13. But Dallas scored 15 straight and the game was tied with four minutes to play. Mason Crosby made a 56-yard field goal, but Dan Bailey responded with a 52-yard kick and the game was tied at 31 with 35 seconds left. With the Packers on their own 42 with 23 seconds left, Rodgers was sacked by Jeff Heath. On 3rd-and-20 from the 32 with 12 seconds left, the quarterback made one of the greatest plays of his career. He rolled out to his left and threw a dart down the left sideline to Cook for 35 yards. It was an incredible throw that set up a Mason Crosby game-winning attempt. The first attempt....GOOD! But.....timeout. Second try....ALSO GOOD! Aaron Rodgers was exceptional, and showed why he is one of the best of all-time.

7. Astros get huge win in World Series (2017)

In the World Series, Los Angeles and Houston were tied at 2 and the Astros had one more in Houston. They needed to win in order to avoid having to win twice in Los Angeles. It was a wild game in Houston, with nobody being able to get anyone out. At one point, if the opponent just got one run in an inning, it was considered a success. LA scored three runs in the first and led 4-0 after three and a half. Against Clayton Kershaw, it would be tough to come back. Four of the first five batters in the fourth inning reached, including the big shot from Yuli Gurriel, a three-run homer to tie it up at 4. But Cody Bellinger hit a three-run bomb right back at Houston.

Kershaw could not blow another lead, could he? Well, yes, he did, as Jose Altuve hit a three-run gopher ball right back at the Dodgers and it was 7-7 after five. In the seventh, Bellinger came through again with a triple to put LA back on top. But then Houston scored four more times, hitting two more homers. The Astros led 12-9 heading into the ninth, but Yasiel Puig hit a two-run homer and Chris Taylor hit a game-tying single and they headed to extra innings tied at 12. After LA was kept off the scoreboard in the 10th, Houston had a two-out rally. Brian McCann was hit by a pitch and George Springer walked, which brought up Alex Bregman. On the first pitch, Bregman lined a single to left which scored pinch runner Derek Fisher and the Astros took the 3-2 lead in the series. The win helped win them the series, as they won game seven behind a strong team pitching effort.

6. Clemson saves America (2017)

Alabama was in the midst of a dynasty, and the teams met for the second consecutive year in the championship. In the previous season, Alabama outlasted Clemson 45-40 to win the title. The Tide scored the first 14 in this one, but a run by Deshaun Watson cut it to 14-7 going into the break. It appeared like Alabama would run away with this one after Wayne Gallman fumbled and the Tide recovered on Clemson's first possession of the second half. But that only led to a field goal and the lead was 17-7. The teams traded touchdowns and the Tide led 24-14 heading into the final quarter.

Mike Williams caught a touchdown early in the fourth to cut it to 24-21 and took the lead with 4:38 remaining on a Gallman 1-yard plunge. It was a six-play, 88-yard drive for the Tigers, taking less than two minutes. But Alabama had championship pedigree and grabbed the lead back. O.J. Howard, who killed Clemson the year before, caught a 24-yard pass, which set up a 30-yard touchdown scamper by Jalen Hurts with 2:07 left. Starting at their own 32, Clemson drove 68 yards to win it. Watson threw to Williams, who made an incredible catch, for 24 to move into Bama territory. A pass to Jordan Legett for 17 yards moved the ball to the 9 with 14 ticks left. After an incompletion, Watson threw an incomplete pass to Williams. But a pass interference. On the final play, Watson rolled out a found Hunter Renfrow in the end zone for the touchdown with one second left. It began the Clemson dynasty, as they aim for their third title in four years next month.

5. Darnold outduels Barkley in Rose (2017)

USC and Penn State had similar seasons. Both teams started off slow before turning it on down the stretch. The Nittany Lions began the season 2-2, with losses at Pitt and a blowout loss at Michigan. Their season changed with a 24-21 victory against Ohio State when the Lions scored 17 in the fourth. With OSU in front 21-17, the Buckeyes lined up for a field goal, but Marcus Allen blocked it and Grant Haley returned it 60 yards for the score to put PSU in front and it held on. The Nittany Lions won nine straight leading up to the Rose Bowl. USC, on the other hand, went 1-3 in its first four, and Max Browne was benched in favor of redshirt freshman Sam Darnold. The Trojans won eight in a row after the 1-3 start, including a win at previously unbeaten Washington. After the Huskies made the College Football Playoff, USC went to Pasadena to battle the Big Ten champs.

After having such a great year, PSU quarterback Trace McSorley was picked off on his first two attempts of the game. That led to a USC missed field goal and a touchdown. The Trojans did not punt once in the first half and led 27-21 at the break. It was a game in which you had to respond after allowing a score or else you were at risk of being blown out. After USC led 13-0, there was a stretch in which there were five touchdowns scored on five possessions, with PSU scoring three of them. The lead could have been more, but USC's Matt Boermeester missed two field goals. Penn State rolled out of the locker room with four straight touchdowns, outscoring USC 28-8 in the third to go ahead 49-35 heading to the fourth. The Nittany Lions actually scored touchdowns on their first three *plays* of the half, with Saquon Barkley having a weaving 79-yard touchdown, seemingly breaking tackles of every USC defender in the process. Then, McSorley found Chris Godwin for 72 yards and then the quarterback ran in from three yards out after a Darnold pick.

The fourth was all USC, as Ronald Jones ran in a score after a Juju Smith-Schuster reception set it up. Two pass interference penalties set up the tying score, as Darnold found Deontay Burnett for 27 yards to tie the game at 49. McSorley threw three interceptions in the game. After his first two passes, he was flawless....until his last pass. On 3rd-and-9 from his own 36, he threw his third and final pick. Leon McQuay intercepted a pass along the sideline and ran in down to the Lions 33. After missing twice earlier in the game, Boermeester came through with a 46-yard field goal to send USC to a Rose Bowl victory. Darnold threw for 453 yards and five touchdowns, outdueling Barkley, who ran for 194 yards and two scores. It was the highest scoring Rose Bowl of all-time....for one year.

4. Isner outlasts Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon (2010)

In the first round of the 2010 Wimbledon, American John Isner and Nicolas Mahut of France battled in one of the best tennis matches you'll ever see. The match began on June 22 and was suspended early in the fifth set. The match lasted three days and 11 hours and five minutes, which is easily the longest match in tennis history. Each competitor had at least 100 aces, but in the end, Isner outlasted Mahut in the fifth set 70-68 to win the match 6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 7-6, 70-68. Because of this match, a rule was put in place starting in 2019 where the fifth set would have a tiebreaker, so this match will have its place atop the longest tennis match list for years to come.

3. Kris Jenkins daggers UNC (2016)

Villanova was coming into the National Championship flying high after destroying Oklahoma 95-51 and holding Buddy Hield to nine points on 4-of-12 shooting. UNC won handily as well, beating Syracuse 83-66 to set up a date with the Wildcats on championship Monday. In the much-anticipated championship, it was a tightly contested first half with the Tar Heels leading by five at the half. After a Brice Johnson jumper to begin the half, Villanova went on a 12-3 run to take a 46-44 lead. The Wildcats gained distance between themselves and the Tar Heels and always kept UNC at arm's length. A pair of Phil Booth free throws actually gave Nova a double-digit lead at 67-57. But UNC came right back with a 7-0 run to cut it to three. North Carolina cut it to one on two occasions, but could not break through. Until the final seconds.

With Villanova in front by three under 10 seconds, Marcus Paige shot a double clutch 3-pointer. It should have had no chance of going in, but it did. Paige hit a huge 3-pointer to tie the game at 74 with 4.7 seconds left. But the Heels still needed a stop or else Paige's triple would be thrown in with Larry Fitzgerald's Super Bowl score and Jeff Janis' Hail Mary at Arizona as great forgotten (or overshadowed) moments in sports. On the Nova possession Ryan Arcidiacono brought it up the floor and pitch it to a trailing Kris Jenkins. Pure. It was buried. Villanova had its first championship since 1985 and Jenkins had his name in the same breath as Lorenzo Charles, who made the winning dunk in the 1983 title for North Carolina State against Phi Slamma Jamma.

2. Dawgs come back to win classic Rose Bowl (2018)

Georgia rolled into the College Football Playoff by avenging its regular season loss and rolling Auburn 28-7 in the SEC Championship. The Bulldogs were the No. 3 seed, facing No. 2 Oklahoma. The Sooners started out blazing fast with three touchdowns on their first three possessions to jump out to a 21-7 lead and carried it to a 31-17 halftime advantage. Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield had two touchdown passes and Rodney Anderson had a pair of touchdown runs to lead the Big 12 champs. The tide turned early in the third, as Georgia scored three straight touchdowns to begin the quarter to take the lead. But then a touchdown pass from Mayfield and a fumble return for a touchdown gave the Sooners the lead back. With less than a minute left, Nick Chubb plowed in from two yards out to tie it back up at 45. The game went into overtime.

Each team kicked a field goal in the first overtime, but Oklahoma's Austin Seibert had his second overtime attempt blocked, giving Georgia a golden chance for victory. After a loss of two on first down, Sony Michel took the direct snap and ran to the left and found a lane. He blasted through it and went virtually untouched into the end zone from 27 yards out to send UGA to the championship with a 54-48 win. I mentioned that USC/Penn State had the record for most scored points in a Rose Bowl for just a year. Well, this is the one that broke that record.

1. David Freese's heroics lead World Series to a game 7 (2011)

Texas led the World Series 3-2 and needed to win just one in St. Louis to win its first World Series. It was a good game going into the seventh, tied at 4. But the Rangers changed that, as Adrian Beltre and Nelson Cruz led off the inning with back-to-back homers off Lance Lynn. Ian Kinsler added an RBI single later in the inning to make it 7-4. It was 7-5 going to the bottom of the ninth, when David Freese assured he would never have to buy a drink in St. Louis again. With runners on first and second with two outs and the Cardinals down to their final strike of the season, Freese came through with a triple to right field off the base of the wall and bounced back past Cruz. Both Albert Pujols and Lance Berkman scored to tie the contest.

In the top of the 10th, Josh Hamilton homered to give the Rangers a 9-7 lead. An RBI groundout in the bottom of the inning cut it to 9-8. With Berkman at the plate, there were runners on first and second with two outs. Once again, the Cardinals were down to their final strike. Berkman came through, as he hit a single to right-center for a single to score Jon Jay and once again, it was tied. Jake Westbrook got out of the 11th without allowing a run, which set up more heroics from Freese. Texas brought it Mark Lowe to pitch the 11th and Freese led off. The count ran full, and then he found a pitch to his liking. Freese teed off and hit one over the center field wall. Joe Buck quoted his late father by saying "We'll see you tomorrow night." It was one of the greatest baseball games ever and it takes its place as the best game of the decade.

Top 10 most memorable plays of the decade

Honorable mention
DeSean Jackson GW TD at NY Giants (2010)
Demaryius Thomas GW TD vs. Pittsburgh (2012)
Prayer at Jordan Hare (2013)
Ray Allen tying 3-pointer vs. San Antonio (2013)
Aaron Harrison wins back-to-back tournament games (2014)

10. Unlikely hero finishes improbable comeback (2017)

In the third quarter, the Atlanta Falcons led Super Bowl LI 28-3, but the Patriots scored 25 straight points in 17:05 to send it into overtime. The comeback was led by Tom Brady and James White. The latter broke the records for most points scored in a Super Bowl (20) and receptions in a Super Bowl (14). The last of his touchdowns ranks No. 10 on this list. With New England and Atlanta tied in overtime, the Patriots faced a 2nd-and-Goal from the 2. Brady tossed it to White who reached the ball across the goal line for the New England victory.

9. Make bat flips great again (2015)

In a wild and exciting game five of the ALDS between Toronto and Texas, it was one home run that stole the show. Or more specifically, one bat flip. Texas had just scored to take a 3-2 lead. However, errors loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the seventh. A pop sacrifice fly tied the game, and with two outs, the Blue Jays had two on and two out for the dangerous Jose Bautista. On a 1-1 pitch from Sam Dyson, Bautista crushed it into the upper deck over the left-center field wall. After the blast, Bautista, out of excitement, chucked the bat toward the dugout. Texas had two base runners in the eighth, but Roberto Osuna shut down the Rangers and punch Toronto's ticket to the ALCS.

8. Freese Frame (2011)

Poor Rangers are back at it again. In one of the best games you'll ever see, David Freese launched a walk-off homer to send the World Series to a game seven. Freese first hit a two-out, two-run triple to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth. After Josh Hamilton gave the Rangers the lead back in the 10th, the Cardinals came back with two in the bottom of the inning to tie it back up. That set the stage for Freese's dramatics once again. Mark Lowe was the new Texas pitcher, and on a 3-2 pitch, Freese crushed it over the center field wall for the walk-off home run to send the series to a seventh game, where St. Louis won 6-2. Freese had two more RBI in that game and was named the World Series MVP.

7. LeBron and Kyrie come up big (2016)

The Golden State Warriors were in the midst of the best season in NBA history. Golden State went 73-9 in the regular season and breezed through the first two rounds, but had to come back from a 3-1 deficit to defeat Oklahoma City in the Western Conference Finals. Cleveland waltzed through the Eastern Conference and the teams met once again for the title after Golden State won the previous season. Well, the Warriors took a 3-1 lead in this series, but Draymond Green was suspended for game five after an incident with him and LeBron at the end of game four. Cleveland won two straight by a total of 29 to send it back to the bay for game seven. With the game tied with less than two minutes to play, Golden State was in transition and Andre Iguodala passed it to Stephen Curry, who passed it back to Iggy. Iguodala went up for the layup, but LeBron blocked it to keep it tied. With less than a minute to go and the shot clock winding down, Kyrie Irving shot a contested 3-pointer, which he buried with 53 seconds left. That was the final blow and LeBron brought back a championship to the city of Cleveland.

6. Tua the legend (2018)

Alabama began the 2017 season 11-0, but was tripped up in the regular season finale at Auburn. However, the Tide were picked as the No. 4 seed in the College Football Playoff over Ohio State. In the first game in the playoffs, the Tide rolled Clemson 24-6 and played fellow SEC member Georgia in the title game. With Alabama trailing 13-0 in the championship at halftime, Nick Saban made a change to bring in true freshman Tua Tagovailoa. The freshman led the Tide to 20 second half points to send it into overtime. With his team down three and facing a 2nd-and-26, Tua went deep down the left sideline to a wide open Devonta Smith for the 41-yard touchdown to win the championship. Tua has been a legend ever since in the state of Alabama.

5. Philly Special (2018)

After Carson Wentz went down with a torn ACL late in the season, nobody thought the Eagles would come out of the NFC, let alone win the whole thing, even as a No. 1 seed. After squeaking past No. 6 Atlanta, Philadelphia was an underdog against No. 2 Minnesota. But Nick Foles led the Eagles to a dominant 38-7 victory to put them in the Super Bowl against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. With the Eagles leading 15-12 late in the second quarter, they faced a fourth down at the 1. With Tom Terrific on the other side, Doug Pedersen knew he had to go for six. On the fourth down play, the direct snap went to Corey Clement, who ran to the left. He pitched it behind him to tight end Trey Burton, who was running from left to right. The former Florida Gator then threw it to a wide open Foles in the end zone for the score. It gave Philly a 22-12 halftime lead, and all the confidence in the world. Philadelphia used this play as a catalyst to bring home its first Lombardi Trophy, 41-33.

4. Can you Diggs it? (2018)

Before the Philly Special, Minnesota faced New Orleans in the Divisional Round. The Vikings had an improbable season, led by journeyman quarterback Case Keenum. Touchdown runs by Jerrick McKinnon and Latavius Murray put the Vikings in front 17-0 at halftime. But in less than three and a half minutes, New Orleans scored twice on Michael Thomas touchdowns to cut it to 17-14. Alvin Kamara actually gave the Saints the lead 21-20. The teams traded field goals in the span of a 1:04, ended with a Wil Lutz field goal with 0:25 left. With 10 seconds left, Minnesota had the ball on its own 39, needing a field goal. Keenum took the snap and launched a pass to Stefon Diggs to the New Orleans 35, and rookie safety Marcus Williams whiffed trying to bring down Diggs and collided with another Saint and Diggs had smooth Se into the end zone for a stunning 29-23 victory. It was their first playoff win since defeating Dallas in the 2009 season.

3. Seahawks pass from the 1 (2015)

In the Super Bowl, Seattle held a 24-14 lead after three quarters, but that set up a wild finish. Danny Amendola and Julian Edelman scored touchdowns to put the Patriots in front 28-24. Brady's balls were perfectly inflated as he threw the 3-yard reception to Edelman to give New England the lead. Seattle drove 79 yards on seven plays down to the New England 1. One of the plays was a improbable catch by Jermaine Kearse for 33 yards down to the 5. After a Marshawn Lynch run to the 1, the Seahawks faced a 2nd-and-Goal at the 1. Instead of running it with Lynch again, Seattle passed it. Russell Wilson threw a slant, but New England's Malcolm Butler jumped the route and picked it off to seal the Super Bowl.

2. Kris Jenkins wins the ship (2016)

It is weird to think of a time when people were wondering if Jay Wright would ever win a big game in the tournament. Well, Villanova waltzed into the championship game after destroying Oklahoma 95-51 and UNC bested Syracuse to set up a great title game. It was a hard-fought game and a free throw gave the Wildcats a six-point lead. However, the Tar Heels came storming back. Down by three with time running out, UNC's Marcus Paige hit a double clutch triple to tie the game at 74 with 4.7 seconds left. If not for what happened next, this would be looked at as the play of the game. But Ryan Arcidiacono dribbled up the court and passed it to a trailing Kris Jenkins, who buried the deep triple from the right wing for the win. It was the first of two championships in a three-year span.

1. Miracle at the Iron Bowl (2013)

The Iron Bowl is one of the greatest rivalries in sports, and one of the most improbable wins in the series came in 2013. First, whichever team won would be virtually be assured of a berth in the National Championship. The Tide took a 21-7 lead after T.J. Yeldon carried it in from a yard out. But Auburn scored late in the second and then tied it with an early in the third with a C.J. Uzomah reception from Nick Marshall. In the fourth, A.J. McCarron connected with Amari Cooper for a 99-yard score, but Sammie Coates caught a 39-yard touchdown with 32 seconds left. Alabama had a chance to win and drove down to the Auburn 39, setting up a 57-yard field goal by Adam Griffith. On the attempt, Auburn put defensive back Chris Davis at the back of the end zone to return any kick that was short. Griffith's kick did just that. The kick was short, and Davis caught it nine yards deep in the end zone. He brought it out and veered toward the left sideline around the 20. From there, he received great blocking and around the 50 he blasted into the clear. He was not touched on his way into the end zone and the "kick six" was born. The crowd rushed the field and Auburn made its way to the SEC Championship game, and eventually, the National Championship game. Of all the memorable moments, this one stood tallest to me.

Biggest upsets of the decade

Honorable Mention:
Mavericks/Heat, 2011 NBA Finals
Vikings/Bills (2018)
Northern Iowa/Kansas (2010)
Holly Holm/Ronda Rousey (2015)
Norfolk State/Missouri (2012)

10. C.J. McCollum becomes a household name (2012)

Lehigh was the No. 15 seed, facing one of the perennial powers in the country, No. 2 Duke. The Blue Devils were led by the Plumlees and Mason scored 19 on 9-of-9 shooting. However, it was Lehigh's C.J. McCollum who stole the show. He scored 30 points to lead the Mountain Hawks to a 75-70 win. Duke shot just 41.4 percent and made just six of 26 3-point attempts. C.J. hit a big 3 with less than 2:30 left to make it 59-54 Lehigh. The Blue Devils would not threaten again in the big upset.

9. No championship for Oklahoma State (2011)

Oklahoma State came into a showdown with Iowa State at 10-0. All it had to do was defeat the Cyclones in Ames and win in Bedlam against Oklahoma and the Cowboys would face LSU in the title game. OSU was a 28-point favorite. over 5-4 ISU and jumped out to a 24-7 lead. But the Cyclones scored 17 straight to tie the game at 24. After forcing an interception, Oklahoma State's Quinn Sharp missed a 37-yard field goal and the game went into overtime. After each team scored a touchdown in the first overtime, Brandon Weeden threw a pick on OSU's second overtime possession, one of the Cowboys five turnovers. On ISU's possession, Jeff Woody ran in from four yards out and the Cowboys had to settle for a Fiesta Bowl win against Stanford. It also sent college football to its greatest nightmare: an All-SEC championship game.

8. Wofford shocks UNC (2017)

UNC had a 23-game home winning streak, but Wofford stunned UNC with a 79-75 victory. Fletcher Magee dropped 27 in the win, and made a name for himself in the process. It was the first win over a top 25 team in school history. The Terriers led by as many as 13 in the second half and held on for the four-point win.

7. A 3-1 series lead is the worst in sports (2016)

No team had come back from a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals ever. The task was daunting for Cleveland, but even more daunting when the team you need to beat three straight finished with an NBA record 73 wins during the regular season. Toward the end of game four, there was an incident involving Draymond Green, and he was suspended for game five. Cleveland went to San Francisco and defeated Golden State without Green, and then dominated game six in Cleveland. In game seven, LeBron made one of the most famous blocks in NBA history, rejecting Andre Iguodala late. Kyrie Irving buried a late triple and Cleveland finished off the improbable, beating the 73-9 Warriors in three straight to win the championship.

6. Cat nap (2019)

Kentucky was the No. 1 team in the country. The Wildcats were 39-0 when hosting an unranked non-conference opponent when No. 1. It was the third largest since 2003-04.

5. James Madison shocks Tech (2010)

Virginia Tech lost a heartbreaker to Boise State to open the season, but played an easy team in week two, right? Well, the heavy underdog Dukes fell behind 10-0, but came back to win it 21-16. Drew Dudzik scored on a run to give JMU its first lead early in the fourth and forced a Darren Evans fumble in the red zone and salted away the big upset.

4. Lightning struck (2019)

Tampa Bay was the Presidents Trophy winners. Many people thought the Lightning would win it all. Their 62 wins tied for the most all-time. Tampa Bay jumped out to a 3-0 first period lead against No. 8 Columbus. Then, the Lightning allowed four straight goals to lose game one. Columbus not only came back to win that one, but dominated the series, sweeping the top-seeded Lightning.

3. Down goes Sparty (2016)

Michigan State was one of the best teams in the country and was a popular Final Four pick as the No. 2 seed. MSU's first round opponent was Middle Tennessee State. It was one of the biggest shockers in tournament history. MSU shot really well at 55.6 percent, but the Blue Raiders shot it even better at 55.9 percent and shot 11-of-19 from deep. MTSU jumped out to a nine-point first half lead and went to the break in front by six. The Spartans fought back to cut it to 77-76, but Perrin Buford's jumper started a 6-0 run to put this one away and the Blue Raiders had the massive upset 90-81.

2. Streak ender (2019)

Just like Kentucky had the No. 1 ranking on my No. 6 on this list, Duke did as well, and the Blue Devils faced Stephen F. Austin. Even though Duke shot 50 percent, the Blue Devils could not overcome 22 turnovers. Duke had a 150-game home winning streak against non-conference opponents, but the game went into overtime. Late, Nathan Bain finished a fast break layup as time expired and SFA had the big upset.

1. Shock and awe (2018)

Never in men's college basketball tournament history has a No. 16 seed beaten a No. 1. But then UMBC happened. Not only was Virginia a No. 1 seed, but it was the top overall seed. The ACC regular season and conference champions headed into the NCAA Tournament at 31-2.  UVA was without De'Andre Hunter, who missed the rest of the season with a wrist fracture. Amazingly, the Cavaliers were blown out. When a 16 would eventually beat a 1, you'd think it would be a close game, but this was anything but. It was 21-21 at halftime, but the Retrievers dominated the second half. UMBC began the second half with a 17-3 run and the top seed had no answer. It would not be lower than 12 the rest of the game. Jarius Lyles poured in 28 points to lead the way for the Retrievers,

Best plays of the decade

Honorable Mention
Kevin Pillar great catch vs. NY Yankees
Kevin Durant 3-pointer while fouled vs. Memphis
Joe Adams punt return TD vs. Tennessee
Aaron Rodgers to Jared Cook at Dallas
Jalen Adams 3/4 court shot vs. Cincinnati
Tyler Ennis goal vs. Montreal

10. Derrick Henry ties a record

9. Hail Rodgers (2015)

8. Miracle in Miami (2018)

7. On the Mark

6. Seth Griffith doesn't need to look at the goal

5. Francis of Assisi

4. No regard for human life (2013)

3. Beast quake (2011)

2. Who's the Edel-man? (2017)

1. Hey ma, one hand (2015)

Top 10 Badger football moments of the decade

Honorable Mention

Badgers defeat Auburn in OT in Outback Bowl (2015)

Badgers win Cotton Bowl over Western Michigan (2017)

Montee Ball scores late TD to win at Iowa (2010)

Russell Wilson’s debut success in blowout of UNLV (2011)

Jonathan Taylor runs for 321 yards in triple OT win at Purdue (2018)

Bucky drops 83 on Indiana (2010)

10. Big Ten West champs (2014)

Wisconsin had started out the 2014 season 2-2, blowing a 24-7 second half lead against LSU, and losing at Northwestern for the fourth consecutive time. Many thought Wisconsin would not make it to Indianapolis for the second consecutive year. With this being the first season in the new realignment, Wisconsin did not have to beat out Ohio State to make it to the conference championship game. However, it did have to beat out rivals Nebraska and Iowa to head into the final weekend at 9-2 and 6-1 in conference. But after Minnesota knocked off Nebraska in Lincoln, the Gophers found themselves at 8-3 at 5-2 in Big Ten play. That would mean a winner-take-all matchup at Camp Randall Stadium to decide who plays Ohio State in Indy. 

Minnesota had lost 10 consecutive games to Wisconsin, and was determined to end the streak, as it jumped out to a 17-3 second quarter lead. But everything would change on a Joel Stave 76-yard pass to Alex Erickson, which would set up Melvin Gordon touchdown and it was 17-10. After a David Cobb fumble, a few passes to Erickson set up a field goal and it had been cut it 17-13 at the half. In the second half, it was all Badgers. A banged up Corey Clement, who missed the previous game at Iowa, provided a spark with two big runs, including a 28-yard touchdown, gave the Badgers a 27-17 lead. Minnesota scored after a long reception by Maxx Williams, but the Badgers put the game away on their next possession. 

The Badgers traveled 75 yards in eight plays and did not have to convert a third down on the drive. Rob Wheelwright, who had not caught a touchdown all year, is the brother of former Minnesota wide receiver Ernie Wheelwright. He picked a good time to catch his first touchdown, as Stave fired a 17-yard touchdown to the younger Wheelwright, and Wisconsin regained its 10-point advantage with 4:41 remaining. Minnesota would gain just five yards on its final seven plays of the game, and Wisconsin escaped with the 34-24 victory. It was the Badgers third trip to Indianapolis in the four-year history of the Big Ten Championship game.

9. Big Ten beatdown in Indy (2012)

Wisconsin came into the 2012 Big Ten Championship game with a record of 7-5 with all five coming by one score, including three in overtime. The Badgers were in the Big Ten Championship due to sanctions against both Ohio State and Penn State. Most did not think Wisconsin belonged, and thought Nebraska would blow out Bucky. The teams had met in the Big Ten opener with Nebraska coming back from a 27-10 second half deficit to win it 30-27 in Lincoln. At that time, the Badgers were struggling to run the ball, and fired offensive line coach Mike Markuson after a 10-7 loss to Oregon State in which Wisconsin ran for just 35 yards. Under grad assistant offensive line coach Bart Miller, the unit improved as the season went along. 

It all came together in Indianapolis. It was the coming out party for a redshirt freshman by the name of Melvin Gordon, who wasted little time making an impact, as he took a jet sweep 56 yards on the fourth play of the game to put Bucky in front first. On Nebraska’s first play, Taylor Martinez was picked off by Marcus Cromartie, who ran it back 29 yards for the score, and Wisconsin was in front 14-0 just 2:07 into the game. Nebraska would come back to make it 14-10, but would get no closer. James White would score twice and Montee Ball once to put Wisconsin in front 34-10. It would get even worse for the Huskers, as Gordon ran 60 yards down the sideline when they were just trying to run out the first half clock. That would set up a touchdown pass from White to tight end Sam Arneson and it was 41-10 at the half. Wow. 

It did not get any better for Nebraska, as Wisconsin would run for 539 yards and eight touchdowns and three running backs had more than 100 yards, including two with at least 200, in the Badgers 70-31 mauling of the Leaders Division champs. Wisconsin had three touchdowns of at least 56 yards, and another run of at least that many that set up a touchdown. It was the third consecutive Big Ten championship for Wisconsin, as it would once again make an appearance in Pasadena.

8. Welcome to the Big Ten (2011)

The Nebraska Cornhuskers had been a member of the Big Eight/Big 12 from 1921-2010, but conference expansion was taking place in college football. Missouri and Texas A&M were headed to the SEC and Colorado to the Pac-12. Nebraska decided to find a new home as well, heading to the Big Ten. Nebraska entered the 2011 season ranked No. 10 and would climb to No. 8 after a 4-0 non-conference slate. Its first conference game was under the lights at Camp Randall Stadium against No. 7 Wisconsin, which had an identical 4-0 record. 

Nebraska was led by dual threat quarterback Taylor Martinez and its workhorse at running back, Rex Burkhead. The Badgers were led by grad transfer quarterback Russell Wilson and junior running back Montee Ball. College Gameday was in the house and Jerry Ferrara from ‘Entourage’ was the celebrity guest picker. Game on. 

Nebraska jumped in front early, as the teams traded touchdowns for much of the first half. With 10 minutes to play, Wisconsin trailed 14-7 when the team locked in. Ball scored from three yards out to cut it to 14-13 with 9:48 to go in the first half. That was the first of three consecutive touchdowns to end the first half by Wisconsin to take a 27-14 lead into the break. Martinez threw two interceptions in three drives to end the half, which Bucky took advantage of, as Wilson threw a touchdown each to Jared Abbrederis and Nick Toon to give the Badgers the two score lead. 

The run would reach 34 straight points to increase the lead to 41-14, and the rout was on. It was the coming out party for Ball, who would finish 151 yards and four touchdowns en route to a Heisman ceremony invite. Wilson threw for 255 and two touchdowns and ran for 32 more and a score. The 48-17 demolition of Nebraska told the rest of the Big Ten that the trip to Pasadena would go through Madison.

7. Turnover chain? My f’n a... (2017)

Even after falling in the Big Ten Championship to Ohio State, Wisconsin had a chance to win its program-record 13th game with a win over Miami (and its turnover chain) in the Orange Bowl. Like Wisconsin, Miami had also lost its conference championship game. The Hurricanes had started out 11-0 and rose to No. 3 in the country, but had lost to Pittsburgh and the ACC Championship to Clemson to limp in at 11-2. But, unfortunately for the 12-1 Badgers, the game was played in Miami’s home stadium. 

Even worse for Wisconsin was that the Canes jumped out to a 14-3 lead after one quarter. The great Badgers defense had let them down in quarter one. That would all change early in the second quarter, as junior linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel picked off a Malik Rosier pass and the Badgers were in business inside the Miami 25. Three plays later, Alex Hornibrook found freshman Danny Davis down the right sideline for a 20-yard score. It would be the first of three receiving touchdowns for Davis, and the first of four passing touchdowns for Hornibrook, who was named the Orange Bowl MVP. It was arguably Hornibrook’s best day as a Badger, throwing for 258 yards and four scores in the win. In the second quarter, Miami had three possessions (not counting the kneel down to end the half) and threw the interception and had two three-and-outs, while Wisconsin scored touchdowns on all three of its second quarter drives to put Bucky on top 24-14 at the half. Miami cut it to three points in the second half on multiple occasions, but the Badgers would hold on. 

With the score being 24-21 midway through the third and Miami driving, Derrick Tindal picked off Rosier in the end zone to keep Bucky in front. After Davis’ third score of the day, Miami drove down the field. but the dagger would be inserted when Miami’s reliable kicker Michael Badgley shanked a 24-yarder that sealed the Wisconsin win. Wisconsin earned its program-record 13th win, and while a College Football Playoff appearance would have been fantastic, this certainly was not too bad. And we got to see Paul Chryst say some unflattering words about the turnover chain on live TV, which was one of the highlights from the game.

6. Legendary game at a legendary stadium (2016)

Wisconsin came into the 2016 season with low expectations from the media. With the crossover games being against Michigan State, Michigan and Ohio State, not to mention road games against Iowa and Northwestern, people had a right to be a little skeptical. Colin Cowherd famously (at least among Wisconsin fans) picked Wisconsin to go 6-6. But the season started with a game against Heisman candidate Leonard Fournette and No. 5 LSU at Lambeau Field. College Gameday was in the house, and Aaron Rodgers was the guest picker, and he picked the Badgers to win. He was the only one to pick Wisconsin, and it turned out he was the smartest one on set. 

It was one of a number of great games that weekend, in what many called ‘the greatest opening weekend in college football history.’ It was a defensive struggle, which many anticipated. Wisconsin had chances to deliver the first blow early in the game, but it was stopped on fourth down on one occasion and Bart Houston threw an end zone interception on another. But it was an LSU turnover that put Wisconsin in position to score first. And then a fourth down stop set up the Badgers for another field goal and it was 6-0 at halftime. Corey Clement would score on the first drive of the second half and it was 13-0. Bucky was in control. 

But turnovers would haunt Wisconsin again. First, after an LSU punt, Bart Houston threw a dangerous pass to the left sideline that was picked off by Tre’Davious White and returned it 21 yards for the Tigers first score of the season. Next, a George Rushing fumble put LSU in position to take the lead, and the Tigers would do just that on a Travin Dural 10-yard touchdown reception from Brandon Harris. All of a sudden, it was 14-13 LSU. It would stay that way until late in the game. 

Wisconsin drove down and Rafael Gaglianone would boot a 47-yard field goal and the Badgers took a 16-13 lead. LSU would motor down the field, and would reach the Wisconsin 30 after a 15-yard run by Fournette, but the star running back would be hurt on the play and not return. On the next play, Harris narrowly missed a sack attempt from Vince Biegel, but his throw was picked off by D’Cota Dixon, and the Badgers came away with the huge win. It would set the tone for an 11-3 season and its first ever Cotton Bowl victory.

5. Unbeaten (2017)

Wisconsin had gone through nearly the entire regular season undefeated. After knocking off Michigan on Senior Day, the Badgers went to Minnesota for a chance to finish a perfect regular season. The Gophers were 5-6 and looking to get bowl eligible under first-year coach P.J. Fleck. Minnesota had quarterback problems with Demry Croft, as he had only thrown for more than 100 yards three times on the season and never for more than 163. 

He did not come close to 100 yards passing against Wisconsin either. It took a little bit for Bucky to get going, as the Badgers punter on their first two drives. But a 23-yard play action pass from Alex Hornibrook to A.J. Taylor got the team rolling. They would score a few plays later on a Hornibrook pass to Troy Fumagalli, and they would not look back. Wisconsin would score on three of its final four possessions of the first half, and would take a 17-0 lead into halftime. After halftime, it was more of the same. Wisconsin would score on its first two drives of the second half to put it away.

The final touchdown was an emphatic exclamation point on a 53-yard run from fantastic freshman Jonathan Taylor to put the final nail in the Minnesota coffin and give Wisconsin its first undefeated regular season in more than a century. Wisconsin won 31-0 to win Paul Bunyan’s Axe for the 14th consecutive season and the Badgers would play Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship.

4. Sunken boat (2019)

It was up-and-down 2019 for Wisconsin. After a disappointing 2018 season, the Badgers began 2019 at 6-0 with four shutouts. Then, the Badgers were upset by Illinois and were drubbed 38-7 at Ohio State. Wisconsin was down by two games to Minnesota in an effort to win the Big Ten West and head back to Indianapolis. Following the bye, Bucky won three straight, including a tough two-point win over Iowa. The Hawkeyes helped out the Badgers by defeating the Gophers, setting up a showdown at TCF Bank Stadium to decide which team would represent the West in the Big Ten Championship.

Minnesota was 10-1, its sixth 10-win season in school history, while Wisconsin was 9-2. In 2018, the Gophers won Paul Bunyan’s axe for the first time since 2003 with resounding 37-15 victory at Camp Randall Stadium. In 2019, Bucky was prepared for payback. College Gameday was in the house for the first time in school history for Minnesota, and the game was announced by the A-team of Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit. This was the biggest game for the Gophers in more than 50 years. Huge implications.

After the Gophers struck first with an early touchdown, the Badgers responded by scoring 38 of the next 41 points scored to blow the game open. It was the sixth appearance in the Big Ten Championship game for Wisconsin in the nine-year history of the league’s title game.

The game could not have started much worse for the Badgers. Wisconsin received to start the game and the offense went three-and-out to Minnesota scored on its second play. The Gophers had a high-powered passing attack, and showed exactly that, as Tanner Morgan found a wide open Rashod Bateman for a 51-yard score to put Goldy in front 7-0. The Gophers really had a chance to step on Wisconsin’s throat early, but punted from the Badgers 35 on their second possession. After that decision by P.J. Fleck, the game changed.

Caesar Williams picked off an errant Morgan pass that resulted in a field goal from Wisconsin to cut it to 7-3 and Coan found star running back Jonathan Taylor on a wheel route and JT23 caught it and backed his way into the end zone for the score. It remained 10-7 heading into the locker room.

But the third quarter was Bucky time. Minnesota wanted to make Coan beat them. Taylor is a monster, but the question would be if the Badgers passing attack could win the game. Well, after a Minnesota punt on the opening drive of half two, Coan and junior receiver Quintez Cephus went to work. On the opening play, Coan found Cephus along the sideline for 31 yards up to the Wisconsin 40. Three plays later, Coan hooked up with Cephus on a 47-yard score to give the Badgers some breathing room. It was the first of four consecutive Wisconsin drives that ended up in the end zone.

After a Minnesota field goal, a long kickoff return by Isaac Guerendo gave the Badgers great field position at the 39. Two plays and a Kendric Pryor 26-yard touchdown on the jet sweep and it was 24-10. The game was decided when Minnesota missed it on fourth down deep in Wisconsin territory and the Badgers drove it 96 yards to put them up 31-10. On a 3^rd-and-6, Paul Chryst called a screen pass against the blitz and Garrett Groshek ran 70 yards to the Gophers 11. One play later, Taylor found the end zone and Bucky was piling it on.

The Badgers would add on a touchdown after a Morgan fumble to put them in front by 28 before the Gophers scored a touchdown to make the final 38-17. The game catapulted Wisconsin into the top 10 and ultimately put the Badgers into the Rose Bowl, where they’ll play Oregon on New Year’s Day. There is nothing like winning the axe, especially when it spoils Minnesota’s biggest game in a half century.

3. 408 (2014)

In a game that could decide the Big Ten West, the 7-2 Wisconsin Badgers hosted the 8-1 Nebraska Cornhuskers. It was also a battle between two of the best running backs in the country in Nebraska’s Ameer Abdullah and Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon. In the previous meeting, Wisconsin ran all over Nebraska in a 70-31 trouncing in the 2012 Big Ten Championship. 

It looked like this one would be different, as turnovers haunted Wisconsin early as Nebraska built a 17-3 lead early in the second quarter and Gordon had done nothing outside of a 42-yard run on their second possession. But the Heisman candidate would go off in the next two quarters. He helped the Badgers come right back with a 62-yard touchdown run down the right sideline to cut it to 17-10. In the first half, the Badgers only punted once, but fumbled three times. After the Badgers stopped turning the ball over, there was no stopping them. 

Gordon had runs of 39 and 44 in the second quarter as well, helping Bucky come back to take a 24-17 halftime lead. It would be more of the same in the third quarter, as Gordon had runs of 43 and 68 to break the school record of 339 Ron Dayne had against Hawaii in 1996. Next on his path was LaDainian Tomlinson’s FBS record of 406 he set in 1999 against UTEP. He would only need three quarters to break that. Following a Nebraska fumble, Gordon received a second down carry and blasted through the worn down Huskers defense for a 26-yard score to break the record.

He sat the entire fourth quarter, but his 408-yard performance was one for the ages. Oklahoma’s Samaje Perine broke Gordon’s record a week later with a performance against Division III Kansas, but Gordon’s was legendary, and helped Bucky set itself up for the Big Ten West crown, as the Badgers scored 56 unanswered points in a 59-24 dismantling of Nebraska. For the game, Wisconsin out-gained Nebraska a whopping 627-180, and the scoreboard reflected it.

2. What does it take to beat No. 1? (2010)

In any other decade, this would be tops on the list. On the night of October 16, Wisconsin welcomed No. 1 Ohio State to Camp Randall Stadium for a night kickoff. College Gameday was in the house, and the A-team ABC announcers were there for the call of one of the most memorable Badgers games in recent memory. 

It was all Bucky early, and it started with the opening kickoff. David Gilreath was one of the better kick returners in Wisconsin history, but had never returned a kick for a touchdown. He had a punt return for a score in 2009 at Northwestern, but never a kick. That changed against OSU, as the senior took it up the middle, made one cut and ran untouched for a 97-yard kickoff return to give the Badgers the electrifying start. If you talk to people who were at that game, it was the loudest they had ever heard Camp Randall. The great start didn’t end there, as the Badgers scored on their first three possessions to take a 21-0 lead over the top-ranked Buckeyes. 

But OSU came back with 18 straight to cut it to 21-18. With Wisconsin facing a 3rd-and-3 at his own 34 with less than 11 minutes to play, quarterback Scott Tolzien made his biggest throw of the game, a 20-yard pass along the sideline to Nick Toon. Seven plays later, future Super Bowl hero James White slipped a tackle and ran in for the 12-yard score to give the Badgers a 28-18 with less than seven minutes to play. 

Wisconsin added a field goal on its next possession and it was party time in Madison. The crowd rushed the field after the 31-18 win, Wisconsin’s first win over a top-ranked team since defeating Michigan in the 1981 opener. It also set the stage for a season that would end with a Big Ten championship and a berth in the Rose Bowl.

1. One for the ages in Indy (2011)

There could be a hundred Big Ten Championship games and there won’t be one as thrilling as the very first one. Wisconsin from the Leaders Division matched up against Michigan State from the Legends Division in the first Big Ten Championship. The two teams met previously in the regular season in one of the classic games from the college football season, as Keith Nichol caught a Hail Mary from Kirk Cousins and Michigan State won 37-31 in East Lansing.

The game started out like the regular season meeting, as Wisconsin jumped out to an early 14-point lead. The Badgers would score on their first three possessions, including two from Heisman Trophy finalist Montee Ball, to help the Badgers to a 21-7 first quarter lead. But, like the regular season matchup, the Spartans came right back. Michigan State, behind the right arm of Kirk Cousins and running of Le’Veon Bell, scored 22 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a 29-21 lead into the break. 

Enter Wisconsin’s offense, which scored on three of four drives in the second half to take a 42-39 lead. Russell Wilson was masterful. On his first touchdown pass of the second half, he avoided a sack and found an open Jared Abbrederis deep down field for a 42-yard touchdown on 3rd-and-17 to cut it to 29-28. After a Cousins touchdown pass, Wilson went back to work and would cut it to two on a shovel pass to Ball for the score. On the drive, the future Super Bowl winning quarterback went 5-of-5 for 43 yards. For the game, Wilson went 17-of-24 for 187 yards and three touchdowns. Of all the incredible plays he made, though, one pass in particular sticks out from the rest. 

In the regular season meeting, Nichol caught a Hail Mary to win the game in East Lansing. Now, with the game on the line and the Badgers facing a 4th-and-6 from the Michigan State 43 with a little more than four minutes remaining, Wilson took the snap and was flushed to his left. He launched it to little-used Jeff Duckworth deep across the field. Michigan State defensive back Isaiah Lewis mis-timed the pass, and Duckworth caught it at the Spartans 7. 

On the next play, Ball gave the Badgers the lead back. Bucky would force MSU to punt, and Wisconsin would run three plays and gain seven yards. But on the punt, Lewis ran into Wisconsin’s Brad Nortman, and the Badgers were given the first down and the win. It was a bit of poetic justice. MSU was one of the most penalized teams in the nation, and was not penalized once in East Lansing, even though it was obvious they missed some, so it was nice to see a penalty on Michigan State to seal this one. And then, Wisconsin had a little Hail Mary of its own with the Duckworth catch late. It was one of the most exciting games I have seen, and I doubt any Big Ten Championship game will match the excitement of this one for quite some time.

Top 10 Green Bay Packers Moments of the Decade

Honorable Mention:

Packers beat Brett Favre for first time (2010)

Aaron Rodgers shines in dominant Divisional Round win at Atlanta (2011)

Davante Adams catches TD to win at Dallas (2017)

Aaron Rodgers throws six TDs at Houston (2012)

Packers defeat Dallas in Divisional Round (2015)

10. Aaron goes for a Bear hunt (2014)

Green Bay came off a bye week after a 5-3 first half. Green Bay started out 1-2 following a loss to Detroit and Aaron Rodgers famously said “R-E-L-A-X. Green Bay won four straight and nine of 10 following that comment. After allowing 44 points to the New Orleans Saints in a loss before the break, the Packers chose to move Clay Matthews to inside linebacker, and he dominated opposing defenses. First up, was the Chicago Bears, and the game proved they made good use of the bye week, as the defense only allowed seven points in a dominating 55-14 win over Chicago. But this game was not remembered for the defense, even though Casey Hayward did have a pick six. It was remembered for one Aaron Rodgers. The Packers star threw an incredible six touchdown passes in an incredible first half, as they led 42-0 at the half. He threw three touchdowns of more than 50 yards, including two to Jordy Nelson. It was as impressive of a first half as I’ve ever seen. Everything went right for the Green & Gold.

The game began with the Bears punting, and the Packers responding by going 71 yards in 12 plays for touchdown No. 1. Rodgers completed a 3-and-1 pass to Randall Cobb for 21, and it helped set up the touchdown. On 4th-and-Goal at the Chicago 1, Rodgers did a play action pass and found Brandon Bostick in the end zone for the score. It was 7-0. On the second Bears play after the touchdown, Jay Cutler did what Cutler does, and he threw a pick to the Packers. Micah Hyde came up with this one. Four plays later, Rodgers ran a bootleg on 3rd-and-1 and found Andrew Quarless in the end zone for a 4-yard score. There’s touchdown No. 2. It remained 14-0 at the end of the first quarter.

Green Bay could not be stopped in the second quarter. On the first play of the second quarter, the Packers turned it into a rout. Chicago had a chance to make its first stop of the game, but Rodgers had other ideas. With Green Bay facing a 3rd-and-11, Rodgers found a WIDE open Nelson down the right side. I have no idea how he got that wide open, but Nelson caught it at the Chicago 40 and made one cut to the middle, and he went untouched into the end zone for a 21-0 lead one play into the second. A three-and-out forced by the Packers defense set up touchdown pass No. 4 by Rodgers. He was flushed out of the pocket to the right and launched a pass to Nelson, who was open in the end zone. Jordy caught it and got both feet down for a 40-yard touchdown. Chicago’s best scoring chance was snuffed out, as it was stopped on 4th-and-Goal. Green Bay started out at its own 5, and Chicago’s defense showed no resistence once again, as Rodgers threw touchdown pass No. 5. This one was Eddie Lacy doing most of the work. On 2nd-18 from the Packers 44, Rodgers went back to pass and dumped it off to Lacy. The big running back followed his blocking, and then cut from right to left to the middle of the field and ran untouched for a 56-yard score. It was that kind of day for the Packers. The score was 35-0 with 4:48 to play in the half.

Rodgers was amazingly not done. A fumble gave the Packers one more chance for 12 to get his sixth touchdown pass of the half. On a 3rd-and-10 with 19 seconds left in the first half, Rodgers lofted the ball to Cobb, who hauled it in with his left hand for the score! It was the best play of the first half, and Green Bay had a 42-0 halftime lead and 12 had six touchdown passes in the first half. The six tied Daryle Lamonica for the most touchdown passes ever in one half. The Bears had no answer. With the score 48-7, Hayward picked off a pass intended for Matt Forte and returned it 82 yards for the score to pour it on.

After losing 51-23 in their previous game, the Bears became the first NFL team in more than 90 years to give up over 50 points in consecutive games. For Green Bay, after trouncing Philadelphia 53-20 the following week, it was first time ever since the franchise started playing in the NFL it scored more than 50 points in consecutive games. It was a good week for the Green & Gold. I was just waiting for former Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema to go for two after the Hayward pick six because the card told him to.

9. In Like Flynn (2012)

Green Bay had everything wrapped up. The Packers were 14-1 and were resting many of their starters, One of those starters was Aaron Rodgers. That meant Matt Flynn was given his first start since filling in for Rodgers in 2010 at New England. Flynn had a real nice game against the Patriots, but he was lights out in this one against Detroit. It earned him a bunch of money. It was epic quarterback dual, in which Flynn and Matthew Stafford combined to throw for exactly 1,000 yards and 11 touchdowns, but it was Flynn who got the last laugh, as he threw a late touchdown to Jermichael Finley, which proved to be the game-winner 45-41.

The day did not start out as planned, as the Packers fumbled on their opening possession, and Detroit turned that into a touchdown on a Stafford 8-yard pass to Titus Young. That was followed by Pat Lee trying to kneel the back for a touchback, but he brought the ball back into the end zone before kneeling for a safety, and the Packers trailed 9-0.

After the defense forced a three-and-out, Flynn led his troops down the field for a field goal. Green Bay took the lead after a Detroit fumble.The Packers traveled 48 yards in seven plays, ending on a wide receiver screen to Jordy Nelson, who destroyed some poor Lions defensive back with a brutal stiff arm and ran in from seven yards out. The extra point made it 10-9. From there on out the rest of the game, it was a back-and-forth affair.

It was then Stafford’s turn, and he led a long drive, 68 yards in 10 plays, to give the Motor City Kitties the lead back. Stafford completed a fourth down on the drive to Nate Burleson to keep the drive alive, and the drive ended with Stafford finding Calvin Johnson over the middle for a 13-yard score to make it 16-10. The shootout ensued when the Lions brought a blitz, and the Packers called the perfect play call: a screen. Ryan Grant read his blockers and raced down the field 80 yards for the score and with eight minutes exactly left in the half, Green Bay re-took the lead 17-16. Detroit took the lead back on a field goal after the teams traded turnovers.

But with one more lead change in the first half, Flynn stole a page from Mr. Rodgers. He drew the Lions offsides, and Scott Wells snapped it. The former LSU quarterback lofted a deep pass into the end zone for Nelson on a free play, and like 87 always seemed to, he came down with it. Nelson hauled it in over Lions cornerback Alphonso Smith, and the Packers re-took the lead. The teams traded missed field goals to end the half, and it was 24-19 Green Bay at the break.

Deep breaths, everyone, because the second half was just as exciting as the first. Jarrett Bush actually picked off Stafford deep in Packers territory on the first drive, but the Lions would bounce back on the next drive. They traveled 68 yards in seven plays. The biggest play was a 1st-and-25 completion to tight end Brandon Pettigrew for 26 yards. Six plays later, Stafford completed another pass for a touchdown to Young, his second of the day. This one was two yards on a crossing pattern, beating A.J. Hawk. Buuuut.....the Packers answered right back. After three plays gained 22 yards, Flynn faked it to Grant and went back to pass, and then heaved it to Jordy. It was a beautiful pass to Nelson, who caught it at the 15, broke a tackle and strolled in for the touchdown, and the Packers were back in front. Fun, ain’t it?

Back and forth we go, as Stafford found Megatron down the sidelines for 41 yards. He followed that up with a 27-yard back shoulder grab down to the Green Bay 13. Lost in the great quarterback battle was the fact that Johnson hauled in 11 passes for a remarkable 244 yards and a score. Three plays later, Stafford found Kevin Smith over the middle for the 5-yard score. A two-point conversion from Stafford to Tony Scheffler put the Lions in front 34-31, their largest lead since it was 16-10. The Lions took that three-point lead to the fourth quarter.

Green Bay punted, but forced an incompletion on fourth down at the Green Bay 31. Then, Flynn went back to work. It took them seven plays to travel the distance, and the veteran receiver Donald Driver did the work to give the Packers the lead back. On 3rd-and-8 at the Lions 35, Detroit brought the blitz. Flynn calmly delivered the ball over the middle to Driver, who beat a linebacker in coverage, and split the defensive backs to go the distance. It was now 38-34 Packers. After a pair of punts, the Lions needed to travel 93 yards in five minutes. No problem. It only took them seven plays and less than two and a half minutes. Passes of 22 to Pettigrew and 26 to Scheffler, along with a 36-yard pass interference, and the Lions were in business. Stafford threw it over the middle to Scheffler in traffic for the 12-yard touchdown, and Detroit was back in front 41-38.

Now, it was Flynn’s turn. Packers with the ball and 2:39 remaining and one timeout. It was four-down territory the whole way down the field. The drive began well with a completion to James Jones for 16. It was an eight play drive and the Packers faced only one third down. It was 3rd-and-4 at the Detroit 46. Flynn and Mike McCarthy weren’t going to play it safe, even though he is the backup. Flynn went back to pass and stepped up and threw a beautiful pass to James Jones for 40 yards down to the 6. Gutsy play call, and the Packers were in business. A field goal tied it, but the Packers wanted six. Two plays later, that is what they got. A two-step drop by Flynn and he threw it to Jermichael Finley for the score, beating Amari Spievey.

But the Packers defense, which had not done a whole lot all game, was asked to make one more stop. And they came through! Three plays gained 43 yards for Detroit, down to the Packers 37. But the fourth was a disaster for the Motor City Kitties, as Stafford threw into traffic, and it appeared to deflect off Bush’s hands and into the arms of Sam Shields for the game-sealing pick. It was a wild game that gave the Packers their regular season-record 15th win. Wow!

8. Things are bigger in Texas, including comebacks (2013)

Green Bay started the 2013 season at 5-2 before Aaron Rodgers broke his collarbone on the first series against Chicago and missed nearly eight full games, and the team went 2-5-1 in those games. The Packers used three different quarterbacks in those games, Seneca Wallace, former Wisconsin Badger Scott Tolzien and then Matt Flynn was brought back. Heading into week 15, Green Bay was 6-6-1 and won a must-have game against Atlanta in comeback fashion the week prior. Now, the Green & Gold headed to the Lone star State to battle Tony Romo, Demarco Murray, Dez Bryant and the 7-6 Dallas Cowboys. Green Bay trailed Dallas 26-3 at halftime, but Flynn led his team back to its biggest comeback in franchise history, as he rallied his team to a 37-36 win at Dallas to keep the Packers alive for a division title.

The Cowboys had seven possessions in the first half, and scored on six of them. The teams traded long field goals on each opening drive, but Dallas scored 23 unanswered the rest of the half, and took a 26-3 lead into the locker room. The one good thing for the Packers was that even though Dallas scored on six possessions, the Cowboys “only” scored 26, so it could be worse. A Romo 25-yard pass down the seam to Jason Witten made it 13-3. A Murray 1-yard run pushed the lead to 26-3 with less than a half minute to play in the first half. It was all but over. The Green Bay offense showed no signs of life after the opening drive field goal, as it didn’t make it across midfield until the final play of the half when the Cowboys were playing prevent defense.

It’s over, right? Matt Flynn says think again.

The first play of the second half was a sign of things to come for the Packers, as Eddie Lacy blasted through a gaping hole and rumbled 60 yards from his own 20 to the Dallas 20. With Green Bay in dire need of a touchdown, it faced a 3rd-and-3 at the 13. Flynn went back to throw and stared down Jordy Nelson in the end zone. He threw a poor pass to a well-covered Nelson, but Jordy reached over cornerback Orlando Scandrick to haul in the touchdown pass, and it was 26-10. Dallas responded with a field goal and it was back to a three-score game.

But Flynn and company went back to work, driving 80 yards in 13 plays, helped by a one-handed catch by Nelson on a third down and long. Former Virginia Tech standout Jarrett Boykin made a couple of nice grabs, totaling 27 yards, and moving them down to the Dallas 3. Two plays later, Flynn threw a slant to Andrew Quarless for the score. It was 29-17. Then the Packers forced a three-and-out and forced the Cowboys to punt from their own end zone. The punt was returned by Micah Hyde 26 yards to the Dallas 22, and Uncle Mo was squarely with Green Bay. Five plays later, the Green & Gold faced a 2nd-and-Goal from the 11, and Dallas brought a blitz. The Packers called the perfect play. Flynn took a few steps and dumped it off to James Starks, who rumbled in for the score, and all of a sudden, it was 29-24.

On the second play of the Dallas drive, it looked like Tramon Williams picked off Romo, but the replay booth reversed it to an incomplete pass. Given new life, the Cowboys stormed down the field and make it a two-score game again. With the Cowboys facing a 3rd-and-4 at the Packers 5, Dez made an incredible catch in the back of the end zone to give the Cowboys a 36-24 lead. But Flynn was not done. He led his troops on another touchdown drive, this one again of 80 yards. Boykin again made a big catch, as his 27-yard grab moved the Packers down to the Dallas 7. Two plays later, Flynn found James Jones for the score and it was 36-31.

On Dallas’ next drive, Romo made a costly mistake. On 2nd-and-6, instead of running the ball with Murray, who had gained 134 yards on 18 carries, Romo went back to pass. Clay Matthews came unblocked for an easy sack, but he whiffed. Romo escaped and tried to throw over the middle to Miles Austin, but Sam Shields picked it off and the Packers had the ball at midfield with a chance for the win.

An 18-yard completion from Flynn to Quarless started the drive. Six plays later, Lacy leaped over the pile and into the end zone for a 1-yard score to put the Green & Gold on top for the first time in the game. The two-point conversion was no good, so it remained a one-point game. Dallas had one more chance to avoid the embarrassing collapse. The first play was a Romo pass to Cole Beasley for 9-yards. He went back to Beasley again, but threw it too far out in front of Beasley and Williams dove in an attempt to pick the ball off. It was ruled incomplete. But Williams was adament that he picked the ball off, and they looked at the replay. Tramon was right. Packers ball! Flynn took a knee three times and the Packers tied the record for largest comeback victory in franchise history! That win helped them finish with an 8-7-1 record and a NFC North championship and a home playoff game.

7. Rodgers is not human (2018)

The Packers were opening their 100th season, and the organization requested a home date with its longtime rival, the Chicago Bears, to open up the schedule. The teams met at Lambeau Field on Sunday Night Football, as Chicago debuted its prized trade acquisition of pass rusher Khalil Mack. The Bears jumped out to a fast start, scoring 10 points on their first two drives to take a 10-0 lead. After leaving with an injury, Aaron Rodgers proved he is not human once again. Chicago led 20-0 in the second half before No. 12 threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to lead Green Bay to a 24-23 victory. His final touchdown pass came with 2:13 remaining, and Rodgers found Randall Cobb over the middle, and he ran 75 yards for the eventual game-winning score.

Chicago came out on fire, driving 86 yards in 10 plays, and made it look easy. The Bears only faced two third downs, and converted both easily. The biggest play came when Mitch Trubisky found a wide open Taylor Gabriel downfield, and he spun free and took it down to the Green Bay 25. A third down conversion from Trubisky into a tight window to Trey Burton moved it to the 2. The next play, Trubisky ran in for a 7-0 Bears lead. After a three-and-out by Green Bay’s offense, Chicago went back to work on offense. This time, the Bears offense drove 60 yards in nine plays to widen the lead. Chicago had a first down at the Green Bay 7, but the Packers defense held the Bears out of the end zone, so it was 10-0.

The key Packers offensive play of the first half was a 3rd-and-9 approaching the midway point of the second quarter. Rodgers went back to pass, but was quickly swarmed by the Chicago defense, with Mack coming from the outside and Roy Robertson-Harris up the middle. Yes, the Packers lost yards on the play, but the biggest concern was the health of Rodgers, who was laying on the turf with a knee injury. With 12, Green Bay looked lost. Without 12, the team looked dreadful. DeShone Kizer came in, and drove the team down, but was sacked by Mack and fumbled. Bears ball. On Kizer’s next possession, he faced a third down and long. Instead of just throwing the ball away and punting, he threw it right to Mack, who returned it 27 yards for the touchdown. It was 17-0 and Packers fans were stunned.

The second half began much like the first, with Chicago driving down the field for points. The Bears scored on a 33-yard field goal by Cody Parkey, but the Packers were still within three scores. After missing the final nine minutes of the second quarter, Rodgers came back onto the playing field, and he started the second half. No one knew what to expect. He led the Packers to a 42-yard field goal by Mason Crosby to cut it 20-3. It remained that way until the fourth.

Enter the wild fourth.

Rodgers would not let the Packers lose. It started with a 3rd-and-14 completion to Geronimo Allison for 15 yards out to the Packers 30. Five plays later, Rodgers threw a gorgeous rainbow to Allison for a 39-yard score to cut it to 20-10, and Bears fans got a bit uneasy. No. 12 was 6-for-6 on the drive for 85 yards, with 65 of the yards going to Geronimo. The defense gave the Packers life with a three-and-out, and the Packers started their drive at the 25. It only took the Green & Gold five plays to travel 75 yards to cut the deficit to just three, and a collective “uh oh” went throughout Chicago fans’ mind. The big play was a 51-yard completion from Rodgers to Davante Adams. The Bears brought the blitz and Rodgers lofted a pass to Adams, who beat Prince Amukamara, and broke free from Prince’s tackle attempt and ran all the way to the Chicago 24. Three plays later, Rodgers found Adams for the score, as he caught it at the 9 before juking past Amukamara, and diving to the end zone. Chicago used a 14-play drive to take a six-point lead. The Bears decided not to go for it on 4th-and-2 at the Packers 14, and paid dearly.

Green Bay started its drive on its own 25, but Rodgers threw incompletions on his first two attempts on the drive. On the first play, Adams collided with Chicago defensive back Bryce Callahan, and the ball went right to Chicago’s Kyle Fuller, but the ball was dropped. Two plays later, Rodgers had lots of time to look for a receiver, especially with Mack dropping into coverage. He threw it in front of Cobb, just beyond the outstretched arms of a diving Eddie Jackson. From there on, it was a foot race, as there was nothing but green in front of No. 18. He raced down the field, picking up a block from Ty Montgomery on Leonard Floyd inside the 20, before juking future Packer Adrian Amos at the 5 and high stepping into the end zone for the score. Crosby’s extra point gave Green Bay the lead with 2:13 remaining.

The Packers defense, which had held the Bears to six points all half, needed to come up with one more stand. On 4th-and-9, the Bears from their own 19, Trubisky rolled out to the right and launched a pass to midfield for Gabriel that was broken up by rookie Jaire Alexander. However, Clay Matthews was called for roughing the passer to keep the Bears hopes alive. Chicago made its way to its own 46, but the drive stalled. Three incompetions in a row made it another fourth down. Trubisky dropped back to pass. Green Bay played coverage and only rushed four, but Nick Perry came free and got to the Bears quarterback, sacking him and forcing a fumble. Ball game! It was an incredible comeback by the Packers. In the 100th season of Green Bay Packers football, this was the largest fourth quarter deficit overcome in the organization’s history. What an amazing start to the year. Unfortunately, it only went downhill from there, as they went on to a 6-9-1 season and Chicago won the division.

6. MVP! MVP! MVP! (2014)

For the second consecutive year, the Packers were playing an NFC North Championship game during the final week of the season. After defeating Chicago in 2013, Green Bay played Detroit for the division in 2014. Not only was it for the division, the winner earned a first round bye and the No. 2 seed. Aaron Rodgers was dealing with a calf injury, so Green Bay really needed to defeat Detroit to give its ailing quarterback an extra week off.

The Packers jumped out to a 14-0 in the first half, but on the second touchdown, Rodgers injured his calf again while stepping up in the pocket and delivering a touchdown pass to Randall Cobb. Most thought he was out the rest of the day. While he was out, Detroit scored two touchdowns

to even the score.

Rodgers ended up missing one possession, and the Packers went three-and-out in that drive, looking terrible doing it. Then, he came back and led his squad to victory and the No. 2 seed in the NFC with a 30-20 victory.

Green Bay started the game forcing a three-and-out of Detroit, and drove down to the Lions 1, but was not able to punch it in and missed it on fourth down. The one good thing that came from that is that the Packers kept them pinned down deep in their own territory. The Sam Martin punt traveled 45 yards to the Green Bay 45, where Micah Hyde was waiting for it. The Packers punt returner ran up and found a hole, and outraced Martin to the left corner of the end zone untouched for the score. The Packers moved the ball on their next possession, trying to add to the lead. A nice run by Eddie Lacy moved the Packers inside the red zone, but he fumbled, and Detroit recovered. So, two possessions inside the Detroit 20 yielded zero points.

Following a stop on fourth down, the Packers drove deep in Lions territory, and made sure to come away with six this time. The touchdown was set up by a Rodgers 34-yard pass to an open Randall Cobb inside the Detroit 10. A penalty moved it to the 4, and Rodgers was flushed to the right, and his calf gave out just before he threw it for a touchdown to Cobb. As he threw it, No. 12 immediately fell to the ground. The Packers were up 14-0, but now fans wanted to know the health of the star quarterback. Detroit made matters worse for Green Bay when it drove down the field and Stafford threaded the needle over the middle to Calvin Johnson for a 20-yard touchdown to cut the deficit in half with less than a half minute to go in the second quarter.

With Matt Flynn starting the third quarter, the Packers went three-and-out and lost one yard in the three plays. After a nice return by Jeremy Ross, Detroit traveled 51 yards in 11 plays, and once again, it was Stafford to Johnson for the score. But then like Willis Reed in the NBA Finals, Rodgers came back onto the field, and went back in with the score tied at 14. I said at the time, if Green Bay were to win, Aaron was a lock to win MVP. Well, the Packers did, and Aaron did.

It took the Packers seven plays to travel 60 yards, nearly half (29) coming on a Rodgers to Cobb pass to move inside the Lions 20. Three plays later, Rodgers found Cobb on a slant and he ran 13 yards for the score and the Packers had the lead back. Green Bay added to the lead after bad exchange between Stafford and Joicque Bell, and the Packers recovered. Nine plays later, Rodgers, bad calf and all, scored on a quarterback sneak and it was 28-14. The Packers added to the score when Stafford was called for intentional grounding in the end zone. Detroit scored a late touchdown, but missed the two-point conversion and the game was over. Green Bay secured that No. 2 seed, and Detroit was relegated to the No. 6 seed, and lost in the Wild Card round. Rodgers won the MVP with his season.

5. Miracle in Motown (2015)

After starting the season 6-0, Green Bay hit a road block, losing four of five to fall to 7-4 and it found itself in a tight race with the Minnesota Vikings to win the NFC North. Also, if the Packers didn’t turn it around, the Packers could have been looking at an epic collapse, going from 6-0 to missing the playoffs entirely. It certainly looked like the Packers would fall to 7-5 at Detroit when Green Bay fell behind 20-0 in the second half. But that set the stage for one of the craziest comebacks in Packers history, as Green Bay outscored Detroit 27-3 the rest of the way and Aaron Rodgers began his mastery of Hail Marys. heaving one nearly 70 yards in the air and it was caught by Richard Rodgers in the end zone and the Packers had a remarkable victory.

Like I alluded to in the opening paragraph, it was an ugly first half, or well, an awful first quarter. The Lions scored points on all their drives, and the Packers didn’t make it across midfield. It seemed like the game was over when Rodgers was flushed out to the right, and threw it across the middle of the field and it was picked off by Glover Quinn. The Lions defensive back returned it inside the Packers 20. At the time, the score was 10-0 Detroit, but was 17-0 after Matthew Stafford and company cashed in, as Stafford found Calvin Johnson for the score. Matt lofted a ball for Megatron in the end zone, and the big wide receiver out-jumped Sam Shields for the ball, and it was turning into a rout.

Nothing was going right offensively, and even when the Packers did get a nice drive, Mason Crosby missed a field goal early in the second. The defense was doing its best to keep the Green & Gold in the game, as the unit did not allow a first down until less than two minutes remaining in the quarter, and only allowed one total. But Detroit had four first downs on the opening drive of the second half, and it set up a Matt Prater 34-yard field goal, and the Lions led 20-0. However, knowing it was still a three-score game, the Packers offense woke up.

The Packers first stroke of good luck happened on a James Starks run when the Packers were going in to score. It was a 1st-and-Goal, and Starks ran it for a few yards and fumbled, but Randall Cobb recovered it in the end zone for the touchdown to cut it to 20-7. The lead was even cut further when Stafford was sacked by Julius Peppers and recovered by Jake Ryan at the Detroit 12. Three plays later, Rodgers found Davante Adams over the middle for an 8-yard touchdown, and it was all of a sudden a 20-14 game. A Prater field goal midway through the fourth the Lions back in front by two scores. Green Bay came back with a 17-yard touchdown run by Rodgers to cut it to 23-21, and set the stage for the entertaining finish.

Green Bay forced Detroit into a 3rd-and-12, but Stafford found T.J. Jones for 29 yards over the middle. It was just Jones’ third catch of the year. The Lions ran the ball once, letting the clock go down to the two minute warning. With no timeouts, the Lions ran it twice and the Packers got the ball at their own 21 with 23 seconds to play. Two plays yielded no yards and with six seconds left, Green Bay needed a miracle. And that is just what it received.

All the Packers could do is lateral it, and it did not go well. James Jones caught it across the 40 and pitched it back to Richard Rodgers, who threw it back to Aaron Rodgers inside the 25 and there was no chance of him doing anything with it. However, he was brought down on a controversial facemask penalty against Devin Taylor, and that gave the Packers one last chance. Rodgers, even with a three-man rush by Detroit, was under pressure quickly. That actually probably helped Aaron, though, as he could escape the pocket and launch it as far as he could. He had a running start and heaved it nearly 70 yards in the air to a crowd of players. There were four Packers and five Lions down in the end zone. But it was Richard Rodgers who was boxing out the defensive backs, caught it in the end zone for the game-winning score. It was one of the most memorable plays for the Packers, and it was the start of Rodgers’ mastery at Hail Marys. The comeback jumpstarted a three-game winning streak that clinched them a spot in the playoffs.

4. Bears Down (2013)

It was not only the last game of the year, it was for the division. The game featured the 7-7-1 Green Bay Packers and the 8-7 Chicago Bears. In the previous meeting, Aaron Rodgers’ collarbone was broken on a sack by Shea McClellin. The Packers signal caller would miss seven consecutive games, and counting the Chicago game in which he only played a series, Green Bay went 2-5-1 and it dropped its record to 7-7-1. However, every other team in the division could not capitalize, and the Lions would be eliminated in week 16 due to an upset home loss to the Giants. Chicago had a chance to clinch that week, but was annihilated at Philadelphia 54-11. That set up the Packers and Bears in a fight for the division crown on the final week of the regular season at Soldier Field.

Green Bay drove down the field on its first possession, but Rodgers threw a pick in the end zone to Chris Conte, and the game remained scoreless. The Bears took advantage of that miscue by the Packers and drove 80 yards and scored the game’s first touchdown on a Jay Cutler pass to Matt Forte. The score would be 7-3 until late in the first half when the Packers scored the unlikeliest of touchdowns. Aaron Rodgers was standing in the pocket and was hit by Julius Peppers and fumbled. The ball went forward so many players thought it was incomplete. Green Bay wide receiver Jarrett Boykin picked up the ball and stood there. Rodgers told him to run, so Boykin did, into the end zone for a touchdown. It was reviewed, but stood, and Green Bay took the lead. A late Bears turnover was turned into a field goal and the Packers led 13-7 at halftime.

The teams went back-and-forth in the third, but at the end the Bears had the advantage. Forte had two touchdowns rushing in the quarter, which sandwiched a Rodgers touchdown pass to Randall Cobb, and Chicago took a 21-20 lead into the final quarter, but the Bears were threatening. And Chicago punched it in on the first play of the fourth to go up 28-20 on a Brandon Marshall touchdown reception. But the Packers defense stood tall and kept the Bears off the scoreboard for the remainder of the game.

The Packers came right back with a monster touchdown to respond to the Chicago touchdown. Rodgers went 3-for-3 for 68 yards on the drive, and set up Eddie Lacy’s 6-yard score and the Green & Gold was back in the fight. After a Chicago punt, Green Bay started with the ball at its own 13. Three plays gained the Packers nine yards. Afraid of not getting the ball back, Mike McCarthy went for it on 4th-and-1 and John Kuhn muscled his way for one yard. Six plays later, Green Bay had another fourth down. This one was another 4th-and-1. A Rodgers completion to Jordy Nelson moved the sticks. But four plays later, the Packers faced another fourth down, and it will be remembered for a long time in Packerland.

With 46 seconds left, Green Bay faced a 4th-and-8 at the Chicago 48. Rodgers took the snap out of the shotgun, and Peppers looked like he’d have a free shot at Rodgers, but John Kuhn stepped over and cut Peppers down, and the Packers quarterback rolled a bit to his left, and heaved a pass downfield. He spotted Cobb WIDE open at the Chicago 10, and the Green Bay receiver caught it and ran the rest of the way for the go-ahead touchdown with 38 seconds remaining. The two-point conversion failed, but Green Bay had a 33-28 lead.

The Bears had one final chance to win the game, and they reached the Packers 45 after a 15-yard completion from Cutler to Martellus Bennett. However, they could advance no further as a pair of incompletions forced a Hail Mary attempt, which was picked off by Sam Shields, and the Packers won the division. It was just another memorable Packers win over their longtime rivals. It was the first of four years that a week 17 game decided the NFC North.

3. Crosby delivers the dagger right through the heart of Texas (2017)

Green Bay was sitting at 4-6 and didn’t have much hope of winning the division back. That led to the famous “Run the Table” comment by Aaron Rodgers. Talking heads like Colin Cowherd gave them no chance of winning the division at that point. The schedule was pretty difficult remaining, and they had used up all their margin for error. But just like when Rodgers said “R-e-l-a-x” after the loss to Detroit in 2014, No. 12 stayed true to his word. Not only did Green Bay win its final six regular season games, including winning at Detroit to win the division, the Packers would make a surprisingly deep run in the NFC playoffs. Green Bay trailed late in the first half in the Wild Card against the New York Giants, but dominated the rest of the game and won it 38-13. Next was a trip to AT&T Stadium, where the Packers had not lost in their history. Green Bay was without Jordy Nelson, who broke his ribs against New York. The Packers were already a long shot to beat Dallas, but now had to do it without their top wide receiver. The defense was terrible, and had to go with LaDarius Gunter as its top cornerback. Seriously. Green Bay lost to Dallas during the regular season 30-16 at Lambeau Field. Rodgers needed to win virtually by himself.....and that is what he did, as he led the Packers to an improbable 34-31 win at AT&T Stadium.

Most people thought Green Bay had to score virtually every time it had the ball considering the woeful defense. On Dallas’ first drive, the MASH unit held the Cowboys to a field goal and the Cowboys took a 3-0 lead. Incredibly, it was the only lead for Dallas during the game. That lead did not last long, either, as the Packers blew down the field on the possession, and it ended on a 34-yard touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers to Richard Rodgers and the Packers took the lead. That was far from the end for the Packers offense in the first half. Dallas punted on its next drive, and the Green Bay offense went back to work. It dinked and dunked down the field until it faced a 3rd-and-2 from the Dallas 49. Then Rodgers lofted a pass down the left side to Davante Adams for a 32-yard gain down to the 17. Four plays later, Ty Montgomery pushed his way into the end zone from three yards out and Green Bay took a 14-3 lead.

Incredibly, the banged up Packers defense forced another punt, and the Packers offense had a chance to go up 18, and that is just what Green Bay did. It took the Green & Gold nine plays to go 80 yards to give the Packers that 21-3 lead. On first down at his own 41, Rodgers rolled around and was flushed to his right and found a wide open Geronimo Allison for 26 yards down to the Dallas 33. Aaron Ripkowski rumbled for 20 yards two plays later down to the 11 and two plays after that, Montgomery leaped in from a yard out, and an upset was brewing at AT&T Stadium. But Dallas would get a Dak Prescott-to-Dez Bryant touchdown and a Bailey field goal to cut it to 21-13 at recess.

You remember how Green Bay started the game? Well, that offense opened up the second half as well. On the first play, Rodgers was flushed to the right and was drilled as he threw it, but it was a perfect pass to Randall Cobb along the sideline for 25 yards to midfield. A Rodgers to Jared Cook pass completion moved the inside the 5, and then again for the score. The Packers had re-gained the two-score lead at 28-13. Spoiler alert: that won’t be the last time you hear that connection in this game.

But Dallas was the No. 1 seed. You knew the Cowboys would come back. That is just what they did, as Jason Witten and Dez Bryant scored two consecutive touchdowns, and Dak ran in the two-point conversion. All of a sudden, with four minutes remaining in the game, it was tied at 28. The teams traded 50+-yard field goals, and with 35 seconds left, it was all even at 31.

Time for one last Aaron Rodgers miracle. He had completed three Hail Marys against Detroit, Arizona and the previous week against New York. But could he go about 40 yards in a half minute? We were about to find out. The Packers were in business after a 17-yard screen pass to Montgomery got them out to the 42. But then Rodgers was sacked by Jeff Heath, and somehow hung on to the ball. Two plays later, Green Bay was at its own 32 with 12 seconds left. Time for someone to step up.

Remember how I said Rodgers to Cook would come up in the game again? Well, Rodgers called the play in he huddle, like a sandlot play. Rodgers took the snap, and spun to his left and waited....and waited. Then, he fired a perfect pass to Cook along the sideline at the 33 of Dallas. It was a magnificent job by Cook to keep his feet in bounds. Just an incredible play all around. But the Packers called upon Mason Crosby to win the game. He had just hit a 56-yard field goal to give his team a 31-28 lead. Now, he needed to hit a 51-yarder. Twice, apparently, as Dallas called a timeout before his first attempt, which was drilled through the uprights.

On Crosby’s second attempt, it looked left from the kick, but it hooked in! It is good! And the Packers went in to Dallas for an impossible 34-31 victory. It was the third NFC Championship appearance for Rodgers, and this just cemented his place in NFL lore for what he did in the game, going 28-for-43 for 355 yards and two touchdowns. Green Bay only ran the ball 17 times. It is still one of the more improbable wins in Packers history.

2. Teach me how to Raji (2011)

It was only the second postseason meeting between the NFL’s two oldest rivals, the Packers and Bears. Green Bay had to defeat Chicago in week 17 just to make it into the playoffs at the No. 6 seed. The Packers escaped with a win at Philadelphia and clobbered top-seeded Atlanta to reach the NFC Championship. Chicago, the No. 2 seed, won against a Seattle team that finished the regular season at 7-9 but upset defending champion New Orleans in the Wild Card round. The only other meeting in the postseason was in 1941 when Chicago defeated Green Bay 33-14. But this one was for a spot in Super Bowl XLV. Aaron Rodgers and that potent Packers offense going head-to-head against Brian Urlacher and the vaunted Bears defense. The teams split one-score decisions in the two meetings during the regular season. Game on!

Rodgers and company started off well, as he led the Packers on an 84-yard drive in seven plays to put the Green & Gold on top first. No. 12 went 4-for-4 for 76 yards, including completing the first two passes of the drive for 46 yards to Greg Jennings. Rodgers capped off the drive with a touchdown run from a yard out and it was 7-0. Not a bad way to start!

But after the fast start, the offenses took a break the rest of the quarter before the Packers struck again early in the second. After the Packers pinned the Bears deep in their own territory, they forced a punt and got the ball back after a punt in Chicago territory. Five plays later, James Starks blasted in from four yards out and Green Bay took a two-score lead.

Green Bay had a chance to blow the game open late in the half, with Green Bay having first down in Chicago territory, but it was intercepted by Lance Briggs. It was the first of two opportunities to try to break open the game for Green Bay. However, the Packers got revenge, as Sam Shields intercepted a Jay Cutler pass at the goal line on a fly route, and the Packers held the 14-0 lead at the break.

Green Bay marched down the field on its opening possession of the second half, much like the first. Rodgers found Nelson for 21, and then Jennings for 20 more, and after a pass interference, the Packers had the ball at the Bears 8, with a chance to bury them. I mentioned this was the second opportunity to break open the game. Well, Rodgers did not see Urlacher roaming the middle, and easily picked off a Rodgers pass and went racing down the right sideline. Rodgers had an angle on the Chicago linebacker and tripped him up near midfield. Instead of a three-score game, the defensive is forced to make a play again. The unit did just that....until the late third and early fourth. Cutler was injured on the first possession of the second half, so he sat out the rest of the game. First, it was Todd Collins, and he was terrible, but its third stringer, Caleb Hanie, gave the Bears some hope.

Chicago blew down the field at the end of the third quarter and into the fourth. Hanie found Knox, who beat Tramon Williams, and he raced down to the Packers 1. Chester Taylor scored on the next play, and it all of a sudden, it’s 14-7. The next three possessions (two by Green Bay, one by Chicago) ended in punts, and Chicago had the ball with a chance to tie it with less than eight minutes remaining. The first two plays of the drive picked up five yards, so the Bears were faced with a 3rd-and-5 at their own 15 with a little more than six minutes to play. Enter the most unlikely hero in Green Bay history.

B.J. Raji was in his second year with the Packers after being drafted No. 9 overall. But when you think of him, his coverage skills weren’t ever mentioned, which makes sense for a guy his size. But now when you think of him, this is the only play you’ll think of. On the crucial third down play, Hanie dropped back, and dumped it over the middle. He, like everyone else, didn’t expect the 340-pound nose tackle to drop back into coverage. But the big man showed his hands, intercepting the pass and returning it 18 yards for the touchdown to seemingly put the game away. Shields came on a blitz, forcing Hanie to throw before he wanted to, and it was a good thing because speedster Devin Hester was running across the middle of the field all alone, and would have had a big play. But as it is, Raji made the biggest play of the game to date, and put on the ol’ Aaron Rodgers championship belt. The score made it 21-7 with six minutes to play. No way a third-string quarterback could lead Chicago back, right?

Hanie was 4-for-4 for 60 yards on the drive, and it ended on a 35-yard pass to an open Earl Bennett, and just like that, it was back to a one-score game. And then after a Packers punt, Chicago had one more chance to tie the game. He would lead the Bears to the Packers 34 and it was 1st-and-10. On a 3rd-and-3, Chicago tried to run it with Bennett, but he was tracked down by Desmond Bishop two yards in the backfield. That brought up a 4th-and-5 at the 29. Hanie dropped back and looked around before firing it into traffic intended for Knox. Picked off! Shields’ second of the day sealed it. It was the first Super Bowl appearance in 13 years, and there is no better way to win the NFC than to win at Soldier Field against the longtime rival Bears. Well, I guess winning it Lambeau might have been better.

1. The Title is back in Town (2011)

In Aaron Rodgers’ tenure, Green Bay had failed to make the playoffs in 2008 and lost a heartbreaker in the Wild Card round at Arizona following the 2009 season. However, in that loss to the Cardinals, the Packers quarterback had his breakout performance. Falling behind 31-10 in the third quarter, Rodgers worked his magic and finished 28-of-42 for 423 yards with four touchdowns passing and one touchdown rushing. Unfortunately, a lost Rodgers fumble doomed the Packers in the overtime period and they lost 51-45. However, that game was the coming out party for Rodgers, and he came out on fire in 2010.

No. 12 would build on that and helped lead the Packers to the promised land. It would be a bumpy road, as Green Bay needed to beat the Giants and Bears to wrap up a Wild Card spot. The Packers would have road victories over No. 3 Philadelphia, No. 1 Atlanta and No. 2 Chicago to reach the Super Bowl against the Pittsburgh Steelers at AT&T Stadium, which had won two of the previous five championships. Rodgers would solidify himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the game with a flawless performance, helping the Packers bring another one back to Titletown 31-25.

The game could not have started any better for the Green & Gold. On the team’s second drive, Rodgers led his troops down the field, and only faced two third downs on the drive, with both of them being just one yard to go. On the second of those third downs, Rodgers went back to pass and lofted a pass down the right sideline to Jordy Nelson, who caught it in the end zone for the touchdown against tight coverage from William Gay. It got better for the Packers. On Pittsburgh’s very first offensive play of its next drive, Ben Roethlisberger went back to pass and pump faked it. That pump allowed Green Bay defensive lineman Howard Green to plow through and hit Big Ben’s arm as he threw, which caused the pass to come up way short of the intended target, Mike Wallace. Nick Collins came flying in to pick it off and weaved his way through traffic 37 yards for the touchdown. It was the first defensive touchdown in a Super Bowl for the Packers since Herb Adderley in Super Bowl II.

With the score 14-3 and Pittsburgh across midfield, it looked like the Steelers were going to get right back in the game. But the unlikliest of players, Jarrett Bush, came up with the big play. Bush stepped in front of a Roethlisberger pass intended for Wallace, and picked it off. Four plays later, Rodgers threw a dart across the middle for Greg Jennings, who just was across the goal line, and many thought the rout was on at 21-3. But Pittsburgh would blow down the field, being helped by a Roethlisberger 37-yard pass to Antwaan Randel El. The score would come on a pass to the right corner of the end zone to Hines Ward to cut it to 21-10. On that drive, 2009 NFL Defensive Player of the Year and one of the leaders of the Packers Charles Woodson broke his collarbone and missed the remainder of the game. Donald Driver also was injured earlier in the game, and didn’t return.

A collective “uh oh” went through Packers fans’ minds when James Jones dropped a probable touchdown on the third play of the drive. Then, an even more uneasy feeling came after the next drive when Pittsburgh blew down the field and cut it to four on an 8-yard touchdown run by Rashard Mendenhall. So, the lead was down to four, and the Packers were without Driver and Woodson. But they had no time to feel sorry for themselves. This is the same team that also had 15 players end the season on Injured Reserve.

Green Bay’s offense went non-existent, and Pittsburgh’s offense went down the field again on its next possession, but Shaun Suisham shanked a long field goal attempt. After another Packers punt, the Steelers started the drive inside Packers territory. Someone on Green Bay’s defense needed to make a play. Clay Matthews and Ryan Pickett delivered. Before the play, outside linebackers coach Kevin Greene implored Clay Matthews, “It is time!” Matthews and Pickett helped force the game-changing fumble of Mendenhall. Desmond Bishop picked up the ball and returned it to the Green Bay 45. The Packers stared at two third downs on the drive, but they were up to the task both times. After a drop by Nelson on a second down, Rodgers went back to him on third and he ran down to the Steelers 2. Two plays later, Rodgers went to Jennings again for the touchdown, and it was 28-17.

A Pittsburgh touchdown and two-point conversion cut it to 28-25 and Green Bay was facing a 3rd-and-10 at its own 25, but Rodgers was masterful again, throwing a perfect dart to Jennings over the middle for 31 yards. Green Bay scored a field goal on the drive, which means it was just a lead of six. The Packers had to come up with a defensive stop to advance at Philadelphia in the Wild Card round and at Chicago in the NFC Championship, and now needed one in Super Bowl XLV. After a pass to Heath Miller for 15 yards out to the 28, the Packers defense put the clamps down. The next four plays yielded just five yards and the Green & Gold put another title in Titletown with the 31-25 victory.