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.