Historically Speaking: 1-27-09

Good ol' 27 January, known 'round the globe as the most exciting day in the annals of history. Make haste, coveted reader, for the indulgences and relics that await you, on the other side of the jump.

* All the way back in 1894, the first college basketball game was played today, and it was a barn-burner; the University of Chicago handed it to Chicago YMCA, 19-11.

* In 1963, baseball's Hall of Fame welcomed a bunch of guys I've never heard of to the mix. They went by insane monikers such as Sam Rice, Eppa Rixey, Elmer Flick, and John Clarkson.

* Two years later, the NHL saw its first Swedish-born player take the ice. That guy's name was Ulf Sterner, and destiny didn't have it in store for him to set any other records as he would only play in four contests.

* Nineteen eighty-four saw the impressive 51-game scoring streak of Wayne Gretzky come to a conclusion. The then-Edmonton Oiler got the feat underway in October of '83 and saw it come to an end with his soon-to-be-traded-to Los Angeles Kings.

* Finally, in 1998, the WNBA began filling the rosters of the Washington Mystics and the Detroit Shock, 11 years to the day before all six House of Georges readers would slit their wrists due to the boredom incurred while reading this post.

And your Sports Illustrated quote of the day comes from the mouth of...



former Washington Redskins receiver Gary Clark, who, in 1992, was asked, just before the Super Bowl, what was the one question he hated the most. His answer: "That one."