Your most enjoyable sports stories of 2012

Forget about "biggest news" or "most impact" or cultural legacy. Those have always felt kind of blase and cliche to me anyway. Team Wins Championship, Fans Elated.

But we all watch sports primarily because we like to be entertained (except oop). So what stories kept you entertained in 2012? Something you made sure to check out and kick around on here, on Facebook, with friends. Maybe you have some that inspired you (I thought about the Colts and Pagano, or maybe Oscar Pistorius). But, keeping in mind that nothing in sports entertains me more than chaos, here are the ones I'm most likely to remember:

1. Tebow makes playoffs, beats Steelers, owns universe despite at least 50 QBs being better

2. Linsanity

3. Petrino!

4. Baseball's new playoff format, better than March Madness. *4a.* A-Rod benched

5. Bobby V and the Red Sox: What could possibly go wrong?

6. Lane Kiffin versus the world, and the world is kicking ass

7. RG3, superstar

8. Coach Calipari and his student-athletes make the NCAA proud

9. The Olympic badminton match with both teams trying to lose, which save your moralizing because that was a riot

10. Packers-Seahawks replacement refs clusterfuckpalooza

 

Tebow & Linsanity for sure -- and I barely ever watch the NFL or the NBA.

 

Hate to get all nitpicky, but wasn't the Tebow story really a 2011 story?

2012 Tebow's been a bench sitting dud.

 

Adrian Peterson.

 

I enjoyed the hell out of watching team handball during the Olympics. Wacky game. Other than that, everything just seemed to kinda blend into everything else. Could be a function of age.

 

None of them. It was all boring and stupid and I hated every second of it.

 

Lance (and Sally Jenkins) exposed for being the frauds many knew they were.

 

Last day of the Premier League season was pretty awesome.

 

Playoff game was in January and drew highest rating in 25 years for wild card weekend. Then came GQ cover and weeklong media stakeout of opening of training camp.

That was one of my last cuts. That was pretty enjoyable.

 

Let's go with a baker's dozen:

1. Alabama vs. LSU in January
2. Alabama vs. LSU in November
3. Alabama vs. Georgia
4. Alabama vs. Auburn
5. Alabama vs. Michigan
6. Alabama vs. Mississippi State
7. Alabama vs. Arkansas
8. Alabama vs. Tennessee
9. Alabama vs. Missouri
10. Alabama vs. Mississippi
11. Alabama vs. Western Kentucky
12. Alabama vs. Florida Atlantic
13. Alabama vs. Western Carolina

 

The Texas A&M game doesn't make the list? That one was a classic.

That would be my No. 1

as for the rest
No. 2 - Tiger baseball (up until the World Series)
No. 3 - Cabrera winning the triple crown
No. 4 - the resurgence of Indiana basketball
No. 5 - Dutch womens Olympic field hockey

 

Texas A&M vs. Alabama