The Poll Pennsylvanians weigh in on sports*
Favorite major league baseball team:
Pittsburgh Pirates.....31%
Philadelphia Phillies..26%
New York Yankees.....9%
Favorite NFL team:
Pittsburgh Steelers..36%
Philadelphia Eagles..25%
Washington Redskins..5%
Favorite NBA team:
Philadelphia 76ers...19%
Los Angeles Lakers...6%
No favorite.................52%
Favorite NHL team:
Pittsburgh Penguins..39%
Philadelphia Flyers...26%
No favorite...............20%
Favorite college team:
Penn State football..37%
Pitt football.................9%
Notre Dame football..4%
Favorite pro team:
Steelers...................25%
Eagles.......................15%
Pirates.......................9%
Flyers.........................5%
Redskins....................5%
Greatest athlete who ever lived in or played for a team in
your state:
Jim Thorpe...............14%
Roberto Clemente....10%
Terry Bradshaw.........8%
Mario Lemieux..........6%
Julius Erving.............6%
Wilt Chamberlain......6%
State's biggest sports rivalry:
Penn State-Pitt......29%
Steelers-Eagles........13%
Steelers-Browns.......11%
Favorite announcer:
John Madden...........17%
Myron Cope..............12%
Harry Kalas................11%
Mike Lange................6%
More a fan of college or pro sports?
Pro...........................67%
College......................17%
Equal.........................15%
ENEMY OF THE STATE
Art Modell.......................12%
Al Davis..........................8%
Jerry Jones...................7%
Modell, also chosen as the Enemy of the State in Ohio, deprived
Steelers fans of a great rivalry when he moved his Cleveland
Browns to Baltimore in 1996. But the new Browns have taken over
as Pennsylvanians' most hated opponents (33%), followed by the
Dallas Cowboys (18%) and the New York Giants (6%).
*Harris Interactive poll, conducted online of 407 Pennsylvania
residents who identified themselves as sports fans. Margin of
error +/-4.9%.
WHO & WHERE
1 Jamie Moyer
In '01, at 38, the Mariners pitcher from Sellersville became the
oldest first-time 20-game winner.
2 Mike Piazza
The best offensive catcher ever grew up in Norristown and was
drafted by the Dodgers at the urging of fellow Norristown native
Tommy Lasorda.
3 Eddie George
The Titan from Philadelphia won the Heisman at Ohio State and has
had the most rushing yards in the NFL since 1996 (8,978).
4 Marvin Harrison
The Philadelphian had an NFL-record 143 receptions for the Colts
in 2002.
5 Rasheed Wallace
The Blazers star played at Simon Gratz High in Philadelphia, as
did Sixers guard Aaron McKie.
6 Rich Gannon
The 2002 NFL MVP and Philly native completed a league-record 418
passes last year for the Raiders.
7 Kobe Bryant
The Lakers star, from Lower Merion, was booed heavily after
winning the MVP award at the 2002 All-Star Game in Philadelphia.
8 Richard Hamilton
The Coatesville native and Pistons guard averaged 23.5 points to
bury the 76ers in this year's conference semis.
9 Kerry Collins
The Giants quarterback, from West Lawn, led Penn State to an
undefeated season in 1994.
HOT SPOT
10 Beaver Stadium
Penn State's home field had only 46,284 seats when it opened in
1960. But as Joe Paterno led his team to prominence (and two
national titles), the school kept expanding it. With a capacity
of 107,282, it is the second-largest stadium in the country.
11 The Centre Region
State College, College, Ferguson, Patton and Harris share SI's
Sportstown honor for having the best community sports programs.
12 Swin Cash
The 6'2" forward from McKeesport was the 2002 Final Four MVP
after leading UConn to the title. She plays for the WNBA's Shock.
13 Bill Cowher
The Steelers coach is a Pittsburgh native; other active NFL
coaches from the area are Dave Wannstedt, Jim Haslett, Marvin
Lewis and Marty Schottenheimer.
14 LaVar Arrington
The Pittsburgh native was the state high school player of the
year and starred at Penn State. Now a Redskin, he led NFL LBs in
sacks last season, with 11.
15 Curtis Martin
The Pittsburgh native and former Pitt star, now a Jet, is the
second RB to begin his NFL career with eight straight 1,000-yard
seasons.
16 John Calipari
The hoops coach from Moon Area High took UMass to the top of the
Atlantic 10 during his eight years there and is now reviving
Memphis.
GREATEST MOMENT
The Steelers trailed 7-6 with 22 seconds left against the Oakland
Raiders on Dec. 23, 1972. On fourth-and-10 Terry Bradshaw passed
to Frenchy Fuqua, but Jack Tatum drilled him. The ball ricocheted
to Franco Harris, who grabbed it near his cleats and scored a
60-yard TD, giving his team its first playoff win in 40 years and
its first step toward glory (Super Bowl titles in '75, '76, '79,
'80).
NUMBERS
1
College football coaches named SI Sportsman of the Year: Joe
Paterno, 1986.
5
NBA scoring marks set by Philly's Wilt Chamberlain on March 2,
1962, in Hershey in a 169-147 Warriors win over the Knicks:
points (100), field goals (36), free throws made (28), points in
a quarter (31) and points in a half (59).
6
Pennsylvania colleges (Bloomsburg, Clarion, Lehigh, Lock Haven,
Penn State and Waynesburg) that have had the top wrestler at the
NCAA Division I championships.
20
Years since a Philadelphia team has won a world title, the
longest such drought for any city with teams in the four major
sports.
25
Pro Football Hall of Famers born in Pa., the most of any state.
ALLTIME BEST
For Pennsylvania's top 50 homegrown sports figures, go to
SI.com/50
Wilt Chamberlain, Basketball player
The 7'1" center from Philly averaged 30.1 points and 22.9
rebounds over 14 seasons with three NBA teams, including the
76ers. He averaged 50.4 points in 1961-62. Wilt the Stilt was Big
Eight high jump champion at Kansas.
Arnold Palmer, Golfer
The charismatic Latrobe native boosted the popularity of his
sport while winning 62 Tour events between 1955 and '73,
including seven majors. Today he is a course designer, a pilot
and the chairman of The Golf Channel.
Joe Montana, Football player
Brilliant in big games, the QB from New Eagle rallied Notre Dame
to a comeback win in the 1979 Cotton Bowl and later was named the
Super Bowl MVP three times. He led the 49ers to 10 playoff
appearances and four Super Bowl wins.
Johnny Unitas, Football player
The Hall of Fame QB from Pittsburgh led the Colts to an overtime
win in the 1958 NFL title game that lifted the sport to
prominence. His record 47 straight games with a TD pass is
unchallenged. He was drafted--and cut--by the Steelers.
Bill Tilden, Tennis player
The Babe Ruth of Tennis. From 1912 to '30 the Philadelphian won
nearly three of every four tournaments he entered, including all
eight major finals he reached from '20 through '25. Big Bill led
the U.S. to seven consecutive Davis Cup titles.
Josh Gibson, Baseball player
The Negro leagues' greatest slugger moved to Pittsburgh as a
teen. He caught for two of that city's Negro leagues teams,
hitting more than 900 homers. Gibson died at 35, months before
Jackie Robinson's 1947 big-league debut.
MEMORABLE QUOTE
"Philadelphia is the only town where you can experience the thrill
of victory and the agony of reading about it the next day."
--PHILLIES THIRD BASEMAN MIKE SCHMIDT, 1980
To see a gallery of every 76ers, Flyers and Phillies cover, view
Pitt and Penn State stories from the SI archives, or to vote
for the best QB from the Keystone State, go to
si.com/magazine/features/si50/states/pennsylvania.
COLOR CHARTEnthuse-o-meter On a scale of 1 to 100, how would you rate your state's enthusiasm for sports, relative to other states'? COLD-----83.0--HOT Rank: 1st of first 6 states polled
COLOR PHOTO: JOHN GILLIS/AP (MODELL)
COLOR MAP: MAP ILLUSTRATION BY JOE ZEFF HARRISBURG
COLOR PHOTO: JIM KIRCHNER/KIRCHNER SPORTS IMAGES (PATERNO) Paterno is 181-40 at home.
B/W PHOTO: HARRY CABLUCK/AP (HARRIS) HARRIS (32), WHO SCOOPED THE BALL OFF HIS SHOETOPS (INSET),ELUDES JIMMY WARREN FOR THE TD.
B/W PHOTO [See caption above]
COLOR PHOTO: SHEEDY & LONG (CHAMBERLAIN)
COLOR PHOTO: GARY HERSHORN/REUTERS (PALMER)
COLOR PHOTO: PETER READ MILLER (MONTANA)
B/W PHOTO: SPORTING NEWS/GETTY IMAGES (UNITAS)
B/W PHOTO: DURANT COLLECTION (TILDEN)
B/W PHOTO: BETTMANN/CORBIS (GIBSON)
COLOR PHOTO: JOHN W. MCDONOUGH (SCHMIDT)