The then Boston Patriots joined the AFL in 1959 and embarked on a journey that still is great to follow. Many precedents were set and broken by the Patriots. One of the most notable, is that in 1960, the Patriots became the first team to issue public stock. More Yankee ingenuity at work there, no doubt. Also, an interesting thing occurred in 1963, the Patriots move from Harvard Stadium and begin playing their games in Fenway Park.      Renevations to Foxboro Stadium were quite common through the years. The field was orignially constructed in 1970. The next year, the Boston Patriots were renamed the New England Patriots, also, Schaefer Stadium was opened and Gino Capelletti kicked the first 3 points scored there in a 20-14 win over the New York Giants. 60,423 fans were in attendance that day. In 1991, grass was put back into Foxboro Stadium. The last game ever played at Foxboro Stadium was a snowy onslaught in which the Patriots beat the Oakland Raiders in overtime, 16-13. However, the Patriots moved into Gillette Stadium to start the 2003 season.       In 1970, many things of importance happened to the Patriots, they merged into the NFL and joined the AFC. In 1978, the first ever playoff game was played in Foxboro. The Patriots had clinched their division for the first time, but lost to Houston in the first round of the playoffs. In 1982, the Patriots competed in the famed “Snow Plow Game,” a crew-worker cleared a kicking surface where John Smith knocked the only 3 points of the game through for the Patriots, giving them the win over Miami. In 1983, the Patriots lost their first playoff game since 1978. In 1985, the Patriots won their first post-season game ever at the Meadow Lands by defeating the New York Jets 26-14. In 1986, the Patriots won the AFC Championship by defeating the Miami Dolphins at the Orange Bowl, only to go on to lose in the Super Bowl, 46-10 to the Chicago Bears. In 1994, the Patriots defeated the Bears, 13-3 to get their first playoff berth since 1986. 1996 brought the Patriots back to the playoffs for the second time in 2 years, they also won their first AFC Division Title since 1986. They scored 23 unanswered second half points and got a bye the first week of the playoffs. That year, they made it all the way to Super Bowl XXXI, but lost to the Packers, 35-21. In 1997, they defeated the Miami Dolphins and won the AFC Division title once again. However, they lost 7-6 in the first round to the Steelers. In 1999, the Patriots lost the wild card game to the Jaguars. In 2002, the Patriots beat the Rams to win their first Super Bowl Championship in their 42 years of existence. The state of Massachusetts then held a victory parade for them.

In 1993, the Patriots underwent some changes. Their logo was changed to the streamlined head of the minuteman (shown above), and the main color of their uniforms changed from red to blue.

Many great players wore the Patriot uniform, of them, 3 have been inducted into the Hall of Fame, and 8 have had their numbers retired. Those 8 were:

Bruce Armstrong (78)
Andre Tippett (56)
Gino Cappelletti (20)
Mike Haynes (40)
Steve Nelson (57)
John Hannah (73)
Jim Lee Hunt (79)
Bob Dee (89)

The Patriots entered into the Hall of Fame are:

Nick Buoniconti
John Hannah
Mike Haynes

There have been many fine players who wore a Patriots jersey, whether their number was retired or not. Everyone from Doug Flutie to Drew Bledsoe has, at one time or another, has worn the red or blue. We hope that the upcoming years will bring more great players and memories to add to the long list of greats.

      Originally formed in 1893, as a Toledo, Ohio team in the then Western Minor League. When it turned into the American League in 1900, the franchise relocated to Boston and changed their name to the Americans in 1901. The next year in 1902, their name was changed to the Somersets, and again in 1903 they changed to the Americans. In 1907, the Americans, after winning the first World Series ever over the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1903, changed their name to the Boston Red Sox, and it has remained that way for almost a century. The long, rich, yet disappointing story of the Red Sox has made them one of the most historical and well-known teams in baseball.      The franchise had championships in 1903, 1912, 1915, 1916, and 1918. Led by players such as Denton True “Cy” Young, Tris Speaker, and George Herman “Babe” Ruth, the Red Sox were one of the early dominant teams of the 20th century. The Red Sox won American League Championships in 1903, 1904, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918, 1946, 1967, 1975, and 1986. However, as has been previously stated, the last championship came almost a century ago. The Sox have come quite close many times over the past 90 or so years, but never have been able to add a World Series championship.Many speculations have been made as to the reason for their misfortune, however the most commonly known is the Curse of the Bambino. In 1914, the team’s manager, Joseph Lannin, signed Babe Ruth and Ruth led them to World Series titles in 1915, 1916, and 1918. However, in 1919, the team’s new manager, Harry Frazee, traded Ruth to the New York Yankees. The reason prompting this trade is still ambiguous. It was originally thought to be so Frazee could pay for his Broadway production, “No, No Nanette,” but now it is believed that the trade was so he could pay for previous expenses of his failing Broadway productions. The Sox have not won a World Series since Ruth stood on the mound at Fenway Park. This absence has become known as “The Curse of the Bambino.”

Many times has the alleged (and proving to be real) curse reared its ugly head. In 1967, the Impossible Dream season in which Carl “Yaz” Yastrzemski led the Sox from the worst team in the AL to the World Series, the curse took on the form of Bob Gibson of the St. Louis Cardinals. Yaz and the boys couldn’t overcome the dominating pitching of the masterful Gibson in game seven, and in 1967 as well as 1946, the Red Sox lost the World Series to the Cardinals in game 7.

Again, in 1975, the Sox were aided by Carlton “Pudge” Fisk’s 12 inning homerun in the sixth game of the World Series. The ball was hit right down the left field line, 35,000 fans on their feet, Fisk was flapping at the ball on his way to first. After what seemed like ages, the ball hit the foul pole and Boston and New England erupted. The field was charged and Fisk shoved people out of the way on his way home. That hit is one of the most fantastic finishes in sports of all time. However, once again, the Curse rose to the surface and struck. The Red Sox held a 3 run lead for most of the game, and in the later innings, the bullpen coughed it up, and, once again, the Red Sox lost the World Series in the seventh game, this time, however to the Red Machine of the Cincinatti Reds, led by Pete Rose.

Yet the most crushing loss in Red Sox history came on October 25, 1986. Yes, this is Bill Buckner the play. The Red Sox found themselves in game six of the World Series. And, for the fourth consecutive time, the curse would reign its terror once more. In the bottom of the tenth inning, after squandering their lead for the third time in the game. A runner on second, two outs, and Mookie Wilson at the plate. Wilson fouled off over 10 pitches, and then, hit a dribbling grounder down the first base line. The runner took off speeding, and Buckner had made this play thousands of times in his life, in that season: get the ball, tag first, move on. Yet, the ball rolled right under his glove, into right field, allowing the winning run to score. However, contrary to common belief, although the Red Sox would have gotten the victory, this did not end the series, instead, it found Boston in a game seven in for the fourth consective time, in which the Mets were victorious and the Red Sox had their dreams crushed once again.

More recently, and to no surprise, the long lived and tantalizing curse destroyed New England once again. In the ALCS of 2003, the Red Sox held a 5-2 lead, with one out and nobody on. Pedro Martinez was on the mound for the Sox at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. It looked like the Sox would do the impossible: beat the Yankees in game seven of the ALCS in New York. Yes, it certainly looked that way to me, sitting in my living room, feeling the glee of victory. However, after giving up a single with Hideki Matsui stepping up to the plate (Matsui was hitting quite well against Martinez that year) I was sure the manager would pull Martinez for Scott Williamson. The pull pen had done poorly that year, yet had become a strong suit in the post season. However, the curse came around as if on que that year in the form Grady Little, the manager. Little vied to stay with Martinez, and Matsui hammered a run scoring double into the right field corner. I was sure Little would pull Martinez after that, the Sox still held a 5-3 lead, and the game could be salvaged. Instead, Little elected to keep Martinez in, the next batter smashed another double and the lead was diminished to 1 run. I was SURE that Little would take Martinez out now with Jorge Posada stepping into the box, it was just common sense. Yet, Martinez stayed on that mound, and Posada knocked another run in and the game was tied. The curse was present twice that night and in the bottom of the 12th, Aaron Boone hit a game and series winning home run off starter Tim Wakefield, propelling the Yankees past the sox and into a world series that they thankfully lost.

Retired numbers of the Red Sox are:

#4 Joe Cronin, Retired on May 29, 1984
#9 Ted Williams, Retired on May 29, 1984
#1 Bobby Doerr, Retired on May 21, 1988
#8 Carl Yastrzemski, Retired on August 6, 1989
#27 Carlton Fisk, Retired on September 4th, 2000

The Red Sox requirements for retired numbers are:

To be entered into the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown
To have played at least 10 years with the Red Sox
To finish their career with the Red Sox

Many great players have played for the Red Sox, including Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski, just to name a few. The fans of the Red Sox may very well be the most loyal of any in baseball, with all the let-downs and disappointments. Still, Fenway is sold out many games during the regular season. New seats have been and are being added to Fenway and that historical ballpark, first opened in 1912 still does and hopefully will always be the home of the Boston Red Sox, cursed, some may say, but hey, anyone can have a bad century.

      The first professional basketball league was formed in 1946. The creators, who were mostly owners of hockey teams and/or large arenas dubbed, the league the Basketball Association of America, or BAA. The Celtics were primarily started by Walter Brown, owner of Boston Gardens and part of the Boston Bruins. The first ever home game was played at Boston Gardens on November 5, 1946. The Celtics suffered a loss, but it marked the first step of the most successful franchise in basketball history.      For the first four years, the Celtics had awful seasons, usually finishing in last place or being eliminated quickly in post season. However, before the 1949 season, the BAA merged with the National Basketball League, forming the National Basketball Association, or NBA. The Celtics remained a team, however their luck did not improve, that year. However, there was much Luck of the Irish for the Celtics during the next season.Before the 1950 season, the NBA underwent a major overhaul. The 17 teams were cut down to only 11, the other teams’ players were split up amoung the remaining 11. This change gave the Celtics advantages none had dreamed of. By pure luck, the Celtics aquired Ed Macauley, but more importantly, a young rookie who no one wanted, and his name was literally drawn out of a hat, the rookie was Bob Cousy. In addition to the soon to be superstar of Cousy, the all time great coach, Red Auerbach took over as the head coach of the Boston Celtics. Although Auerbach originally had doubts about Cousy, they soon disappeared as Cousy brought incredibly new moves to the game. The behind the back dribble and no look passes were aspects unheard of at the time. However, in the following season, the Celtics were fabulous during the regular season, but were upset in the first round of the playoffs by New York.

In the 1951 season important players were added, but the Celtics were again eliminated in the playoffs. The Celtics had an explosive offense, but lacked a lot on defense, they were continually eliminated from the playoffs early and not until 1956, did Boston get the break it had really been looking for. It came in the form of a 6-10 center named Bill Russell. Russell had brought consecutive unbeaten seasons to the University of San Francisco. The Celtics traded Macauley and a few other players to the Hawks for Russell. Russell’s ability to jump, rebound, and block shots gave the Celtics the defensive edge they needed. Bill Russell aided Cousy in fast breaks as well by making quick outlet passes after getting a defensive stop. This defensive power turned the Celtics into a dynamo team and soon they were the dominating force in the NBA. That year’s playoffs brought some of the most fantastic finishes in Celtics history, especially the Game Seven double overtime win over the St. Louis Hawks to give the Celtics their first championship ever, and began a dynasty.

From 1958 to 1969, the Celtics reigned over the NBA behind Russell and Cousy. Russell, after winning 11 championships in 13 years may be the single most dominant player in basketball, and sports history for that matter. Russell finally retired in 1969, and that marked the end of the Celtic dynasty. The team had a completely new look. A new head coach, Tom Heinsohn, a new center to fill the vacancy Russell had left was 6-9 Dave Cowens, and John Havlicek occupied a forward position.

It took until 1974, however, for the Celtics to bring the crown back to Boston, but they did so by defeating the Milwaukee Bucks and Kareem Abdul-Jabaar in game seven to win their first title in 5 years. Game 7 was a thriller in which Cowens scored 28 points and gave the win to Boston. In the next season, however, the Celtics fell in the Eastern Conference finals to the Wasthington Bullets. The 1976 finals featured the longest and possibly most exciting finals game ever played. The Celtics beat the Phoenix Suns in 3 overtimes 128-126 to get a 3-2 game lead on the Suns. Boston went on to capture the 13th championship in franchise history two nights later.

Then, until 1979, the Celtics entered bad times. Misfortunes and missed opportunities handed the Celtics their worst season since the 1949-1950 season in 1977-78. In 1978, they had another dismal season, but did get the rights to the soon to be super star Larry Bird. His arch-rival Magic Johnson went to the Los Angeles Lakers. In 1979, the Celtics regular season had a great turn around, they rose to first place in the East, but lost in the playoffs to Philadelphia. Before the 1980 season, a few things of great importance occurred to the club. Dave Cowens retired in a shocking announcement, but Robert Parish and Kevin McHale were added to the roster. That year, the Celtics went on to beat the Houston Rockets and take their 14th championship banner. In the 1984 finals, the Celtics defeated the Lakers in another game 7 victory and they took their 15 championship. Finally, however the Lakers came away with a win against the Celtics in the finals and the Celtics fell for the first time to the Lakers in the finals of 1985.

The next year, however, the Celtics, boosted by awesome play by Bird, took home their 16th NBA Title in 6 games in 1986. The next years marked a period of distress and let downs for the Celtics, and finally, in 1992, another super star of the Celtics, Larry Bird, announed his retirement. Larry Bird was a member of the last championship Celtics team in 1986, and the Celtics are still in trying times.

In 1995, the Celtics moved their home to the new Fleet Center, yet, their luck did not improve. They did not win another title, but in 1999, they signed Paul Pierce and this rookie led the team to phenomenal years, yet still without a title. Then Antoine Walker was signed and these two giants carried the Celtics for the next few years under the new coach, Dave O’Brien. However, Walker has been recently traded in the 2003-04 season, and the Celtics are still looking for their 17th title.

The Celtics have had so many great players wear the Celtic Green and White, and the retired numbers from the Celtics are:

00 Robert Parish
1   Walter Brown
2   Arnold “Red” Auerbach
3   Dennis Johnson
6   Bill Russell
10 Jo Jo White
14 Bob Cousy
15 Tom Heinsohn
16 Satch Sanders
17 John Havlicek
18 Dave Cowens
19 Don Nelson
21 Bill Sharman
22 Ed Macauley
23 Frank Ramsey
24 Sam Jones
25 K.C. Jones
32 Kevin McHale
33 Larry Bird
35 Reggie Lewis
… Jim Loscutoff (# 18 was retired in honor of Dave Cowens)
… Johnny Most (broadcaster)

Celtics in the Naismith Hall of Fame are:

“Easy” Ed Macauley
Andy Phillip
John “Honey” Russell
Walter Brown
Bill Mokray
Alvin “Doggie” Julian
Arnold “Red” Auerbach
Bob Cousy
Bill Russell
Bill Sharman
Frank Ramsey
John Havlicek
Sam Jones
Tom Heinsohn
Bob Houbregs
“Pistol” Pete Maravich
Clyde Lovellette
K.C. Jones
Dave Bing
Nate “Tiny” Archibald
Dave Cowens
Bill Walton
Bailey Howell
Larry Bird
Arnie Risen

With 16 championships, the Celtics place 3rd all time behind the New York Yankees and Montreal Canadiens. However, their story and past is still probably the best in NBA history. The Celtics have shown that they have faith and although their dynasty years are said to be over, who knows what the future could bring to the Celtic Green?

      The Boston Bruins entered the NHL in 1924 and in their inaugural season went 6-24. They did not reach the playoffs until the 1926 season but lost in the Stanley Cup to the Ottowa Senators. In the 1928 season, the Bruins move to Boston Gardens and win their first Stanley Cup ever on March 29, 1929. All throgh the 1930s, the Bruins have good regular seasons for the most part, but don’t win a Stanley cup until the 1938 season, their second ever.      In the 1940 season the Bruins sweep the Red Wings to take their 3rd Stanley Cup, but the very next year, they lose many of their excelent players to WWII. In the 1944 season, the Bruins score a franchise record 14 goals agains the New York Rangers on January 21st.In the 1966 season, Bobby Orr makes his debut in a Bruins uniform and is astounding through the regular season. In the 1969 season, Bobby Orr and Phil Eposito (who set the record for Stanley Cup goals with 13) lead the Boston Bruins to their first Stanley Cup Championship in 29 years. In the 1971 season, the Bruins again advanced to the Stanley Cup, and again, Bobby Orr scored the winning goal in the Stanley Cup finals. Overall, the Bruins won 5 Stanley Cup championships in the seasons of 1929, 1938, 1940, 1969, and 1971.

Many great players have worn a Bruins uniform, some of them including Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, Eddy Shore, and Ray Bourque. These giants of the game led the Bruins to their 5 championships and will forever be legends of hockey. Bobby Orr in particular, the defenseman who set just about every goal for the position possible. He revolutionized the game and is the only defenseman to lead the league in assists, and he did it multiple times.

The Boston Bruins have retired 9 numbers:

#2 Edward Shore played from 1926-1940
#3 Lionel Hitchman played from 1925-1934
#4 Robert G. Orr played from 1966-1976
#5 Audrey Clapper played from 1927-1947
#7 Philip Esposito played from 1967-1975
#9 John Bucyk played from 1955-1978
#15 Milton Schmidt played from 1936-1955
#77 Raymond Borque played from 1979-2000
#24 Terrence O’Reilly played from 1972-1985

Without a doubt, in the 1969 season, when Phil Esposito and Bobby Orr lead the Bruins to their first Stanley Cup in almost 30 years, was the most dramatic finish in Bruins history. The importance behind the game, the over time pressure, and Bobby Orr’s shot that brang the crown back to Boston was and incredible moment. It will live on in Bruins history along with the other great moments of the franchise’s history.

Team Statistics
	Pts	Yds	Rush	Pass
Off	21.8	314.9	100.4	214.5
Def	14.9	291.6	89.6	202.0
Passing
	Att.	Comp.	Yds.	TD
Tom Brady	527	317	3620	23
Rushing
	Car.	Yds.	Avg	TD
Smith	182	642	3.5	3
Faulk	178	638	3.6	0
Receiving
	Rec.	Yds.	Avg	TD
Branch	57	803	14.1	3
Givens	34	510	15.0	6