Sports legends doing legendary things

Most sports legends have a legendary story to share. Most of these stories are embellishments of the original tale, but some are unexplainably true.

THE BLEACHER REPORT has complied some of these legendary stories for your amusement. Did Deion Sanders really run the fastest time at the NFL Combine? How many goals did Pele average during his career? How many reverse dunks did Earl “The Goat” Manigault pull off to win a $60 bet? Find out below.

Soccer

Pele

At the age of 17, the great Pele, established himself as the definition of Brazilian football, as he scored a hat trick in his first World Cup Tournament. During a time when the game was much more physical and bookings were much less frequent, its said that Pele put the ball in the net 1280 times in 1363 career fixtures with international and club teams. That’s nearly a goal per game!

Pele won a total of 32 titles during his career. Perhaps his most amazing feat was bringing soccer to a new level in America in the 70’s while playing for the Cosmos.

Baseball

Satchel Paige

Negro League pitcher Satchel Paige is best known for his long career and high salary.  While Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams were overseas fighting with the armed forces, Satchel was the highest paid athlete in America.

However, Satchel is a legend for intentionally walking loaded bases in the 1942 Negro World Series to face the most feared slugger of his time, Josh Gibson.

Paige went on to strike Gibson out in 3 pitches. Gonads, my friends, gonads!

And rumor has it, Page won 104 out of 105 games in 1934.

Josh Gibson

Now Josh Gibson’s story will make Paige’s tale even more unbelievable.
Josh Gibson was known at the time as “The Black Babe,” because of his home run power.  Sadahara Oh from Japan is known as the all-time baseball home-run leader with over 800. Behind him there’s Barry Bonds, Hank Aarons, Babe Ruth, and the list goes on.

There are no precise numbers, but Gibson was said to have hit 962 homers in his career, with 84 in 1936!
The first thing fans usually say to discredit Gibson’s accomplishments is, “He was playing in the Negro League.”  However, Paige played in both the Negro League and the majors.
During his MLB career, Paige had an era of 3.29. That’s not bad even by today’s standards.

Football

Deion “Prime-Time” Sanders

I think we all know how great of an athlete Deion was. He played pro baseball and football, excelling at both. In college he was also a track and field star, while being named an All-American three times in football.

But the Deion story most fans forget, that I love the most involves his 40 yard dash at the NFL Combine.
Legend has it, in 1989, Prime Time walked on to the field with nothing but a pair of gym shorts, flip-flops, a t-shirt and a gold chain. Sanders proceeded to slip off his sandals and run a 4.12 40 yard dash - barefoot!

Enough said!

There are many more sports legends that have redefined expectations.

Earl “The Goat” Manigault, a 6-foot-2 guard from Harlem, is known to have done 36 consecutive reverse dunks to win a $60 bet. He also set the record in New York City for most points scored by a junior high student with 57.

Manigault’s other accolades involve a double dunk, where he’d finish one dunk, grab the ball after it goes through the net while still in the air, only to slam it one more time before landing. His acrobatics were on display for money once again, when he leapt to the top of a backboard to snatch $20 someone had stuck to a piece of bubble gum.

It’s amazing what some sports legends can do. How about the NIKE commercial where Tiger Woods continuously bounces a golf ball off one of his clubs and then drives it into the distance?

Deion Sanders

“Prime Time” Deion Sanders was one of the flashiest and cockiest players to ever don a NFL uniform. He was also one of the best cover corners the game has ever seen. 

Deion Sanders was a three-sport athlete at Florida State University. He starred in football, baseball and track, and was a two-time consensus All-American cornerback in 1987 and 1988. In 1988, he won the Jim Thorpe Award, which is given to the nation’s top defensive back. 

Deion Sanders was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in 1989 and immediately made an impact, scoring a touchdown on his very first kick return. During his five years in Atlanta, Deion Sanders intercepted 24 passes – three of which he returned for touchdowns – and led the league in kickoff return yards with 1,067 in 1992. 

Frustrated by the direction of the Falcons, Deion Sanders signed a one-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers, turning in one of his best seasons as a pro. He recorded six interceptions and returned them for an NFL-best 303 yards and three touchdowns. Deion Sanders also won the 1994 NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award and hauled in an interception in the 49ers’ 49-26 thrashing of the San Diego Chargers in Super Bowl XXIX. 

After feuding with All-Pro wide receiver Jerry Rice, Deion Sanders became upset with the 49ers’ organization. Just before the 1995 season, “Prime Time” signed a seven-year, $35 million contract with the Dallas Cowboys, which made him the highest paid defensive player in the NFL. That season, Deion Sanders helped the Cowboys win their third Super Bowl in four years with an exiting victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XXX. In the game, Deion Sanders caught a 47-yard reception on offense, which set up the Cowboys’ first score. He currently is the only player in NFL history to catch a pass and make an interception in the Super Bowl. 

Towards the twilight of his career, Deion Sanders played for the Washington Redskins and Baltimore Ravens, respectively. But age and injuries caught up to the once elite cornerback and in January of 2006, Deion Sanders retired for a second time and became an analyst for the NFL Network, where he’s still currently employed. 

Over his NFL career, Deion Sanders was selected to eight Pro Bowls, was a nine-time All-Pro selection and was a two-time Super Bowl Champion. He was also selected to the NFL’s All-Decade Team for the 1990s. 

One of the things Deion Sanders is known for is being a two-sport athlete. He played with five different teams during his MLB career, including the New York Yankees (1989-1990), the Atlanta Braves (1991-1994), Cincinnati Reds (1994-1995, 1997, 2001) and the San Francisco Giants (1995). He led the National League in triples in 1992 with 14 and stole 186 bases during his career. 

While Deion Sanders has taken criticism for shying away from contact on the football field, nobody can deny his legacy as a legitimate shutdown corner. Perhaps no other corner in the NFL has ever shut down an entire side of the field like Deion Sanders could, although there arguably have been better all-around defensive backs, including the Broncos’ Champ Bailey.