On this day, December 31st, in 1988, Mario Lemieux became the first and only player to score 5 NHL goals in 5 different ways. In the game against the New Jersey Devils, Lemieux amassed a total of 8 points.  Scoring from all five scoring situations was an unthinkable feat and fans watched in amazement as Lemiex scored in an even-strength, power-play, shorthanded, penalty shot, and empty net scenario.

Lemieux retired in 1997 and was named to the Hall of Fame that year.  He would return to play for the Penguins from 2000-2006.  Lemieux is currently the partial owner and chairman of the board for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

On this day, December 30th, in 1954, the 24 second shot clock was introduced into professional basketball. The 24 shot clock was first introduced by the Syracuse Nationals in a scrimmage game.  The clock greatly increased the pace of the game as well as total number of shots taken.  The shot clock was first adopted into the NBA rules in the 1954-55 season.

Many credit the shot clock with saving the popularity of basketball.  Instead of being a boring, low-scoring sport, basketball became one of the most fast paced and exciting sports for fans to watch.  With the shot clock, the average score of the NBA immediately increased from 79 to 93 in its first year.

On this day, December 29th, in 1982, Paul “Bear” Bryant coached his final Alabama football game. Bryant’s last game was a victory in the Liberty Bowl against the University of Illinois.  In his 25 year seasons coaching for Alabama, Bryant’s team won 6 national championships, 13 SEC championships and a total of 315 wins.

A month after retiring, Bear Bryant became ill and complained of chess pain.  A heart attack took his life on January 26, 1983. Bryant was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1986.

On this day, December 28th, in 1958, the Baltimore Colts defeated the New York Giants 23-17 in overtime. The 1958 championship was the first NFL playoff game to go into sudden death overtime.  With the score tied 17 to 17, the game ended with a 13 play, 80 yard drive led by Baltimore quarterback Johnny Unitas.   Baltimore receiver Raymond Berry had 12 receptions for 178 yards and a touchdown in the game.

The 1958 Championship earned the name, “The Greatest Game Ever Played.”  It is also credited with greatly increasing the NFL’s popularity, as the game was broadcasted to a national audience on NBC.

On this day, December 27th, in 1994, the NFL announced a record year for attendance with over 14 million paying fans. The attendance record marked a trend for increasing NFL popularity in the 1990s.

Today, the NFL’s attendance marks are consistently above the record level of 1994.  In 2010, there were a total of 17.3 million live spectators in the season, an average of 67,500 a game.

On this day, December 26th, in 1986, Doug Jarvis set the NHL record for most consecutive games played at 916. Amazingly, Jarvis was able to play continually from entering the league without sustaining any serious injuries.  The previous record was held by Gary Unger.  Jarvis was able to increase his record to 964 during the 1985-86 season.

After his retirement, he became an assistant coach in the NHL.

On this day, December 25th, in 1888, the first ever indoor baseball game on record was played in the city of Philadelphia. The game was played on the state fairgrounds in a large building with 2,000 spectators present.  The game was played between the Downtowners and the Uptowners.  The Uptowners won the game 6-1.

Today, indoor baseball exists throughout the country, mainly so baseball can be played in the winter.

On this day, December 24th, in 1974, the great Lou Brock from the St. Louis Cardinals was named Sportsmen of the Year. Brock’s 1974 season was characterized by great on-base play.  That year, Brock broke Maury Wills’ single-season stolen base record of 104, ending the season with 118.  Brock finished the year second in NL Most Valuable Player voting.

Lou Brock was named to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985.  His stolen base record stood for 8 years until broken by Rickey Henderson of the Oakland Athletics.

On this day, December 23rd, in 1972, Franco Harris makes the Immaculate Reception for the Steelers against the Oakland Raiders.  The catch game on a big stage at a pivotal point in the AFC divisional playoff game.  On a fourth and ten play, down by one point, with little more than a minute remaining in the game, Steelers’ quarterback Terry Bradshaw through a pass to running back John Fuqua.  Fuqua was hit as the pass arrived, sending the ball flying end over end into the outstretched hands of Franco Harris, the Steelers’ fullback.  Harris caught the ball at the Raiders’ 43-yard line and ran the remaining length of the field for the game winning score.

The Immaculate Reception is one of the most memorable plays in football, but it did not come without a great deal of controversy.  Raiders fans still dispute the legality of the catch to this day and the coach of the 1972 Raiders, John Madden, has declared that he will never get over the play’s outcome.

On this day, December 22nd, in 1986, Penn Sate Coach Joe Paterno was the second coach to be named Sportsmen of the year by Sports Illustrated.  In 1986, Paterno coached the Penn State Nittany Lions to a perfect 12-0 season, securing the team with a consensus national championship.  1986 marked the second year that Paterno helped the team win a national title; the only two the Penn State football has won in their history.

Joe Paterno continued to be the head coach of Penn State until 2011, ending his 45 tenure as tech winningest coach in college football.  Paterno coached his team to an amazing 409 wins.