December 1972 in Sports History

Events in Sport

Dec 2 37th Iron Bowl: Auburn beats Alabama 17-16 in Birmingham

Sports History

Dec 2 Romanian tennis star Ilie Năstase successfully defends his ATP Masters Grand Prix title with a 6–3, 6–2, 3–6, 2–6, 6–3 win over American Stan Smith in Barcelona, Spain

Dec 3 CFL Grey Cup, Ivor Wynne Stadium, Hamilton: Hamilton Tiger-Cats defeat Saskatchewan Roughriders, 13-10; Tiger-Cats first team in CFL's modern era to win Grey Cup at home
Dec 5 38th Heisman Trophy Award: Johnny Rodgers, Nebraska (FL)
Dec 11 New York Jets' Don Maynard becomes all time pro reception leader (632)
Dec 16 Miami Dolphins become 1st undefeated NFL team (14-0-0)
Dec 23 "Immaculate Reception" Steelers turns around a 7-6 defeat with a last second touchdown reception against Raiders to win 13-7 [1]
Dec 23 2nd Fiesta Bowl: #15 Arizona State beats Missouri, 49-35
Dec 23 New York Islanders end 15 games winless streak

Ballon d'Or

Dec 26 Ballon d'Or: Bayern Munich defender Franz Beckenbauer wins award for best European football player ahead of tied fellow German duo of Gerd Müller and Günter Netzer

Dec 27 LA Kings start Islanders on 12 game losing streak
Dec 29 Test Cricket debut of Jeff Thomson and Max Walker v Pakistan at MCG
Dec 31 39th Sugar Bowl: #2 Oklahoma beats #5 Penn State, 14-0
Dec 31 AFC Championship, Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh: Miami Dolphins beat Pittsburgh Steelers, 21-7

Australian Open Women's Tennis

Dec 31 Australian Open Women's Tennis: Margaret Court beats Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6-4, 7-5 for her record 11th and final Australian singles crown

Dec 31 NFC Championship, RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.: Washington Redskins beat Dallas Cowboys 26-3

Birthdays in Sport

Dec 2 Alan Henderson, American basketball forward (NBA Most Improved Player 1998; Atlanta Hawks), born in Morgantown, West Virginia
Dec 3 Bucky Lasek, American skateboarder (10 x Summer X Games gold), born in Baltimore, Maryland
Dec 3 Eva Němcová, Czech basketball forward (WNBA record 66 consecutive free throws 2000; Cleveland Rockers), born in Prague, Czech Republic
Dec 4 Ted Johnson, American NFL inside linebacker (Super Bowl 2001, 03-04; New England Patriots), born in Alameda, California
Dec 5 Cliff Floyd, MLB outfielder and 1st base (Montreal Expos), born in Chicago, Illinois
Dec 5 Mike Mahoney, American baseball player, born in Des Moines, Iowa
Dec 5 Randolph Ross, American 110m hurdler, born in Shelby, North Carolina
Dec 5 Roderick Mullen, American NFL defensive back (Green Bay Packers-Super Bowl 31), born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Dec 6 Brendan Garard, Australian field hockey halfback (Olympics 1996)
Dec 6 Gary Bandy, American NFL defensive end (Atlanta Falcons), born in Kansas City, Missouri
Dec 6 James Logan, American NFL linebacker (Seattle Seahawks), born in Opp, Alabama
Dec 6 Mike Gruttadauri, American football center (St Louis Rams), born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Dec 7 Bobby Schoonens, Dutch soccer player (RKC), born in Den Bosch, Netherlands
Dec 7 Clay Shiver, American NFL center (Dallas Cowboys, Carolina Panthers), born in Tifton, Georgia
Dec 7 Hermann Maier, Austrian skier (2 Olympic gold medals 1998), born in Altenmarkt im Pongau, Austria
Dec 7 Jordi Buritlo, Spanish tennis player, born in Barcelona, Spain

Dec 7 Kevin Dogins, American NFL player (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), born in Eagle Lake, Texas
Dec 8 Marco Abreu, Angolan footballer, born in Lubango, Angola
Dec 9 Fabrice Santoro, Tahitian tennis star, born in Tahiti, French Polynesia
Dec 10 Donavon Frankenreiter, American singer-songwriter, guitarist (Pass It Around), and surfer, born in Downey, California
Dec 11 Daniel Alfredsson, Swedish NHL right wing (Ottawa Senators), born in Gothenburg, Sweden
Dec 11 Francisco Rodriguez, American pitcher (Minnesota Twins), born in Brooklyn, New York
Dec 11 Robert Robinson, Canadian CFL defensive linebacker (Winnipeg Blue Bombers), born in Toronto, Ontario
Dec 12 Greg Randolph, American road cyclist (Olympics-74th-96), born in Denver, Colorado
Dec 12 Nicky Eaden, English footballer, born in Sheffield, England
Dec 12 Wilson Kipketer, Kenyan-born Danish middle-distance runner, born in Kapchemoiywo, Nandi County, Kenya
Dec 12 Yeoryios Theodoridis, Greek sprinter, born in Athens
Dec 14 Johnny Mcwilliams, American football tight end (Arizona Cardinals), born in Pomona, California
Dec 14 Marcus Jensen, American baseball player, born in Oakland, California
Dec 15 Rodney Harrison, American football safety (Super Bowl 2003, 04 NE Patriots; Pro Bowl 1998, 2001; First team All-Pro 1998, 2003; SD Chargers), born in Markham, Illinois
Dec 16 Charles Gipson, American baseball player
Dec 16 Željko Kalac, Australian soccer player
Dec 17 Brian Williams, NFL linebacker (Green Bay Packers-Super Bowl 31)
Dec 17 Dewayne Washington, cornerback (Minnesota Vikings)
Dec 17 Don Davis, linebacker (New Orleans Saints)
Dec 17 Ivan Pedroso, Cuba, long jumper (Olympic 4th 1992)

Dec 18 Jeff Nelson, Prince Albert, NHL center (Washington Capitals)
Dec 19 Warren Sapp, American NFL Hall of Fame defensive tackle, 1995-2007, 7X Pro Bowl (Tampa Bay Bucs; Oakland Raiders), born in Orlando, Florida
Dec 19 Waverly Jackson, American NFL player, 1998-2002 (Carolina Panthers), born in South Hill, Virginia
Dec 20 Jan Caloun, Czech hockey forward (Team Czech Olympic gold 1998), born in Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic
Dec 20 Jonathan Wyatt, New Zealand 5000m runner (Olympics 1996), born in Wellington, New Zealand
Dec 20 Scott Slutzker, American football tight end (Indianapolis Colts), born in Oakland, California
Dec 21 Dustin Hermanson, American baseball player, born in Springfield, Ohio
Dec 21 Latroy Hawkins, American baseball player, born in Gary, Indiana
Dec 22 Kirk Maltby, NHL right wing (Edmonton Oilers), born in Guelph, Canada
Dec 22 Mike Thompson, NFL defensive tackle (Jacksonville Jaguars), born in Portage, Wisconsin
Dec 24 Alvaro Mesen, Costa Rican footballer, born in Alajuela, Costa Rica
Dec 26 Derrick Cullors, American football running back (New England Patriots), born in Dallas, Texas
Dec 26 Esteban Fuertes, Argentine footballer, born in Coronel Dorrego Partido, Argentina
Dec 27 Charles Way, NFL fullback (NY Giants)
Dec 27 Dewayne Washington, NFL cornerback (Minnesota Vikings)
Dec 28 Adam Clawson, US slalom canoeist (Olympic-19th-96), born in Salt Lake City, Utah
Dec 28 Adam Vinatieri, US NFL placekicker (Amsterdam Admirals, NE Patriots), born in Yankton, South Dakota
Dec 28 Jean-Francois Jomphe, Canadian professional ice hockey player (Anaheim), born in Havre-Saint-Pierre, Canada
Dec 28 Jim Kitts, US NFL running back (Frankfurt Galaxy, Miami Dolphins), born in Portsmouth, Virginia
Dec 28 Patrick Rafter, Australian tennis player (US Open 1997-98), born in Mount Isa, Australia
Dec 28 Roberto Palacios, Peruvian footballer, born in Lima, Peru
Dec 30 Kerry Collins, American College Football Hall of Fame quarterback (Penn State Uni; Pro Bowl 1996, 2008; Carolina Panthers, Tennessee Titans), born in Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Dec 30 Loren Meyer, NBA center (Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks)
Dec 30 Paul Keegan, Irish footballer
Dec 31 Cole Ford, American football placekicker (Oakland Raiders), born in Tucson, Arizona
Dec 31 Kelvin Kinney, American football defensive end (Washington Redskins), born in Montgomery, West Virginia

Deaths in Sport

Dec 3 Mike Brady, American golfer (US Open 1911, 19 runner-up; 9 PGA Tour titles), dies at 85
Dec 11 John Mills, New Zealand cricket batsman (7 Tests, 241 runs, 1 x 100), dies at 67
Dec 20 Gabby Hartnett, American Baseball Hall of Fame catcher (MLB All Star 1933–38; NL MVP 1935; Chicago Cubs) and manager (Chicago Cubs), dies of cirrhosis on his 72nd birthday
Dec 28 Roy "Link" Lyman, American NFL player (Chicago Bears), dies at 74

Roberto Clemente (1934-1972)

Dec 31 Puerto Rican Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder (15 x MLB All Star; World Series 1960, 71 [MVP]; Pittsburgh Pirates), dies in a plane crash at 38