Sporcle is a destructive force. For those of you very unlucky souls that are unfamiliar, Sporcle is a website filled with trivia games that test you on knowledge of things from the U.S. Presidents to words that end in “ta.”
Unfortunately, Sporcle is also saturated with sports trivia games that consume sports nerds like myself for hours on end, depriving us of basic necessities — like productivity. There is very little point in writing an essay when I have the option of quizzing myself on NBA players that have averaged 30 or more points per game over the course of a season. Why go to the gym when I can find out that Loyola Chicago was one of just a handful of teams to be named the No. 1 team in the AP Preseason Poll?
And I’m not one for unconventional columns, but to hell with it, I wanted to challenge you, the reader, to a Sporclesque challenge.
Welcome to “The College Game.” One of my current suitemates and I play this game on at least a tri-weekly basis, and it doesn’t get any less entertaining. The rules are simple: I give you the name of a fairly significant NFL or NBA player, and you tell me what school he went to. Sounds simple enough, right? Give it your best shot.
Getting Started
1. Washington Redskins QB Donovan McNabb
2. Atlanta Hawks G Joe Johnson
3. New England Patriots WR Randy Moss
4. Charlotte Bobcats F Gerald Wallace
5. Tennessee Titans RB Chris Johnson
A little harder
6. Oakland Raiders QB Bruce Gradkowski
7. Utah Jazz G/F Kyle Korver
8. Seattle Seahawks WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh
9. Phoenix Suns G Steve Nash
10. Denver Broncos QB Kyle Orton
Go time
11. Free agent WR Terrell Owens
12. Detroit Pistons C Ben Wallace
13. Arizona Cardinals CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie
14. Washington Wizards G Earl Boykins
15. Dallas Cowboys QB Tony Romo
Old School
16. Former WR Jerry Rice
17. Former G John Stockton
18. Former QB Kurt Warner
19. Former F Larry Bird
20. Former RB Marshall Faulk
Suggestions from friends
21. Atlanta Falcons RB Michael Turner
22. Utah Jazz F Paul Millsap
23. New Orleans Saints WR Marques Colston
24. New Jersey Nets G Courtney Lee
25. Cleveland Browns QB Jake Delhomme
My personal favorites
26. San Antonio Spurs G George Hill
27. Cleveland Browns WR Mohamed Massaquoi
28. Los Angeles Lakers F Lamar Odom
29. Washington Redskins LB London Fletcher
30. Detroit Pistons G Rodney Stuckey
There you have it. If you can get the majority of them, you can legitimately hang. Feel free to cheat if you need to, I’m sure it will be necessary. For those of you who want an honest test, here’s a scoring guide:
0-4: Emmitt Smith
5-9: Tedy Bruschi
10-14: Jeff Van Gundy
15-19: Tom Jackson
20-24: Chris Mortensen
25-29: John Hollinger
30: Howie Schwab
In parting, I’ll leave you with one hint: London Fletcher played for the Blue Streaks.
Zach Zimmerman knew all these without cheating. Try to stump him at zachz “at” stanford.edu.