I'm a bit of a "decade truther." There was no "Year Zero." We went from 1 BC to 1 AD. So a decade starts when the final number is "1," not "0." But like so many things in society, facts tend not to matter when it comes to #content, so everyone is doing their decade-end retrospectives this year. Since everyone knows I'm a fun guy (like Kawhi Leonard!), I figured I'd play along with the "Best Of" theme and look at some Best Ofs for the decade.
For example, Best Athlete of the decade is easy. His greatest accomplishments came in 2008, but Baltimore's Michael Phelps still won NINE gold medals and 12 Olympic medals overall this decade. The best female athlete of the decade is either Baltimore native Angel McCoughtry -- she of two WNBA scoring titles, five All-Star appearances and two Olympic golds this decade -- or if you'd prefer it be someone who competed locally, it'd be McDonogh and Maryland lacrosse legend Taylor Cummings, who won four IAAM championships, two national titles and three Tewaaraton Awards.
If you wanted to remain specific, a Best Male College Athlete would either be former Navy quarterback Keenan Reynolds or former Loyola lacrosse star Pat Spencer. Since this is my column, I don't have to choose one specifically. There's plenty of internet for you to make your own selections, Steve. (And I'm already starting to wonder if I should have considered former Towson running back Terrance West, too.) The Best Phenomenon would be former Patterson point guard Aquille "The Crimestopper" Carr, whose story seems destined to be a future "30 For 30."
