Michael Jordan Push-Off, Dellavadova Buzzer-Beater Highlight Unlucky Utah Sporting Moments

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The state of Utah has seen some disappointing moments in the history of sport.

From buzzer batsmen of midfield uprisings to ill-fated NBA Finals games, fans across the state have seen their fair share of disappointment.

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, here are some notable unlucky coins in Utah sports history.

Michael Jordan push

We all know Michael Jordan fended off Bryon Russell at the Delta Center in the NBA Finals. The Bulls stole the ball from Karl Malone and the Jazz held a one point lead with 20 seconds left. After calling for a time-out and catching the incoming pass, Jordan drove near the foul line when he stepped back while pushing Russell and fired the shot halfway and gave the Bulls their sixth NBA title.

Matthew Dellavedova Buzzer-Beater

In 2013, BYU and St. Mary’s played one of the best college basketball games in recent memory. Tyler Haws gave the Cougars a two-point lead with 2 seconds left when Gaels goaltender Matthew Dellavedova took a midfield buzzer to give St. Mary’s the 70-69 victory at Provo.

Kaneshiro Doink 1998

In 1998, Utah kicker Ryan Kaneshiro nearly knocked down the BYU Cougars with a winning field goal. With 9 seconds remaining and the Cougars maintaining a 26-24 lead, all Kaneshiro had to do was score the basket. But, the ball bounced off the right upright and was always known as the “Doink Heard Around Utah”.

Jake ‘Fumble’ Heaps

In 2011, BYU quarterback Jake Heaps struggled to deal with football against the Utes. The Cougars returned the ball seven times, including six fumbles. Heaps made a fumble that went into his own end zone which the Utes recovered for a touchdown. Utah won a dominant 54-10 victory over Provo.

BYU’s first quarter at the 2015 Las Vegas Bowl

The Cougars had one of the worst football game starts in school history in the 2015 Las Vegas Bowl first quarter. BYU started the game with five straight turnovers, leading to five Utah touchdowns. The Utes held a 35-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. Utah ended up winning the game 35-28 after stopping BYU’s fierce comeback.

Injuries at Taysom Hill College

BYU star quarterback Taysom Hill has suffered injuries throughout his career with the Cougars. As a freshman in 2012, Hill started his first game against Hawaii. A week later, he suffered a season-ending injury against Utah State. He injured himself while playing on his knees.

Hill played a full season in 2013 before breaking a leg against the Aggies in Game 5 of the season.

In 2015, Hill scored a touchdown with a broken foot in the season opener against Nebraska. Finally, Hill was blocking a Utah state defender in 2016 when he was injured in 2016.

Kaelin Clay Fumble vs. Oregon

Utah faced off with the Oregon Ducks, a team that would end up playing in the National Championship game later in the 2015 season. Early in the game, wide receiver and returns specialist Kaelin Clay caught a deep pass from the quarterback Travis Wilson. Clay ran into the end zone but dropped the ball to the one yard line and started celebrating in the end zone. The Ducks recovered the ball and returned it for 99 yards for a touchdown.