Temper Temper: Sports Tantrums of Winter

It's been a long, cold winter for most of the country.  But, despite, the frigid temperatures, the tempers remained hot in sports stadiums and arenas.

1.  Miami Beach Brawl.  Winter was only one day old when BYU played Memphis in the Miami Beach Bowl.  Memphis outlasted BYU in double overtime by a score of 55-48, but when the game ended, the players weren't ready to be done hitting.  Much like a heavyweight boxing match, there is a lot of milling around, followed by some hellacious haymakers.  You can go ahead and skip to the 2:40 mark on this video to get right to the fight.  Since this is the last game of the season for both teams, no one was disciplined this season.  Twenty-two returning players from both teams are facing discipline at the start of next season.

2.  Kevin Garnett's Butt.  Headbutt that is.  I don't know what it is about Dwight Howard, but he seems to bring out the nasty side of many opponents.  Of course, Kevin Garnett doesn't really need an excuse to get angry.  This incident from January 12, 2015 is not the most exciting fight I've ever seen, but any time you decide to use your own face as a weapon, that deserves some recognition.

3.  Hockey Haymakers.  Most sports fights look a lot like an eighth grade dance.  A lot of milling around.  Very little action.  But this fight between Ryan White of the Flyers and Matt Martin of the Islanders on February 5, 2015, had more punches landed than in most Mayweather PPV bouts.

4.  Cat Fight.  The only reason that is an appropriate heading is because this fight happens between the Texas Southern Tigers and the Southern Jaguars.  Texas Southern had a one game lead in the SWAC standings when they hosted Southern on March 8, 2015.  Southern had a two-point lead midway through the second half when this bench clearing brawl broke out.  It was so violent that officials ended the game.  As a result, the two teams ended up tied for the regular season title.  My favorite part of this video comes at the 1:45 mark when the Texas Southern mascot does a swagger prance at mid court.

5.  A Gentleman's Game.  "Not my best moment."  That's how Rory McIlroy described this tantrum on the back nine of the 2nd round of the WGC Championships in early March.  We've all been tempted to throw a club into the drink after a bad shot, but few of us can afford to actually do it.  Rory, on the other hand, has the cash to cover such indiscretions.  He did, however, have to play the remainder of the round down a club.

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