Welcome to 94WIP's G.O.A.T. of Broad Street, where we will finally determine who the greatest athlete in Philadelphia sports history is. Remember, in order to qualify, the athlete must have played in Philadelphia in the last 50 years (1970). Please cast your vote here to help us decide!
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This should be an interesting week of radio at WIP as the hosts and callers debate who were the greatest Philadelphia athletes of the last 50 years. There are plenty of worthy candidates spread out across all the major sports, including boxing and horse racing (I'm looking at you Smarty Jones) but for this poll, we're asked to chose the top five.It should have been easy since 50 years is exactly how long I've been covering sports in this town, starting as the NFL's youngest beat writer (Philadelphia Bulletin) in 1970 then a columnist with the Daily News, a talk show host at WIP and a football analyst for Comcast Sports Net, now NBC Sports Philadelphia. I covered all the teams and saw all the players up close and personal but picking a top five and ranking them? It was a challenge.After much thought, here is my list.1. Mike Schmidt -- I think I appreciate Schmidt's greatness more now than I did at the time. He was so good for so long, I think I took it for granted. I know that sounds crazy but it is true. I look back at his numbers -- three MVPs, ten Gold Gloves (most by any National League third baseman), 12 All-Star teams -- and they are ridiculous but stat that stopped me in my tracks was this: he led the National League in home runs EIGHT times. Another note: I really believe Schmidt was on his way to having his best season in 1981 when the game was shut down by a players' strike. Schmidt led the National League that season in runs (78), homers (31), RBIs (91), walks (73), on base percentage (.435), slugging percentage (.644) and total bases (228). That was in just 102 games. There is no telling what kind of numbers he would have put up if it was a full season.A first ballot Hall of Famer, Schmidt is the best all-around third baseman ever to play the game. 2. Reggie White -- The Minister of Defense played eight seasons with the Eagles, a total of 121 games. He set the franchise record with 124 sacks. It is a remarkable feat averaging more than a sack per game over an eight year period, but White was that dominant. Similar to Schmidt, White was having his best season when it was interrupted by a players strike (1987). He appeared in only 12 games but recorded 21 sacks. We can only imagine how many sacks he would have finished with if he played the full 16 games. Most likely, he would have pushed the NFL record out of sight. As it is, his 21 sacks is still the Eagles record.White made seven Pro Bowls as an Eagles and was twice named NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Norman Braman felt White was in decline and let him walk after the 1992 season. He signed with Green Bay and recorded three sacks in the Packers' Super Bowl win over New England.3. Bobby Clarke -- More than any other player, he made hockey matter in Philadelphia. He was the first Flyer I heard people talk about on the streets and in the bars. For a sport that was trying to gain traction in the city that was important. The team finally had a face and it was the kid with the blonde curls and missing teeth, Bobby Clarke.Clarke was the best leader I've seen in half a century covering sports in Philadelphia. At 23, he was the youngest captain in the NHL and he led the Flyers to back to back Stanley Cups in 1974 and '75. He was a fierce competitor and the heart and soul of the Broad Street Bullies. He won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's Most Valuable Player three times in a four year period. Coach Fred Shero said Clarke was more valuable to the Flyers than Gordie Howe was to the Detroit Red Wings. "Detroit could have won the Cup without Howe," Shero said. "We could not have won without Clarke. To me, he is the greatest."4. Julius Erving -- The Doctor is one of the most charismatic athletes ever to play in Philadelphia. Every time he touched the ball, you expected him to do something spectacular and he usually did. Before Michael Jordan, Erving made the dunk an art form.When general manager Pat Williams was trying to convince team owner Fitz Dixon that Erving was worth the $6 million it would take to acquire him from the ABA's Nets, Williams told Dixon, "He is the Babe Ruth of basketball." It was a pretty apt comparison. Erving was the only player to win MVP Awards in both the NBA and the ABA.Of course, the Doctor is remembered for his offense but he was an underrated defensive player. When he retired, he was the all-time leader in steals (5,176) for the NBA and ABA combined. His thunderous dunk over the Lakers' Michael Cooper (1983) makes every list of great Spectrum moments.5. Bernard Hopkins -- This was a tough call because I hated to leave Brian Dawkins off the list, but I could not ignore the Executioner's dominance and longevity. He won world titles in two weight classes -- middleweight and light heavyweight -- and knocked off one challenger after another. Hopkins ducked nobody and he was still piling up victories well into his 40s.From 1993 to 2005, Hopkins was unbeaten in 24 fights, including knockouts of Felix Trinidad and Oscar De La Hoya, younger fighters who were favored to defeat Hopkins but could not make it to the final bell. The win over De La Hoya made Hopkins the first fighter to hold world titles in all four major boxing sanctioning bodies.In 2011, he defeated Jean Pascal for the WBC light heavyweight title at age 46, making him the oldest boxer to win a world championship. He retired in 2016 with a professional record of 55-8-2 with 39 knockouts.