2014: Year In Review

2014 has been very headline worthy, for both good and bad. It has also been filled with plenty of dominating performances, and plenty of surprises. This will be my first official year in review, and what better year to analyze than this year alone? Walk with me through this roller coaster that we know as 2014. This will be a combination of Sports and Entertainment.

January:

• Florida State defeats Auburn in the BCS Championship Game. Jameis Winston is named MVP.
• CM Punk makes headlines all across not only the wrestling world, but the sports entertainment world in general as he abruptly departs from WWE. Punk's departure sent shockwaves across the Internet, with fans, other wrestlers, podcast hosts, etc speculating what led to his exit.
• Dave Batista returns to the WWE to surprisingly win the Royal Rumble, which backfired as the fans were furious about his win. What made this even worse was the fact that Daniel Bryan was not even in the Rumble.

February:

• The Seattle Seahawks demoralize and annihilate the heavily favored Denver Broncos, 43-8 in Super Bowl 48. Seattle's Legion of Boom Defense attacked MVP Peyton Manning from all corners, and shut down his receiving corps. The Broncos Defense was also exposed in this series. The Seahawks put the NFL on notice that night.
• The WWE launches their new Network (repeat it with me: it only costs $9.99). That is right. For $10 a month, you could watch every PPV in WWE History, along with every WCW, and ECW PPV. You could also watch every episode of RAW and Nitro, along with Classic Programs like World Class Championship Wrestling. Instead of the usual $40, $50, or $60, the PPV's come with the packaged deal. At first, they gave you the option of paying $55 up front for the 6-month commitment. Hulk Hogan made his return to promote the Network, along with others such as Stone Cold Steve Austin and John Cena.
• David Stern retires after being Commissioner of the NBA for 30 years, with Adam Silver taking over.

March/April:

• 11-time Champion and Coaching Legend Phil Jackson returns to the NBA to become president of the New York Knicks, the team that he won two rings with as a player (1970, 1973).
• The NCAA Men's Basketball tournament begins with The Florida Gators as No. 1.
• The UConn Men's Basketball team wins the NCAA National Championship, with Shabazz Napier as the Most Outstanding Player.
• Pro Bowl Defensive End DeMarcus Ware signs a 3-year $30 million deal with the Denver Broncos, after being released by the Dallas Cowboys.
• Ravens Running Back Ray Rice is indicted by an Atlantic City Grand Jury on a charge of third-degree aggravated assault.
• WWE celebrates the 30th Anniversary of the Greatest Event in Wrestling History, as they present WrestleMania 30 at the Mercedez-Benz SuperDome (not Silverdome), in New Orleans, Louisiana. That weekend, we saw the return of the Ultimate Warrior and Razor Ramon as they took their rightful place into the WWE Hall of Fame with Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Lita, Paul Bearer, and Carlos Colon. At the start of WM XXX, we witnessed history as Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold, and The Rock all stood together in the same ring. The three biggest box office draws in wrestling history stood together in one ring. What really made it special was the staredown with Austin and Hogan, which was the ultimate fantasy match for years. This was a sign of things to come, as the event was very memorable. The biggest surprise in history came when Brock Lesnar defeated The Undertaker to end The Streak. Heyman and Lesnar were nearly just as surprised as the fans. The image of the fan with the glasses said it all. Daniel Bryan defeated Triple H in the first match of the night, and went on to defeat Randy Orton and Batista to become the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion in a very special moment. This was WWE's way of rewriting what happened with Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero.
• The next night, The Ultimate Warrior comes out to Monday Night RAW to address the fans in a heartfelt, and very prophetic speech. This would be Warrior's final appearance, as he suffered a heart attack the next day. He would soon be pronounced dead only at age 54. It felt like a surreal punch in the face. Warrior's heart truly beat its final beat, and what he did in his life makes his legacy live on forever.
• On the bright side, newcomer Paige makes her debut on RAW from NXT as she defeats AJ Lee to win her first WWE Divas Championship.
• Former LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling makes a controversial and racial comment towards his girlfriend, telling her that he did not want blacks coming to the games. This caused a massive outrage, as fans and players voiced their displeasure. NBA Hall of Famer Earvin "Magic" Johnson was heavily involved, as Sterling dropped his name in his disgusting remarks about black players and people. Commissioner Adam Silver would soon ban Sterling for life in the midst of the firestorm.
• Michael Sam becomes the first openly Gay player to be drafted into the NFL.
• Kevin Durant is named NBA Most Valuable Player for the first time.
• Evolution reunites to feud with The Shield. The Shield defeats them at Extreme Rules.

May/June:

• The Shield end their feud with Evolution at Payback. Batista leaves the next night on RAW, which opened the door for The Shield to disband. Seth Rollins takes Batista's place, as he joins The Authority.
• The San Antonio Spurs dominated the Miami Heat (4-1) to capture their fifth NBA Championship (4th all-time). Kawhi Leonard is named NBA Finals MVP. The Spurs wiped the floor with Miami, ending the party in South Beach. LeBron James would soon become a free agent, as he would take his talents back to Cleveland.
• The Los Angeles Kings win the Stanley Cup
• John Cena captures the WWE World Heavyweight Championship for the 15th time in his career. That night, Seth Rollins wins the Money In The Bank Ladder Match.

July:

• Germany destroys Brazil 7-1 in the World Cup Semifinals, to defeat Argentina 1-0 in the final to win the World Cup.
• The NFL announces that they would Ray Rice for the first two games of the season, starting August 30. Rice would also be pulled from the Madden 15 Video Game.
• Paul Pierce signs with the Washington Wizards.

August:

• Comedic Legend/Icon Robin Williams dies at the age of 63 from suicide, as a result of depression.
• LeBron James sheds a very noticeable amount of weight in the off-season from a summer-long carbohydrate cleanse.
• Steve Ballmer, who retired from Microsoft in February, buys the Los Angeles Clippers for $2 billion after former owner Donald Sterling sells the team.
• Michael Strahan and Derrick Brooks are headliners for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
• Brock Lesnar continues his run of surprises and dominance, as he conquers John Cena to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Brock won in extremely convincing fashion, as he nailed Cena with an incredible 16 German Suplexes. Cena looked like a jobber from the 80's, as Lesnar pummeled him form start to finish.

September:

• The NFL punishment of Ray Rice becomes even more severe after a surveillance video is leaked of him dragging his wife into the elevator.
• Minnesota Vikings Pro Bowl Running Back and former MVP Adrian Peterson is indicted on Child Abuse, after photos were released of his son having cuts and bruises on his thighs, hands, back and buttocks. The image of the NFL took a massive blow.
• MLB and New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter retires.
• 2004 NBA Finals MVP Chauncey Billups retires.

October:

• The San Francisco Giants defeat the Kansas City Royals 4-3, to capture their eighth World Series Championship.
• 2K Sports releases WWE 2k15 and NBA 2k15.
• Peyton Manning becomes the NFL's All-Time Leader in Touchdown Passes.

November:

• Sting makes his very long awaited debut in WWE, as he helps Team Cena defeat Team Authority at Survivor Series.
• DC Mayor For Life Marion Barry passes away at age 78.
• Former Pro-Bowl and Future Hall of Fame NFL Cornerback Champ Bailey retires.
• New York Yankees Great Alfonso Soriano retires.
• CM Punk finally breaks his silence, as he appeared as a guest on his friend Colt Cabana's podcast.

December:

• In response to Punk's interview, Vince McMahon appears as a Special Guest on Stone Cold's Podcast. McMahon addresses a number of issues, including Punk, Macho Man, The Network, etc.
• WWE NXT: R-Evolution is highly acclaimed and received great reviews from many fans and analysts in the world of wrestling. This event showed the rise of very familiar faces from the Indy Circuit, such as Sami Zayn (El Generico), Kevin Owens (formerly Steen), Hideo Itami (Kenta), Finn Balor (Prince Devitt), and Adrian Neville (PAC). This is a great sign of things to come, as Triple H made a statement with this event.
• Roman Reigns wins Superstar of the Year at the 2014 Slammy Awards.
• Kobe Bryant passes Michael Jordan for 3rd place on the NBA's All-time Scoring List
• The Movie "The Interview" receives backlash in the midst of the North Korea controversy, and is postponed, only to be later released.
• The Dallas Cowboys clinch the NFC East Division with a 12-4 record.
• DeMarco Murray breaks Emmitt Smith's Single Season Rushing Record.
• San Francisco 49ers fire coach Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh later becomes Coach of The Michigan Wolverines.
• All-Star Point Guard and NBA Champion Rajon Rondo is traded to the Dallas Mavericks.

Once again, this is my first Year in Review Article. Overall, this has been a very eventful year in different ways. I hope that you enjoy it. Get ready for 2015.