The year in 1996 sports was marked by one in which proud franchises or programs returned to the top after what each would consider a lengthy absence. Continuing the theme would be a singularly great player who made a celebrated return and led his team on a historic run.
Green Bay had not been to the Super Bowl since Lombardi won the first two in 1966 and 1967. New England made it in 1985, but had never won it. Whichever fan base went home triumphant, it would be a championship a long time in coming.
The 1996 college football season looked headed for a predictable finish. It got there, but in the mold of a well-written Hollywood script that were some wild twists and turns that made you wonder how the anticipated outcome was going to occur, but the scriptwriters got there eventually.
The New York Yankees had not been in the World Series for fifteen years when they won the American League pennant and reached the Fall Classic in 1996. The Atlanta Braves had become regulars, with the 1996 World Series being their fourth appearance in the last five tries. Though the respective histories of each organization was quite different before and would be different after, the intersecting year of 1996 saw the Braves in the role of dynasty and heavy favorite and the Yankees of aspiring underdog.
The 1996 Chicago Bulls were a team on a mission. It was the first full season since Michael Jordan’s return from his hiatus playing minor league baseball in the Chicago White Sox system. Jordan’s return late in the 1995 season was too late to get in rhythm and the Bulls were ousted by the Orlando Magic.
The 1996 Stanley Cup Finals paired up two teams that the hockey world hadn’t expected to see there. The Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers each had different levels of standing so far as prestige and regular season success, but both were surprise entrants in the Finals.
Kentucky and UMass were not only ranked 1-2 in the country, but either one or the other had been ranked #1 in the country for all but three weeks in December and they held the top two spots from Christmas forward. Ironically, given his future in Lexington, it was John Calipari who was coaching UMass as they were in their fifth year of national prominence.