Athletes by the Number: 0-9

I've decided it would be fun to list off an athlete for each number 0-99 that first comes to mind for me.  Now, these are who come to MY mind first.  Just a fun list...

This will be the first of my ten installments...

0 - Zack Novak:  Quite possibly the hardest working man in NCAA Basketball and certainly one of the most sore.  How many charges has he taken this season?  A gazillion?

1 - Braylon Edwards:  Certainly a sign of the times.  I'm sure some people will be like, "Um... Anthony Carter?"  But, for me, it is Braylon.  He is the first one that comes to mind when I think of #1.

2 - Charles Woodson:  Too easy.  Next...

3 - Alan Trammell:  Grew up watching him.  Enjoyed his time as manager of the Tigers.  Hope that one day he'll be back around the program.

4 - Joe Dumars:  While I'm sure many of you instantly thought of former Detroit Red Wing Uwe Krupp, Joe D was the man in Detroit.  While the end of his career was spent in teal and... maroon I guess, he was a key member of the championship squads of '89 and '90.

5 - Nicklas Lidstrom:  While there is The Captain, Nick has done a solid job filling in for Stevie Y stepped down.  One of the greatest Red Wings of all-time, he has defined defensive play in hockey for two decades.

6 - LeBron James:  It kills me to say it but at this point, he is number 6 in my mind... although there is certainly an honorable mentions to Prescott Burgess and Victor Hobson...

7 - Drew Henson:  I had his jersey (although I got it right before he left, so whenever I wore it again I told everyone that it was a Spencer Brinton jersey).  He was a local Southeast Michigan boy.  He is who comes to mind.

8 - Troy Aikman and Steve Young:  The first Super Bowl that I honestly remember being excited for and watching attentively was Super Bowl XXX.  Aikman beat the Steelers for the W.  Young and Jerry Rice owned the 90s out in San Fran.  These two quarterbacks defined the NFL while I was in elementary school.

9 - Brendan Morrison:  This has a lot to do again with who I grew up watching and when I started watching sports.  His goal to win Michigan an NCAA Championship in OT was craziness.  It is a vague memory, but a memory nonetheless.  Honorable mentions certainly go to Gordie Howe and Matthew Stafford.  Gordie Howe, while important to me growing up as a Red Wings fan, was more pointed out the first time I ever watched "Ferris Bueller's Day Off".  Stafford is certainly making a name for himself in these parts and he could become the #9 in my mind some day soon...