NYC 2012 (RIP)
New York City made a bid for the 2012 Olympics, but lost to London. "2012" was promoted all over the city, even on the subways. Restaurants charged $20.12 for meals. Let the 2016 madness…
NYC Grand Prix (at Icahn Stadium)
The June 2005 Reebok Grand Prix at the new Icahn Stadium on Randall's Island is the stadium's first international track & field competition. It looks like the Grand Prix will be an…
Nyets (Nets basketball team nickname)
Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov expressed an interest, in September 2009, of buying the New Jersey Nets professional bastketball team and then moving the team to a new arena to be built in…
NYPD (New York Pass Defense)
The 2016-17 New York Giants football secondary was nicknamed "New York Pass Defense" (NYPD), with a nod to the New York Police Department (NYPD). Tom Rock, a sportwriter for Newsday (Long…
Off-Track Betting (OTB) & “Go, Baby, Go!”
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, New York had a lot of problems. "The Big Apple" campaign was started to improve its image, but that can do only so much. You need money! Mayor John…
Old College Try
The term "old college try" was popularized in baseball, as a fielder gamely makes a try to go after the ball. "Old college try" usually describes a futile effort, with the…
Organic Tanking
"Tanking" is when a sports team loses, usually with the intention of getting a high pick in the player draft after the season ends. Winning would probably not put the team in playoff…
Organized Team Activity (OTA)
Organized team activities (OTAs) are what professional football teams hold during the off-season. They are usually training sessions where teams learn the playbook and the techniques of their…
Original Six (six oldest NHL teams)
The National Hockey League (NHL) had just six teams from 1942-43 until expansion in 1967. The six teams -- Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York…
Otto (football linebacker position)
"Sam, Mike and Will" (strongside, middle and weakside) are popular linebacker names, but there is also "Otto." The name "Otto" was coined by Jacksonville Jaguars head…
PAL (Police Athletic League)
"PAL" (the Police Athletic League) started in the Depression and is still going. Supposedly, it all began in Tuckahoe, New York?…
Panic City
The term "panic city" refers to the demand for some immediate action to end a bad situation. "Panic city" has been cited in print since the 1970s. New York Mets general manager…
Pawnography (chess pawn + pornography)
"Pawnography" (chess pawn + pornography) is a jocular portmanteau word that some chess players have used. Pawnography!! (1973) was the title of a book by Douglas R Long and Bryan M…
Pedestal Complex (Hall of Fame obsession)
Charles W. Colson (1931-2012) wrote in The Body: Being Light in Darkness (1992): "Today this mentality translates into what we call the pedestal complex; it is rampant throughout the church.…
Petco Park East or Petco East (Citi Field nickname)
Citi Field is the ballpark for the New York Mets that opened in 2009. Even before it opened, fans noted Citi Field's cavernous dimensions and speculated that it might be a difficult park to…
Pigeon Chess (“like playing chess with a pigeon”)
Entry in progress -- B.P. RationalWiki: Pigeon chess"Pigeon chess" or "like playing chess with a pigeon" is a figure of speech originating from a comment made in March 2005 on…
Pigeons (New York City Football Club or NYCFC nickname)
The New York City Football Club (NYFC) is an American professional soccer club based in New York City that plays in Major League Soccer (MLS). "Pigeons" is a popular nickname of the club…
Pinstripe Bowl
College football's first 'Pinstripe Bowl" was held at the new Yankee Stadium on December 20, 2010, between Syracuse (from the Big East Conference) and Kansas State (from the Big 12…
Pinstripers (Yankees, from their pinstripe uniforms)
The New York Yankees are sometimes called the "Pinstripers," from their pinstriped uniforms. The Yankees had pinstripes before they had Babe Ruth. It's an urban myth that they…
Playcation (play + vacatinn)
"Playcation" (play + vacation) became a popular term -- following "staycation" -- the financial crisis of 2008. Maxine Maesinger (1925-2001), the "Big City Beat"…