Army of Villains Inductee: Nate Poole

http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/000/154/501/W13natepoole

Nate Poole.  Ask any Vikings fan who lived through the Mike Tice era and this name undoubtedly leaves a bad taste in their mouth. 

The 2003 Minnesota Vikings started 6-0 and led the NFC North for the entire season until  the last seconds of their season finale against the 4-12 Arizona Cardinals.  That fateful moment happened to be a 4th and 28 where Cardinals QB Josh McCown broke contain and found WR Nate Poole in the back of the endzone for the game winning touchdown as time expired.  The loss knocked the Vikings out of the playoffs and capped off a 3-7 slide that saw the team become only the second ever to start 6-0 and miss the playoffs.

Poole, then a 2nd year wideout from Marshall caught only 13 passes that season and the backbreaking TD against the Vikes was his first.  He went on to play only two more seasons in the NFL catching only 8 more passes.

The Vikings loss gave the 2003 NFC North crown and playoff spot to the hated Green Bay Packers who as any good rival should rubbed salt in the Purple's wounds by inviting Poole to enjoy their 1st rd playoff game in a box suite at Lambeau and gave him a key to their city.  The Pack beat the Seattle Seahawks in the infamous Matt Hasselback "we'll take the ball and we're gonna score" game and lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in the Divisional Round the following week.

While Poole's NFL shelf life was brief he will be forever remembered in the minds of Minnesota Vikings fans everywhere as the man who single-handily ended the 2003 Vikings season and gave birth to this famous call by Vikings announcer Paul Allen.  Kudos to fro30 for immortalizing the call via Tecmo Super Bowl.

Email Conversations: Wolves Pre-Draft Chat

Conversation from work. Names have been changed to protect the innocent...

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:48 PM]:

If you could deal the #2 along with some other asset(s) and net picks that allowed you to draft Kanter and, say, Burks…wouldja? 

Peter Bretter [1:49 PM]:

no

Wes Mantooth [1:49 PM]:

yes

Wes Mantooth [1:49 PM]:

not sold on dwill

Peter Bretter [1:50 PM]:

any chance we can still make a run for M. Gasol?

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:50 PM]:

you guys and your spaniards

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:51 PM]:

why so anti-american?

Peter Bretter [1:51 PM]:

he and Rubio could communicate, and no one else would know what they were saying

Peter Bretter [1:51 PM]:

except P. Gasol I guess

Wes Mantooth [1:51 PM]:

you want to go for the commy kirilenko?

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:51 PM]:

that's the problem they currently have with B-easy

Peter Bretter [1:51 PM]:

yes, but he can't communicate with anyone clearly

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:51 PM]:

AK47 is Drago-esque, yes

Peter Bretter [1:51 PM]:

but not from Sweden

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:52 PM]:

pecko's gotta be swedish

Wes Mantooth [1:52 PM]:

would just want a SG from this draft like burks/brooks + a big man more than just dwill at 2

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:52 PM]:

don't we have a shooting guard?

Wes Mantooth [1:52 PM]:

your guy wayne

Peter Bretter [1:52 PM]:

are we giving up on Wes?

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:52 PM]:

acourse

Wes Mantooth [1:53 PM]:

not sure if he can play the 2

Wes Mantooth [1:53 PM]:

he was 4 in college

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:53 PM]:

he's a DNPCD in the NBA

Peter Bretter [1:53 PM]:

well if we draft D-Will, Wes is gonna have to play the 2, yes?

Wes Mantooth [1:53 PM]:

maybe, but I just don't know about his ball-handling

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:53 PM]:

history tells us the wolves like to have 6 guys at only one position

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:53 PM]:

it's called "building assets"

Peter Bretter [1:54 PM]:

let's bring in Laettner for a look, he's in town

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:54 PM]:

working out?

Peter Bretter [1:54 PM]:

running some camp

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:54 PM]:

kahn trying return some of the magic?

Wes Mantooth[1:54 PM]:

I heard that brewer and cardinal are world champs now, so they have to get kahn's attn

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:54 PM]:

CBrew got DAL over the hump

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:55 PM]:

Dirko and Kidd should buy him a car

Peter Bretter [1:55 PM]:

this convo might be "postable" on "Shoot That S"

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:55 PM]:

that was my intent

Wes Mantooth [1:55 PM]:

"Fire that K?"

Peter Bretter [1:55 PM]:

no royalties though

Irwin M. Fletcher [1:55 PM]:

what's my alias?

Wes Mantooth [1:55 PM]:

biyombo-4eva

Peter Bretter [1:56 PM]:

nice

rwin M. Fletcher [2:21 PM]:

[switching to Twins' game] cappsy gonna blow it?

Peter Bretter [2:21 PM]:

score?

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:21 PM]:

1-0

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:21 PM]:

1 on

Wes Mantooth [2:21 PM]:

liriano start?

Peter Bretter [2:21 PM]:

Blacky

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:21 PM]:

7 h 1 BB

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:21 PM]:

1 SO

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:22 PM]:

shoulda let him finish

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:23 PM]:

over

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:23 PM]:

we're comin' we're comin

Wes Mantooth [2:23 PM]:

mauer back tomorrow to stop the surge?

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:23 PM]:

"Wes". . .the MN Twins are a pro baseball team

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:23 PM]:

yes, King Buzz Kill back manana

Wes Mantooth [2:24 PM]:

they have pro baseball outside of ny/boston?

Irwin M. Fletcher [2:24 PM]:

not really