A Look Back at 2016

2016 in Review

It’s hard to sum up a year like 2016 into just 10 moments, so here are the ones I’ll remember the most.

10. Brexit On June 23, the citizens of Great Britain went out to vote on whether or not they wanted their nation to stay a part of the European Union. To many people’s surprise, the vote passed, meaning Britain would exit the union, hence Brexit. This result had a mixed range of reactions, but the largest and most drastic came from then-Prime Minister David Cameron who announced he was resigning the day after the vote.

9. The Loss of Too Many Greats It’s always sad to wake up to the news that a great has passed away. This year was, unfortunately, full of days like that. From Prince to Muhammad Ali, to David Bowie and Florence Henderson, these people made a huge impact during their time with us, and their legacies will continue to live on through their beautiful music, movies, TV shows, and achievements.

8. Super Bowl Super Bowl 50 was one I will definitely remember. Not only did Peyton Manning and Von Miller carry to Bronco to a 24-10 victory over Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers, but the Halftime show consisted of Coldplay, Bruno Mars, and Beyoncé. And even though Peyton Manning announced his retirement soon after the victory, we continue to see him shine in those Nationwide commercials.

7. Pokémon Go The Pokémon Go app took the summer of 2016 by storm. It seemed as though almost everyone was running around with their phones out, trying to “catch them all”. Personally, I didn’t understand the fuss over it, but students sure had a good time taking detours from the mall so they could go to a random shopping center to go get some Pokémon they didn’t have. I am very proud to say that our own 2015-2016 Scholarship Recipient Asim Ahmed was a Product Marketer for this game launch!

6. Movie Franchise Success 2016 was a great year for movies, especially because many successful franchises made a return! Just to name a few, we had Star Wars, Finding Dory, Captain America (Marvel), and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Harry Potter). And let’s not count out other movies such as Zootopia and Ghostbusters. I’m sure the box office line was out the door to see these blockbusters.

5. TV shows In every other conversation I have with someone, friend or not, the question of “Do you watch (insert show here)” always comes up. Games of Thrones and the Walking Dead have been popular for the past few years, but this year’s newcomer, Westworld, is causing a stir. Word of advice: if you watch any of these shows and are discussing a recent episode with someone, keep the spoilers to a minimum. You never know if someone is nearby who isn’t caught up yet.

4. Samsung under Fire This is meant figuratively and literally. The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 and S7 phones had to be recalled and replaced because they would explode and catch on fire due to a glitch in the phone’s wiring. Videos and pictures popped up everywhere on social media of the post-exploded phones. TSA actually banned people from having those phones.

3. U.S. Election It was one for the history books. There were many factors that led to this election being one of a kind: the candidates, the media coverage, the social media usage, and the side scandals from both party’s candidates. So much can be said about it, general and controversial, but no matter anyone’s political views let’s hope all remember we live in the greatest county in the world! God Bless America!

2. Rio Olympics 2016 Every night in August, I would be on my couch watching the Olympics. From Michael Phelps concluding his Olympic career with six more medals, five gold and one silver, to Simone Biles soaring her way to five medals in women’s gymnastics, it’s safe to say the United States had a successful 2016 Olympic Games.

1. Villanova Men’s Basketball Win the National Title in 4.7 Seconds This is a moment I will never forget. Ochefu mops the floor. Jenkin inbounds the ball to Archie. Archie rushes down the court, immediately gets covered. He passes the ball off to Jenkins and... bang. Clock hits zero and the Nova Nation rushes the court to congratulate the boys on the victory. Everyone back at Villanova runs out of the Pavilion to celebrate. The taste of victory is still so sweet. The only thing that could make it better is a repeat…but only 2017 will tell.