America goes wild: 21-year-old Brooks the hero for United States in huge win over Ghana

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Video from the Steel Stacks viewing party in Bethlehem, Pa. (courtesy @_magowan)

When 21-year-old John Anthony Brooks scored for the United States Monday night, he had the same result as everyone watching on TV and in the stadium.

Complete and total disbelief.*

*(If you have any great reaction videos from wherever you watched the match, feel free to post the link in the comments and we'll add them to the post).

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John Anthony Brooks

It was the first time Brooks, who was born in Illinois, had ever stepped foot on the field for the United States in a competitive match. And technically, by FIFA rules, up until about 40 minutes before his goal, he was still eligible to play for Germany, where he's lived most of his life.

He even has tattoos on each arm signifying his heritage: One is a map of Illinois, and the other is a map of Berlin, where he's lived most of his life.

Now, he's an American hero, as someone kindly put in his Wikipedia profile after the match.

 

There are some concerns for the United States going into Sunday's game against Portugal, namely the health of striker Jozy Altidore and defender Matt Besler, whose injury necessitated Brooks' appearance in the first place.

But, if the Americans can simply find a way to at least draw against Portugal on Sunday (6 p.m.), -- a Portugal team that had its doors blown off Monday by Germany and will be without its best defender against the U.S. due to a red card -- then there is almost no chance they wouldn't reach the knockout round.

We'll break that down later in the week. For now, go to bed with a smile.

The first five days of the World Cup have been jaw-droopingly good, and Monday night's USA game was a roller coaster of emotion that left me running around my living room in a frenzy.

If you're still part of the "soccer is so boring, no one cares" crowd, I honestly feel sad for you. Because the rest of us just had quite an exciting little Monday. As did everyone in these videos:

Inside the stadium from Randy J. Kim of NBCSports.com

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The final seconds at the Piazza at Schmidts in Northern Liberties (courtesy @KevinKCBS3):

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Fans in Kansas City react to Clint Dempsey's early goal (in slow motion):

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The final minute of the game at Fado in Philadelphia (courtesy of @Philly_Brown10).

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The American Outlaws Lancaster viewing party:

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Fans in Houston:

Fans in Tampa:

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