ST. LOUIS (KMOX): Quick…who are the top five quarterbacks of all time?

Here are mine:

1. Joe Montana
2. Johnny Unitas
3. John Elway
4. Dan Marino
5. Peyton Manning

This is a column about lists. If you don’t agree with the above, I’d like to see your five. And that’s not a boastful statement, or any knock on your football intelligence. You might have five better. But these are mine, and I’m confident they’re the best.

You know what’s funny, though? If Tom Brady completes that pass to Wes Welker in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLVI on Sunday — that spiral that Welker dropped — Brady wins his fourth Super Bowl, and we’re probably having a discussion about putting him in the above list. That’s the truth. One pass. One catch. And we’re mentioning Brady’s name with his idol, Montana. Heck, you might think Brady is a top-five quarterback anyway.

Winning multiple Super Bowls certainly helps move up the list. Montana was 4-0 in the Super Bowl with the 49ers. Unitas won Super Bowl V with the Colts…but he also won NFL Championships in 1958 and 1959. Elway went to five Super Bowls, winning two. Brady has been to five Super Bowls, winning three.

Marino and Manning are similar. Both set numerous NFL records, calling signals for some of the most explosive offenses in history. Marino, however, never won a Super Bowl. Should he be penalized for that? Manning has been named to 11 Pro Bowls. He has one Super Bowl victory, falling short in a second Super Bowl three years later.

Where does Brady fit in? How about Brett Favre? Steve Young? Roger Staubach? Fran Tarkenton?

That’s the beauty of the top-five list. It’s exclusive company. You produce the list, you challenge people to take someone off your list.

Here’s another list I’ve revived since Kobe Bryant became the fifth-best scorer in NBA history. It’s my all-time starting five:

PG – Magic Johnson
SG – Michael Jordan
SF – Larry Bird
PF – Bill Russell
C – Wilt Chamberlain

Yes, I put Russell at power forward. Because if we’re mixing eras, we have to include that position…and Russell would be playing it. And I did it because I can’t take Chamberlain out of the lineup. And also, it’s my list. So there.

Russell changed the game of basketball. He basically invented the blocked shot. He won 11 championships (in 13 seasons). Chamberlain was a dominant scorer who shouldn’t lose points for having nine fewer championships than Russell. (See: Manning and Marino.)

Johnson is the most creative player in the game’s history. Bird is the best clutch shooter ever. And Jordan is Jordan.

Honorable mention: Oscar Robertson, Tim Duncan, Karl Malone, Shaquille O’Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

OK, one more list. After witnessing the incredible noise level at the Mizzou-Kansas game in Columbia on Saturday, I started thinking about the greatest college basketball venues in America that I’ve visited. And also the best venues I haven’t been.

These are the top five buildings I’ve attended, either as a fan, reporter or play-by-play broadcaster. Criteria: Championship history, fan enthusiasm, noise level.

1. Allen Fieldhouse, University of Kansas
2. Assembly Hall, Indiana University
3. Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke University
4. Carrier Dome, Syracuse University
5. Dean Smith Center, University of North Carolina

Full disclosure: I am an Indiana alum. That said, it’s hard to beat IU’s basketball-smart, proactively loud crowd and five national championship banners hanging over one end of the court. It’s a must for any sports fan. The “Dean Dome” is worth a pilgrimage to beautiful Chapel Hill. The Carrier Dome is a unique experience, especially when it’s packed with over 30,000 people. Cameron has the feel of a high school gym and the student section is very entertaining. But no building has the complete package like Allen: history, alumni, students, band, etc. You really have to go there to understand it.

Honorable mention: I love the consistent energy at Bramlage Coliseum (Kansas St.), Mackey Arena (Purdue) and Assembly Hall (Illinois). I just couldn’t put them in the top five.

Here are the top five arenas I need to visit:

1. The Palestra, University of Pennsylvania
2. Pauley Pavilion, UCLA
3. Rupp Arena, University of Kentucky
4. Gallagher-Iba Arena, Oklahoma State University
5. Hinkle Fieldhouse, Butler University

Honorable mention: I also want to take in a game at the Breslin Center (Michigan St.), Bud Walton Arena (Arkansas) and Williams Arena, a.k.a. “The Barn” (Minnesota). But not before the previous five.

As an IU student, I never did make it up to Hinkle, located on the north side of Indianapolis. I’m such a fan of the game’s history. And these buildings are old…with the exception of Rupp, which I would visit just to see 24,000 Kentucky fans lose their minds.

Thoughts? Arguments? Let me have it.

Tom Ackerman is Sports Director at KMOX. He can be heard weekday mornings at :15 and :45 past the hour on “Total Information A.M.” Follow him on Twitter: @Ackerman1120.