Standards


I'm glad Tim Tebow won the Heisman last night-- he had a phenomenal year and seems like a good guy, and I'm glad he helped break the silly prejudice about age that surrounded the trophy.

Still, some of the coverage is a bit confusing. I think Stewart Mandel is a good college football writer, but I do wonder about this passage:

Ron Powlus. Brock Berlin. Chris Leak. Jimmy Clausen. All, like Tebow, and like so many others, were anointed saviors before they ever attended a college class. None came close to living up to the overwhelming expectations placed on their shoulders (though Clausen still has a chance), because, quite frankly, not too many could. (emphasis mine).

Mandel praises Tebow for winning a national championship, which Chris Leak did, too. In fact, Leak was the starting quarterback on that team. He didn't do it by himself-- but neither did Tebow. So...Leak wins a national championship, but doesn't win an award that many (including SI) have noted often goes to the wrong person and is subject to any number of biases from its voters-- and that's Leak's fault? Perhaps Leak didn't live up to hype in terms of passing yards or whatever, but I'd say surviving the tumult of the Zook era, dealing with coaching and gamebook changes, and winning a national championship-- while all the while an annointed one was breathing down your neck-- is actually pretty impressive.

Tough room, man, tough room. Then again, I'm not among the wise ones who vote on this award.

Comments

Greg said…
Thirteen and 0. Three to go. Pats.

0 and Thirteen. Three to go.
Dolphins.

And then all will be right with the world.
Brian Doan said…
Aha! Well, can't complain about a team beating the Steelers, since it helps my Browns with their playoff hopes (although I'm worried that it took us so long to put the Jets-- the Jets!--away today.

On MNF a few weeks ago, Tony Kornheiser asked if the '76 Tampa Bay Bucs (0-14) get together to pop open a bottle of cheap wine to pour into dixie cups if the Dolphins go 0-16, which I thought was a pretty good line.
Anonymous said…
I was wondering about that very scenario today--good call Korn-heilio. (And I wouldn't mind throwing some t.p. at the so-classy Don Shula and his asterisk-talkin' bunghole right about now, either.)
Brian Doan said…
Boolise--
Well, I imagine Steve Spurrier, quarterback of that Bucs team, will be relieved to have someone else holding that winless season honor.

I liked Kornheiser's line, too-- it's a reminder that he and Michael Wilbon were good sports journalists before joining ESPN (unlike a lot of the doofuses on that network).

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