Well, I guess when you have 1,200 media members in one place you’re bound to find a couple of bona fide numbskulls — but surely not 20.
Just when you think you’ve seen it all, SEC Media Days came to a close Thursday with South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney getting only 223 of 243 All-SEC votes. Yep, there are apparently some people who think there’s a better defensive end in the SEC. Heck, there’s not a better one in the nation.
Where do they find these folks? Did some Michigan writers make their way to Alabama in hopes of getting Clowney back for that bowl hit that ESPN still shows anytime there is talk of college football?
I totally understand some writers may not take seriously predicting how the standings will shape up and who will be named All-SEC since the picks don’t hold much weight and are usually forgotten after a couple of games.
Hey, I understand wanting to be different in your selections, but this went way beyond that.
Clowney, a complete physical freak of nature, was the SEC’s defensive player of the year in 2012 and may likely be the No. 1 player taken in next year’s NFL draft.
The majority of the people who read this column on a weekly basis aren’t going to agree with me on much, but I think most agree Clowney deserves to be considered first-team All-SEC —unless they’re like those 20 people who decided to distance themselves from reality.
All I want is for those media members to identify themselves, and let’s get ready for some football.
Everything was going great for Dan Mullen of Mississippi State in his first three years. The Bulldogs won the Egg Bowl three times over rival Ole Miss and won two bowl games.
During that time, Mullen never passed on a chance to take a shot at the rival Rebels, and most MSU fans loved the fact that their coach was getting so far under the skin of Ole Miss fans.
Then enter Hugh Freeze.
The new Ole Miss head coach quickly turned around the Rebel football program last season and soundly defeated MSU in the Egg Bowl on the way to a bowl victory over Pittsburgh. That set the recruiting trail on fire for Freeze, who went on to bring in a prized recruiting class that caught the attention of the nation.
At SEC Media Days, Mullen was asked about the rising Rebels and admitted that his school’s rival is causing a stir — of course, doing so without saying that school’s name.
This year’s Egg Bowl will be huge for Mullen and his team because the Bulldogs may likely enter the regular-season finale needing a sixth win to become bowl eligible for the fourth straight year.
Mullen may not be in a joking mood this holiday season — or quite so flippant. I know he won’t be if he suffers back-to-back Egg Bowl losses.
Then there was Johnny Football, who hogged the headlines on Wednesday after a rocky offseason. Johnny Manziel, the Heisman Trophy winning quarterback from Texas A&M, was bombarded by the media after making controversial comments on social media, agreeing to a plea deal on misdemeanor charges of failure to properly identify himself to College Station police and reportedly shoving a graduate assistant coach at a spring game in which he threw multiple interceptions.
Oh, yeah, and there was a little something about leaving the Manning Passing Camp.
Here’s hoping Manziel can keep his nose clean the rest of the way because I am ready to talk what’s happening on the field, not off.
The only question I have for him is can he come close to repeating his incredible 2012 season where the 6-foot-1, 200-pound speedster threw for 3,706 yards and rushed for 1,410 more, ending the season No. 1 in the nation in total offense just shy of 400 yards per game and 47 total touchdowns.
Really looking forward to that Sept. 14 rematch with defending national champ Alabama.
Contact Bill Burrus at 581-7237 or bburrus@gwcommonwealth.com. Follow on Twitter:@Bill_Burrus.
