The Black Quarterback: Running from the Devil

This is an article that has been on my mind for some time. The subject matter originally was Vince Young and race. You know, black quarterback who, in college is a star – make that super nova. But everyone can see that his mechanics are not those of the “prototypical” QB. In the pros he has a great year and appears to be on the verge of revolutionizing the NFL game. Then, when defensive coordinators begin to understand the weaknesses of this quarterback, the following season his stats drop. He can never quite do enough to satisfy his fan base. He walks around the practice field with a tee-shirt that reads, “I am a quarterback,” as if that will justify his existence; something you would never see his white peers do.

I read LZ Granderson’s article awhile back on VY and thought, okay, this is a great starting point. But there is more to this story than can be said in a column. And there’s more to the picture of Vince Young and the running quarterback than meets the eye.

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NCAA Saturday

Since Friday, five top ten teams were upset. West Virginia thought to have as much offensive talent as any team in the country, was shut down by South Florida. Now, if you’re a top 10 team, you’d think you’d take a cue from the Bulls 21-13 upset over the Mountaineers and be ready for Saturday. But it looked like no one was paying attention.

Urban Meyer’s best Mike Shanahan impression went awry. Meyer called a timeout just before the ball was snapped in the hopes of shaking Auburn freshman kicker Wes Bynum. Bynum made the attempt to no avail. He’d have to repeat the feat for the Tigers to pull the upset over the Gators.

Well, Bynum kicked the 43-yard again and Auburn ran off the field of “The Swamp” with a 20-127 win over Florida.

Meyer should be chastised for the “against the spirit of the rule” timeout call, but he and his QB, Tim Tebow, are national favorites, so they will more than likely escape the harsh words they deserve. Tebow was downright average for most of the night and Meyer found out that his team’s defense can be had.

Oh well, the Gators, their average quarterback, and their sheisty head coach can gain a measure of revenge for this loss by defeating LSU next week in Baton Rouge.

Spotes Notes, 9.14.07: Update: Ronny Thompson; Women’s Soccer; Cards’ Free-For-All; Microfracture; Troubles at U of Texas; Match-Fixing and Davydenko; “Videotaping Procedures”

Update: Remember when Jason Whitlock slammed his “friend” and “mentor” Michael Wilbon and assailed Ronny Thompson, former Ball State University head men’s basketball coach:

Last week I spent six hours in a law office with Big John Thompson, John Thompson III, Ronny Thompson and a lawyer. They tried in vain to convince me that Ronny Thompson, Big John’s youngest son, quit as Ball State’s basketball coach after 15 months because he worked in a racially hostile environment. They wanted me to write the story that they later got my friend Mike Wilbon to pen in Tuesday’s Washington Post…