The “holy war” between Brigham Young University and University of Utah saw an impressive battle Saturday. BYU fans in Lavell Edwards Stadium cheered the cougars to a 14 point lead over the Utes– a lead they gave away in the fourth quarter. With a touchdown conquering the Ute’s field goal in overtime, BYU claimed the unofficial title for 2009: 26: 23.
Following the game, a triumphant Max Hall, quarterback for BYU, stated that he “hate[d]. . . everything about [the University of] Utah.” Saying that Ute fans are “classless,” Hall referenced an incident from last year’s rivalry game when Utah fans verbally assaulted, spit on, and dumped beer on his family.
According to Hall, the fans in question were escorted to their vehicle by the local police. Ending an embarrassing game for Hall and an unpleasant experience for his family, this experience embittered Hall.
Hall has since apologized to the university, fans, and team from Utah and to his own team and coaching staff.In an interview this morning, BYU head coach, Bronco Mendenhall, says he ‘absolutely’ respects Hall for the way he handled the situation, calling him a ‘great leader’ and a ‘great kid’ who ‘has [Mendenhall's] support.’
According to Mendenhall, “The apology [Max] issued (came) from him and no one else. . . . If anyone thinks they’ve influenced his apology, that’s a mistake; he woke up, did all of that on his own. . . . I haven’t talked to Max yet, nor has anyone else from our coaching staff. Max has done this completely on his own.”
As I went cast my vote in my local community I couldn’t help thinking about the 2009 Heisman Trophy race that has a myriad of players contenting for one of the most coveted awards in college football. Unlike political candidates, the Heisman contenders don’t need tacky lawn signs and bad advertisements to gain recognition. No, they sell themselves by doing what they do best: scoring touchdowns, making awe inspiring plays, and by winning.
Picking a political candidate is seemingly easy compared to the difficult task of eliminating nine of the true contenders for the Heisman Trophy. Just like in politics there is a specific agenda that must be met in order for the candidates to qualify…but what is the Heisman agenda? Historically, it seems to differ from year to year and a lot of it depends on who the media frames as the most powerful and dominant player. Do you have to play for a traditional powerhouse? Not historically, but doesn’t hurt. Keep in mind, however, that BYU’s Ty Detmer was the last non-BCS Heisman winner in 1990. In a powerhouse conference? Again, Ty Detmer played in the WAC. Winning Team? Not always, but doesn’t hurt. National Championship contender? Not always, but again it doesn’t hurt. Record Stats? No, but brings attention that definitely helps. So…according to the criteria listed above who is a true contender for in the “Heisman Election”?
According to the Espn Experts’ Poll sophomore running back Mark Ingram leads the pack with 56 points, 2008′s Heisman winner Tim Tebow follows close behind with 47 points, and Notre Dame’s junior quarterback Jimmy Clausen trails in third place with 35 points. In contrast, the CBS Expert’s poll has Tebow in 4th place, Clausen in 3rd place, underdog Case Keenum in 2nd place, and Mark Ingram in 1st place. So who is the most deserving? Cast your vote at http://espn.go.com/college-football/heisman09/index. Who do I think should win? I don’t claim to be an expert, but I would like to see Keenum win the race. Tebow has his trophy. Ingram always has next year or even the year after and probably hasn’t hit his peak. Clausen is great, but I like a well rounded QB. And then there was Keenum. Despite being in a small conference, Keenum has his team in the top 15 and his stats are great. The five interceptions aren’t amazing…but not too bad either. It could be worse. There’s no telling what methodology will be used in picking a winner and no matter who wins critics are going to go wild. The fact of the matter is that all of the contestants are unbelievable athletes that play out of their heads week after week.
Rich Rodriguez has found himself in quite a sticky situation. His job at Michigan isn’t turning out to what he thought it would be when he signed his $15 million contract back in 2008. I am sure he had envisioned in his mind, coming into Michigan and turning the team back into the national powerhouse that they once were. However, everything has officially back-fired on him. This past week, he has been accused of breaking NCAA rules of holding practice and mandatory workouts, both during the season and in the off-season, for more time than the NCAA has set forth. A strict rule that can have harsh penalties if caught breaking.
Oddly enough, it wasn’t the media or an inside regulator from the school, such as the athletic director, who turned him in, but it was his own players, both past and present. They reported being told by the coaching staff that they should be missing class and watching film, lifting weights, and studying plays. Rodriguez and his staff have denied all of the allegations.
Former Michigan wide receiver Toney Clemons told ESPN’s Joe Schad on Sunday night that all of the allegations reported are accurate.
Looks like coach Rodriguez is going to have another hurdle, besides Ohio State, to get past in order to keep his coaching job. I wouldn’t be surprised if he is let go after two more losing seasons.
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