SportsWrite

This is a story I have been following for quite some time now, ever since it was first reported that Myron Rolle was a finalist for a Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford University.

For anyone who might not know, Myron Rolle is a junior safety on Florida State’s football team, an All-American who was projected to be selected in the early rounds of the 2009 NFL Draft if he chose to forgo his senior season.  But he also completed his undergraduate pre-med degree in 2 1/2 years at FSU and has been taking graduate courses since, while still playing high level college football.

But the most remarkable part of this story is that Rolle has announced that he will actually skip the 2009 draft and attend Oxford instead, pursuing a Master’s degree in medical anthropology.

It is refreshing to hear about a true student-athlete like Rolle.  He obviously has a great deal of athletic ability and skill, but he has decided that becoming an NFL player (and receiving all the riches that comes with it) is of secondary importance to studying at Oxford and furthering his progress towards his goal of a medical degree and opening a medical clinic in the Bahamas. He still has a goal of playing in the NFL and will enter the 2010 draft to accomplish that goal, but he obviously believes that there are more important things for him to do outside of his athletic pursuits.

I haven’t spoken with anyone who doesn’t believe this is one of the best stories to come out of the sports world in recent years, especially in light of all the bad publicity and controversies that have plagued college and professional athletics recently.  And while I don’t think it is a story that has been publicized nearly enough, Myron Rolle would probably want it that way.

Thank you, Myron Rolle.

I know that many people have already called for this, but enough is enough, it is time for a playoff in I-A college football.  The need for a playoff is clearer this year more than any other.

With the Texas victory last night over Ohio State, that makes three teams who have legitimate claims to at least a share of the national championship.  And if you count Oklahoma and Florida, who have yet to play, that brings the total to five different teams.  At this point, I don’t think you can really make a case for any one of USC, Utah, Texas, Oklahoma or Florida over any of the others.

This is one of the problems.  When determining a national champion, no one should have to make a case or argument for this team or that team.  Coaches shouldn’t have to politick for their team to get more votes.  The national champion shouldn’t be decided in press conferences, it should be decided on the field.

For those who argue that it is decided on the field every week, and the whole regular season is a playoff, why is there still debate every year as to which team is really the champion?

And for those same people who argue that a playoff would diminish the importance of the regular season, what’s the point of an important regular season, if at the end of it, no one still knows who the champion is?  Who cares about the regular season if we still can’t figure out who won?  I don’t know if anyone has brought this question up before, but I think it is a valid one.

I really think it is unfortunate that this will be as good as it gets for a team like Utah.  At this point, the least they deserve is at least a chance to play for a national championship, but they won’t get that chance.

This is not the same as last year’s Hawaii team, or even the undefeated 2004 Utah team. If you look at Utah’s overall resume, it is pretty darn good.  They have beaten six bowl teams, including victories over #24 Oregon State (who had beaten USC), #17 BYU, #11 TCU and #4 Alabama.  Remember, Alabama was #1 for all of November and nearly was playing for the national title instead of Florida.  And yet, Utah won convincingly, thoroughly outplaying Alabama from the big, bad SEC.

Yes, the other top teams may have played slightly tougher schedules and defeated a few more bowl teams, but the fact remains that Utah won all of its games and Florida, Oklahoma, Texas and USC, frankly, did not.

Let’s say that LSU or Florida State went 13-0, was the only undefeated I-A team, beat six bowl teams, four of them ranked (two in the top ten), including the #1 team for all of November.  Would there be any question that they would be national champions?

It’s good to see that Penn State finally gave Joe Paterno a contract extension for three more years (give or take a few years, according to the reports.)  I know this has probably been said many times before, but I’ll say it again:  JoePa has more than earned the right to coach at Penn State as long as he wants.  Even if that means till the day he dies (it probably does.)

What I think people sometimes forget is that he isn’t simply an old coach just hanging on as long as he can without the results to warrant it.  He still runs out a solid football team year after year, and still wins lots of football games.  Sure, he has had a couple rough years recently, but by and large he still gets it done.

Gone are the days of powerhouse schools dominating year after year after year, like the Alabama, Nebraska, Penn State, Oklahoma teams of old.  Penn State has averaged 10 wins per season the last four years and been Big Ten champions twice in that time.  If not for a last second Iowa field goal this season, we would be talking about Penn State in the national championship game.  Same story in 2005, when a last second Michigan touchdown prevented another undefeated Penn State campaign.

So, essentially, Penn State plays New Year’s Day bowls regularly and every few years contends for the national championship.  In today’s college football landscape, that is a pretty good record.  No one is a perennial national championship contender now, not with the parity present.  What would Nebraska fans give to have Penn State’s record the last few years? Or Alabama? Or Tennessee? Or Miami?

That’s why JoePa deserves to coach at PSU as long as he wants.  In addition to his previous achievements, he gets results about as good as anyone could ask for in the modern college football world.  Just let him keep coaching.