Some people grew up wanting to be the star quarterback, others
wanted to be the hard-hitting linebacker. Me, I always wanted the
glory minus the blood and guts. And while being a sports writer has
its perks, the best job in sports is an easy call
– The Backup Punter.
The Backup Punter
N ote: Some people grew up wanting to be the star quarterback, others wanted to be the hard-hitting linebacker. Me, I always wanted the glory minus the blood and guts. And while being a sports writer has its perks, the best job in sports is an easy call – The Backup Punter.
Nothing is sweeter than the life of a backup punter. Think about it. It’s a steady paycheck, the stakes are minimal – unlike a place kicker, and he gets a cushy front-row seat to all the action. To give you the inside scoop while still being able to see the forest through the trees, once a week I will become The Backup Punter. These are my observations:
You heard it here first – or second or third, depending on who you talk to – Cal football will be playing in a BCS bowl game in January.
After suffering a devastating 35-18 loss in last year’s opener against the Tennessee Volunteers, the No. 12-ranked Golden Bears squeezed all the juice from the 15th ranked “Big Orange” in a beautiful 45-31 victory to begin the season. Circle Nov. 10 on your calendar, when mighty USC will roll into Strawberry Canyon. The game should decide the winner of the Pac-10 title.
Immediately apparent in Saturday’s showdown was how fast and athletic this year’s Cal squad is. Receiver and return man DeSean Jackson proved worthy of the preseason hype by showing shades of former Florida State Seminole Peter Warrick. Jackson’s ability to cut against the grain – including one beautiful side step that forced a Tennessee defender to retrieve his jock from the turf – on a 77-yard punt return for a touchdown, showed why he is the most explosive player in the country. Every time Jackson touches the ball should garner Barry Bonds-up-to-bat attention. He is a home run threat, able to go to the distance in a moment’s notice.
It was a slow and sloppy start for other Bay Area teams, though.
San Jose State got scorched by the Arizona State Sun Devils in a 45-3 trouncing in Tempe. Dick Tomey’s group of Spartans have received plenty of praise after going 9-4 a year ago, and right now it looks like some of the talent the team lost will be more costly than expected.
Stanford was beaten 45-17 by UCLA and most observers described it as a moral victory for the Cardinal. Well, new coach Jim Harbaugh and company were expected to lose to the Bruins, but being whipped by four scores will cease to be a learning experience the next time it happens. Stanford players, I’m sure, learn plenty in the classroom as it is.
Saturday’s upset special came when No. 5 ranked Michigan fell on its face against D-IAA school Appalachian State. (Two notes: One, Michigan falling on its face may have just been the understatement of the year; and two, D-IAA schools, which have lower attendance requirements than D-IA schools, are now classified as being in the Football Championship Subdivision while D-IA teams are now part of the Football Bowl Subdivision. Thanks for keeping it concise NCAA!) Of course, what is now being called the greatest upset in college football history – no D-IAA team has ever beaten a ranked D-IA team – didn’t even have a betting line because oddsmakers deemed the matchup too lopsided. And, it wasn’t televised nationally unless your cable provider offers the Big-10 Network (not exactly a must have for most Californians).
As someone that called one of the biggest college football upsets in the last five years on radio – UC Davis beating Stanford 20-17 in Palo Alto in 2005 – and attended the winning school in that contest, I have no bias that prevents me from saying the Wolverines’ loss was much, much, MUCH more monumental. The upset gains further distance from the Stanford surprise as the Cardinal keep playing, or losing to be precise.
The No. 5 team in the country should never lose to a lower tier school. It’s not just because of pride, but also money. The way college games are generally arranged, a small school agrees to play a big school for a payday. The visiting team gets a percentage of the ticket sales (Michigan had 109,000 people in attendance so you can expect the Mountaineers got a few hundred thousand dollars from the gate), which is usually traded for an expected L on the record. But since Appalachian State won, the team not only got publicity money can’t buy by beating vaunted Michigan, but it also funded its entire athletic program in the process.
The trickle down effect should go something like this: The football coach and athletic director at Appalachian State will both demand raises; and, Michigan coach Lloyd Carr will see a flaming paper bag on his doorstep every day … for the rest of his life.
Josh Koehn is the sports editor for the Gilroy Dispatch. He can be reached at (408) 842-1694 or at jk****@************ch.com.
