12/21/24
September 14, 2005
Perspective just doesn't mix with Columbus,: where an Ohio State TE gets hate mail for a missed touchdown catch during the team's 25-22 loss to Texas.
posted by jackhererra to football at 06:47 PM - 20 comments
I'm a Texas alum living (reluctantly) in Columbus. I haven't been doing much celebrating; I don't feel like having my dental work rearranged.
posted by alumshubby at 07:30 PM on September 14, 2005
If I was that TE I would challenge the guy who wrote the letter to go across the middle on a few D-I linebackers and we'll see how much smack that guy talks then.
posted by mcstan13 at 07:51 PM on September 14, 2005
Ohio State tight end Ryan Hamby has received a couple of hate letters since dropping a sure touchdown pass during the Buckeyes' loss to Texas last week This is ridiculous, and it is downright stupid. Hamby has always been a solid player who dropped one ball. On the otherhand, lets not go slamming Columbus because of a couple of dumbasses. I made the Bellisari comment in response to someone who was saying how the fans were on his ass after he got his DUI. There seems to be plenty of people on this site who express their opinions every time a sports figure gets into trouble, at least my comment showed what he did to his team, not what I thought of him. I could care less about Bellisari.
posted by jojomfd1 at 11:42 PM on September 14, 2005
why not forward some of those hate mails on to jim tressel, starting justin zwick, later going to troy smith who was effective only to go back to justin zwick who pissed the game away for the buckeyes, people should leave that poor kid alone, it's not his fault his coach is a moron
posted by bharr_77 at 12:14 AM on September 15, 2005
Anyway you look at it, it was a damn good game. A J Hawk is the man at LB for the Buc's. He had 10 tackles 2 sacks and an Int. at half time!! Bharr here is the box score, both QB's numbers sucked. It was the defense that kept us in the game. Although the dropped pass in the endzone would have helped, but all the other drops would have helped too. Don't forget the guy you are calling a moron is the only coach to win at least one National Title at two different schools (Youngstown State and Ohio State.) and at least one National Title at two different NCAA Football Division Levels.
posted by jojomfd1 at 01:06 AM on September 15, 2005
Interesting. Having flashbacks of Scott Norwide (I mean Norwood) going wide right. Grrr, still puts my teeth on edge.
posted by Stealth_72 at 06:44 AM on September 15, 2005
Don't beat up these kids playing in college. For most of them the biggest crowds they've seen prior to college was a couple thousand. Now they play for 80,000+ on national TV, they make a mistake and we take ignorant shots at them (i.e. Scott Norwide). I have no problem if you belittle a PRO player, because they get paid millions to do what they are supposed to be the best at and that is all they have to worry about. These college kids have school, grades, tests, etc. to deal with on top of football. Cut them some slack.
posted by mcstan13 at 08:41 AM on September 15, 2005
I'm not surprised, though I am embarrassed as a Columbus resident. There was a story in the paper yesterday about the giant mess the fans left after the Texas game - it included "five soiled pairs of underwear". The OSU president had to apologize to angry Texas fans who complained about their treatment at the game. She told them that OSU was trying to change the culture that caused such things. I don't want to be part of any culture that includes soiled underwear and death threats. That said, people who act like that are in the minority and are just using their fandom as an excuse to engage in toddler behavior. The fans I watched the game with were upset, but they didn't threaten to kill anyone.
posted by pooch at 08:51 AM on September 15, 2005
I was in Columbus when Michigan spoiled an undefeated season, must have been 96, or 97, something like that. Anyway, I saw a Wolverine fan drive his van down the street after the game. The van was all decked out with big block M's and the flags flying, etc. Somebody threw a very large rock through the driver's side window.
posted by mayerkyl at 09:12 AM on September 15, 2005
people who act like that are in the minority and are just using their fandom as an excuse to engage in toddler behavior. This was exactly my point earlier, and thanks for making it again. They are in the minority, I go to at least 3 Bucs games a year, and the fans are wild. On the other hand I have never seen any soiled underwear, or rocks being thrown at cars. So those peopole are in the minority, so it is wrong to judge Columbus by those few morons.
posted by jojomfd1 at 10:31 AM on September 15, 2005
Right...because broad, sweeping generalizations of the entire population of a city really require a good grip on perspective as well...*rolls eyes* Hypocrites. Yes, I'm a Buckeyes fan, and yes, I'm pissed that Hamby didn't catch that ball. It's his job, for jebus' sake! He had THREE chances to catch it. But regardless, I'm also pissed at Tressel, and Zwick, and Troy...just about the entire team. But I'm not going to threaten their lives. It sucks what happened, and it sucks we lost. But if I ever met Hamby on the street, I'd pat him on the back and say, "We'll get 'em next time. Don't sweat it." They are only kids after all, and nobody is perfect. I don't hold it against anyone personally. It was only an unfortunate situation and a unlucky string of bad decisions. As they say, hindsight is 50/50. If Zwick would have thrown a TD on that last drive, he'd be throned as a savior and Tressel as the smartest man alive. Every loss requires at least one scapegoat...EVERY sports fan knows it, and can't deny it. ...besides...it's only a f**king game. Some people need to just get over it.
posted by IdiotBoy at 10:52 AM on September 15, 2005
Reminds me of the last Buckeye-centric thread. What do you have against buckeye fans? Are you from Michigan? I am just trying to find where that comment came from. Since it was a thread about the broncos cutting clarett. And you asked: The question is what is gained if Clarett turns out to be a Lawrence Phillips-type, something "Buckeye Nation" seems to be rooting for? Are those desires actually warranted? posted by jackhererra at 1:03 PM CST on August 30
posted by jojomfd1 at 11:27 AM on September 15, 2005
As they say, hindsight is 50/50. Hindsight is 20/20, but don't soil your underwear because I corrected you. Just kiddin.
posted by mayerkyl at 11:29 AM on September 15, 2005
Jojo, sorry about the cheap shot and I look forward to visiting Columbus some day, but I couldn't resist... The difference between Bellisari and Larry Johnson is that one incident happened in college and the other concerns a series of incidents with a millionaire player who can't get his shit together but feels rather welcome in complaining about his carries when he's playing behind one of the NFL's best backs over the last five years. Shouldn't go overboard with either guy, but there's a difference... Tressel's a good enough coach (for college), but I'd put him in the "I'll eventually stumble into one of these" club. For instance, Lloyd Carr also just happened to get it done earlier in his career. (Time + Talent = Title.) Since then, Carr's been called a moron more than once... For the record, I thought OSU needed a QB to make a play during the last five minutes, and the team's best chances were with Smith, not Swick. To explain how we got here, I thought the glee at Clarett's misfortune was a bit over the top and the bit about Bellisari's DUI was a tad whiny. So yes, sending hate mail over a missed pass fits the trend of forgetting that "our guys" aren't getting paid to do this. (I understand the value of a scholarship, but let's face it, it's akin to the limited membership at the local gym.) If you're in college, I guess it's understandable to feel this way. As one approaches 30, I'm not so sure. To be fair, the mindset is not specific to fans in C-Bus. And yes, the college team I follow has done very, very, very well in recent years. (That rules out Michigan.) So I have the luxury of doing the "put this into perspective" thing. Lucky me.
posted by jackhererra at 11:58 AM on September 15, 2005
I just don't like when the group as a whole get defined because of the actions of a few. You should go to the shoe and see a game there. It is awesome, 104,000 fans it looks like a sea of red and grey. They start the O-H-I-O chant it goes around in a circle. You gotta get there early enough to see the band do script Ohio, and dot the I at the end. It is one of the loudest stadiums in the country they say. I have sat in front of, next to, and behind, fans from NC state, Northwestern, Penn State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, and Purdue just to name some. They have all said how wonderful the stadium is, and how much tradition is still inside of the shoe. There is still the old stained glass windows in some of the stariwells, the old archways. You really need to go if you are a college football fan!!! Plus this year they hung a banner up around the first tier with Woody's name on it!
posted by jojomfd1 at 12:45 PM on September 15, 2005
(I understand the value of a scholarship, but let's face it, it's akin to the limited membership at the local gym.) Are you serious? What kind of local Gym do you go to? I believe that college level athletes should get a stipend from the school to support them since they are not allowed to have a job in any capacity. But, let's not act like they are not benefiting at all. These players are not going to be 50-100 thousand dollars in debt once they are handed their diploma. Must be one hell of a local gym. As far as the dropped pass, anyone that feels bad about the dropped pass needs to look and Chad Henne's performance this past week. A quarterback that was actually a Pre-season Heismen hopeful (albeit not a realistic one) had the worst single game performance by a U of M quarterback in the past decade. U of M lost to an inferior (although much improved over last year) ND team. Lloyd Carr is probably the coach that gets the least out of his players in all of D-1. Michigan constantly brings in top talent but always pisses away a stupid early season game. That tells me the coaching staff isnt doing their job. That all said, dont be too pissed in Columbus. Texas will win the title this year. No other teams defense is as fast as OSU's and they didnt even contain him very well.
posted by jabes05 at 01:33 PM on September 15, 2005
The hell of a local gym usually has two options. One has full use of the facility, morning or night. For a reduced fee, the other option has limited privileges where you can work out, and I'd compare that to athletes whose education is dictated by practice times and the ease of maintaining eligibility. Thus, the rather awkward analogy.
posted by jackhererra at 03:10 PM on September 15, 2005
Lets be realistic about this jack, there is no local gym membership that can even come near the value of a scholarship.
posted by jojomfd1 at 08:09 AM on September 16, 2005
An athlete's ability to be educated is to a regular student's education what a limited-use gym membership is to a full gym membership. It's a given that the cost of a membership in the best "fitness spas" in the country would be a bargain compared to tuition at most colleges. But the analogy has less to do with money and more to do with the ability to get full use of the product.
posted by jackhererra at 03:27 PM on September 16, 2005
Reminds me of the last Buckeye-centric thread. "Bellisari really put the team in a bad spot when he got that DUI." http://www.sportsfilter.com/comments.cfm/5034 I've heard that Bocce Ball is a nice hobby to take up.