Well looky here
Jeremy wins.
Maurice Clarett has surprised everyone by sneaking into the end of the 3rd round when most had him pegged for the 5th or later. At this point a mature individual may look at the time that’s past since Clarett was a Buckeye, say goodbye to the turmoil and perhaps even wish him well in the NFL.
Unfortunately we’ll never know if I’m that kind of person as Clarett was drafted by the hated Denver Broncos. As he is now a Bronco I, as a Browns fan, have an entirely new set of reasons to wish him ill in his career.
May the Broncos rue the day they drafted “Mo C”.
My most hated college player now with my most hated NFL team. It's like they are grooming my nemesis, only he's a complete fuck up.
Note: It is being said that Ohio State wouldn’t “let” Clarett go to the funeral of a friend after the ’02 Championship game. This is not true. What Ohio State wouldn’t do is pay for the early flight to him to get back in time. The reason they wouldn’t is because to do so would be giving him special treatment (buying him a ticket for a special flight while everyone has to wait for the Chartered flight) and as such would have been a violation of NCAA rules. Is it shity that Clarett couldn’t be there? Yes, but point the finger in the right place. This nonsense about Ohio State denying him right to go home is one of the many BS allegations he made against Ohio State that for some reason, perhaps peoples innate desire to always see things through David v. Goliath glasses (ya man, that sounds just like something Ohio State would do!), has managed to stick in the national press.
posted by Dublin Saab @ 6:51 PM
6 Comments:
Told you I did. Reckless is he. Now--matters are worse. [/Yoda]
If I recall, the travel hubbub occured before the game and not after, and OSU's defense was that Clarett never filled out the proper travel assistance forms--that they would have in fact paid for his flight if he had. Apparently this is a legit program with the NCAA, and happens from time to time, and Mo just didn't file his forms. That sounds believable enough, as um, paperwork, doesn't seem to be the guy's strong suit.
But what I also said--running backs went at a premium this draft (three out of the first five picks)--was that sombody was going to look at those tapes of Big Ten games in which he tore up some very physical defenses, forget completely that he's a wingnut, and gamble a higher pick on him than they aught to. And so it came to pass. Dallas was going to take him in the fourth, which is probably where Denver wanted to take him, so instead they got out the credit card like shopping-drunk housewives at Christmas and dropped a third round pick on him.
Given Shanahann's gifts with running backs, he'll probably piss us off more by actually being good.
Before I gloat too much (hey, it's only bragging rights and a beer, after all), I'll simply point out that I hedged my bet on his second round of workouts. I thought that if they went well (which, comparatively, they did) someone was bound to conclude that his size and agility compensate for his relative lack of speed. Somebody did. And it just happened to be a team you already hate.
(I might reconsider that, though, as John Elway is retired and in the Hall of Fame, and there isn't a single person from either team that played in the last AFC Championship game between them left in football. It may be time to move on.)
But Clarett has some distinct advantages in the NFL. He can simply buy all the cars he wants to drive around without openly violating team rules; he doesn't have to worry about passing classes anymore, and he can pay his own airfare in the event of any future deceased friends or relatives. Plus, with a coaching staff overseeing his training, he won't have any more opportunities to inexplicably get out of shape. The life of the coddled NFL athlete may fit perfectly with his monumental inability to take his head out of his ass. I won't be surprised if he does well. On the other hand, I won't be surprised if he flakes out and gets kicked off the team by game nine. We've seen, after all, the previews for both.
Any thoughts on the Browns' draft, aside from invoking the wrath of God by picking a Wolverine first? I may do a post on it later.
On a quasi-related note, did you see that Nugent went mid-second round (47th pick)? That's just about surreal for a PK, most of whom are completely undrafted since the seven-round limitation. The next kicker taken after him went in the 6th, just to give you a point of comparison.
If Clarett had gone to a different team I would be saying that now we get to see if he can pull it together. I still would not be pulling for him but I wouldn’t be upset if he did well. Since he’s with the Broncos that’s not the case. You mentioned the fact that there are no players left from those dark days. So? It’s the fans that derived great joy from our great tragedy. It is for them I wish ill. Do I hold a grudge? Yes. This is sports. Grudges are what make it all go around. Without them there is no OSU – Michigan. Without them you had better stop bad mouthing the Yankees.
I can admit that it is possible that Clarett may be able to pull it together. After his god awful performance in the combines he did improve his numbers so perhaps. But the jury is still out on that gimpy shoulder which I have grape-vine info on from OSU medical that it never healed properly. Maybe you’d be interested in a second bet? Here is my statement, “Clarett will not crack 1,000 yards rushing this season, as he is a flake with an injury prone body.”
As for Braylon Edwards, it’s hard to hold much of a grudge against a guy that went 1-3 against OSU during his time with the Wolverines. Add to that the fact that he is now a Brownie and I’m pulling for him to have a big impact with the team. Maybe 6 wins this year!
So you're asking me to bet that a rookie halfback, who has already been declared the number two depth guy at best, won't break 1000 yards, which most starters don't do anyway? How generous an offer! What odds are you giving me? 100-1?
Edwards did spend plenty of time losing to us, so I'll have to take that into consideration. I wasn't entirely joking, though. 4.5 speed for a wideout really isn't very intimidating. Sure, he lit up most NCAA secondaries he played against, but those guys don't all have corners running 4.3-4.4 times like most of the NFL does. Jerry Rice and Steve Largent weren't blazing fast either, though, so perhaps I'm overemphasizing sprint speed, which can translate poorly onto a ball field. (Or maybe Rice was, but it's been so long since that I don't remember that phase of his career.)
Ah well, shows you how much I pay attention. I'll try to come up with something better.
Oh, and a note on the rivalry thing: Reasons to hate the Yankees: the Yankees have been the Indians rivals for about 100 years. The Yankees play in New York, the second-most obnoxious city on the planet; the Yankees are perpetually the best team in the AL based on their grossly inflated payroll; the Yankees are owned by George Steinbrenner, a legendarily mercurial prick; the Yankees and Indians have played each other over 1900 times. Those are reasons for a grudge and a rivalry.
The Cleveland Browns and Denver Broncos played each other three times in four AFC Championship games when we were in our teens. We would have one two if Earnest Byner could hold onto a football or Maty Schottenheimer could coach. (Enough about The Drive, for chrissake. Run a three-man rush and a loose zone against the most mobile quarterback in football and a future hall-of-famer and what did you expect to happen. He was going to offer you the ball?) We were never considered rivals before that and haven't been since. The Browns have three legit real rivalries, with the Ravens, Steelers, and Bengals. Denver vs. Cleveland does not equal OSU-Michigan. It doesn't enter the same solar system as Browns-Steelers. It holds not a candle to Army-Navy. It happened a long time ago to a bunch of retired players, and the teams themselves' paths have hardly crossed since. When they do none of the players looks at it as anything other than another AFC game. Neither should you.
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