- Today, I am ready to move on from something that has bothered me for the last 11 years. Today, I will become a Ronald Curry fan for the first time since he wore a Hampton Crabbers uniform in high school in 1997-98. Curry signed with my Detroit Lions last week and should see significant playing time as a slot receiver. For those of you that are not familiar with Curry, he dominated high school football and basketball like few players ever have. He was a man among boys. Curry had his choice of scholarships for both sports -- he was the best quarterback and point guard in the nation. Curry committed to UVa to play both sports. Several of his highly-recruited football teammates committed to follow Curry to UVa. Curry was going to put UVa on the map. But it never happened. Curry changed his mind, de-committed from UVa, and signed with North Carolina -- where he had a solid but unspectacular career in both sports. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders and switched to wide receiver.
It is common for high school recruits to change their minds -- UVa has benefited on several occasions from players de-committing from other schools and signing with UVa. So that - in and of itself - isn't why I've hated Ronald Curry since I was 16. Most people outside of the 757 (Hampton Roads, VA) don't realize that Michael Vick played in the same district at the same time as Ronald Curry. Vick was good in high school, but he was completely overshadowed by Curry's dominance. Michael Vick narrowed his potential college choices down to Virginia Tech, Syracuse, and UVa. Now, there is no indication that Vick would have gone to UVa if Curry had committed to UNC from the beginning. However, it was very clear that once Curry committed to UVa, UVa was crossed off of Vick's list. Keep in mind that in the late 90s Virginia Tech had a good program but not a nationally recognized program. Vick put Virginia Tech on the national scene and helped them get the support they needed to get into the ACC. So, not only did Curry break UVa's heart, he also indirectly helped Virginia Tech become a football powerhouse.
Now that Curry has joined my Lions, I am willing to move on and forgive a 17-year old kid for stabbing me in the back. And as much as I would have loved to see Mike Vick in the blue and orange, I'll take the Barbers (Tiki and Ronde) and let the Hokies have the Vicks (Mike and Marcus).
- Speaking of the Detroit Lions, the NFL draft is just days away. We need offensive line help, but I think we have to take Georgia QB Matthew Stafford with the 1st pick. He is the real deal. Check out the video from Stafford's appearance on Jimmy Fallon (video at bottom of page).
- Is anyone else confused as to why Greg Paulus is suddenly such a hot commodity as a QB? He was a high school All-American at QB, but he has played basketball for four years. Has Michigan sunk this low? Are the Green Bay Packers just thinking outside the box? Let's look at the facts -- 1) he hasn't played QB in 4 years, 2) he only has one year of eligibility remaining, 3) the spread offense (run at Michigan) doesn't seem to suit his style, 4) he's a huge tool, 5) he's only 6'1'', 6) his wide receiver teammates at the 2005 Army All-America game told reporters that Paulus picked the right sport when he signed with Duke to play basketball (translation: they didn't think he was a good QB), and 7) he was born to be a Duke assistant basketball coach -- although Coach K benched him this year and gave a weak, half-hearted Coach K hug at the end of his last career game.
- Redskins tight end Chris Cooley has some competition for best blog by a tight end in the NFC East. Check out the Cowboys' Martellus Bennett.
- I've been waiting for an excuse to post this video. Remember James White from Florida and Cincinnati? He is still around -- in fact, he just got picked up by the Houston Rockets. He spent most of the year in the D-League and put on a show at the dunk contest a few months ago. He is the only person I've ever seen take off from BEHIND the free throw line on a dunk. Ridiculous.
3 comments:
How do you feel about the "new" logo the Lions unveiled yesterday? Ridiculous. Should I have saved this for the mailbag?
You mean the awesome new logo with ferocious-looking teeth?
Just as a follow-up to the Paulus story -- it looks like Michigan reneged on its offer and Paulus will likely end up at Syracuse. I've been saying all along that Syracuse makes the most sense. It's the only school that makes sense for both sides. Paulus is from there, the 'Cuse have sucked at football ever since the McNabb years, and they run a pro-style offense. There is no reason for any relevant college program to take a chance on Paulus. It is definitely worth the risk for Syracuse. What do they have to lose? They have a redshirt freshman penciled in as their starter right now. As much as I dislike Paulus when he wears a Duke basketball jersey, this is an intriguing story.
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