Ever since I was little, I loved asking questions. Not in an annoying, “why, why, why” way, but more because I wanted to know what people were doing or the reasons behind them feeling a certain way. Along the way, I got a reputation of being a pretty good listener, and I thought, okay, what can I do with this? So, I could be a politician, a lawyer, a journalist or a psychologist, or maybe a teacher.
Questions have never stopped being intriguing to me. And I’ve started more and more listening to not just the answers people give me when I ask questions, but the questions people ask other people. I’m fascinated by them, the construction, the word choice, the inflection people give, the speed at which they ask them. After going through another whole media day (this time SEC Basketball, in which my question to Bruce Pearl about the league as a whole’s recent success landing top recruits led to him emphatically proclaiming that they will not apologize for being a football conference), I’m even more interested in why people ask what they ask.
Basically, this is a long-winded way of saying I am putting more thought into the questions you ask me than I probably should, and I’m glad you’re taking the time to ask them. Here’s this week’s mailbag.
@bflip33: Which quarterback who is now in college will be the next QB whose eliteness is debated in the NFL? Hackenberg? Cardale? Goff?
Notice how Bill isn’t asking which quarterback will be the best at the next level, but instead which will be the most “elite” in the realm of Joe Flacco (shoutout PFT Commenter). Of the names listed, Christian Hackenberg makes the most sense, as nobody can even make up their mind now if he’s any good, and he has as many staunch defenders as he has people who think he’s straight trash (I’m of the former and still think he will be fine in the NFL).
I’m going to go with a name not listed by Bill, and say Connor Cook. First off, it’s that Michigan State vibe, where those quarterbacks get extra attention once they make the pros and get more chances than they deserve even if they aren’t any good (Brian Hoyer and Kirk Cousins). And that’s not to say that I don’t think Cook will be better than Hoyer or Cousins. His upside is great. He’s accurate, throws a really pretty ball, stays in the pocket, and is extremely good at “being a quarterback.” I just think people are going to to debate his eliteness from the second he starts a game.
It’s weird we don’t have more conversations like this at the college level. It’d be fun to argue whether or not Cooper Rush was elite.
@celebrityhottub: Michigan-Michigan State is being thrown around as one of the most painful endings, but what’s the LEAST painful way to lose a close game?
Hi, Ryan! Thanks for the question. Let’s rank them from most painful to least painful, shall we!?
1. Some sort of miracle finish that never could happen again if you ran the exact same play under the exact same circumstances 1,000 times (a la the Spartans or the Band Is On The Field type situations).
2. Getting a penalty that is kind of bogus and maybe not true and having the other team get another play and then that team scores and wins.
3. A busted play where a team hits a touchdown when your team was up by like five or six points.
4. Your team scoring, but it’s called back because of a hold, or it’s not a touchdown after review, or there was a pick play or something.
5. Your team making a field goal, but there’s a timeout called, then you kick another one and miss it.
6. A normal missed field goal.
7. Getting four chances at a touchdown in the red zone and throwing four fades.
8. The other team making a long field goal to win the game.
9. The other team getting four chances at a touchdown in the red zone under two minutes and their running back just kind of scoring because he’s really good.
10. The other team making like a 38-yarder to win as time expires.
If you lose on a field goal, you just lose. There’s no pain in it. It’s a thing that happens. Like forgetting to return a Redbox.
@DoUDoubleDown: Can I be the new South Carolina coach?
Get in line. I’ve already put my name in consideration for the South Carolina job. And I think I have a strong case. It has always been my dream to coach the Gamecocks.
@InTheBleachers: Who would win in a fight, Robert Nkemdiche or Joey Bosa or Charlie Strong or Leonard Fournette?
Every single week, I get a question that involves Leonard Fournette, which is why I think he will win the Heisman. That is my only criteria for winning an award: will people ask you about said player every single week? But Mr. Felder’s question is a tough one if only because this is such an evenly matched fight because everyone can do certain things well.
I think in an athletic skills competition, Nkemdiche pulls it out. He’s just the type of dude who could box jump like super high, and flip a truck tire, and be really good at pole vaulting. Bosa is a dude I don’t want to face in an alley or tight quarters. He will overmatch you, and he will just take you down. Fournette is the guy you don’t want to fight if there’s open space because he’ll hunt you down and punch you right in your throat.
But I’m going with Strong if only because he has that elusive dad strength. We don’t know how strong he really is under those mock turtlenecks and he’s intimidating as all get-up. He’s been in scraps so many times, he’s not afraid of your bark, and he knows his limitations. You can take the young bucks all you want, but my money’s on Strong to survive.
@mmmmsnouts: How many more wins before FSU Twitter rises up and demands that the whole world start #TalkinBoutTheNoles?
The correct answer is one. One win. If Florida State beats Georgia Tech on Saturday, the tide will start to rise. They’ve been held down enough this year, but the sheer power of #TalkinBoutTheNoles cannot be contained through Halloween. It just can’t.
@TheKeyPlay: WHAT’S YOUR SENSE ON HOW APPEALING A VACANCY AT VT WOULD BE TO TOP NON-P5 CANDIDATES?WHERE’D VT RANK AMONG EXISTING OPENINGS?
Just a refresher: Here are the jobs that are currently open:
- Maryland
- Illinois
- South Carolina
- USC
- North Texas
So, if we’re adding Virginia Tech to the mix, that’s six total. (Look at me doing math.) The Hokies are easily above Illinois and North Texas, and I think it’s a no-brainer they’re a better job than USC, too, despite what Steve Spurrier did to elevate that program and the fact that they’re in the SEC (I think it’s easier to win a Coastal Division in the ACC than it is to win the SEC East.) Maryland has a lot of money to throw around, and that Under Armour stuff, and it’s possible to win in the Big Ten, so it’s sneaky good, but I think Tech gets the edge there, too.
That leaves USC. As good a job as Virginia Tech is, it’s not USC. So, it’s second among the vacancies. Not bad! It has always been my dream to coach in Blacksburg.
@kmattio: Would you rather have 20 Plumlees or two Currys?
A basketball question in the #FootballFam mailbag! We did it! We did it! Finally. Okay, here’s the situation, and I know what Kami is trying to ask here. If you’re a family, would you rather have a whole bunch of pretty good players who can make the NBA, or would you rather have two players, one of whom is a fringe NBA guy and the other who is an MVP. As far as earning potential goes, the Plumlees are making bank, and they’d make a pretty crazy good gang, too. That’s two games worth of players at the same time and they’re all enormous!
But I’m still going with the two Currys. One MVP is worth 100 (or more) normal, everyday NBA players. Sorry, Plumlees.
@erinsorensen: On a scale of 1 to Bo Pelini throwing his hat at a referee, how bad was Michigan’s loss to MSU?
I’d rank this loss at a strong Danny Hope Calling Timeout Against Notre Dame on a scale of 1 to Pelini Hat. Thank you for playing.
