The Rise of the Christian Quarterback

I have here a few disparate thoughts on the near end of the college football season, including one sociological observation that may or may not be correct, but in the spirit of shooting from the hip I will make anyway.

First of all, part of me wants to be really bitter about the success of Notre Dame. Lou Holtz, former ND coach and ESPN talking head, defended them last week saying that they beat a team from every major conference, except the SEC. I thought, well Lou, that's a big exception. They beat someone from the Big East! And the ACC! Their win over Oklahoma was solid and unexpected, but their win over Stanford was the product of some inscrutable distraction on the part of the official that prevented him from seeing the ball break the plane before the runner's knee was down. Also, I am of the firm belief that any team requiring three overtimes and a missed 30 yard field goal to beat Pitt is undeserving of the national championship.

But this would all be mere howling at the wind. Notre Dame is in, and there is nothing to be done about it. This season, like the Broncos run last year with Jesus, Jr. Tim Tebow, seemed marked with providence. The aforementioned events, plus Matt Barkley not being able to play the other night, leaving a kid six months removed from prom as the quarterback for the Trojans, left little doubt about the outcome. The one upshot, and the reason I very halfheartedly cheered for the Irish the other night: there is a chance that the SEC's dominance might end. Hey, anything can happen. One game. One night. And as much as I think Notre Dame hardly deserves to be a top ten team, they ran the table and get to try and prove they belong. And I hope they win.

My prediction: Notre Dame 7, Alabama 27

Secondly, on the bolstering of the Big 10 conference with the stellar programs and great traditions of Rutgers and Maryland football. If this does not serve as damning evidence of the completely money grubbing nature of college athletics than what else possibly could? Were people clamoring for an annual battle between Minnesota and Maryland? Is the Rutgers vs Michigan State battle going to undo the prestige of The Game between Ohio State and Michigan? This was purely about acquiring all of those television sets on the east coast. Maryland and Rutgers are both good schools, don't get me wrong, but this does nothing to enhance the prestige of the league. Big 10 football has been in a slide for awhile and this will not arrest the descent. It will only further it. But everyone will still make money. Which really is the point of college, right?

Thirdly, on Ohio State deserving a co-national champion for their 12-0 season. Simply put: hell freaking no! In this country you don't get rewarded for cheating and lying. Right? Right? Bueller? Why I say hell freaking no is because Ohio State doesn't have to play in the Big 10 championship game or defend their title-worthiness in a bowl game. They ran the table in a pathetic conference. And here is the kicker for me: they did it with precisely nothing on the line. All season they knew there was no bowl in store for them, so there was really no pressure. Pressure effects teams as the season goes on and everything is on the line. For example, see Alabama vs Texas A&M, Notre Dame vs. Pitt, and K-State vs Baylor. All of these teams looked tighter than bark on a tree in these games. Ohio State never had that burden. They were playing for nothing except that good old The Ohio State University pride. And that is simply not enough to deserve a national championship.

Finally, I want to make a sociological observation that, like most observations made by individuals, is almost entirely anecdotal. I was thinking recently about how many high profile Christian quarterbacks there are right now. Not just Tim Tebow, either, who is really more of a glorified fullback (sorry, you can like a guy personally and think he is not the greatest player ever). Sam Bradford, Heisman winner from 2009 is an example. So is Colt McCoy, his rival for the trophy that year. Phillip Rivers, the Broncos chief nemesis for the rival Chargers, is also outspokenly religious, with six children as proof of his fidelity to the command to be fruitful and multiply. Kansas State's one time Heisman hopeful, Collin Klein, is famous for his refusal to kiss his bride-to-be until their wedding day and is essentially a less outspoken Tebow. Matt Barkley at USC. Robert Griffin III. The list goes on. 

I don't know that there are more high profile Christian quarterbacks as a percentage today than there have been in the past, but it certainly feels that way. Some are complete athletic freaks, like RGIII, who could make a career out of whatever sport he chose. Some have the golden arm like Barkley at USC or Bradford for the Rams. Some are workhorses, like Tebow and Klein, who don't do anything fancy or pretty but grit out tough wins. There is no m.o., but the success is staggering.

So, why? Is there any reason or is it just a historical fluke? An accident? Maybe. Probably. Or, you could take my explanation. My generation, of whom these quaterbacks are all members, has a discipline problem which is very closely related to our distraction problem. It is not easy to be either disciplined or focused in our culture of instant gratification everything. This should not be a controversial statement. But what Christianity does (or any faith for that matter), serious Christianity, is instill a significant amount of discipline into its adherents. And a significant amount of discipline and a crazy amount of focus is precisely what is needed to succeed at the upper echelons of sports. Freak talent or not. You can get discipline and focus from other sources, but it seems harder and certainly less common. The homeschooled kids might not be as "cool" as the other kids, but who gets along easier with adults? Socialization, training in diversity, and the other shibboleths of our modern educational system do not prepare children to be the disciplined, focused members of society who really succeed. Christianity can provide that, and perhaps that helps explain the rise of the Christian quarterback.