Signing Day

Yes, I'm one of those losers who pays attention to National Signing Day for NCAA football - waiting with bated breath for some 17-year-old high schooler to sign on the dotted line and commit the next 3 to 5 years of their life to pursuing their dream of moving on to the NFL. I mean, going to classes and getting an education. Yeah, that's what I meant.

I follow the recruiting web sites (Rivals, Scout, et. al.) and pretend they know what they are talking about, assessing the skills of a kid who can't yet vote, let alone drink (legally, right Willie Williams?). The coaches don't know what they're getting, so the scouting sites don't know either. So why do I love Signing Day?

For just those reasons. It's a crapshoot. And I love every minute. We can analyze things after the fact, and that's fun too, but it's even more fun to dream. And that's what Signing Day is all about. I like to dream.

So let's talk dreams.

-One of the things I found interesting over the past year was the ranking of Jimmy Clausen. He was the consensus No. 1 rated player forever - over a year. He was the Golden Boy, the second coming of Montana or Elway or Manning. He committed to Notre Dame ages ago, was a So Cal pretty boy with a big arm and he comes from a family of quarterbacks (brothers Casey and Rick). So I wasn't surprised at all to see him slip in the rankings over the past month or two. Rivals kept him No. 1, among others, but Scout and ESPN both dropped him. Scout dropped him to No. 4 and ESPN dropped him all the way down to No. 9. Clearly they got tired of writing about him. They'll say that other players (Joe McKnight, for instance) emerged and that warranted the demotion. They're lying. It's tough to keep talking about a guy like Clausen for years - anointing him. The analysts start to get scared heaping all of this praise on him and they should because the kid has proved nothing. I just find the psyche of the analysts interesting. The same thing has happened to O.J. Mayo in basketball. Two years ago the kid was the second coming of LeBron James, now he's just one of a mix of good players - just like Jimmy Clausen.

-I mentioned Joe McKnight, the running back from Louisiana, who ESPN ranked No. 1 overall. He looks pretty talented, but that's not the point I want to mention. Why would you go to USC when they already have Marc Tyler (another top 15 overall recruit and running back)? I understand the desire to compete and the necessity to "fit in" at a school. Maybe he didn't feel as comfortable with the coaching staff at LSU (his second choice), which is a fine excuse, but he's put himself in a dumb position. McKnight has one of two options at USC - either he works his ass off and beats out Tyler to start or he doesn't. And even if Tyler is terrible in summer conditioning and early practices, he's going to at least get a look by the coaching staff. So why are you putting yourself in that position? I know what people are going to say - he wants to give himself a challenge and that's a good thing. Give me a break. Stop being so rosy-eyed and fancy-free. Joe McKnight wants to play in the NFL and he wants to make a lot of money in the NFL. Sure, he wants to win games in college and the pros too, but if you don't think McKnight wants to be a millionaire in the NFL, you are insanely narrow minded. Heck, if McKnight doesn't want to play in the NFL and be a millionaire, he's an idiot. That's what you are - a very good football player. Putting roadblocks in your way to success is stupid and it's your own fault.

-Since I'm a UConn graduate, I'll break down the UConn incoming class a little too. Randy Edsall was smart in bringing in a junior college quarterback like Tyler Lorenzen, but I'm not sure he's the slam dunk many are thinking. He appears to have the size and ability to be a pocket passer, but the highlights I've seen show him to be anything but. If Edsall can turn him into a pocket passer, then the Huskies have a chance to be decent (at least better than last year). If he can't do that, I'm afraid he's going to be just another D.J. Hernandez or Matt Bonislawski. The first step to improving the Huskies is bringing in the right type of quarterback, even if it's not the right guy. What worries me is that Lorenzen may not be the right type of quarterback, which was pretty obviously shown to be a pro-style, pocket passer over the past two underwhelming seasons. I like the addition of some speed on defense in guys like James Nixon, Marcus Campbell and Jonathon Jean-Louis. And Jasper Howard is an interesting prospect too, because previously all of the speedy Florida athletes Edsall brought in were majorly undersized guys (like Larry Taylor), where as Howard is a step in the right direction at 5-foot-9. He's still not the likes of the athlete top schools get, but at least he's not 5-foot-6. I think Aaron Bagsby is an encouraging prospect (good size and speed at safety) and Kashif Moore is as well, though I think Terence Jeffers will improve a lot this season.

Okay, that's enough of my impressions from Signing Day. Sweet dreams.

Manning's Place in History (so far)

Okay, so Peyton Manning finally won his title. And all I've heard for the past few days is where he ranks in the list of all-time great quarterbacks. They talked about it on Cold Pizza and Skip Bayless put him behind Dan Marino. That is ludicrous. He's won a title and will break or come close to breaking all his records. He's ahead of Marino. Anyway, here's the list.

The last number is titles, not just games played in.

1.) Joe Montana (40,551 yards, 273 TDs, 63% pass comp., 4 SB)
2.) Johnny Unitas (39,768 yards, 287 TDs, 55% pass comp., 2 NFL, 1 SB)
3.) Tom Brady (21,564 yards, 147 TDs, 62% pass comp., 3 SB)
4.) Terry Bradshaw (27,989 yards, 212 TDs, 52% pass comp., 4 SB)
5.) John Elway (51,475 yards, 300 TDs, 57% pass comp., 2 SB)
6.) Otto Graham (23,584 yards, 174 TDs, 4 AAFC, 3 NFL)
7.) Peyton Manning (37,586 yards, 275 TDs, 64% pass comp., 1 SB)
8.) Troy Aikman (32,942 yards, 165 TDs, 61% pass comp., 3 SB)
9.) Roger Staubach (22,700 yards, 153 TDs, 57% pass comp., 2 SB)
10.) Dan Marino (61,361 yards, 420 TDs, 59% pass comp., 0 SB)

Positions six, seven, and eight are the hardest on that list. Otto Graham was an amazing quarterback. He revolutionized the position in almost as big a way as Unitas. He played in 10 straight championships and won 7 of them. The only problem is that he played in an era before the Super Bowl. Unitas at least got to cross over into the modern era and start a Super Bowl (though he was hurt in it), which his team won. Graham never got that chance, so it's pretty hard to measure him up, but he was a great player and NEEDS to be in the top 10. Troy Aikman is hard too because his numbers are pretty uninspired, even with so many Hall of Famers on his team. He did win 3 Super Bowls though, and it's not like he was carried along like a Trent Dilfer. He's a bit like Terry Bradshaw in that regard, but Bradshaw has 4 titles and more TDs (though more interceptions too). I'd like to put him lower, but it's hard to put him behind a guy (Elway) with half as many titles.

Tom Brady obviously earns his rank with 3 titles, already tied for third all-time. He may never win another title (though he certainly could), but he'll certainly put up numbers similar to Unitas if he stays healthy. And there's no reason to think he won't. I don't see him ever moving up on the list, but he also will only be knocked down by 1 guy.

That is, of course, Peyton Manning. Manning would have to win at least 1 more title though. If he gets 2 titles in his career, his numbers will dwarf Brady (and everyone but Marino) and he will certainly be in position for second place. I don't see Manning ever passing Montana though. Even though he could compete at a high level for another 6 years or so, it's pretty tough to win 2 titles in 6 years in the salary cap era. He gets those 2 more titles though and he's no worse than second on the list.

Oh, and for the record, Brett Favre is probably 11th. Though he's doing his best to ruin that legacy.