From: ronnie@uts.amdahl.com (Ronnie Townsend)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.football.pro
Subject: Re: Barry Foster, rushing records
Date: 19 Dec 92 01:40:50 GMT
Organization: Amdahl Corporation, Sunnyvale CA

In article <BzGvCM.C9t@NeoSoft.com> claird@NeoSoft.com (Cameron Laird) writes:
>In article <BzGtIC.AuB@NeoSoft.com> claird@NeoSoft.com (Cameron Laird) writes:
>>			.
>>			.
>>			.
>>Mr. Townsend doesn't need anyone to defend
>>him, but I want to record that I find his
>>posts consistently astute.  Moreover, I
>>don't hear what he writes as posting; he's
>"boasting", not "posting"--sorry.
>>just telling what he knows is true, and some
>>of that happens to be about himself.  Others
>>should do so well.

Thanks for the double dose of support Cam! It's as if some of these guys live 
in a fantasy world in which they've never been victims of any form of injustice
and everything that has ever happened to them has been completely fair.. You 
know.. never once got a grade on a paper they didn't agree with, or a review 
on their job-performance that they felt fell short of recognizing their true 
contribution... or maybe they never tried out for a team... didn't get the 
starting position and then sat on the sidelines while the "starters" averaged
2.5 yards per carry. That's what caused me to quit the football program at 
Harvard. In my Frosh and Soph years the feature backs were pathetic. Our offensewas anemic and all I got to do was watch.. return an occasional punt and kickoff
return. Who knows? Maybe at 150 pounds I would have gotten hurt in the first 
whole game I played at tailback but damnit if I was in there I would have been 
averaging MORE THAN 2.5 FUCKIN YARDS PER CARRY. Quitting the team in my soph 
season exacted a price though because when I went into pro camps and asked for 
a tryout.. they always looked at my size and said.. "what you wanna be our 
waterboy?" Then once they realized that I wasn't laughing, they'd say "okay, 
did ya play any college ball..." then I would sheepishly have to say "only two
years and I quit because I didn't get to play..." So I was behind the 8-ball 
before I ever got to the point where they'd actually let me suit up and practice
against the "Big Boyz" ... I got one pro team to let me try it.. the old 
Washington Federals/Orlando Renegades... I thought I did well ... I was one of
the fastest 40's in camp... I made sure no pass hit the ground if I got my hands
on it and I could consistenly blow by every DB they had. After the first couple
of days.. I thought I had it made... but I did notice that I never got to 
practive with the first team no matter what I did. Once we got into pads I did 
a lot of watching the slow DBs cover the slow starting WRs and wondered if I'd 
ever get a real chance to show my stuff... the chance never came. I got to run 
a couple of plays with the big boyz... Okay maybe the QB couldn't find my little
ass back there but I was open for big money every time... It was a fun
experience and if you've never done it you can't understand from whence I speak.
But my point is ... I could play with those guys if I had gotten the chance ..
And I don't think for one second that I'm the only one. Anybody remember Tony 
Robinson? Tennessee's QB in 1985.. On his way to a Heisman year (Bo later won 
it..) All American credentials.. but ran into a little legal trouble after 
suffering a knee injury in his team's sixth game. Spent a few months in jail..
and never again got serious consideration from the NFL.... Two of my high school
teammates.. played college ball at Morris Brown. One was a little All American 
at WR, the other at DB... one small problem... they had a little problem with a
babe who came into the athlete's dorm swearing she could fuck the whole football
team... they took her up on her offer... She cried rape (after about 15 guys) 
My friends spent a year in jail. Got blacklisted out of football.. (the WR 
had been projected as a high 2nd rounder) The DB played two years in the USFL 
but never got a shot at the big time.

I could cite more examples but why.. the point to this is that the system for
finding talent is not infallible otherwise Tony Mandarich would not have been 
able to extort 10 million bucks frm Green Bay. Joe Montana would not have gone
in the 3rd round... Tony Eason would not have been picked before Dan Marino...
Got it, gang? Think about that the next time you say.. nobody who is not 
currently playing in the NFL could possibly have the talent to do so! 

-- 
Ronnie
-------------------------------------------------------------
Whenever the fates hear someone say, "It can't get any worse than this..." 
They just laugh and double your misery!