Chuck Chuckles @ Pouting QBs

This is the first installment of what will become an ongoing and intermittent series called "Chuck Chuckles."  Basically each of these blurbs is about something I have seen in the sports world that makes me laugh.  This first edition focuses on quarterbacks who are publicly not happy for whatever reason. 

Our first victim comes formerly out of South Bend, Indiana, home of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and their former savior Charlie Weis.  Demetrius Jones, are you here? Wait where's Demetrius? The bus is pulling away right now and he's not on it! Oh well, we'll continue without him. 

Every young college QB's dream is to somehow make a name for himself and maybe garner some national attention.  Demetrius Jones did just that, but not in the traditional sense.  Last week as the Irish were putting in their iPod earbuds and the team managers were shoving the gear under the bus ready to head to Michigan (for what would be a blowout at the hands of the Wolverines), the only one not wearing his earbuds was second-string QB Demetrius Jones.  Mr. Jones, after having been replaced by freshman "standout" and near divine figure Jimmy Clausen (sorry Jimmy, WVU has the only 'Devine' freshman this year, you're not the next Brady Quinn - go ahead, prove me wrong), became bitter and decided that competition was not what he signed up for.

As an aside, if you're not familiar with Clausen, he comes from a family of quarterbacks, namely his brothers Casey and Rick.  While both were highly touted, the youngest Jimmy received an 8 out of 5 star rating in high school if there ever was one.  The hype and buzz surrounding this young man are through the roof and Notre Dame can only hope he'll live up to it. OK, so on paper he only got a 5-star rating (and the #1 QB spot overall by most recruiting services) but off the record many were probably contemplating changing the scale just for him.  While admittedly, he probably is a good player and it's too early to throw him under the bus (hey, at least he'd be AT the bus when it left!) but let's get real here, we don't need to worship this kid yet.  (I must stop to point out to the few of you that haven't picked up on it, I have an evergrowing hatred towards Notre Dame football in the Charlie Weis era, and don't be surprised if that topic pops up in 'Chuckles' #2.)

Instead of accepting his position, and/or fighting for the job, he announced - to only himself apparently - that he was transferring to Northern Illinois.  So what did he do? Exactly what any disgruntled QB would do in the face of adversity, he skipped his team's game in The Big House (wise decision I guess) and went to watch Northern Illinois take on Eastern Michigan instead (at least their loss was a much more respectable 21-19).  So just so you're clear, at this point, neither the Notre Dame staff nor the Northern Illinois staff knew of this decision but Jones himself was planning on just transferring there and practicing this year until he'd be able to start next year.  Again, in an ESPN report, the Northern Illinois athletic department claimed to know nothing of this decision and had no prior contact with him on this plan.  Jones says Coach Charlie Weis unfairly promised him the starting job and called him the number one guy and later announced that Clausen was his real number one and that they were just waiting for his foot to heal following surgery.  Clausen has since replaced Jones and Jones has left town.  A little competition never hurt anyone but then again, as my chemistry teacher once told us, there are always exceptions to everything.  Good luck Demetrius, here's hoping you. . . well, let's just hope you get into school first, after that we'll see.

"Mr. Jones and me, we're gonna be big stars.." ("Mr. Jones", Counting Crows)

That's what our next unhappy QB would probably tell our friend Demetrius if they met up.   This fellow's name is Sean Glennon from Virginia Tech.  Sean's story is very similar to that of Jones but he has been slower to react.  Glennon, like Jones, was replaced as the starting QB by a phenom freshman, this time Tyrod Taylor out of Virginia. 
Taylor does not have the reputation of Clausen (but then again, nobody does) but he does bring a dual-threat QB playing style (one that should be feared for his legs and mobility as much as his arm) that is becoming ever popular in college football today.  This factor is cited as a primary reason for his replacing Glennon. Glennon, again like Jones, played roughly one game and looked mediocre at his peak before he was replaced for "fresh legs" (no pun intended).  Glennon, AGAIN like Jones, publicly claimed that he was promised the number one job and was blindsighted when Coach Frank Beamer decided to give Taylor a chance. 

Here's where Glennon's story strays from that of Jones, though.  Glennon, thankfully, did not up and leave upon hearing this news but rather stuck around at least for now.  However, at least he had the awareness that any good QB should have to realize that he is above it all and is too good for this treatment. (The supremacy complex must be in the water for V-Tech QBs, see Vick, M. - which one? ok, both of them)  Glennon's awareness led him to discover that despite losing the starting job for a struggling Virginia Tech team (LSU 48 - VT 7), he could play for virtually any team out there.  To his credit though, in the Hokies' taming by the Tigers, Glennon was good for 2-10 passing for 16 yards and one interception.  Real impressive.  So anyways, yeah, Glennon can start for any team in the country, yeah right.  But if that falls through he feels confident in his NFL future, so at least he has that to fall back on [insert the part where I chuckle].  NFL material but scared away by a freshman QB, who has not been overwhelmingly impressive in his own right.  Glennon, a junior, will probably be forced to transfer to a lower Division school in order to keep his last year of eligibility and he'll take it from there I suppose.  Maybe he'll play against Northern Illinois in what is sure to be an offensive explosion.  Stay tuned as his story unfolds, I know I'll be watching. . . not.

Lastly, let's move to the NFL.  That's right Donovan, you're next.  Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia Eagles, if you're wondering.  McNabb recently released an interview on HBO in which he makes a claim that African American quarterbacks are under constant scrutiny that white QBs never have to deal with.  OK, I'll be upfront here: I don't understand why this is a racial issue.   I will be the first to say that Donovan McNabb is an excellent player.  The numbers don't lie, and if you watch him play, you'll see that he's perfectly fit to be a quarterback. He commands the team, he can throw the ball with the best of them, and he can run to escape a rush or throw on the run.  He's been a consistent performer in the NFL and to be honest, I didn't know he was under so much scrutiny.  This year though, he has not been the same McNabb.  In my fantasy league, McNabb has a measily 11 points through 2 games while league leaders for QB, Tony Romo and Carson Palmer  (what?!?!?!?), have 50 and 55 respectively.  If that's not reason for scrutiny then what is? Now McNabb, to be honest, has previously been probably the best African-American QB in the league and has achieved a level of success that not many (regardless of race) have.  So maybe his claim could be made by someone else but why him? This year, he hasn't earned high praise and last year, who was scrutinizing?  Granted, Philly is a tough place to place for any athlete due to traditionally hostile fans, which could be another factor at play.  Editorial comment here, it seems to me that if he just gets back up to his previous level of play, everything will shake out nicely but until then. . . be prepared to take some hits (kinda like in your game this previous Monday against the Redskins).  Whatever the case, I found it most ironic when McNabb, when asked how he responds to this adversity, made a case that he handles himself with class and doesn't lash out publicly or talk about it.  All this during an interview to be aired on HBO. . .

That should do it for now, stay tuned for 'Chuck Chuckles @ Notre Dame football'

Hopefully this installment was enjoyable, informative, or both.  Maybe it was something good to fall asleep to.  All feedback from awesome to awful is greatly appreciated.  As always, thanks for reading Chuck Chuckles! 

(Thanks to ESPN.com, from which I learned and obtained most of the factual information in this article, humorous/sarcastic twist courtesy of myself)