This weekend I played in the annual Pecan Plantation Golf Championship hosted by Mike Frank and his sons Josh and Zach Frank. Many of the players were old college friends (old in more ways than one) and Willie Earl readers.
On Friday and Saturday evening after the golf, the conversation inevitably turned to the upcoming Texas football season. No new ground was trod here. The most notable topic was whether Arch Manning would be as good as the hype. Nobody expressed a strong opinion either way and the consensus was, nobody knows. I found it mildly interesting that nobody mentioned Quinn Ewers until I did and then nobody was interested in discussing the Longhorn quarterback most likely to be the starter for the first game of the year against Louisiana Monroe.
Anyway, I was flattered when a couple of the guys told me they were looking forward to another season of Willie Earl. I am as well, and I expected my first column of the year would be published as usual on the Friday before the first game of the season. But after reading Kirk Bohl’s column this morning on Bijan Robinson I was inspired to write here what would have been in years gone by my letter to the editor commenting on the column.
In the second paragraph referring to Robinson Mr. Bohls writes, After all, he’s the best running back in America, bar none. The 6-foot, 221-pound Texas junior is one of the best in school history. He’s got Earl Cambell’s stiff arm, Rosevelt Leak’s power, the late Cedric Benson’s toughness, Ricky Williams’ tackle breaking, Eric Metcalf’s versatility and Jamaal Charles’ explosiveness. Did I omit anything?
Don’t get me wrong, I love and revere all those Longhorn greats but if I was writing a column about Bijan I would write, After all, he’s the best running back in America, bar none. The 6-foot, 221-pound Texas junior is one of the best in school history. He’s got Earl Cambell’s stiff arm, Earl Campbell’s power, Earl Campbell’s toughness, Earl Campbell’s tackle breaking, Earl Campbell’s versatility (I bet you didn’t know or forgot that Earl blocked a punt versus Arkansas in 1974) and Earl Campbell’s explosiveness. Did I omit anything?
See you soon.
Hook “Em,
W.E.
