I have been inspired by Virginia Tech Offensive Tackle Blake DeChristopher. Let me amend that statement. I have been inspired by Blake DeChristopher's BEARD. Have you seen it? Well if you are reading this entry, then you have just seen it in the picture above this text. Is his beard not a thing of beauty? He has apparently been growing it out since he first came to Virginia Tech, four years ago, and it only gets trimmed very rarely. I am currently in week one of my "Scott grows out his facial hair" experiment. This is something I have never tried before. I don't know if its' because I just haven't had the courage to just see what happens, or if it is because I have just been so used to being clean shaven all the time that not shaving for several weeks seems like a huge change to me. That would be the same reason why I am reluctant to try contact lenses. I am so used to wearing glasses that the idea of not wearing them seems like such an exotic idea to me. But, with winter fast approaching, I figured I would give the whole beard thing a try. I am not trying to grow one as long and scraggly as DeChristopher's, nor do I think I could even do so if I tried. That man has him a shitload of hair folicles on his face. So far, one week in, I can tell it is not going to be as thick and lustrous as his, but it should come in quite nicely, nonetheless.
DeChristopher's beard speaks to me. It is a symbol. It represents a bygone era in football when Offensive Linemen were tough as nails and LOOKED the part. Not that they aren't tough now. In fact, today's O-Linemen make the linemen of the 1970's look like linebackers. DeChristopher is the leader of a Hokies O-Line that blocks for the FBS leading rusher, David Wilson. DeChristopher's teammates often talk about the power of The Beard. I believe that Beard also has a lot of wisdom. If it could talk, here are some things it would probably say:
1) "The Hokies are primed to get their rematch with Clemson in the ACC Championship". I agree! Since losing to Clemson at home 23-3 in October, the Hokies have reeled off five consecutive ACC victories, including a 38-35 thriller. The difference has been the play of quarterback Logan Thomas. He has found his rhythm in ACC play. Since he had a bad game against Clemson, he has been playing lights out. He has upped his completion percentage, his accuracy, and he is running the ball more, which is great because no one seems to be able to bring his 6'6, 254lb body down too easily. Most recently, against Georgia Tech (in Atlanta, I might add), he threw for 209 yards, threw 3 TD passes, and rushed for 70 yards and two TDs. The Hokies have two games left, against UNC and UVA. But barring a total collapse, they should get their rematch against Clemson. And the Hokies are pretty good in rematches in the ACC Championship after losing to their opponent in the regular season. Just ask Boston College.
2) "The Redskins are done! Cooked! Finished!" Yeah, pretty much! The problem? No offensive production. The usual story, in other words. Mike Shanahan has now gone back to Rex Grossman at quarterback, since John Beck showed little to no ability to throw the ball downfield. Couple that with a running game that has almost completely stalled since the injury to Tim Hightower, and it's going to be a long remainder of the season for the Skins. And the injuries continue to pile up, the latest being a season-ending hip injury to Wide Receiver Leonard Hankerson, who was starting to show some playmaking ability. And their remaining schedule is pretty brutal, with games against the Cowboys, Jets, Patriots and Giants remaining. I think they will be lucky to win two or more games this season. I don't know what it is going to take to bring this team back to the days when they were consistently good. I think a change in ownership is a good start.
3) "With it becoming clearer and clearer that the Colts will get "The Adrew Luck Pick" in next year's draft, what are the Colts going to do with it?" The simple answer would be "Take Andrew Luck, of course!" But it is not that simple. As I have mentioned before, I don't see Luck wanting to play for the Colts if Peyton Manning fully recovers from his neck injury and picks up where he left off. He still has 4 or 5 good years left. The team that gets Andrew Luck does so with the idea that he will start for them the upcoming season. The Colts seem no closer to winning a game now than they did the beginning of the season. It is conceivable they will pull a Detroit Lions move and go 0-16. So clearly, they are the frontrunners for the Luck pick. But like I said, will Andrew Luck WANT to play for them? Probably not. So when the season ends, ESPN and other sports networks will spend the next four months speculating on what Indianapolis will do with that pick. Most likely they will go ahead and take Andrew Luck with the pick. You would be stupid not to do that. Luck will demand a trade, just like John Elway did to the then Baltimore Colts back in 1983. Yes, history will repeat itself, and another Stanford quarterback will snub the Colts. Indy will then entertain a trade to the highest bidder, which I hope will be the Redskins. Whatever happens, I don't see Andrew Luck donning a Colts jersey.
4) "Having a barn full of zombies seems like a bad idea!" Umm, that was random, but I will go with it, cuz I see where you are going with it, oh great Beard. My wife and I's new favorite show is "The Walking Dead". If you have been living under a rock, the show chronicles the journey of a group of people brought together for survival after a zombie apocalypse. So far, the show is great, with a lot of interesting subplots and characters, and I imagine that the demand for actors to be extras on the show, playing the hordes of zombies, is pretty high. Currently, the main group of characters have been staying on a farm with some other survivors, led by an old geezer named Herschel. I think Herschel's people are some sort of cult, but that remains to be seen. Anyways, at the end of the latest episode, Glenn, one of the main characters and token Asian guy, happens upon a barn full of zombies, presumably purposefully captured by Herschel and his people, for what reason I don't know. This doesn't seem like a smart idea for many reasons. The main reason is that this barn looks old and it is just a matter of time before the zombies and their ravenous appetites for living flesh break out and feast on the inhabitants, both temporary and permanent, of the farm. But my big question is "Where is the show going to take us next?" I am praying that the writers keep the plot relatively streamlined, and that the show doesn't go all "LOST" on us by becoming increasingly convoluted as the show progresses. I kept watching "LOST" not because I wanted to and enjoyed it, but rather because I felt like I had to in hopes that the writers would finally answer the multitude of questions about the complex subplots that seemed to go on and on for six seasons. Of course, most of those questions remained unanswered. Hopefully, that won't happen with "The Walking Dead" because my wife and I thoroughly enjoy it.
So the Beard has spoken! Blake DeChristopher, who looks like an extra from "Braveheart", takes great pride in his mane, as he should. Many a man would kill to have a beard such as his. The beard is wise and loves football, and apparently zombies. So be it! As long as the Beard leads its owner and his teammates to their fifth ACC Championship, all is well!
