Wednesday, August 20, 2008

World's Fastest Man


Sounds like a new Nike line of sneakers doesn't it? But its his name, and he just swept the Olympic Mens Track competition.

Usain Bolt of Jamaica has run faster than any human being who's been timed running. Ever. So we should expect to see him soon racing a cheetah in a commercial, or something like that.

I wonder what a track star does after the Olympics. I also wonder if Usain has ever caught a football pass. I'm sure Al Davis is drooling just thinking about having the fastest man in the world as a Raider. I am. We already have one of the strongest arms in JaMarcus Russell. Wow, what a dream I just had. Bolt Deep!

So come on over and visit the Black Hole when you're through in Beijing Usain. We'll sign you to the silver and black and make you a huge Star! And all we'll ask of you is that you run like a cheetah and catch the damn ball. The world can be yours. Just stay away from Las Vegas.

Track Stars and the NFL
Renaldo_Nehemiah

It only lasted three years. Nehemiah was fast, but he had trouble catching the ball. (Catching a speeding football is harder than it looks.) Also, his body had difficulty adjusting to getting walloped by cornerbacks and safeties.

Plus, as football coaches were learning, there's a difference between "track speed" and "football speed." The former is running in a straight line, and though sprints are very short, there's a strategy for the beginning, middle and end of the race. In football, however, the focus is on proper route-running and breakaway speed -- the ability to quickly accelerate now. Nehemiah didn't have it. His replacement, a man drafted in the spring of 1985 from a small college in Mississippi who wasn't particularly fast on the track, did have "football speed." His name was Jerry Rice, and most think he's the greatest wide receiver ever.

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