HOOVER, Ala. - Let's all take a minute and give thanks for the gift of Steve Spurrier.
The Head Ball Coach put an end to the "TebowGate" debacle Friday when he admitted it was him who voted Ole Miss quarterback Jevan Snead preseason All-SEC First Team and in the process reminded us why Media Days can be so much fun.
Spurrier didn't do it out of jealousy. He didn't even do it because he thought Snead was a better player than Tebow.
This was a crime of indifference.
"I've been doing the preseason ballots for 17 years. I've never filled one out," Spurrier said.
Spurrier said it was South Carolina Director of Football Operations Jamie Speronis who filled out the ballot and that he signed off on the list afterward.
"I can tell you two guys who were on there: A.J. Green and Carlos Dunlap. I saw those two guys were on there and said, 'Yeah, that's fine,'" Spurrier said.
From what we gathered at Media Days, none of the coaches actually take the time to fill these things out. Most of the leg work is done by the sports information departments, and that's just fine.
Preseason awards are largely meaningless.
"I don't know why we vote. I guess we vote 'cause college football is still without a playoff system," Spurrier said. "I really believe most coaches do not know a whole lot about other teams, but we do vote."
He's right, of course. Most coaches don't have time to evaluate every team in the country.
In fact, Spurrier is probably right about most things. The college game would be better off if everyone would just follow his lead. At the very least, we'd all have a lot more fun.
This was my first encounter with the Ol' Ball Coach, and he was everything I wanted him to be - reluctantly charming, bitingly sarcastic and completely unapologetic.
Spurrier is what's good about football. He says what he wants and means what he says.
Just when you think he's about to explain the complexities of the 3-4 defense, he offers up the kind of off-the-wall comment that leaves the room crippled with laughter.
When asked about defensive coordinator Lorenzo Ward, the coach gave this assessment:
"He's a good guy. Loves to play golf," Spurrier said. "We've had a bunch of golf games together. I've actually got about four or five coaches on the staff that love to play golf. I don't know what that means. He's a pretty good stick."
So maybe he doesn't go over his preseason ballots with a fine-tooth comb, but on entertainment value alone, he's worth the price of admission.
If we're lucky, maybe we'll all get another hole-in-one next year.
