Randy Smith: Mount Rushmore Controversies

  • Thursday, June 16, 2016
  • Randy Smith
Randy Smith
Randy Smith
This week CBS Sports released its Mount Rushmore of college football for the Tennessee Volunteers, and as expected there is a bit of controversy. Peyton Manning, Reggie White, Coach Robert R. Neyland and Coach Johnny Majors were chosen as the four biggest names or biggest contributors to Tennessee football. Now, I have no problem with that list. I think they got it right.....except maybe they could have chosen a fifth face and allow Tennessee to have five faces, not just the standard four. In other words they could have added Phillip Fulmer to that list.

Manning, White and The General are givens.
If you chose Majors or Fulmer either one, you could still be right. That's why these things are so interesting. It opens up a lot of debate at a time of year when college football fanatics are searching hard for things to talk about. Also missing the cut were Eric Berry and Leonard Little.

Someone also posted a Mount Rushmore of Tennessee Villains, including Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, Coach Steve Spurrier, Coach Nick Saban and former U.T. Director of Athletics Mike Hamilton. As far as the SEC goes, my Mount Rushmore would look like this: "Bear" Bryant, Steve Spurrier, Nick Saban and General Neyland. All coaches, so you may want to have another one just for players. If that's the case, then I go with Bo Jackson, Herschel Walker, Peyton Manning and A.J. McCarron.
 
I don't know if CBS has announced an Alabama football Mount Rushmore, but when they do, it should look like this: "Bear" Bryant, Nick Saban, A.J. McCarron and Leroy Jordan. How about Florida? Steve Spurrier, Urban Meyer, Danny Wuerffel, and Emmitt Smith.  or Georgia? Vince Dooley, Herschel Walker, Hines Ward and Champ Bailey would get the conversation started.

Among SEC West teams, Ole Miss would provide some healthy topics of conversation. Archie and Eli Manning, Coach John Vaught and perhaps Charlie Conerly. So would Auburn with Ralph "Shug" Jordan, Pat Dye, Pat Sullivan and Bo Jackson. And even LSU with Les Miles, Billy Cannon, Y.A Title, and Kevin Faulk.

You see where I'm going with this? It's all about friendly discussion and debate. Something that will help pass the time until the college football season begins.  You can also tie this Mount Rushmore thing into other sports.....such as the New York Yankees. Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Mickey Mantle and Mariano Rivera.
 
Nevertheless, when it comes time to tee it up and kick it off in late August, fans will forget the Mount Rushmores of college football and concentrate on players and coaches from this era; players and coaches who may be on somebody's Mount Rushmore list in 20-30 years.

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Randy Smith has been covering sports on radio, television and print for the past 45 years. After leaving WRCB-TV in 2009, he has written two books, and has continued to free-lance as a play-by-play announcer. He is currently teaching Broadcasting at Coahulla Creek High School near Dalton, Ga.

His career has included a 17-year stretch as host of the Kickoff Call In Show on the University of Tennessee’s prestigious Vol Network. He has been a member of the Vol Network staff for thirty years.

He has done play-by-play on ESPN, ESPN II, CSS, and Fox SportSouth, totaling more than 500 games, and served as a well-known sports anchor on Chattanooga Television for more than a quarter-century.

In 2003, he became the first television broadcaster to be inducted into the Greater Chattanooga Area Sports Hall of Fame. Randy and his wife Shelia reside in Hixson. They have two married children, (Christi and Chris Perry; Davey and Alison Smith.) They have four grandchildren, Coleman, Boone, DellaMae and CoraLee.

He can be reached at rsmithsports@epbfi.com


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