It seems that there's a new rivalry brewing in the NFL. And this rivalry comes straight out of college.
Jake Long and Vernon Gholston battled once a year in college when their respective teams, Michigan and Ohio State, faced off in their yearly big game. Now, with Long a Dolphin and Gholston a Jet, these two will play each other two times per year, beginning on opening day in Miami.
Well it seems Jim Tressel is spouting off at the mouth , and Jake Long certainly won't be too happy to hear this:
"You know, in all the highlights on Saturday, I never saw any of those plays where he carried Jake Long into the quarterback's lap," Tressel said in a telephone interview yesterday from Columbus.
The one highlight played consistently was of Gholston beating Long for a sack - the only one Long gave up all season - but Tressel said that wasn't the only play in which Gholston bettered Long. There just wasn't a sack to show for the other ones.
Carried Jake Long into the QB's lap? Somehow, I don't believe that.
And considering Long only allowed one sack to Gholston, I'm really not to worried about what's going to happen when the Dolphins and Jets face off. However, being the competitor he is, I bet that Jake will make it a point to knock Vernon on his ass a few times.
Regardless, Tressel needs to realize one thing: that Jake Long is the American Dragon, and Vernon better beware of the consequences from his college coach's words. If I was Vernon, I'd call Tressel and tell him to put a cork in it.