I saw on ESPN today that Syracuse is taking the number 44 out of retirement. Number 44 was previously warn by Syracuse greats Jim Brown, Ernie Davis, and Floyd Little and was retired back in 2005 . Syracuse now plans to award the number to a selected player as an honor, similar to what Michigan did with the number 98 and Devin Gardner. Donovan McNabb came out on social media against the decision.
I want to know what Hokie Nation thinks about this move. Should they keep the number retired or is it the right move to use it as a special honor to be given to a player? What would you say if Virginia Tech did the same thing with number 78 worn by Hokie great Bruce Smith?
Here are two articles with background information on the decision by Syracuse.
Syracuse Article
Fox Sports Article
Comments
I think it's a good idea, and it's a unique honor for the players. It does free up another number for another player. But I would not agree with bringing back #10.
I think it would be cool if Bruce allowed his Son to honor him and wear his Number, only because its his son. Who knows maybe it'd give him some extra motivation to get better so he doesn't 'dishonor" the number
While it's cool to probably wear 44 if you're a current player... I think the number should stay retired. That's what retiring the number means.
I think that if Tech were to ever do this, Michael Vick alone would be good enough to honor the number 7. I think #10 deserves to stay retired as a way to honor Frank Loria, not enough people know who Carrol Dale is (#84), and 73 (Jim Pyne) and 78 (Bruuuuuce) would be very unusual numbers for skill players (although you can make the same argument for 98, so whatever). I think our best football player currently does wear #7 though.
2 words...
Marcus
Davis
(full disclosure: did not read the linked articles)
So is this intended to honor the next great recruit (2007 almost-redshirt Tyrod Taylor) or the seasoned hero after they've proven worthy (junior Kyle/Kendall Fuller)?
The only information I have seen is that a small committee, including Little who wore the number, will select a worthy player. I get the impression that the committee doesn't even have set criteria established yet but I would assume it will most likely be a team leader.
So I read a little about it when I saw how upset McNabb got and I can see both sides. For starters, the barriers that Jim Brown and Ernie Davis broke through are incredible. In many ways, they are similar to what Jackie Robinson was for baseball. BUT, the number 44 was a number that was passed from player to player at that time. It was given as a symbol out of respect for what Brown and Davis did. Then it was retired, I think 10 years ago. That same symbol can continue to be used. Someone who is the image of strength and resilience, who is a leader and inspires others. They will get recognition and respect, but the number is not synonymous with one person in particular, but rather many which is why I can understand un-retiring the number.
I don't like the idea of un-retiring a number, but I like the idea of using it as an honorific. To that end, just make a patch to be worn by the chosen player, akin to a team captain designation. But only one guy gets the special "44" patch.
That sounds like a good idea to me.
Probably an NCAA violation.
....is there a "I wish this was sarcastic" font?
I like what Tech has been doing lately with retiring a jersey rather than a number. That way you can honor the player who was great and still allow that number to be used. At one time a number was only retired due to the player dying or some tragic circumstance that rendered the number as a memorial to that player, but nowadays it seems like every time a team has an All-American he's getting his number retired (I know that's extreme, but it's to make a point). I don't like Syracuse doing this, the number 44 was worn by one of the greatest players of all time, Jim Brown, as well as some other legends of the game. It was retired and should stay that way.
As for our numbers, #10? No, it stays retired, period. #84 & #78? No, both of these men did enough here and in the pros to deserve this honor. #73? Sure, when we have another lineman that allows only one sack in over 2,700 snaps...
Heck, I was at Tech when Corey Moore was terrorizing opposing QB's, Tackles, OC's, fans, mascots, pretty much everybody not wearing maroon and orange, and it was years before I remember seeing someone wear #56 again, and that seemed really odd seeing that number on the field.
Some players seem to leave a mark, and that identity is linked to the number that they wear. I would not want to see someone else wearing #78, and if I was a player, I sure as hell wouldn't want to wear that number at Tech knowing who was the last man to wear it, and how long it has been since it has been worn. Honestly, I'm not sure how long it would have been before we saw #7 on the field again after Vick left if KJ hadn't had the cojones to put it on the next year as a freshman.
Like I said, I think Tech has the right idea, retire the jersey to honor a great player, but allow the number to still be used.
Or teams could do like the Steelers, only retire a number if the player truly transcends the game. They don't retire jerseys, and only have 2 numbers retired, one of which they did last year Mean Joe Greene.
Numbers are for math! You football geeks need to give us engineers our numbers back and start using shapes to identify the players.
The future: "Ellipse throws the ball to pentagon who is immediately laid out by obtuse triangle. There's a fumble! Squiggly line picks the ball up and laterals it back to trapezoid who takes it in for the touchdown. Squiggly line has been all over the field today."
John Madden would have to come out of retirement...
"sin(θ) just got laid out by -sin(θ) but there's a flag down. The call is interference."
That might just be too geeky to handle. I'll see myself out.
bwahahahaha
That call was bullshit! -sin() clearly had a better angle on the ball.
Apparently I can't seem to make the theta symbol even if I try to just copy yours.
Only shows up if you do the actual HTML symbol: (ampersand)theta(semicolon)
θ
heh
cool
I mean, aren't there triangles, squares, X's, and circles over players on playstation?
The new UNC Charlotte 49ers team lets a different player each game where number 49. It is a great honor. And wasn't there a day in MLB where one player from each MLB team whore Jackie Robinson's number? These kind of things are fun and can honor somebody more than retiring the number. Besides you don't want to run out of numbers.
On Jackie Robinson day, EVERYONE wears #42. Players, coaches, managers, and umpires all pay tribute to Jackie