Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium has a nice "ring" to it, doesn't it? Associations of a family environment, a place where you can feel comfortable bringing your wife and kids to a game and enjoy the plaudits of fans of the Oklahoma Sooners. Are these possibilities realistic? Sure. Unless you're an opposing quarterback facing one of Bob Stoops' and Brent Venables vaunted defenses.
This summer, on July 7, 2010, Florida State decided it was time to promote their Senior QB as a potential Heisman candidate through the web - something the Seminole's last two Heisman winners, Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke, never received - launching www.cp7forheisman.com. Two days later, ESPN blogger Heather Dinich interviewed Ponder about his Heisman aspirations. Asked is he felt that he had to be a superstar and if the margin for error was not there this year, Ponder shrugged off the idea that a Heisman campaign might affect his play, "Not Really. It doesn't really add anymore pressure than I already put on myself. I always have high expectations for myself that things like this don't really change what I want to do for myself. It's no big deal."
Despite not being named to many people's pre-season Heisman lists, writers from papers like The Orlando Sentinel, The Miami Herald and The Florida Times-Union have all written several articles on Ponder's impending run at Heisman during the 2010 football season. Ponder again gave reporters the typical football player's response when again probed if he felt he had a good chance at the prestigious award and the hype surrounding it: "I'm not putting any goals into the Heisman. As long as you play as a team, that's going to take care of itself," he said. "I don't care if I throw for 2,000 yards or 4,000 yards; if we win 10, 12, 14 games, then I'm satisfied. If you don't win games, you're not going to be considered for the Heisman. So, it really is a team award. I'm not that big into individual stats."
When thrown into that situation, the task at hand changes drastically. All of a sudden, you have to stare down the likes of Travis Lewis, Ronell Lewis, Jeremy Beal, Frank Alexander, Tom Wort, Curtis Lofton, Gerald McCoy, Tommie Harris, Dan Cody, Lance Mitchell, Roy Williams, Derrick Strait, Antonio Perkins, Rocky Calmus, Torrance Marshall, Ontei Jones, Jimmy Wilkerson, Remi Ayodele...are you scared yet?
If you were Christian Ponder traveling into Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium this past Saturday, I would agree that you would not show one ounce of fear. You would strap on your pads, buckle down your chin strap, trot out onto the field with every air of confidence that a potential Heisman candidate quarterback should exhibit when he faces great adversity on the road, in a hostile environment, in the face of what you know is a defense fielded by two of the best defensive minded coaches in the country.
A natural reaction from a seasoned, veteran, fifth-year-senior qb. Ponder, a native of Colleyville, Texas - a suburb of Dallas - had several members of his family in attendance, a homecoming of sorts for a young man that has spent his days so far away from home. No doubt his father - an alumni of Florida State University Football himself - mother, and other members of his family hoped for a much different outcome. Regrettably, the Sooner defense and Defensive Coordinator Brent Venables had a much different style of homecoming in store for the young Ponder.
Only Christian Ponder knows what exactly went through his head on September 11, 2010 when his Florida State Seminoles took the field. All things considered, I would say that he was riding a high wave of strong, elating emotions after he directed an eleven play drive, spanning seventy yards in just under five minutes for the 'Noles first score of the game, pushing back the Oklahoma defense, looking like a tight game might be in store for the 85, 630 fans in attendance.
However, as the saying goes in Norman, Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium is where Heisman campaigns - and the dreams of college football grandeur for the opposing team's fans - come to die.
The Seminole's fans were proudly displaying their school pride, doing the "Tomahawk Chop" proudly after the first score by FSU, tying the game at 7 all. Unfortunately, for the Seminole fans that drove over 1,000 miles to watch their beloved team, it would be the last time they would have much cause to celebrate with the famous "chop" for the remainder of the game.
It was the Oklahoma Sooner fan's doing most of the "chopping" as they mocked the Florida State fans in the crowd, much like the horrendous nightmare then Head Coach Bobby Bowden and his feared, high-powered offensive team - lead by controversial (at least in the eyes of Sooner fans) Heisman winning quarterback Chris Weinke - had to endure at the hands of one of college football's most dominate defenses to date.
Some say that the Orange Bowl is merely an extension of Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium since the Sooners have made several trips to Florida to play in the famed bowl game, visiting 18 times out of the 43 total bowl games OU has played in over its program's history. If one believes that, then you can see how the Sooners normally react when facing the likes of a Heisman candidate or, in the case of the 2001 Orange Bowl, a Heisman winner.
OU has halted Heisman dreams of quarterbacks like Graham Harrel, Texas Tech, 2008; Chase Daniels, Missouri, 2007; Seneca Wallace, Iowa State, 2002; Ell Roberson, Kansas State, 2001; Eric Crouch, Nebraska, 2000. These quarterbacks all made their respective trips to Norman, looking for a W and a furtherance of their Heisman campaigns. All failed after stepping onto Owen Field and now, the Sooners can add Christian Ponder, Florida State, 2010 to that list.
Ponder's day in Norman started solid, moving the ball with his feet on runs of nine and fifteen yards, respectively. Passes for fourteen and nine yards also helped the 'Noles gain crucial first downs as the Sooners seemed on the verge of a repeat performance of their lackadaisical outing against the Utah State Aggies only one week earlier.
Whatever words were spoken - most likely yelled at the tops of their collective lungs - by Defensive Coordinator Brent Venables and his host of defensive assistant coaches, the Sooners responded with an almost perfect outing after the Seminole's initial drive and score. On the ensuing offensive drive for Ponder, bad decisions started to creep in to his game. An intentional grounding call on third an eight from the 18 forced Florida State into a shallow punt from their own six yard line.
Later, Ponder would miss on crucial passes to his wideouts and they too helped the Sooners gain confidence and dominance over the 'Noles, dropping passes and failing to make plays on balls thrown in tight areas as Sooner defenders deflected passes showing their ability to blanket the talented receivers Head Coach Jimbo Fisher fielded.
Ponder would be sacked three more times during the game, while throwing two interceptions - one to Linebacker Travis Lewis and another to Cornerback Jamell Fleming (his second of the year). At half time, Ponder had only 80 yards passing, no touchdowns and the three aforementioned sacks. His day would only get worse the rest of the way, finishing with a total of eleven pass completions against twenty-eight attempts, 113 yards in the air, twenty-three rushing yards on nine attempts, four sacks taken, and no touchdowns.
Head Coach Jimbo Fisher opted to pull his Senior QB late in the fourth quarter when OU Placekicker Patrick O'Hara nailed his last field goal and Oklahoma's final score of the game sealing a 47-10 game. Ponder sat silent on the bench as OU fans continually mocked the 'Noles with their own "Tomahawk Chop" and, after Backup QB E.J. Manuel led the 'Noles on their last scoring drive of the game with time literally expiring, Ponder's day and, most likely, his hopes of Heisman glory came to an end inside Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.
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