Small? Weak Arm? Kellen Moore Meet Danny Wuerffel
It’s natural to compare those of the present to those that came before us. We at The Bull Gator always find this difficult to do for ourselves because we are best suited to be placed in line with individuals such as Macaulay Culkin (for striking resemblances) or Tim Tebow (for an overwhelming attachment to three-piece suits). The problem with that of course is that we came before them. Although we still hold on to the hope that our greatness will come after. Even at this age, we dream big.
When discussing the NFL Draft and the potential those at the collegiate level have of being legitimate professionals, we make that comparison regularly. For the most part, those comparisons are used to show how good a player can be at the next level. They show a ceiling in a good way. Being compared to Ray Lewis or Julius Peppers is a good thing. Being compared to a former Florida quarterback, National Champion, and Heisman Trophy winner is not (don’t get ahead of us, we’re talking about the first one, not the second).
Mel Kiper (we leave out the “Jr.” because we’ve never seen Mel’s dad and therefore are not even sure he exists, sort of like the Dakotas) has used Danny Wuerffel as a comparison of the negative persuasion, and sadly it’s hard to argue based on the attributes he used. When describing Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore, Kiper compared him to Wuerffel saying he lacked size and has a weak arm. This is where Gator fans can feel free to chime in…
“HOLD ON THERE CAPTAIN HAIRGEL! IF YOU THINK WUERFFEL WASN’T A GOD OF THE GODLIEST KIND, I HAVE 4 SEC CHAMPIONSHIPS, 2 FIRST-TEAM ALL-AMERICAN NODS, A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP, A HEISMAN, A DRADDY, A MAXWELL, A UNITAS, A WALTER CAMP, AND A WORLD BOWL MVP TO SHOVE UP YOUR ASS!”
We Florida fans are a calm bunch.
Moore knows he’s small. If you believe what you find on the internet, Moore measures in at six-foot nothing, a hundred and nothing (or more accurately 6’0”, 191 lbs.). If Wuerffel was small, Moore is smaller. Danny has him beat by an inch and 21 pounds. None of which means much in an era when quarterbacks average somewhere in the neighborhood of 6’9”, 285 lbs. And then there’s that weak arm. Yes, Wuerffel had a weak arm. Yes, Moore has a weak arm. BUT DAMMIT THEY’RE WINNERS! Winners who do nothing but win. Sure they lose on occasion, but those occasions are so rare that we tend to forget they even occurred. Winners win. Given that our motto around here is “just win,” this is a good thing.
Wuerffel turned that lack of size and near laughable throwing power into a six-year NFL career – one that started when he was selected in the fourth-round of the NFL Draft. He just so happened to be drafted by a team that currently employs a quarterback who also lacks in the size department. The arm thing? Well, we’ll have to get back to you on that.
We don’t know where Moore will fall in the draft (this is 2012 we’re talking about, Kiper got a little ahead of himself by discounting quarterbacks who aren’t the size of defensive ends a year early on this one), but we do know he’ll get a shot at the next level. If for only these reasons: he dons orange and blue, he doesn’t feel entitled, and he wins. Wuerffel was never mistaken as a great NFL quarterback (or, sorry Florida fans, even a good one), but he did stick around the league for six years, or about five more than anyone would have expected out of him. Lack of size, weak arm, and all.
Today, we tip our hat to you Kellen Moore. And as usual, turn a blind eye and deaf ear to Mel Kiper.