This Week’s Obsession: Unicorn Games

Ron Bellamy Day. From WH. Part II is here.

THE QUESTION:

Remember that one time an otherwise obscure/disappointing player was a superstar for a day?

Ace:

Full game is on the youtubes.

BiSB: If we're talking games: Spiiiiiiiike!

Smoothitron: I went through his game log not that long ago praying that wasn't his career high, and it's not, but it's close.

The pinnacle stretch of Spike's career was tragically unfun.

[Do NOT hit THE JUMP if you prefer to fondly remember erstwhile highly hyped Michigan scatbacks]

Seth: My first thought was Justin Fargas versus Northwestern/A Very Angry Poseidon

[UM Bentley Library]

But 3.9 YPC is pretty standard for a Carr running back. A week later opponents had figured out that Michigan always runs and outside pitch with Fargas, and the A-Train Era resumed.

So I’m calling dibs on Bellamy versus MSU.

David: You guys, Brandon Herron.

From www.mgoblue.com:

CAREER HIGHS

• Tackles: 8, vs. Western Michigan (Sept. 3, 2011)
• Solos: 3, twice (last vs. Connecticut, Sept. 4, 2010)
• Asst: 7, vs. Western Michigan (Sept. 3, 2011)
• TFLs: 0.5, twice (last vs. Penn State, Oct. 24, 2009)
• Sacks: None
• Int.: 1, vs. Western Michigan (Sept. 3, 2011)
• FR: 1, twice (last vs. Western Michigan, Sept. 3, 2011)

He literally was not recorded for another tackle for the rest of the season yet assisted on seven and had his only solo tackle of the year. The big plays were the pick- and fumble-sixes. Michigan was also down 7-0 with the Broncos driving for a two-score lead when Herron picked a deflected pass and rumbled down the sideline to tie the game.  Later in the third quarter, after Alex Carder (who now plays for the Guangzhou Power of the China Arena Football League!!!!!) was Kovacs'd by a safety blitz, Herron picked up the remains and scampered 29 yards to give Michigan a 27-10 lead.

Ace: So for some reason there's all-22 film of the Brandon Herron game:

Brian: I remember that, and having to explain that the guy who scored two defensive touchdowns actually hadn't played very well. He was replaced the next week. That's a record that'll never be broken.

Ace: Incidentally, that was the first game I ever covered for mgo. That lightning probably saved dozens of fans from heat stroke, too. Thanks, Dave Brandon!

Brian: This is not relevant but I'm putting it here anyway.

Ace: It’s never not relevant, to be honest.

Seth: If I remember correctly the real WLB unicorn of 2011 was Brandin Hawthorne, who was a knife-ish weapon X in UTL1, then replaced by a true freshman Desmond Morgan a few games after. His UFR career:

Brian: How about Alain Kashama?

BiSB: vs. Florida?

Brian: Kashama was a hyped Canadian import who didn't know how to play football, and then he was everywhere in an Outback win against UF. He covered a fumble, he forced one, he had two TFLs, and then he went back into his ice palace.

Somehow I'd forgotten that Kashama had another year after that, and he had two sacks against OSU the next year in that Navarre-Perry win. But I was hype about him after that bowl game.

Ace: Anyone want to guess the career-best single-game scoring output between CJ Lee and David Merritt? Bonus points for who it came against.

Brian: I'm baffled.

Ace: 11 points, CJ Lee, in… the Blake Griffin Murders Everybody Game.

Brian: Makes sense. That was also the Anthony Wright unicorn game.

Ace: Two unicorn games in a loss makes sense given that matchup.

Brian: We should be careful talking about Wright. You know he's got vines of him dunking in eighth grade locked and loaded for just such an occasion. I wish I had the foresight to tape me nailing some quiz bowl questions.

Brian: I know he started for a full season but I still feel like Tate Forcier deserves a shout here for the 67-65 Illinois game.

Ace: 2009 Notre Dame makes it hard for him to have a unicorn game. Matt Millen would’ve awarded him the Heisman then and there had it been on hand.

Brian: Whatever man, it's my goal to get Tate Forcier in as many TWOs as possible. Next up: "most inadvisable statements to the media".

Ace: Speaking of QB performances that don’t quite qualify, I wanted to say Scott Dreisbach against Virginia, but apparently being seven years old at the time allowed me to forget about the two picks and pedestrian 7.2 YPA.

Brian: I'll accept that, actually, because it was a unicorn half. I distinctly remember a middle-aged Virginia fan turning around at halftime to tell us that Michigan was not coming back with that freshman under center. Nobody disagreed.

Ace: His full season as a starter mostly bore that out. And now, thanks to the Bentley database, I want to find the 72-yard rushing touchdown he had in the 1996 Illinois game.

…

lolwut:

Next-longest career run: 19 yards. Sorry, I realize I’ve lost the plot.

Brian: Excellent camerawork there to get the thousand yard stares from Illinois defenders who have just been defenestrated. I did thoroughly enjoy Keith Jackson saying “he’s got the speed” with increased conviction as he realized there were no more safeties.

Ace: Since there was an entire blog dedicated to his underachievements and I remember this game fondly: Ronald Bellamy had 124 yards and two TDs in the 2002 evisceration of MSU.

Seth: I already dibs’d.

Though I forgot he had an almost equally good game (8 catches, 1 TD) against Ohio State.

Brian: No dibs in TWO! Except Tate Forcier, who is mine.

Ace: Alright there, Neal McBeal.

Brian: Is that a rappist?

Ace:

I expected more from you, Brian.

Brian: OH NO

Ace: smh

Brian: shame, immense shame. I feel like Whale Olbermann is talking directly to me.

BiSB: "You will forgive me if I chortle no longer" would be a great site banner tag.

Seth: Fine, then I'm switching mine to Tyrece “The RECE” Butler, 2002 Washington. This has some background: When he was recruited Tyrece’s mom sent the Daily an OMG Shirtless poster of him. Being impish commie Daily-ites, we of course put the poster on the inside of the editorial board room door. This door was always open unless we were in session so 99% of those who came through the Student Publications Building never saw it, but to us inside, The RECE was our mascot, spirit animal, and all-powerful pectoral deity.

On the field, other than a tantalizing 77-yard (non-TD) first career catch in 2001, Butler never cracked 45 yards or 4 catches again in his career. Except that one day:

Six catches for 85 yards, and fell on Braylon’s “fumble” on 4th and 2 on the last drive to help earn Brabbs his shot at redemption.

Ace: I know the Fargas game was mentioned and dismissed because of the low YPC but man, he was running in a monsoon.

Brian: And he was so perfectly useless in all other games

Ace: I remember they kept cutting to shots of literal waterfalls going down the stadium steps. Breaking his leg against Wisconsin didn’t help. Unfortunately remember that one pretty well, too.

BiSB: Speaking of epic monsoon performances, Sam McGuffie had 178 yards from scrimmage against Notre Dame in 2008

Brian: I still remember looking up some yards per target data, sorting by catch rate, and seeing McGuffie with 40/40 catches as a Rice slot receiver

BiSB: It's a shame he was so murderable.

Ugh. McGuffie's second-best yards-from-scrimmage performance was... Toledo.

Ace: This may be why he’s now on the national bobsled team.

Brian: In retrospect he should not have worn the paper-mache helmets. Seemed like a good idea at the time?

BiSB:

Ace: I’m not sure I recall anyone else getting ragdolled so frequently.

BiSB: We'll always have the mixtape.

Ace: Noel Devine II.

[update: WE HERE AT MGOBLOG DOT COM ARE PROFOUNDLY EMBARASSSED FOR HAVING FORGOTTEN TO MENTION THE NICK SHERIDAN GAME. THIS WAS AN INEXCUSABLE OVERSIGHT. MEA CULPA.]