Clint Chelf’s Chance To Become a Legend

Photo Attribution: US Presswire

How about the last 3+ weeks of Clint Chelf’s life? He goes from being the backup on a team spiraling out of control in Manhattan to being the toast of Stillwater in 21 days.

And now he has a chance to go down in Cowboy history with a win in Norman this weekend.

It’s one thing to play good for a half in a loss against Kansas State. It’s another thing to house a couple of pretty average Big 12 teams at home in November. And it’s a totally other crazy monumental thing to go to Norman and take down a solid, potentially BCS-bound OU squad.

Only five Cowboy QBs have beaten OU since 1966 and only three (three!) have thrown TD passes in wins against OU in that time period[1. This is an estimation: I know Fields and Lindsay did and I believe the only other one was thrown in the 1976 win but I can’t find any box scores pre-2000 so I’m guessing]. Three people! In almost a half century!

I’m excited for Chelf too. You guys know the story, he hung in when he didn’t have to, stuck around when nobody asked him to, and now he has a chance to win the opportunity to guide a Big 12 title team in 2013.

What I’ve been most impressed by is his ability to make intelligent decisions even though he hasn’t played a meaningful game since his senior year of high school.

The dude has two freshmen breathing down his neck trying to win the starting job they both once held back. And Chelf has been calm, serene even, when common sense tells me most humans would be trying to throw five TD passes on each drive. Chelf is fine with one, or the next first down.

So let’s not worry about what spring ball will bring or who will be at the helm when we open with Mississippi State in Houston next September. Let’s just enjoy the small town kid getting a shot on the biggest stage college football has to offer:

Bedlam with BCS implications and bragging rights for another year.

OSU has a chance to go back-to-back in Bedlam, something it has only done five times since 1904[2. This actually seems like a lot given the number of wins we have in the series.].

And Clint Chelf has a chance solidify his cult hero status, galvanize an entire fan base[3. The REST of a fan base, he already has the segment he wants.], and go down in Oklahoma State lore.

Yes, what a few weeks it’s been.