Natural Ability and Achievements

[tikk10]

tikk, don't think you give david his full due as an athlete. most assuredly his his fierce competitiveness was(is) a huge factor in his success, but he's a pretty athletic guy. we as fans tend to forget over time, as we've been blessed with greatness for some time now. ed, jason & bo set a high standard, but i can remember many times when dt would hit something, and i'm saying, how the hell did he do that? not sure dt was that much behind.

Like I've suggested a few times, we're not comparing apples to oranges, we're comparing apples to nominally different apples. I'm not saying DT isn't a good athlete, just that I don't think it was athleticism that got him to where he is. I recall seeing video of him in grade school, where it was obvious how driven he was even back then. I look at DT and think that there's someone who was built for the explicit purpose to wrestle. Every decision along the way was to make himself better at wrestling, there wasn't ever a thought about playing another sport in the summer. (I could be totally wrong about that, that's my impression based on what I've gathered over the years.)

I also recall my own days on the wrestling team, where to break up the monotony we'd sometimes play basketball. The wrestlers who were good in basketball weren't necessarily the best wrestlers. So partly my take is based on recalling the way certain guys carried themselves; how loose they appeared to be just walking, for instance; and how it was those guys who were the ones who easily adapted to every activity they tried.

 

[El-Jefe]

My definition of athlete

If I had to score a TD to win on a 30yd slant on the last play of the game, who can run that route and come down with the catch?

Id rank your legends like this....

1. Bo
2. Ruth
3. DT
4. Nolf
Big gap
5. Zain

Zain might not outrun the DBs in that scenario, but he would not allow himself to get tackled.

PS, RBY would've burned the secondary before the ball was thrown. There's a reason DeSean Jackson has lasted so long in the NFL, and size/strength isn't it.

 

[Sullivan]

Zain might not outrun the DBs in that scenario, but he would not allow himself to get tackled.

PS, RBY would've burned the secondary before the ball was thrown. There's a reason DeSean Jackson has lasted so long in the NFL, and size/strength isn't it.

Zain would be better in short yard situations:

 

[RoarLions1]

Enjoy reading other's opinions. Topics like this can pass the time, and no one's wrong and no one's right.
My take? Athleticism, or being athletic, can't be boiled down to one thing, and "being athletic on a wrestling mat", is different than "being athletic overall". I like the Cassar reference above, as it references "speed, strength, and agility", but I'd open that up to include skills in the traditional sports (all "ball" and/or "court or field" sports). Just to mention a few -- McCutcheon is a terrific athlete, as is Nolf.

My "athletic on a wrestling mat" list would include those that made it look easy, something wrestling imo is not. DT, Ed, Bo and Jason would top my list. Imo, working hard (practice) to be the best, having innate or natural ability, having the physical attributes, and the mental make-up for success, are all factors.

 

[a_mshaffer]

yea, I always interject some type of conditioning (all wrestlers have that), hand / eye coordination, gymnastic - body control features, and then things like the decathlon winner ... Regardless - PSUs best athlete is the annual MVP dodge ball player!