Red's Rants: More defense, less pretense

By Brendan Hall
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

OK, so this was originally supposed to be a column about why Alabama's Terrence Cody should be in Heisman contention, but my good friend Dan Wetzel beat me to the punch. C'mon Dan, you did this two years ago with Jake Long, can't I get a bone?

In a year where the supposed Heisman "locks" have done nothing but suck, it's been defensive guys that have been ruling the college football universe. Nebraska's Ndamakong Suh can control the line of scrimmage -- and sometimes, games -- practically by himself. South Florida's George Selvie and TCU's Jerry Hughes have pulverized quarterback after quarterback. USC's Taylor Mays is the baddest man in the secondary -- and the subject to Congressional scrutiny.

Cody, as any 3-4 guru will tell you, leads one of the nation's most suffocating defenses. Bill Belichick is never one to show his hand with draft wish lists, but you know he's drooling for Cody. Just look at how nose tackles like Ted Washington, Keith Traylor and Vince Wilfork transformed the Patriots.

Instead, we are subjected to THIS list of candidates.

Are we really supposed to believe that of the top 12 players in the country, only ONE is a defensive player?

If you have to think about that one, maybe you too are a tool.