As you probably know, former Terp Shaun Hill, who led us to the Orange Bowl in 2001, is the starting QB for the 49ers. Last Sunday, he stood toe to toe with Brett Favre until Favre apparently threw some kind of game-winning touchdown. Maybe you caught the highlight somewhere. In any case, interesting parallels between these two guys, as Hill holds his own in an unlikely NFL career.
Favre also won the statistical battle Sunday (24-for-46, 301 yds, 2 TDs, 1 pick), but Hill was more economical, going 15-25 for 195 and the same 2 and 1. In their own respective ways, both these guys have become folk heroes to fans and writers. Every Favre story begins with something like “The Ol’ Gunslinger is still just a kid out there,” followed by some reference to his trimming hedges in Mississippi like he’s Forrest Gump. It’s actually a national law now that Favre stories include all this — go ahead, look it up. Meanwhile, there’s a similar common narrative on Hill now, along the lines of, “He’s not flashy, he’s just a journeyman farm boy from Kansas, but you know what he wins ball games OMG he’s like Everyman,” and so on. I’m not comparing them skill-wise…just riffing is all.
On the season, Hill currently ranks 26th in passing yards, but he’s 11th in quarterback rating — above Ben Roethlisberger, Mark Sanchez, and Philip Rivers, among others — and only has one INT. And of course, his team is 2-1 and atop their division.
As a final Terps note, Hill’s two TDs went to another Terp standout, Vernon “Duke” Davis, who’s averaging 56 receiving yards a game and is enjoying a bit of a resurgence. Nice.
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(Photo credit: TahoeFlyFishing.com)
