Geaux Jarrett Lee -- Story Published December 15th

GEAUX Jarrett Lee?

Not to gloat, but as an LSU graduate and life-long Tiger football fan, I'm tickled Purple and Gold that my team will be playing in the BCS National Championship Game.

While I want to hang the flag in the yard and play the Tiger Fight Song until I vomit, I'm a little disturbed by something, and it pertains to a local kid done right. I think.

As a freshman, Brenham's Jarrett Lee was thrown into an impossible situation. He was asked to be the starting quarterback as a redshirt freshman four years ago and he wasn't prepared. In fact he failed miserably, throwing seven interceptions for touchdowns in an eight-game stint. Seven interceptions for touchdowns gets you booed horrifically and ridiculed profusely on talk radio in the land of the SEC.

But the Prodigal Son was called upon at the beginning of this season when his competition Jordan Jefferson got in a bar fight and was suspended for the beginning of the season.  The fifth-year senior started the first eight games (14 Tds, 3 picks) and the Hollywood movie script was being written. Then came the "Game of the Century" versus Alabama, where he didn't perform well in the first half.

Jefferson returns and Lee is virtually not heard from again. What's ridiculous is that he's brought in to take a knee in the victory formation in the waning seconds of the following four games. Salt in the wound. Jefferson struggles mightily during games and the fans call for Lee to no avail. Ouch.

Now winning makes everything better, and rumors of missing class and not performing well academically have dawged Lee of late, but he deserves better. As a parent of kids in sports, and as a media member who is involved in high school and college sports, I give kudos to Lee and his team-first attitude (on the surface it seems).

There's always two sides to the story, but from one Texan to another, I say, "Keep your Head Up."

See You at the Games,

Matt Malatesta, Co-Publisher

matt@ourfieldhouse.com