Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to
the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides on one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
Today’s Question: What will be the biggest surprise from Wednesday night’s Cotton Bowl?
Jami’s Take: Julian Sayin, curling
You might not know it to look at them, but many of the skills required to be a high-caliber football quarterback overlap with those of the world’s best curlers (which is, in the interest of honesty, what I believe to be the most superior Winter Olympics sport, and not just because the uniforms involve really cool pants).
For those unfamiliar with the top-notch entertainment that is curling, the sport is something akin to shuffleboard on ice. General gameplay involves two teams taking turns sliding curling stones (basically 40ish-pound rocks with handles) across a lane of ice toward a bullseye-shaped target area known as the “house.” The aim is to get your team’s stones closer to the “button” at the center of the house than your opponent.
Curling requires extreme precision and the ability to make quick strategic decisions based on your opponents’ moves, both skills that overlap with what is required of quarterbacks. Because of this, I believe Julian Sayin could pivot to a career in curling if he so chose, as he already possesses a lot of the foundational skills required to be good on the ice.
Perhaps most importantly, Sayin is known for his accuracy on the field, finding targets with surgical precision and doing so with finesse, which would translate well to curling. We’ve watched the Heisman finalist thread the needle in seemingly impossible situations, finishing the season with the top completion percentage in the country (77 percent).
Though the mechanics of curling are different than throwing a football, they are no less important on the ice than on the gridiron. Sayin is a master of mechanics, staying consistent throughout repeated reps. While he’d need to learn the mechanics of throwing stones instead of football, he has a proven ability to develop the muscle memory to succeed.
He has also shown he can remain composed and read opposing defenses even while under pressure, an unflappability that would allow him to stay focused throughout a curling match. Curling requires the ability to think on your feet and make fast adjustments under pressure, something that is also required of quarterbacks and something Sayin excelled at in his freshman season.
If the idea of a football quarterback becoming an elite curler seems outlandish, it is not without precedent. Former St. Louis Rams quarterback and Pro Bowl MVP Marc Bulger has taken up curling in retirement and now owns a curling center in Nashville. Bulger first found the sport when former Minnesota Vikings defensive end Jared Allen was challenged by a friend to make the Olympics in a sport he had never played before. Though Allen failed to qualify for the upcoming Olympics in Milan Cortina, the two have developed a passion for curling and have competed in major tournaments together, proving that some of the skills are transferable.
With that in mind, it might be too late for Sayin to make the squad for 2026, but don’t rule out a second athletic career for him on the ice if he so chooses.
Matt’s Take: Bo Jackson, bobsled
Anyone who has ever seen the cinematic classic “Cool Runnings” knows that you don’t need to be brought up in a sport to be able to compete at the highest levels. And let’s be honest, very few people in the United States are brought up “playing bobsled.” For that reason, I think that Buckeye running back Bo Jackson could give the Winter Olympics a go.
We have seen that he has the speed and leg strength necessary to get the sled going at a high rate of speed down the ice-covered course, and plenty of former running backs have made the transition from the gridiron to the bobsled.
Most notably, certifiably insane Heisman Trophy winner Herschel Walker went from the NFL to the 1992 Winter Olympics, where he was joined by fellow former college and pro footballers Bob Weissenfels (Navy) and Greg Harrell (Maryland, NFL practice squads, NFL Europe). Throw in guys like Johnny Quinn (North Texas, Bills, Packers) who was on the 2014 Olympic team; Sam McGuffie (Rice), who competed in the 2018 Olympics; Charlie Volker (Princeton) from the 2022 Olympic Team, and Shaquille Murray-Lawrence (UNLV, CFL) who was on the Canadian National Team at the 2022 Olympics, and there is definitely a pipeline from runnign back to bobsledding.
And you know what none of these guys are? Buckeyes. So give me Bo Jackson on the 2030 Olympic Bobsled Team!
