While the national attention was deservedly placed on “the game of the century” in Tuscaloosa, Ala. this past weekend, where the No. 1 LSU Tigers edged the hometown No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide 9-6 in an overtime thriller, the nation’s greatest winner entered the record books in silence.
Boise State’s quarterback Kellen Moore notched the 46th win of his career to become college football’s all-time leader in career victories, eclipsing former Texas quarterback Colt McCoy’s mark of 45; however, the accomplishment went egregiously unnoticed, uncovered and untoasted in a sea of football headlines.
It may be because of the stellar weekend the sport enjoyed – a No.1 vs. No. 2 doesn’t happen often in the middle of the season, but that doesn’t justify the lack of coverage around the game. The Broncos are ranked No. 5 in the nation and the game wasn’t even nationally televised.
ESPN should be ashamed of itself, ignoring a monumental triumph of this caliber by choosing to broadcast the game on its live-streaming network ESPN3.com.
Moore’s achievement warrants national praise and celebration; it doesn’t matter whether the record may be broken two or three years down the line. It certainly doesn’t matter who his competition is, because no quarterback ever has won 46 games against any competition.
When Aaron Rodgers shatters Dan Marino’s passing yards in a single NFL season later this year, I’m sure all the major networks will allot hours to give Rodgers the recognition he is worthy of. Why doesn’t the same apply for Moore’s record-setting 46th win?
This isn’t an argument about whether Moore can play on the same gridiron as Rodgers, though; rather, this is where the distinction should be made – college and pro football are two entirely separate entities. An accomplishment in one level doesn’t equate success in the other; however, a record-setting feat such as becoming the all-time leader in victories should be identified and distinguished as the highest of individual records.
Although he isn’t a Heisman winner or a national champion, and probably won’t be baring a BCS catastrophe that sees Oklahoma State and Stanford lose along with Alabama and Oklahoma losing again, Moore’s name should be supplanted next to the all-time collegiate greats such as Doug Flutie, Tim Tebow, Joe Namath, Vince Young, Gino Torretta, Peyton Manning and the late Steve McNair.
Despite the outcome of some of their pro careers, that is quite a list to be associated with, and yet, Moore still doesn’t get the respect that he should. We’re talking about a guy with a 46-2 overall record; that’s a 95.8 winning percentage. Stanford’s Andrew Luck is second on that list at 85.3 percent (29-5 overall).
Moore may not be as “pro ready” as Luck, but his collegiate career is far superior. Will Boise get to the national title? I don’t know, there’s still a lot of football to be played. One thing I do know is that, come January, Moore will have set the all-time wins mark at 50-plus.
It’ll take a legendary quarterback to break that record. Hopefully he’ll get the attention he deserves when he does.
