Ohio State fans have been debating which quarterback should be the full-time starter, though Coach Cooper insists both Stanley Jackson and Joe Germaine will play.Because the Bucks have been winning and because of Cooper’s stance, it has been irritating that a debate has raged at all. More irritating, perhaps, is the possibility that people’s opinions might be guided by racial stereotypes.Everyone has heard “Stanley Jackson is an athlete. He is mobile and can run, but can’t pass well. Joe Germaine, on the other hand, is a pure passer. He is not all that athletic, but he can wing that thing.” Such statements may have a germ of truth. However, they are either an oversimplified analysis of the quarterback position or loaded with athletic racial stereotypes. Probably both.Some OSU fans, though, see a black quarterback and have the knee-jerk reaction of “he can run, but can’t pass,” then see a white quarterback enter the game and think “he’s a passer, but can’t run very well.”However, did anyone notice Germaine’s ability to run and avoid the rush in the Penn State game? He can run and is a fine athlete.Did these same people notice Jackson’s performance against Indiana? He completed 13 of 15 for 189 yards in that 31-0 win.Or how about that 45-yard strike to Dee Miller early in the Penn State game? Looked pretty to me. The black guy can pass.For the season, Jackson is 48 of 75 for 687 yards and five touchdowns without an interception. Because of his performance in the Indiana game, he surpassed Germaine to claim the Big Ten’s top spot for passing efficiency.Germaine, now second, is 69 of 105 for 972 yards with six touchdowns and five interceptions that largely were not his fault. Jackson’s dark complexion does not just hurt him. He may be so well-liked by the players and may have received the most votes for captain ever because he is a good guy, a senior, and black. The latter is not an unreasonable nuance to ponder because the team has a higher percentage of blacks than the general population does. Most importantly, Jackson is a rarity – a black quarterback.If there’s any truth to it, I understand. I would root for a black hockey player and I’m apt to root for white forwards in the NBA who score a lot of points. Ah, where have you gone Chris Mullin and Larry Bird? I love a rarity – even inconsequential ones.After OSU fans quit debating who should play full-time and stop subtly basing their opinions on race, they might as well accept the two-quarterback system while they’re at it.It worked when Cooper chose to use it with Bret Powers and Bob Hoying in 1993. The Bucks lost one regular season game (to Michigan) and won a Big Ten co-championship. It worked last season when the Bucks won the Rose Bowl, lost once (guess to whom) and finished number two in the polls. It is working this year.So don’t worry about it.
Todd Shockley is a senior from Gahanna, Ohio and can be reached at [email protected].
