Robert Griffin III has talked before about how much he wanted to represent the United States in the Olympics. My colleague Dave Sheinin wrote about that at length in his book, “RG3: The Promise,” in a section about Griffin running track his freshman year at Baylor.
“The only choice [coaches] had, really, was to let Griffin compete at the Trials — with each football coach having to decide privately and individually the degree to which he was rooting for the kid to qualify, or not, for Beijing…” Sheinin wrote. “Was he a track athlete who also played football, or a football player who also ran track? It was getting harder to distinguish.”
The situation has obviously changed since then — a Heisman Trophy, a huge NFL contract, and endorsement deals with every company in the United States will do that. But Griffin hasn’t stopped dreaming.
Which brings me to the latest video about Griffin and his family released via USAA. The video came out last week, and the timing maybe wasn’t ideal, what with Redskins fans panicking over the current season and not giving much thought to the 2020 badminton trials.
“My dream is to be in the Olympics and represent the United States of America,” Griffin says in the video. “So [as a teenager] I was preparing for my dream…I would definitely want to still fulfill my dream of going to the Olympics. Someway, somehow. Maybe it’s track, maybe it’s badminton, maybe it’s ping pong. I’ll find a way to get to the Olympics.”
Honestly, I have been waiting for an article like this to come along, so I can unleash the fury of 1000 sons on the absolute phony that is Robert Griffin III. Hey, Robert, how’s your team coming along? Oh, really? …… I am 125% sure the man takes the phrase, “You can’t spell team without M-E” completely serious. I can’t take it. Do you remember when he came out on the field, kissing and banging the ground and waving the flag like the second coming of William Wallace? My God.
Now excuse me as I look at this picture to lower my blood pressure. I think I just had a stroke.
PS, Robert: That ^ is an American hero. Go watch Mr. Baseball and learn a thing or two.
Bohs and Birds 