NCAA Football Game of the Year Saturday Highlights Flint's Mark Ingram
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Flint's sensational Mark Ingram, running back for the University of Alabama, rolls up yards in the SEC, awaits Florida showdown Saturday.
Two years ago a kid named Mark Ingram at running back for Flint Southwestern Academy ran wild in the Saginaw Valley League.
This Saturday at 4 p.m. (CBS-TV) in the Georgia Dome that same kid will lead his Alabama Crimson Tide against the top team in the nation, the University of Florida.
Both teams have 12-0 records and are 8-0 in the SEC. It is truly a clash of titans and one for the record books.
The outcome of the game may well determine the national championship and the Heisman Trophy winner -- which could be either Ingram or Gator quarterback Tim Tebow.
Now, as the 2009 football season heads for a climax on Saturday, Alabama sophomore running back Mark Ingram is one of five finalists for the 2009 Walter Camp Player of the Year Award, the Walter Camp Football Foundation announced Wednesday.
He is also in line for All American, the Doak Walker Award and the Maxwell Award that goes to the nation's best football player.
Ingram leads the Tide with 1,148 rushing yards and 24 pass catches for 216 yards. He ranks sixth nationally in rushing with 127.56 yards per game. The superlatives go on and on.
Football fans in the Valley will recall the troubled season of 2007 for Flint Southwestern but the incredible on-field performances of Ingram.
Against Bay City Western High October 12, 2007, he ran up and down the field for 400 yards and five touchdown, almost singlehandedly dragging his FSA Knights to a 39-22 victory.
Earlier in the year he racked up 319 yards against Midland Dow, allowing FSA its first win against the Chargers in 19 attempts.
That same year Midland High fell a point short when their kicker, iced by a delay caused by the FSA coach engaging the referee in conversation, missed an extra point.
The Knights had to forfeit three games, Midland, Grand Blanc and Flint Central, because of an ineligible player, and therefore did not make the playoffs.
However, Ingram was rated the 17th best football player in the country and sixth best in Michigan in 2007. The four-year starter ran for 2,546 yards and 38 touchdowns in his final two prep seasons, including seven TDs in one game. He also added 260 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Ingram was an all state track star with a 10.69 100 meters and 21.9 200 meters, and a long jump of 23 feet 8 inches.
Saturday we'll see whether Tebow's arm or Ingram's legs and pass catching ability will prevail. The proverbial gold ring and the laurels of the nation's gridiron awaits the outcome. The game is probably worth watching even if you're not a Gator or Tide fan. ###
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