What Makes a Great Athlete:
Topic: Bo Jackson
Billy Worrell
April 27, 2013
Recent research has suggested that in order to be great in
sports there are many aspects one needs. For example, a football player needs
certain aspects to be a great football player and a baseball player needs
certain aspects to be great at baseball.
However, I think one can be a great all-around athlete with just these
few certain criteria. Many athletes have a lot of attributes that make them as
great as they are, but to be great, I think that just some of the attributes
these researchers suggest are the most important. In order to be a great athlete
one needs strength, speed, dedication, love for the game, and
determination. I will focus on
just these certain criteria by looking into Bo Jackson’s career as an athlete
and showing that he held these criterions and was a very dominant
athlete.
There aren’t many professional career statistics of Bo Jackson
that would stick out to a person from a first glance.
However, if people know about Bo, saw him play, and how much he
accomplished in his short career they know that what he has done is
remarkable. Research suggests that
some aspects that can make one a great football player comes with holding
attributes like great speed, strength, and dedication.
Research also suggests that some aspects that can make one a great
baseball player is love for the game and determination.
Bo held all of these aspects when he played both sports and it paid off
when he would perform on any field, for either sport he was participating
in.
These criteria: speed, strength, dedication, love for the game,
and determination seemed the most appropriate to use to describe what makes a
great athlete. Recent research
suggested these criteria a lot when giving attributes of dominant athletes but
they also suggested many others.
Although, I think it can be narrowed down just to the criteria that I
chose to be an unforgettable athlete.
How I chose these criteria was by looking into what makes an athlete
great, and then matching these aspects to great athletes of my time and athletes
before my time. After contrasting
these aspects to many well-known dominant athletes, I decided that Bo Jackson
was the best example of what makes up a great athlete.
Bo primarily held each criterion that I chose and that is why I used him
to prove that you can be a dominant athlete with just these certain
criterion. First, I will address
the first criterion of what makes a great athlete and follow the statement of
how Bo had that criterion with multiple examples to prove it.
I will then do the same for the rest of the criteria to show how Bo just
had each of these criterions and was able to be a very great
athlete.
SPEED
One thing that makes a football player great is speed. Bo Jackson was known for his
unmatchable speed. “He had been timed in an absurd 4.12 seconds in the 40”
(Telander, 2003). At every NFL
draft or combine they time athletes speed based on the 40 yard dash. Athletes
with incredible speed will usually get a time of 4.3 to 4.4 and speeds like
these will be the best at the combine.
But Bo ran a ridiculous 4.12 and surprised everyone watching because
speed like that has never been seen or heard of. Bo’s speed helped him in every sport
obviously, but especially helped his college career of football since some of
his records still stand at Auburn University, where he attended college. “Still holds an SEC record with 6.6
yards per carry for his career. In ’85 Jackson average 162.4 rushing yards a
game- still an Auburn record” (Wolff, 2010). These records were set by Bo about 27 years ago and still haven’t been
broken by any of the great running backs that have come through Auburn. In fact,
the closest person to reaching Bo’s rushing yards at Auburn is 500 yards behind
Bo’s total. Bo’s incredible speed
is one criterion that helped make him a dominant
athlete.
STRENGTH
One thing that makes a football player great is strength. Working out is a big part of football
as well as it is for every sport.
Bo Jackson had amazing strength, but everyone believed Bo’s strength was
god given. He was known to not
working hard when it came to the weight room, although he could come in and out
lift anybody in there. “…and bench-presses 400 pounds” (Wolff, 2010). Coaches would say they would never see
Bo attempt to bench press, squat, deadlift, or anything.
Except when he would stop by the teams weight room to come in and bench
press 400 pounds like it was nothing, then he would leave.
If you know anything about weight lifting you know that not anybody is
going to come in and throw up 400 pounds like that.
People work for years to get to that weight, but for Bo it just seemed as
it was natural to him to lift that much. Bo’s strength in the weight room wasn’t
all that he was blessed with. Bo had a cannon for an arm and showed that he did in big plays during baseball
season. One game at Yankee
stadium Bo was playing right field when a deep fly ball was hit his way and he
had to get back to the warning track to catch it.
Once Bo caught the fly ball, the runner on third base, better known as
Mike Gallego attempted to steal home.
Bo threw a bullet from the warning track to home plate to get the runner
out and shocked everyone that witnessed the throw.
A 300-foot throw, with perfect accuracy, and not one bounce that Bo was
able to make look easy. Before a
football game that Bo was about to play at the New Orleans Superdome a teammate
of Bo bet him that he couldn’t hit the scoreboard hanging from the ceiling in
the dome. Bo accepted the challenge, “…the only human to have thrown a football that hit
the scoreboard hanging from the roof of the New Orleans Superdome” (Telander,
2003). The arm strength that Bo
holstered was insurmountable. The only time that people have seen the scoreboard
hit is from professional punters in the NFL. Bo’s strength in the weight room and in
his arm was unquestionably the best around. Bo’s various strengths are what
contribute to him being a great athlete.
DEDICATION
One thing that makes a great football player is dedication.
Anyone who has played football knows that it isn’t an easy sport. Playing
football comes with a lot of hard practice and a lot of time commitment. Bo played football from the time he was
about six years old. However, that’s not what makes him dedicated.
Bo played both baseball and football all throughout college and
professionally for several years.
The time consumption of playing two sports in college is unthinkable; and
then imagine doing it professionally.
“Nobody was supposed to play two sports. Not back then” (Telander,
2003). Even though Bo was
obviously blessed with amazing talents that abled him to play both sports at a
professional level it doesn’t mean he wasn’t dedicated to keep playing both
sports. While Bo was playing both
sports from the start of college he didn’t have a day to rest. If he wasn’t
playing football he was at baseball practice, if he wasn’t at baseball he was at
football practice, and if he wasn’t at practice he was playing a game for one of
the two. Bo’s dedication lead to
success in sports, “A former three-sport star at Auburn and the first
professional athlete to become an all-star in two major American sports”
(Fuhrmesiter, 2013). Nobody in this world is able to do this without being fully
dedicated to both sports. Bo never
said anything about hating either game he played, he said that he loved playing
both games from the time he was a child.
Bo staying dedicated to both sports all the way to a professional level
is what contributes to Bo being a great
athlete.
LOVE FOR THE GAME
One thing that makes a great baseball player is love for the
game. Baseball is a slow-paced
sport with a very long season and many games and practices.
Even if you stay dedicated to playing the sport it can wear you out if
you don’t enjoy every minute of playing the game.
Bo obviously had a passion for every game he played but he makes it clear
that baseball was his favorite. When Bo played both sports professionally
baseball was the number one priority.
Bo would miss the beginning of a few seasons when he played for the Los
Angeles Raiders because baseball season would run into football season. Even
though missing some practices and some games for the Raiders effected his
statistics in the NFL Bo vowed to never miss any part of his baseball
career. Bo’s love for the game of
baseball is what kept him committed to playing for eight total seasons while he
was also playing football. In
college, Bo shared playing baseball with football and track. Of course Bo was
able to be a star in each of the three sports. In high school Bo also played all three
sports but with baseball being his best.
“As a high school senior Jackson hit .493 with 20 home runs and was
drafted by the Yankees, who offered him a $250,000 contract” (Wolff, 2010). Bo didn’t accept the contract because he
wanted to continue playing both sports in college and also get his degree. Bo’s love for the game of baseball
benefitted him in becoming a great athlete.
DETERMINATION
One thing that makes a great baseball player is determination.
Determination is known to the background of every amazing athlete it seems. If athletes weren’t determined to go
out and win sports simply wouldn’t be the same. Bo has showed great examples of
determination when he played both baseball and football.
“ … a game in which he played while suffering from a virus, he went 55
yards on his second run from scrimmage, then 80 on another, to score twice”
(Wolff, 2010). Here Bo shows
incredible determination where he fights through a sickness and still goes out to perform on the field and score two long
touchdown runs. A situation like
this you could compare to great Michael Jordan when he played through a finals
game with the flu and ends up hitting the game winning shot.
Bo suffered an injury in the 1991 playoff game against the Cincinnati
Bengals where he blew out his hip.
Unfortunately, the injury would end Bo’s football career but only
temporarily end his baseball career.
Bo went through intense rehabilitation to recover from his hip injury;
the rehabilitation was so intense that Bo claimed it got him into the best shape
of his life. After a little over a
year of recovering from the injury Bo was ready to get back on the baseball
field. However, the Kansas City
Royals announced they wouldn’t be able to keep Bo and he would end up being
released. Bo was then picked up by
the Chicago White Sox, but people were uncertain that Bo would return the player
he used to be. “But in April 1993,
he came back to play more baseball, even cranking a homer in his first at bat
after 19 months away from the game” (Telander, 2003).
People gave Bo a standing ovation and Bo was out to prove that he wasn’t
done quite yet. Bo’s
determination is what lead him back on the baseball field to play a few more
seasons and make some more unforgettable highlights to the sports world. The determination that Bo played with
is another criterion that makes Bo a great
athlete.
Although others have said that there are many characteristics one needs
to be a great football player or a great baseball player; I think that only the
five criteria I have suggested is what one needs to be a great athlete. Bo held each of the aspects that I have
brought forth and presented each one with great examples to prove it. I can say that Bo is a great athlete,
if not the best ever based off of what I have read and researched.
He has demonstrated all of the criteria that I suggested makes one a
great athlete. It is hard to disagree that Bo is a dominant athlete
from his unseen speed, all-around strength, thorough dedication,
love for the game, and tough determination. Bo Jackson is one of the greatest
athletes of all time because of these
criterions.
Works Consulted (APA)
Fuhrmeister, C. (2013). Interviewing Bo Jackson: Athletic
legend, modern hero. SB Nation, 6.
Telander, R. (2003). Happy Hunter. Sports Illustrated, 98(26),
66.
Wolff, A. (2010). Jackson. Sports Illustrated,
50-54.
sports there are many aspects one needs. For example, a football player needs
certain aspects to be a great football player and a baseball player needs
certain aspects to be great at baseball.
However, I think one can be a great all-around athlete with just these
few certain criteria. Many athletes have a lot of attributes that make them as
great as they are, but to be great, I think that just some of the attributes
these researchers suggest are the most important. In order to be a great athlete
one needs strength, speed, dedication, love for the game, and
determination. I will focus on
just these certain criteria by looking into Bo Jackson’s career as an athlete
and showing that he held these criterions and was a very dominant
athlete.
There aren’t many professional career statistics of Bo Jackson
that would stick out to a person from a first glance.
However, if people know about Bo, saw him play, and how much he
accomplished in his short career they know that what he has done is
remarkable. Research suggests that
some aspects that can make one a great football player comes with holding
attributes like great speed, strength, and dedication.
Research also suggests that some aspects that can make one a great
baseball player is love for the game and determination.
Bo held all of these aspects when he played both sports and it paid off
when he would perform on any field, for either sport he was participating
in.
These criteria: speed, strength, dedication, love for the game,
and determination seemed the most appropriate to use to describe what makes a
great athlete. Recent research
suggested these criteria a lot when giving attributes of dominant athletes but
they also suggested many others.
Although, I think it can be narrowed down just to the criteria that I
chose to be an unforgettable athlete.
How I chose these criteria was by looking into what makes an athlete
great, and then matching these aspects to great athletes of my time and athletes
before my time. After contrasting
these aspects to many well-known dominant athletes, I decided that Bo Jackson
was the best example of what makes up a great athlete.
Bo primarily held each criterion that I chose and that is why I used him
to prove that you can be a dominant athlete with just these certain
criterion. First, I will address
the first criterion of what makes a great athlete and follow the statement of
how Bo had that criterion with multiple examples to prove it.
I will then do the same for the rest of the criteria to show how Bo just
had each of these criterions and was able to be a very great
athlete.
SPEED
One thing that makes a football player great is speed. Bo Jackson was known for his
unmatchable speed. “He had been timed in an absurd 4.12 seconds in the 40”
(Telander, 2003). At every NFL
draft or combine they time athletes speed based on the 40 yard dash. Athletes
with incredible speed will usually get a time of 4.3 to 4.4 and speeds like
these will be the best at the combine.
But Bo ran a ridiculous 4.12 and surprised everyone watching because
speed like that has never been seen or heard of. Bo’s speed helped him in every sport
obviously, but especially helped his college career of football since some of
his records still stand at Auburn University, where he attended college. “Still holds an SEC record with 6.6
yards per carry for his career. In ’85 Jackson average 162.4 rushing yards a
game- still an Auburn record” (Wolff, 2010). These records were set by Bo about 27 years ago and still haven’t been
broken by any of the great running backs that have come through Auburn. In fact,
the closest person to reaching Bo’s rushing yards at Auburn is 500 yards behind
Bo’s total. Bo’s incredible speed
is one criterion that helped make him a dominant
athlete.
STRENGTH
One thing that makes a football player great is strength. Working out is a big part of football
as well as it is for every sport.
Bo Jackson had amazing strength, but everyone believed Bo’s strength was
god given. He was known to not
working hard when it came to the weight room, although he could come in and out
lift anybody in there. “…and bench-presses 400 pounds” (Wolff, 2010). Coaches would say they would never see
Bo attempt to bench press, squat, deadlift, or anything.
Except when he would stop by the teams weight room to come in and bench
press 400 pounds like it was nothing, then he would leave.
If you know anything about weight lifting you know that not anybody is
going to come in and throw up 400 pounds like that.
People work for years to get to that weight, but for Bo it just seemed as
it was natural to him to lift that much. Bo’s strength in the weight room wasn’t
all that he was blessed with. Bo had a cannon for an arm and showed that he did in big plays during baseball
season. One game at Yankee
stadium Bo was playing right field when a deep fly ball was hit his way and he
had to get back to the warning track to catch it.
Once Bo caught the fly ball, the runner on third base, better known as
Mike Gallego attempted to steal home.
Bo threw a bullet from the warning track to home plate to get the runner
out and shocked everyone that witnessed the throw.
A 300-foot throw, with perfect accuracy, and not one bounce that Bo was
able to make look easy. Before a
football game that Bo was about to play at the New Orleans Superdome a teammate
of Bo bet him that he couldn’t hit the scoreboard hanging from the ceiling in
the dome. Bo accepted the challenge, “…the only human to have thrown a football that hit
the scoreboard hanging from the roof of the New Orleans Superdome” (Telander,
2003). The arm strength that Bo
holstered was insurmountable. The only time that people have seen the scoreboard
hit is from professional punters in the NFL. Bo’s strength in the weight room and in
his arm was unquestionably the best around. Bo’s various strengths are what
contribute to him being a great athlete.
DEDICATION
One thing that makes a great football player is dedication.
Anyone who has played football knows that it isn’t an easy sport. Playing
football comes with a lot of hard practice and a lot of time commitment. Bo played football from the time he was
about six years old. However, that’s not what makes him dedicated.
Bo played both baseball and football all throughout college and
professionally for several years.
The time consumption of playing two sports in college is unthinkable; and
then imagine doing it professionally.
“Nobody was supposed to play two sports. Not back then” (Telander,
2003). Even though Bo was
obviously blessed with amazing talents that abled him to play both sports at a
professional level it doesn’t mean he wasn’t dedicated to keep playing both
sports. While Bo was playing both
sports from the start of college he didn’t have a day to rest. If he wasn’t
playing football he was at baseball practice, if he wasn’t at baseball he was at
football practice, and if he wasn’t at practice he was playing a game for one of
the two. Bo’s dedication lead to
success in sports, “A former three-sport star at Auburn and the first
professional athlete to become an all-star in two major American sports”
(Fuhrmesiter, 2013). Nobody in this world is able to do this without being fully
dedicated to both sports. Bo never
said anything about hating either game he played, he said that he loved playing
both games from the time he was a child.
Bo staying dedicated to both sports all the way to a professional level
is what contributes to Bo being a great
athlete.
LOVE FOR THE GAME
One thing that makes a great baseball player is love for the
game. Baseball is a slow-paced
sport with a very long season and many games and practices.
Even if you stay dedicated to playing the sport it can wear you out if
you don’t enjoy every minute of playing the game.
Bo obviously had a passion for every game he played but he makes it clear
that baseball was his favorite. When Bo played both sports professionally
baseball was the number one priority.
Bo would miss the beginning of a few seasons when he played for the Los
Angeles Raiders because baseball season would run into football season. Even
though missing some practices and some games for the Raiders effected his
statistics in the NFL Bo vowed to never miss any part of his baseball
career. Bo’s love for the game of
baseball is what kept him committed to playing for eight total seasons while he
was also playing football. In
college, Bo shared playing baseball with football and track. Of course Bo was
able to be a star in each of the three sports. In high school Bo also played all three
sports but with baseball being his best.
“As a high school senior Jackson hit .493 with 20 home runs and was
drafted by the Yankees, who offered him a $250,000 contract” (Wolff, 2010). Bo didn’t accept the contract because he
wanted to continue playing both sports in college and also get his degree. Bo’s love for the game of baseball
benefitted him in becoming a great athlete.
DETERMINATION
One thing that makes a great baseball player is determination.
Determination is known to the background of every amazing athlete it seems. If athletes weren’t determined to go
out and win sports simply wouldn’t be the same. Bo has showed great examples of
determination when he played both baseball and football.
“ … a game in which he played while suffering from a virus, he went 55
yards on his second run from scrimmage, then 80 on another, to score twice”
(Wolff, 2010). Here Bo shows
incredible determination where he fights through a sickness and still goes out to perform on the field and score two long
touchdown runs. A situation like
this you could compare to great Michael Jordan when he played through a finals
game with the flu and ends up hitting the game winning shot.
Bo suffered an injury in the 1991 playoff game against the Cincinnati
Bengals where he blew out his hip.
Unfortunately, the injury would end Bo’s football career but only
temporarily end his baseball career.
Bo went through intense rehabilitation to recover from his hip injury;
the rehabilitation was so intense that Bo claimed it got him into the best shape
of his life. After a little over a
year of recovering from the injury Bo was ready to get back on the baseball
field. However, the Kansas City
Royals announced they wouldn’t be able to keep Bo and he would end up being
released. Bo was then picked up by
the Chicago White Sox, but people were uncertain that Bo would return the player
he used to be. “But in April 1993,
he came back to play more baseball, even cranking a homer in his first at bat
after 19 months away from the game” (Telander, 2003).
People gave Bo a standing ovation and Bo was out to prove that he wasn’t
done quite yet. Bo’s
determination is what lead him back on the baseball field to play a few more
seasons and make some more unforgettable highlights to the sports world. The determination that Bo played with
is another criterion that makes Bo a great
athlete.
Although others have said that there are many characteristics one needs
to be a great football player or a great baseball player; I think that only the
five criteria I have suggested is what one needs to be a great athlete. Bo held each of the aspects that I have
brought forth and presented each one with great examples to prove it. I can say that Bo is a great athlete,
if not the best ever based off of what I have read and researched.
He has demonstrated all of the criteria that I suggested makes one a
great athlete. It is hard to disagree that Bo is a dominant athlete
from his unseen speed, all-around strength, thorough dedication,
love for the game, and tough determination. Bo Jackson is one of the greatest
athletes of all time because of these
criterions.
Works Consulted (APA)
Fuhrmeister, C. (2013). Interviewing Bo Jackson: Athletic
legend, modern hero. SB Nation, 6.
Telander, R. (2003). Happy Hunter. Sports Illustrated, 98(26),
66.
Wolff, A. (2010). Jackson. Sports Illustrated,
50-54.