Reactions: All-Americans

Users claim East Coast bias in CNNSI.com picks

CNNSI.com gave it's All-American and player of the year selections and we asked you to tell us what you thought of our choices. A sample of the responses follows:

Was CNN/SI aware of the Louisiana Purchase, the treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, among the many border-advancing achievements in the history of the United States, extending the country from the original colonies to actually reach the Pacific Ocean? Your little list disregards the work of Lewis and Clark, along with the pathfinders who originally trekked the Oregon Trail. Rumor is, that schools west of the Mississippi actually participate in this college football too, and arguably better than those sheltered along the Atlantic Coast. (See Pac-10 out-of-conference results past few years.)
Steve , Los Angeles

Right on! Shows guts and savvy to select Big Mac as your player of the year. Best offensive lineman since Tony Boselli. The "Erazer," like Anthony Munoz of the Bengals. Put an X on the defensive end for the last two years.
Mark Olivier , Cincinnati, Ohio

Jeff Ferguson -- OU's punter was not only very good, but he had many "important" kicks in important games during the year. The Purdue kicker might have the average, but not the pressure.
John Murphy , Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Bryant McKinnie? Well, what do you expect from the magazine that picked Oregon State as its preseason No. 1. You know this whole "Let's be unique and original" thing is getting old. If you wanted to be unique, why not pick someone that was at least realistic like Roy Williams or Julius Peppers? Next year's preseason No. 1 ... Maryland!
Neal Simmons , Raleigh, N.C.

WAY too many Miami players mentioned. They do have a good team and some great players, but there are a number of more deserving athletes around the country. I can agree with two or three All-Americans and one or two honorable mentions, but not half the team, that's ridiculous.
Ben McNair , Chesterfield, Mo.

How can the first ever quarterback in NCAA history to throw for 2,000 yards and run for 1,000 yards in one season not get honorable mention? Never mind Woodrow Dantzler is only the third quarterback in NCAA history to throw for 5,000 yards and rush for 2,500 yards for his career. Two reasons Dantzler has not gotten the press other players do is because Clemson ended up 6-5 instead of 11-0 and Woody has no NCAA violations, no arrests, no bad publicity whatsoever.
Ryan Jones , Columbia, S.C.

Your first team picks confirm the "East Coast Bias" theory. No Pac-10 player on the first team? Give me a break. Perhaps you may want to check some NFL rosters to see where the most great players come from. Also, Luke Staley is an Oregon-grown kid who wouldn't start at Oregon or Oregon State and maybe not even Portland State. Nice pick!
Ray Lambert , Canby, Ore.

I just don't understand how Woodrow Dantzler could be left off of the list! Here is the first QB in history to have 2,000 yards passing and 1,000 yards rushing. He is the only dual threat QB that should be listed. Your argument could be that he did not play for a good team, well that makes his accomplishments even more impressive. Do you think that Eric Crouch would have as many yards as he did without the Nebraska offensive line? Your exclusion of Woodrow is a travesty.
Scott Paulus , North Andover, Mass.

It's about time that someone had the courage to make someone other than a glamour position player as the player of the year. If only the Heisman people would stop to read the definition of what the Heisman Award is supposed to about: "the best college football player." Bryant McKinnie is obviously that person this year. Congratulations to you for seeing that.
Jim Barocas , Ormond Beach, Fla.

You have got to be kidding me with the selection of the Miami TE Jeremy Shockey over CU TE Daniel Graham. You must not have seen the Nebraska or Texas games when his receiving and blocking skills were keys to those big wins. Shockey is good, but Graham may be the next coming of Tony Gonzalez!
Rob Campbell , Hayward, Calif.

David Carr is only the sixth player in history to throw for 4,000 yards and 40 TD's in one season. He only had seven INTs in 13 games, fewer than all other QB candidates. He had five other rushing TDs yet he is honorable mention to Grossman. Sad display of either East Coast bias or ignorance on CNN/SI's part. No wonder I cancelled my subscription to your magazine.
Paul Preheim , Reedley, Calif.

A 14-0 record for career starts as a QB doesn't even warrant an honorable mention in your All-American picks for Brandon Doman? I'm surprised anyone in the East even noticed little Luke Staley from "Bo-diddley Tech." The snubs continues...
Glen Ogden , Salt Lake City, Utah

Not including a single Pac-10 player on your All-American team reinforces the stereotype of the East Coast media bias. In my opinion, the omission of Robert Thomas of UCLA and Stanford's Luke Powell and Eric Heitmann from even honorable mention status was particularly egregious.
Jeff Taylor , Washington, D.C.

Bryant McKinnie is unquestionably the best player in college football. Thank you for recognizing that a player of his caliber, who has never given up a sack in his career, deserves player of the year honors. Now only if the Heisman voters could see the light.
Matt , Lincoln, Neb.

How can Eric Crouch not make you All-American team? Sure, I believe Rex Grossman is a great QB and he runs a pro-style offense almost to perfection; however, with an unproven I-back and every defense keyed to stop him, he had almost 3,000 yards of total offense and led his team to an 11-1 record. Does that deserve anything?
Brian Hill , Kansas City, Mo.

Your choice of Eric Crouch as third-string isn't surprising considering SI's disdain for the option, but SI is dead wrong if they believe that an unpopular offense makes for a lesser-talented quarterback. Nebraska's offense is far, far more complex than either Florida's or Fresno State's. Just ask any defensive coordinator in the nation who they'd rather play against, a drop-back passer or a mobile QB with the ability to post numbers on the ground or in the air. Your choice is all flash and no substance. This isn't pro football, folks.
Lance , Lincoln, Neb.

Do I hear East Coast bias? The token Colorado players, but where is the Pac-10 representation? Along with the Big 12 they were the dominant conferences. McElrath of Wassou, Harrington of UO, Tripplett of UDub... these are just a few slights!
Larry Rapp , Atlanta, Ga.

I would think that Eric Crouch would have a better case for first team than Craver did. Especially after the collapses Nebraska's defense had in the first half of the Texas Tech game and the Colorado game.
Kevin Krieser , Lawton, Okla.