Funny thing about tonight’s college football national title game, the biggest star on one side, LSU, their Heisman Trophy finalist is actually a cornerback: Tyrann Mathieu.
Another funny thing about the game, he’s trying to get a psychological edge by looking up the names of mothers of Alabama football players for some trash talking on the field.
From Image CPR:
“You try to get the edge any way you got to,” Mathieu said. “When you are on the field you’re just having fun, you’re just talking. If you can get a player out of his zone, you win the battle.”
Mathieu, who is nicknamed “Honey Badger” for his ferocious play on the field, is known for his trash talking.
“I’m not trying to be arrogant about that,” Mathieu said. “We are so good on defense, nobody wants to get in a shouting match with me.”
And here I was thinking Mathieu’s Honey Badger nickname had something to do with the state of Wisconsin.
The man himself explains the origin of his nickname. He was asked the question at BCS Championship game media day.
“I think the Honey Badger nickname came from the fans back in Tiger Nation. And honey badger is such a relentless animal. He’s fierce. And he definitely doesn’t fear anything,” he answered.
So I just try to take that same approach to the field and just try to play smart and violent football for my team.”
Mathieu answered a question about Alabama wide receiver Marquis Maze.If he had any special ammunition for the man who will line up directly opposite from him tonight.
“He’s definitely one of the more talkative players on their team. But when you are playing against a great team like Alabama, you don’t try to pick out individuals. You’d rather just focus on the whole team and you’d rather just watch film of the whole team and get a better understanding of the team,” Honey Badger said.
The 5’9” sophomore ranks first in college football in fumble recoveries, first in the SEC in forced fumbles and second nationally in punt return yardage. In other words, he’s a triple threat.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net, an official Google News site generating millions of unique visitors. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker, and Fox Sports
A Fulbright scholar and MBA, Banks has appeared on live radio all over the world; and he’s a member of the Football Writers Association of America, U.S. Basketball Writers Association, and Society of Professional Journalists. The President of the United States follows him on Twitter (@Paul_M_BanksTSB) You should too.