INDIGENOUS PEOPLES DAY

When I was in college, Columbus Day was known as Indigenous Peoples Day.  Columbus was not a well liked man among the far left hippies of Berkeley.

It's the little things...

• Bus was waiting for me at my bus stop
• Subway arrived exactly as I was walking down the stairs to the platform
• Elevator was on the ground floor when I walked through the lobby
• Even saw the lights of the Goodyear Blimp and it read D Moon’s a pimp

The Heisman Trophy and Startups

(Note: I am attempting to combine two of the things I enjoy most, startups and college football, in one blog post, so be wary of analogies that stretch too far.)

This year’s Heisman Trophy race is interesting in how it parallels startups.  Stick with me, but I think I can make this analogy work.  Some background for college football noobs, the Heisman Trophy is awards to the best individual player in the game.  Yet, historically other factors weigh heavily on the outcome, such as, what team you play on, performance in past years, and marketing by the school’s atheletic department.

So how does this relate to startups… let take a look at the top candidates.

Tim Tebow, Florida

Tebow is Superman and Batman rolled into one.  He was the first sophomore ever to win the Heisman trophy and has already won 2 national championships.  But this year he has put up only moderate numbers in 3 wins of much weaker competition.

In essence, Florida is Google and Tebow is Google Maps.  A company with a lot of tradition and big wins known for cranking out popular and innovative products.  Google Maps is a fantastic product but in some ways is living on past success.  Where is the next big thing the next leap in innovation?

Colt McCoy, Texas

McCoy had a junior year that was statistically unparalleled yet still loss the Heisman to Sam Bradford.  While he is a big name in his own right, he also continually lives in the shadow of others.  Vince Young early in his career and Tebow and Bradford later in his career.  Texas is a storied football program but has lost some of its luster in recent years.  This year, McCoy appears to be feeling the pressure of living up to expectations and has produced mediocre numbers and was outplayed in his last game.

Let’s say Texas is Yahoo/Microsoft and Colt McCoy is either map product.  Every year Yahoo Maps or Bing Maps brings out some creative innovations that push the boundaries.  Have you seen Photosynth?  But they remain in the shadows of other players.

Sam Bradford, Oklahoma

Won the Heisman last year and was a top candidate this year.  Injured his arm in the first game of the year and is out for enough games to end his Heisman chances.  Oklahoma is a program with some great successes back in the day but is now oftentimes looked upon as the program that can’t win the big one.

Sounds like… AOL and Mapquest.  A company living off past success and a product that is injured and out of the race.

Jahvid Best, Cal

The darkhorse.  Yes he was mentioned by many as the #4 guy in the race but at the start of the season was given 0 chance to actually win the trophy.  Jahvid plays for a rising program (Go Bears) that has a history of mediocrity.  Best impresses with his speed and his big play ability.  He is hitting home runs when everyone else is hitting singles.  Also, he is different than the other candidates.  First, he is a running back while the others are quaterbacks.  He lets his work on the field and his teams success speak for him while the others are continually featured in sports special ranging from bass fishing to inspirational halftime speeches.

Best and Cal are the startups.  Rising stars breaking into areas typically reserved for traditional winners.  Startups are faster and more innovative than big companies and can develop wow products differentiated from what is aready out there.  And yes, sometimes it take a break or two, to become competitive, but the key is that you are ready to thrust yourself into the spotlight when those opportunities arise.

Case in point: Week 3 - Tebow squeeks out a win, McCoy has one of his worst games ever, Bradford still on the bench.  Best - 100+ yards rushing and 5 TOUCHDOWNS.  Yes 5 TOUCHDOWNS.

Ok, thanks for indulging me in this post which even I realize reaches to achieve coherence.  Hopefully there are some nuggets in there that made it worth your time to read.  We now resume you regularly scheduled programming lookatthisfuckingimmagonnakeyboardcatrickroll memes.