Gardnew Minshew II is about to be our next president

Sports fans love to hop on bandwagons and follow players who give off a cult-hero like persona. Players such as Tim Tebow and Jeremy Lin’s ‘Linsanity’ come to mind. Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew II looks like he is the next living legend to be crowned by the fans. 

Minshew’s popularity has been on the rise. He has gained 260,000 followers on Twitter and Instagram over the last seven days. It isn’t hard to see why. From the bushy mustache to him cutting his own “jorts,” Minshew II has the moxie that fans love to cheer for.

Minshew gets his fiery spirit from not making his tee-ball league’s all-star team. Gardner was stomping all around the house whining about how he didn’t make the team. His mom told him “You don’t deserve to be an all-star, every time dad tried to get you to do something, you wanted to stay inside and play.” That wakeup call from his mom lit the fire that has driven him to where he is today. 

At Eastern Carolina, Minshew was the third quarterback on the roster. He was hoping to redshirt to keep his eligibility for another year. However, during the fourth game of the year, the starter got injured, and Minshew was forced to play. The starter was good to return the following week, so Minshew was looking at his options to keep his redshirt availability. The only way to keep it was through the medical redshirt.

Minshew decided to go home and grab a bottle of Jack Daniels and a hammer. He then took a pull of the Jack Daniels, put his hand down on the table, counted to three and smashed his hand with the hammer. He knew it wasn’t broken so he did it again and then three more times with still no luck. Minshew eventually gave up and was forced to practice with a swollen hand for the next few weeks. He ended up telling his coaches that he closed it in a car door. 

For his senior year, Minshew was looking to transfer. It isn’t often that Alabama coach Nick Saban is turned down by a player. Especially when that player is from Eastern Carolina. However, Minshew wasn’t interested in being the third-string quarterback at Alabama.

Washington State came calling after the tragic death of their quarterback Tyler Hilinski. Mike Leach, now famously, asked Minshew, “Gardner, how would you like to come out to Washington State and lead the nation in passing?” Minshew was sold. He went to Washington State, and although he did not lead the nation in passing, he did set the school record for passing yards in a season.

The final, perhaps most perplexing story about Minshew, is about his name. His name is Gardner Minshew II. The thing is, there is no Gardner Minshew I. Minshew having the ‘II’ after his last name would imply that his dad was also named Gardner Minshew. His dad’s name is Flint. Gardner Minshew II is the first Gardner Minshew and the first Gardner Minshew II.

The list goes on for Minshew. At college, he worked out wearing only aviators and a jockstrap. His grandpa wanted to name him Beowulf. Minshew is an enigma that makes the NFL more fun.

Most of these sports cult hero’s experience short-lived popularity as their perceived character tends to outweigh their actual talent. Minshewmania however, is just getting started.