Sportsman of the Year....

With 2009 soon to be a distant memory, it is time for Propick Sports to announce our annual "Sportsman of the Year Award". Unlike the other "more prestigious" publication, we at Propick do not believe in making the reader wait any longer than they should have to. This year has seen a slew of great performances across all major sports. Lebron James and Kobe Bryant in the NBA, Albert Pujols and Daniel Murphy in the MLB, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning in the NFL, Sidney Crosby in the NHL, and who among us could forget Tom Watson's epic run at the British Open? However, with so little separating these star athletes, we have decided to think outside the box. The 2009 Propick Sportsman of the Year Award winner also happens to be the 2009 Most Improved Player of the Year. Without further suspense I want to congratulate Vernon Gholston of the New York Football Jets as this years first ever duel award winner! As the number 6 pick in the 2008 draft, it was clear from the beginning that great things were expected from this underclassman from "the Ohio State University". Scouts deemed this 6"3 265 pound pass rusher as a "Lawrence Taylor" clone. A few rumblings surfaced about Vernon's penchant for taking plays off during the game but no one cares when you are this good? Last year Vernon had a total of 13 tackles during his first full season. Already this year he has 11 tackles with seven games remaining. Furthermore, Vernon has recorded 8 solo tackles this year versus only 5 all of last year. While Vernon has failed to record a sack, fumble, forced fumble, interception, in his early career, what the statistics do not show is his never ending passion for the game. Offenses across the league have taken notice of his 8 solo tackles (including a career high 2 vs. Miami in week 8) and now make it a priority week in and week out, to "not let Gholston beat us". Congratulations to both Vernon Gholston and the New York Jets on this award.