Heisman Trophy Winner Robert Griffin III is a Comic Geek

When I was in high school (which was more than 10 years ago), I understood that there were comic geeks and jocks.  And, no, you couldn’t be both.  That’s just the way it was.  For my part, I was the comic geek, sitting at the lunch table debating all things comic book related while we watched the jocks across the caffeteria discussing their latest bench pressing accomplishment and taking turns making out with all the popular girls.  So, last night, when I was watching the Heisman Trophy presentation, I almost spit my beer up when I saw Robert Griffin III, the Heisman Trophy winner, tell the world that he loved the X-Men and then hiked up his pants, revealing a pair of uber-geeky Superman socks.  Did the biggest jock in the country just also admit that he is a comic geek on the Heisman Trophy stage?  NOTHING MAKES SENSE ANYMORE!  DIVIDE BY ZERO!  AHHHHHH!

RG3 shows off his Superman socks

Yes.  That happened.  Robert Giffin III (aka “RG3″) stood there on the Heisman Trophy stage, while being broadcast around the world on ESPN, and talked about how he had a collection of over one-thousand comic book action figures, about how he loved the X-Men “like a lot of kids”, and then showed off the Superman socks.  “That’s awesome,” was the first thing that went through my mind.  I knew that comic book culture was spreading like wild fire; we live in a world where Big Bang Theory is one of the highest rated shows on television, superhero movies are dominating at the box office, and porn stars are lining up to star in the next comic book porn parody.  And now, ha ha, the Heisman Trophy winner is talking about X-Men and wearing Superman socks.

All of this is awesome.  Geek culture is quickly, right before our eyes, transitioning into the mainstream.  Being into comics no longer disqualifies you from being a “jock” and vice versa.  The most accomplished college athlete in the nation has X-Men toys and <gasp!> is cool with talking about them on <gasp!> ESPN.  I had known that comics were becoming a bigger and bigger part of our society (ironically, even as comic book sales continue to decline), but seeing Robert Griffin III show off his Superman socks, right before accepting the Heisman Trophy, really drove the point home for me.  Maybe this isn’t even an “event” and I’m probably making way too much out of it, but to that fifteen year old comic geek that still lives inside of me and runs my brain, it was jaw dropping.  Robert Griffin III, the Heisman Trophy winner, has a collection of X-Men toys and wears the geekiest pair of socks that I’ve ever seen.  It’s dorky, I know, but I just can’t stop smiling.