Why Peyton Manning matters...

I start writing this blog entry at 6:30am.  My 4 month old daughter Emily has decided that she doesn't want to sleep anymore, so I sit here with my laptop computer as she grabs plastic thingys that are within reach.

I'm sure that many Vols fans had trouble sleeping as well...

Last night Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts lost Super Bowl XLIV to the New Orleans Saints 31-17.  Manning played well in defeat, but not to the high level we have grown to expect. 

Former Vols Marvin Mitchell, Jabari Greer and Robert Meachem all play on the Saints, so Tennessee fans have that to hang onto...

But many of those same Vols fans would tell you that they want to see Manning succeed almost as much as Derek Dooley's team.

So why does Manning matter so much to Big Orange Country? 

Because he is the ambassador for the Vols football team, for the University of Tennessee, and pretty much the entire state.

Vols fans hated the jabs from Gainesville after Manning went 0-3 against Steve Spurrier's Florida Gators.  They wondered why Manning never received the proper credit nationally for leading UT to the 1997 SEC title.

I won't even get into their opinions of ESPN/ABC and anyone that voted for Charles Woodson, keeping Tennessee shut out when it comes to the Heisman Trophy. 

And many of those same Vols fans now believe that even with a Super Bowl title under his belt (yes, he did win one in February of 2007), Manning is in danger of being known more for his 9-9 postseason record, not his record four NFL MVP awards. 

He could never win "the big one," and after he did, one wasn't good enough.

Manning isn't from the state of Tennessee, but he is their favorite son.  He is family.  

And when criticism is directed towards someone in your family... and you feel that it is not warranted, you take exception.