For eleven days beginning on December 18, Qualcomm Stadium, football home of the San Diego Chargers and San Diego State Aztecs, will carry a temporary new moniker: Snapdragon Stadium. Snapdragon processors by Qualcomm are the digital brains inside mobile devices made by top manufacturers like Samsung, LG, Nokia, and HTC. Snapdragon Stadium will host the Chargers-Ravens game on December 18, the Poinsettia Bowl on December 21, and the Holiday Bowl on December 28.
I had the opportunity to write about the core players for the teams that I think are core players, but I really want to open this up to every sport that you might be familiar with, which would include the men's and women's teams. I was also thinking that this might be an excellent opportunity, if you have the knowledge, to help educate our fellow Red Raider fans on other core players in the other sports. So, if you've got some knowledge or thoughts on a core player for another team or sport, drop it in the comments (besides, by just posting a comment on who you think is a core player you have a chance to win free stuff).
RED RAIDER BASKETBALL
PF JORDAN TOLBERT & SG TODDRICK GOTCHER | Tolbert has done this all by himself and it's been a gradual process over the course of the season, but Tolbert is the absolute definition of being a core player for this team for this year and the next three years. A player that wasn't highly recruited, his best offers being Arizona St., Colorado and Penn St., not exactly basketball powerhouses, he's really asserted himself for this team. Senior Robert Lewandowski was supposed to be the low-post threat, but Tolbert has been the guy in the post, and he's been fairly creative at how he scores. I should also mention that Tolbert is an excellent free throw shooter and for a low-post player to have that type of touch around the line, I think Tolbert will be able to extend where he can score. I am impressed with how incredibly solid that Gotcher has been this year and I dont think he has really even touched his potential. Gotcher has mainly deferred this year but he has the ball handling skills and jump shot to be a much more complete player. I think that by the time that Gotcher is done at Texas Tech he will be a 15 PPG, 5 RPG, and 4 APG player. And thatdoesnteven discuss that he's not a liability in defense, rather, he is actually a good defender. And he'll be this, I think, for the next three years.
TEXAS TECH FOOTBALL
WR BRADLEY MARQUEZ & TE JACE AMARO | I said it from the get go, which is that it is incredibly difficult for a player to contribute as a true freshman and it's not different for Amaro and Marquez. I know that some od you think that they may have both wasted a redshirt, but I actually think that it helped them. They were both elite athletes that were bigger, stronger and faster than any opponent. But their contributions seemed few and far between. I don't think that a player truly realizes how much faster and bigger opposing collegiate players actually are. You can play on the scout team, but it can't quite be the same. Playing your freshman year is baptism by fire and I would imagine that they learned very quickly that no matter how good they are, they're not quite there just yet. Despite the fact that they'll be sophomores next year, I can't shake the thought that Marquez and Amaro will be two of the most important cogs on the team next year.
Want a chance to win an HTC Rezound powered by Qualcomm's revolutionary Snapdragon multiprocessor? Just leave a comment on this post with who you think the team's core player is and why he's so important to their success. Vox Media will select one winner from among the participating SB Nation blogs. All entries subject to the official rules found here .