Tako Tuesdays: How do I love thee? Let me count the TDs!

It's Valentine's Day, ATQ! It's a day that began with a few martyred Catholics who became a front for converting a pagan fertility ritual into something stuffy and all church-y, and has now evolved into a gajillion dollar industry for Hallmark, candy hearts that taste like chalk, and, ironically enough, a Pagan fertility ritual. But before all else, Valentine's Day is about love, and spending time thinking about, and being with, those you love most. And my Valentine this year is someone who took my breath away the first time I laid eyes on them. The courtship was a whirlwind; were these just moves being put on me, or is this really the real thing? I don't know, but I'm willing to take a chance with my heart. That's why my 2012 Valentine is De'Anthony Thomas.

Ahhhh, isn't he the dreamiest?

It's official: I love De'Anthony Thomas. I love that he's a Duck. It makes me love him even more that he ditched KiffyBear and the Trojans to become a Duck. I love that he fumbled twice against LSU. I mean, I don't love that he fumbled. But he was stripped by outstanding defenders, in his first college game, at the end of making two very athletic plays to gain yards. And I love that after he fumbled twice, he kept making those athletic plays, eventually scoring his first collegiate touchdown. I love this:

De'Anthony Thomas 69 yd. reception vs Nevada for TD (via madmike1951)

At the time, that was the sickest head fake we'd ever seen on a football field. Then he did this:

De'Anthony Thomas 45 yard reception for TD vs WSU 10/29/2011 (via madmike1951)

He took that same little quick head fake, and he did it FOUR TIMES in five yards.

I love this:

De'Anthony Thomas 91 yard TD run vs Wisconsin 2012 Rose Bowl (via madmike1951)

The timing of this play swung the entire scope of the Rose Bowl. Almost every coach in college football chooses not to run that play. Let time expire, and run it in the second quarter. Any momentum Wisconsin had built in the first quarter was gone. And it was at that this point that the Wisconsin fans sitting around me at the Rose Bowl gave up all hope of watching their defense stop the Oregon offense. One Badger fan said simply, "Welp, it's a shootout."

On my Top 25 TDs of 2011-12 list, DAT has the top three scores, 4 of the top 6, and 6 of the top 10. Simply stunning.

Now I know what you're all thinking; "Tako, he's too young for you, loving him would be a conflict of interests with your work on the blog, you've never spoken a word to each other." None of that matters! Let's consider the facts:

• At 5'9", De'Anthony is a perfectly reasonable height for a potential Valentine for my 6'1" self. I wouldn't want to get into that situation where there's a couple walking down the street, and they're both super tall. Cuz that's just weird. Incidentally, that's why Lavasier Tuinei and I could never work.
• On a bicycle built for two, his legs are so strong I wouldn't have to do any pedaling. Lazy man bonus!
• He loves roses.
• He looks good in any color combination. Green, yellow, black, white, carbon, steel, iridescence, chrome, volt, anthrocite, doesn't matter. He could make purple look good. Guh, never mind, forget I said anything MOVING ON NOTHING TO SEE HERE LALALALALALALA
• He, legally, has to spend two more years in a Duck uniform before considering the NFL Draft. This has nothing to do with eventually buying matching easy chairs for our imaginary den, but it's a fact I think about every time I'm having a bummer of a day. Stepped in dog poop? Two more years of Mamba. Homeless guy kicked you in the shins? Two more years of Mamba. Just got laid off? Two more years of Mamba. And food stamps.
• We both love Mexican food. Now, I don't know for a fact that DAT loves Mexican food, but he grew up in Los Angeles. You can't grow up in LA and not like Mexican food. That's like growing up in Portland not liking pine trees and complaining about the Blazers.

pic via cdn1.sbnation.com