2003 Top 50 List: No
Dan Collins List: Yes
Rod Griffin was one year behind Skip Brown at Wake Forest. In 1977, which was Brown’s senior year and Griffin’s junior year, the Deacs were ranked in the top 10 most of the season and made it to the regional final before losing to eventual champion Marquette. Griffin was named ACC Player of the Year.
This will probably strike many as too high a ranking for Griffin, so I should explain my thinking. A lot of it has to do with how Griffin relates to Phil Ford. Their careers coincided exactly, so it’s an obvious comparison. Ford is generally acknowledged to be one of the ten best players in ACC history, and I have no argument with that. However, if you’re going to say Ford is one of the ten best, then you better have Griffin in your Top 30. Because in 1977 and 1978, he played Ford to a standstill.
1977 Player of the Year voting: Griffin 89, Ford 31
1978 Player of the Year voting: Ford 86, Griffin 33
Total: Griffin 122, Ford 117
Now I’m not arguing that Griffin is the equal of Ford. Adding in 1976 gives Ford an edge; he was first team All-ACC and received some consideration for player of the year (won by Mitch Kupchak), while Griffin was second team. But the biggest difference is their All-America record. Ford was consensus second team in 1976 and consensus first team in both 1977 and 1978. Griffin was consensus second team in 1977 and 1978, and that barely. If you trust the ACC voters more than the national voters, and I do, then you would have to say that at least 1977 there is an injustice to Griffin.
So to summarize my argument for Griffin,
- Phil Ford is a Top 10 player
- Griffin was viewed by ACC voters as being almost as good as Ford
- I trust the ACC voters more than the national voters
- Therefore, Griffin must be a Top 30 player.
Griffin was not included on the 2003 Top 50 list. He is the highest ranked player on my list who was eligible and did not make that list.