Jimmer's not a cult icon anymore

Joseph Smith, Jr., founded the Latter Day Saints movement, but right now I think even the father of the Mormon Church is the second most popular man in Utah.

Before he popped off for 43 points in a 71-58 win over San Diego State on Wednesday night that gave BYU sole possession of first place in the Mountain West Conference while handing the Aztecs their first loss of the season, Jimmer Fredette was revered by BYU fans. He had developed quite the cult following from hoops fans nationwide before he spent this week with his face plastered on ESPN

And after this performance, which was on CBS College Sports, not ESPN?

Fredette is a legend, a player whose devoted following grows every time he goes for 40 (which has been three times in his last four games).

Don't believe me? Take a peek at this picture that came across my twitter feed tonight:


Kevin Durant, who had 47 points and 18 rebounds himself tonight, tweeted "Jimmer Fredette is the best scorer in the world!!" John Wall said that "Jimmer Fredette is cold." Derrick Williams, the Arizona forward who has been on the receiving end of a 49 and 33 point game from Jimmer, tweeted that "the only way your stopping Jimmer is when the game ends." Fredette led off Sportscenter. Again.

Jimmer isn't just a basketball player. He's a celebrity. He's Justin Bieber. Hell, he doesn't even need a last name anymore. Look at what he did to my twitter feed last night:


And that's just a tiniest of tiny samples, and it just so happened to come after Jimmer buried another 25 footer, this time at the end of a shot clock with DJ Gay playing defense about as well as anyone has on him this season. Imagine that kind of twitter traffic last for well over two hours, and that's not including the flood of tweets in the hours leading up to the game.

What makes Jimmer so popular?

Well, for starters, he doesn't look like he should be a good athlete, let alone a good basketball player. He's a stocky, 6'1" white kid with floppy hair and an awkward gait. He's capable of storybook scoring feats on some of the best teams in the country, has in the gym range whether he's guarded or unguarded, and has the ability to make a defender look this silly:



The fact that Jimmer is this popular is a bit confounding. Whenever someone puts out a most-hated players list, the top tends to be populated with players of a paler complexion. JJ Redick was despised outside of Durham, NC. Tyler Hansbrough had more fans outside of the Tar Heel faithful, but he wasn't exactly winning popularity contests with the fans. Adam Morrison was ridiculed for his hair and his tears after losing to UCLA in the 2006 NCAA Tournament. I still see jokes on twitter from time to time regarding Greg Paulus and Eric Devendorf.

Maybe its because Fredette has such an endearing personality. Maybe its because he has the stones to pull from anywhere on the court at any given time. Maybe its because of his religious faith and the fact that the country knows he's getting less tail on campus than your run of the mill college hoops blogger.

I don't have an answer for it. But I also don't want to question it.

We should all just simply enjoy the ride.

The Jimmer Show rolls on.