Dan Patrick's "Just My Type" column in Sports Illustrated features a Q&A with a prominent sports personality each week and his latest interview subject, Stanford football coach David Shaw, fielded the following question regarding his former star quarterback, Andrew Luck of the Indianapolis Colts: "Is Luck a nerd?"

Shaw's reply: "Absolutely, and I love that about him. When people meet him they laugh at that about him because he's not just about football 24/7. He can nerd out on World Cup soccer for hours."

Soccer? You mean when he's not talking football he can wax poetic about the other football? And that makes him a nerd?

Actually, Luck's nerd credentials are in quite good order; he was an engineering major at Stanford and earned his degree.

And it's wonderful that the word nerd has evolved beyond its former use as a pejorative.

But being a soccer fan is no more evidence of being a nerd than watching "The Big Bang Theory."