RattlerGator Blog

Down and Out Noles

I simply couldn't pass up posting this video; my Nole friends, I hope, will understand (some of them share the sentiment!):

Ten years ago I never would have believed they would have mismanaged -- at the insistence of Bobby Bowden -- the transition away from their legend to a new coaching regime so poorly.

Whipped Puppy, 2009 Edition, and the Attempted Eye-Gouge that Wasn't!

Last week, in the aftermath of a great Florida win over Georgia, I began a post that (I presume) my guardian angel didn't want me broadcast. I finished it in the early morning before work and just as I hit submit, my browser locked up. I had other browsers up and running, however, and spent what seemed like 30 minutes frantically trying to save or copy the material in the locked-up browser but ultimately failing.

Yes, I liked it that much.

But it might have been a disturbing post for the good Gator fans who are appalled by Brandon Spikes' conduct in the Florida-Georgia game. If that description somewhat resembles you, consider yourself warned. Today, Florida has methodically mowed down yet another SEC opponent (a 27-3 win over Vandy) and I'm of a mind to revisit the "post that wasn't" with (I hope) a bit more reserved tone.

Here goes.

***************************************************

Last week, while some folks continuing obsessing over a non-gouge and the suspension of a middle linebacker guilty of nothing more than playing intimidating football and dishing out just as well as it was getting dished to him, not me!

I was more than willing to let them bump their gums on the subject as much as they wanted, I was busy enjoying the win. Additionally, I've been thinking about my lack of blogging for weeks (months?) now. I'll get back to politics and blogging on a range of subjects soon enough (very interesting developments during the last election cycle) but I had to laugh last Thursday morning when I saw the new edition of "Whipped Puppy," the alleged magazine of the Georgia Bulldogs:

It has become something of a Gator tradition to photoshop a fake Georgia alumni magazine in the wake of every victory by our beloved Gators over the Penal Colony.

Ordinarily, I would be congratulating the legendary Mr2Cents, who originated this "Whipped Puppy" tradition. This particular great job, however, belongs to A.S. Williams of Orlando. Known as Vindibudd, he's a recent Gator Grad who has the following websites you might like to review:

http://www.brokedownspear.com - these are his "photoshop farks"
http://www.vindibudd.com - this is his "webcomic" website

A former cartoonist at The Independent Florida Alligator, Vindibudd may be our new fark God. Unfortunately, Mr2Cents has apparently "retired" from active farking. We can only hope it is a temporary retirement.

About the Situation Involving Mr. Spikes

Okay, here's a post I made online when this "eye-gouging" incident first erupted:

This is one of those incidents where the reality of intimidating football gets lost on some people. Defensive football isn't simply about stopping your opponent. You want to intimidate your opponent. I never thought Spikes was trying to gouge the man's eyes out -- he was just properly intimidating a Dawg down on the ground and probably saying something like, "All day, baby, all day -- you gets nuttin!"

When I saw it live, though, I asked myself, "Is he really trying to gouge those eyes?" Which is probably the first thing that popped into the RB's mind, too. Know what I mean?

Leave it be. Big Boy Football.

I stand by that. He obviously wasn't trying to gouge the man's eyes out, and he just as obviously wasn't attempting to gouge his eyes out. What he quite properly was doing was sending a message. An intimidating message. And trust me, Washaun received the message and (to his credit) said that Spikes should not be suspended because of that play.

Apparently, the pussification of far too many things in our world continues unabated. And yes, I've been blown away by the lynch mob pontification over this issue. Completely blown away.

The "attempted eye-gouge that wasn't" will surely go down in Florida-Georgia history. Will it also serve as something of a national marker, however? And if so, what sort of marker delineating what sort of demarcation?

The Big Kid from Big Duval Delivers!

Florida 41, Georgia 17. Is ev'rybody sassafied now? Huh? I don't want to hear any more moaning. None!

What can you say about this guy, Tim Tebow, that hasn't already been said. People are already contemplating Tebow for President campaigns! Seriously (I think).   ;-)

Well, I forgot to have my plate of cornbread and collard greens and only thought about it just this Monday morning. That's the Power of Tebow, a derivative of the Power of Urban! They have completely obliterated the need for some type of lucky routine. I was extremely confident on Saturday afternoon because I knew how much the "Big Kid from Big Duval" (yes, I do love that title) wanted to win this particular game.

And win it, he did.

To take it right down the field and ram it down Georgia's two-weeks-in-preparation throat -- super sweet! To (semi-officially) break Herschel's record in this game with an important touchdown that provided the winning score -- heavenly!

I had a special time in Jacksonville even though I didn't arrive in town until Saturday morning and I didn't make it into the stadium. I watched the entire thing out on the lawn outside the stadium. They had set up a big jumbotron with metal stands flanking the lawn. And it was packed. In the kind of heat and humidity that reminded you of the middle of August. It was incredible how hot it was! The setting, however, was great; it gave you the feel of Florida-Georgia because Dawg fans and Gator fans were mixed in close proximity (and, yes: there was some spectacular talent on display!).

I'm not going to say much more about the game or the event. Everything seemed scripted by the Gators. Georgia is in trouble and Mark Richt is in trouble. Since he pulled that crazy stunt at Florida-Georgia 2007, the Dawgs have gone down the tube. That, too, is expecially satisfying. And now Lane Kiffin appears to be getting the Vols together rather quickly. This could mean years and years in the wilderness for the Dawgs. To my shock, they still don't seem to be properly ashamed of that outrageous stunt they pulled. When the CBS feed on the jumbotron showed the dancing in the endzone, they -- incredibly -- cheered.

Georgia will never recover until that foolishness stops.

Finally, thank goodness Tim and so many of his fellow seniors or last-year on the team players won their final Florida-Georgia game and sent the Doggies back home to the Penal Colony in style.

Bring on Vanderbilt!

Florida-Georgia Week 2009

I'm heading over to Jacksonville today to try and wade into the mass of humanity celebrating, and anticipating, the annual Florida-Georgia game. This will be last Florida-Georgia game for the most special Gator player ever so I had to come home for the occasion. However: as a tribute to those dadgum Dawgs, at the end of this post I'm placing a nice video one of their fans put together that I've posted before. It fits the Florida-Georgia theme and the passion that both sides bring to this game.

A tradition of sorts has been established over the last few years on this blog. In celebration of one of college football's greatest series, I reflect back on the first Florida-Georgia game I actually attended. Arguably, it is the most famous game in this incredible series -- I think it certainly has that status for Georgia. That win propelled them to the number one ranking in the nation the following week and they eventually won the national championship. Quite a first game to witness. So, Go You Mighty Gators! Beat the everlovin' hell out of Georgia!

• Begin Modified Post from October 2005:

To begin to understand my special passion for this game you have to first understand that I love Georgians and have many, many family members in that great State. Both of my parents are, in fact, Georgians. My mother was born and raised on the Sumter County – Macon  County line in Andersonville. My father was born in Ellaville and his cluster of family was then and is now centered around the town of Roberta. These areas are quite rural, quite agricultural. On my maternal side the family owned, and still owns, a few hundred acres of land on that county line adjacent to the Andersonville National Cemetery. In fact, for years my maternal Grandfather worked his farm and worked at the cemetery to support his large family.

On my father’s side, they were sharecropping but eventually began a logging company that generated work all over South Georgia. But in 1950s Georgia an African American with a sharp mind and a sharp tongue could fairly easily find some trouble. Give that same man some disposable income and there was likely going to be a problem. My father, the oldest son in his family, no doubt qualified for that sharp mind / sharp tongue category. I’m sure he was young and dumb in many, many ways. Neither of my parents went beyond the 8th grade in school but both were quite bright. And confident. Once my father married my mother and was successfully running the logging business . . . and had two (of his eventual six) children, things got to be too hot and he was basically chased out of Georgia.

Chased away . . . to the great State of Florida. Many other family members on both sides went away to Gary, Indiana or Detroit or New York City. Most others stayed in Georgia. Some others settled in spots further down the Florida peninsula. Despite the upheavals of the ‘50s and ‘60s, my father never gave up being a proud Georgia boy. That’s just the way Georgians are. So, when I was coming of age in the 1970s as a proud Florida boy making his way through secondary school and really disappointed by the fact that Georgia seemed to be ruining my Florida Gators football seasons on a regular basis (and questioning why this was the case), everything was really simple to my father: we Floridians just didn’t eat enough cornbread and collard greens.

Well damn, I thought to myself. I loved cornbread and collard greens. To this day I wonder about people who don’t share that love. And I knew my father was really perceptive and smart, but could it really be that simple?

Anyway, when I completed a tour of duty in the Army and finally began my freshman year at U.F., the most anticipated game for me on our football schedule was the Florida-Georgia game. So when November 8, 1980 rolled around I was hyped. I mean really, really hyped. I attended the game with my younger brother who was actually ahead of me in school as a junior at U.F. – this was because he would do his tour of duty in the Army AFTER graduating from college. As an officer. Smart man.

Unfortunately, by that November date my father was already in failing health and unbeknownst to me, would only live for a few more months. The game, as all Gators and Dawgs know, turned out to be a classic:

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Herschel was unbelievable, and thus didn't disappoint. On one play, I saw him get tackled, his legs cut from underneath him, but he before he hit the ground, he tucked forward, somersaulted just inches from the ground, rolled on his back, and sprang up on his legs. He was amazing.

But so were the Gators that day.

Through eight games that season, Herschel had rushed for 1,096 yards, and the Bulldogs were undefeated and ranked second in the nation.

Was he really that good? On the third play of the game, Herschel answered, motoring 72 yards for a touchdown, and it looked as if it was going to be another long day for the Gators. He finished with 238 yards on 37 carries, and you'd have thought that would be enough, but it wasn't.

On the other side of the field, a little-known Gator wide receiver named Tyrone Young was having the game of his career. Young hauled in 10 catches for 183 yards from UF quarterback Wayne Peace. Every time you looked up, Young was making a big play.

The Gators, who came in ranked No. 20 following their forgettable 0-10-1 season a year earlier, trailed just 14-10 at the half. The Dawgs used two field goals to stretch the lead to 20-10 after three quarters.

Then magic happened.

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The text above and the subsequent excerpt were from a column by Peter Kerasotis in Brevard County’s Florida Today newspaper. It turns out that he began matriculating at U.F. the same quarter that I did (the last year for quarters at Florida). As he wrote, the Gators made a valiant comeback and in the fourth quarter took the lead, 26-21. Up in the endzone of my hometown Gator Bowl sat me and my brother and a bunch of Florida students. We were going crazy. My memory says we were in the endzone stands looking directly at the Gator defense as they were harassing the hell out of Georgia’s offense. This meant Georgia had their backs to us and all the action unfolded directly in front of us. The screaming was incredible. Georgia was on their goal line and we were doing our best to drown them out. First down and second down occurred. The stadium was literally rocking. Victory was at hand and the partying was going to be super good.

And then them damn cornbread and collard greens-eating Bulldawgs broke our hearts.

Larry Munson’s call of that play up in the Georgia radio booth has become quite famous. This is my interpretation of his exact, heartbreaking call. I’m not so much of a Gator that I can’t acknowledge that this is a classic call:

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Florida in a stand-up five, they may or may not blitz.

Belue third down on the 8 . . . in trouble . . . he got a block behind him . . . going to throw on the run . . . complete on the 25 to the 30!

Lindsay Scott 35, 40, Lindsay Scott 45, 50, 45, 40.

Run Lindsay, 25, 20, 15, 10, Lindsay Scott! Lindsay Scott! Lindsay Scott!

* * *

Well, I can’t believe it. Ninety-two yards and Lindsay really got in a foot race.

I broke my chair. I came right through a chair. A metal steel chair with about a 5 inch cushion, I broke it. The booth came apart. The stadium . . . well, the stadium fell down . . . now they do have to renovate this place . . . they’ll have to rebuild it now.

This is incredible. You know this game has always been called the World’s Greatest [Outdoor] Cocktail Party. Do you know what’s gonna happen here tonight? And up at St. Simons and Jekyll Island, and all those places where all those Dawg people have got those condominiums for 4 days?

Man is there going to be some property destroyed tonight!

26-21, Dawgs on top. We were gone. I’d gave up, you did too. We were out of it and gone.

Miracle!

---

It was at this game, at this moment, where every other University of Florida football game became simply a game and this became THE game on our schedule for me. Truth be told, it already was that for me but this really, really nailed it down. It was also where I learned to have a certain contempt for the defeatist element among Gator fans. All around me, the students gave up. All around me, it seemed as if the life went out of everyone and we turned the stadium over to Georgia. But there was still time left and we had a potent offense capable of coming down the field. In fact, we did make a bit of a drive (IIRC) but couldn’t quite bring it home.

Georgia won.

They had their miracle.

And I had to live with my father’s good-natured ribbing about his Georgia boys. That’s part of what makes this game so special. In some ways, I feel a little sorry for Floridians who don’t have any Georgia relatives and vice-versa. It makes a remarkable social event even more special. For instance, in honor of my father and for psychological satisfaction alone, I try to make sure that I have at least one plate of cornbread and collard greens leading up to this here game. Yes sir, buddy!

And every ass-whuppin we’re able to deliver to them these days, they damn well deserve. So yes, I’m enjoying the hell out of our recent domination.

Beat Georgia. Beat the hell out of Georgia. And then slap ‘em silly some more!

Y’all excuse me while I go get me another plate of them good ole, down home, collard greens.

Go Gators!

• End Modified October 2005 post

There you have it. I'll close with the tribute to those Jah-Juh Dawgs.

Good luck to both teams. However . . . Go You Mighty Gators !!!

Gator Angst Over Elusive Perfection

We are so blessed with good fortune in Gator Nation that we are suffering from the luxury of ridiculous bitching and moaning over the lack of . . . perfection.

Last year (not this year, mind you; last year, a national championship year) Gator fans were incredibly displeased with the performance of our offense for much of the season. This year, we're suffering through the same criticism It's more legitimate this year but its still ridiculous. For those who are complaining this year, I can't help but wonder what they were thinking up through the third quarter of the Arkansas game . . . LAST year. A national championship year in which we put up at least 30 points on every SEC team, including games leading up to the Fayetteville contest. But my goodness, the angst on most, if not all, Gator sports boards. The strong criticism was everywhere.

Here's my strong opinion: this game of football (the ultimate team game) is much more interesting (and fun) when fans don't insist on simultaneously navel-gazing while acting as if they have perfect 360-degree vision.

The obvious issues "we all see" out there on the field may not be the "issues" that need to be addressed at all. The probability is that they aren't, they are only the end-result and visible manifestation of the actual issues. They are (so-to-speak) so simple, even a caveman can see them. This is true even if some player is spilling his guts to some "Gator Sports Insider" who thinks he's getting the straight stuff and "verifying" everything we cavemen think we see.

It's like watching a replay from a bad angle that can't possibly tell you whether a ball was fumbled before crossing the goal line yet insisting that the ball was clearly, and indisputably, out. Absurd foolishness, and we're seeing way too much of that kind of stuff written by Gator fans and numbskull sportswriters all across America.

Here's another strong opinion: we have the greatest coach we've ever had, the greatest staff we've ever had, the greatest quarterback we've ever had, and quite likely the greatest defense we've ever had.

We don't have the greatest offense we've ever had and whaddayaknow . . . we're still working out some kinks with red zone production. Cool by me, because we have the fewest serious issues and concerns of any team in the nation -- any team -- and we can close out the year as national champions even if our red zone production doesn't improve.

Our team is just that good.

But football being football, we may wake up one Sunday and find that our offense scored like crazy but our great defense was shredded and we lost a game we probably shouldn't have lost.

Again, this is why we and many other programs have never had an undefeated season in the modern era. It is a supremely difficult thing to accomplish and you have to have a healthy dose of good fortune.

Go Gators !!! Beat Jah-Juh !!!

Florida - Georgia Humor

I have to admit, this was pretty funny -- at least to me it was:

Go Gators !!! Beat Jah-Juh !!!

Gators, Canes, and Noles Review Etcetera

We are well into the season and I've not commented much about the Sunshine State college football squads. Now is a good time, prior to the Florida-Georgia game, so here goes nuttin and sumpin all at the same time.

[1] About my Gators: not overly impressive? Is that what I heard from Nessler last night on TV? Yes, I'm sure of it. Hmmmm. That's the kind of take that seriously lacks perspective. Florida is first in the BCS rakings for the first time EVER, and 7-0 with an offense that hasn't had sustained excellence for any one game this year. But we're still a top-ranked offense. Not overly impressive? We are 7-0 with a defense that is managing its injuries and consistently smothering opponents, even when the offense makes them endure multiple turnovers and severe game-changing situations. Not overly impressive? We are 3-0 against the West for the first time in forever, including a win in the State of Mississippi. Any fool following the Gators knows they have some kind of weird juju in Missasipp that they've been working on us for years. They threw all of it, and the kitchen sink, at us last night. Superman -- Superman! -- threw two pick-six interceptions last night. I don't think I've ever seen him do that! I can't really remember him throwing one but I'm sure he's done it a time or two. Still, we won, and we won fairly comfortably. Not overly impressive?

Not overly impressive???

The hell you say!!!

The only point I will grant is this: Tim is trying to too hard. Much too hard. We need to figure out a way where he will grant himself permission to push the re-set button and allow the game action to come to him rather than him forcing the issue. Incredibly, I suspect Superman has allowed some of the foolish NFL talk to get the better of him. To hell with those idiots, my man. Just go play ball and allow the set-pieces on the field dictate your actions.

Now . . . here come the Dawgs. Them other Dawgs. The Dawgs we hate. With a genuine passion. They are going to have something special for us this year I do believe. It would make their season to spoil our quest for another conference & national title but it would especially please them to be the team that ends our quest for a perfect season. They've done that before, you know. I just want to win that game however, whatever. Survive and advance, survive and advance.

I should arrive in Jacksonville by Wednesday to celebrate Tebow's last Florida-Georgia game. Superman will be hyped and so will all of Gator Nation.

Come on Big Orange and Blue !!!

The kid from Big Duval, in his home county, against the hated Dawgs. I may not be able to get tickets, but I have to be in the vicinity. Win or lose, I have to be in the vicinity. I will also make sure I've had plenty of my lucky plates of cornbread and collard greens. Go Gators!

[2] About the Canes: they're back! Just not quite as far back as I presumed after that great start to the season. Jacory is the real deal but (like so many kids from the Bottom) he believes too much of that South Florida hype. I hated to see the Canes lose to Clemson but I was extremely pleased to see two kids from North Florida perform well for the Tigers and remind South Floridians -- you don't play better ball than us, my friends. You just have more people. Parker from Jacksonville and Spiller from Union County were both magnificent! Next year will be the real test for the Canes but they are clearly headed in the right direction. And it may be a sign in me that the Gator in me is responding to this resurrection but . . . that hit yesterday where the Cane knocked off the Clemson players helmet? Clearly a dirty hit where the guy lowered his head and, with the crown of his helmet, aimed only at the guys head. I was amazed the television crew seriously wondered what Dabo Swinney was upset about. Hell, look at the videotape! It was a very dangerous hit and the school or the conference should discipline him. It was one of the most dangerous hits I've seen in quite some time.

[3] About the Noles: just go ahead and fire Bobby Bowden, okay? I thought Jim Smith said exactly what needed to be said. Damn how many national idiots in the sports media state the absurd over and over and over again (Bobby Bowden deserves the right to determine when he retires -- no hell he doesn't!) No employee ever attains the right to tell his or her employer the terms of their continued employment, including the end date. It just doesn't happen and its crazy talk to assert so in the Bobby Bowden case. Bobby isn't coaching the team now and he hasn't coached them for years. It's all an absolute farce. Meanwhile, Jimbo is making a very good case for himself as the next head coach. He has done a fantastic job developing Christian Ponder into a superior quarterback and if the Noles are smart enough to get behind him -- and I think a strong faction of the Bowden acolytes will never accept him, just as so many Spurrier acolytes actively worked to undermine Ron Zook at Florida; it's a weird thing to observe but it is real -- he will bring them back to sustained prominence.

[4] About the season: two self-serving predictions; (a) Florida will have a rematch with LSU in the conference title game. People have prematurely fallen in love with Alabama and forgotten how much desire the Bengal Tigers will have to beat Nick Saban and Alabama. I just don't think Bama quite has it this year and the key for me has been their inability to do much with Julio Jones (who is a terror!). They need Julio to have any hope of beating us and to have a good chance of beating LSU. I don't think it will happen (sorry, Ree -- and I hope like hell this doesn't jinx us against Georgia or Carolina); (b) Florida and Texas appear to be headed for a collision in the Rose Bowl if they (the Horns) can get by Oklahoma State. I'm not sure they can but I am sure that Oklahoma last year worried me more than this Texas bunch. Our defense will eat Colt McCoy alive.

Tim Tebow's A Hero!

I simply couldn't resist posting this:

Yeah, buddy; Tim Tebow's A Hero!

Where Amazing Happens!

The Boston-Chicago basketball series has been an unbelievable and unexpected gift, full of big plays from a range of players on both teams. It ends tonight and one of the teams is going to be more devastated than usual. Because this has been such a fantastic set of games.

For me, however, I'm already "sassafied" because my man Joakim Noah has attained his iconic NBA play. He may go on to generate others, he may. But this one? This one is special and can never be taken away from him. This one screams to the world, "I am legit, and I can play this game!" Check it out:

There aren't many big men in the NBA who can make that play and Joakim made easily. He not only made a great steal, showing an anticipatory instinct, but he handled the rock magnificently as he raced down the court and then . . . and then . . . he finished!

Yeahhhhhhhhhhh !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You dream about making a play that significant.

And he just did it. To close this out, how about that play in real time with network commentary? Yeah:

Wow!

And for good measure, a photo of the basket about to be scored:

Amazing !!!

Lane Kiffin Trying to Pull an Obama?

The new coach at the University of Tennessee, Lane Kiffin, created quite a stir yesterday with some rather blunt and curious language about one of their arch-rivals, the University of Florida. Specifically, language about Florida's head coach Urban Meyer. Click this link, read the stories, watch the video.

I think this was a very smart, calculated move by the new coaching staff at Tennessee (it made me angry; I want to slap the taste out of his mouth; but in this crazy new era we're in, this strikes me as smart for a program bordering on mediocrity with a 100,000 seat stadium to fill).

You know what Volunteer fans are going to do, don't you? They are going to close ranks behind this staff up in Tennessee. Further, that coaching staff has communicated to the entire world that they are going to aggressively compete against the big boys in the SEC. As they should.

As far as Tennessee fans are concerned, the cardinal sin for the Vols under Fulmer was allowing that program to become stale and irrelevant. These news guys are making the point to all of Vol Nation that not only have things changed, they are 180 degrees different. Kiffin is the Anti-Fulmer. If I may inject some politics, they are trying to pull an Obama up in Knoxville. Outrageous audacity and little experience worked for BHO, I believe Lane thinks he's seen a sign of the times.

Change, change, change. Blah, blah, blah. Change, change, change.

We shall see. They are getting a phenomenal amount of press over this. All attained by him publicly calling out an arch-rival. And what did it cost them?

Nope, under the totality of these circumstances at least, this was a very smart/savvy move by them. I think we in Gator Nation would have done better by ignoring it. What hurts U.T. the most is being ignored and deemed irrelevant. They can't stand that. Especially while Florida and Bama are riding high.

Well, there's a new posse in town, Gators. Pay attention to their gamesmanship. Things have already become quite interesting. But we should not be underestimating this new group up in Knoxville. Not at all.