Congratulations to the Ole Ball Coach Steve Spurrier

One play explains Coach Urban Meyers first Gator season. That play is Chris Leak’s pass that was batted into the air and intercepted by South Carolinas defensive tackle Chris Tucker. That poor pass followed by Chris Leak’s pathetic effort to try to tackle Tucker during his outstanding run back of that interception was the whole story told once again. It explains why the Gators are eliminated from contention in the SEC title race. Leak is simply not a tough enough competitor to win tough football games against tough opponents.

The only exceptional pass that I’ve seen Leak throw in the last half of the season was the pass to the back of the end zone that won the Vanderbilt game in overtime and I’m not too sure he wasn’t throwing that one away and the receiver just made a heck of a play to catch it. Leak appears to be getting coached by an agent/publicist as well as Meyer’s staff. Leak’s phony looking Tiger Wood fist pumps, excessive celebrating too early in the games, like run to and jump up on the receiver where the cameras will undoubtedly be focused after a touchdown, and call Red Zone time-outs to maximize TV coverage on Leak while he makes the highly televised trip to the sideline for a conference with the coaches. Some of Leak’s body language, hand motions appeared to be admonishing the coaching staff for problems with pass patterns that didn’t connect. That is called showing up your coaches and deserves a head slap from one of them that will have Leak looking out his helmet’s ear hole. There is always more than one receiver on a well designed pass play, Leak threw the passes not the coaches.

The Gator defense has been outstanding especially when the other team’s best quarterback is hurt, but they give up 72 points to Vandy’s Jay Cutler and the Game Cocks Blake Mitchell two good to outstanding SEC quarterbacks. The defense overall was rightly recognized as carrying the Gators sputtering offense this season. Had Georgia’s QB DJ Shockley played against Florida there is little doubt in my mind that Georgia would have won that game. Beating two teams without quarterbacks plus Wyoming and the other warm up bum of the week makes 4 rather ordinary wins and to argue that Florida is any more than one score better than Vanderbilt would be stretching it. Overrated and lucky to be over .500 is an accurate assessment. Although there is something to be said for being lucky.

Was Urban Meyer saddled with Chris Leak’s hype or does he really believe that Leak is the best the Gators can do out of the current crop of players? Meyer seems to emit a toughness that he hasn’t been able to impart to Leak. Since the 1950’s the Gators practice field has looked like they have a couple hundred players on scholarship. Then you hear their best kicker is a walk-on playing without a scholarship. Having been treated shabbily as a walk-on myself, I have a soft spot for walk-on athletes who make it. Every day as a walk-on you look around at those 150 or so with scholarships being herded around the practice field knowing most of them will never play a competitive play and certainly few will ever win a single down in an SEC game and you wonder who the hell picks these people?

Where does the loss to Steve Spurrier’s superior coached South Carolina team leave the Utah proven option offense? With 12 men on the field? 12 men on the field, can you believe that, 12 men on the field? Was one of them Chris Leak’s publicist?

Florida v Florida State is next both are off their games this season. The outcome seems a bit more important to Florida than Florida State. Although the Seminole’s quarterback is a freshman he has played all season and he looks pretty good, good enough to give the Gators hierarchy an extra problem for the off season. The Noles defense is not too good against the run which should help the Gators.

None of the above means anything in light of the needless beating death of Tom Brown, U of F Building Construction student, during the Georgia-Florida game cocktail party following the game. That doesn’t say much for the new U of F anti-drinking policies. Outrageous binge drinking surrounding sporting events has got to be curtailed. Intercollegiate sports, all of sports in America aren’t worth a single life, not young Tom Brown’s or anyone else’s.

The Browns were simply overpowered by the Steelers. It is a good thing Ben Rothlesberger didn’t play. Steeler’s Charlie Batch did a good job filling in until he got hurt. They should have had Bettis take a few snaps at QB and run some sneaks for five or six yards. Is Brylon Edwards ratcheting up his T.O. imitation or should he be getting more playing time? If he is 100% healthy he probably should be playing more. I hope he is working hard with Charlie Frye in practice; it could make the Browns future a lot more exciting. If Dilfer had delivered the ball to Edwards and not lead him a hair too far Edwards would have had another long touchdown like the one he had against Detroit. Why was that the only time the Browns tried to throw that pattern? That pattern is worth at least 3 shots at it per game. The Browns showed some courageous fight but the Steelers are just the better team now, probably the 1^st or 2^nd best in the league.

I feel sure the Steeler’s defensive coach Dick Lebeau takes a particular delight in beating the Browns. Dick was my first Browns training camp roommate along with Floyd Peters another successful NFL assistant coach. Dick called Floyd “Oops” as in Alley Oop the cave man cartoon of our childhood. There was a slight resemblance. Dick said “Bernie we’re going to have to take turns sleeping. One will sleep while the other keeps an eye on Oops. He looks dangerous.” Floyd was from San Francisco and worked as a guard at Alcatraz. Dick and I told everybody “Oops is a lifer and if he doesn’t make the Browns he is gonna have to go back to the Rock.” Dick could hear any song once and sing the whole thing from start to finish. He is a very bright guy the Browns made a huge error when they cut him. I ask Paul Brown to keep Dick and let a veteran go. Paul said “We have to go with experience back there.” I believe Dick was the last cut after Willie Davis and Henry Jordan. Dick was picked up by the Lions, and Willie, and Henry were picked up by the Packers and they all went on to have fantastic careers.

How could anybody cut Dick Lebeau, Willie Davis, Henry Jordan, and Jim Marshall? The great Paul Brown did that’s who. Browns defensive backs of my era still rank at the top of the interception records today, while we actually played fewer games. How many more interceptions might we have had with Davis, Jordan, and Marshall rushing the passers on passing downs and Lebeau playing along side us? The guys we had Bill Glass, Paul Wiggin, Dick Modzewlesky, Bob Gain, Frank Parker and Jim Kanicki did a hell of job, especially when it counted the most and I’m proud and fortunate to have played beside them.