Great...good memory, and even better followup! On Wed, Nov 5, 2008 at 4:32 AM, <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> I have not forgotten what some have said about us. > > > -------- Original Message -------- > Subject: RE: You're what's wrong with Florida football, Gator fans > From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: Wed, November 05, 2008 4:32 am > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Mr Bianchi: > > Do you understand now? > > What was wrong was - we understood that this team was not playing up to > their expectations - not playing up to their potential. In the LSU, > Kentucky, and Georgia games - we finally played at the level we are > capable of. We finally are playing at a level we were sold by the > Sports Information Department. A level that we were told to expect. > > Do you want to retract your statement? > > Do you want to apologize to all the Gator fans that you were wrong > about? > > Keith > > > > You're what's wrong with Florida football, Gator fansMike Bianchi > SPORTS COMMENTARY > October 8, 2008 > > When did it happen, Gator fans? > > When did it reach a point where you became so persnickety and such > perfectionists that you sucked the joy out of winning football games > like a boa constrictor squeezes the life out of small rodents? > > The reason I bring this up is because of all the conversation and > consternation about Florida's offense and quarterback Tim Tebow in the > aftermath of Saturday's embarrassing, humiliating 31-point, um, victory > over Arkansas. > > That's right, Florida went on the road, ran up more than 500 yards of > offense and destroyed Arkansas 38-7 in a tune-up for Saturday's > monumental Southeastern Conference showdown with No. 4 LSU. And you know > what everybody's talking about? > > What's wrong with Tebow and the Gators? > > I'll tell you what's wrong with Tebow and the Gators: You're what's > wrong. Florida fans who actually think it's their birthright not only to > win but to win by 50. > > Former UF coach Steve Spurrier left, in part, because of what Gator > Nation had become -- a fussy, finicky fan base filled with constant > complainers. You wonder how long Urban Meyer will hang around until he, > too, gets sick of it. > > On the day he announced his resignation at UF, Spurrier revealed that > the joy of winning at UF had been replaced by the fear of losing. > > "Do you realize how big a favorite we are all the time?" Spurrier > lamented. "It's nobody's fault. It's just the way it is. We're > double-digit favorites over everybody. Anytime we lose, it's us coaches. > We screwed up. 'Look how huge a favorite the team was and they didn't > win.' That wears on you a little bit. > > "It's a relief when we win. . . . It's almost a disgrace when we lose." > > And it's not just the fans, either. It's the players, the former > players, even the media who covers the team. > > Case in point: After Florida's 38-7 victory over Arkansas, the big > headline in the Orlando Sentinel was, "Score Isn't The Story." Below the > headline there were two articles. The first paragraph of one article > began with, "If the Gators play like this next week, they'll lose to > LSU." The first paragraph of the other article began with, "Something's > missing." > > Yes, something is missing all right: Elation and exhilaration after a > victory. It's reached a point, according to the Gainesville Sun, where > even one of UF's most beloved former players -- ex-UF quarterbacking > great Shane Matthews -- regularly goes on his Gainesville radio show and > picks apart a UF offense that led the nation last year and was third in > the country. > > Even Tebow, the ultimate glass-is-half-full guy, has been sucked into > the abyss created by the legions of the miserable. > > After Tebow fired a 21-yard touchdown pass to Percy Harvin in the fourth > quarter Saturday to give Florida a 24-7 lead, Tebow moped off the field > without celebrating. Meyer saw his quarterback's dispassionate reaction > and ran out to give Tebow a chest bump. > > "I wanted him to enjoy it," Meyer said of his quarterback. > > The coach might want to send the same message to many of his fans, who > seem to believe Tebow really is Superman. They think he should complete > every pass, convert every third down, score every time he touches the > ball. > > They think Tebow should duplicate the incredible statistics he compiled > last year when he won the Heisman Trophy. The problem is that was a > once-in-a-lifetime season when Tebow accomplished things never before > accomplished in college football. Hey, Russell Crowe is a great actor, > but he'll probably never again make a movie as great as Gladiator. > > The fact is, the Gators lead the SEC in scoring offense and Tebow leads > the league in passing efficiency. But, apparently, that's not good > enough to satisfy the many spoiled, self-indulgent fans who inhabit > Gator Nation. > > You get the idea some Florida fans are going to be miserable no matter > what. They could be married to Halle Berry and complain because she > spends too much money on lingerie. > > "It's almost a disgrace when we lose." > > Those were the words Steve Spurrier uttered on his way out the door > after the 2001 season. > > Who knew that seven years later, winning would become a disgrace, too? > > > Mike Bianchi can be reached at [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Copyright (c) 2008, Orlando Sentinel > > > > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
