OMG!!! That was something powerful from someone who is not a Gator. He even
makes opponents believe in him. No, he's not Superman and he's not Jesus
Christ, but he is one truly dedicated young man. I wish he's marry one of my
daughters :-)!!!
Wanda
----- Original Message -----
From: Kelly Tom
To: Tim Kelly ; Cary & Sally Center ; Barber Kevin
Cc: Gatortalk
Sent: Thursday, December 11, 2008 8:32 AM
Subject: [gatortalk] Fwd: An Alabama Fan Speaks
This is powerful.
Sent from my iPhone
What I saw in Atlanta" by an Alabama Fan
I saw the third quarter. I saw Tebow get sacked. I saw Florida go 3 and
out. I saw the Tide go 91 yards in workman like fashion. I saw a helpless UF
defense. I saw Bama tie the game. I saw UF respond by missing their only FG of
the season. I saw Bama march again. I saw a UF team that was beat. I saw a
defense with hands on hips gasping for breath getting absolutely trucked. I saw
an Alabama team rolling downhill through Gator players. I saw the UF players
give all that they had left to keep Bama out of the end zone. I saw the Tide
take the lead heading into the 4th quarter. I saw the end of a championship
dream.
No way could the UF defense recover from the extended pounding they had
just endured. With two DTs out there was simply no reserve left to call upon to
stem the Tide. All that had been claimed pregame by the Crimson and White
faithful about how their lines would wear UF down and control the game had come
true. There was no hope.
And then things changed. I saw Tebow rally his offensive teammates and take
them down the field. Run after run after run after run after run and they had
Bama on their heels at their own 27. A throw a run and a throw and Tim has UF
on the doorstep. Two more runs and Demps is leaping in the endzone. Florida has
wrested the lead away and hope is reborn, dreams live again.
But this was not enough. Tebow leads this team, this university, not just
its offense. He comes down the sideline toward the end zone where the Gator
fans are thickest and exhorts them to cheer, to roar, to believe. He turns and
runs to the special team players huddled for the upcoming kick. He slams into
their huddle like a bowling ball knocking aside so many pins. He urged them to
make the stop, to finish the play. And they did. He turns to the bench and gets
in the face of his defensive teammates and makes his will theirs. He inspires
them, he challenges them, he leads them. They face the same Bama players who
had owned them in the third quarter, who had worn them down and controlled
them. They faced those same Bama players and they stuffed them. Julio Jones who
had tormented the Gators all afternoon saw a pass come his way only to have Joe
Haden drill him so that the ball fell harmlessly to the ground. Julio would
never see another pass. They held the line and stopped Coffee for a short gain.
They crushed the line that had moved them at will and finally sacked Wilson.
With the game on the line they had stuffed Bama for a 3 and out.
Then Tim Tebow went out to win himself and the University of Florida a
championship. Two runs and it was 3rd and short. Tebow keeps it, meets Mount
Cody in the hole and carries all 360 pounds of him for the first down. Tebow
throws for 33, Tebow throws for 15, Tebow runs for 5. Bama is done. Tebow
throws the last five yards to Riley Cooper on a pass that had no room for
imprecision resulting in the TD that made dreams into reality. I have never
seen a single player so impose his will on both his teammates, his opponents
and the crowd as Tim Tebow did in that fourth quarter. I am in awe. His
teammates understand. Carl Moore: "You knew he was going to lead us to
victory," Louis Murphy: "I have never doubted him. He's our quarterback." Jeff
Demps: "That's Tim Tebow. That's what he does, He's been putting us on his
shoulders ever since the Ole Miss game, but I've never seen him like he was
today." His opponents understand too. Rashad Johnson: "He kept those guys
motivated. He kept them in the game when they had the opportunity to give up
and wouldn't let them." Terrence Cody: "You give him a chance, and he's going
to beat you,"
He's not Superman. He's not unbeatable. But he will never give less than
everything he has and he will never shy away from a challenge. He is the best
team leader I have ever seen in college sports. He willed a victory for UF, not
on his own, but by giving his teammates the strength to believe and an example
to follow. And that they did.
...and THAT is why Tebow should win the Trophy.
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