Where were you on Jan 5th 2002?

[Zambo]

I remember where I was when the news broke that Spurrier was leaving UF to coach the Redskins. I was in an office at my squadron in Kingsville TX writing the flight schedule for the next day's sorties. I remember thinking Holy Hell WTF are we gonna do now?

I also remember where I was when Galen Hall was fired. Traveling back to Florida in a van full of lunatics after beating LSU on a last second FG in Death Valley. We stopped an somebody's dad's house for lunch in Ft Walton Beach when Musburger came on TV with the breaking news.

Will tomorrow, Sunday the 29th, be another "where were you when you heard the news" moment? We can only hope. I don't think there is a man alive who thinks Butters is going to coach this team next year. Nobody. So it only makes sense to relieve him of his duties, put an interim in charge (doesn't really matter who at this point) and announce the start of the search. j

Get busy livin' or get busy dyin.

 

[malo]

SOS for interim!!

 

[Zambo]

I'm strangely aroused by your avatar.

 

[BMF]

I remember well. I was at the fire station and one of my UGA co-workers called and said, "What do you think about Spurrier?" I said, "What are you talking about?"

 

[stephenPE]

I was in Miami when he won that last game over Maryland. I was in Gainesville when he announced it. I was in hell for awhile after that. The Sun printed my farewell letter about him.

 

[oxrageous]

I was living in Gainesville at the time and it was like someone died.

 

[TN G8tr]

Had left Miami after the azzwhuppin' that was put on the Terps'. Flew back home and the wife and I sitting in Ruby Tuesday's in Crossville, TN. I nearly threw up all over the place. She immediately ordered me another drink.

 

[Acecustis]

Tech school at Sheppard. Was shocked. Even more shocked when I read the name "Ron Zook" and had no idea who that was.

 

[GatorJ]

Driving down 34th street. I had to literally pull over

 

[CGgater]

Stationed in Hawaii. I remember thinking during the Orange Bowl that I was watching the last of the Gaffney/Caldwell duo in O&B. I totally didn’t see the much harsher news that was coming.

 

[bradgator2]

I was shooting pool at a dive bar in Wilmington, Delaware with a good friend. I then got sloppy drunk on Sambuca, I had to crash on his couch, and then threw up earlier Hooters chicken wings all over his apartment.

 

[gatormandan]

I was living in Gainesville at the time and it was like someone died.

This. It was alot like a funeral feeling. I felt alot of sadness. The fun and gun was done.

 

[78]

I was somewhere in front of a PC, probably the office. Doesn't matter. It's how I reacted that does. I remember feeling half surprised, half not.

The SOS from 1997-2001 was not the same SOS from earlier days. He had gotten all caught up chasing his own shadow. He'd set the bar to a level that was difficult to maintain, and with it came visible frustration and an impatience that made him a lesser coach. It wasn't the fans, wasn't the media. No, it was him. He expected perfection out of his offense. He started yanking quarterbacks what seemed like every other possession. It didn't work. It hurt their confidence, messed up continuity. You can't run an offense like that. Spurrier knew it, but he couldn't stop the obsession to make it right, right now.

Grossman brought a reprieve, and hope. He was Wuerffel with a cannon. The passing game was back revved up, this time better. Then came the Dockett incident, which took our top back out of the season-ending SEC East deciding matchup with Tennessee. That it happened against FSU and Andrews' defense didn't make it any better for SOS, who sought Foley to lodge a formal complaint that didn't happen. Some think that mattered. It may have but only in sense of piling on top of the other things.

We were one-dimensional on offense against UT and couldn't stop the run. That loss really stung Spurrier. He felt it was one of his best teams. I'm sure he felt he could beat Miami, as good as Miami was, and it was a powerhouse full of future NFL draftees.

The NFL was never removed from the back of his mind. I think it was more pull than push that led to his decision to leave, but I'll never know 100% for certain. Bianchi insisted it was, and he knew him as well as anyone.

It was big and sad when he left. He was our own home-grown, the favorite son who came back to rescue us, and he went for the jugular with a take-no-prisoners playcalling style that made you forget all the frustrations you had from Monday through Friday. The ultimate cathartic coach.

In retrospect, it was the best 12 years of any UF coach, and yet it had to end sometime. It was time. I'll always, always love the guy.

 

[Jbossgator8]

No comparison between Spurrier and Mac. Spurrier was the best and we said thanks for EVERYTHING HBC! Mac is garbage and we said GTFO you moronic idiot!

 

[Zambo]

I was out walking the dogs when I got the news.

Today I mean.

 

[Gatormac2112]

I was driving home from work when my wife told me. I was numb, but honestly not surprised for some reason.

 

[bayou gator]

I was living in Ga at the time, and was on the golf course when it happened. Walked into the clubhouse, and it was on all the TVs. I literally felt like someone had died. Even many of my uga friends felt kinda sad about it. In many ways, Spurrier was the SEC. He was a constant in my life that in some ways has never been replaced. To have THE homegrown, Heisman-winning, all-time great Gator, running the program, and taking us to the top... that's some storybook stuff that'll never be topped. SOS is family to me.

Also, at the time, we were still kinda getting our bearings after 9/11 and of course, terrorism was on the news 24/7. Spurrier's announcement caused all the cable news stations to break their 9/11 coverage to report on him. I remember thinking that only Spurrier could do that.

 

[Swamp Donkey]

I'm strangely aroused by your avatar.

I love me some Zambie and yet he scares me.

 

[Double Gator Dad]

My wife and I had just finished lunch at West Shore Plaza in Tampa when we heard it on the radio. I immediately pulled over into a gas station to hear it again to make sure I wasn't crazy. It hit both of us like a ton of bricks.
We must have sat there for ten minutes before I could get back on the road

 

[Double Gator Dad]

Although overall I am very happy today because we are moving forward, a part of me is very sad because the end result is that we have another failed coaching tenure and millions of wasted dollars being spent to fix problems versus address opportunities.
In addition, we are all happy because we assume that the administration will select the right person even though history says they probably will not.