Greatest Game Ever - Rob Style

The evening of November 17, 2001 was cool and clear, and Florida State had swaggered in to challenge Florida in the Swamp. I was a senior, and had suffered three (3) consecutive, agonizing losses against FSU (in my mind, our primary rival, at least in those days). I walked toward the stadium full of trepidation, praying I would not have to graduate without at least one win against the team from Tallahassee. As I was walking, my future wife, Tiffany called my cell phone. She was a freshman at UF, and had managed to get a last minute ticket from a friend (freshman typically are not able to swing season tickets). We were only friends in those days, but we always fed off each other's energy, and we met up at the stadium excitedly. We sneaked our way into sitting next to each other, and the game began. Everyone worked themselves into a frenzy as the pregame program built to a crescendo, and as the team ran out of the tunnel I had tears in my eyes and hope in my heart. I don't recall many specific details from that game, but I remember we opened up a big lead behind Rex Grossman's incredible throws to Gaffney, Cadwell and Jacobs, while the massive RB Earnest Graham knocked through FSU's defensive line again and again. When it was all over, we had earned a 37-13 victory, and Tiff and I were ecstatic. We hugged and jumped up and down like everyone else in the stadium, cheering. I remember yelling toward the tunnel "thank you, gators!" That victory was enough for me to consider every undergrad moment I spent dressed in orange and blue, painted up, chanting or screaming, worth it. We had defeated our rivals and I would go on to graduate with all pride intact. As the stadium emptied, I stood there, smiling victoriously until Tiffany finally tugged me toward the tunnel to leave and celebrate a game I would never forget.