Thoughts of the Day: Meet Mr. Spikes

A few thoughts to jump start your Wednesday morning:

“I hit people and they go down. That’s what I do” – Brandon Spikes at a US Army All-American Bowl practice in January, 2006

It was a goal line situation for the East team. Head coach Ted Ginn Sr. called a power play off the right side for Arkon Garfield’s Beanie Wells. Ginn had been vocal about how good Wells was in the red zone. Then he met Mr. Spikes.

This wasn’t just any hit. This one was so ferocious that it sounded like a thunderclap. Wells went down in a heap. Spikes bounced back up from the turf as if nothing happened. When Wells got up he took two or three steps to the defensive huddle. Spikes grabbed him by the pads and pointed him to the offense huddle. Wells took two steps and turned back toward the defensive huddle. This time Spikes walked him back to his own huddle.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/d3cfa5_b6c8c792c67048cda01eeeb4ee0fb7cf/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

Fast forward to November 1, 2008. Georgia came to Jacksonville 7-1, with only a 41-30 loss to Alabama on its 8th-ranked resume. The Bulldogs were a very confident lot after the way they beat the Gators in 2007. Florida, on the other hand, spent an entire year reminded of Georgia’s entire bench storming the field after a first quarter touchdown, complicated by Georgia coach Mark Richt flat out lying that he was shocked that the Bulldogs would do that. He repeated the lie at SEC Media Days in July 2008. His nose grew at least eight inches.

In Florida’s locker and training rooms, a loop of Knowshon Moreno scoring that first touchdown and Georgia storming the field afterward played over and over, a thousand times over, right up to the time the Gators boarded the buses for Jacksonville on October 31. Moreno ran for 188 yards in the 2007 game. From the moment Georgia stormed the field, Urban Meyer was seething. He wasn’t the only one. Brandon Spikes spent a year planning to decleat Knowshon Moreno.

On the 2008 game’s second play, Georgia ran that same play that was so successful the year before. Moreno off right guard was so successful in 2007. This time it was meet Mr. Spikes. Spikes hit Moreno high around the shoulder pads with such force that Moreno landed on his back with Spikes in his face letting him know what was going to happen the rest of the day. It took Ahmad Black and at least five other teammates to pull Spikes off Moreno.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL1twZqsaZwxneDPF2RojFUTMXgr-OK41I&v=NnTpE8E-jzU

From that moment, the tone for the entire game was set. Spikes played like a man possessed as the Florida defense carried out a seek and destroy mission. The Gators picked off three Matt Stafford passes (by Joe Haden, Dustin Doe and Ahmad Black) plus Terron Sanders picked up a Moreno fumble and ran it back 20 yards to set up a TD. On the other side of the ball, Tebow exacted his measure of revenge with touchdown passes to Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy plus three rushing TDs. On the O-line, the Pouncey twins spent the day mashing anyone in their way.

The final payback came in the game’s final minute. With 44 seconds left and the Gators leading by 39 points, Meyer called time out after a 14-yard run by Emmanuel Moody. The clock would have stopped anyway, but this was Meyer’s response to Richt. CBS showed Mark Richt staring at the scoreboard which read Florida 49, Georgia 10. The next play Moody went for 17. Thirty seconds to go and Meyer called another time out. Again, CBS zeroed in on Richt who stared at the scoreboard.

So here we are 15 years later. Florida doesn’t have a storming the field incident for motivation and this Florida team isn’t loaded up with All-Americans like Spikes, Tebow, Harvin, Haden, Black, Mike Pouncey and Marquise Pouncey. That 2008 Florida team had the kind of talent that we see now at Georgia. That 2008 Florida team went into every game knowing it was going to win. This year’s team goes into the Georgia game in so many ways still trying to find itself.

On paper it’s a mismatch. Georgia is favored by 14.5 points and if it’s even close, the college football world will be shocked. Does that mean the Gators have no chance at all? Well, South Carolina played the Bulldogs within 10 points in Athens. Auburn, which has one of the worst offenses in all of college football, scored three TDs on Georgia and played the Bulldogs within a touchdown.

Florida is better than South Carolina and better than Auburn. And, Florida has something South Carolina and Auburn don’t have. Mr. Spikes. Brandon Spikes, who is making a difference as a volunteer coach while he completes his University of Florida degree, is with those UF linebackers every day. He’s in the face of Florida’s defenders. He is a walking, talking legend sharing what he knows with the kids on this Florida team. He’s also sharing his passion and you can know this if you know nothing else: Brandon Spikes absolutely, positively despises the Georgia Bulldogs.

Countdown to Firing Day: October 25, 2022

Extinct Species List

Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern: There is this chatter about Dave Clawson (Wake Forest) and Willie Fritz (Tulane). The only reason they would leave is if Northwestern offered a rather hefty chunk of that Big Ten media rights money, but even with that, they both know this is a dead end job. As long as Northwestern is in the same league with Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State, there is no hope. They would be smart to stick with interim David Braun.

Mel Tucker, Michigan State: They want Mike Elko but he’s got a better gig going at Duke where he doesn’t have to play Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State.

On Life Support

Mike Pittman, Arkansas: Six straight losses and firing the offensive coordinator eight games in are bad omens. Whether he stays or goes comes down to economics. He needs another win to guarantee at least a .500 record since 2021, which would mean the buyout is nearly $17 million. Lose the last four, the record dips below .500 and the buyout is a tad more than $11 million.

Butch Jones, Arkansas State: Butch needs to win three out of five or else they’ll be holding car washes and bake sales to raise the $1.5 million to buy him out.

Tom Allen, Indiana: Allen is definitely on a lava-hot seat, but his buyout drops from $20 million to $8 million, so if he hangs around another year it is only because of the economics.

Danny Gonzales, New Mexico: The Lobos beat Hawaii and this week they get Nevada, which is very winnable. The last four aren’t. A 4-8 seems to be the ceiling.

Dana Holgorsen, Houston: The Cougars are 3-4 with K-State this week. Beat K-State and the Cougars will only need two more wins to be bowl eligible. He’s hanging by a thread.

Tony Elliott, Virginia: By beating North Carolina in Chapel Hill, Elliott doused water on the heat Of course, no one held a gun to their heads to give him a buyout that is $19 million either.

Ken Wilson, Nevada: The Wolfpack won a game and the next two (New Mexico and Hawaii) are winnable. Can a 3-win season save his job?

Endangered Species List

Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M: There are some folks out there who think the state of the national economy could save Jimbo’s job. If oil prices rise, the $77 million needed to buy out Jimbo will be raised with a few phone calls. If oil drops, Jimbo may get another year even if he goes 7-5.

Jeff Hafley, Boston College: A three-game winning streak is cooling Hafley’s previously scorching hot tush. UConn, Syracuse and Virginia Tech are the next three. Win those and Hafley’s 7-3, safe no matter what happens in the last two games.

Dino Babers, Syracuse: The Orange have lost the last three by a combined 88 points. They’re 4-3 and the natives are restless. Two wins in the last five may not do the trick, but three will be a job saver.

Dave Aranda, Baylor: The Bears are 3-4, but finding three wins in the last five might need an Ernest Aingley miracle for Aranda to keep his job. The boosters are not the least bit happy.

Brady Hoke, San Diego State: The Aztecs lost to previously winless Nevada. They’re 3-5 and six wins feels like a pipe dream.

Mike Bloomgren, Rice: The Owls are 4-3 but Tulane and SMU are the next two. Bloomgren really needs 6-6 but that might take a miracle. New athletic director Tommy McClelland might decide to pull the plug if Bloomgren can’t get to 6-6.

Zach Arnett, Mississippi State: The Bulldogs got a win last week but it was dog’s butt ugly. A win should have eased the pressure on Arnett, now 4-3 overall and 1-3 in the SEC, but 7-3 over Arkansas doesn’t cut it with State fans. Remember, they fired Joe Moorhead after two seasons because he went 6-7 in year two after an 8-5 2018. Two wins will appease the faithful. One more might not be enough.

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Now that we’re just past the midway point of the season, here are some observations about the 14 SEC teams.

Alabama: If the Tide plays like it did in the second half against Tennessee, they could win the SEC and make the playoff. The LSU game will tell us everything we need to know.

Arkansas: Mike Pittman isn’t dead man walking because of his buyout. The Hogs will be lucky to finish 4-8.

Auburn: For the want of a quarterback … Hugh Freeze is wondering what the hell he was thinking when he signed Michigan State transfer Payton Thorne.

FLORIDA: The Georgia and LSU games may take a miracle of parting the Red Sea proportions to win, but games with Arkansas, Missouri and even FSU look winnable. An 8-4 is possible, but 7=5 probable.

Georgia: For a team that has such personnel advantages, how is it South Carolina played the Bulldogs to within 10 and Auburn could have won if it had a QB who could complete a forward pass? Georgia probably runs the regular season table, but the Bulldogs aren’t as good as they were the last two years.

Kentucky: An 8-4 finish seems likely with the Wildcats going down in flames to Tennessee this weekend and Alabama in a couple of weeks.

LSU: Jayden Daniels can still win the Heisman if he goes beast mode in the Tigers next two games at Alabama and home against Florida. LSU could win the West if it wins those two games.

Mississippi State: There are winnable games with Auburn and Southern Miss. A 6-6 is possible but not probable.

Missouri: Everybody’s feel good story, but are the Tigers really that good? They still have to play Georgia, Tennessee and Florida on consecutive weeks. A 9-3 record would be an accomplishment.

Ole Miss: Could Lane Kiffin sneak out of Athens with a win over Georgia in two weeks or will the Rebels crash and burn like they did against Alabama? Beat Georgia and the Rebels might make the SEC Championship Game for the first time in school history.

South Carolina: There were some experts predicting the Gamecocks would finish second in the SEC. Now they need to go 4-1 the rest of the way just to make it to the Weedwacker or worse.

Tennessee: Remember the hype for Joe Milton? He’s the reason the Vols probably finish 8-4.

Texas A&M: The Aggies play Ole Miss and LSU on the road so a Kevin Sumlin-like 7-5 or 8-4 seems likely. Divorce between Jimbo and Bobby Petrino is imminent.

Vanderbilt: There were such high hopes, but it’s been two steps backwards. There is a reason Vandy is everybody’s favorite Homecoming opponent.