Author's note: I'm a Seminole. I hate the Gators more than any other team. I hate Urban Meyer as long as he's the Gators coach. So this is not coming from the mind of a Gators fan and I'm certainly not looking to have Meyer's back. But when it comes to something that's so obviously wrong I just have to speak out.
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The decision for an award like the Sports D-Bag of The Year is not one that is taken lightly, certainly not in the inaugural year. The process of breaking down the dozens and dozens of prospective winners is an arduous one.
From convicted criminals and drunk drivers to loud-mouths and ignoramuses, the sports world is full of worthy candidates.
Fortunately for us all, one candidate stands out more than Jessica Simpson's chest at the Grand Ole Opry. One candidate races past the pack faster than Usain Bolt on the Barry Bonds' workout program.
This year's winner is much more than a one-year wonder, however.
In fact, the Urbs' Blurbs Inaugural Sports D-Bag of The Year has been on my radar since August 31, 1997. That's right, I remember the day well, it was the first weekend of the NFL season that year.
It was the day many football fans and all 49ers fans will remember forever. Jerry Rice, arguably the greatest player to ever put on the pads, had his season cut short by the actions of desperate, overweight defensive tackle.
On a reverse that will forever live in infamy, Rice's anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in his left knee were torn. Once again, they were torn. He did not tear his ligaments, the force of a 15-yard personal foul face-mask penalty tore his ligaments.
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| If not for Sapp's personal foul facemask, Rice would have further separated himself from other great receivers. (Getty Images) |
Over the next 11 years, Sapp did little to prove himself less D-Baggish. Continually making outlandish comments just to be heard, Sapp was quieted slightly from 2004 to 2007 as a member of the Oakland Raiders.
Way out on the West Coast and on a team that rarely, if ever won, Sapp was pleasantly quiet, almost silent. When he retired prior to the 2008 NFL season, some thought -- perhaps hoped and prayed -- that Sapp would simply fade away.
Being the attention-seeker that he is, however, Sapp is doing exactly the opposite.
To begin, Sapp is adding a touch of class and proper grammar to the new Inside the NFL. Sapp's narrow-minded, self-centered approach to football issues is a wonderful change from the insightful, well-worded debates of years past.
Also on TV this year, Sapp will delight us all with his dancing skills as the latest footballer to hot trot on Dancing With the Stars. (If there is any justice in the world, Jerry Rice will make a special comeback appearance and find a way to tear Sapp's ACL during his first number.)
But before Sapp goes on to put some lovely young lady's life at risk on the dance floor, he decided to once again show off his class and intelligence level.
Nearly a week after his alma mater, the University of Miami, fell to the Florida Gators 26-3, Sapp decided to add to the growing debate about running up the score.
By electing to kick a 29-yard field goal with 25 seconds remaining in the game, Florida coach Urban Meyer seemingly made a decision any coach would in his position.
On ESPN's College Football Live, former college and NFL star Robert Smith stated that Meyer made "the least offensive of the three decisions." Rather than give his special teams and kicker a much needed rep on the field, Meyer could have decided to throw another pass or run the ball on fourth down, both of which could have resulted in touchdowns.
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| During his time at UM, Sapp and his teammates relished in celebrating to the point of taunting. (Getty Images) |
Kornheiser and Wilbon felt the way most athletes and competitors do. When it comes to organized sports where little kids are not involved, both teams show up to win and to win by as much as possible. And when it comes to running up the score, if you don't want your opponent to embarrass you, YOU HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!
Yet even with these well-stated arguments and the debate seemingly off everyone's mind, Sapp decided to take it another level. Not only did Sapp disrespect and insult Florida's head coach, he wrote a check he has no hand in cashing.
After referring to Meyer as a "classless dirtbag," Sapp said that "it's coming back in a big way" when the teams meet again in 2013.
That's right, five years from now, when none of the players on either team are still in school, Sapp guarantees revenge.
The irony of Sapp's statements came from this year's Hurricanes players. More than one Miami player made similar statements prior to the 26-3 game in question.
Like all trash talk, their comments basically surrounded the fact that Miami would be coming to Gainesville looking for blood. As in all in-state rivalries, the Canes and Gators have a built-in hatred for one another.
If you know anything about rivalries, especially those in the state of Florida, there has never been a team that has let off the pedal in order to save face for their opponent. As a nearly life-long Florida resident and a Florida State graduate, I can't remember a single game in which either the Gators or Canes didn't try to run up the score on the Seminoles.
In fact, I remember clearly the 2001 beating that the Canes put on the 'Noles. With players far greater and much more experienced than ours, Miami ran through Tallahassee like a Category Five, dropping the 'Noles 49-27.
Like many of the beatings the Hurricanes handed to teams in the late '80s and '90s, Miami brought it to the 'Noles with no regard for our feelings. The Miami teams of years past would dance in the end zone, run through tunnels, take off their helmets or run into the stands to slap your mother for showing up to see her son get whooped.
Sapp himself played off that swagger and cocky mentality throughout his career, and nobody blamed him for it. In fact, aside from personal foul penalties, nothing was wrong with the way Miami's players celebrated in the past. They were dominate, and I'm all for beating down your opponent and letting it be known. I don't blame them for thumping us when they could, since I'd want to beat Miami by 100 if we could.
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| Even as a pro, Sapp was known for excessive celebrations and a killer instinct. (Getty Images) |
Again, let's look at what happened. In an in-state rivalry game, with possible National Championship implications and plenty of trash talk at hand, the Gators kicked a field goal on fourth down. Just before this, they threw passes on first and second down after a punt return to the Miami 16-yard line.
On first down the Gators completed a pass to the 7-yard line. The Gators then took a shot at the end zone on second down, looking to score a touchdown that would send their rival away with a blowout loss on their shoulders.
In these first- and second-down plays, it could be seen as the Gators trying to add to an insurmountable lead. But again, this is a rivalry game against a team that never has shown mercy to an opponent.
After a loss of 4 yards on a third-down running play, Meyer sent his inexperienced kicker out to complete the team's drive. By making what Robert Smith called the "least offensive of the three decisions," the Gators added three points to the board. The only other option besides trying to score seven would have been to kneel on the ball and simply hand in back to the Canes.
If the roles were reversed, what would the 'U' do?
Either way, Sapp's hypocrisy once again proved how worthy he is of Urbs' Blurbs Inaugural D-Bag of The Year Award. In fact, this is more of a lifetime achievement award for an individual that has long proved worthy of D-Bag of The Year.
So here's to you big guy, congratulations on the award. Just don't brag too much, you wouldn't want people to think you're full of yourself or anything.
