I first met Steve Spurrier the summer after he had won the 1966 Heisman trophy. I was 12 years old and he had been invited to speak at the Ribault Lions Club in Jacksonville of which my father and his uncle were both members. The afternoon of the day before he was to speak my dad got a call from his uncle who lived in the same neighborhood as we did. He said, “Clyde, do your boys want to come over and play catch with Steve?” Well, of course we did, so my twin brother and my younger brother, who was 11, went and played catch with Steve Spurrier. I am sure I bored him with stories of how I listened to every Gator game on my little transistor radio as I bounced my rubber ball off the side of the house for hours. Even then I could recount the most intimate details of each game. That Spurrier could not have been nicer or more humble, a far cry from the cocky man we would later all know and love.
As cocky and as apparently arrogant as Spurrier appeared, he was nice and thoughtful to those he worked with and around. Unlike Meyer, he knew and spoke to any and all of the people that worked in and around the athletic department. He knew the names of their family members and would genuinely ask about them, especially if they were sick or injured.
He was so competitive that he could be a real ass in the heat of competition. There was no such thing as a “gimme” or a “mulligan” if you played golf with him or competed with him in anything. As long as you keep score he would do everything in his power to beat you. That is a big reason he inspired such hate in our rivals. He would beat you and then tease you. By the same token, he would have no problem with you doing the same if you could beat him as well.
Before they opened the Champions Club, my tickets were right behind the Gator bench. Before the addition of the video board they were not the best seats to watch the game as they were low (row 12). But, one thing you could see clearly were the players and their interaction with the players on the sideline. Many times you would see Spurrier become enraged with a mistake and holler and throw his famous visor. Of course, this was the image that all of America saw on any televised game. What they didn’t see was within minutes of his explosion he was usually back behind all of the other players with his arm around the offending player calmly “coaching him up” and assuring him he was no longer mad.
He is fiercely loyal and expects loyalty as well. I know for a fact that a major reason that he left for the NFL was his belief that Foley and the Administration at UF had been disloyal to him in regards to the whole Darnell Dockett incident. He felt like Dockett cost us a national championship by intentionally injuring Earnest Graham and making him unavailable for the makeup game with UT. I also believe that if we had Graham for that game we would have beaten UT and ultimately played in the Rose Bowl for the national championship. Yes, we would have had to still win the SEC Championship game, but I am confident we would have. After all he had done for UF, the athletic department and the UF administration should have stood up for him when Bowden and the FSU administration publicly criticized him, instead they basically told Spurrier to shut up. Big mistake.
His loyalty to former Gators caused him to probably hire and keep too many of them at Washington. Of course, his ego told him that he had won with them in college and that he could win with them in the NFL. In addition, he had the misfortune to have a meddlesome and egotistical owner breathing down his neck. To Spurrier’s credit he left millions of dollars on the table and walked away when it became apparent that the situation in Washington was not working.
After Zook was fired, I got a call from my son, who owns the largest sporting goods operation in north florida who told me had just spoken with the defensive back coach under Zook, who had been a high school in Jacksonville and a good friend of my son. This coach told him that Spurrier had called him and asked him if he (Spurrier) took the Florida job did he want to stay on the staff? Spurrier also said that he had been offered over 3 million to come back, which would have made him the highest paid college coach in America. Of course, without divulging the information or the source, I “guaranteed” on this board and others that Spurrier was coming home. Unfortunately, a few days later Spurrier came out and said he wasn’t interested in the job. I took a lot of heat for my “guarantee” as I should have.
I later learned, from impeccable sources, that several factors “queered the deal” and prevented Spurrier from coming home:
1. President Machen’s first and only personal choice was Urban Meyer. Consequently, he was not predisposed to anoint Spurrier as a returning conquering hero. Perhaps he did not fully understand or appreciate the magnitude of what Spurrier had done during his tenure here.
2. Foley really wanted Spurrier to come home, personally and professionally due, in part, to the fact that many boosters wanted him as well. Foley had privately told others that he should have been more supportive of Spurrier in the Dockett incident and he valued his a coach and a friend.
3. Foley and Spurrier never talked and Spurrier was never formally offered the job. “Their people” talked to gauge the mutual interest from both sides.
4. This was during the era where the whole controversy surrounding black coaches not getting sufficient opportunities to become head coaches was raging. Therefore, the common and accepted thing to do was to conduct an interview process before hiring, usually, the white coach they wanted in the first place. It was my understanding that Spurrier’s “people” were told that UF really wanted Spurrier but would have to go through this “interview process” before “wink wink” he would be offered the job. In typical Spurrier fashion, he was not about to play games and his response was “tell them my resume is in the trophy case”. Spurrier’s belief, of which I agree, is that he should have been an exception to any so-called interview process or anything else. Foley should have gone to him personally and begged him to return.
5. The fact that Meyer spurned Notre Dame and his success after he came to UF possibly saved both Foley and Machen’s jobs. Back to back bad hires would not have sat well with the big money boosters that had become so spoiled during the Spurrier years. Couple that with the fact we could have gotten Spurrier back and didn’t would have been difficult to overcome.
6. So, officially Spurrier was never offered the job and officially did not turn it down.
7. It is my understanding that he and Foley have “kissed and made-up” and no longer harbor any ill feelings towards the other.
When Spurrier announced that he was going to USCe I was pissed and remained so until the last year or so. Although I appreciated what he started here and the legacy he built, I could not understand why he would not only come back to the SEC, but to the SEC East where he would have to play his beloved Gators every year. After all, there were a number of other attractive coaching opportunities available that year, I specifically remember North Carolina was looking for a new coach. I have come to believe that he did not do so to punish UF for not rehiring him in the proper way. Rather he wanted to do something that had never been done at USCe and that was to win a SEC championship there.
Of all the other SEC schools, UGA generated a real and passionate hate from Spurrier. UGA had prevented UF from winning the SEC in Spurrier’s senior year. A pain that winning the Heisman could not ease. I would dare say that among his most cherished memories is the way the Gators dominated UGA while he was here.
My best friend has a family member that was a trainer in 1995 when the Gators played UGA “between the hedges” at Sanford stadium. He overheard Spurrier talking with a UGA employee right before the game and Spurrier asked him, “What is the most point ever scored by an opposing team at Sanford stadium.” The response was, “I am sure no one has ever scored 50.” Well needless to say the Gators hung 52 on them that day and Spurrier did not “call off the dogs” (pardon the pun) until he had, in fact, scored 50.
Spurrier is truly one of the greatest coaches in college football history. He was unique and will remain so as long as he lives. He is so outspoken that I don’t think he can be an announcer. Invariable he will say something to get him, and possibly the four-letter network, into trouble. He is and always will be a Great Gator and should be place into the Ring of Honor as soon as possible.
As cocky and as apparently arrogant as Spurrier appeared, he was nice and thoughtful to those he worked with and around. Unlike Meyer, he knew and spoke to any and all of the people that worked in and around the athletic department. He knew the names of their family members and would genuinely ask about them, especially if they were sick or injured.
He was so competitive that he could be a real ass in the heat of competition. There was no such thing as a “gimme” or a “mulligan” if you played golf with him or competed with him in anything. As long as you keep score he would do everything in his power to beat you. That is a big reason he inspired such hate in our rivals. He would beat you and then tease you. By the same token, he would have no problem with you doing the same if you could beat him as well.
Before they opened the Champions Club, my tickets were right behind the Gator bench. Before the addition of the video board they were not the best seats to watch the game as they were low (row 12). But, one thing you could see clearly were the players and their interaction with the players on the sideline. Many times you would see Spurrier become enraged with a mistake and holler and throw his famous visor. Of course, this was the image that all of America saw on any televised game. What they didn’t see was within minutes of his explosion he was usually back behind all of the other players with his arm around the offending player calmly “coaching him up” and assuring him he was no longer mad.
He is fiercely loyal and expects loyalty as well. I know for a fact that a major reason that he left for the NFL was his belief that Foley and the Administration at UF had been disloyal to him in regards to the whole Darnell Dockett incident. He felt like Dockett cost us a national championship by intentionally injuring Earnest Graham and making him unavailable for the makeup game with UT. I also believe that if we had Graham for that game we would have beaten UT and ultimately played in the Rose Bowl for the national championship. Yes, we would have had to still win the SEC Championship game, but I am confident we would have. After all he had done for UF, the athletic department and the UF administration should have stood up for him when Bowden and the FSU administration publicly criticized him, instead they basically told Spurrier to shut up. Big mistake.
His loyalty to former Gators caused him to probably hire and keep too many of them at Washington. Of course, his ego told him that he had won with them in college and that he could win with them in the NFL. In addition, he had the misfortune to have a meddlesome and egotistical owner breathing down his neck. To Spurrier’s credit he left millions of dollars on the table and walked away when it became apparent that the situation in Washington was not working.
After Zook was fired, I got a call from my son, who owns the largest sporting goods operation in north florida who told me had just spoken with the defensive back coach under Zook, who had been a high school in Jacksonville and a good friend of my son. This coach told him that Spurrier had called him and asked him if he (Spurrier) took the Florida job did he want to stay on the staff? Spurrier also said that he had been offered over 3 million to come back, which would have made him the highest paid college coach in America. Of course, without divulging the information or the source, I “guaranteed” on this board and others that Spurrier was coming home. Unfortunately, a few days later Spurrier came out and said he wasn’t interested in the job. I took a lot of heat for my “guarantee” as I should have.
I later learned, from impeccable sources, that several factors “queered the deal” and prevented Spurrier from coming home:
1. President Machen’s first and only personal choice was Urban Meyer. Consequently, he was not predisposed to anoint Spurrier as a returning conquering hero. Perhaps he did not fully understand or appreciate the magnitude of what Spurrier had done during his tenure here.
2. Foley really wanted Spurrier to come home, personally and professionally due, in part, to the fact that many boosters wanted him as well. Foley had privately told others that he should have been more supportive of Spurrier in the Dockett incident and he valued his a coach and a friend.
3. Foley and Spurrier never talked and Spurrier was never formally offered the job. “Their people” talked to gauge the mutual interest from both sides.
4. This was during the era where the whole controversy surrounding black coaches not getting sufficient opportunities to become head coaches was raging. Therefore, the common and accepted thing to do was to conduct an interview process before hiring, usually, the white coach they wanted in the first place. It was my understanding that Spurrier’s “people” were told that UF really wanted Spurrier but would have to go through this “interview process” before “wink wink” he would be offered the job. In typical Spurrier fashion, he was not about to play games and his response was “tell them my resume is in the trophy case”. Spurrier’s belief, of which I agree, is that he should have been an exception to any so-called interview process or anything else. Foley should have gone to him personally and begged him to return.
5. The fact that Meyer spurned Notre Dame and his success after he came to UF possibly saved both Foley and Machen’s jobs. Back to back bad hires would not have sat well with the big money boosters that had become so spoiled during the Spurrier years. Couple that with the fact we could have gotten Spurrier back and didn’t would have been difficult to overcome.
6. So, officially Spurrier was never offered the job and officially did not turn it down.
7. It is my understanding that he and Foley have “kissed and made-up” and no longer harbor any ill feelings towards the other.
When Spurrier announced that he was going to USCe I was pissed and remained so until the last year or so. Although I appreciated what he started here and the legacy he built, I could not understand why he would not only come back to the SEC, but to the SEC East where he would have to play his beloved Gators every year. After all, there were a number of other attractive coaching opportunities available that year, I specifically remember North Carolina was looking for a new coach. I have come to believe that he did not do so to punish UF for not rehiring him in the proper way. Rather he wanted to do something that had never been done at USCe and that was to win a SEC championship there.
Of all the other SEC schools, UGA generated a real and passionate hate from Spurrier. UGA had prevented UF from winning the SEC in Spurrier’s senior year. A pain that winning the Heisman could not ease. I would dare say that among his most cherished memories is the way the Gators dominated UGA while he was here.
My best friend has a family member that was a trainer in 1995 when the Gators played UGA “between the hedges” at Sanford stadium. He overheard Spurrier talking with a UGA employee right before the game and Spurrier asked him, “What is the most point ever scored by an opposing team at Sanford stadium.” The response was, “I am sure no one has ever scored 50.” Well needless to say the Gators hung 52 on them that day and Spurrier did not “call off the dogs” (pardon the pun) until he had, in fact, scored 50.
Spurrier is truly one of the greatest coaches in college football history. He was unique and will remain so as long as he lives. He is so outspoken that I don’t think he can be an announcer. Invariable he will say something to get him, and possibly the four-letter network, into trouble. He is and always will be a Great Gator and should be place into the Ring of Honor as soon as possible.
