O-town Gator
Gator Fan
"To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven".
- Ecclesiastes 3:1
Yesterday was a heartbreaking day for Gator Nation in that Coach Meyer offered his resignation due to health reasons. I was not only shocked, but saddened and left feeling a sense of emptiness moreso than back in January 2002 after Steve Spurrier resigned following the Orange Bowl win over Maryland that same year.
While I find Spurrier's reasons to be more personal and, in my opinion even selfish, Urban Meyer had more imperative reasons to do so - mainly his health, which is something he can no longer take for granted anymore. As much as he loves college football and has a love, passion and enthusiasm for the game, there has to be a time when he needed to make a decision about whether or not to continue when the duties and demands of his job meant compromising his health.
When I had read Buddy Martin's bio "Urban's Way" as well as a recent article he published over at Gator Country earlier this month, and a recent Sports Illustrated article, I also was worried about Meyer's state of health and what the long-term consequences of constant stress could do to him. Given a time to reflect on what his real priorities are during the Christmas season with his family gathered around him, he made a decision which was not only in his best interests, but also in the best interests of Shelley and their three children. I couldn't help but think of a line from the movie "Love Story" which goes "A father's love is something to cherish and respect" - nowadays way too many of our children grow up with absentee fathers or never having known a father at all, and I will never begrudge Coach Meyer for wanting to be there for Nicki, Gigi and Nate.
I had also noticed that Coach Meyer had lost a lot of weight over the past season, and that was a sign that perhaps his health issues were escalating. He's a man driven by success, so much that losing became physically and mentally unbearable.
Since the beginning, Urban Meyer had a daunting task at hand when he accepted the head coaching position following the Ron Zook firing - as he once told former punter Eric Wilbur back in 2005, "we have a lot of soft people on this team". He inherited a team that had not real sense of order, and like his past positions at Bowling Green and Utah inherited a team that had its share of miscreants, slackers, and jerks. He was met with an uncooperative attitude and resistance from members of the 2005 squad, but slowly began building Gator football back up again after having broken it down and established his way of doing things. It meant a lot of diligence and dedication on his part, and as far as I'm concerned he did an excellent job over these past five years. Three SEC East titles, two conference championships, two BCS National Championships and a Heisman Trophy winner in Tim Tebow are testament to that.
My wish is that our 2009 Gator Football team ends the season on a positive note, goes all out to win the Sugar Bowl and sends not only Tim Tebow and the rest of our senior class, but bids Coach Meyer farewell in the best way possible. He deserves nothing but the best, and I only hope and pray that the rest of Gator Nation feels the same way I do. Also, I fele that Urban Meyer has won a space in the Florida Football Ring of Honor, and it's only right to induct him at he earliest time possible.
Coach Meyer, I can't thank you enough for what you've done to Gator football and the University of Florida as a whole. I will always respect and love you, and hope that you and your family will remain in Gainesville for many more years to come - and if ever there is an opportunity for you to return to coach the Gators should you be interested, I will definitely welcome you back.
God Bless you and your family, Coach Meyer - and once again, thank you so much for all that you've done!
GO GATORS!!!!!!:gator::gator:
- Ecclesiastes 3:1
Yesterday was a heartbreaking day for Gator Nation in that Coach Meyer offered his resignation due to health reasons. I was not only shocked, but saddened and left feeling a sense of emptiness moreso than back in January 2002 after Steve Spurrier resigned following the Orange Bowl win over Maryland that same year.
While I find Spurrier's reasons to be more personal and, in my opinion even selfish, Urban Meyer had more imperative reasons to do so - mainly his health, which is something he can no longer take for granted anymore. As much as he loves college football and has a love, passion and enthusiasm for the game, there has to be a time when he needed to make a decision about whether or not to continue when the duties and demands of his job meant compromising his health.
When I had read Buddy Martin's bio "Urban's Way" as well as a recent article he published over at Gator Country earlier this month, and a recent Sports Illustrated article, I also was worried about Meyer's state of health and what the long-term consequences of constant stress could do to him. Given a time to reflect on what his real priorities are during the Christmas season with his family gathered around him, he made a decision which was not only in his best interests, but also in the best interests of Shelley and their three children. I couldn't help but think of a line from the movie "Love Story" which goes "A father's love is something to cherish and respect" - nowadays way too many of our children grow up with absentee fathers or never having known a father at all, and I will never begrudge Coach Meyer for wanting to be there for Nicki, Gigi and Nate.
I had also noticed that Coach Meyer had lost a lot of weight over the past season, and that was a sign that perhaps his health issues were escalating. He's a man driven by success, so much that losing became physically and mentally unbearable.
Since the beginning, Urban Meyer had a daunting task at hand when he accepted the head coaching position following the Ron Zook firing - as he once told former punter Eric Wilbur back in 2005, "we have a lot of soft people on this team". He inherited a team that had not real sense of order, and like his past positions at Bowling Green and Utah inherited a team that had its share of miscreants, slackers, and jerks. He was met with an uncooperative attitude and resistance from members of the 2005 squad, but slowly began building Gator football back up again after having broken it down and established his way of doing things. It meant a lot of diligence and dedication on his part, and as far as I'm concerned he did an excellent job over these past five years. Three SEC East titles, two conference championships, two BCS National Championships and a Heisman Trophy winner in Tim Tebow are testament to that.
My wish is that our 2009 Gator Football team ends the season on a positive note, goes all out to win the Sugar Bowl and sends not only Tim Tebow and the rest of our senior class, but bids Coach Meyer farewell in the best way possible. He deserves nothing but the best, and I only hope and pray that the rest of Gator Nation feels the same way I do. Also, I fele that Urban Meyer has won a space in the Florida Football Ring of Honor, and it's only right to induct him at he earliest time possible.
Coach Meyer, I can't thank you enough for what you've done to Gator football and the University of Florida as a whole. I will always respect and love you, and hope that you and your family will remain in Gainesville for many more years to come - and if ever there is an opportunity for you to return to coach the Gators should you be interested, I will definitely welcome you back.
God Bless you and your family, Coach Meyer - and once again, thank you so much for all that you've done!
GO GATORS!!!!!!:gator::gator:
