The Redefined Defense

Bill Trocchi begins his article, “Once-maligned Gators Defense Rises to Ultimate Challenge”, by unraveling the players’ relationships. Before the big SEC championship game, a safety, Ahmad Black, texted big time linebacker, Brandon Spikes, “you are the leader, and I’m following you” (Trocchi). The players had recently been inspired by pro-linebacker, Ray Lewis, who related football players to soldiers at war. A head soldier leads as his troops follow. Spikes got the message and reinforced it to his fellow athletes. He built them up through reminding them of the ridicule the defense got last year; this year was their time to shine. The defense managed to pull it together in the final quarter and bring in some outstanding numbers. One of the biggest accomplishments was Cunningham’s sack of John Parker Wilson: the first of the game. One player went as far as to say, “That sack was the play of the night. We just knew we had to come out and make a stand” (Trocchi). Coach Meyer gushed about his teams’ win and commented on the toughness of the program. Many doubted the Gators’ defense could pull out the force to stop Alabama, but they succeeded.



The defense has a huge responsibility on a football team. The offense gets most of the glory for putting the points on the scoreboard. However, they wouldn’t make it within out their fellow players putting a halt to the other teams’ attempt to score. Alabama is a wonderful team, one of the best in the nation according to their rank. Fans doubted Florida’s ability to put Alabama’s success to an end. Florida’s program is known for their speedy players versus their tough, unbreakable defense. They had several plays in this final game before the national championship that showed they were here to play; they had improved from the year before. Without a defense to stop Alabama’s offense that game could have gone in a completely different direction for the Gators.

Trocchi, Bill. "Once-maligned Gators defense rises to ultimate challenge." Sports Illustrated 07 Dec 2008: Web. 07 Apr 2010. .