There are things synonymous with a college football Saturday.
Grill smoke fills the air, Southeastern Conference defenses surrender more points than ever, LSU fans exit the stands before halftime and Florida head coach Will Muschamp contorts his face in ways not thought possible.
Of all the aforementioned pageantry, I most enjoy Muschamp’s antics.
Is his sideline demeanor unprofessional? To some extent.
Overzealous? Probably.
But it’s all for the love of the game.
Whether he’s spiking his headset into the turf, grabbing a player’s face mask to give him extra coaching or making his veins bulge out of his head and neck, Muschamp’s in-your-face style brings with it an unrivaled passion for his players not displayed by many other coaches.
And before Tiger fans extend to boorishly lambasting their once-revered defensive coordinator as he runs out of the visiting locker room Saturday, remember where that passion was cultivated.
In a magical 2003 season that will be remembered Saturday, Muschamp oversaw a filthy Tiger defense littered with future NFL talent that brought LSU to the promised land.
Muschamp hasn’t
forgotten, either.
As I listened in to the weekly Southeastern Conference coaches teleconference Wednesday, I was brought back down memory lane as Muschamp feverishly rattled off names like Corey Webster, Jack Hunt, Chad Lavalais and Marcus Spears — even touching on position switches and battles that went on during the season.
Of course, he remembered that overcast afternoon in Tiger Stadium when Chris Leak and Ciatrick Fason put an end to the Tigers’ undefeated aspirations. He gave the Gators credit and hoped for a similar result Saturday.
But here’s what he failed to mention.
Without Muschamp, the Tigers don’t contain Heisman winner Jason White in the BCS National Championship Game. They don’t twice stymie the greatest statistical SEC quarterback of the last two decades in David Greene. And they don’t hold South Carolina, Auburn and Alabama to a combined 17 points.
The stats and facts weren’t what enamored Muschamp, though.
“We had a bunch of guys go play on Sunday,” Muschamp said. “But we had a bunch of successful people, whether they are teachers or in the business world, who have done an outstanding job.”
Successful people. It was clear to me that’s what Muschamp was most proud of, having molded the boys he was handed into men.
He groomed a young LaRon Landry. He was instrumental in reviving the career of an Avoyelles Parish prison guard named Chad Lavalais, who had given up on football after academic setbacks.
When he left for Miami with Nick Saban, Muschamp didn’t forget Baton Rouge. He said Wednesday he and his wife Carol still have friends in the city and have nothing but great memories from his time in Baton Rouge.
He was contacted about the 2003 reunion by LSU officials, but for obvious reasons, he won’t be able to partake in the pregame festivities.
So, as a replacement, I issue a challenge to those who come through the turnstiles on Saturday.
Give Muschamp another great memory. Instead of ballyhooing about the current state of the Tiger defense, give the man who orchestrated the finest unit in LSU history an ovation.
An ovation that would even make him grin.
Chandler Rome is a 20-year-old mass communication junior from Baton Rouge.