Super Bucs? - The Fans Speak Out

Football Digest, July-August, 2003

All the praise about the Buccaneers winning the Super Bowl is a bunch of bull. I saw the Oakland Raiders getting sucked into a swarm of Bucs who would scatter around to sting the quarterback time and again. Bucs coach Jon Gruden did a good job of hiding his "I know something you don't" smirk. He knew every move that every Raiders player was going to make. A fair game? Not. Super Bowls like this one need a rematch. Having had almost 30 years of love for the game, I felt this one was unfair.

Vicki Myers

Newaygo, Mich.

When I was a kid, my father took me to see the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when the regular players were on strike. I looked up at my father and asked him, "Dad, why are we going to the game this week rather than listening to it on the radio like we always do?" I will never forget his answer: "Simple, Son. The real Buccaneers are on strike, so we stand a good chance at actually seeing Tampa win a game today."

Growing up, my father took me to the games not to cheer for the Bucs, but to see the teams they were playing. Sure, I am grateful for seeing legends like Walter Payton, Barry Sanders, and Dan Marino, but what I am more grateful for is knowing that I was one of the die-hard fans who sat in those stands of the old Sombrero and cheered for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. So to the team, the Glazers and, most of all, Jon Gruden: Thank you. And to the Cincinnati Bengals: Never give up hope. We are proof.

Tony Vincenti

Tampa