badrouter Posted March 16 Report Share Posted March 16 Doesn't have to be at any particular level. For me, it's Tracy McGrady. We played on an AAU team called the Polk County all-stars in the 1990s. My Dad drove myself and Tracy to practice a few times. We were coming from Lakeland and going to Winter Haven. Tracy lived in a trailer park type area in Auburndale which was kind of on the way. Coaches were George Tinsley and Gordon Gibbons, who later coached DII Florida Southern. The team did have one other player who was drafted into the NBA- Alvin Jones, who was a childhood friend. Alvin was thought to be the best prospect on the team by far at the time. He was 6'6" or 6'7" as a 13/14 year-old, whereas Tracy had not yet bloomed. There were other good athletes as you might imagine. Art Salary and Jamie Phillips come to mind. Phillips' son just completed his senior year of hoops, losing in the state Final Four. Unfortunately, it was a rather miserable experience for me. I was in over my head and eventually quit the team. I wish I had the foresight at the time to appreciate who I was playing with. It sort of ruined me as a basketball player. I still remember Lucky Lyons, the Lakeland QB at the time I attended Lakeland, giving me a hard time for not coming out to play for LHS basketball. But, I just came to hate playing due to getting beat down so many times in those AAU practices! 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omaha Vol Posted March 16 Report Share Posted March 16 I played with Todd Helton in middle school (pee wee and midget teams). Believe it or not, he wasn’t the starting QB. We both played DE. Of course, he became an all-American QB in high school. Might’ve gone pro at QB, but he got beat out for the starting spot by some guy named Peyton Manning at Tennessee. It worked out for him on the baseball diamond, though. I played LB in high school at a prep school in Virginia. Our team played against Eddie George in one game. That guy had tree trunks for legs. I was 6’2” and 220 back then. I hit him head on one play and he proceeded to drag me for 10 yards before going down. A beast man playing with boys! 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badrouter Posted March 16 Author Report Share Posted March 16 42 minutes ago, Omaha Vol said: I played with Todd Helton in middle school (pee wee and midget teams). Believe it or not, he wasn’t the starting QB. We both played DE. Of course, he became an all-American QB in high school. Might’ve gone pro at QB, but he got beat out for the starting spot by some guy named Peyton Manning at Tennessee. It worked out for him on the baseball diamond, though. I played LB in high school at a prep school in Virginia. Our team played against Eddie George in one game. That guy had tree trunks for legs. I was 6’2” and 220 back then. I hit him head on one play and he proceeded to drag me for 10 yards before going down. A beast man playing with boys! As a life-long Gator (and alum), I'll always remember the 1994 UF-UT game. UF was #1 for the first half of the season, and the biggest win was the 31-0 win in Knoxville. And, if memory serves, Helton was the primary UT QB that night, with that other guy being just another option. The '93 and '95 UT-UF games at the Swamp were great memories for us Gators! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omaha Vol Posted March 16 Report Share Posted March 16 12 minutes ago, badrouter said: As a life-long Gator (and alum), I'll always remember the 1994 UF-UT game. UF was #1 for the first half of the season, and the biggest win was the 31-0 win in Knoxville. And, if memory serves, Helton was the primary UT QB that night, with that other guy being just another option. The '93 and '95 UT-UF games at the Swamp were great memories for us Gators! You just had to bring that up! 😡 You guys were our nemesis in the 90s. Manning never beat Florida. Kept us out of the national title hunt all those years. What’s funny is, as soon as Manning leaves we finally beat Florida and, lo and behold, we win the Natty. I got stationed in Omaha from 94-97. At least I got to witness someone stomp a mud hole in you guys! 🤣 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badrouter Posted March 16 Author Report Share Posted March 16 1 hour ago, Omaha Vol said: You just had to bring that up! 😡 You guys were our nemesis in the 90s. Manning never beat Florida. Kept us out of the national title hunt all those years. What’s funny is, as soon as Manning leaves we finally beat Florida and, lo and behold, we win the Natty. I got stationed in Omaha from 94-97. At least I got to witness someone stomp a mud hole in you guys! 🤣 The 90's Gators-Vols games were another thing I wish I had the ability to appreciate more at the time. Turns out that was a legendary time; I just didn't fully realize it or appreciate it at the time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
golfaddict1 Posted March 16 Report Share Posted March 16 An NFL “scab”, who carried the rock once in the NFL during the 80’s strike. From NJ and was briefly a Jets RB. Nobody would recognize the name. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I AM IRONMAN Posted March 16 Report Share Posted March 16 1 hour ago, golfaddict1 said: An NFL “scab”, who carried the rock once in the NFL during the 80’s strike. From NJ and was briefly a Jets RB. Nobody would recognize the name. Try us Joisey folks! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cossacks Posted March 16 Report Share Posted March 16 Jeff Haluska. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeBird Posted March 17 Report Share Posted March 17 12 hours ago, Cossacks said: Jeff Haluska. I played Flagg football with Tiki barber, that count,? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
golfaddict1 Posted March 17 Report Share Posted March 17 20 hours ago, I AM IRONMAN said: Try us Joisey folks! Derrick Foster. Jets: 1 carry for 9 yards and 2 punt returns for 8 yards in 1987, during the 3 week strike. Played at William Paterson together one season. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I AM IRONMAN Posted March 17 Report Share Posted March 17 20 minutes ago, golfaddict1 said: Derrick Foster. Jets: 1 carry for 9 yards and 2 punt returns for 8 yards in 1987, during the 3 week strike. Played at William Paterson together one season. Where did he play in hs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
golfaddict1 Posted March 17 Report Share Posted March 17 11 minutes ago, I AM IRONMAN said: Where did he play in hs? Univ HS in Newark (never heard of it until now). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodchopper Posted March 18 Report Share Posted March 18 Travis Henry. Was glad I played on the offensive side of the ball and didn't have to attempt to tackle him. Was a man amongst boys back then. State records in the weight room and on the field. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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