When it comes to college football, I usually root for the fairy tale notion that the little guy should be able to defeat the big guy.
So when Florida State faced Clemson Saturday, I was rooting for the Tigers.
The way I saw it, Florida State had way too much riding on this game. It was the first-ever matchup between a father and son as coaches in Division I football history, and the win would give Seminole Coach Bobby Bowden his 300th career victory, and it marked the return of wideout Peter Warrick to the 'Noles.
I was convinced that the little guy - Clemson - could have done something to stop the Seminoles, and pull off a fairy tale ending that would rival Virginia's upset of Florida State in 1995.
But in a 17-14 FSU win, the outcome I so desperately wanted didn't happen.
But that outcome angered me even more than the usual triumph of the heavy favorite over the underdog, simply because Warrick was out on the field.
When Warrick was accused of underpaying for clothing from Dillard's department store, he was charged with a felony, which should have prevented him from playing until the legal proceedings were over. But that could have taken weeks, according to Warrick's lawyer John Kenny, defeating his client's chance at winning the Heisman Trophy.
Throughout the past two weeks many sports analysts noted that for Warrick to still have a shot, he could only miss two games and his charge would have to be dropped to a misdemeanor.
How desperate was Warrick to get back onto the field, one might ask?
So desperate that he was willing to go to jail for a month in February, as part of a plea bargain, so that he could return to the team immediately. How admirable.
I guess you can't question Warrick's commitment. After all, I don't think many people would take jail time just to finish the second half of a football season.
And although the district attorney agreed to the deal, Florida State said no.
"I want the jail or prison time behind someone before they play," Florida State President Sandy D'Alemberte told ESPN.
And in the great way the legal system in this country works for athletes, Warrick got exactly what he needed to play and remain eligible for the Heisman - a two-game suspension, a misdemeanor offense and no jail time at all.
At this point, I really don't know who to find fault with here. On the one hand, if Warrick really cared that much about his team and his sport, he probably shouldn't have done something that could completely ruin his chances of continuing the season.
But on the other hand, he probably had realized by now that he could get away with it, and that he had the support of many people throughout this ordeal.
Kenny was confident that a plea bargain could be reached. Coach Bobby Bowden stated last week that he felt bad Warrick was forced to sit out. Seminole quarterback Chris Weincke told the press that he thought Warrick had suffered enough by sitting out for two games. Kenny even went so far as to say that the plea bargain was a "fair resolution for our fans."
It sure looks like everything turned out wonderfully for Florida State, even though my fairy tale ending didn't come true.
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