Random Bucs stuff.
Re: Random Bucs stuff.
This is from January 23, 2003.
No tale is too tall when it comes to Buccaneers' humbling history
By Martin Fennelly
TAMPA TIMES TRIBUNE
SAN DIEGO - It is one of the great old Bucs stories. It goes back 27 years,
to the beginning. Now the Bucs are in the Super Bowl. What better time to
look back at our fighting sons of orange? The dark ages still make us smile.
There's one story you always hear.
The team was holding its first training camp. A tight end from the
University of Miami named Ricou deShaw, breathing hard, asked a Bucs coach
if he could be excused for a moment. He needed to use the restroom. The
coach nodded. DeShaw headed off.
He never was seen again.
Old Bucs tell it that way. Hear the one about the guy who went to the
bathroom and never came back? Yeah, Ricou deShaw, that was him.
Ricou deShaw. The smoking gun.
He is part of the bedrock in Bucs history. The man who walked away from
0-26. The man who shunned the franchise that turned into an overnight
success just 27 years later.
If only it were true.
"It isn't," Ricou deShaw said.
Drat.
Ricou deShaw is 49 and lives in the Florida Keys, where he fishes when not
working for an engineering firm. A few years back, he spotted a newspaper
story topped with the Ricou story. Ricou wrote a letter in response.
"I think you should be aware of the real story," the letter said.
Ricou deShaw stated that he had sustained a back injury during that first
Bucs camp. He says the training staff said he was fine. Ricou didn't agree,
called his father and left camp for a medical facility, where he was told he
should never play football again. He never did. His letter included his
latest MRI.
"I NEVER walked off the field on the pretense of going to the restroom," the
letter stated.
Double drat.
Oh, well, there is plenty of Bucs history without the legend of Ricou. There
are a lot of real stories. Like 0-26. Like Bo Jackson and 5-dash-2. Like
John McKay's one-liners. Like Mr. C's orange jacket, the franchise's answer
to Dracula's cape.
* True: The Bucs went 0-14 their first season. They were 0-12 in their
second season before winning against New Orleans and St. Louis. Both New
Orleans coach Hank Stram and St. Louis coach Don Coryell were fired.
* True: Sam Wyche once had the Bucs practice halftime.
* True: The Bucs once allowed the Jets to score an uncontested touchdown to
get the ball back and give James Wilder a shot at a yardage record. After
the game, outraged Jets quarterback Ken O'Brien challenged John McKay to a
fight. McKay said "Let's go." They never did. Oh, yeah:
Wilder didn't get the record.
* True: The Bucs were getting killed at halftime when offensive tackle Ron
Heller told his teammates not to quit. Happening by, Bucs coach Ray Perkins
heard Heller using the word "quit." "Quit!" Perkins screamed.
He attacked Heller. Perkins broke a thumb trying to punch Heller in the
head. Heller was wearing his helmet.
* True: McKay once broke a knuckle hitting a chalkboard at halftime.
* True: Bucs coach Richard Williamson asked whether he had spelled "MRI"
correctly.
* True: A Bucs trainer once cut off the fingertip of Alvin Harper.
* True: Buc Ira Gordon complained to McKay: "Coach, I got the X-ray, but I
don't feel better."
* True: The Bucs made Bo Jackson the first pick in the draft, despite the
fact a source close to Jackson -- Jackson -- said he wouldn't play in Tampa
Bay. At a news conference, Hugh Culverhouse recited Dionne Warwick's "That's
What Friends Are For" and vowed to "keep smilin', keep shinin'."
* True: A writer asked John McKay about his team's execution. McKay didn't
hesitate.
"I'm in favor of it."
* True: The Bucs went to overtime at New England. The Bucs won the coin
toss, but Ray Perkins elected to kick to New England. The Patriots drove,
then kicked the winning field goal.
* True: Gay Culverhouse, Hugh's daughter, was once in the team's front
office. Attending a game in Green Bay, Gay exclaimed how proud she was that
thousands of Bucs fans had made the trip wearing Bucs orange. A team
official broke the news: "Those are hunting jackets."
* True: The Bucs had a kicker named Bill Capece who missed a field goal and
an extra point in a loss. He was cut. "Capece is kaput," McKay said.
* True: That first season, the Bucs lost 42-0 at Pittsburgh. A newspaper
photo showed a Buc named Ed McAleney smiling with 42-0 on the scoreboard in
the background. The headline: "A Real Laugher." McAleney was released the
next day.
* True: McKay came in the locker room to make a short announcement: "The bus
leaves in an hour. Those of you who need to shower, do so."
* True: The Bucs drafted the wrong player because the team's representative
in New York -- an equipment manager -- handed the wrong card in. Sean
Farrell was picked instead of Booker Reese. The Bucs scrambled, trading a
No. 1 pick from the next year to get Reese in the second round. Of course,
Sean Farrell worked out fine and Booker Reese was a bust.
* True: Sean Farrell made a holiday appearance in Orlando. Someone asked him
what he wanted for Christmas. "To get the hell out of Tampa Bay," Farrell
said.
* True: After dozens of interceptions, the Bucs discovered Vinny Testaverde
was color blind.
* True: The Bucs tried to hire Bill Parcells and ... well, you know.
* True: John McKay was holding a team meeting. "Gentlemen, losing starts
with mistakes," he said, "losing starts with turnovers, losing starts with
..." McKay looked over at offensive lineman Howard Fest. He was fast asleep.
"Fest!" McKay screamed. "Where does losing start?"
Howard Fest spoke. "Right here in Tampa Bay, coach."
It all happened.
But Ricou didn't.
Ricou deShaw was a Buc free agent for a month, before a game was played.
He has no idea how the story about him got started. Nor did he know it had
taken on such a prominent place in Bucs history.
"I guess lore takes over," deShaw said. "You hear one thing and it gets
passed along. I hate to spoil the story, but it didn't happen that way. I
still feel a little bit a part of Bucs history. But I never did say I was
going to the bathroom and didn't come back."
The Tribune regrets the error.
"Go Bucs," Ricou said.
No tale is too tall when it comes to Buccaneers' humbling history
By Martin Fennelly
TAMPA TIMES TRIBUNE
SAN DIEGO - It is one of the great old Bucs stories. It goes back 27 years,
to the beginning. Now the Bucs are in the Super Bowl. What better time to
look back at our fighting sons of orange? The dark ages still make us smile.
There's one story you always hear.
The team was holding its first training camp. A tight end from the
University of Miami named Ricou deShaw, breathing hard, asked a Bucs coach
if he could be excused for a moment. He needed to use the restroom. The
coach nodded. DeShaw headed off.
He never was seen again.
Old Bucs tell it that way. Hear the one about the guy who went to the
bathroom and never came back? Yeah, Ricou deShaw, that was him.
Ricou deShaw. The smoking gun.
He is part of the bedrock in Bucs history. The man who walked away from
0-26. The man who shunned the franchise that turned into an overnight
success just 27 years later.
If only it were true.
"It isn't," Ricou deShaw said.
Drat.
Ricou deShaw is 49 and lives in the Florida Keys, where he fishes when not
working for an engineering firm. A few years back, he spotted a newspaper
story topped with the Ricou story. Ricou wrote a letter in response.
"I think you should be aware of the real story," the letter said.
Ricou deShaw stated that he had sustained a back injury during that first
Bucs camp. He says the training staff said he was fine. Ricou didn't agree,
called his father and left camp for a medical facility, where he was told he
should never play football again. He never did. His letter included his
latest MRI.
"I NEVER walked off the field on the pretense of going to the restroom," the
letter stated.
Double drat.
Oh, well, there is plenty of Bucs history without the legend of Ricou. There
are a lot of real stories. Like 0-26. Like Bo Jackson and 5-dash-2. Like
John McKay's one-liners. Like Mr. C's orange jacket, the franchise's answer
to Dracula's cape.
* True: The Bucs went 0-14 their first season. They were 0-12 in their
second season before winning against New Orleans and St. Louis. Both New
Orleans coach Hank Stram and St. Louis coach Don Coryell were fired.
* True: Sam Wyche once had the Bucs practice halftime.
* True: The Bucs once allowed the Jets to score an uncontested touchdown to
get the ball back and give James Wilder a shot at a yardage record. After
the game, outraged Jets quarterback Ken O'Brien challenged John McKay to a
fight. McKay said "Let's go." They never did. Oh, yeah:
Wilder didn't get the record.
* True: The Bucs were getting killed at halftime when offensive tackle Ron
Heller told his teammates not to quit. Happening by, Bucs coach Ray Perkins
heard Heller using the word "quit." "Quit!" Perkins screamed.
He attacked Heller. Perkins broke a thumb trying to punch Heller in the
head. Heller was wearing his helmet.
* True: McKay once broke a knuckle hitting a chalkboard at halftime.
* True: Bucs coach Richard Williamson asked whether he had spelled "MRI"
correctly.
* True: A Bucs trainer once cut off the fingertip of Alvin Harper.
* True: Buc Ira Gordon complained to McKay: "Coach, I got the X-ray, but I
don't feel better."
* True: The Bucs made Bo Jackson the first pick in the draft, despite the
fact a source close to Jackson -- Jackson -- said he wouldn't play in Tampa
Bay. At a news conference, Hugh Culverhouse recited Dionne Warwick's "That's
What Friends Are For" and vowed to "keep smilin', keep shinin'."
* True: A writer asked John McKay about his team's execution. McKay didn't
hesitate.
"I'm in favor of it."
* True: The Bucs went to overtime at New England. The Bucs won the coin
toss, but Ray Perkins elected to kick to New England. The Patriots drove,
then kicked the winning field goal.
* True: Gay Culverhouse, Hugh's daughter, was once in the team's front
office. Attending a game in Green Bay, Gay exclaimed how proud she was that
thousands of Bucs fans had made the trip wearing Bucs orange. A team
official broke the news: "Those are hunting jackets."
* True: The Bucs had a kicker named Bill Capece who missed a field goal and
an extra point in a loss. He was cut. "Capece is kaput," McKay said.
* True: That first season, the Bucs lost 42-0 at Pittsburgh. A newspaper
photo showed a Buc named Ed McAleney smiling with 42-0 on the scoreboard in
the background. The headline: "A Real Laugher." McAleney was released the
next day.
* True: McKay came in the locker room to make a short announcement: "The bus
leaves in an hour. Those of you who need to shower, do so."
* True: The Bucs drafted the wrong player because the team's representative
in New York -- an equipment manager -- handed the wrong card in. Sean
Farrell was picked instead of Booker Reese. The Bucs scrambled, trading a
No. 1 pick from the next year to get Reese in the second round. Of course,
Sean Farrell worked out fine and Booker Reese was a bust.
* True: Sean Farrell made a holiday appearance in Orlando. Someone asked him
what he wanted for Christmas. "To get the hell out of Tampa Bay," Farrell
said.
* True: After dozens of interceptions, the Bucs discovered Vinny Testaverde
was color blind.
* True: The Bucs tried to hire Bill Parcells and ... well, you know.
* True: John McKay was holding a team meeting. "Gentlemen, losing starts
with mistakes," he said, "losing starts with turnovers, losing starts with
..." McKay looked over at offensive lineman Howard Fest. He was fast asleep.
"Fest!" McKay screamed. "Where does losing start?"
Howard Fest spoke. "Right here in Tampa Bay, coach."
It all happened.
But Ricou didn't.
Ricou deShaw was a Buc free agent for a month, before a game was played.
He has no idea how the story about him got started. Nor did he know it had
taken on such a prominent place in Bucs history.
"I guess lore takes over," deShaw said. "You hear one thing and it gets
passed along. I hate to spoil the story, but it didn't happen that way. I
still feel a little bit a part of Bucs history. But I never did say I was
going to the bathroom and didn't come back."
The Tribune regrets the error.
"Go Bucs," Ricou said.
Brave, Intelligent, Tenacious, Creative, Honest
Memento Mori
Memento Mori
-
0-26 Survivor
- Posts: 4000
- Joined: Thu Sep 02, 2021 8:01 am
- Reputation: 1289
Re: Random Bucs stuff.
I was unaware of his passing.
I enjoyed reading the articles written by him and Tom McEwen.
Pat Yasinskas too
I enjoyed reading the articles written by him and Tom McEwen.
Pat Yasinskas too
-
0-26 Survivor
- Posts: 4000
- Joined: Thu Sep 02, 2021 8:01 am
- Reputation: 1289
Re: Random Bucs stuff.
What?! Pat passed away?! I genuinely believed he was in his 50s.0-26 Survivor wrote: ↑Thu Oct 30, 2025 7:08 pm Jan. 26, 2024. He was just 65.
All three names you mentioned great names.
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Terry Tate
- Posts: 1174
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Re: Random Bucs stuff.
A quick google search shows he's alive. I think all that post meant was that he enjoyed the work of the three menPhantom wrote: ↑Thu Oct 30, 2025 7:32 pmWhat?! Pat passed away?! I genuinely believed he was in his 50s.0-26 Survivor wrote: ↑Thu Oct 30, 2025 7:08 pm Jan. 26, 2024. He was just 65.
All three names you mentioned great names.
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Central_Buc
- Posts: 2991
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Re: Random Bucs stuff.
The root architect of the 02 Bucs.
[YT][/YT]
[YT][/YT]
