Pat Dooley’s High Five (April 7th)

I know there are people out there who get tired of me talking about The Masters. But it is my favorite week of the year.

And not just because I won the media lottery and got to play it in 1996.

What a year that was. The High Five tells you why it was perhaps the best year ever:

1.Well, you know the obvious

Yeah, Florida won the national title in football technically in 1997, but the way that team ran through the SEC was a marvel to behold.

2. And that day in Atlanta

When Nebraska lost one of the most amazing games in the Big 12 Title game against Texas. On that same day, Florida put the FSU regular season loss behind and beat Alabama to set up the other stuff that would happen to make FSU-Florida a national title game.

3. And already, it was a good year

Because of what happened in baseball. I made my first trip to Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha to watch Brad Wilkerson hit a grand slam and then close the game against FSU.

4. We didn’t know it at the time, but …
Florida was about to start an amazing run of basketball by hiring Billy Donovan. He didn’t inherit much in ’96, but he made Florida a blueblood, if only for a while.

5. And I got to play Augusta National

The score was 85. But by now, you know that because I talk about it almost every day.