Thursday, December 30 Johnson wants to finish with win
Associated Press
ORLANDO, Fla. -- It's too late for Doug Johnson to win a
national title, a conference championship or the adulation of the
thousands of Florida fans who never quite embraced him.
Doug Johnson has thrown 62 TDs in his Florida career.
Quite simply, all Johnson has left in his tumultuous college
career is a chance to prevent a fractured season from getting any
worse.
Feeling he owed it to a senior with whom he never really meshed, Gators coach Steve Spurrier is giving Johnson the ball one last
time Saturday, when No. 10 Florida (9-3) plays No. 9 Michigan State
(9-2) in the Citrus Bowl.
"Doug has played most of this year," Spurrier said. "Just
looking back, I think he deserves the game since he was our
quarterback most of the season. He's ready to play and we feel like
he deserves it the most."
Most teams consider a bowl trip a reward for a good season.
Florida is trying to look at it that way, too. But the consequences
of a loss would be too devastating to imagine, especially for
Johnson.
Lose here and he'll go down as the quarterback on a Florida team
that lost three straight for the first time since 1988. Win and the
Gators reach the 10-victory plateau for the seventh straight
season. Then, the harsh memories of a season -- a career? -- gone
wrong won't seem quite as bad.
"You don't want to have a bitter taste in your mouth when you
leave as a senior, losing your last game," Johnson said. "It's
your last game and you want to be able play well and perform well.
It's important. It's going to be the last memory you'll have as a
Gator."
Since 1997, Johnson has started 22 games for Florida, completing
55 percent of his passes for 7,114 yards and 62 touchdowns. Most
quarterbacks would kill for those kind of statistics.
But this is Florida. And his numbers, arm strength and attitude
could never make Gator fans forget Danny Wuerffel, the Heisman
Trophy winner Spurrier once called the best quarterback to ever
play the college game.
In fairness, no successor to Wuerffel had much of a chance to
live up to him. Add in Johnson's standoffish demeanor, his desire
to play pro baseball, his nagging shoulder problems and his
communication problems with Spurrier and it became obvious he would
never come close to living up to his predecessor.
Jesse Palmer, the junior quarterback Spurrier has pitted against
Johnson over the last two seasons, says he has no problem taking
the bench for this game.
"He's going to give Doug a chance to go out as a winner in his
last game at Florida and I think he deserves that," Palmer said.
"I think that's great."
Michigan State quarterback Bill Burke has been through similar
travails in his five years with the Spartans.
From his up-and-down relationship with coach Nick Saban -- who
left the Spartans earlier this month for LSU -- to the nagging
shoulder injuries that have limited his effectiveness, Burke's
career seems a lot like Johnson's in many ways.
The Michigan State quarterback has had a good career, not a
great one, and his final season has reflected that.
In October, he threw for 400 yards in Michigan State's upset
over Michigan. He has averaged just 129 yards passing in the five
games since.
His 43 career touchdown passes tie him with Dave Yarema and Ed
Smith for the Michigan State record. Still, he doesn't consider his
years as a Spartan a total success.
"I think when I have a chance to look back on my career, there
will be certain things I'll remember," Burke said. "It would be a
lot easier if winning this game was one of them."
It's a sentiment Johnson couldn't agree with more.
"I want to finish things the right way," he said. "I want to
win."
