There are six days until Florida's September 1 opener with Bowling Green. There are 54 entries left in the 100 For 100 series. Remember when Ryan Phillipe was a thing?
I tend not to think that there's much that is unique about college football that isn't readily apparent to the outside observer, from the pageantry to the passion. But the way players are virtually worshiped as demigods is not exactly something people get before the live around it. Example:
Holy paparazzi!! Lol RT
— Tarin Moses (@TarinMoses) August 25, 2012@dstamas: At the volleyball game with my good friends@tarinmoses and@jeffdriskel twitter.com/dstamas/status…
I like Tarin's response here, because how else do you respond to someone who may or may not know you taking pictures of the back of your head while you're hanging out with your significant other and then publishing them publicly?
Seeing Gators out and about is a part of life in Gainesville, and especially for students who may live near or with them. (Tim Tebow being globally famous has made it a bigger part of the experience, because family members ask about interactions.) But the lines between living in the same place as them, interacting with them, and stalking them are fuzzy.
That's part of why I tend not to tweet pictures of famous Gators I see out or at games, and part of why I don't relate stories about them unless I have a good journalistic reason to do so, as I did because of the class I took with Xavier Nixon. I'll still joke about Trey Burton bobbing his head to "Party Rock Anthem" if (okay, when) I see him doing it, but I'm not gonna turn Gainesville fame into scrutiny unless scrutiny's merited.