Florida's 48 for 2014, No. 37: Mark Herndon moments

One of the things I remember best from the 2012 season was Florida players rushing over to the stands to celebrate with students after beating LSU.

That victory seems further away now than could possibly have been covered in the 22 months that have passed between now and then, but that moment was spectacular, and pictures from that late evening were pictures that became the iconic ones from that Florida team. No single picture was more iconic, in my mind, than the one of Mark Herndon you see above: I put it in the 100 reasons to look forward to Florida football in 2013 post I wrote last May — which, hey, read that if you want to be mad about 2013 all over again — and I've never forgotten it.

It's the quintessential "football player with fans after a win" picture: Herndon is mugging for the camera while being embraced by cheering Gators, and everyone looks happy.

The only "problem" with it is that Herndon didn't play much in 2012. He didn't play in that win over LSU, never recorded a carry on the year, and generally did the thankless special teams work that walk-ons like him are supposed to do.

And yet he still made an impact, even if the impact was limited to knowing where to be when cameras were clicking and smiling wide. That picture, small thing though it is, made me proud to be a Gator.

The lesson here is that 2014 will have moments like these, too, and they may come from players or figures you don't expect. Walk-ons will always mean things to a program that you can't see on every Saturday; it's rare that they'll make their moments in the sun memorable.

So I savor them.