His chance came; he dropped it Hubert Mizell, The St.Petersburg Times, published 8 December 1997 Cheese odor was overpowering. Cheddar. American. Gouda. Thirty thousand Packers proponents were stadium-jacking the Big Sombrero, turning it into Lambeau South. Bucs craved a smashing uppercut to Green Bay's jaw. Some heroic haymaker to prove the underdog had a legit chance to win Sunday's big fight. To stun the champ. Suddenly, opportunity came. Reidel Anthony ran a "pump route." As quarterback Trent Dilfer was executing a planned balk with the football, the former Florida Gators receiver adroitly faked a crossing pattern. Playbook perfection. To the shock of Green Bay cornerback Tyrone Williams, the lithe Anthony turned upfield. Bee-lining for the goal. Dilfer, who has had difficulties with home-run accuracy, delivered a perfect pitch. Anthony blistered into the open. Maybe 10 yards behind Williams. Football was coming, beautifully spiraling 50 yards. Bucs fans gushed with anticipation. Surely it would be a 60-yard touchdown, allowing Tampa Bay a 10-7 lead in the second quarter. Packers safety Eugene Robinson came hard but late at Anthony. No possibility of overtaking the flying Buccaneer. Even so, the 13-year pro from Colgate would have dramatic effect. Reidel glanced over at Robinson. Eyes got big. Pass soon arrived at the Green Bay 15-yard line, but the kid had allowed his concentration to be fractured by Robinson's distant shadow. Anthony dropped the ball. Home-team rooters groaned. Green Bay fans celebrated Reidel's yuck-up. Two plays later, Dilfer got sacked. Possession went pointless. Next series, the QB was crippled. Tampa Bay never did score a TD. "He (Anthony) was looking at our free safety coming over," said Williams, the victimized Green Bay defensive back. "I think he was expecting a hit from Robinson." Robinson knew he had no chance to catch up. "If Anthony catches that ball, it's a touchdown. He looked at me for a moment, then his eyes went back to the football. If that catch is made, it's a totally different deal. A huge momentum thing." For 3 hours, the Bucs would go blank with their running game. Mike Alstott and Warrick Dunn combined to average 3 yards. Dilfer, fore and aft of his ankle crumpling, went through 6-for-17 passing miseries. Netting 67 yards. Nobody, not even the wizards of Bristol University, can be sure how an Anthony touchdown might've altered history. Fifteen minutes after a 17-6 loss, Anthony sat in gray underwear at his Houlihan's Stadium locker. Ankles still taped. Reidel didn't duck tough questions he knew were coming from media. "I just dropped the ball," he said. "All great receivers drop passes." My mind wandered for a sec, trying to recall Jerry Rice suffering such a wide-open muff. Wondering how often such all-alone flubs have been experienced by Herman Moore, Cris Carter or Michael Irvin. Anthony can be an NFL standout. But it's premature to link the term "great" with his name. Especially now. "That's just one catch," he said. "My sophomore season (at Florida), I dropped one like that against Auburn. It just seems to matter more when you're so open. I'm going to have a lot more to catch." Bucs hope so. Most teammates worked to dilute the impact of Anthony's non-catch for a non-TD. Dilfer went to Reidel after the misfortune, putting a friendly hand on the receiver's shoulder, whispering to console: "You can't worry about that. My first three years (with the Bucs), I had things like that happening all day long." Within their souls, you know a roomful of Bucs were wondering, "What might have been?" Tony Dungy, a coach not prone to individualize blame, would say, "That's one you have to catch." John Lynch, the rambunctious Bucs safety, generalized by suggesting, "In a game of this magnitude, you've got to make big plays." Hardy Nickerson, an 11th-year linebacker, was more specific. "It would've made us believe," he said of Anthony's ill-fated stab, "that our chances to beat the Packers were getting real good