After 32 Years With The Tribune, 'Pugo' Says Goodbye Thirty-two years ago this summer, the Bucs were preparing for their first season, the Lightning and Rays were weather terms and not local sports teams, the University of Florida, Florida State and Miami had zilch national football championships, Tampa Jai-Alai was flourishing at the fronton on South Dale Mabry and a junior at UF started covering the Gators as a sports correspondent for The Tampa Tribune. Thirty-two years later, it's time to say goodbye. I've never been a big fan of farewell columns, but after three-plus decades writing and editing sports for this paper, I can't simply ride off into the sunset without a few words. Of course, these words are being written on a laptop and will be running on the Internet – neither of which was around in 1976. The subject of my first Tribune story, written on a manual typewriter, was freshman linebacker Scot Brantley, who had started his first game the previous Saturday and played well. Of course, I did not know I had been hired by the Tribune until receiving a frantic telephone call late in the afternoon from State Sports Editor Bill Kirby screaming at me and wondering where my story was. I had a brief interview with Sports Editor Tom McEwen a week earlier for the open correspondent position and was told to wait for a call. Obviously, McEwen and Kirby, who sat less than 10 feet apart in the old Tribune sports department, did not communicate very well. Things worked a bit faster two years later when graduation loomed and the quest for a full-time job beckoned. I asked McEwen if there were any openings; he said not to do anything until I heard back from him. The next day, I had a job in the Pasco County bureau. Since then, I've covered Hillsborough County prep sports, the Tampa Bay Bandits, FSU, Florida and the Bucs and NFL before moving to the dark side, otherwise known as management, a decade ago. Since lists seem to be so popular these days, here are mine from 32 years of covering sports for the Tribune: TOP 10 EVENTS 10. Aloha Gators. The 1987 Florida football team somehow earned a trip to Honolulu to play on Christmas Day. Freshman running back Emmitt Smith and UCLA quarterback Troy Aikman were the Aloha Bowl's marquee players – and soon would be teaming up to help the Dallas Cowboys to three Super Bowl crowns. I can't remember much about the game, but I recall eating Christmas Eve dinner at Hy's Steak House and seeing Tony Curtis sitting at the next table. 9. Dunnellon State Repeat. This is here because I graduated from Dunnellon High School in 1974 when the football team barely could win a game. It truly was amazing to cover the Tigers' back-to-back Class 2A state football titles and 36-game winning streak from 1978-80. 8. Indy 500. I still can hear "Back Home Again In Indiana," see the humongous crowd and feel the heat while watching the race from behind Pit Row where I was working with a roving press pass in May 1983. 7. Daytona 500. Jeff Gordon (1999) and Dale Jarrett (2000) were the winners -- and it took us half the night to drive back to Tampa both times. 6. Sweet 16 For UF Basketball. The program would be in ruins three years later, but Dwayne Schintzius, Vernon Maxwell and Andrew Moten led the Gators to the NCAA East Regional in the spring of 1987 before losing to eventual national runner-up Syracuse. 5. Plant City Captures Boys State Basketball Crown. Behind hot-shooting Horace Broadnax, the 1981-82 Raiders kept pulling upsets until it was obvious they were the best team in Class 4A. 4. Danny Manning And The Miracles. Kansas stuns Oklahoma at the 1988 Final Four. 3. Mets Top Red Sox. The 1986 World Series had everything from local kid makes good (Dwight Gooden) to great player makes bad (Bill Buckner's infamous error in Game 6). But one of the highlights came far away from Shea or Fenway; train rides between New York and Boston while taking in the magnificent fall foliage. 2. Bolts Win Stanley Cup. Game 7 at the Forum – and watching captain Dave Andreychuk finally get to lift Lord Stanley's Cup – never will be forgotten. 1. Bucs Win Super Bowl. Having covered the Mighty Bucs' losing seasons of the early '90s, there were those who thought I was a jinx since the team started winning once I left the beat in 1997. Being in San Diego all week coordinating our coverage put that one to rest, even if General Manager Rich McKay was sweating my presence out there until the final seconds ticked off on the 48-21 victory against the Raiders. TOP 10 FAVORITES 10. Warrick Dunn. What he has done for single mothers in the Tampa Bay area and other cities would make his late mother very proud. 9. Jan Bennett. Great coach, greater character -- and a fountain of information. 8. Fabulous Sports Babe. Nanci never forgot her friends even when she was big time. 7. Lee Roy Selmon. This gracious man let us shadow him during Hall of Fame weekend. 6. Tino Martinez. True to his Tampa roots. 5. John Lynch. Always classy. 4. Derrick Brooks. A leader on and off the field. 3. John Bassett. The late Bandits owner actually appreciated the media. 2. Steve Spurrier. Could be quite difficult, but you never lacked for quotes. 1. Tony Dungy. Nice guys finish first. AND, TOP 3 LEAST FAVORITES 3. Winston Moss. Vowed to not talk to me for an entire season. I accepted. 2. Ray Perkins. Hugh Culverhouse's "Vince Lombardi." Not even close. 1. Warren Sapp. Great player, greater pain in the derriere. TOP 5 STADIUMS 5. Soldier Field – in December. Temperatures in the teens, a brisk wind whipping off Lake Michigan and 70,000 bundled fans cheering for Da Bears. 4. Rose Bowl. When the sun sets on the San Gabriel Mountains and you are among 104,000 watching the "Granddaddy of Them All," the game suddenly becomes secondary. 3. Florida Field. It's the only stadium where I was hit in the head by a bottle thrown from the stands, but it's also college football at its frenzied best when the Gators are playing an SEC rival or FSU. 2. Fenway Park. Walking out and touching the Green Monster hours before Game 3 of the 1986 World Series stays with you all these years later. 1. Lambeau Field. Everyone knows the sacred spot in the end zone where Bart Starr sneaked over for the game-winning TD in The Ice Bowl. And, a few wishes as I head out the door: A return to good health and many more years of TBO blogging from Tom McEwen. A World Series championship for the Rays a la the Miracle Mets of '69. If not the Rays, then a Series crown for the Cubs, Lou Piniella and those long-suffering fans. Rays get a new stadium – on this side of the bay (could not resist that one). The return of the Ice Palace (and not an arena named for an out-of-town newspaper). USF gets an on-campus football stadium. A major college football playoff format and title game – in Tampa. John Tortorella lands a new job and holds the Stanley Cup again. A Triple Crown and MVP for Josh Hamilton. Many more years of broadcasting for Dicky V. Another Super Bowl championship (in Tampa) and retirement (in Tampa) for Tony Dungy. A return to sanity when it comes to sports ticket pricing. Intelligent discussion ABOUT SPORTS on sports talk radio. A rookie salary scale for the NFL. More media access for all sports so we can continue to be the conduit between the teams and their fans. Major League Baseball brings back the doubleheader. A Sprint Cup championship for Dale Jr. Alcohol sales are banned from sporting events. The chance for my wife, Denise, to sit with me at a sports event – or even watch a game at home -- and not have her husband worried about the coverage of that event or the work going on in the press box and back in the office. Last but not least, I wish for my daughters, Victoria and Alexandra, to have the love of athletics that fueled their father all these years, whether they are playing, watching or covering sports. Nick Pugliese, The Tampa Tribune 22 June 2008