I was working on about three hours of sleep on my way to the airport early Saturday because I watched the football game until the end, and was it all worth it, to watch the ol’ pigskin clonk off a man’s
head and careen backward 25 yards for a turnover? It was, yes. I would do it all over again gladly. As far as I’m concerned, it’s one of the finest moments this sport has ever produced.
There’s just so much to enjoy about it. I love how clearly you can hear it hit poor KJ Kirkland’s helmet. A resounding thunk!, a smack upside the head and a shot to the heart all in one. The young man is not caught unawares—he even ducks his head instinctively—but some challenges in life are meant to find you no matter what. He wisely moves toward the sideline and clears the hashmarks, but it is of no use.
It’s tough for me not to feel a little built guilty about a play as absurd as this, though it feels right that it happened to Florida State, whose fans deserve it. It’s just too bad that KJ Kirkland had to be caught in the middle of a karmic exchange that was not of his making.
