Even in Defeat, Hernandez and Spikes Leave Their Mark in the Super Bowl
Monday, February 6, 2012 | Football
By Katherine Smith
Special to GatorZone.com
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- At the beginning of the Super Bowl broadcast, NBC announcer Al Michaels referred to former Gator All-American Aaron Hernandez as “the other tight end.''
He was correct in the sense that Hernandez was the other tight end making a lot the plays in Super Bowl XLVI. The New England Patriots tight end, who has played second fiddle to fellow Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski all season, grabbed the spotlight in leading his team with eight receptions for 67 yards and one touchdown.
But in the Patriots 21-17 loss to the New York Giants, it was two catches Hernandez didn't make that will motivate him this offseason. A second-down drop and Hail Mary miss in the end zone on New England's final drive were the plays dominating Hernandez's thoughts after the game.
“One play doesn't win the game, it's a whole bunch of plays,” Hernandez said. “And we didn't make enough plays. They made more plays than us.''
After New York went ahead with a little more than minute remaining in the game, New England got the ball back armed with the king of comeback quarterbacks Tom Brady. The sure handed Hernandez dropped a ball on second down and that was followed with another drop by Deion Branch.
But Hernandez recovered and made an 11-yard reception for a first down to keep the drive alive. On the final play of the game, Brady heaved the ball deep into the end zone where Hernandez was in a position to make the catch, but was masked by three Giants' defenders.
“We knew it was going to be a toss up and I saw it in the air and the defender got up more than me,'' Hernandez said.
Early in the game, Hernandez emerged as an MVP candidate and would have received consideration had his team pulled off the comeback. He played a big role in both of the Patriots' first-half scoring drives, including the Patriots go-ahead 96-yard touchdown drive that tied a Super Bowl record for longest scoring drive. He hauled in five of Brady's 15 first-half completions, four of which came during the go-ahead drive.
His sixth catch of the game – a 12-yard touchdown reception early in the third quarter – padded New England's lead to eight points. Hernandez got the one-on-one coverage with a Giants linebacker, which was more than a mismatch.
Michaels television partner, Chris Collinsworth, a fellow Gator, offered up a different assessment of Hernandez.
“Hernandez is a boatload for any linebacker in this league,'' he said.
That touchdown shifted the momentum New England's way, but it didn't stay that way.
“I thought we were going to run away with it (after that score),'' Hernandez said. “But obviously we didn't.''
Former Florida teammate Brandon Spikes put his own stamp on the Super Bowl with a game-high 11 tackles. He also contributed one forced fumble and helped hold the Giants' leading rushers Ahmad Bradshaw (72 yards) and Brandon Jacobs (37 yards) to under 100 rushing yards combined.
But like Hernandez, he will be motivated by the loss this offseason.
“When you have a lot of opportunities like we did, it's hard to take,'' Spikes said. “Defense wins championships and we had our chances.''
