And here is my original:
CHAPTER 1
Knoxville, TN
January 1998
It is 1998 . Fulmer has just squandered 3.5 years of having possibly the best QB to ever play the game of football. He was even gifted an extra year and chance with this phenom by Manning deciding to come back for his Senior year. And he came out with no national title. Only one SEC title that he barely scraped out by one point.
But something happens in the offseason.
What is it? A meeting.
When did it happen? The week after getting dismantled by Nebraska.
Where did the fateful meeting take place? On the banks of the Tennessee River, beneath the looming shadowy, dark but glorious shape of Neyland Stadium, against the backdrop of a cold January early morning sky, in the hour before dawn.
Who is there? Phil... Phil and one other person. No, that's not right. Not a person. Not exactly. Maybe Phil is alone? But that's not exactly right either.
There seems to be a presence of some kind that one could see if they weren't looking directly at the area occupied by Phil. But sort of out of the periphery. There! There it is. There is someone, someTHING, there. It appears to be wearing shades, even though it is still dark outside.
It is tough to see exactly what he/it looks like, except for one unmistakable feature: his smile. It is one of mirth. Of Cunning and glee. One that would send shivers down your back were you to look directly at it.
And now Phil, timidly at first, and then after apparently reaching a final, tortured decision within himself, more deliberately reaches out his right hand to shake with the shadow-man.
A deal has been struck. One that would turn the fate of Phil and his beloved Volunteers for years and years and years to come.
CHAPTER 2
Syracuse, NY
September 5, 1998
It is the 4th quarter of a hard-fought, close game with the Orangemen of Syracuse and their dynamic and exciting QB Donovan McNabb.
Tennessee is playing it's first game with Manning's successor: an athletic kid from Mobile, AL fittingly named TEE Martin.
UT is down by two points. This young man Martin is trying to drive the Vols down the field into FG position for an attempt at a win.
But a 4th down pass hits the ground. Incomplete.
First game of the season. A loss. A wave of Disbelief and shock and sadness hit Vols fans and players. Especially Phil. He can't believe it.
But that only lasts for a couple seconds. There is a flag. Pass interference on the defense!!! It was a bang-bang play. A close call that could have went UNcalled. But not here. Not today.
Phil rubs his right hand, the same hand he used to shake with the figure on the banks of the mighty Tennessee River. He rubs the hand. And he smirks. Could it have truly worked?
A few moments later, a kick from Jeff Hall sails through the uprights in the Carrier Dome, and secures a Tennessee victory: 34-33. Phil is ecstatic. But there is something, a seed of something foreboding and dark, that is also planted deep within him. He ignores it...for now....
CHAPTER 3
Knoxville, TN
September 19, 1998
After a game of insanely good (borderline unbelievable? hmmmm....) defensive plays by Al Wilson (multiple fumbles, including near the goal line) and Deon Grant (Air Jordan interception), the Vols force the second-ranked Gators into an OT.
The Vols' have possession first. A holding knocks them back to the outer edges if the clutch but still human Jeff Hall's FG range.
Fulmer feels a twinge of skepticism and fear.
But Tee makes a play with his legs to get UT back solidly into FG range. Jeff Hall does Jeff Hall, and connects on a field goal to put Tennessee up three points.
Now it's FL's possession: UT holds them to a 4th down. And they now have what is basically a chip shot FG attempt to force a second OT.
Just before the snap, Spurrier feels a cold breeze across the back of his neck which causes him to remove his visor.
The ball is snapped. It sails wide left. And the fans storm the field. Pandemonium. Reigns. And Phil almost wants to cry with joy.
In the midst of the craziness, Phil catches sight of one of the goal posts falling, and so he looks over and there in the midst of the mass of humanity, he sees a man in all black and dark sunglasses, standing completely still, staring straight at him. The man smiles. Phil physically canNOT pull his eyes away from the smiling man. Then, he gets bumped by an excited fan. Phil looks at the wild college kid, who upon recognizing the coach, apologizes profusely, then runs on.
Phil looks back to where the man in black had been standing. But he is gone...
CHAPTER 4
Knoxville, TN
November 14, 1998.
Tennessee is a freshly-crowned number one in the rankings. And they face an undefeated and too ten Arkansas team.
Phil has settled into the comfort of the deal he made several months ago, and reaching number one has helped solidify that confidence that the deal has worked. But it's about to be put to the test....
When he wakes that morning, the shadow-man is there at his bedside. At first, Phil thinks it's a dream, that he is still asleep.
But the darkness speaks, "If you want to win today, ask yourself these two questions...what does bama think of you? And what does he eat?" And just like that, The shadow-man vanishes.
Phil cries out, "Wait! What does who eat? What about bama? Wait..."
Nothing. It all happened so fast, Phil is still wondering if perhaps he imagined it. But he feels the burning on his right hand. And he knows in his massive gut that it is for real. But he is still puzzled.
He gets ready and departs for campus, worried that his deal seems to have somehow become conditional all of a sudden....
Arkansas jumps out to a 21-3 lead. Phil is worried, racking his brain about the riddles the being posed to him earlier that morning. What could it mean?
The season, the glory, the place in history. It is now all on the line.
Finally Tennessee shows life, and they come roaring back in the game.
They are within four points. It is 24-20. And Arkansas is about to punt it back to them.
The ball is snapped. It flies over the punter's head and into the end zone!
"This is it!" Phil thinks. And for a brief moment, he dares to forget about the questions posed by the dark deal-maker.
But then, Arkansas' punter makes a brilliant decision and boots it out of the back of the end zone...
A safety. 2 points. Not seven. Tennessee is still behind 24-22.
Phil's heart begins to pound. His palms sweat. His right hand burns like fire. And he thinks for a moment he hears a laugh.
It is Tennessee's ball. They drive to midfield. But now they are facing a fourth down.
Phil tries to strain his brain one last time for an answer to the morning's questions, hoping he can get a clue to what he needs to do to pull out a victory. But he draws a blank.
And on fourth down, Martin's pass is incomplete.
Turnover on downs. Only 1:54 remaining. And UT only has one timeout.
"It's over," Phil thinks. "I can't believe it's over. After I made that deal. All I gave up. And now it's over..."
Phil stands there in a daze. And then he starts to get mad. At himself, yes. But even more at the shadow-man. "He promised me last January. He promised me! That dirty rat! He lied to---RAT! Bama fans think I'm a rat!...A RAT!!!...but what-- Ratliff!!!"
Phil turns in a frenzy, searching out Number 40.
He finds the big man. And he runs to him, as he is pulling his helmet on.
"Billy! Son, you've gotta make a play! It's gotta be you. I know it! I know it because I...I...I just have a feeling! Get in there and make something happen! You can do it! It's gotta be YOU!"
On 1st down, Ratliff makes a tackle for a two yard loss, his first tackle of the whole game.
Phil calls his final timeout. 1:47 left.
Man it's gonna be close. But Phil feels it. He is on the right track.
Prior to 2nd down, Ratliff looks to the sideline and makes eye contact with Coach Fulmer. Phil nods. Ratliff nods. Then he gets down in his stance in front of a massive lineman named Burlsworth who has gotten the better of Ratliff all game long until that previous play. Ratliff is poised and tense and ready to spring forward.
The ball is snapped. Ratliff shoots forward, and with a burst of strength, he knocks Burlsworth back into the Razorback QB, Clint Stoerner, and something seemingly miraculous takes place.
The QB tries to balance himself WITH THE FOOTBALL on the ground, and it slips from the hIs hand. The ball is sitting there, on the ground, Just waiting to be claimed.
Time seems to slow, as Billy Ratliff makes his move and leaps into the free ball. Tennessee gains possession around midfield.
The crowd erupts into disbelieving jubilation! It's insanity.
Phil is so elated, he has forgotten about question two.
"And what does he eat?" Phil actually mutters this out loud, over and over, as he thinks about it in his head.
He begins to panic momentarily as he tries to think who the "he" could be referring to. He thinks, "it has to be in reference to the answer to the first question...rat...what does a rat eat? CHEESE!!!"
Phil gets on his headset and calls out to his OC, David Cutcliffe, who is known to be an offensive genius. "Run Henry!" Coach Fulmer screams.
"What?" Cutcliffe asks in surprise. "But we are out of timeouts. The clock will run. We have no way to stop it."
"Give Henry the ball. No matter what. I don't care what the clock says. I don't care where the ball is. I don't care what down it is. You hand that ball off to Travis Henry! Every play!"
"You're the boss." Cutcliffe concedes.
And Five plays later, Travis "Cheese" Henry, leaps into the end zone to give Tennessee the lead 28-24, which ends up being the final score. Tennessee stays perfect and in the title hunt.
CHAPTER 5
Atlanta, GA
December 5, 1998
Tennessee is one of four undefeated teams still left in the country - Tulane, Kansas State, and UCLA being the other three ( the latter two being the only real threats) - which means there is a possibility the Vols could beat Mississippi State and win the SEC, yet still be left out of the Fiesta Bowl, which is to determine the national champ in this inaugural season of the BCS.
Three undefeated contenders start the day out....
Shadow pays a visit to Phil as he shaves that morning.
"Morning Phillip"
Phil jumps at the sound that seems to come from nowhere and everywhere at the same time. He looks in the mirror, and there in the dark corner of the hotel bathroom, a figure can barely be made out, further given away by a glint of light off the dark sunglasses and a flash of stark white where Phil guessed his mouth would be.
"Goodness, you scared me," Phil says. "I was wondering if I would see you today. I assume our deal is still all good?"
"Well that's what I wanted to talk to you about, Phillip." Shadow-man claps his hands together twice then holds them together in front of him. "I have some fun planned for today. But to execute it all may use up all the power left in our deal."
"What?!" Phil shouts, disbelief and shock evident in his voice. "You never said anything about a cap or limit to the deal!!"
"Well I never thought I would need to intervene as much as I had to the last few months, Phillip," Shadow replies. "I mean you WERE there when you won the Arkansas game, right? That used just about everything in the tank right there. That was insane Phillip." The thing begins to laugh, and it's the type of laugh that haunts the nightmares of millions of children around the globe. "Insane! A game for the ages, don't you agree? Oh, And way to come through on the riddles, by the way. I was beginning to think you were going to let it all slip away. Oh RATS. That would have been pretty funny, huh? You see what I did there? I said "Rats!" Hahaha. Kind of CHEESY, isn't it. Oh look. I did it again. I could keep going but I see you're in the mood for a STOERNER topic of conversation." Shadow-man begins to giggle. Actually giggle.
Phil rolls his eyes."Oh yeah. That was all real cute. Real cute....listen now, this is garbage about the limit. That can't be right."
"Let's just see how today goes. And we'll see what you need afterwards," Shadow answers.
"Can I pick between K-State and UCLA as far as who I wanna play for the title. Is that allowed?"
"Oh Phillip, Phillip. You still have things to learn. Rellllaaaxxx, good man. Have a donut. And enjoy today. You paid for- errr- I mean, you earned it." The smile again. "You have earned it"
As the day progresses, UCLA falls to Edgerrin James and the Hurricanes of Miami, in a game that was supposed to be played earlier in the year but had to be rescheduled due to a hurricane. Phil can almost hear the Shadow-man laughing at the irony, and he wonders if he in fact orchestrated it.
Then a little later, Kansas State falls to the Aggies of Texas A&M, who are led to victory by none other than a former player of Fulmer and the Vols: QB Brandon Stewart. Again the ironic storyline there makes Phil uneasy and suspiciously amazed.
So two of the unbeatens have gone down.
Later that night, in the Georgia dome, Tennessee trails Mississippi State. But the Vols, once again proving to be an apparent team of destiny, somehow pull out a 24-14 victory.
Standing there holding the SEC Championship trophy, Phil wonders if this victory came from their own production, or if he had a little "help". And mostly, he is worried about that warning about running low on that help.
He finds out soon enough...
Later that evening, as most Vols are celebrating, Phil steps outside the hotel to steal a moment to himself.
As he stands there, the light on the balcony flickers for a few seconds, and Phil hears a noise that he thinks sounds like groaning and then a little fainter, the sound of shrieks, and even fainter still, the sound of many children crying.
Phil knows he is there. "Come on out and let's get this over with"
The dark shape steps from around the corner. "Now Phil, is that any way to treat the fulfiller of your dreams," shadow-man spreads his arms wide theatrically. "The grantee of your wishes, the bringer of your glory....Why, Phil, did you know that one day, they're gonna name a street after you?!"
Phil's eyes glaze for a moment, then responds, "oh don't act like you're doing me favors. You know how much this is costing me, costing this school, its fans, its future. The misery --"
Phil turns quickly away, suddenly overcome with many emotions, prominent among them, despair and regret.
Shadow-man draws himself (itself?) up to a bigger height, taller than would be possible for even the largest human male, and whispers in a harsh, dark, and forceful tone, "Don't you DARE try to put this on me. I TOLD you what the future would be like. And YOU, Phillip, decided to shake my hand. YOU decided to pay the price set before you. YOU risked it all. I didn't force you!"
Phil just stands there, not moving, with his eyes focused solely on the ground at his feet... Well, let's get real...at the ground a couple of feet in front of his feet. He does not speak. Does not make a sound.
Shadow speaks up, "Now that that is out of the way, let's talk about your final payment."
Phil wheels around sharply and almost falls over from the momentum. He restores his balance, stands, and indignantly says, "what do you mean final payment? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?! No. No way. No way. The price I have paid is already too steep. Are you insane?"
Phil starts speaking in a little higher octave and at a little faster pace as he recounts the dear price he agreed to pay under the looming gaze of Neyland nearly a year ago now: "Years upon years of bad football and freakishly, borderline unbelievably bad luck, horrible results, with only a few bright spots sprinkled in, which only serves to ensure that I will be kept around longer and draw out the slow and steady and painful decline of this program that I love more than almost anything in my life. And no matter how much I will plead, no matter how much I will beg to keep my job because I and only I know what will be coming, your twisted little mind has set it up so that after I am humiliated and fired, that - unknown to the fans and the administration - the decline and collapse and problems and horrible luck will only be accelerated. The program will dragged through the mud. Will scrape the bottom. Will lose to KENTUCKY!!! ....All for one national title. And you are telling me that all of that is not enough of a price to pay!!!"
"Phillip, please listen to me. You have been given the same amount of help and luck as any other coach that has made a similar deal in the past. You just burned through yours before you could reach the national title game. By the way, How'd you like that touch of having Brandon Stewart win the Big 12 title and knock off one of your fellow contenders? I thought that was fun."
"Yeah it was really entertaining," Phil replies, with no hint of having enjoyed it at all. "Really entertaining.....Now you listen to me. Why don't you take your dark and diabolical deals and deceptions, and leave me and this team alone. We will win the title on our own."
"Oh Philip, don't make such a brash decision. Something you may regret. You're gonna be playing Florida State."
Phil's eyes widen, revealing a momentary feeling of fear. He quickly throws back up a facade of confident determination. "I don't care. We can beat them... Without you."
Shadow asks, "you think so?" He then smiles again, and just stares at Phil, keeping the grin in place the whole time. And Neither one says anything for about 30 seconds.
Finally Phil's resolve weakens enough that he breaks his stare.
Shadow says, "ok Phil, have it your way. It'd be a shame to get this far and not win it all. But you are free to take your chances, of course."
He then begins to walk away slowly. Phil's emotions and thoughts are a mixture of doubt, fear, anxiety, and some relief.
But just before rounding the corner, Shadow turns on his heel, and with a side smirk, says, "UnLESS....you want to make a different kind of deal."
Phil tilts his head up, intrigued but skeptical and fearful, and he asks, "A different deal? What are you talking about?"
Shadow takes a couple of steps toward Fulmer and says, "what if we make a separate and unique deal that doesn't necessarily GUARANTEE a win, but would greatly improve your chances?"
Fulmer thinks for a few seconds, then gives in, nods, and asks, "ok, I'm a little bit interested. What are we talking about here?"
Shadow smiles again, and Coach Fulmer starts absent-mindedly rubbing the palm of his right hand.
Shadow proceeds, "what if I make absolutely sure Chris Weinke is ruled out for the game?"
Fulmer can't hide his interest in this development.
Shadow sees he has him and pushes on to finish him off: "What if you have to compete for a NATIONAL...TITLE....playing against their backup QB?"
Phil realizes he is reaching out to shake the shadow-man's hands without even really meaning to. He jerks it back quickly, and asks the question he fears the answer to: "what's the twist? The catch?"
Shadow says, "oh, it's nothing too bad, Phillip." He pauses, then adds, "It's just that Tennessee will never, EVER win another game when a backup QB takes over during in a game or is making his first start."
This makes Phil take a short step back as he considers the states consequence of making this deal. He wasn't expecting that.
He tries to weigh the benefit vs the risk. He finally convinces himself that it would be ok because how many times do you really run into that specific situation??
He takes another minute to think it over a little more. He looks over and sees the Shadow-man standing there, looking at him with his terrible and wicked smile, and sees that it has its hand stretched out towards him.
Phil steps forward. He timidly reaches out. And as he is about to shake hands, he has to look away. He can't watch himself shake hands with this evil thing again. But, while keeping his eyes averted, he goes on and forces his hand into the shadow-man's hand.
And he shakes it.