I traveled back in time to January 24th, 1991. Exactly 3 days before Super Bowl XXV. Some how I was able to finagle my way into the Bills practices in Tampa, Florida. I talked to several players explicitly describing to each of them the game that lay just 3 days ahead.
No one seem to mind that I was there talking, begging and carousing with the players. At the same time no one really paid close attention to what I was saying either. The day before the Super Bowl, I was about to give up. It was then that I saw Thurman Thomas headed in the direction of the Bills locker room.
Knowing that my story might sound a little crazy, I approached Thurman quite cautiously. But, after initially explaining to him that I was from the future and that I knew the outcome of the following day's Big - Game, he only looked at me in disbelief. I knew that he thought that I was crazy, but unlike the other players that I spoke to, he at least listened to what I had to say for a breif second. I had to hurry if I were to hold his attention.
He turned away form me and continued to head towards the locker room. As he reached for the door, I blurted out an obscenity. I called Thurman Thomas an "Alchy".
That one word was enough to stop him cold in his tracks. He turned to me, began to open his mouth and before he uttered a word, I just simply stated that I didn't have time to explain him how I knew, but that I just knew.
While I had his attention my tongue began to rattle. At first I must have made little sense trying to explian my unbelievable journey in just a few, short, quick and sensless sentences, but when I noticed that he was still frozen with skepticism I forced my point. "The Bills will lose to the Giants tomorrow.", I regained my composure and started to finish my mission.
"Thurman, I know I must sound absolutely crazy, but you have to believe me. You will lose tomorrow if you don't do exactly as I say. In the begining of the 4th qrtr, the Giants will be up on the Bills 17 - 12. On the very first play, the Bills offense will have the ball on the Giants 31 yard line. Kelly will get the call from the bench to throw to McKellar a 5 yard pass on an out pattern in attemt to advance the ball and catch the defense playing man. Thurman, you need to talk Kelly out of the pass play in the huddle. Make him run the ball. His pass will be intercepted and taken for a touchdown the other direction. You and your team will lose 24 - 15 because the Giants D will be playing a disguised zone forcing the intereception. If you don't believe me now, wait until the begining of the 4th qrtr tomorrow. You'll see that I wasn't lying and you'll still have enough time to get the play changed to a run."
We sat in silence for a moment...........for a second I thought he pondered my absurdities.... and then scoffing he shook his head, laughed out loud and pulled open the locker room door.
The next thing that I could recall was shaking the sunlight from my squinted eyes. I had obviously awken.
For a few minutes I layed there replaying the vivid sequence of events over and over again in my head. In an attempt to alleviate disoreintation, I picked up my cell phone and read the display; November 22nd, 2003 8:35 AM. " Wow, what a dream!", I sleepily muttered out loud.
I trudged down stairs and began to brew coffee, but before I could get to the front door to grab the morining paper, I saw something piercing my peripheral vision. It was my computer screen blarring brighter than the morning sun. I didn't remember leaving it on last night, but then again I didn't remember drinking the 12 beer bottles that now line my kitchen sink. With the Krups still noisly, gurggling in the back ground, I decided to feed my earlier visions by hopping on the 'ol HP, and dialing up SuperBowl.com for kicks.
I found Super Bowl XXV neatly tucked away in a cozy hazenly colored history page. Something was wrong. The website clearly showed the Bills having lost to the Giants 20-19. 20 - 19? Not the 24-15 score that I clearly remembered appearing on my tube that dismal day in January. I frantically searched further, squeezing my keys for more information.....
I couldn't believe it and I still have a hard time understansding it at all.........The Bills ran the ball on the first play of the 4th qrtr. Thurman Thomas trounced 31 yards for a TD and gave the Bills a 2 pt lead (19-17) early in the 4th qrtr. I couldn't beilieve it ......some how my message got through to Thurman. I shreiked with joy, and danced in victory. He changed the play and inevietably changed history. The Bills had the advantage .....
...but wait a minute.......what happened? If Thurman changed the play, why hadn't they won the game? Reading on, I discovered that the Giants regained the lead after Matt Bahr kicked a 21 yard FG just 7 minutes into the final qrtr. The Bills did have an opportunity to win the game, but Norwood was just shy of hitting a 47 yarder as the clock ran out.
I hung my head with disappointment. I hadn't seen this coming.
Time, while changeable has no direct connection to fate. Yet, fate will always leash time. As individuals, what we choose to do has only a certain amount of relevance in leading our lives, but no matter what we do, there are bigger plans for each one of us. Plans that we do not have the forsight to see, and plans that develop with every instant.
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