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Bonded Together By More Than Football

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By NICK WILLIAMS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 5, 2008

TAMPA - As he sat on a picnic bench at MacFarlane Park on Sunday, Hillsborough High defensive lineman Moses McCray pulled three faded photographs out of his pocket. They were pictures of his late father, Ralph.

Two pictures were from his parents' wedding day in which Ralph, wearing a white tuxedo, smiled ear to ear as he stood next to his wife and McCray's mother, Vanessa, aside a towering, white cake. In the second photo, Ralph and Vanessa stood hand in hand, looking back at the camera. The third picture was of Ralph, wearing a brown leather jacket, holding Moses' older brother, Maxwell.

Plant High offensive lineman Rhonne Sanderson, sitting across from McCray, pulled out a photo of his late father, Watts. In the picture, Watts sat while wearing a three-piece suit.

Ralph died when McCray was a few months old, Watts when Sanderson was in the eighth grade. Ralph was a standout linebacker for Middleton and went on to play at a small college. Watts was the principal of a middle school in Tampa.

Both sons resemble their fathers.

Over the past few months, McCray and Sanderson have learned they have much in common, from losing their fathers at an early age to accepting athletic scholarships to play football for Florida State. Both will sign with the Seminoles during National Signing Day on Wednesday.

But what has bonded the two prep stars of late is the discovery that both of their fathers were avid Florida State fans. Ralph decorated Moses' crib with Florida State gear, placing his infant child on an FSU pillow every night; Watts had everything from FSU T-shirts to light switches in the Sanderson household.

"We watched almost every single game," Sanderson said.

"We got FSU pillows, banners. ... I still have my daddy's FSU hat," McCray said. "I'm going to wear it on Signing Day."

Mike Brown, a youth counselor at Tampa's Center for Urban Programs and Services, has known McCray since he was a freshman at Middleton and had been friends with the Sandersons for years. When he learned of their similarities, he knew it was time for the standout linemen to meet.

"They were from separate sides, but they had similar backgrounds," Brown said. "They needed to meet. So many times you have these guys who play for separate high schools, but if you can get them together and have them know each other, then he knows his history, and he knows his history. I think it makes it easier for them and for the school."

Last Wednesday, Brown invited McCray and Sanderson to attend a gathering at his wife's business. While there, the two linemen ate and talked about football. Brown said it was a needed moment for McCray, who has been dealing with a sensitive family situation.

"On Jan. 27, he called me upset saying his mom had a stroke," Brown said. "He had to call the ambulance that morning. That day, he was just starting to come around." McCray's mother has since been released from the hospital.

The prep stars said attending FSU together will make the transition easier.

"It's somebody you know, somebody from the same city as you," Sanderson said.

"You have someone you can trust," McCray said.

The two also played on the same team during the Florida Athletic Coaches Association North vs. South All-Star Game in Lakeland in December, where they gained more respect for each other's abilities.

"He's got speed and size," Sanderson said.

"He was giving us problems during practice at the All-Star game," McCray said. "People were coming back to the sideline like 'man, I can't beat him.' I tried to give them advice but they didn't listen."

Neither will admit to losing the battle in the trenches during their regular-season meeting, in which Plant won, 35-16.

"I got a sack," McCray said.

"It wasn't on me," Sanderson replied.

Brown says the similarities are frightening. Both giants (McCray is 6-foot-3, 285 pounds and Sanderson is 6-4, 290) are shy but very confident in what they can do on the football field. Both were chubby high school freshmen and are equally involved in the church. McCray and Sanderson, who attended a summer camp at FSU last year together, were even born less than a month apart.

"You have to be a believer in God to think their dads are in heaven right now, laughing about this," Brown said.

As for McCray and Sanderson, they get to live out their dream, and their father's dreams, by playing for Florida State.

"They'd be real proud," Sanderson said.

Reporter Nick Williams can be reached at (813) 865-4848 or nwilliams@tampatrib.com.

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