Ken Spurlock called Micheal, his younger brother, early Sunday morning for his usual pep talk.
He added that he attended the Bucs game in Houston the previous week and was disappointed his brother's 45-yard kickoff return did not result in a touchdown.
"Can you get one to the house today?" Ken asked.
A few hours later, linebacker Derrick Brooks walked over to Micheal Spurlock and delivered his customary statement.
"Today is the day to make history," Brooks told Spurlock.
Around 1:30 p.m., Atlanta lined up for a kickoff after Morten Andersen made a 33-yard field goal to narrow the Falcons' deficit to 7-3. Punter Michael Koenen kicked from Atlanta's 30-yard line to Tampa Bay's 10.
Here is what happened next from the man himself:
"It was a middle left return. For some reason, everybody from Atlanta just played over and we got our blocks and I was like, 'Wow, this is wide open.'
"I hit and I saw a guy running next to me and I was like 'You never know how close you're going to get to this again, so take your opportunity and run with it.'
"I was thinking there is no way he can catch me. I got to get to the end zone.
"If the kicker would have caught me, I would have told them to fire me on the spot. All I was seeing is the end zone. 'Just cross that line.'
"Everybody got their blocks. I hit it."
After answering several questions from the media, Spurlock was reminded of his brother and a thought occurred. "I got to call him once I get back into the locker room," he said.
Anwar S. Richardson
IN HIS WORDS: MICHEAL SPURLOCK
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