I am a U.S. Naval Academy graduate, where winning is not just the best thing, but the only thing, as it should be for the military. I was a Navy fighter pilot flying off carriers. We never believed in coming in second. ...more

April 3, 2009

The Buccaneers examined this year's free-agent market and concluded they did not have to look far for the best available players. ...more

March 6, 2009

Car Towed From Bar I recently attended a birthday party at the Dogwater Cafe on Hillsborough Avenue. I had been drinking so I left my car there and got a ride home from my boyfriend (not in attendance and sober). ...more

February 28, 2009

Jon and Cindy Gruden were prepared for a Friday night out. Dinner and a movie. ...more

February 8, 2009

In his first interview with the local media since being dismissal as head coach Jan. 16, Jon Gruden vowed to be "the biggest Bucs fan'' in 2009 and gave a detailed account of how he was fired. ...more

February 7, 2009

The face of the neighborhood pawnshop is changing. Traditionally, they squatted on the poor sides of town, catering to the desperate and down-and-out, people who slink in with a piece of jewelry or a cheap stereo for needed cash. ...more

February 7, 2009

Some pawnshops around town are noticing a different clientele. They still are desperate, but they come in wearing designer clothes or toting Rolexes or multicarat diamond cufflinks, or even, at one North Tampa pawn shop, a Tiffany ring signifying that the wearer won a recent Super Bowl. Secrets between a guy and his pawnbroker sometimes stay secret, and Capital Pawn owner Joe Cacciatore won't say which player pawned the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Super Bowl ring from 2002-03, but he did say the eventual buyer traded it for a "suitcase full of money." ...more

February 6, 2009

Sea life was split Tuesday on who will win the Super Bowl, as manatee Buffett picked the Pittsburgh Steelers by a nose and Shelley the sea turtle decided those same Steelers would get shelled. Today, four-legged football experts from the Tampa Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will take a crack at sniffing out a winner. ...more

January 28, 2009

It used to be quiet on Sundays at O'Brien's Irish Pub of Tampa. But that was 15 years ago, before the Bay Area Black and Gold Club, one of the largest local Pittsburgh Steelers fan clubs, asked to make the neighborhood pub its official home. "Every Sunday, no matter what their record, regardless if they're 1-14 or 14-1, they're not what you call fair-weather fans. They're loyal fans," owner Bernie O'Brien said. "I'm a Bucs fan, but business is business." ...more

January 26, 2009

Such is the power of a simple, declarative: "No!" ...more

September 20, 2008