Wedding venue in Blue Ridge, GA for couples in Brandon, FL

Scott Carter / Senior Writer

Former Gators All-American linebacker Brandon Spikes is determined to impart the attitude he played with to the players on Florida's current roster.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The hulking middle linebacker with the long hair and bulging biceps was introduced to a wide-ranging global audience this week with the release of "Swamp Kings," a Netflix documentary on the Urban Meyer-era Gators.

Brandon Spikes needs no introduction to Florida fans who recall that time.

"He had such influence,'' quarterback Tim Tebow said in the documentary. "Other players didn't have as big a personality. They didn't have the presence. When Spikes walks in, everybody notices."

Spikes, who turns 36 next month, recently strolled back into the Gators' locker room as a student assistant coach, returning to UF to finish his degree and reunite with the game he loves.

The current Gators took notice.

"It was just a moment like, 'Holy crap, that's B. Spikes!' " Gators outside linebacker Jack Pyburn said. "And then just getting to know him makes it really cool. When you get to know him, he's just another guy. He's got the right mentality, and he's done things the right way that has made him who he is."

Spikes has made appearances on campus since his NFL career with the Patriots and Bills ended in 2016 — he was inducted into the UF Athletic Hall of Fame in the same class as Tebow in 2020 — but he has spent most of his post-playing career learning how to be a father to 8-year-old daughter Bella and carving out a life as a non-player.

He remained in contact with former Gators teammate Vernell Brown, who served as the team's senior director of player development until leaving earlier this year to help manage Anthony Richardson's NFL career. Spikes initially showed interest to return in a player development role, but once head coach Billy Napier learned that Spikes planned to come back, the talks intensified.

"Timing is everything," Spikes said. "[Coach Napier] has the right mindset. He's a winner, and I want to be a part of that. And it's home. I'm in a great place mentally, and I can help. I just want to bring value and basically get this thing back to how we left it. I've seen how it should be done. You don't come to Florida to be mediocre. The bar is set, and I will do everything in my power to enforce what is set here."

Spikes (2008, '09) and Gators outside linebackers coach Mike Peterson (1998) are the last two UF linebackers to earn first-team All-American honors.

The decision to offer Spikes a spot as a student assistant working with the linebackers was a no-brainer in Napier's mind.

"He really cares about the University of Florida and what this place did for him not only as a football player but as a man, as a student. That helped get his path in life, and he's had legitimate success at the professional level," Napier said. "Immediately, he brings credibility, pedigree, production, and I respect Brandon. Brandon is very intelligent. He's been around a lot of football, a lot of players, a lot of coaches, a lot of teams.

"He's done a good job of mentoring players. He's already connected with a number of guys. I think Spikes is going to make our team better."

Spikes is one of the poster players from the Meyer era. He was the man among boys, playing from 2006-09 and helping the Gators win a pair of national championships. However, as "Swamp Kings" reveals, Spikes battled the maturity and commitment issues many young players face when they get to college.

In the third episode, Meyer challenged Spikes in the locker room following the 2007 loss at LSU that ended Florida's bid to repeat as national champions. The 28-24 loss in Baton Rouge was a crushing blow during Tebow's Heisman-winning season.

"Do not let the human element take over this team. You hear me, Brandon Spikes,'' Meyer said. "The Michael Jordans of the world do not let that happen."

In a recent interview, Meyer added moments later: "We were soft, a splintered team. I'm looking for someone to grab this team. Tim's trying, but Tim can't do it, not by himself. We needed Brandon Spikes to be that leader."

Spikes answered the call and became a cult hero in Gator Nation, highlighted by his crushing tackle on Georgia running back Knowshon Moreno in Florida's 2008 victory over the Bulldogs.

Spikes said he returned to revive that attitude on the field.

"I feel that's my contribution to the game, my journey,'' he said. "A lot of young kids, they're lost. I think I need to give them the game. A whole bunch of OGs looked out for me when I was here, taught me what to do, what not to do. I think I need to give that same knowledge back to them so they can try to do things right.

"I want them to get that nasty. You know what I'm saying. When you play linebacker, everybody is not going to like you. Quit trying to be likable. You've got to hurt some feelings, and you've got to hold your guys accountable. You are playing a nasty position. You've got to get nasty, dirty, get in the trenches, and love it."

While Spikes still has the vigor of a player, he is also older and wiser, having spent a significant portion of his NFL career playing for the all-business Bill Belichick in New England. Meyer, Belichick and former UF linebackers coach Charlie Strong all impacted him in different ways, Spikes said, and he has much knowledge to share.

He wants to impart as much as he can to Florida's players. He has spent most of the past few years watching Bella Spikes, a tough defender on her soccer team, show some of the same tenacity on the field as her father.

When Spikes, listed at 6-3, 250 pounds in his playing career, starts talking about her, his demeanor changes instantly.

"She is amazing," he said. "A great girl. I'm blessed to have her in my life, and that's what motivates me to be here and do what I need to do."

He is here to finish his degree and set an example for Bella. And while he is here, Spikes plans to be an example for the Gators.

He wants them to experience what he did: championships and moments of a lifetime.

Who knows, perhaps another documentary one day on the Gators.

"They say they got dreams of playing in the NFL, well, 'this is how you get there, and that's definitely not going to get you there.' That's ultimately what it is," Spikes said. "I've had some dark days. I've had some real good days. My experiences, I share those and just try to help them navigate through life.

"A lot of intelligent guys. But they need to be more nasty. You sign up to play linebacker at Florida, it's a standard here. Mediocrity won't be allowed. I'm a bit old-school. But they respond to me, and I think they respect me and know I played the game the right way. I missed the guys in the locker room. It's been fun."

BRANDON, Fla. (WFLA) — Two Hillsborough County sheriff’s deputies were severely injured Thursday morning when a suspect drove his car directly into the deputies.

Corporal Carlos Brito, 39, and Deputy Manuel Santos, 31, were standing outside of the patrol vehicles and standing in the street as they responded to a call for help.

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister says a woman called the sheriff’s office, saying her adult son was having a mental breakdown and kicking in doors inside their home.

Deputies Brito and Santos were among the first to arrive and as they stood outside of their patrol vehicles, Sheriff Chronister said a car driven by 28-year-old Ralph Bouzy slammed into them.

Both deputies were seriously injured.

“Corporal Carlos Brito has suffered the most serious injuries between the two deputies. His leg may be amputated,” said Chronister.

A video released by the sheriff’s office shows a car turn directly into the deputies, pinning them against a car.

As Brito lay on the ground, with a broken leg, Santos drew his service weapon as Bouzy walked toward him.

Santos did not fire his weapon, but other deputies fired their tasers to disable Bouzy who was then arrested.

Deputy Santos has been with the department since 2019. Corporal Brito has been with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office since 2013.

Brito is a familiar face on the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office FaceBook page. He is seen in a photo with a smile on his face as he changes someone’s tire in 2017.

In 2016, Corporal Brito joined with other deputies to use their own money to help a family after their home was destroyed by fire. Corporal Brito and the other deputies bought clothes, food, school uniforms, and even a child’s bicycle to help the family.

Corporal Brito has been recognized by MADD for his work and he helped save the life of an elderly woman after she wandered away from her family home in 2018.

Sheriff Chronister says doctors are now doing everything they can to help Brito, who was the most seriously injured.

” I can tell you that Corporal Brito, his injury was so significant that as he got trapped between the two cars as he was getting out and was struck by this individual, that a piece of his femur bone was stuck in the cars. The surgeon asked as she was going into surgery, she requested that bone,” said Chronister.

The Florida Panthers’ defenseman group is getting a big boost Friday.

The Panthers activated top blue liners Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour off injured reserve ahead of their 10 p.m. game against the Anaheim Ducks, with the duo expected to make their season debut as Florida caps its three game road trip. Ekblad and Montour had been sidelined as they recovered from offseason shoulder surgery.

The team placed Josh Mahura on injured reserve to open the final roster spot needed to activate both players. Florida had one open spot on its 23-man roster before Mahura’s IR placement.

Ekblad and Montour had been practicing with the team for about three weeks and are a month ahead of the team’s initial hope of a mid-December return.

“It has been a long time,” Montour said before the team left for its three-game California road trip, which started with a 5-3 win over the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday and continued with a 2-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday. “We had a shorter offseason but for (me and Ekblad) it was longer because of the rehab. Any injury like this, the rehab is a long process and tough. There are long grueling days with treatment, working out, skate. It’s been long, but we’re close. I think for myself and Aaron, we’re feeling pretty good. We are excited with how the boys are playing.”

The Panthers have done more than hold their own in the absence of Montour and Ekblad. They enter Friday 10-5-1 through their first 16 games and are second in the Atlantic Division. This includes going 8-2-1 in their past 11 games.

The two have had to watch the success from a distance. Joining the group at practice only gave the duo a bigger desire to return to the lineup.

It looks like that will happen on Friday.

“At training camp, we were around but we weren’t in the sense of being at practice and preseason games and early in the season,” Montour said, adding that joining the group practices “just brings excitement. I mean, any time we’re in the locker room, we try to bring that boost, especially with the guys. We’re happy with their game and collecting wins. It just makes it that much better when we come back.”

Montour had a career season in 2022-23, setting personal best marks in goals (16), assists (57) and points (73) and average ice time (24:07).

Ekblad is the Panthers’ longest tenured defenseman but has dealt with injuries the past few years. In 625 games over nine seasons, all with the Panthers, Ekblad has logged 111 goals and 218 assists.

FLORIDA — A last-ditch effort to save Buy Buy Baby has failed, and the company will close all its stores in Florida and across the U.S. as part of its bankrupt parent company's ongoing liquidation.

CNBC reported that the owner of children’s apparel company Janie and Jack was "eager" to buy the Bed Bath & Beyond chain and keep it running, but could not reach a deal on its value.

There are seven Buy Buy Baby (styled buybuy BABY) stores remaining in Florida. As of Thursday morning, these locations are still listed as open on Buy Buy Baby's website:

Buy Buy Baby's lender "determined it could recover more of its losses" by selling the chain's IP (intellectual property) and going ahead with liquidation sales. Debtors canceled an auction of the entire business last week, CNN Business reported. It is not immediately clear when stores would begin closing.

New Jersey's Dream on Me Industries, one of Buy Buy Baby’s former suppliers, won the chain’s trademark and digital assets for $15.5 million according to CNBC. Bed Bath & Beyond failed to receive any higher bids.

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Buy Buy Baby was seen as one of the retailer's more valuable assets, with several companies interested in securing at least part of the brand separately from the parent company.

Related:

Bed Bath & Beyond, which is headquartered in Union, New Jersey, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on April 23, listing its estimated assets and liabilities at a value up to $10 billion. Discounted sales have been going on since late April at 360 Bed Bath and Beyond stores around the country, including the stores remaining in New Jersey.

Overstock.com put in a $21.5 million offer for Bed Bath & Beyond's IP in June.

BRANDON, FL — Barnes & Noble has announced the opening of its new Brandon bookstore on Wednesday, Aug. 23. This event marks the first new Barnes & Noble in the area since the opening of its Wesley Chapel location in 2008.

The new Barnes & Noble is in Regency Square, 2428 W Brandon Blvd., Brandon, next to Petco.

The bookstore will officially open to the public at 10 a.m. on Wednesday with author Lincoln Child cutting the ribbon and signing copies of his newest book, Dead Mountain. The new location showcases the highly lauded bookstore design seen in the most recent Barnes & Noble store openings, housing books, toys, games and gifts.

“The appetite this community has for books is no more apparent than in the aisles of our Brandon Square store, well-loved and shopworn after 29 years,” said Amy Fitzgerald, vice president of stores for Barnes & Noble. “With this move, we replace the dated furniture and layout of the past. The new Regency Square store maintains the time-tested formula of well-stocked bookstores staffed by excellent booksellers. Now we do so in beautiful new stores designed to delight our customers and help them discover their next favorite book.”

Barnes & Noble is enjoying a period of tremendous growth as the strategy to hand control of each bookstore to its manager has proven so successful. The bookseller is enjoying exceptionally strong sales in its existing stores and has been opening many new stores after over 15 years of declining store numbers.

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In 2022, Barnes & Noble opened more new bookstores in a single year than it had in the whole decade from 2009 to 2019. The bookseller expects to open over 30 new bookstores in 2023, with the Brandon location being the first to open in the area since 2008.

“It’s very exciting to lead this relocation,” said store manager Heather Fabritiis, a Barnes & Noble bookseller of 13 years. “The new bookstore design is so much brighter and more inviting, and we’ve been choosing our assortment with our loyal Brandon customers in mind. Better still, we’re now just across the street from our previous location. We can’t wait to welcome readers into our beautiful new bookstore.”