___ I wonder how much has changed since the Buccaneers won the Super Bowl, and how much fervor has remained since. There are those who have much to say about the decisions made concerning our team during the past two years, both for the better or worse. Like any franchise, I'm sure many new fans have emerged, and some old ones have lost their enthusiasm. But whether you're a die-hard fanatic or your souvenir Buccaneer coffee cup needs dusting, the fact remains that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are and always will be World Champions, and they got there --seemingly out of no where-- just two years ago.

___ To reflect on that victory, I could only enlist the help of one man.

___ "Two years ago was the highest point in the history of Tampa Bay Buccaneers football. I knew that the Bucs were going to make it to the Promise Land and bring home to coveted Vince Lambardi trophy at some time, but didn't realize it was going to be in my lifetime," recollects Jeffrey Neil Fox as he reclines in his chair. Once again I had the pleasure of chatting football with Mr. Fox at his Buccaneer Heaven office and North Florida Avenue. It's that time of year again: the Super Bowl. And as everybody around here knows, two years ago the excitement was far from usual.

___ And for the owner of the largest collection of team merchandise --who happens to be one of the most die-hard fans one could ever encounter-- reflecting on that victory must be even sweeter.

___ "I was at the Super Bowl in Qualcomm Stadium and saw the team pull it together in the fourth quarter. It was unbelievable, my cellphone was ringing 'off the hook'... I must have bought half a million dollars of merchandise in the last ten minutes of the game." He went on to describe coming back to Tampa from the game to see a three-hour line of people wrapped around his shopping center. Some people's intent to camp out the night before in front of Buccaneer Heaven attracted news helicopters and required the assistance of two police officers to maintain order. "It was unbelievable, the frenzy," said Mr. Fox.

___ The one thing Mr. Fox likes to talk about the most, the thing he is most proud of, is not the Buccaneers or his store and website. It's the fans. If you consider the mayhem of what goes on throughout the world when hometown sports teams win or lose, you have to admire the candor of the Bucs supporters of 2003. "The fans of Tampa Bay are the best in the world," Mr. Fox adds. "In Oakland they burn cars, in Tampa they wave flags and throw beads."

___ So here we are two years later, and no three-hour lines. But the business of Buccaneer support is still strong, and after a recent store party marking the anniversary of the team's win, Mr. Fox looks towards the future.

___ "The upcoming draft is probably the most important draft in the franchise's history," he speculated, and pointed out that whenever the Bucs are in the news "there always seem to be more footsteps in the store."

___ I'm pretty sure it isn't the Super Bowl frenzy of 2003, the upcoming draft, the upcoming season, or the Bucs in the news that keeps such a large fan-dependent business running. It's the consistent fans. You know the ones. Their souvenir Buccaneer coffee cups never need dusting. These are the people who look towards next year with high expectations, and will always do so. As Jeffrey Neil Fox put it when I asked him what specific predictions he had for next season: "You're talking to a guy that says we're gonna win them all, every single year."