Estimated 500,000 welcome Tornadoes back with parade, rally
an ABC Action News report 12/23/03

TARPON - In a word, unbelievable.

"Unbelievable! That's all you can say," Tornadoes owner Clarence Walker said as he rolled through the team's parade. "For the people, it's a great day. Let them have fun with it, let them enjoy it."

"This is unbelievable. Everything you've ever dreamed of just came true in the last couple days. So it's been great; I'm going to enjoy it," receiver Torry Holt added from his car.

The city of Tarpon celebrated in grand fashion Tuesday evening, throwing a massive parade and rally for the NFL champion Tornadoes. An estimated 500,000 people turned out, some many hours in advance, to line Bayshore, Florida, and other streets to watch team owner Clarence Walker and the Fantasy Football Trophy-clutching coach lead the procession into downtown.

"This was great! This was exciting, to come out here and see these guys so close, it was awesome," one fan yelled.

"I've been a Tornadoes fan for all my life, and this is just great. It was so surreal until now. And this is just the greatest feeling ever," another added.

The parade wound from the Davis Islands Bridge to Lykes Gaslight Park, where a huge throng of fans had gathered for a rally. Several Bay area politicians congratulated the team there, and the Tarpon mayor presented Clarence and the coach with ceremonial keys to the city.

"A million thanks to the very best owner in the NFL for this great win" the mayor read off the plaque he handed to Clarence. "Thank you so much."

So many fans showed up for the parade and rally, Clarence was prompted to ask, "Is anybody working today? I never saw so many people in my life."

Tornadoes owner Clarence Walker acted as emcee of the rally, calling players up one-by-one to say a few words, starting with Daunte Culpepper.

"It is truly a pleasure to see you all out here," a grinning Culpepper said as the crowd chanted his name. "You all are the best fans in the world. Thank God for the Fantasy League championship. We hope we'll be back here doing this again next year."

"We've been talking for the last two or three years about what it would look like when we brought this championship home, but I couldn't have imagined anything better than the scene that we just saw. And I just want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart," Clinton Portis said after being called to the microphone.

The star of the show, however, was Fred Taylor. Having missed the Monday night rally to spend an extra day in Jacksonville, the running back seemed determined to make up for lost time. After leading the crowd in a chant of "fantasy champs," Taylor, known for his mobility on the playing field, displayed surprising agility as he showed the crowd how to "rock the house."