No happy reunion for Sapp, Middleton

From ill feelings as teammates to Sunday's confrontation, these two just don't get along.

By ROGER MILLS, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published January 22, 2003

SAN DIEGO -- For four seasons, teammates Frank Middleton and Warren Sapp butted heads at One Buc Place and played football too.

One was an offensive guard with a playful disposition and a sarcastic tone. The other was a defensive tackle with a mean streak and a meaner mouth.

Back then, they made no bones about their differences. It was Middleton vs. Sapp, or Sapp vs. Middleton, depending on whom you talked to.

"We battled all the time," Sapp said of Middleton, who signed with the Raiders two seasons ago. "Me and the big fella have been grinding since he got there. I watched him develop into the player he is now. I just consider him a mauler. That's the way he likes to play the game. He's just a big old country boy from Texas.

"We used to always talk about it being Texas football against Florida football. He would always say Texas football is better than Florida's and you know I'm not having that. We went at it for four years and it won't be any different Sunday. ... He's a mauler, I am who I am."

On Tuesday, Sapp and Middleton showed no restraint, fired a few compliments and landed some jabs at each other. In the end, they left hordes of national and international media convinced their matchup Sunday will be one of the Super Bowl's most intriguing.

"We had a nice little marriage," Middleton said. "Some days it was good, some days it wasn't so hot. We were married for four years and now we're divorced and somebody has got to pay the money. If we win Sunday, I'm going to get a nice alimony check ... in diamonds."

Guard/center Todd Washington, the only current Bucs offensive lineman who played with both, said there was an obvious difference in philosophy between the men.

"There is a little bit of a grudge going on between them," Washington said. "It could be personal, because we don't know what has happened between them on the field. I learned a lot from Frank and I know he's a fierce competitor. He taught me a lot before leaving. And Warren, well Warren is the ultimate competitor. The stage is going to be set for those two."

Sapp, listed at 302 pounds, poked fun at Middleton's girth. Middleton generously is listed as 330 pounds but reportedly is closer to 360.

"Yeah, Frank is a space eater," Sapp said of Middleton's eating habits. "I'm big, but not that big."

Middleton chose another approach.

"Sapp has his own ways of doing things," he said. "I don't care. I don't have to like what he does off the field. I only had to like what he did on the field. He was a hard worker. He's fast, athletic and strong. He's the total package so I guess it's going to be two maulers going at it in the alley."

Sapp and Middleton soaked up all the electricity of their first appearance at Qualcomm Stadium as Super Bowl opponents and delivered other memorable punch lines.

Drafted in the first round in 1995, Sapp has emerged as a premier defensive tackle. The 1999 defensive player of the year said he remembered the anguish of the losing seasons and the days of former owner Hugh Culverhouse.

"Culverhouse took the profits of the Bucs and put it into all of his other businesses he had," Sapp said. "You talk to some of the guys he had and they said one time he came into the locker room and said he found some money. What do you mean, "Found some money?' He should have been putting that into the program ... he would have had a better product on the field."

Middleton, who was selected by the Bucs in the fourth round in 1997 and started 50 of 63 games, had his own take on why the Bucs did not re-sign him after the 2000 season.

"I talked to (former) coach (Tony) Dungy and he told me it wasn't his call, it was (general manager Rich) McKay's call," Middleton said. "So, I let things work the way they work. McKay had a plan. I guess he wanted to play with the worst offensive line in the league and I gave him his opportunity. He knows. They say you don't miss a good thing until it's gone. I've been hearing a lot of crying about the Tampa Bay offensive line, so I like that."

Trash talk and venom aside, Sapp and Middleton acknowledged one man is going to try to get to Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon and the other is going to do everything he can to stop it.

Their potential matchup could provide a significant subplot to the outcome.

"Individual matchups can win ball games," Sapp said. "If that's the individual matchup that they are counting on in their favor, then let's do it."

Added Middleton: "When I started blocking Sapp in practice was when I knew I could play in this league. He gave me that confidence to know I could go on. He's one of the best in the league. When I moved on against other guys, it was kind of easy for me. He helped me to get where I am now."