New England Gators eye title

<p>INDIANAPOLIS — The first time Jermaine Cunningham, Aaron Hernandez and Brandon Spikes joined forces on a football field, they helped lead the Florida Gators to a national championship.</p><p>Now they're together again on the biggest stage in football – Super Bowl XLVI – trying to add another Lombardi Trophy to the New England Patriots ever expanding cache of collectibles. Gerard Warren, an 11-year NFL veteran and fellow Gator alum, is along for the ride.</p><p>“It's a blessing to see the different generations of Gators be on the same team and actually in the Super Bowl,'' Warren said.</p><p>Along with the New York Giants' Justin Trattou, it's the largest gathering of Gators in one Super Bowl in the history of the game, surpassing the previous mark of three in Super Bowl XXXIV (Kevin Carter, Jevon Kearse, Zach Piller), Super Bowl XXXV (Lomas Brown, Ike Hilliard, Jeff Mitchell), Super Bowl XXXVI (Brown, Mo Collins, Kenyatta Walker) and Super Bowl XL (Darrell Jackson, Marquand Manuel, Max Starks).</p><p>Cunningham, the former Florida defensive end, will be a spectator at this championship as he nurses a hamstring injury that landed him on injured reserve in December. Warren's played sparingly in his first season with the Patriots, but his rotation in New England's defensive line has rejuvenated the veteran, who first entered the league in 2001 as the Cleveland Browns' first-round draft pick (third overall).</p><p>“As a man, off the field it's a journey still,'' said Warren, who played at Union County High School. “On the field, it's always like high school. Basic fundamentals and technique will take you everywhere you need to be in the game of football.''</p><p>Spikes and Hernandez have enjoyed higher profile careers with the Patriots. Selected in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft, Spikes started in six games this season before an injury sidelined him. The former Gators All-American returned to action in the postseason.</p><p>Not much has changed for Spikes in his short stint as a pro player, including his signature pink suit he sported to big Gator games. He wore it at the Patriots send-off pep rally in Boston.</p><p>“I haven't changed my game one bit,'' he said. “I approach the game every time like, ‘Just play hard,' like every snap is my last.”</p><p>Hernandez, the Patriots 2010 fourth-round selection, and Rob Gronkowski have redefined the role of tight ends in the league. Their lethal two-tight end sets have the Giants defenders scrambling to game plan against them.</p><p>“You dream of stuff like this since you're a little kid,'' Hernandez said of playing in the Super Bowl. “I remember doing the media day in college. I was looking around then just thinking how crazy that was. Now, I'm in the Super Bowl and thinking how crazy this is. It's crazy.''</p>