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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Quarterback Luke Del Rio had a chance to attend his first Florida-Georgia game last season. He had tickets. Decent seats, too. He even made the hour-and-a-half trip from Gainesville to Jacksonville to tailgate beforehand.But as kickoff approached, Del Rio headed to a friends house to catch the action.To be honest, Id rather be on the field or watch it on TV, Del Rio said Monday.On Saturday, he wont have a choice. Del Rio will return to Jacksonville, where he spent a big chunk of his formative years, and take center stage in one of the Southeastern Conferences most storied rivalries.No. 14 Florida (5-1, 3-1 SEC) has won two in a row and 20 of the last 26 in the series against Georgia (4-3, 2-3). But this will be Del Rios first even though he spent nearly a decade hanging out with NFL players in and around the stadium.Yeah, yeah, a lot of very good memories, he said. Growing up there for eight-and-a-half, nine years, being able to play with my dad and watch his team compete on that field is really special. We still have a game to win, but it will be fun to be back there.He also has a chance to give the Del Rio family as many wins at the Jaguars EverBank Field in two weeks as the hometown team has there in the past 12 months. Luke Del Rios father, Jack, celebrated a 33-16 victory at Jacksonville on Sunday. It was his first game there since the franchise fired him with five games remaining in the 2011 season.Now, its the younger Del Rios homecoming turn.Hopefully, the Del Rio family can go 2-0, you know, back-to-back weeks, he said. Its kind of interesting the way it worked out.Del Rio struggled in his return from a sprained left knee against Missouri on Oct. 15. He completed 18 of 38 passes for 236 yards, with a touchdown and three interceptions.He looked rusty, but then again, it was only his fifth collegiate start.Yeah, Im learning a lot every game, good or bad, just having fun out there, he said. I kind of have to pinch myself sometimes because I remember in high school I would just pray in bed, `Just let me play football at some level in college, and Im the starting quarterback for the Florida Gators. So Im tremendous, tremendously blessed and thankful that Im in this opportunity and this situation.Del Rio spent most of high school in the Jacksonville area. And much of his spare time, especially during summers and on Sundays, was spent around the Jaguars.Luke and Jack played catch often on the practice field, and the elder Del Rio even has a picture of them sharing a moment after the Jaguars beat Denver -- along with then-backup quarterback and former Florida star Tim Tebow -- in the 2010 season opener in Jacksonville.That was one of the special moments in my coaching career just being able to have my son there, had a big hug and embraced after the game and just a good moment, Jack Del Rio recalled last week.With the Raiders staying in Florida to train before playing at Tampa Bay on Sunday, Del Rio plans to return to Jacksonville for his sons first Florida-Georgia game.Yeah, its really awesome the whole deal with Luke, the coach said. I think hes fought hard to keep his dream alive of playing big-time football. ... Im just glad to see him with such good people in a place where he feels comfortable.No doubt, Luke Del Rio feels comfortable in Jacksonville. He rattled off a number of former Jaguars who befriended him over the years, including star running back Maurice Jones-Drew and popular place-kicker Josh Scobee.But it wasnt always perfect. Jones-Drew used to skunk him in table tennis in the locker room, and Scobee once one-hopped a football into his eye while they were playing catch inside the stadium.I was like 8, my hands were late getting to the ball and the ball met my eye before my hands met the ball, Del Rio said. Black eye. My dad was like, `What happened to you? and I was like, `Ah, ran into a door or something like that because Scobee was a rookie, so he was like, `Dont tell your dad! Dont tell your dad! Ill get cut! 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COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. -- As Ken Griffey Jr. prepares to enter the Hall of Fame as a first-ballot inductee, hes throwing his endorsement behind another left-handed slugger who played for the Seattle Mariners organization in the mid-1990s.Griffey said that Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz, who broke into professional ball in Seattles farm system under the name David Arias from 1994 to 1996, absolutely merits a place in Cooperstown when he appears on the ballot five years after his retirement this fall.I got a chance to see him young, Griffey said at a news conference Saturday. He wasnt Big Papi. He was Thin Papi at that time. To watch him do the things hes done over the years, hes become one of the most feared hitters in all of baseball. Hes the one guy where you say, If were up by two, lets just walk him and go for the next guy. Hes got a chance to put a team up by three real quick.Hes done an incredible job in that city. Do I think hes a Hall of Famer? Absolutely. Just look at the numbers hes put up: Three (World Series) titles, and the list of his accomplishments on the field goes on. You cant take that away from him.Ortiz, 40, has announced that he will retire at the end of this season. He has 10 All-Star appearances on his resume and ranks 19th in MLB history with 5527 home runs and 23rd in RBIs with 1,720.ddddddddddddHis Hall of Fame candidacy is likely to spark debate because hes made 1,952 career starts at DH and only 264 starts at first base.Ortiz also has been the subject of PED speculation since a 2009 New York Times report that said he tested positive for steroids in 2003, when MLB was conducting anonymous survey testing as a step toward random drug testing in the game.Mike Piazza, who will enter the Hall of Fame with Griffey on Sunday, offered a more muted endorsement of Ortiz.Piazza spent four years on the ballot while dealing with steroid speculation before making it to Cooperstown with 83 percent of the vote.I think David Ortiz is one of the most charismatic players to come along in a long time, Piazza said. Putting his numbers aside, I think hes a great guy. Hes great for the city. Hes obviously very colorful and fun to watch.I agree with Kenny, but I also believe theres a process that you have to respect. I know there are going to be debates out there on numbers and everything. Not one size fits all. Its really an individual choice. You just have to respect the process and let it play itself out. ' ' '