When I last spent relaxed time with Butch Davis it was 1997, at one of those nice events coaches attend. Butch, Colorado State coach Sonny Lubick and I decided to play a round of golf together, each lamenting the state of our neglected swings. Without thinking, Sonny and I walked to the white tees and rolled our power shanks into the vicinity of the ladies' tees. Butch hesitated, then made a request unprecedented in the annals of "coachgolf."

"Do you guys mind if I hit from the blue tees?" he asked.

"Blue tees?" We chuckled and acceded, clueless. With no warmup, Butch launched the ball 300 yards, dead center of the fairway. This he continued to do all day, complemented by a reasonable short game. When we marvelled, he shrugged. "Aw, I just played all the time when I was a kid."

It was surreal -- the guy is gifted, blessed with talent and character that transcends games, but allows him to function at an unusual level when he does play, or coach.

Knowledgeable observers of the college game have long assumed that Butch's brand of discipline, integrity and no-nonsense football would improve Miami's poor image in the academic, compliance and decorum areas. In question was his ability to win big, to go the distance without falling prey to the nonsense of past regimes. As surely as he grooved that golf swing as a kid, he locked in a value system with his football program and drove the green with his 2000 team.

Pundits will wax eloquent for decades on the premise that the Hurricanes should have played in the computer generated BCS Championship game vs. Oklahoma. Owing to a personnel shortage, ESPN Radio afforded this analyst the rare opportunity to be present, and on the air for both the Rose and Sugar Bowls. So I meticulously studied Washington and Miami, then helped describe their performances vs. good Purdue and Florida teams.

The next night I carefully watched every play of the Orange Bowl. Of the top four teams in the BCS rankings, Oklahoma, FSU, Washington, and Miami, only one displayed the balance, discipline, and power in all phases we expect from national champs -- the University of Miami. Miami was the best team I saw this year. Butch's mission accomplished.

For those who wonder at the Davis' decision criteria, consider the following: John McKay and John Robinson of USC, Dan Devine of Missouri, Tommy Prothro and Dick Vermeil of UCLA, and Dick McPherson of Syracuse are among a long list of top coaches who left secure positions to climb the highest mountain in the football range. As a group, their NFL results never approximated those of their college careers, and yet the allure remains. Even Bear Bryant, Eddie Robinson and Joe Paterno, our three biggest collegiate winners, have confessed to being drawn very close to the NFL precipice. So what's the deal?

Here's the deal -- this type of competitor is not interested in security. This type of man is interested in challenge, the measuring of his game against the best, at the highest level, and there are times when the temptation to take on the ultimate is just too strong.

Read the comments of top players like Joaquin Gonzalez, the academic all-American, and understand that these players understand. There is no surprise, but rather the sense that they are proud of him, and that his time with them has only increased their chances of following.

Bill Curry is a college football analyst for ESPN.