When each September rolls around, die-hard college football fans everywhere have the same thought: “This is our year.”

However sincere that belief may be, at the end of the season there can only be one winner and a whole lot of also-rans. Despite that reality, I was convinced this was the year for my beloved Florida State Seminoles.

Well, you know what ‘Noles say. “You can’t stop the chop.”

At the end of our undefeated season, I, like thousands of other fans, was dying to get my hands on one of the “golden” tickets for the BCS National Championship game. However, as an 18-year-old college student, I knew my chances weren’t looking too great. I resigned myself to the fact that I would be watching the season’s final game on ESPN like everyone else, and began waiting for January 6 to finally get here.

That is, until I read an email sent out to the employees at Sachs Media Group, where I am an intern. The email said the grand prize in the firm’s annual Christmas-time “Cut-Throat Gift Exchange” would be nothing less than two tickets to the National Championship in Pasadena, California! Ron Sachs had secure tickets, and would also provide a stipend to help offset some expenses – always welcome on a student’s budget.

It had to have been a sign, right? I mean, how serendipitous does it get? I entered the raffle, although I thought I sensed a bit of hesitancy among my co-workers, considering I was just an intern who had only been at the firm for one semester and all. But everyone knew the odds were against me as a volunteer selected a name. And that name was … mine!

My jaw hit the floor.

I couldn’t believe it. It was like the planets aligned and fate smiled down on me all at once. Not only would I be going to the game, but I would get to bring someone else with me. Ron was even kind enough to offer my buddy and me the chance to work at an event he was hosting at his home, so we could make some extra money for the trip.

And so I got to see it all. I saw Florida State steal a victory in the final seconds. I got the see the famous “Hollywood” sign. My friend and I even had a few (delicious) celebratory In-N-Out burgers after the game. The game was great, the trip amazing – but the memories I made in those few days are what will stay with me for the rest of my life. And for that, I want to thank Sachs Media Group and everyone else who made this entire trip possible.

Most of all, I would like to thank Ron Sachs for not only giving me the opportunity to go the National Championship Game, but also for the privilege to intern at one of the most outstanding and prestigious media firms in the entire state. Thank you for a semester I will never forget and all of the life experiences that came with it.

Ron may be a Gator from Miami, but he is a friend and mentor to this ‘Nole.