In light of the last few months, it’s easy to make fun of Plaxico Burress. Really, really easy. Ludicrously easy. But according to the ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION, one group will always see him as much more than Mr. “Plaxidental Shooting”: The Florida Gators.

That’s Louis Murphy, above, about 2 seconds before pointing up at his mother. Let me explain. He’s the leading receiver for Florida, who’s gearing up for Thursday’s title game against the Oklahoma Sooners. Up until this season (his senior year), he hadn’t accomplished much for coach Urban Meyer and company; his career totals in his first three years were 39 catches for 590 yards and six scores. Worse, he had spent time in Meyer’s doghouse for sundry minor discipline problems. Worse, after Murphy’s mother passed away on Valentine’s Day at age 47 of breast cancer, Murphy’s performance suffered greatly during spring practice. But the comfort that Murphy desperately needed came in the unlikely form of one Plaxico Burress:

Just as thoughts of quitting the team crossed his mind, Murphy got a call from Giants receiver Plaxico Burress, who is friends with several Gators through a hometown connection with Percy Harvin.

Burress called Murphy just to check in, but ended up being a shoulder for Murphy to cry on.

“We got to know the real Plaxico,” said Louis Murphy Sr., a pastor at Mount Zion Progressive Missionary Baptist Church in St. Petersburg, Fla. “All I know is the Plaxico that reached out to my son and tried to encourage him when he was going through a rough time.”

Burress eventually got Murphy in touch with fellow Giants WR David Tyree, who himself lost his mother just a couple months before the ridiculous helmet-catch that helped lead the Giants to their Super Bowl win over the Patriots. Tyree gave Murphy the type of advice you’d expect: faith in God, use football as an outlet, etc. (what if he’d given him just horrible advice, like “heroin makes the pain go away”? I digress), and Murphy is enjoying his best season to date. After each of his six touchdowns this year, Murphy has pointed up to heaven in honor of his mother, a practice he’s likely to continue in the NFL next season.

Best yet, this wasn’t just a one-off favor; Tyree is still close with the entire Murphy family:

Over Christmas break, the Murphys threw a graduation party for Louis at his father’s church. Murphy wasn’t expecting any surprises, but Tyree attended as a special guest speaker. He spoke about how proud he was of Murphy for persevering, and to watch out for the pitfalls that come with NFL celebrity.

“It brought tears to my eyes and joy to my heart,” Murphy said. “For David Tyree, out of everybody, to come to my graduation, it meant the whole world.”

Such is the duality of a conflicted man like Plaxico. This is a remarkable story that took place long before he was in need of some positive PR, but never came out because, well, he wasn’t in need of positive PR. And now it’s the Murphys and Gators singing his praises, not his agent. Is it going to change the fact that he got wrecked at a strip club without spending a dime then shot himself in the leg? No, that’s never going away. But it does serve as a reminder - even to us at SbB - that rarely, if ever, is a man’s life and personality perfectly encapsulated by one bad act, no matter what the “if it bleeds, it leads” media narrative may lead us to believe.