It simply wasn't fair, was it?

In the first quarter of FSU's victory at North Carolina, Greg Jones took a handoff from Chris Rix on third-and-2 looking to get a first down. He cut to his left, sprinted around the corner and had an open field in front of him. Downfield, receiver Chris Davis was blocking his man.

And then Dexter Reid, the All-ACC safety and the nation's fifth-leading tackler a year ago, came into the picture.

"I saw the man coming and it was eye to eye," Jones said. "It was either him or me and it had to be him."

And, yes, it was definitely Reid who went airborne.

Jones finished off his 21-yard run in style, planting a firm hand in Reid's chest and shoving him out of the way. The collision knocked Reid's helmet off and knocked him three yards downfield where he landed on Davis' back.

"He didn't even hit the guy head-up -- he hit him with his arm, and his helmet flew off," Lorenzo Booker said. "He looked like a Mr. Potato Head -- all his parts just fell off."

The day after the game, FSU players re-told their version of "The Hit" with smiles on their faces.

"I can't believe he just did that," fullback B.J. Dean said with a look of shock on his face. "That's the only thing that ran through my mind. I don't know what to say. It was like a fly running into a transfer truck."

FSU players said they scrambled to see the replay on North Carolina's brand new video board on the scoreboard.

"I can't believe they replayed it," defensive end Kevin Emanuel said. "That's just cold, man. The crowd was like, 'Wooooo.' He was an All-American, I think.

"I just saw him on the screen and he got up with his helmet off and he looked like -- It looked like Greg was just trying to run out of bounds and the dude came up on him and Greg said, 'What? You want this?' And, boom, he knocked him out."

Willie Reid had to wait a day to get a view of the replay.

"I saw it on the JumboTron -- I tried looking at it, but they called a play and I had to go in," Reid said. "I just heard the crowd go 'Wooooo,' "

Defensive tackle Travis Johnson was asked what he would have told Dexter Reid if he was his teammate.

"You've got to sit down the rest of the game," Johnson said. "Don't go back out there. You don't want to go back out there after something like that happens. I just feel for the man, to tell you the truth."

Dean just shook his head when asked what he would tell his teammate in a situation like that.

"I … I … I wouldn't know what to tell him," Dean said after a long wait. "I'm speechless, man."

FSU coach Bobby Bowden seemed almost apologetic for the collision on Sunday.

"I think it wasn't all that big a deal, except that it was amazing," Bowden said. "It was just amazing that a guy has that much power. I'm sure when Greg ran the ball and when he unloaded, it wasn't with the idea to try to hurt this guy. It just shows his uncaptured power when he explodes."

Luckily for FSU players, that explosion is now being directed at opposing defenses. His teammates say they are happy to see other people catching his fury.

"I don't think Greg understands how strong he is," Booker said. "There ought to be a law against that guy.

"We were doing a pass-protection drill, and Greg usually goes with the fullbacks. But Leon was nursing an injury, so I'm with Greg. I took one hit, and I'm out the back of the end zone."

Willie Reid said he can only dream about running with the power that Jones showcases.

"Everybody wishes they could do what Greg can do," Reid said. "But only a few can do it."

That one explosion from the North Carolina game is now firmly a part of Jones' legacy at FSU, but Emanuel said that single highlight will follow Dexter Reid around for a long time.

"He just made G's Draft Day, I know that much," Emanuel said. "You know that's the first thing they are going to show when G gets drafted. It's going to be that guy's helmet flying off."