Nick O'Leary clicked on the video. He couldn't help himself, even after he was able to walk away from the motorcycle accident in May.
O'Leary watched the video and came away with the same conclusion as everyone else: "Lucky."
The Florida State junior tight end was riding his motorcycle down Mission Road near campus when he crashed into a Lexus that had pulled out from a side street. O'Leary saw the car, and he also saw a city bus in the other lane.
There was no time to slow down.
"I was seeing if I could get through the bus and the car," O'Leary said.
There wasn't enough room, O'Leary judged. So he had two options: hit the car or swerve and either hit the bus or go under it.
"I dove over the car," O'Leary said. "I made the choice to hit the car."
O'Leary went flying, approximately 75-100 feet. His motorcycle broke up and hit the bus.
He was wearing a helmet, which he said was damaged but not badly, and he suffered just scrapes on his knee and hands. Amazingly, O'Leary walked away from the accident and was treated and released from the hospital.
"I didn't really think anything was wrong at first," said O'Leary, a grandson of golf legend Jack Nicklaus. "I walked off like normal. After that my leg started hurting a little bit, adrenaline started going down, then it started to kick in once I got to the side of the road."
O'Leary's left ankle was bruised and he spent time in a walking boot. He
wasn't able to run for a month, but O'Leary gradually improved and he
returned to practice with the team on Aug. 6 – like nothing had happened
in May.
O'Leary said he had been riding motorcycles for about a year. But after talking with family members, he has decided to drive something with four wheels.
"I'm done with them," O'Leary said of motorcycles. "At least until I'm done playing football."
That may not be for some time. O'Leary, a Scout.com five-star prospect from West Palm Beach, caught 21 passes for 252 yards and three touchdowns last season as the Seminoles' starting tight end.
Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher knew about the accident, of course. But when the video was posted online, he also couldn't help but watch it.
"He's lucky," Fisher said. "God has a plan for him. Very blessed."
Contact Bob Ferrante at bobferrante17@gmail.com
or follow on Twitter @bobferrante.
