New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez has been questioned by Massachusetts State Police as part of a homicide investigation.

Though Hernandez is “not believed to be a murder suspect,” according to Sports Illustrated‘s sources, ABC News reports that “investigators are seeking a warrant to search Hernandez’s home in connection with the death.”

Hernandez resides in North Attleboro, MA. The body of a 27-year-old male, described by ABC News as an “associate” of Hernandez, was found less than a mile from his home on Monday at approximately 5:30 p.m.

Additionally, a 2013 Chevrolet Suburban rented in Hernandez’s name “has emerged as a key piece of evidence in the investigation,” according to SI.

ABC News, citing two sources, reports that Hernandez has not been cooperating with police; however, SI, citing “a source close to Hernandez,” notes that he has at least spoken with authorities seeking information about the murder.

Hernandez has been a limited participant in Patriots offseason activities as he is recovering from shoulder surgery. New England’s fourth-round selection in the 2010 NFL Draft, he missed six regular-season games in 2012 and finished the year with 51 receptions for 483 yards and five touchdowns.

Neither Hernandez, his lawyers nor the Patriots have released a statement.

Photo Credit: John Biever/Sports Illustrated

Florida Gators rising sophomore guard Michael Frazier officially made the 12-man cut for the USA Basketball 2013 Men’s U19 National Team led by head coach Billy Donovan and set to compete in the 2013 FIBA U19 World Championship from June 27-July 7 in Prague, Czech Republic.

Though the final roster was supposed to be announced on the last day of training camp (June 19), Donovan wanted to get the decision out of the way in order to make sure the Americans had as much practice time as possible before leaving the country.

“Getting down to 12 is the real hard part because in a lot of respects we easy could have kept 14-15,” Donovan said. “There were some tough decisions, difficult decisions, but I think we feel overall that we have selected an athletic and versatile team.

“Our style of play will be an aggressive, up-tempo, running, pressing style. From an execution standpoint we’ve got to get better there, a lot of the other teams over there have been together for quite some time and that’s probably a strength of their teams, so we felt that we have to rely on some athleticism.”

He continued: “Getting [the final cuts] behind us now and going forward we can get our guys focused on being the best team. I think the focus up to this point of time by them has been ‘make the team,’ ‘make the team,’ ‘make the team,’ and we’ve got to now move it towards trying to win.”

Continue Reading » Frazier makes USA Basketball U19 team, joins Donovan at 2013 FIBA World Championship

Head coach Billy Donovan only holds a pledge from one member of the 2014 recruiting class but has already added the Florida Gators‘ first 2015 commitment when, as first reported by FOXSports.com’s Evan Daniels ($), power forward Kevarrius Hayes (Live Oak, FL) decided on Monday to join the program.

“We came down to Gainesville together last week for a visit and he loved it,” Hayes’s high school coach and University of Florida alumnus, Jeremy Ulmer, told InsidetheGators.com‘s Russ Wood ($). “Florida was his dream school and he told me he was ready. I called Billy Donovan and told him that Kevarrius had something to tell him, then I handed him the phone.”

Hayes, who recently participated in the Nike Elite 100 basketball camp from June 3-9 in St. Louis, MO, was named Suwannee High School’s Defensive Player of the Year for the 2012-13 season. He has drawn comparisons to current Gators PF Will Yeguete for his strong defense and ability to clean up offensively around the basket.

Like Yeguete did as a high schooler, Hayes plays travel-league basketball for head coach Tom Topping and Nike Team Florida. Hayes joins Yeguete, Walter Hodge, Nick Calathes, Chandler Parsons, Scottie Wilbekin and DeVon Walker as recent or current Gators that previously played under Topping.

During his sophomore season at Suwannee, Hayes averaged 11.3 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks per game. Rivals lists him as a three-star prospect (the company’s 2015 rankings have not yet been released), while ESPN currently has him ranked him as a four-star and the No. 58 overall player in the Class of 2015.

Hayes (6-foot-9, 190-pounds) also had early interest from Alabama, Kansas State and Miami. Florida assistant coach Matt McCall, his primary recruiter, helped reel him in.

According to the Suwannee Democrat, he boasts a 3.0 grade point average, served as president of his sophomore class last school year and hopes to attend medical school so he can become a surgeon. He is also a member of the track and field team and currently holds the school record in the high jump.

“Kevarrius has everything it takes to be a major [Division I] player. He has athletic and academic ability, a positive attitude and a great work ethic,” Ulmer told the Democrat on June 12. “He is everything a coach could ask for in a player.”

1 » Florida Gators sophomore linebacker Antonio Morrison was released from Alachua County Jail on his own recognizance Monday, nearly 36 hours after he was arrested and charged with a first-degree misdemeanor for simple battery. Morrison, accused of punching a bouncer outside Kava Bar and Hookah Lounge at 1007 W. University Ave. on Sunday morning, is being represented by attorney Huntley Johnson. “At this point, he would enter a plea of not guilty,” Johnson told The Gainesville Sun’s Kevin Brockway after his client was released, “but we need to talk to witnesses [first].”

2 » Gators senior point guard Scottie Wilbekin, indefinitely suspended by head coach Billy Donovan on June 10 for a violation of team rules, will not be rejoining the program any time soon. “Right now, he needs to prove that he wants to be part of the team and that this is what he wants to do,” Donovan told Brockway on Monday. “He has to take care of responsibilities. At this point, I don’t really want to address any more about his status until the season starts in October. Hopefully this is something he can learn from.” Wilbekin was suspended at the start of the 2012-13 season for a similar violation of team rules; he missed three games but eventually returned to his role as Florida’s starting point guard. Wilbekin is currently barred from the team practice facility as part of his indefinite suspension.

Donovan also commented to Brockway on the status of a waiver that will be submitted to the NCAA by Rutgers transfer guard Eli Carter, who is looking to play immediately for UF in 2013-14, and the academic eligibility of five-star power forward Chris Walker (Bonifay, FL). Both are works in progress.

CLICK TO EXPAND and read two more BITS in this post.

Through the 2013 NBA Draft on June 27, former Florida Gators forward Erik Murphy, the team’s leading three-point shooter last season (.453), will be keeping you up-to-date on his Path to the Draft via a weekly blog entry here on OGGOA.

Murphy got in touch with OGGOA on Friday to discuss three more workouts he participated in over the last week. He has at least five more to go, possibly more, before the process concludes next week.

Picking back up from last time I checked in, last Friday I had a workout with the Cleveland Cavaliers. It followed the same format that most of the others did, but it was definitely the hardest one due to the length, intensity and the type of drills they had us running. The focus was mostly on skill work with some shooting at the end. What stood out the most from Cleveland was that it was the nicest facility I have been in so far.

After the workout, I met with Žydrūnas Ilgauskas – the Cavs’ assistant general manager – and other members of the front office. It was a good experience all-around; I definitely had a good experience there.

I got back to Las Vegas, NV, later on Friday and took Saturday off. [Editor’s Note: Murphy is training with Impact Basketball in Las Vegas.]

On Sunday and Monday, I did some light workouts, nothing too strenuous, because I found out I was flying to Portland, OR, Monday night for a workout with the Portland Trailblazers that was added to my schedule for Tuesday.

Continue Reading » Erik Murphy – Path to 2013 NBA Draft: Workouts II

1 » Former Florida Gators golfer Billy Horschel (+5) finished in a four-way tie for fourth place at the 2013 U.S. Open at the Merion Golf Club over the weekend, earning $291,406 and 120 FedEx Cup points after a strong showing in the event. Horschel hit all 18 greens in regulation – the first time a competitor has accomplished this feat at the U.S. Open since the statistic began being recorded 20 years ago – while registering a three-under 67 on Friday. He shared the lead with Phil Mickelson entering the weekend but posted rounds of 72 and 74 on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, to fall out of first place and finish four strokes back of eventual winner Justin Rose. Horschel has now registered 10 top-10 victories in 16 events so far in 2013. He won the Zurich Classic in New Orleans, LA back in April and has missed one cut. Horschel entered Thursday fourth in the 2013 FedEx Cup standings and is now fifth with 1,413 points and approximately $3 million in winnings. Players ahead of him include Tiger Woods, Matt Kuchar, Brandt Snedeker and Mickelson.

2 » WEEI 93.7 FM revealed over the weekend that former Gators quarterback Tim Tebow was nearly drafted by the Los Angels Angels out of high school. “We wanted to draft him,” said former Angels scout Tom Kotchman, “but he never sent back his information card. Either it never got to him, or… It’s Tim Tebow. Who knows if it got to him, and if it did we just never got it back. Otherwise we were going to take him.” Had Tebow decided to concentrate on baseball, he would have been projected as a Round 7-12 pick with six-tool potential and great left-handed power. “It was just easy for him,” said Boston Red Sox scout Stephen Hargett. “You thought, ‘If this guy dedicated everything to baseball like he did to football, how good could he be?’”

Updated: Monday, June 17 at 11 a.m.

The quiet and incident-free offseason in Gainesville, FL is no more as Florida Gators sophomore linebacker Antonio Morrison was arrested early Sunday morning for first-degree misdemeanor simple battery after allegedly striking a bouncer.

According to Gainesville Police, Morrison and a group of men visited Kava Lounge at 1007 W. University Ave. and inquired about the cost of entering establishment. The bouncer at the front door told him the price and explained he would not be receiving a discount, information that caused Morrison to become enraged.

“Don’t you know who I am? I am a UF football player! I am Antonio!” he responded, according to the official police report.

When Morrison was again told he would have to pay full price, he allegedly threw a “closed fist” and connected “on top of the left side of [the victim's] head” before leaving the scene.

Morrison was positively identified and had his identity confirmed at the scene by a witness.

After being read his Miranda rights at his on-campus dorm, he admitted to being at Kava Lounge and getting into a “scuffle” with the victim though he contended that it was not a “big deal.” Morrison, 19, also admitted to being intoxicated at the time of the incident and therefore did not remember much of what transpired.

He was booked at 6:03 a.m. into Alachua County jail, where he remains in custody.

A four-star rated prospect in 2012, Morrison appeared in all 13 games for Florida as a true freshman, starting three contests. The early enrollee out of Bolingbrook, IL finished with 34 tackles (2.0 for loss), a sack and a forced fumble, receiving SEC All-Freshman team honors at the season’s end.

His most notable play of the year came when he appeared to knock out and force a fumble from Florida State quarterback E.J. Manuel during a rivalry game on Nov. 24.

Morrison was listed as the starting middle linebacker on the Gators’ post-spring practice depth chart released by head coach Will Muschamp on April 24 and is expected to be a dynamic contributor to Florida’s defense in 2013.

“Coach Muschamp is aware of the situation and handling the matter,” said senior associate athletics director and team spokesman Steve McClain in an official statement released to the media.

Update – June 17 at 11 a.m.: According to the Orlando Sentinel, Morrison will be released without bond at approximately 1 p.m. on Monday. Attorney Huntley Johnson, who represents most Florida student-athletes, told the paper that it could take anywhere from two weeks to two months for Morrison’s case to be resolved.

1 » Former Florida Gators striker Abby Wambach scored her 156th career international goal on a penalty kick in stoppage time on Saturday as the U.S. Women’s National Team defeated Korea Republic 4-1 in a friendly. Wambach moves within two goals of former teammate Mia Hamm, whose 158 international goals are a worldwide record for either gender. The United States and Korea will square off again on Thursday as Wambach looks to close the gap even further.

2 » Former Gators golfer Billy Horschel, who entered the 2013 U.S. Open ranked fourth on the FedEx Cup standings, is tied for fifth at +1 entering Sunday’s fourth and final round at Merion in Ardmore, PA. Horschel shot a 67 on Friday, becoming the first player in at least 20 years to hit the green on all 18 holes in a U.S. Open event. He followed his dominant performance with a 72 on Saturday and is now two shots back of leader Phil Mickelson (-1). Horschel hopes to win his first professional major in style as he will be donning these pants on Sunday (2:47 p.m. tee time).

Check out two more BITS of Florida Gators news…after the break!
Continue Reading » FOUR BITS: Wambach, Horschel, Zunino, Moultrie