With the Florida Gators 2010 spring practice now in full swing, there is plenty of newsworthy information around the program. Rather than publishing it all in long form, OGGOA thought it would be best to lay it out piece-by-piece. We continue this series with a look at team practice from Wed., March 31.

Absences/Injuries:
» Redshirt senior wide receiver Carl Moore no-showed practice Wednesday for his second-straight absence. The Gainesville Sun reported Monday that Moore was “seen leaving the field after practice [on Saturday] visibly upset.” Moore had been seen in the football offices earlier in the day. (More in the quotes section.)

» Redshirt sophomore cornerback Adrian Bushell participated in his second consecutive practice and once again did not wear pads (as expected). He will likely return to full activity on Friday. Head coach Urban Meyer suspended him from team activities for two weeks for grades and other off-the-field issues.

» Redshirt freshman wide receiver Andre Debose spent most of practice off to the side on a stationary bike. The team continues to bring him along slowly as he recovers from his hamstring injury. Debose is expected to be 100 percent healthy for fall practice, according to The Gainesville Sun.

» Redshirt senior running back Emmanuel Moody practiced Wednesday and looked good by all accounts, breaking off a few nice runs. He had been out of action for a few days with an injured ankle.

Check out more practice news, notes and interesting quotes…after the break!
Continue Reading » Gators spring practice news and notes – 03/31

Tags: Abram Elam, Adrian Bushell, Andre Debose, Brian White, Carl Moore, Carlos Dunlap, Deonte Thompson, Draft, Duke Lemmens, Earl Okine, Emmanuel Moody, Frankie Hammond, Gerald Christian, Janoris Jenkins, Jelani Jenkins, John Brantley, Jon Bostic, Jordan Reed, Matt Elam, New Orleans Saints, NFL, Omarius Hines, Steve Addazio, Urban Meyer

Five-star safety recruit Matt Elam (West Palm Beach, FL), formerly the prize of the Florida Gators 2010 recruiting class, has decommitted and pledged to play for the Florida State Seminoles. Elam, who appeared to waiver about his commitment throughout the entire recruiting process, reaffirmed his decision to play for the Gators numerous times over the last few months, most recently sporting a Florida jersey and declaring that he could not wait to enroll early in January. Now his jersey is garnet and gold.

“I just see better opportunity to come in and play and to have an impact as a freshman,” Elam told Warchant.com. “They have two of the best cornerbacks in the country and I just feel like I can go in there and help make that secondary even better. They got three two of the best players in the country and I see along of things changing. It was on my mind, but today I really made the decision. I was sitting down thinking like I can make a difference, if I go to Florida I really can’t make a difference at Florida I can just jump on the bandwagon. I want to make a difference and I see a lot of good things there.”

Head coach Urban Meyer was the main reason Elam planned to attend the University of Florida, as he has been close with the coach ever since Meyer recruited his brother Abram Elam (now with the Cleveland Browns) to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. When Meyer briefly resigned on Saturday before deciding to take a leave of absence from the Gators instead, Elam became very upset.

“I feel like he knew before Saturday that he wanted to step down,” Elam Orlando Sentinel. Dorsey will visit the Tennessee Volunteers on Jan. 14, a trip scheduled before Meyer’s announcement. He has long been considered one of the most likely Gators commitments to decommit.

Photo Credit: Ray Graham, Palm Beach Post

Tags: Abram Elam, Demar Dorsey, Dwyer, Florida State Seminoles, Gerald Christian, Jack Daniels, Matt Elam, Robert Clark, University of Florida, Urban Meyer

Much has already been said about Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer’s resignation, and it has only been hours since he has decided to step down from the program. Many of Meyer’s players, former players, peers and friends have already released statements about their thoughts and feelings about the situation.

Check out the sporting world’s reaction to Meyer’s announcement after the jump!!!
Continue Reading » Sporting world reacts to Meyer’s resignation

Tags: Abram Elam, Al Horford, Alabama Crimson Tide, Atlanta Hawks, Bobby Bowden, Cleveland Browns, Dan Mullen, Florida State Seminoles, Gary Patterson, Houston Nutt, Lane Kiffin, Les Miles, LSU Tigers, Mack Brown, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Nick Saban, Ole Miss Rebels, Taurean Green, TCU Horned Frogs, Tennessee Volunteers, Texas Longhorns, Tim Tebow

Five-star safety recruit Matt Elam has been a Florida Gators commitment for more than a year. Yet over that period of time, questions regarding the solidity of that promise have been many, not assisted by Elam’s repeated statements that he wanted to go on other recruiting trips and was considering a handful of other universities as he remained committed to the University of Florida. During Elam’s official visit to Gainesville, FL, this weekend, he donned a No. 22 blue Gators jersey in the Florida locker room and looks to be as committed as ever with a huge smile on his face. Elam has already filled out his admissions paperwork, but he must wait to submit it until he is officially graduated from Dwyer High School. He has planned to be on campus in January for spring practice in order to get a leg up on next season.

UPDATE: If that wasn’t enough, the picture above is now Elam’s facebook profile photo.

UPDATE II: On the WPTV late local news Sunday night, Elam and his brother Abram (Cleveland Browns safety) were interviewed. Elam did a Gator Chomp and reaffirmed his commitment to the Gators yet again. “I saw a lot of great things at all the places I’ve visited, but I made a commitment for a reason,” Elam said.

Tags: Abram Elam, Cleveland Browns, Dwyer, Matt Elam, University of Florida

Five-star Florida Gators safety commitment Matt Elam called himself only “85 percent committed” to the team on Tuesday, one day after telling a reporter from Rivals that the Gators had nothing to worry about in regard to his commitment.

“Though I made a verbal commitment to Florida last year to take the pressure off me, my brother [Cleveland Browns safety Abram Elam] thought it would be a good idea to take some visits anyway, just in case,” Elam said in a blog entry on his brother’s Web site. “So the recruitment is still going on, and I’m getting attention from a lot of different schools. Other schools I’m looking at are Tennessee, West Virginia and Georgia.”

While this blog entry comes straight for Elam, I am taking his comments with a grain of salt at this point. Especially considering just a day or two ago, Elam told Rivals that “[Florida] don’t have any reason to worry. I’m going to Florida.” Elam has reaffirmed his commitment on numerous occasions, including again today on his facebook page (“I AM GOING TO UF! I love to have p[eo]pl[e] thinking!”), that backing away from the Gators at this point is simply not likely. Couple that with his family’s relationship with head coach Urban Meyer, and Elam is all for the Gators as far as I am concerned. The “85 percent” statement may rub some (including the Florida coaching staff) the wrong way, but let’s be honest: Who is really 100 percent sure about anything as an 18-year-old high school student?

Photo Credit: Jim Rassol, Sun-Sentinel

Tags: Abram Elam, Cleveland Browns, Matt Elam, Urban Meyer