Location: Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium – Omaha, NE [Capacity: 23,170]
Game Time: 4:30 p.m. (EST)

TV: ESPN2 / ESPN2HD
Online: ESPN3.com
OGGOA Live Updates: via Twitter

HISTORY / RECORDS:
» Florida State leads the all-time series against Florida 119-96-1; however, the Gators have a 3-0 record against the Seminoles in the NCAA College World Series and are 10-3 against them (including seven of the last eight) in the NCAA Tournament.
» The two teams will be squaring off for the fifth time in 2010 with every game taking place in a different city. FSU is 3-1 this year against UF, winning in Tampa, Jacksonville and Tallahassee; Florida won at home.
» O’Sullivan, throughout his time in Gainesville, is 4-7 against the Seminoles; 3-0 at home, 1-3 in Tallahassee and 0-4 at neutral sites.
» The last time these teams played in the NCAA Tournament, the Gators fell 17-11 at the 2008 Tallahassee Regional.
» Florida’s 47 wins this season is the program’s highest victory total since the 2005 team, which finished as a runner-up in the CWS and a record of 48-23.
» The Gators are 14-12 on the road and 2-5 at neutral sites in 2010.
» Florida has outscored opponents 434-282 this year, is 36-4 when scoring first and 11-12 when their competition does so. They are also 34-3 when registering more hits than their opponent and 10-13 otherwise.
» The Gators are undefeated when leading after six innings (41-0), seven innings (44-0) and eight innings (43-0), but only 1-16 when trailing after six, 2-15 when losing at the end of the seventh and 3-15 when down through eight.
» Senior outfielder Matt den Dekker is two stolen bases away from tying the school record of in the NCAA Tournament (David Eckstein, 6, 1994-97).
» Junior second baseman Josh Adams and senior OF Jonathan Pigott are each three doubles away from tying the school record of career doubles in the NCAA Tournament (Jeff Corsaletti & Justin Tordi, 6, 2002-05 & 2003-05).
» Sophomores first baseman Preston Tucker and OF Tyler Thompson are each three home runs away from tying the school record of career homers in the NCAA Tournament (Mario Linares, 7, 1988-91).

KEEP AN EYE ON…
» Freshman sensation Austin Maddox…a third baseman who can play three other positions, has garnered numerous awards while leading the Gators in RBI (71), multiple-RBI games (21), home runs (17) and slugging percentage (.591).
» den Dekker…a speed demon leading UF with a 23-for-30 conversion rate on stolen bases, he is tied for fifth on the program’s career list with 66 stolen bags and leads the 2010 team in batting average (.355), runs (65) and hits (87). He is also on an eight-game hitting streak.
» Freshman shortstop Nolan Fontana…who is hitting at a .333 clip through six NCAA Tournament games with nine walks, seven runs, three RBI, two doubles and a homer.
As of the beginning of the College World Series…
» Junior closer Kevin Chapman (3-0)…has a team-low 1.48 ERA (42.2 innings) in 30 appearances. He is tied for second in the SEC with 11 saves. As a team, Florida’s 18 saves are have tied the team’s single-season record (1991).
» The Gators bullpen…which is 17-2 with 18 saves and a 4.18 ERA in 243.1 innings, while its starters are a combined 30-13 with a 3.78 ERA in 304.2 innings.

Tags: ACC, Austin Maddox, baseball, College World Series, Florida State Seminoles, Hudson Randall, Jonathan Pigott, Josh Adams, Kevin Chapman, Kevin O'Sullivan, Matt den Dekker, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Nolan Fontana, Preston Tucker, SEC, Tallahassee Regional, Tyler Thompson

Location: McKethan Stadium – Gainesville, FL [Capacity: 5,500]
Game Times: [1] Fri. – 7 p.m. (EST); [2] Sat. – 7 p.m.; [3] Sun. (if nec.) – 7 p.m.

TV: [1] ESPN/ESPNHD; [2-3] ESPN2/ESPN2HD
Online: ESPN3.com
OGGOA Live Updates: via Twitter

HISTORY:
» Miami leads the all-time series 124-97-1 over Florida but has a losing record in Gainesville, FL, with UF leading 60-45-1.
» The Gators are making their fourth Super Regional appearance in school history – all have been within the last seven years. The Hurricanes will play their 10th Super Regional, last beating the Orange & Blue in the event with a two-game sweep in 2004.
» Florida is 28-9 (.757) at McKethan Stadium during NCAA play, sweeping the Gainesville Regional two years in a row and knocking Miami off in 2009.
» The Canes have won the head-to-head NCAA match-up 12 of 17 times, ending the Gators’ season on eight different occasions.
» Florida faced Miami in a three-game regular season series in Coral Gables, FL, earlier in 2010, winning two of three games (7-1, 6-9, 4-2) for the first time since 2007.
» Gators head coach Kevin O’Sullivan is 5-6 against the Hurricanes all-time, 3-6 during the regular season and 2-0 in NCAA play.
» Strength of schedule: Florida’s was third in the country, trailing Miami and Alabama.

KEEP AN EYE ON…
» Gators starting pitchers…sophomore Alex Panteliodis (10-2, 3.39), freshman Hudson Randall (8-3, 2.97) and freshman Brian Johnson (6-4, 3.97) are a combined 16-2 (.889) with a 2.40 ERA at McKethan Stadium in 2010.
» Freshman sensation Austin Maddox…a third baseman who can play three other positions, has garnered numerous awards while leading the Gators in RBI (68), multiple-RBI games (20), home runs (17) and sacrifice flies (five).
» Sophomore first baseman Preston Tucker…who leads Florida in batting average (.375, 15-40) over the last 10 games with eight RBI, five runs and five extra-base hits (two homers). He also is tops on the team with 16 doubles on the year.
» Senior outfielder Matt den Dekker…a speed demon leading UF with a 23-for-29 conversion rate on stolen bases, he is tied for fifth on the program’s career list with 65 stolen bags and leads the 2010 team in batting average (.361), runs (62) and hits (84).
» Junior closer Kevin Chapman (3-0)…has a team-low 1.28 ERA (42.1 innings) in 29 appearances. He is tied for second in the SEC with 11 saves. As a team, Florida’s 17 saves are one shy of the team’s single-season record (1991).
» The Gators bullpen…which is 16-2 with 17 saves and a 4.20 ERA in 240 innings, while its starters are a combined 29-13 with a 3.86 ERA in 289 innings.
» The ACC Player of the Year…junior catcher Yasmani Grandal leads Miami (and the ACC) in batting average (.411) slugging percentage (.729) and on-base percentage (.538). He is also tops on the Hurricanes in hits (88) and total bases (156), and second in home runs (14) and RBI (58).
» UM’s junior starter Chris Hernandez (10-3)…who is the team’s most dominant pitcher and a flame thrower, leads the ACC in ERA (2.77) and wins.

STREAKS:
» The Gators’ 45 wins so far in 2010 is the program’s highest victory total since the 2005 NCAA College World Series runner-up team finished 48-23.
» Florida is currently riding a 13-game home winning streak.
» The Gators have outscored opponents 420-266 in 2010, are 34-4 (.895) when scoring first and 11-11 (.500) when their opponents do. Florida is 33-3 (.917) when out-hitting opponents and 9-12 (.429) the other way around. UF is also 9-3 (.750) in one-run games, 39-0 when leading after six innings, 43-0 aver seven and 42-0 after eight.
» Florida has committed an SEC-low 50 errors in 60 games and boast a .978 fielding percentage – good for tops in the conference and seventh nationally.
» The Gators’ season totals of 107 doubles and 80 home runs are the most since the 2005 team (113 and 85, respectively).
» Florida is batting .311 against left-handers and .299 against righties.

Tags: ACC, Alex Panteliodis, Austin Maddox, baseball, Brian Johnson, Chris Hernandez, College World Series, Gainesville Regional, Hudson Randall, Jim Morris, Kevin O'Sullivan, Matt den Dekker, McKethan Stadium, Miami Hurricanes, NCAA, Player of the Year, Preston Tucker, SEC, Super Regional, Yasmani Grandal

1 » Speaking about the Florida Gators coaching staff to The Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson, Miami Hurricanes three-star freshman linebacker Kevin Nelson (Gainesville, FL) decided to rip his hometown team. “Grimy, two-faced and disrespectful,” Nelson called the coaches. He also accused them of what some might call dirty recruiting by saying the coaches told him that “Miami hasn’t won any ACC championship[s] since going to the ACC, and that [head coach] Randy Shannon is going to leave after this year, and that I might not get any playing time.” Nelson claims he rejected an offer from Florida (many believe it was pulled), but also says he has always been a Miami fan.

2 » Canes three-star freshman cornerback Devont’a Davis (Gainesville, FL) added that the Gators disrespected him because they did not extend an offer to him – a hometown player and fan of the team. “It offended me that they didn’t make an offer because I’m the best cornerback in Florida and live down the street,” he said. This follows-up what he told Rivals on Sept. 21. “I’m real disappointed in Florida,” Nelson said of not having an offer at the time. “They didn’t even invite me to the Tennessee game, so that was very disappointing to me. So even if they do offer me, I’m out.”

3 » A former Florida commitment, five-star safety Demar Dorsey left the program just before National Signing Day, though the specifics of that split are still hazy. Dorsey claimed he decommitted, but it is widely believed that the Gators stopped recruiting him due to a variety of concerns (juvenile arrests) not including academics. He was expected to sign with either the Florida State Seminoles or Michigan Wolverines and eventually chose the latter. New reports out of Ann Arbour, MI, state Dorsey is out as a member of the incoming class even though he qualified academically with the NCAA. ESPN called him “in limbo.” Dorsey would have the choice to go to another program with an open scholarship (the Seminoles are rumored) or sign with a junior college.

4 » Former Florida guard Orien Greene has been suspended for two years by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency for tamping with urine samples he submitted for a drug test while playing professional basketball in Amsterdam. Greene allegedly used another person’s urine when providing his sample. However, he only has a year of suspension remaining because he was initially suspended on March 12, 2009. Greene started his college career with the Gators before transferring to Louisiana-Lafayette. He played for Sacramento, Indiana and Boston in the NBA before playing in Europe.

Tags: ACC, Demar Dorsey, Devont'a Davis, Florida State Seminoles, Kevin Nelson, Miami Hurricanes, Michigan Wolverines, National Signing Day, NBA, NCAA, Orien Greene, Randy Shannon, U.S. Anti-Doping Agency

1 » Florida Gators sophomore offensive tackle Matt Patchan has had a tough time getting on the field since his arrival in Gainesville, FL. Suffering a gunshot in his shoulder before donning the Orange and Blue, Patchan also dealt with a bout of mono, right shoulder surgery and a torn left pectoral muscle early in his career. Then, he injured his knee after falling off of a scooter and pulled a hamstring. It looked like he would finally be healthy for the 2009 season, and he was until tearing his ACL after the fourth game of the season. Jeremy Fowler of the Orlando Sentinel reports that Patchan is doing well and should be able to return to action this year even though he will not be participating in spring practice beginning March 17. “He just needs to get better,” his father Matt Patchan, Sr. told Fowler. “After that, everything will take care of itself and he can act naturally on the field. But we’re very pleased with how the knee has responded.”

2 » In order to reduce the gray area in the “indisputable video evidence” clause in the NCAA rulebook, the Southeastern Conference has decided to add high definition televisions to its instant replay booths beginning with the 2010 college football season. The Big Ten and Big 12 have joined the SEC in adding HDTVs, while the ACC is still considering it. “I think it’s a good move,” said national coordinator of football officials David Perry. “Sometimes a guy at home with high definition was getting a better view of the replay than the guy in the stadium at the booth.”

Tags: ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, instant replay, Matt Patchan, NCAA, SEC

Location: RBC Center – Raleigh, NC [Capacity: 19,722]
Time: 3:00 p.m. (EST)

TV: FSN/SUN
Online: GatorVision
XM: 199

Odds: EVEN, O/U “OFF”

KEEP AN EYE ON…
- Players scoring in double-figures…four Gators starters and one bench player are all averaging double-digit points. Freshman guard Kenny Boynton averages 14.2 ppg while junior forwards Alex Tyus and Chandler Parsons, redshrit junior center Vernon Macklin and sophomore point guard Erving Walker all average 11.9-10.3 ppg.
- Tyus…who is averaging 16.8 points and 8.5 rebounds over the last four games.
- Assists…Boynton and Walker have 109 assists to just 49 turnovers this season.
- N.C. State forward Tracy Smith…who leads his team in scoring and rebounding with averages of 17.2 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.
- Three-point line…in Florida’s 10 wins, the Gators are holding teams to 24.5 percent shooting and 4.2 makes from behind the arc; in their three losses, the opposition is shooting 39.5 percent from three (5.7 makes per game).

STREAKS:
- Florida trails the all-time series against N.C. State 6-3; however, the Gators have won the last two meetings including a 68-66 victory last year in Gainesville, FL.
- Under head coach Billy Donovan, Florida is 16-9 against the ACC, 3-0 in last three.
- The Gators are 5-0 this season when nabbing double-digit steals.
- Florida is 29-5 in the month of January since 2005 and has not dropped its first game of the New Year since 2005. The Gators went 7-2 in January 2009.

Read OGGOA’s Florida Gators vs. N.C. State Wolfpack preview after the jump!
Continue Reading » Gameday: Florida Gators vs. N.C. State Wolfpack

Tags: ACC, Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Kenny Kadji, N.C. State Wolfpack, Ray Shipman, RBC Center, SEC, Sidney Lowe, Tracy Smith, Vernon Macklin

While No. 1 Florida Gators football prepares to close out its regular season against the in-state rival Florida State Seminoles on Saturday, three other UF teams want to set the stage for a week of Gators domination. It begins Tuesday night at 5 p.m., when the swimming & diving teams square off against FSU in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center Natorium. The day’s events do not stop there as Florida basketball (3-0) takes on Florida State (3-0) immediately after the swimming & diving match-up at 7 p.m.

The 61st meeting between the two teams, Florida leads the all-time series 38-22 though Florida State has won three straight and four of the last five meetings. FSU won 57-55 last year in Tallahassee, FL with now-senior forward Ryan Reid scoring 13 points. Reid now has a chance to become the first Seminoles basketball player in school history to beat the Gators four straight times. “That would be a good thing,” Reid said. “But it’s just another opportunity to play basketball and also get a good win on the road. I’m not really trying to get caught up in beating them four years in row. We’re just going to try to go hard.”

In order to pull out a much needed victory against FSU, Florida must play physical. The Seminoles bring one of the biggest frontcourts in the nation into the O’Dome, led by center Solomon Patton (7’1” 251 lbs.). “They are probably going to be one of the biggest and longest teams we will have played against,” head coach Billy Donovan said. “We have some guys who can hopefully match up. We don’t have anybody the size of those guys or the length of those guys, but neither do most teams in the country so it’s not like we’re drastically undersized playing against them.”

For Florida State, the key will be scoring on the gators defense, which has carried it to three straight wins so far this season. Florida is holding its opponents to just 51.0 points per game and held its first two opponents under 50 points for the first time since the 1949-50 season. The Gators finished 18-2 at home last season and are 72-8 in the House of Horrors over the past five years. This is good for second in the nation behind the Memphis Tigers (77 wins).

The Seminoles return three starters from last year’s team that advanced to the first round of the NCAA Tournament. FSU head coach Leonard Hamilton was named ACC Coach of the Year and has a chance to improve his team to 4-0 on the 2009 season.

Junior forwards Alex Tyus (sprained ankle) and Chandler Parsons (hip flexor) are expected to play Tuesday night, though Donovan said Parsons does have a chance of being held out on a game-time decision. Parsons has been the spark the Gators needed off the bench this season, averaging 14.3 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds.

Tags: ACC, Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, diving, Florida State Seminoles, NCAA, O'Connell Center, Ryan Reid, Solomon Patton, swimming

Friday night, senior libero Elyse Cusack registered 11 digs and became the first player in school history and just the third in Southeastern Conference history to achieve 1,900 digs for her career. Combine that achievement with an outstanding performance from sophomore outside hitter Kristy Jaeckel – who had a team-high 10 kills – and you can understand how the No. 10/11 Florida Gators volleyball team 15-3, 9-2 SEC) swept the Arkansas Razorbacks (10-12, 4-7 SEC) 3-0 (25-12, 25-18, 25-16) in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.

Jaeckel’s had 12 digs of her own along with 10 kills on .500 efficiency to record her sixth double-double of the season. Florida is next in action on Oct. 25 when the Ole Miss Rebels come to Gainesville, FL, for a match set to begin at 1:30 p.m.

In other news… The University of Florida men’s swimming and diving team defeated the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 161-123 at the Georgia Tech Aquatic Center. The Gators improved to 2-0 this season in dual meets after being led to victory by strong freestyle performances. Florida is 2-0 against the Atlantic Coast Conference this season and will open SEC competition against the Georgia Bulldogs at home on Oct. 30 at 1 p.m. from the O’Connell Center Natatorium.

Tags: ACC, Arkansas Razorbacks, diving, Elyse Cusack, Georgia Bulldogs, Georgia Tech Aquatic Center, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Kristy Jaeckel, Natatorium, O'Connell Center, Ole Miss Rebels, SEC, swimming, University of Florida, volleyball