1 » Both the Florida Gators and Alabama Crimson Tide have two games to play before their inevitable showdown in the Southeastern Conference Championship game in December. While head coaches Urban Meyer and Nick Saban both emphatically claim that they are worried about their upcoming opponents (FIU and Chattanooga this week, respectively) and are not looking ahead, Chris Low of ESPN.com thinks otherwise. “Who genuinely believes that Alabama and Florida are doing any extensive planning for their opponents this week?” he ponders.

2 » Senior quarterback Tim Tebow continues to pile up the award nominations. On Wednesday, he was named one of five finalists for the 2009 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award. Given to the top senior college quarterback in the nation, the Golden Arm Award has never been able to be awarded to Tebow, who has won a Heisman Trophy and two Maxwell Awards while Sam Bradford (Oklahoma) took home the other Heisman in the same time span. Tebow also remains in contention as one of 15 finalists for the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award.

3 » OGGOA has been singing the praises of juniors defensive end Carlos Dunlap and cornerback Joe Haden as well as senior middle linebacker Brandon Spikes in regard to their 2010 NFL Draft status. Jeremy Fowler of the Orlando Sentinel points out that the Gators could lose a plethora juniors in addition to their senior class, should some of them choose to declare. Prominent names on that list (aside from Dunlap and Haden) are tight end Aaron Hernandez, offensive linemen Maurkice and Mike Pouncey, Marcus Gilbert and Carl Johnson, safety Major Wright, defensive lineman Justin Trattou and running backs Chris Rainey and Emmanuel Moody. The majority of the aforementioned players will most likely not declare, in our opinion.

4 » Florida basketball (1-0) returns to the court Wednesday night at 7 p.m. against the Georgia Southern Eagles (1-1) at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. The game will air live on FOX Sports Florida – check your local listings for availability. All game and broadcast information is always available on OGGOA‘s Basketball page.

Tags: Aaron Hernandez, Alabama Crimson Tide, Brandon Spikes, Carl Johnson, Carlos Dunlap, Chris Rainey, Draft, Emmanuel Moody, Golden Arm Award, Heisman Trophy, Joe Haden, Justin Trattou, Lawrence Marsh, Major Wright, Marcus Gilbert, Maurkice Pouncey, Maxwell Award, Mike Pouncey, NFL, Nick Saban, Sam Bradford, SEC Championship, Tim Tebow, Urban Meyer, Walter Camp Player of the Year Award

1 » One Southeastern Conference coaching relationship that is surprisingly both polite and friendly is that between Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer and South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Steve Spurrier. Both spoke to the media on Wednesday and exchanged pleasant comments about their respective opponents. Meyer said he respects the appreciation Gators fans have for Spurrier and still sees his success all over The Swamp. “It’s always going to be there,” Meyer said. “Just walk out of the stadium and look on the wall at a bunch of great stuff Coach has done. I think it’s still there, and it should be.” Spurrier said he still roots for Florida when he is not going head-to-head with the Gators and thinks that the team is playing perfectly fine. “Sometimes they were so good last year, maybe [they] haven’t been quite as proficient I guess, scoring as many points,” he said. “They score when they have to and they’ve won all their close games.”

2 » Another tidbit Spurrier dropped on the media Wednesday was that injured defensive end Cliff Matthews, who had previously been ruled out with a shoulder injury, could return to face Florida on Saturday. Matthews was running around at practice on Monday; if he does play, it would allow South Carolina to revert back to the 4-3 formation that it has gotten away from since he initially got hurt.

3 » Junior defensive end Carlos Dunlap continues to skyrocket up ESPN analyst Mel Kiper’s NFL Draft Big Board. Moving up from No. 7 last week to No. 4 on Wednesday, Dunlap’s “physical tools are off the charts” and he is potentially filled with “unlimited upside,” according to Kiper. [OGGOA has long held that Dunlap will easily be a top five selection and potentially the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.] Also on the list are junior cornerback Joe Haden, who held down the No. 11 spot for a second consecutive week, and senior middle linebacker Brandon Spikes, who dropped one spot to No. 25. Kiper believes Haden is a “polished cover corner with tackling ability to match,” while he says Spikes is a “complete MLB, solid in all areas.”

4 » Following a less than stellar performance against the Vanderbilt Commodores, Florida Gators senior quarterback Tim Tebow once again lost the top spot in the Scripps Howard Heisman Trophy poll. Though he accounted for two touchdowns in the game, Tebow fell to No. 3 on the list, earning three first-place votes. Ahead of Tebow were Alabama Crimson Tide running back Mark Ingram (4) and Houston Cougars QB Case Keenum (3), while Texas Longhorns QB Colt McCoy (0) and Stanford Cardinal RB Toby Gerhart (0) rounded out the top five. Voting tabulations are made on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis, with each voter ranking a top five.

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Brandon Spikes, Carlos Dunlap, Case Keenum, Cliff Matthews, Colt McCoy, Heisman Trophy, Houston Cougars, Joe Haden, Mark Ingram, NFL, SEC, South Carolina Gamecocks, Stanford Cardinal, Steve Spurrier, Texas Longhorns, The Swamp, Tim Tebow, Toby Gerhart, Urban Meyer

Four-star cornerback John Fulton (Manning, SC) will be taking a trip to the University of Florida for an official visit this Saturday when the Florida Gators take on the Vanderbilt Commodores. Fulton is currently favoring his hometown South Carolina Gamecocks and Alabama Crimson Tide. With Florida already having a plethora of cornerback commitments, he may just be doing his due diligence.

More football, basketball and volleyball recruiting news after the jump…
Continue Reading » Recruiting visits for Vandy, update on Knight

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Berkley Whaley, Brandon Knight, Connecticut Huskies, Ian Silberman, Jaylen Watkins, Jeff Luc, John Fulton, Joshua Shaw, Kansas Jayhawks, Kentucky Wildcats, LSU Tigers, Miami Hurricanes, Michael McFarland, Ohio State Buckeyes, South Carolina Gamecocks, Trey Burton, University of Florida, Vanderbilt Commodores, volleyball

Following a rousing win against the Georgia Bulldogs where he accounted for four touchdowns, Florida Gators senior quarterback Tim Tebow regained the top spot in the Scripps Howard Heisman Trophy poll that he had previously held for the entire season. Earning three of 10 first-place votes, Tebow jumped Alabama Crimson Tide running back Mark Ingram (4), Houston Cougars QB Case Keenum (3), Notre Dame Fighting Irish QB Jimmy Clausen (0) and Texas Longhorns QB Colt McCoy (0). Voting tabulations are made on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis, with each voter ranking a top five.

OGGOA readers can cast their vote for Tebow to win the Heisman Trophy by visiting THIS LINK! Fans receive one official vote as a group in the selection process.

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Case Keenum, Colt McCoy, Heisman Trophy, Houston Cougars, Jimmy Clausen, Mark Ingram, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Texas Longhorns, Tim Tebow

Rather than write you a long, worthless introduction, just go ahead and make the jump for a ton of recruiting news on the following recruits: Matt Elam, Jeff Luc, Chaz Green, Christian Green, Chris Dunkley, Kardon Boone, James Louis, Cody Riggs, Lamarcus Joyner, Sharrif Floyd and Ronald Powell.

Continue Reading » Status updates for UF’s top recruiting prospects

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Chaz Green, Chris Dunkley, Christian Green, Cody Riggs, Florida State Seminoles, Georgia Bulldogs, James Louis, Jeff Luc, Kardon Boone, Lamarcus Joyner, Lane Kiffin, Matt Elam, North Carolina Tar Heels, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Ohio State Buckeyes, Penn State Nittany Lions, Ronald Powell, Sharrif Floyd, South Carolina Gamecocks, Texas Tech Red Raiders, University of Florida, Urban Meyer, USC Trojans

In this week’s Scripps Howard Heisman Trophy poll, Florida Gators senior quarterback Tim Tebow fell out of the top spot he has held since the beginning of the season. Earning only two of 10 first-place votes (he had six last week), Tebow fell to fifth behind Alabama Crimson Tide running back Mark Ingram (4), Notre Dame Fighting Irish QB Jimmy Clausen (1), Houston Cougars QB Case Keenum (1) and Texas Longhorns QB Colt McCoy (1). Voting tabulations are made on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis, with each voter ranking their own top five. This is the closest the Heisman race has been in the Scripps straw poll all season.

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Case Keenum, Colt McCoy, Heisman Trophy, Houston Cougars, Jimmy Clausen, Mark Ingram, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Texas Longhorns, Tim Tebow

1 » Volleyball (16-3, 10-2 SEC) continues to roll through the SEC as the No. 10/11 Florida Gators swept the Ole Miss Rebels (8-14, 2-10 SEC) in straight sets (25-18, 25-13, 25-16) on Sunday in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Sophomore right-side/setter Kelly Murphy continues her stellar play and recorded a match-high 14 kills. Florida goes on the road to Tuscaloosa, AL, to square off against the Alabama Crimson Tide on Oct. 30 at 8 p.m.

2 » The No. 12 Florida soccer team (13-4-2, 7-1-2 SEC) defeated the Arkansas Razorbacks (8-6-4, 2-6-2 SEC) Sunday afternoon on the road at Razorback Field by a 1-0 margin. The victory puts Florida in first place in the conference heading into its final match of the regular season Friday, Oct. 30 against No. 10 South Carolina Gamecocks.

3 » The Gators women’s swimming and diving team won the 2009 SMU Classic in Dallas, TX, on Saturday, finishing in first-place with 353 points ahead of the Louisville Cardinals, Wisconsin Badgers, Southern Methodist Perunas, Florida State Seminoles and Rice Owls. The rest of the team that did not compete in that event were also victorious on the weekend, taking down both Arkansas and the Kansas Jayhawks in double-dual on the road in Fayetteville, AK.

Continue Reading » FOUR BITS: Soccer rolls; Volleyball wins; Swimming dominates; Tennis in finals

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Alexandre Lacroix, Allie Will, Antoine Benneteau, Arkansas Razorbacks, Connor Smith, diving, Florida State Seminoles, Georgia Bulldogs, ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships, Kansas Jayhawks, Kelly Murphy, Laura Vallverdu, Lauren McCreless, Louisville Cardinals, Miami Hurricanes, O'Connell Center, Ole Miss Rebels, Rice Owls, SEC, SMU Classic, soccer, South Carolina Gamecocks, Southern Methodist, swimming, tennis, University of Florida, Vahid Mirzadeh, volleyball, Wilson/ITA Southeast Regional Championship, Wisconsin Badgers, Yale University

1 » Florida Gators sophomore cornerback Janoris Jenkins knows he played terrible Saturday against the Arkansas Razorbacks. Yes, he let wide receiver Greg Childs amass 135 yards on him including a 75-yard touchdown. But that was also the worst game he’s had his entire Florida career, and he is confident that he will be able to rebound. “[Janoris] told me that was one of the worst games he ever had in his life,” running mate Joe Haden said. “I told him, ‘Don’t worry about it.’” Jenkins had 39 tackles and three interceptions his freshman season and has already followed that up with 37 tackles and two more receptions so far in 2009. “[Janoris] knows it’s a whole new week, and you can expect a real good game out of him,” Haden said.

2 » Fifth-year senior safety Dorian Munroe, after sitting out the entire 2008 season with a torn ACL, was expected to return to the Gators two weeks ago when the team visited Baton Rouge, LA, to take on the LSU Tigers. Unfortunately, Munroe injured his meniscus during the preseason and has been forced to miss additional time. Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald inquired about Munroe’s status and was told by Haden that he was “walking around” at practice on Tuesday. Goodman believes Munroe may be able to resume playing against the Georgia Bulldogs in two weeks.

Continue Reading » FOUR BITS: Jenkins takes blame; Munroe still out; Patterson speaks on UF; Grant on Donovan

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Anthony Grant, Arkansas Razorbacks, Billy Donovan, Dorian Munroe, Draft, Georgia Bulldogs, Greg Childs, Janoris Jenkins, Joe Haden, Kentucky Wildcats, LSU Tigers, Marreese Speights, NBA, Orlando Magic, Patrick Patterson, Philadelphia 76ers, Virginia Commonwealth