1 » Could former Florida Gators wide receiver Percy Harvin be sitting out the most important game of his young NFL career? If his sudden migraine flare-up continues, he just might. Harvin missed Minnesota Vikings practice on Thursday [and Friday] for the first time since returning from the Mayo Clinic in December. He had been headache-free for more than a month, but head coach Brad Childress indicated that the only thing that can cure Harvin is time. “I think it’s just a matter of trying to slow the onsets,” Childress said. “For a while he had them pretty often. We expect him to be OK.” Harvin has 60 receptions on the season, second on the team to Sidney Rice, and has become one of quarterback Brett Favre’s favorite targets on third down.

2 » Preparing for the 2010 Under Armour Senior Bowl and a future in the NFL, former Gators quarterback Tim Tebow has been working out in Franklin, TN, since last week at D1 Sports Training. Co-owned by Indianapolis Colts star QB Peyton Manning, D1 “specializes in making athletes faster, stronger, more agile and explosive while also building character,” according to the company’s mission statement. Tebow is working closely with former Georgia Bulldogs All-American QB Zeke Bratkowski, a 40-year playing and coaching veteran. “When they see him in person, how he moves and throws, his work ethic at the Senior Bowl, and his passion for the game, I think that is what is going to move him up on the draft,” said Kurt Hester, director of training for D1. Check out the full story by Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean.

Tags: Brad Childress, Brett Favre, D1 Sports Training, Draft, Indianapolis Colts, Mayo Clinic, Minnesota Vikings, NFL, Percy Harvin, Peyton Manning, Senior Bowl, Sidney Rice, Tim Tebow, Under Armour

1 » Florida Gators forward/center David Lee, in his fifth NBA season, is playing at an All-Star level. Averaging a career-high 18 points per game, Lee is also usually good for double-digit boards every game, putting him in the rare category of a player who averages a double-double on a nightly basis. Though New York Knicks fans have fallen in love with Lee, the organization is in danger of losing him after the season. Lee is currently on a one-year contract and is playing at a level so high that he could command top dollar after the 2009-10 season is in the books.

2 » Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin, who has been dealing with migraine headaches his entire life, recently visited the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, NY, for further examination. According to head coach Brad Childress, Harvin had a “good” visit and is back at practice ready to play on Monday Night Football against the Chicago Bears. “Yeah, it’s a relief,” Harvin said after returning from his doctor’s visit. “Without going into [specifics], we had a great visit and came up with a great plan. I saw great doctors and it should be good from now on. I’m all good.” Still, Harvin’s chronic migraines continue to have his coach, teammates and Gators and Vikings fans worried.

3 » Veteran NBA writer Steve Aschburner has written a terrific piece for NBA.com on the Oh-Fours. Centering on Atlanta Hawks forward/center Al Horford, the article suggests that he is “still the leader of [a] special group of Gators” also including Chicago Bulls F/C Joakim Noah, Minnesota Timberwolves F Corey Brewer and AEK Athens B.C. point guard Taurean Green. Aschburner’s article is an absolute must-read but here is just one quote from Horford: “We have a saying, the guys who came in with my class: ‘04’s For Life,’” Horford said. “Any time that we talk to each other or whatever, that’s always brought up. Jo will send me a text and [type it]. I’ll send the same thing to him or the other guys. We go all the way back to that. I think we’re the type of group, we’ve always been happy for each other. Back in college, we didn’t really care who was scoring 20. At the end of the day, we were winning and we were all doing it in a big way. I think we’ve kept the same attitude [in the NBA].”

4 » Looking at the most valuable teams in college sports, Forbes magazine found that the Texas Longhorns earned that distinction by raking in $59 million in profit in 2009 for a total valuation of $119 million. Behind the Longhorns, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Penn State Nittany Lions, Nebraska Cornhuskers and Alabama Crimson Tide are the Florida Gators – with a value of $88 million and $41 million in profits this year.

Tags: AEK Athens B.C., Al Horford, Atlanta Hawks, Brad Childress, Chicago Bulls, Corey Brewer, David Lee, Joakim Noah, Minnesota Timberwolves, Minnesota Vikings, NBA, New York Knicks, NFL, Oh-Fours, Percy Harvin, Taurean Green, Texas Longhorns

1 » Florida Gators wide receiver Percy Harvin has a well-documented history with migraine headaches, something the Minnesota Vikings knew when they drafted him in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Though Harvin’s migraines caused him to miss some practice and game time during his Gators career, they appear to have gotten more frequent over the past year. (At the very least, they are reported on more extensively because he is now under the NFL injury list and fantasy football microscope.) Vikings head coach Brad Childress has grown increasingly concerned about Harvin’s headaches, which have caused him to miss a lot of practice (and even a full game) over the past week. “We’re attempting to look into and see if there are any common denominators,” Childress said Wednesday. “He’s been having them for a good period of time. It’s important for us to get some kind of baseline if we can, doctor-wise, and yet still know that they are fairly unpredictable.” In addition to keeping Harvin out of practice, the migraines also prevent him from studying his team’s weekly game plan, something he must do in order to play effectively each week.

2 » Freshman offensive lineman Xavier Nixon, who has started Florida’s last four games at left tackle, was named to the 2009 Sporting News All-Freshman Team on Wednesday. Nixon is the first Gators true freshman to start at left tackle since 1992.

Tags: All-Freshman, Brad Childress, Draft, Minnesota Vikings, NFL, Percy Harvin, Xavier Nixon

The subject of a lot of debate leading up to the 2009 NFL Draft, former Florida Gators wide receiver Percy Harvin never took his eyes off the prize – even when it was revealed he tested positive for marijuana at the combine. While he was certainly a top 10 (if not higher) talent, Harvin’s fall to No. 22 overall may have been the best thing for his life and career. All you have to do is ask Minnesota Vikings future Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre and head coach Brad Childress; they will tell you that Harvin is a problem solver, not a problem starter.

ESPN.com senior writer Elizabeth Merrill went in-depth on Harvin and how he has adjusted to the NFL. OGGOA will highlight some of the article here, but if you want to check it out in its entirety, well, you have to head over to ESPN.

Harvin has emerged as one of the Vikings’ most trustworthy players. Whether the team needs a big-time return (he’s one of the best in the league) or a third-down conversion (Favre has looked his way 15 times, 13 for first downs), he is right there. Those are just two of the reasons he is the midseason favorite for NFL Rookie of the Year honors.

Favre and Harvin developed a close relationship right out of the gate, literally. Harvin was the first player to meet and introduce himself to the legendary quarterback upon his arrival in Minnesota. “Look forward to working with you,” Favre said. “Make me look good now.” It would not take long for Favre to build Harvin up. “I told him from day one, ‘Hey, you’re not a rookie.’ Don’t play like it. Don’t buy into it – because I don’t.”

Quickly coming to the realization that playing with Favre was “a chance of a lifetime,” Harvin still gushes to friends and colleagues every time the two speak. “Every time he texts me, it just shocks me,” Harvin said. “Brett Favre is actually texting my phone. It is humbling to know that a guy who’s done it all, who will go down as one of the best quarterbacks ever…still likes to help.”

This is all a long way from where Harvin was just a few months earlier when he learned about the positive marijuana test he triggered while impressing scouts with his on-field talent at the combine. First, he cried. Then, he looked inside himself and realized he made a bad decision. “I didn’t look at [smoking marijuana] and think of all the stuff or all the people that I might let down at the time,” Harvin said. “Of course, I thought about it afterwards. I was disappointed with myself. I had let myself down, my family down, the University of Florida down. So it was probably one of the worst days of my life. But I learned from it. I got back up, kept moving, ended up here and I’m having a great time.”

“Everything happens for a reason, good or bad. It turned out good for me.” It also happened to turn out quite nicely for the Vikings.

Tags: Brad Childress, Brett Favre, Draft, Minnesota Vikings, NFL, Percy Harvin

1 » Battling back from what was a potential career-ending back injury in 2007 and a torn knee ligament in 2008, Florida Gators redshirt junior defensive tackle Brandon Antwine is facing a long recovery once again. Antwine re-injured his shoulder against the Mississippi State Bulldogs two weeks ago and is considering season-ending surgery. “Your heart bleeds for him because he’s all Gator, he’s 100 percent in and he’s a really good player,” coach Urban Meyer said. “He’s fighting like a maniac.”

2 » Drawing the attention of Meyer this week is Vanderbilt Commodores kick returner Warren Norman. Norman, who as a freshman became only the second player in Southeastern Conference history to record three touchdowns on kickoffs in a season, can break the SEC all-time single-season kickoff return yardage record with just 51 more. “I’ve never seen a freshman return three kickoffs for touchdowns and it’s not against one of those smaller schools. It’s against SEC opponents,” Meyer said. Meyer wants to prevent that from happening, though considering the Gators are giving up 19.5 yards per kick return, he should be able to pass it in two or three attempts.

3 » In the opening round of the 2009 SEC Championship Tournament in Orange Beach, AL, the No. 8 Florida soccer team (15-4-2, 8-1-2 SEC) defeated the Tennessee Volunteers (8-9-3, 4-5-2 SEC) 1-0 in two overtimes. The one-seed in the tournament, the Gators will move on to face the the No. 15 South Carolina Gamecocks (16-3-1, 7-3-1 SEC) on Friday, Nov. 6 at 8:30 p.m.

Three more BITS on Kiffin, Georgia and Harvin after the jump…
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: Antwine’s injury, Vandy KR, soccer wins, Kiffin runs mouth (again), Harvin develops

Tags: Brad Childress, Brandon Antwine, Brandon Spikes, Georgia Bulldogs, Lane Kiffin, Mark Richt, Minnesota Vikings, Mississippi State Bulldogs, NFL, Nick Williams, Percy Harvin, SEC, soccer, South Carolina Gamecocks, Tennessee Volunteers, Tim Tebow, Urban Meyer, Vanderbilt Commodores, Warren Norman