1 » Florida Gators basketball (2-0) looks to keep on rolling as they take on the Troy Trojans (2-0) Friday at 7 p.m. in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Shooting a combined 3-for-29 (10.3%) from behind the arc, the Gators are bucking a trend head coach Billy Donovan set upon his arrival to Gainesville, FL. Florida has traditionally been among the best in the Southeastern Conference in three-point shooting percentage as Donovan has made it a priority both in his recruiting and game plans. “I think for guys like Kenny [Boynton] and Erving [Walker], it is probably somewhat uncharacteristic,” Donovan said. “They have been shooting the ball well in practice. Chandler [Parsons] and Dan [Werner] are guys that maybe have been a little more up and down in their careers.”

2 » There’s plenty of other Gators sports action on the docket for the weekend. Men’s and women’s swimming & diving begin their participation in all-day weekend tournaments Friday. Women’s basketball (1-1) faces the No. 25 Pittsburgh Panthers (1-0) in Pittsburgh, PA, on Friday, and No. 13/13 volleyball (20-4, 14-3 SEC) heads to Knoxville, TN, to serve against the Tennessee Volunteers (20-7, 13-4 SEC) – both matches are scheduled for 7 p.m. Volleyball will then travel to Lexington, KY, to take on the Kentucky Wildcats (26-2, 16-1 SEC) on Sunday at 2 p.m.

3 » Senior middle linebacker Brandon Spikes has been named as one of the five finalists for the 25th annual Butkus Award honoring the nation’s top linebacker. Other finalists include Rolando McClain of the Alabama Crimson Tide, Sergia Kindle of the Texas Longhorns, Sean Weatherspoon of the Missouri Tigers and Eric Norwood of the South Carolina Gamecocks.

4 » Redshirt juniors running back Emmanuel Moody (sprained ankle) and defensive tackle Terron Sanders (rib/back) have been ruled out for the Florida International Golden Panthers game on Saturday. According to head coach Urban Meyer, senior defensive end Jermaine Cunningham is “50-50” for the game with an unspecified injury. This is a good week to rest any banged up players prior to the regular season finale against the Florida State Seminoles next weekend.

Tags: Billy Donovan, Brandon Spikes, Butkus Award, Chandler Parsons, Dan Werner, diving, Emmanuel Moody, Erving Walker, Florida International Golden Panthers, Florida State Seminoles, Jermaine Cunningham, Kenny Boynton, Kentucky Wildcats, O'Connell Center, Pittsburgh Panthers, SEC, swimming, Tennessee Volunteers, Terron Sanders, Troy Trojans, Urban Meyer, volleyball, women's basketball

1 » Florida Gators senior middle linebacker Brandon Spikes was announced as a quarterfinalist for the Lott Trophy honoring the nation’s Defensive IMPACT Player of the Year. The Lott Trophy is the first college football award to equally recognize athletic performance and the personal character attributes of the player. Attributes associated with this award include (I)ntegrity, (M)aturity, (P)erformance, (A)cademics, (C)ommunity and (T)enacity. Spikes has a legitimate shot to win this honor, his second nomination after being named a Butkus Award semifinalist last week.

2 » Mississippi State Bulldogs beat writer Kyle Veazey, of The Clarion Ledger, will speak with OGGOA later in the week. Today, he posted a story going in-depth on the relationship between Bulldogs head coach Dan Mullen and Gators senior quarterback Tim Tebow. In fact, while at Florida, Mullen had an open door policy at his home with Tebow; the quarterback was over his house often playing games and eating dinner. On Sunday, Mullen called Tebow “the greatest player in the history of the game.” He continued, “I think Tim Tebow is someone who lives his life trying to improve the lives of people around him. That’s what makes him special.”

Tags: Brandon Spikes, Butkus Award, Dan Mullen, Lott Trophy, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Tim Tebow

Senior middle linebacker Brandon Spikes has had a rough start to his final season with the Florida Gators. Diagnosed with Achilles tendonitis, Spikes has been taking pain injections and limping – both literally and figuratively – through practices and games all year. He seemed to have overcome his injury two Saturdays ago, tallying 11 tackles, three sacks and a forced fumble against the then-No. 4 LSU Tigers.

That performance earned Spikes an SEC Defensive Player of the Week honor as well as nominations to the 2009 Rotary Lombardi Award and Butkus Award watch lists. He was looking to follow it up with a strong game this past weekend against the Arkansas Razorbacks on homecoming weekend in The Swamp.

Instead, Spikes aggravated a groin injury that some believe he first suffered during practice on Wednesday. He came out of the game immediately and was in street clothes when the second half began. Even so, head coach Urban Meyer, during his weekly Monday afternoon press conference, has declared Spikes probable for Saturday’s game at the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

[UPDATE:] Meyer also spoke about defensive end Justin Trattou, who injured his biceps tendon during the Arkansas game. Trattou is listed as doubtful for Saturday.

OGGOA will keep you updated on Spikes’ health and status throughout the week.

Tags: Arkansas Razorbacks, Brandon Spikes, Butkus Award, Justin Trattou, LSU Tigers, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Rotary Lombardi Award, The Swamp, Urban Meyer

Florida Gators senior middle linebacker Brandon Spikes was announced as a semifinalist for the 25th Annual Butkus Award honoring the nation’s top linebacker.

Spikes is one of 16 NCAA student-athletes to be named to the list and stands a legitimate shot to win the award should he continue playing well through his nagging Achilles tendonitis injury.

Tags: Brandon Spikes, Butkus Award