For as much as the Florida Gators accomplished on the field in 2012 (check out Monday’s post), the Gator Nation was making plenty of news off of it as well. From crazy occurrences and strange decisions to receiving major awards and being involved in the biggest sports stories of the last 12 months, Florida was spread all over the sports landscape in 2012. Below are OGGOA‘s Top 12 Off the Field Stories of the Year.

12 » A WACKY YEAR, INDEED
For every major story and exciting moment that occurred in 2012, there were plenty of instances in which Gators fans could not do anything but shake their heads, furrow their brows or shrug their shoulders at something they just saw or heard. Below is a list-within-a-list of the 10 most absurd moments of the year (sorted chronologically). Don’t worry, the rest of these stories are much shorter, so keep reading.

(1) Right in the middle of spring practice on Feb. 17, with coaches raving about team chemistry and noting massive improvement from the previous year, junior safety Matt Elam tweeted out a picture that looks like junior defensive end Dominique Easley riding his scooter inside the Florida football facility and around the Gator Head the players touch before heading out to the field each week. (2) One week after playing his last game as a member of the Gators basketball team, then-senior point guard Erving Walker found himself in trouble with the law when he was charged on March 30 with two misdemeanors for allegedly stealing a taco from a street vendor and evading police in Gainesville, FL. (3) Need a lesson on how to turn off an employer? Veteran wide receiver Jabar Gaffney went off on an epic Twitter rant on April 12, sending out derogatory statements about his wife and cousin (fellow former Gators star cornerback Lito Sheppard) only to claim three hours later that his account was hacked. (4) What better way to honor your favorite player than to get your hair cut and designed to look like him? That’s what San Antonio Spurs fan Patrick Gonzalez did for forward Matt Bonner. Gonzalez’s hair cut nearly got him suspended from school on May 16, but it also got Bonner’s attention and resulted in a pair of tickets and a meeting at a playoff game. (5) After some rather mundane barbs went back-and-forth between Florida head coach Will Muschamp and Texas A&M Aggies head coach Kevin Sumlin over the summer, Mayor Nancy Berry of College Station, TX decided to post a comedic video of her poking good-natured fun at the former Texas defensive coordinator on June 1.

(6) Hours after taking home the first NCAA Outdoor Championship in program history on June 10, Gators track & field suffered a serious scare in the air when its plane suffered a cracked windshield at 37,000 feet and underwent a rough landing in Tuscaloosa, AL. The windshield shattered after the plane landed but everyone was OK. (7) How do you answer a quarterback controversy and answer questions about which signal caller is going to start the first game of the season? Start both of them! That’s what Muschamp did on Sept. 1 when sophomores Jacoby Brissett (quarterback) and Jeff Driskel (wide receiver) both came out with the starting offense on its first play from scrimmage against Bowling Green. (8) With Muschamp leading the team, he is sure to find his way on this list at least once per year. In a 13-day span, Muschamp made headlines by being himself. After Florida defeated LSU at home on Dec. 7, he decided to celebrate by crowd surfing over his own players in the locker room. Two weeks later, at halftime against South Carolina, Muschamp vented his frustration about the officiating to Brady Ackerman of the Gator Radio Network. He saw an official walking by as the teams headed to their respective locker rooms and made sure to make it known how upset he was at some of the calls in the first half. “Well, we just gotta continue to capitalize on what we’re doing and OVERCOME THE ADVERSITY ON THE FIELD!” (9) With ESPN’s College GameDay in Gainesville for the South Carolina game, having former Gators swimmer Ryan Lochte on set as the guest picker was an easy and obvious decision for the network. Never did ESPN guess that he would find difficulty in reading off the list of picks provided for him. (10) Why is Chad Johnson in Gainesville … and why is he meeting with Florida? Those were questions fans asked on Nov. 2 when it was revealed that the NFL free agent wide receiver – fresh off being embarrassed on national television when he was cut by the Miami Dolphins after being arrested for allegedly hitting his wife – had shown up in town and was taking pictures with players on the team one day before UF took on Missouri.

Continue Reading » Top 12 for 2012: Off the Field Stories of the Year

Tags: Austin Maddox, baseball, Bill McBride, Billy Donovan, Brad Wilkerson, Bradley Beal, Brandon Spikes, Brian Johnson, Capital One Cup, Chad Johnson, cheerleaders, Cheyenne Coyle, Chris Rainey, Chris Walker, Cleveland Browns, College GameDay, Daniel Pigott, Denver Broncos, Dick Howser Trophy, Dominique Easley, Draft, Dwayne Schintzius, Erin Andrews, Erving Walker, ESPN, field, FOX, Gainesville Regional, Georgetown Hoyas, Golden Spikes Award, Hall of Fame, Hudson Randall, Jabar Gaffney, Jacoby Brissett, Janoris Jenkins, Jaye Howard, Jeff Demps, Jeff Driskel, Jermaine Cunningham, Joe Haden, John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award, Kasey Fagan, Kasey Hill, Kevin Sumlin, Lito Sheppard, Lomas Brown, Matt Bonner, Matt Elam, Miami Dolphins, Mike Zunino, MLB, National Player of the Year, Navy-Marine Corps Classic, NBA, NCAA, NCAA Outdoor Championship, New England Patriots, New York Giants, New York Jets, NFL, Nolan Fontana, Pittsburgh Steelers, Preston Tucker, Ryan Lochte, Sami Fagan, San Antonio Spurs, Seattle Seahawks, SEC All-Sports, softball, St. Louis Rams, Steven Rodriguez, swimming, Texas A&M Aggies, Tim Tebow, Tim Walton, Tony Waters, track, USS Bataan, Washington Wizards, Will Hill, Will Muschamp, Women's College World Series

The Florida Gators officially announced Wednesday that two of the top high school basketball players in the country – five-stars point guard Kasey Hill (Clermont, FL) and power forward Chris Walker (Bonifay, FL) – have signed and submitted their National Letters of Intent to play for Florida beginning in the 2013-14 season.

Hill and Walker, each ranked in the top-10 nationally by all of the major recruiting services, are a huge 1-2 punch for the Gators as they look to replace at least three players who are set to leave following the 2012-13 campaign. The players are close friends and have been AAU teammates over the last few years.

“How they rank to the rest of the country, doesn’t really matter to me because there are so many things they bring to the table,” head coach Billy Donovan told Florida’s website. “Being in-state guys, I’ve had a chance to watch them grow over a three-year period and I understand what we’ll be getting. They’re athletic, with speed and quickness and competiveness. They both have a chance to have tremendous careers here.”

Walker is the first big man the Gators have signed out of high school since Florida added a trio of players, including center Patric Young, as part of its 2010 class.

“The best frontcourt players to come through here — the Horfords, Haslems, Bonners, Noahs — they could all really run,” assistant coach Matt McCall said. “And Chris Walker can really run.”

Donovan, a former point guard, is equally excited at what Hill (a former teammate of freshman guard Michael Frazier II at Montverde Academy) brings to the table as the highest-rated floor general signed by the Gators since Anthony Roberson in 2002.

“He’s just a presence on the floor. Great vision,” he said of Hill.

Most exciting for Florida fans is that Donovan and his staff are not done just yet. Though the Gators will not add another player as part of the early signing period, Florida is in the running for a trio of uncommitted five-star players including forward Jabari Parker (Chicago, IL), PF Julius Randle (Plano, TX) and C Dakari Johnson (Montverde, FL). The second National Signing Day is set for April 17, 2013.

Tags: Billy Donovan, Chris Walker, Dakari Johnson, Jabari Parker, Julius Randle, Kasey Hill, Matt McCall, Michael Frazier, Patric Young

Florida Gators basketball’s star-studded 2013 recruiting class lost one of its three members on Monday when three-star power forward Schuyler Rimmer (Boone, FL) decided to move on and open up his recruitment.

Rimmer, a 6’9” 233 lbs. burgeoning prospect, originally chose Florida over Notre Dame, Tennessee, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. He increased his stock in a major way over the summer after performances at multiple AAU events drew strong reactions and seriously increased his offer count.

“It’s been the school I’ve wanted to go to for my whole life,” Rimmer told Rivals.com’s Alex Kline when he committed on Aug. 5 ($). “The opportunity to play there was something I couldn’t pass up.”

Rivals national basketball recruiting analyst Eric Bossi, who first reported Rimmer’s decision on Twitter, noted Monday that the player committed to UF knowing he would likely have been a walk-on as a freshman before being given a three-year athletic scholarship to cover the remainder of his education.

Rimmer also would have been a redshirt candidate during his freshman year due to the Gators’ extremely deep frontcourt, which is set to include at least four post players (five if Patric Young returns for his senior season).

Florida is left with a pair of five-star prospects – point guard Kasey Hill (Clermont, FL) and PF Chris Walker – as the two members of its 2013 class. Head coach Billy Donovan does not appear to have additional space to add to the class unless he anticipates that players will either depart early (Young, for example) or transfer.

The Gators, however, are far from done on the recruiting trail and have been going hard after a plethora of players currently ranked in the Rivals150. Hill and Walker are listed as the No. 7 and 6 players in the nation, respectively.

Florida currently boasts the consensus top-ranked recruiting class for 2013.

Tags: Billy Donovan, Chris Walker, Kasey Hill, Patric Young, Schuyler Rimmer

From time to time, OGGOA will come across a plethora of news and notes that we wish to share – too much to fit into one of our truncated BITS segments. In these instances, or when stories fall through the cracks, we catch and wrap them all up with Gator Bites.

» Former Florida Gators defensive end Justin Trattou was cut by the New York Giants on Thursday after missing all of training camp up to this point with a variety of injuries. Trattou was active for a number of games last season and won a ring last season as New York defeated New England 31-25 in Super Bowl XLV.

» Speaking of the Giants, the team brought former Gators defensive tackle Marcus Thomas in for a visit Thursday. New York is looking to upgrade the interior of its defensive line and Thomas is one of the biggest names on the free agent market after failing to come to an agreement with the Denver Broncos, where he started 11 of the 12 games he played last season. Thomas recently tweeted that he would be willing to play “for practice squad money.”

» The New York Jets are rumored to be one of a handful of finalists bidding for the services of former Florida running back Jeff Demps, so of course quarterback Tim Tebow was asked about the possibility during training camp on Thursday. As expected, Tebow supported the potential addition of Demps but said he would not pressure him to join him with the Jets. “They asked me about him,” he said according to the Newark Star-Ledger. “Jeff is a great guy and a great player, and he’s someone that I was proud to play with in college. He did a great job for us, and I feel like wherever he goes, he’ll work hard at and do a good job for that team.”

» ESPN’s Andy Katz spoke with Yale head coach James Jones recently about his team getting an unusual visit from the UF basketball team this season. Jones “credited a Yale administrator who once worked at Florida as well as Gators head coach Billy Donovan” for creating the home-away-home series that gets a high-profile team to visit Yale. “Donovan…isn’t adverse to playing home games for players in odd places,” Katz wrote. “He once played at UNH for New Hampshire native Matt Bonner. This is a ‘home’ game for Rhode Island native Erik Murphy.”

Read nine more Gator Bites…after the break!
Continue Reading » Gator Bites for Thursday, August 16th

Tags: Atlanta Braves, baseball, Billy Donovan, Chris Rainey, Chris Walker, David Ross, Erik Murphy, Ja'Juan Story, Janoris Jenkins, Jeff Demps, Justin Trattou, Marcus Thomas, Matt Bonner, Max Starks, Michael Frazier, MLB, New York Giants, New York Jets, NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers, St. Louis Rams, Super Bowl XLV, Tim Tebow

With his 2013 recruiting class already stacked with a pair of consensus top-10 prospects, head coach Billy Donovan secured another big man on Sunday when three-star power forward Schuyler Rimmer (Boone, FL) committed to the Florida Gators.

Rimmer, a 6’9” 233 lbs. burgeoning prospect, chose Florida over Georgia Tech, Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Stanford (among others) and told Rivals in July that academics would play a big part in his recruitment.

An underrated prospect heading into this summer, his performances at multiple AAU events drew strong reactions and seriously increased his offer count.

Rimmer will be a redshirt candidate during his freshman season due to the Gators’ suddenly deep frontcourt. He can play both in the post and on the perimeter and is a developmental player along the lines of Chandler Parsons and Erik Murphy.

Rimmer joins five-stars point guard Kasey Hill (Clermont, FL) and PF Chris Walker (Bonifay, FL) as a member of Florida’s 2013 class. The Gators will have at least five players stepping on the court for the first time that season as transfer forwards Damontre Harris and Dorian Finney-Smith will be coming off of their redshirt years.

With three seniors – Murphy and guards Kenny Boynton and Mike Rosario – set to graduate after the 2012-13 season, Donovan does not appear to have additional space to add to his 2013 class unless he anticipates that players will either depart early (junior center Patric Young, for example) or transfer.

Rimmer’s commitment was first reported by Alex Kline of Rivals’ The Recruit Scoop.

Tags: Chandler Parsons, Chris Walker, Damontre Harris, Dorian Finney-Smith, Erik Murphy, Kasey Hill, Kenny Boynton, Mike Rosario, Patric Young, Schuyler Rimmer

Don’t look now but Billy Donovan has done it again.

Just a month after corralling two of the top transfers in college basketball, the Florida Gators head coach has hauled in another impressive catch, earning a commitment from five-star power forward Chris Walker (Bonifay, FL) on Sunday morning.

The top remaining target on Donovan’s recruiting board and one of two players the coach honed in on gaining a commitment from in the 2013 recruiting cycle, Walker chose Florida over Kansas, Kentucky and Louisville. He is listed as the No. 6 overall player in his class by Rivals and the No. 7 player in the nation by ESPN.

Walker surprised fans early Sunday morning when he wrote on Twitter that he would be making his decision at 8 a.m. He made good on that promise by officially announcing his commitment to the Gators via video on the website Home Team Hoops (see below).

“I will be playing college basketball for the University of Florida – the Florida Gators there in Gainesville, FL – and I will be teaming up with my teammate of my AAU squad Kasey Hill. And together we will be the best duo in college and we will win a national championship. You heard it here first.”

His pledge landed Donovan a second huge name for 2013 with the coach’s first coup being five-star point guard Kasey Hill (Clermont, FL), who helped Florida end 2011 with a bang by committing on New Year’s Eve. Hill and Walker are close friends and AAU teammates and have often spoken about playing together in college.

I made this choice from my heart, n i wanted to go to a team that ima get better as a player and a indivisual, we WILL make it to final 4 .

— Chris Skywalker (@cwalkertime23) July 22, 2012

With Walker now in the fold, the Gators have the No. 6 and 7-ranked players in the 2013 class according to both Rivals and ESPN (rankings flip-flopped). Both can sign their National Letters of Intent as early as Nov. 14-21 (early signing period).

Seeing as three seniors are set to graduate following the 2012-13 season, Florida has space for at least one more potential commitment this cycle with no additional attrition.

Hill (No. 1) and Walker (No. 23) at the Adidas Invitational:

More videos of Hill and Walker playing together…after the break!
Continue Reading » Florida Gators land five-star PF Chris Walker

Tags: AAU, Billy Donovan, Chris Walker, Kasey Hill

1 » The 2012 London Olympics are just two weeks away and more than two dozen current and former Florida Gators student-athletes and coaches will be participating in the games. Swimmer Ryan Lochte, who will have multiple opportunities to bring home gold medals for the United States, recently participated in an ESPN The Magazine story about the “real games” that take place in the Olympic Village. Lochte estimates that 70-75 percent of Olympians have sex with fellow Olympians in the Village: “Hey, sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.” He also said he hopes to take advantage of the opportunities presented by living in the Olympic Village this time around (he had a steady girlfriend in 2008 and was faithful to her while in Beijing, China). “Now I’m single, so London should be really good. I’m excited,” he said.

2 » Three-star defensive back Tre Bell, who committed to play for Florida in April, put on a show at a camp held by Nike in Oregon last week. As you can see below in the video from FOXSports.com, he was all over the field making plays and even threw in a few Gator Chomps for good measure. Bell is not listed on either the Rivals250 or ESPN 300 as of press time but that may change soon if he continues to play at a high level.

3 » A five-star forward and the consensus No. 1 recruit in the nation for 2013, Jabari Parker (Chicago, IL) recently released his top 10 on Twitter and included Florida in that list though he did mention that it was in no particular order. Also in his top 10 are Brigham Young, DePaul, Duke, Georgetown, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina and Stanford. Landing Parker will be difficult for the Gators and head coach Billy Donovan though it is certainly not out of the realm of possibility. Florida’s primary target continues to be five-star power forward Chris Walker (Bonifay, FL), the No. 6 player in the 2013 class, who the Gators hope to team up with five-star point guard commit Kasey Hill (Clermont, FL).

4 » Florida announced Friday that “an exclusive off-season special” on Gators football (featuring an interview with head coach Will Muschamp and “exclusive all-access footage from spring practice) will air Sunday, July 15 at 9:30 a.m. on Sun Sports. Also on television Sunday (at 3 p.m. – check your local listings) will be an episode of Havoline Football Saturdays in the South featuring former Florida wide receiver Chris Doering. Replays for the Gators football offseason special are as follows: July 16 at 4 p.m., July 18 at 10:30 a.m., July 19 at 6 p.m., July 25 at 5 p.m., July 29 at noon, Aug. 2 at 10:30 a.m., Aug. 16 at 11 a.m., Aug. 26 at 9:30 a.m. (all on Sun Sports).

Tags: Billy Donovan, Chris Doering, Chris Walker, Jabari Parker, Kasey Hill, Olympics, Ryan Lochte, swimming, USA, Will Muschamp

1 » Florida Gators junior left-handed pitcher/designated hitter Brian Johnson, who has signed a professional contract with the Boston Red Sox after being selected with the No. 31 overall pick in the first round of the 2012 MLB Draft, was presented with the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award on Saturday night. Johnson became the first player in team history to bring home the award and added yet another honor to the numerous postseason recognitions earned by Gators juniors who will play professionally next season. He finished the 2012 season with an 8-5 record, 3.90 ERA and 73 strikeouts in 90 innings along with a .307 batting average and 41 RBIs.

2 » According to sources close to the team that spoke with Yahoo! Sports’s Jason Cole, the relationship between cornerback Janoris Jenkins and the St. Louis Rams (which selected the first-round talent with a second-round pick in the 2012 NFL Draft) is “off to a rocky start because of a verbal pre-draft agreement” that is not permissible but is also not being honored. One reason why Jenkins has not signed his contract with St. Louis yet, Cole reports, is because head coach Jeff Fisher wants him to be financially advised by Lou Taylor of Tri Star Sports & Entertainment Group while Jenkins and agent Malik Shareef seem “content” with the management team in place. Pre-draft agreements of this kind are not allowed as part of the new collective bargaining agreement, something that Cole reports both parties are aware of, but what appears to be one looks to be the reason why Jenkins is not yet an official member of the Rams organization.

Click to expand and read two more BITS in this post.

Tags: AAU, baseball, Billy Donovan, Boston Red Sox, Brian Johnson, Chris Walker, Draft, Florida Rams, Janoris Jenkins, John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award, Kasey Hill, MLB, NCAA, NFL, St. Louis Rams