1 » Champions of the 2010 Southeastern Conference regular season, No. 4 Florida Gators baseball received two major awards and 14 honorable placements on Tuesday. Kevin O’Sullivan was named the 2010 SEC Coach of the Year, third baseman Austin Maddox was named the 2010 SEC Freshman of the Year and junior left-hander Kevin Chapman was named to the All-SEC First Team as the relief pitcher. Other honors awarded: All-SEC Second Team – sophomore first baseman Preston Tucker, Maddox, freshman shortstop Nolan Fontana and senior outfielder Matt den Dekker; All-Freshman Team – Maddox, Fontana, catcher Mike Zunino, pitcher Hudson Randall, DH/P Brian Johnson; All-Defensive Team – Tucker, Fontana, den Dekker.

2 » Tennessee Volunteers head coach Bruce Pearl heaped the praise on the Gators basketball program and head coach Billy Donovan on Tuesday, claiming that Florida is easily the most talented team in the SEC going into the 2010-11 season. “Billy Donovan has had several years of really, really good recruiting,” Pearl told the Knoxville News Sentinel. “They will be by far the most talented team in the SEC.” Pearl made this declaration while acknowledging the fact that Kentucky is bringing in easily the best recruiting class in the nation.

Photo Credit: University of Florida

Tags: All-Defensive, All-Freshman, All-SEC, Austin Maddox, baseball, Billy Donovan, Brian Johnson, Bruce Pearl, Coach of the Year, Freshman of the Year, Hudson Randall, Kevin Chapman, Kevin O’Sullivan, Matt den Dekker, Mike Zunino, Nolan Fontana, Preston Tucker, SEC, Tennessee Volunteers

Florida Gators track & field captured three end-of-season honors from the Southeastern Conference on Monday. Head coach Mike Holloway was named the SEC Men’s Head Coach of the Year, senior thrower Mariam Kevkhishvili was named the SEC Women’s Field Athlete of the Year and sophomore jumper Christian Taylor was named the SEC Men’s Field Athlete of the Year.

The University of Florida took home more total awards in this period than any other school, with Ole Miss, Auburn and Tennessee each receiving two honors.

Holloway is racking up the awards this season. He has already been named the 2010 SEC Indoor Women’s Head Coach of the Year, 2010 USTFCCCA National Men’s Indoor Head Coach of the Year and 2010 USTFCCCA Indoor South Region Men’s and Women’s Head Coach of the Year.

One of the most accomplished athletes in school history, Kevkhishvili is hoping to complete an undefeated season and is on the watch list for The Bowerman. A four-time National Champion and seven-time All-American, she won the 2010 SEC Outdoor Championship for shot put (her third in four years) and leads the nation with a career-high mark of 18.46m/60-6.75.

Taylor also had a great year, winning the 2010 SEC Outdoor Championship in triple jump and as the third leg of the 4×400-meter relay team. He also finished second in individual point standings at the event.

The Gators track & field program has already captured three titles this season. The men won the 2010 NCAA Indoor Championship and 2010 SEC Outdoor Championship, while the women took home the 2010 SEC Indoor Championship. Both programs begin competing for their 2010 NCAA Outdoor Championship in the next few days.

Tags: Athlete of the Year, Christian Taylor, Coach of the Year, field, Mariam Kevkhishvili, Mike Holloway, NCAA, NCAA Indoor Championship, NCAA Outdoor Championship, SEC, SEC Indoors, SEC Outdoor Championship, The Bowerman, track, University of Florida, USTFCCCA

1 » The No. 3 Florida Gators women’s tennis team was honored extensively by the Southeastern Conference on Wednesday, taking home the top three available annual awards. Freshman Lauren Embree won SEC Player of the Year, freshman Allie Will took home SEC Freshman of the Year honors and Roland Thornqvist was named SEC Coach of the Year. Also representing the team were seniors Marrit Boonstra and Anastasia Revzina, who were named to the All-SEC First Team and Second Team, respectively. Embree and Will also earned All-SEC First Team honors and placement on the SEC All-Freshman Team. Florida was undefeated (11-0) during the regular season, won the 2010 SEC Tournament and will compete in the 2010 NCAA Team Championship beginning May 14.

2 » When it comes to former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow’s future with the Denver Broncos, you will find no stronger advocate or staunch defender than Denver Post columnist Woody Paige. As someone who suggested the team select Tebow from the get-go, Paige has gone on the offensive against a number of his readers who continue to question head coach Josh McDaniels’ decision, comparing Tebow to the likes of John Elway and San Francisco’s Steve Young.

Check out four more BITS on Cunningham, Mullen and Florida baseball…
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: Tennis, Tebow’s defense, Cunningham’s future, Mullen’s job, Johnson’s start, Moyer

Tags: All-SEC, Allie Will, Anastasia Revzina, Andre Smith, baseball, Bob Stoops, Brian Johnson, Carlos Dunlap, Cincinnati Bengals, Coach of the Year, Dan Mullen, Denver Broncos, Draft, Freshman of the Year, Jeff Moyer, Jermaine Cunningham, John Elway, John Jerry, Josh McDaniels, Lauren Embree, Marrit Boonstra, Michael Oher, Mississippi State Bulldogs, MLB, NCAA Team Championship, New England Patriots, NFL, Player of the Year, Roland Thornqvist, SEC, SEC Tournament, Steve Young, tennis, Tim Tebow, Tommy Toledo, Urban Meyer

Pulling out a 2.5-point victory over second-place Stanford, the Florida Gators women’s swimming and diving team captured the 2010 NCAA Championship at the Boilermaker Aquatic Center in West Lafayette, IN, on Saturday. The team’s first national title since winning the inaugural NCAA Championships in 1982, Florida also brought home individual event national titles in the 200-yard free relay and 100-yard backstroke.

2010 National Titles
(1) 200-yard free relay (Stafford, Spofforth, Napier, Bateman): 1:27.79
(2) 100-yard backstroke: Gemma Spofforth, 50.92

Head coach Greg Troy, who was named the 2010 NCAA Women’s Coach of the Year, was ecstatic about the hard-fought, come-from-behind victory. “This was really a team effort and there was no room for error,” he said.

In all, 12 Gators were named All-Americans and five school records were set in the competition. Additionally, Florida’s title is the second National Championship the school has won in as many weeks, with the men’s track and field team bringing home the 2010 NCAA Indoor Championship last weekend.

The University of Florida has now won 24 National Championships.

ESPN2 will air a truncated version of the 2010 Women’s NCAA Championships at 1:30 p.m. on Tues., April 6. Expect to see plenty of the Gators during the 90-minute show.

For more information on the Gators’ title win, visit GatorZone.

Photo Credit: Walt Middleton

Tags: All-American, Boilermaker Aquatic Center, Coach of the Year, diving, Gemma Spofforth, Greg Troy, National Championship, NCAA, NCAA Championship, swimming, University of Florida

1 » ESPN college football analyst Joe Schad took some time out to compile a 2010 Top 100 College Football Stars list featuring names you need to know going into next season. Among his 100, Schad listed four Florida Gators: redshirt sophomore quarterback John Brantley (19), freshman wide receiver Andre Debose (54), sophomore cornerback Janoris Jenkins (77) and redshirt sophomore running back Chris Rainey (88). Brantley was his eighth of 29 QBs, Debose was his eighth of 15 WRs, Jenkins was seventh of 10 DBs and Rainey was 19th of 21 RBs.

2 » Also from ESPN, bracketology expert Joe Lunardi has released his latest edition, and Florida remains a part of the projection. Lunardi has the Gators even after a close home loss to the No. 13/19 Vanderbilt Commodores Tuesday. He lists Florida as a No. 11 seed squaring off against the No. 6-seed Baylor Bears in first-round action in Buffalo, NY.

3 » Competing in 2010 Southeastern Conference Tournament first-round action Thursday, the No. 7-seed Gators women’s basketball team (14-16) fell 74-61 to the No. 10-seed Auburn Tigers (15-15). Senior guard Steffi Sorensen led the team with 14 points (12 in the first half), while senior forward Sharielle Smith contributed 11 points.

4 » Three members of Florida’s women’s track and field team were awarded end-of-season honors from the SEC Thursday. Head coach Mike Holloway was named Women’s Coach of the Year, senior jumper Shara Proctor won Women’s Field Athlete of the Year and sprinter Lanie Whittaker shared Women’s Freshman Runner of the Year. The ladies won the 2010 SEC Indoor Championship on Feb. 28.

Bubble Watch » Richmond (23-7), which beat the Gators 56-53 on Dec. 19, took down Dayton (19-10) 60-56. Dayton was on bubble and is now considered out of the running.

Tags: Andre Debose, Athlete of the Year, Auburn Tigers, bracketology, Chris Rainey, Coach of the Year, Freshman Runner of the Year, Janoris Jenkins, John Brantley, Lanie Whittaker, Mike Holloway, SEC Tournament, Shara Proctor, Sharielle Smith, Steffi Sorensen

Competing for four days in the Gabrielsen Natatorium at the University of Georgia, the No. 6 Florida Gators men’s and No. 7 women’s swimming and diving teams each finished in second place at the 2010 Southeastern Conference Championships. On the men’s side, the Auburn Tigers took first place by only 19 points (784-765), while the Georgia Bulldogs finished ahead of the Florida women by a larger margin (824.5-698).

Men’s coach Gregg Troy and women’s coach Donnie Craine led the Gators’ efforts all season long, bringing home recognition for themselves while assisting numerous student-athletes in reaching accolades of their own. The men’s and women’s teams combined for 14 SEC Championship titles (six and eight, respectively), two SEC records and six school records. Florida also earned 18 NCAA automatic qualifying marks/times.

2010 Florida SEC Awards
SEC Men’s Swimming Coach of the Year – Gregg Troy
SEC Women’s Diving Coach of the Year – Donnie Craine
SEC Men’s Swimmer of the Year – Conor Dwyer
SEC Women’s Swimmer of the Year – Gemma Spofforth
SEC Women’s Diver of the Year – Kara Salamone
Commissioner’s Trophy, High Point Award (Men’s) – Conor Dwyer, Shaune Fraser
Commissioner’s Trophy, High Point Award (Women’s) – Gemma Spofforth

Check out Florida’s numerous new SEC titles, SEC records, school records, NCAA qualifiers and more after the break!
Continue Reading » Swimming finishes second at SEC Championships

Tags: Auburn Tigers, Brett Fraser, Coach of the Year, Commissioner's Trophy, Conor Dwyer, Diver of the Year, diving, Donnie Craine, Gabrielsen Natatorium, Gemma Spofforth, Georgia Bulldogs, Gregg Troy, High Point Award, Jemma Lowe, Kara Salamone, Marco Loughran, NCAA, Roberto Gomez, Sarah Bateman, Sebastien Rousseau, SEC Championship, Shara Stafford, Shaune Fraser, Stephanie Napier, Swimmer of the Year, swimming, Teresa Crippen, University of Georgia