SIX BITS: Cooper, Strong, Dorsey, Rivers & more
1 » Following up on a story OGGOA posted on Monday, the Texas Rangers have told MLB.com that they are still expecting Florida Gators wide receiver Riley Cooper to attend spring training in Arizona. “Yes, we do,” Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said on Tuesday. Though Cooper has said that the Rangers have not been in contact with him – “I must not mean that much to them.” – Daniels begs to differ. “We’ve been in touch with his agents,” Daniels said. “We intentionally gave him space and time while he was preparing for the SEC Championship game and the Sugar Bowl. Everything is still on track for him to report to Arizona. He has a decision to make but the lack of contact was out of respect, not from a lack of disrespect.”
2 » Though Louisville Cardinals head coach Charlie Strong cited the fact that he is African-American and married to a Caucasian woman as one of the reasons it was so difficult to break into the head coaching ranks, he does not want the onus of being a minority coach. “What you want to do is never put pressure on yourself to be like, ‘Hey, you have to be a pioneer,” Strong said last Tuesday.
3 » With an outstanding showing at the Under Armour All-American Game last weekend, Florida four-star defensive back commitment Demar Dorsey (Lauderdale Lakes, FL) took the opportunity to reaffirm his commitment to the Gators. Always being honest and holding that he was 60-80 percent committed to UF throughout the year, Dorsey upped that percentage to 90 after the game. Because of his honesty, Dorsey was previously considered one of the most likely Florida recruits to decommit, but he appears to be as much of a Gator as ever. Even so, he has chosen to visit the Tennessee Volunteers and is considering taking a trip to one of four other schools in order to make sure he covers all of his bases.
Check out the three remaining BITS after the jump…
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: Cooper, Strong, Dorsey, Rivers & more
Bedford explained to anyone who asked him that he would be recruiting for the Gators in South Florida this week, and he is currently doing just that. However, Pat Dooley of the Gainesville Sun reports that Bedford’s hiring out of Gainesville, FL, “will happen this week.” This falls in line with what four-star cornerback commitment Demar Dorsey (Lauderdale Lakes, FL) said 
Similarly, four-star running back commit Mack Brown (Lithona, GA) told Mark Wheeler of Rivals on Monday night that Carter has already informed him he is leaving the program. This is an unconfirmed report as only Brown has mentioned it thus far, but Carter does have an outstanding offer to join the Cardinals staff. Even though Strong has already hired an offensive coordinator, Carter could be given an expanded role on offensive. When asked after the Sugar Bowl about his future, Carter said, “I’m not talking about anything but this game. I’m not talking about any of that crap. It doesn’t mean anything to me.”
Though Dunkley had long been considered a Florida lean and possible silent commitment, he had been toying with the idea of committing to the Alabama Crimson Tide and was slightly taken aback by the announcements from Gators head coach Urban Meyer this week. Instead, he said that he was a mama’s boy, wanted to stay in-state and loved the program. “I was real, real, real happy and revealed to make my decision to play for the University of Florida,” Dunkley said after the game. “There was a moment [I wavered],” Dunkley said. “I know [Meyer]‘s working to take care of himself. I’ve got to do what’s right for me.”
Easley, who decommitted from the Penn State Nittany Lions on Wednesday, was the real shocker of the day. Named one of the game’s most valuable players after recording a sack, forced fumble and three tackles for loss, he was believed to be choosing between recommitting to Penn State or joining the Miami Hurricanes or Oregon Ducks. The Gators were not even on Easley’s list of final choices, though he was originally planning to commit to Florida during his visit to Gainesville, FL, for Friday Night Lights camp in July. “I’m a Gator, baby, Gator Nation,” Easley said, before doing one of numerous Gator Chomps on the day. Offensive coordinator Steve Addazio was Easley’s main recruiter, and his appointment to interim head coach for Florida may very well have had some pull on Easley.
Five-star safety recruit Matt Elam (West Palm Beach, FL), formerly the prize of the Florida Gators 2010 recruiting class, has decommitted and pledged to play for the Florida State Seminoles. Elam, who appeared to waiver about his commitment throughout the entire recruiting process, reaffirmed his decision to play for the Gators numerous times over the last few months, most recently 
