1 » Florida Gators head coach Billy Donovan has given a verbal scholarship offer to four-star 2012 shooting guard Michael Frazier (Tampa, FL), according to the St. Petersburg Times. Frazier, who currently boasts offers from 13 other schools ranging from Michigan to Harvard, has a 4.0 GPA and is “open to everybody right now.”

2 » Taking a look at Florida basketball on Thursday, Jeff Goodman of FOX Sports believes the Gators are in position to do something they have not done 2007 – make some serious noise in the NCAA Tournament. “Florida may not be what it was a few years back when the Gators won back-to-back national titles, but they are now in a position to make a deep tournament run over the next few years,” he writes. “In two years, the perimeter down in Gainesville will feature [Erving] Walker, [Kenny] Boynton, [Brad] Beal and Rutgers transfer Mike Rosario with a backcourt of [Patric] Young, [Erik] Murphy, [Cody] Larson and [Will] Yeguete.”

3 » To help promote the release of EA Sports’ NCAA Football 11 video game, the company teamed up with Nike to release a signature Nike Trainer for the occasion. Blue with orange and white accents, the sneaker features reminders of former Gators quarterback Tim Tebow’s “Promise” speech on Sept. 27, 2008, a company logo and mention of the video game. One picture can be seen here, but the rest can be found at SoleCollector.com. The site reports that the shoe will be released in “extremely limited quantities in the very near future.” In other words…if you have the ability to buy them…pick up an extra size 11-11.5 for OGGOA…or we’re not friends anymore.

4 » Answering readers’ questions about the New England Patriots’ youth movement, Shalise Manza Young of the Boston Globe touched on how some former Florida players are progressing. About linebacker Brandon Spikes specifically, Young says he “was already being asked to call signals in the huddle with the second unit during spring camps and could well challenge incumbent Gary Guyton” for the job. The coaching staff also values the versatility that tight end Aaron Hernandez brings to the table; he will mostly be used as a receiver and H-back and could end up being a starter.

Tags: Aaron Hernandez, Billy Donovan, Brad Beal, Brandon Spikes, Cody Larson, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Michael Frazier, Mike Rosario, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, New England Patriots, NFL, Patric Young, Will Yeguete

All five starters are returning for the first time since the Florida Gators back-to-back National Championship seasons, head coach Billy Donovan has a much-needed deep and talented recruiting class coming in and not a single player declared for the NBA Draft for the first time in years. With all of these factors taken into consideration, three college basketball analysts have already declared Florida basketball to be a top 10 team going into the 2010-11 season.

ESPN‘s Andy Katz and Pat Forde and CBS Sports‘ Gary Parrish have given the Gators this distinction. But the question is: Do they deserve the love?

See what the experts and OGGOA have to say…after the break!
Continue Reading » Florida basketball really a top 10 team in 2010-11?

Tags: Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, Dan Werner, Draft, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, Kenny Kadji, National Championship, NBA, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Patric Young, Ray Shipman, Scottie Wilbekin, SEC, Vernon Macklin

Returning to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in three seasons, the No. 10-seed Florida Gators had two chances to put away the No. 7-seed Brigham Young Cougars. Alas, the Gators failed on both occasions, leading the game to enter a second overtime and the Cougars to an eventual 99-92 victory in the first round of the 2010 NCAA Tournament at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, OK.

BYU star guard Jimmer Fredette led his team with 37 points on 50 percent shooting, while Michael Loyd, Jr. came off the bench for the Cougars with a career-high 26 points on 7-of-10 shooting in a surprising turn of events. Florida freshman guard Kenny Boynton posted a career-high 26 points of his own, hitting 8-of-17 shots from the field and 5-of-10 from downtown. Unfortunately for the Gators, Boynton fouled out with 3:57 remaining in the second overtime, removing the team’s most dynamic player from the court in the waning minutes.

Read the rest of OGGOA’s Florida vs. BYU NCAA Tournament story after the jump!
Continue Reading » UF falls to BYU 99-92 in double overtime thriller

Tags: Brigham Young Cougars, Chandler Parsons, Dan Werner, Erik Murphy, Ford Center, Jackson Emery, Jimmer Fredette, Kenny Boynton, Michael Loyd, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Vernon Macklin

Location: Bridgestone Arena – Nashville, TN [Capacity: 19,395]
Time: 7:30 p.m. (EST)

TV: SEC Network
Online Video: ESPN360.com
Live Updates: OGGOA on Twitter

Odds: Florida -5.5; O/U 143.5

KEEP AN EYE ON…
» Junior forward Chandler Parsons…who has scored in double figures in seven of his last nine games and has two double-doubles in those contests. He has also helped run the point and scored 17 points with six rebounds and four assists in Florida’s first meeting with Auburn.
» Double-digit scoring by Vernon Macklin…the Gators are 13-4 when the redshirt junior transfer center finishes in double figures. Macklin has achieved this mark in five of the last seven games.
» Bench production by freshman F Erik Murphy and sophomore guard Ray Shipman…who combined for 18 points in limited time against No. 3 Kentucky.
» Auburn F Lucas Hargrove…who leads his team with 6.9 rebounds per game while also averaging 12.9 points.
» Tigers’ guards DeWayne Reed and Tay Walker…who combine for 30 of the team’s 75.9 points each game. Walker also shoots 42 percent from downtown.

STREAKS:
» Auburn leads the all-time series against Florida 87-69; however, the Gators have won 11 of the last 12 meetings including a 78-70 victory last month in Gainesville.
» The Tigers’ only win in that stretch was a 61-58 win in the 2009 SEC Tournament quarterfinals, which knocked UF out of contention for the NCAA Tournament.
» Florida went 6-0 against the SEC West this season.
» The Gators have won three prior SEC Tournament titles (2005-2007). They won the 2006 title at the site of this year’s tourney and are 5-2 all-time in Bridgestone Arena.
» Though they lost their last two games to the SEC’s top two teams, Florida out-rebounded both opponents and remain 13-4 when out-rebounding the opposition.
» Parsons needs only six points to reach 1,000 for his career.
» The Gators have made a three-pointer in a school-record 609 consecutive games beginning Jan. 11, 1992.
» Florida is 233-40 when forcing more turnovers than its opponents under Donovan.
» The Gators are 241-34 under Donovan when holding opponents to 70 points or less.
» Opponents are shooting just 32.2 percent from three-point range against Florida.
» Auburn is 2-9 away from home this season.
» The Tigers score 4.4 points more than the Gators on average but also give up 9.0 more points per game than Florida.
» Auburn has faced only three ranked opponents all season and have lost those games by an average of 13.7 points.

Tags: Auburn Tigers, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, DeWayne Reed, Erik Murphy, Jeff Lebo, Lucas Hargrove, Ray Shipman, SEC, SEC Tournament, Tay Walker, Vernon Macklin

The Florida Gators traveled to Lexington, KY, with an outside shot at an upset victory over the No. 3 Kentucky Wildcats and possibly a guaranteed spot in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. Though Florida (20-11, 9-7 SEC) was unable to pull out the win, the team showed resilience and a solid all-around effort while falling 74-66 to Kentucky (29-2, 14-2 SEC) at Rupp Arena.

Three Gators – junior forward Alex Tyus (12 points) and freshmen F Erik Murphy (11) and guard Kenny Boynton (11) – scored in double figures, but Florida’s defense was unable to contain the Wildcats. Five Kentucky players posted double-digit points as guards Eric Bledsoe and Darius Miller led the way with 14 points, F Patrick Patterson added 13, G John Wall contributed 11 and G Darnell Dodson posted 10.

Read the rest of OGGOA’s Florida at No. 3 Kentucky game story after the jump!
Continue Reading » Florida puts up a fight, falls to No. 3 Kentucky

Tags: Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Chandler Parsons, Darius Miller, Darnell Dodson, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, John Wall, Kenny Boynton, Kentucky Wildcats, NCAA Tournament, Patrick Patterson, Ray Shipman, Rupp Arena, Senior Day, Vernon Macklin

Led by a strong all-around effort from junior forward Chandler Parsons, the Florida Gators (18-8, 7-4 SEC) held on for a 78-70 victory over the Auburn Tigers (12-14, 3-8 SEC) Thursday evening at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center in Gainesville, FL.

In a must-win game for the Gators, their frontcourt players stepped up from the get-go, scoring 42 of the team’s 78 points and amassing 23 of Florida’s 28 rebounds. Parsons, who led the Gators with a team-high 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting with five rebounds and four assists, had plenty of support from starting juniors F Alex Tyus (12 points, seven rebounds) and center Vernon Macklin (seven points, four rebounds). Surprisingly, it was Florida’s bench that truly made the difference as senior F Dan Werner went 3-for-5 for nine points and four boards and freshman F Erik Murphy contributed seven points on 3-of-3 shooting with three rebounds.

Read the rest of OGGOA’s Florida vs. Auburn game story after the jump!
Continue Reading » Frontcourt leads Florida over Auburn in O’Dome

Tags: Alex Tyus, Andre Malone, Auburn Tigers, Chandler Parsons, Dan Werner, DeWayne Reed, Erik Murphy, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Lucas Hargrove, O'Connell Center, Tay Walker, Vernon Macklin

Central Florida Community College power forward Ricardo Ratliffe (Hampton, VA) is looking to play for a Division I program in 2011, and the Florida Gators stand out as one of the most prominent teams on his short list, according to The Gainesville Sun’s Richard Burton.

Ratliffe, at 6’9″ 240 lbs., is considered by most scouts to be the best junior college prospect in the country. He attended two recent Florida home games and even worked out with the Gators at times over the summer.

“When I first got [to CFCC], [Florida] was recruiting me, but then they kind of backed off for a while because they thought they had what they needed inside,” Ratliffe said. “They thought they had the toughness and overall good play inside, but as the season went on, they realized they needed tougher players and players who would go after rebounds.

[Head coach Billy] Donovan was saying, ‘We have the best player in the nation 30 minutes away,’ so they’ve just tried to get back. They began recruiting me again last month and they are trying to make up for lost time.”

Speaking about Donovan, Ratliffe called him “a straight shooter” who “thinks I will have to work for it, but if I go there, I can be a starter with hard work.” Starting is important to Ratliffe, who realizes he has to make an impression with NBA scouts quickly as he will be a junior in 2011. “I can’t come off the bench being a junior,” he added. “It’s not like coming out of high school. I’m looking to start right away.”

The earliest Ratliffe can officially sign with a school is April 14.

With redshirt junior center Vernon Macklin and junior forward Alex Tyus both likely returning in 2011, freshman F Erik Murphy earning additional playing time and 2010 four-star F recruits Patric Young (Jacksonville, FL) and Casey Prather (Jackson, TN) already in the fold, Ratliffe may end up looking elsewhere. Alabama, Arkansas, Clemson, South Carolina, LSU and Missouri are also vying for his services.

Tags: Alex Tyus, Billy Donovan, Casey Prather, Central Florida Community College, Erik Murphy, Patric Young, Ricardo Ratliffe, Vernon Macklin