1 » Even though his recent hernia surgery will keep him out for up to two months, Miami Heat forward Mike Miller said Tuesday that he is “pretty secure” in his future with the team. Miller, who has four years remaining on his contract with the Heat, is thinking about getting healthy much more than he is about possibly being waived. “I’ve been in this league now 12 years,” he told the Associated Press. “I’ve been traded 675 times. First time I’ve been amnestied, but you get used to it. You do what you can. I’ve always done the same things. I prepare myself to play every year. Whether it’s where I’m at or it’s a different place, that’s how I’ve always looked at it. Put yourself in the best position to succeed when you’re there.”

2 » The gift package for the 2012 Gator Bowl was announced this week and the Florida Gators will each get five different items when they travel to Jacksonville, FL in the coming weeks. Every player will receive a Fossil watch, Gator Gear performance headwear, rolling luggage bag, Jostens ring and commemorative football. Many other packages feature electronics like video game systems, iPods and televisions or gift certificates so players can pick out whatever they want.

Click to expand and check out four more BITS (including a Tebow video).

1 » Those who follow us on Twitter saw a retweet from CBS Sports’ Jeff Goodman Monday morning noting that the Florida Gators basketball team held a “secret” scrimmage against the Central Florida Knights over the weekend. OGGOA inquired about the scrimmage and learned that Florida head coach Billy Donovan was pleased with his team’s effort following the game. The Gators’ starting five consisted of senior point guard Erving Walker, guards junior Kenny Boynton and freshman Brad Beal, junior forward Erik Murphy and sophomore center Patric Young.

Beal, as noted by Goodman, was the standout performer in the scrimmage, but redshirt junior transfer G Mike Rosario also played quite well. Florida earned a double-digit “victory” at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center, a nice prelude to their exhibition game against Catholic University on Thursday.

2 » Eight full weeks into the 2011 NFL season, former Gators cornerback Lito Sheppard was finally signed by a team. The Oakland Raiders picked up Sheppard, who they cut just before the season after signing him as a free agent, on Monday and hope to have him ready to play as soon as this upcoming weekend. Sheppard was one of three notable ex-Florida veterans available on the free agent market. Defensive ends Alex Brown and Bobby McCray remain unsigned.

3 » Every year, the Gators women’s soccer team holds a special practice on Halloween with all of the players going through the motions in full costume. The annual tradition gives the team a boost each year before they begin playing in the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Florida had an opportunity this past weekend to earn a share of the 2011 SEC regular season title but failed to do so dropping a 2-1 decision to the SEC champion South Carolina Gamecocks. SEC Tournament action begins Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. when UF faces Georgia in Orange Beach, AL.

4 » The Gators soccer team received good news Monday when the SEC announced its women’s soccer awards. Junior midfielder/forward Erika Tymrak and redshirt junior defender Kathryn Williamson were named to the All-SEC first team, while senior D Jazmyne Avant and junior MF Holly King garnered second-team honors. Florida also had two picked as All-Freshman – MFs Havana Solaun and Annie Speese.

Extra BIT » Below is the Thriller video put together by a number of UF student-athletes for Gator Growl in 2009. Happy Halloween!

1 » Former Florida Gators wide receiver Percy Harvin is healthy – finally. After being nagged by injuries throughout his college career and having persistent migraines limit the amount of time he could practice and play for the Minnesota Vikings during his first two years in the NFL, Harvin has finally cleared all of that up and hopes to become the dynamic playmakers his teammates, coaches and fans know he can be. He told the St. Paul Pioneer Press last week that he has “tremendous confidence in my ability” and proved that Sunday, taking the opening kickoff 103 yards down the field for a touchdown. Having missed fewer than two practices in the offseason (for precautionary reasons due to sore ribs), Harvin is ready and raring to go and hopes to continue the electricity he showcased over the weekend.

2 » Former Florida tennis player Lisa Raymond has always seemed to excel in doubles action, where she is 700-251 all-time as a professional and has been a part of 71 title-winning duos (she was even half of the No. 1 pair in the world back in 2000). Raymond, with four Grand Slam doubles titles to her name this century, was looking to win her first this decade, teaming with Liezel Huber at the 2011 U.S. Open at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Entering the tournament as the No. 4 seed, Raymond and Huber made it all the way to the finals where they defeated No. 3 seed Vania King/Yaroslava Shvedova 4-6, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (3) to win Raymond’s fifth Grand Slam and earn her the world No. 1 ranking she has been looking to recapture for nearly 11 years. At 38-years-old, Raymond would be considered by most to be a relic of professional tennis, but she told The New York Times that her age was an advantage going into the event. “I think that’s probably one of our biggest assets as a team is our experience,” she said after the victory. “We have years and years and years of being in finals of Slams, winning the championships, being down breaks in the third set to win or lose a Slam.”

Click to expand and read four more BITS.

» Remember back in April when Florida Gators forwards junior Erik Murphy and redshirt freshman Cody Larson were arrested for allegedly trying to break into a car? Since then the felony chargers were reduced to misdemeanors for both parties and Murphy accepted a plea deal that netted him fines, community service and a few other minor penalties. Larson’s situation, on the other hand, is not even close to resolved. The Gainesville Sun’s Kevin Brockway reports that he will have a Oct. 31 sentencing date to determine what legal action will be taken against him. He had previously entered a not guilty plea but could change it on the day of sentencing. As individual Florida basketball drills begin this week and practice starts on Oct. 15, according to Brockway, Larson’s status remains up in the air. The duo is currently indefinitely suspended from the team, though the expectation is that Murphy will be reinstated now that his legal situation is settled.

» Gators baseball received a commitment Wednesday evening as outfielder Max White chose to continue his career in Gainesville, FL. Also a left-handed pitcher, White is recovering from shoulder surgery and chose Florida over LSU, Central Florida, N.C. State, Maryland and North Florida, according to the Sun. “I have always wanted to play for Florida,” he told the paper. “To be in the situation where all of my hard work could possibly lead me to play for them — that is a great feeling. I just want to keep at it and I especially do not want them UF to see me slack off.”

» Florida head football coach Will Muschamp is known for his fiery demeanor on the sidelines. This fan video shot from the season opener against Florida Atlantic shows a mini-tantrum he threw during the game.

Read the rest of the Gator Bites (and watch four videos) after the break!

» After being let go in the final round of offseason cuts by the Philadelphia Eagles (the only team he has been signed to as a professional), former Gators tight end Cornelius Ingram found a spot on the practice squad with the Detroit Lions and could work his way onto the active roster if he remains healthy and can be productive in the passing game.

» Former Florida running back Emmitt Smith is out promoting his new book – Game On: Find Your Purpose – Pursue Your Dream – and will be signing autographs at the University of Florida Bookstore on Sept. 17 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The NFL’s all-time leading rusher and the best player at his position to ever suit up for the Gators, Smith was recently inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and hopes his book teaches readers how to pursue their dreams.

» OGGOA reader Liam J. has been hard at work putting together some videos featuring outstanding plays from former Florida players in the NFL and NBA. Embedded below are both of them. Be sure to visit the YouTube page and leave him some comments.

» Last Friday, then-No. 13 Gators soccer attempted to rebound from their first loss of the season and did so in inspiring fashion. Florida (4-1) defeated the Texas Tech Red Raiders (3-2) 3-0 at James G. Pressly Stadium in Gainesville. Freshman goalkeeper Taylor Burke notched three saves as junior midfielder/forward Erika Tymark led the way offensively with her second (33’) and third (67’) goals of the season. Tymrak also lent an assist on sophomore F Taylor Travis’s goal at 56’. UF moved up to No. 9 in the top 25 following the victory and will square off against No. 5 Florida State on Friday.

» OGGOA has been equally delinquent covering No. 9 Gators volleyball, which had an outstanding three-victory weekend at the Campus USA Credit Union Invitational in Gainesville before dropping their first contest of the season on Monday. Florida (6-1) topped the Jacksonville Dolphins (2-4) and Florida Atlantic Owls (0-2) on Friday, adding a win against the Clemson Tigers (4-2) on Saturday to start the season a perfect 18-0 in sets played. Then Monday and the No. 19 Iowa State Cyclones rolled around. The Gators dropped consecutive sets 25-19, 29-27 to the Cyclones before rallying back with a pair of 25-17, 25-18 victories. In the fifth and final set, Florida tied it up 12-12 but eventually fell 16-14 to lose their first match of the year. UF will participate in the NIKE Big Four Classic against Texas (Friday) and either Penn State or Stanford (Saturday).

» Former Gators defensive lineman Gerard Warren, a former No. 3 overall draft pick and 11-year NFL veteran who spent last season with the New England Patriots, was cut by the team earlier this week. There is a good chance, however, that New England will re-sign Warren after week one action when veteran contracts are no longer guaranteed. He performed admirably with the Patriots in 2010, registering 28 tackles and 3.5 sacks in 16 games (10 starts).

» Florida lacrosse, which won the ALC title, contended for a national title and ended the 2011 campaign 16-4 in just its second year of existence, earned the No. 2 spot from Lacrosse Magazine in its preseason rankings released Wednesday. A young team built from the ground up, the Gators will return all of their starters and begin playing again on Sept. 30, when their 2011 exhibition season starts. The 2012 regular season will begin in February and lasts through April with the postseason starting in May.

» Former Florida head football coach Urban Meyer will headline Florida Gulf Coast’s “Night at the Nest” Gala on Dec. 4 at Alico Arena. The largest fundraising event of the year for the university’s athletic program, it consists of cocktails, dinner, a live & silent auction and guest speaker with tables of 10 going for $10,000. Meyer’s daughter Gigi is a starting freshman setter on FGCU’s volleyball team, and he has been making it a point to get out to as many of her games as possible this year.

» A pair of Gators excelled in South Korea on Sunday, taking home the gold and bronze medals in the men’s triple jump at the IAAF World Championships. Junior Christian Taylor leapt 17.96m/58-11 to win the event, and former Florida jumper Will Claye finished third with a 17.50m/57-05 jump. You can watch their medal-winning jumps below:

The Gators jumped ahead 1-0 in the 25th minute when junior midfielder Erika Tymrak corralled a through ball from freshman MF Havana Solaun and pocketed it into the net. The Aggies responded quickly with back-to-back goals from Annie Kunz and Kelley Monogue before UF was able to tie it up at 39’. Senior MF Lindsay Thompson sailed a cross from the right wing to the left post, which sophomore forward Taylor Travis headed in for her second goal of the season.

All was quiet in the second half as the clock began to run down. With just 15 seconds remaining, Florida redshirt junior F McKenzie Barney found a cross in the middle of the field and buried the game-winning goal into the net from six yards out.

For the second straight day, Gators senior goalkeeper Brooke Chancey allowed two goals past her on Sunday, but this time her teammates did not accomplish anything on the offensive end to support her. UCLA scored at 35’ and 72’ to put Florida away 2-0, keeping their undefeated season alive while handing the Gators their first loss.

Back in Gainesville, FL at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center, No. 9 Gators volleyball was looking to start the season strong by participating in the Active Ankle SEC/ACC Challenge. The ladies won back-to-back contests in the two-day event to earn the team championship, and the Southeastern Conference defeated the ACC 3-1.

Florida (2-0) swept the Boston College Eagles (1-0) 3-0 on Friday, defeating them in straight sets 25-11, 25-15, 25-16. Senior middle-back Cassandra Anderson and senior outside hitter Kristy Jaeckel led the team with 11.0 and 10.5 points, respectively, while also combining for 13 kills. The Gators notched 14 aces in the match, and senior right-side/setter Kelly Murphy and sophomore setter Channel Brown combined for 27 assists.

Continuing their good fortunes on Sunday, Florida similarly swept the North Carolina Tar Heels (1-1) 3-0 via straight sets of 25-17, 25-20, 25-14. Senior OH Stephanie Ferrell earned the tournament’s MVP award after registering 20 kills over the weekend (including 13 on Sunday). Joining her on the All-Tournament Team were Jaeckel (double-double with 12 kills, 10 digs), Murphy (match-high 20 assists, eight kills, seven digs) and redshirt freshman libero Taylor Unroe (19 digs combined).

The University of Florida has began its 2011-12 athletic season a combined 5-1 and will look to continue its ways as its two women’s teams take part in five more games this week before the football team takes the field on Saturday evening.

The Gators opened the season on Friday against the Hurricanes and took it to their in-state rivals right from the get go. Sophomore forward Taylor Travis scored Florida’s first goal of the season at 37’, and freshman midfielder Havana Solaun tacked on another at 51’ to lead the Gators to victory.

Junior MF/F Erika Tymrak got the assist on both goals, setting up a cross for the first score and passing it from the top of the box to the left side for the second.

Before returning to Gainesville, FL for a week of practice, Florida stayed in town, took a day off and faced FIU on Sunday. Like their first match of the season, the Gators scored once in each half and came away with a 2-0 win.

Freshman F Tessa Andujar placed the first one in the net, converting a cross from senior defender Jazmyne Avant in the 40th minute. Joining her on the scoreboard was senior MF/F Tahnai Annis, who corralled a through pass from freshman MF Annie Speese and struck it in from 12 yards out at 63’.

Florida split up the goalkeeping duties over the weekend with senior Brooke Chancey (five saves) and freshman Taylor Burke (three saves) each registering a shutout while playing the full 90 minutes.

The Gators will continue their road trip with a pair of contests next weekend in Knoxville, TN. Florida will take on Texas A&M on Friday and UCLA on Sunday before returning to the University of Florida for a three-game homestand.

2 » Gators women’s basketball (7-2) had an up-and-down weekend at the Brown BEAR Basketball Classic in Providence, RI, defeating the Providence Friars (5-5) 73-56 on Saturday before being upset by the Brown Bears (3-6) 56-50 on Sunday. Saturday’s victory was led by redshirt junior forward Ndidi Madu, who achieved her first career double-double, and junior guard Jordan Jones, who scored a game-high 19 points in the win. Sunday’s effort was a juxtaposition of the one Florida put forth the day before. After posting their best shooting percentage of the season the day before, the Gators shot a season-worst 30.6 percent from the field in their loss. Though Brown did not perform much better, Florida’s play was worse and ultimately led to their defeat. Jones shot only 2-of-13 from the field (2-of-11 downtown), while Madu led UF with 14 points.

1 » No. 1/1 Florida Gators volleyball (15-1, 9-0 SEC) won its 11th straight match on Sunday while also earning head coach Mary Wise her milestone 700th career win with yet another dominating victory in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. In fact, volleyball won twice at home over the weekend, defeating the Auburn Tigers 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-22) on Friday and the Georgia Bulldogs 3-1 (19-25, 25-20, 25-19) on Sunday. Junior right-side/setter Kelly Murphy reached a feat of her own on Friday, becoming the 29th player in program history to amass 1,000 points. She recorded her nation-high fifth triple-double of the season on Friday and performed in dominating fashion once again on Sunday. Combined she posted 26 kills, 43 assists and 19 digs in the two matches. Wise’s career record now stands at 700-131; she is the 16th coach in NCAA Division I women’s volleyball history to reach the milestone and has won 18 Southeastern Conference Championships while also coaching teams to 18 NCAA Regional Semifinal berths and seven Final Four appearances.

2 » Hoping to rebound from only their second tie and loss of the season last week, No. 13 Florida soccer (12-2-2, 6-1-1 SEC) also had a thrilling weekend, winning a pair of matches at home in Gainesville, FL. On Friday the Gators defeated the Tennessee Volunteers (7-7-1, 4-2-1 SEC) 4-2, while on Sunday Florida took down No. 21 Georgia (9-3-4, 4-1-3 SEC) 2-1 in overtime. Junior midfielder/forward Tahnai Annis (27’, 53’) and junior F Lindsay Thompson (29’, 32’) each posted a pair of goals for UF on Friday with sophomore MF/F Erika Tymrak (82’, 97’) running the entire offensive show on Sunday. The Gators only have three more regular season matches this season before the 2010 SEC Tournament begins on Nov. 3 in Orange Beach, AL.

Photo Credit: Brad McClenny/The Gainesville Sun

2 » Also performing well over the weekend was No. 3 Florida volleyball (10-1, 3-0 SEC), which defeated the Ole Miss Rebels (9-4, 3-1 SEC) 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-19) on Sunday in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Junior middle-back Cassandra Anderson and sophomore right-side Tangerine Wiggs notched a combined 16 kills and five blocks to lead the Gators. Junior RS/setter Kelly Murphy continued her streak of significantly contributing to her team’s victory with six kills, five digs, two blocks and a team-high 18 assists. Senior outside hitter Callie Rivers added 10 digs and seven kills.

Extra BIT » Florida senior tennis player, No. 9 Alexandre Lacroix, won the 2010 Napa Valley Classic title on Sunday, defeating No. 8 Eric Quigley of Kentucky 10-6 in the final. Lacroix combined to win his three matches 30-15 at earned a USTA wild card for a future event with his victory.

In the two matches, junior right-side/setter Kelly Murphy posted a total of 27 kills, 37 assists and 20 digs, earning her a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Joining her on the team was senior outside hitter Callie Rivers, who posted 16 kills and 16 digs combined in the two matches. The schedule does not get any easier for Florida, which will take on No. 16 Kentucky to begin Southeastern Conference play on Friday.

2 » Just behind volleyball rankings-wise is No. 6 Gators soccer (6-0), which utilized an overtime victory to top the No. 10 Florida State Seminoles (4-2) 2-1 on Friday at the Seminole Soccer Complex in Tallahassee, FL. Well into the second half, Florida sophomore midfielder/forward Erika Tymrak gave the Gators an early lead with a deflected goal at 62’. Things were looking bleak for FSU until Janie Cayman knocked one through at 89’ just before regulation time expired. However, UF redshirt sophomore MF McKenzie Barney obviously had somewhere important to be, because it only took her 15 seconds into the overtime period to turn a serve from senior defender Nicky Kit into a golden goal for the Gators.

Extra BIT » President Barack Obama may be doing a Gator Chomp on Monday as Florida’s 2009-10 NCAA National Championship-winning men’s track and field and women’s swimming and diving teams will be recognized for their accomplishments at the White House. The Gators will be joined by 31 other NCAA title teams who will have the opportunity to honored by the President on the White House lawn.