From time to time, OGGOA will come across too many news items we want to share with our readers. In those instances, we present a special post: Gator Bites. Enjoy.

- Reports were released early Sunday that Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer was hospitalized late Saturday night with chest pains. However, Meyer actually checked himself into Shands hospital in Gainesville, FL, early Sunday morning. He was treated and released for dehydration. The Orlando Sentinel reports that Meyer “worked late recruiting Saturday night after the Southeastern Conference Championship game loss to Alabama, which may have contributed to his dehydration.” ESPN has the story:

- Four-star linebacker Jeff Luc (Port St. Lucie, FL), a recruit who was highly coveted by the Gators, committed to the Florida State Seminoles on Saturday according to Aaron Shepard, one of his high school coaches. “He said he’s been a fan since he’s been a little kid and it just felt like home since he went up there this weekend,” Shepard told The Orlando Sentinel on Sunday.

- Defensive coordinator Charlie Strong told reporters on Saturday that he has not yet spoken to the Louisville Cardinals and had no planned meeting with the school on Sunday. Sunday morning, the Cardinals spoke with Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley and received permission to speak with Strong about the job opening. According to ESPN’s Joe Schad on twitter, Strong and Louisville AD Tom Jurich have plans to meet Sunday night in Gainesville, FL.

- The Gators will likely face the Cincinnati Bearcats in the Sugar Bowl. Meyer played defensive back for the Bearcats from 1983-1986.

- Former Alabama Crimson Tide running back Shaun Alexander, a close friend of senior quarterback Tim Tebow for some time, was seen consoling him late after the game in the Georgia Dome.

– Prior to the Miami Dolphins game on Sunday, former middle linebacker Channing Crowder ran out of the tunnel and gave a huge Gator Chomp to the crowd (which received a surprising ovation). Crowder was responsible for the game-clinching interception with 0:35 left in the fourth quarter as the Dolphins defeated the New England Patriots.

- Also a huge day for former Florida wide receiver Louis Murphy with the Oakland Raiders. Murphy caught four balls for 128 yards and two fourth quarter touchdowns against the Pittsburgh Steelers to give his team a 27-24 win.

- Competing in the 2010 Under Armour All-American Game are the following Florida commitments: Joshua Shaw (CB; Palmdale, CA), Jonathan Dowling (S; Southeast, FL), Demar Dorsey (S; Boyd Anderson, FL), Solomon Patton (WR; Murphy, AL), Leon Orr (DT; Gulf, FL), Mack Brown (RB; Martin Luther King, GA), Ian Silberman (OT; Fleming Island, FL). These recruiting prospects (among others) will also be playing in the game: Chris Dunkley (WR; Pahokee, FL), Kadron Boone (WR; Trinity Catholic, FL), Lamarcus Joyner (CB; St. Thomas Aquinas, FL), Cody Riggs (CB; St. Thomas Aquinas, FL), Chaz Green (OT; Tampa Catholic, FL), Devin Gardner (QB; Inkster, MI), Eric Mack (OG; Calhoun County, SC). For the star ratings of the Gators commits found in this list, visit OGGOA‘s recruiting page.

OGGOA will continue to update you with news throughout the day, so stay tuned.

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Channing Crowder, Charlie Strong, Chaz Green, Chris Dunkley, Cincinnati Bearcats, Cody Riggs, Demar Dorsey, Devin Gardner, Eric Mack, Florida State Seminoles, Ian Silberman, Jeff Luc, Jonathan Dowling, Joshua Shaw, Kardon Boone, Lamarcus Joyner, Leon Orr, Louis Murphy, Louisville Cardinals, Mack Brown, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, Oakland Raiders, Pittsburgh Steelers, SEC Championship, Shands, Shaun Alexander, Solomon Patton, Sugar Bowl, Tim Tebow, Under Armour All-American Game, Urban Meyer

Four-star cornerback Joshua Shaw (Palmdale, CA), the No. 23 overall recruit in the nation, announced Tuesday that he has decided to attend the University of Florida and commit to play college football for the Florida Gators in 2010.

Shaw (6’1″, 195 lbs.), who also received scholarship offers from other top programs including the Ohio State Buckeyes, LSU Tigers and USC Trojans (among others), last visited Florida two weekends ago for the Vanderbilt Commodores game. Shaw’s visit that weekend was unofficial (meaning he paid his own way) and occurred less than two months after he took his official visit on Sept. 18. OGGOA said late last week that Gators fans had reason to feel optimistic about Shaw because, almost immediately after he returned home from Gainesville, he narrowed his list down to four and announced that he would be making his decision this week.

“[USC has] talked to me several times during the day and said they still plan to recruit me, but I’m solid with Florida,” Shaw said. “I’m a man of my word and this wasn’t a spur of the moment decision for me. I thought a lot about this and Florida is just the best fit for me. I love watching Florida play, they have so many athletes and play fast and aggressive. They play a lot of true freshman at Florida and [Joe] Haden and Janoris Jenkins were both freshman starters at corner. Both are probably going to be first-round draft picks too so that was a pretty big selling point.”

While visiting UF, Shaw’s family reportedly met with head coach Urban Meyer for an extended period of time to discuss a potential future in the Orange and Blue. Some rumors suggested that Shaw wanted to know about the status of junior cornerback Joe Haden while others stated he already gave Meyer a silent commitment but wanted to wait and officially announce it in his hometown. Neither seems to matter now as he plans to enroll at UF this spring to get a jump on next season.

On an interesting note, Shaw and five-star defensive end recruit Ronald Powell (Moreno Valley, CA) have said they wish to attend the same school and room together as freshman. Powell is still deciding between the Gators and his hometown Trojans. Reeling in Shaw was big for Florida, which has struggled in the past to gain commitments from the West Coast. That looks like it has changed as, according to Shaw, he will not be the only one from the state of California signing for 2010. “I’ll say this, there’s definitely more to come for the 2010 class,” Shaw told Rivals.

Photo Credit: Rivals

Tags: Joe Haden, Joshua Shaw, Ronald Powell, University of Florida, Urban Meyer

Four-star cornerback Joshua Shaw (Palmdale, CA) has announced that he will officially commit to a university of his choosing Tuesday, Nov. 17 at 10 a.m. (PST). One of the best at his position in the country, Shaw has received scholarship offers from many top programs including the Florida Gators, LSU Tigers, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Ohio State Buckeyes, USC Trojans and Washington Huskies. He has visited (either officially or unofficially) all of these schools (and more) and just got back from Gainesville, FL, after visiting for the Vanderbilt Commodores game this past weekend.

“I was going to wait until Christmas and then go public at the [Under Armor] Game, but I just want to get it over with,” Shaw said. “I’ve done a lot of traveling, and I’m pretty tired with the process now so I want to end it. I have some great options, and I really enjoyed the whole process. I don’t want to narrow it down to two or three or anything, I’m just going to pick one school. Of course I have a school in mind right now, but I’m going to take the next week to let everything sink in and then I’ll be ready.”

Nothing can be predicted at the moment, but Gators fans have good reason to feel confident. Shaw traveled across the country to see Florida on an unofficial visit (meaning he paid his own way) less than two months after taking his official visit on Sept. 18. That he is ready to make a decision so soon after returning could be indicative that Shaw’s weekend visit helped him make up his mind. There had previously been speculation that the Gators had already passed the Buckeyes as the leader for his services.

OGGOA will have an update on Shaw’s status as soon as he makes the announcement.

Tags: Joshua Shaw, Palmdale

Four-star cornerback John Fulton (Manning, SC) will be taking a trip to the University of Florida for an official visit this Saturday when the Florida Gators take on the Vanderbilt Commodores. Fulton is currently favoring his hometown South Carolina Gamecocks and Alabama Crimson Tide. With Florida already having a plethora of cornerback commitments, he may just be doing his due diligence.

More football, basketball and volleyball recruiting news after the jump…
Continue Reading » Recruiting visits for Vandy, update on Knight

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Berkley Whaley, Brandon Knight, Connecticut Huskies, Ian Silberman, Jaylen Watkins, Jeff Luc, John Fulton, Joshua Shaw, Kansas Jayhawks, Kentucky Wildcats, LSU Tigers, Miami Hurricanes, Michael McFarland, Ohio State Buckeyes, South Carolina Gamecocks, Trey Burton, University of Florida, Vanderbilt Commodores, volleyball