1 » A common thought among Florida Gators players returning for their first practice since UF’s devastating loss in the 2009 SEC Championship game was expressed quite well by senior quarterback Tim Tebow on Tuesday. “I don’t think you’re over a loss,” he said. “It’s probably going to hurt a while. I guess we’re over the point where we’re feeling sorry for ourselves.” Tebow also spoke to the media about the elation that his crying brought to non-Gators fans. “I don’t think I’ve really been irritated by it too much, except for when people give my family a hard time or when they’re saying stuff to my mom,” he said. “I’m used to hearing everything from fans, and so you know what, if they enjoy seeing me cry, I have bigger things to worry about.”

2 » Running backs coach Kenny Carter shot down rumors that he has plans to join former defensive coordinator Charlie Strong’s staff at the Louisville Cardinals. “I’m not looking for anything and have not been approached with anything,” Carter said. He then pulled a line from cornerbacks coach Vance Bedford’s book, saying: “I’m a Gator.” He continued, “The good thing about it is if you’re doing your job, there are going to be rumors. If you didn’t have the rumors then you’d be worried.”

3 » Carter also denied any talk that redshirt sophomore running back Chris Rainey would be declaring for the 2010 NFL Draft, calling it a “non-issue.” Bruce Black, the father of junior strong safety Ahmad Black, speculated that his son, Rainey and the Pouncey twins would all declare after the 2010 Sugar Bowl. “When [Rainey] exhausts his eligibility, then he can think about it,” he said. “I know when he and I had that conversation, we weren’t thinking about anything else but playing and next year.”

4 » Head coach Urban Meyer missed his team’s first practice in more than a week as he is across the country doing recruiting work in the state of California. Likely visiting five-star defensive end Ronald Powell (Moreno Valley, CA) and four-star wide receiver Kenny Stills (Carlsbad, CA), Meyer hopes to return to Gainesville, FL, with their commitments or at least increased interest in the Gators.

Tags: Ahmad Black, Bruce Black, Charlie Strong, Chris Rainey, Draft, Kenny Carter, Kenny Stills, Louisville Cardinals, NFL, Ronald Powell, SEC Championship, Sugar Bowl, Tim Tebow, Urban Meyer, Vance Bedford

Florida Gators defensive coordinator Charlie Strong has been announced as the 21st head coach of the Louisville Cardinals. Strong was named the front-runner to replace former head coach Steve Kragthrope by Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich after the regular season concluded, though Jurich waited to speak to Strong and Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley until after the Gators competed in the 2009 SEC Championship. The two first met Sunday evening in Gainesville, FL, and spoke about the job throughout the week as Jurich waited for the University of Louisville‘s Athletic Association Board of Directors to approve the hiring of Strong. That endorsement came Wednesday afternoon, and a school press conference scheduled for 4 p.m. confirmed Strong’s future with the Cardinals.

“I’ve done a lot of homework with this hire, and I was amazed how well-respected and revered Charlie Strong is throughout the country ,” Jurich said at the press conference. “He commands a lot of respect from people within the game, including ex-players and coaches around college football. However, after meeting him in person, I was even more impressed. Tony Dungy had a huge impact on me with this hire. He was passionate about Charlie as a coach and as person. I respect the opinions of Urban Meyer, who was part of our staff at Colorado State, and Jeremy Foley, who is one of the most respected athletic directors in the country. They both raved about Charlie as a football coach and his great character.”

During his first address to the Louisville faithful, Strong first paused and then cried when asked by a reporter if he thought he would ever get the chance to be a head coach. “Because you just never knew if it would happen,” he said. Strong also described the meeting when Jurich offered him the job as “very emotional” for his family. “Coaching is taking young men and making an impact and influence on their lives to make them better people,” Strong said. “I want them to know that their sole purpose here is to get a degree and to go win football games.”

Strong got his start as a graduate assistant at Florida from 1983-84 and has spent the majority of his 27-year coaching career with the Gators. He returned to the team in 1988 as outside linebackers coach for two seasons before leaving and coming back in 1991 under head coach Steve Spurrier as assistant head coach/defensive tackles coach. In 1999, he became the first African-American coordinator in Southeastern Conference history when he was hired by Lou Holtz of the South Carolina Gamecocks to coach the defense. His most recent stint with Florida began in 2002 as defensive coordinator under then-head coach Ron Zook. Strong survived the transition of the team to current head coach Urban Meyer, who eventually gave him complete control of the defense and the additional title of assistant head coach. He also served as the Gators’ interim coach (effectively the second African-American head coach in SEC history) in Florida’s 2004 Peach Bowl loss to the Miami Hurricanes.

Throughout his career, Strong has been known as a terrific recruiter who is able to connect on a personal level with his players. He has coached in 19 bowl games, including 12 in January, due in part to his installation of an aggressive, attacking scheme that puts pressure on the quarterback and forces turnovers. Strong has developed six first-round NFL Draft picks and 15 players who were drafted in the third round or higher (prior to the 2010 draft). Since 2003, Florida’s defense under Strong has intercepted 132 passes, good for No. 3 in the nation and best in the SEC. No SEC defense has forced more turnovers (139) or interceptions (95) than the Gators since 2005, and only one other school in the nation (Boston College) has picked off more passes. Florida’s defense has also paced the SEC in total rushing yards allowed and rushing yards per game allowed since 2005 while remaining at the top of the league in red zone scoring defense over the last two seasons (second in the nation – East Carolina).

Because of the recent success of the Gators under Meyer, the coach has lost a number of his assistants to promotions. Doc Holliday was with Florida from 2005-2007 as associate head coach/safeties coach/recruiting coordinator before leaving to become the West Virginia Mountaineers associate head coach while also coaching tight ends, fullbacks and running the team’s recruiting. Co-defensive coordinator/defensive line coach Greg Mattison left after the 2007 season to coach linebackers for the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens (he is now the team’s defensive coordinator). And most recently, former offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Dan Mullen was hired as the head coach of the Mississippi State Bulldogs before the 2009 BCS National Championship. Mullen took tight ends/assistant offensive line coach John Hevesy with him as his assistant coach/offensive line coach/running game coordinator.

Strong was bombarded by phone calls from assistants around the country looking to earn a spot on his Louisville staff before he was even officially interviewed for the position. Rumors are swirling that he may tap either Florida wide receivers coach/recruiting coordinator Billy Gonzales or running backs coach Kenny Carter to become his offensive coordinator. (Gonzales has since denied these rumors, though it is believed that Meyer has already spoken with Notre Dame Fighting Irish running backs coach Tony Alford about replacing Carter should Strong bring him along.) Some are also speculating that Strong could ask assistant head coach/defense/defensive line coach Dan McCarney or assistant defensive coordinator/safeties coach Chuck Heater to join him as his defensive coordinator. Either McCartney or Heater is expected to be named the Gators’ defensive coordinator in succession of Strong.

The Cardinals told Strong that he could stay with the Gators to coach in the 2010 Sugar Bowl, and according to a statement he gave the St. Petersburg Times, he will do so.

Tags: Baltimore Ravens, BCS, Billy Gonzales, Charlie Strong, Chuck Heater, Dan McCarney, Dan Mullen, Doc Holliday, Greg Mattison, Jeremy Foley, John Hevesy, Kenny Carter, Lou Holtz, Louisville Cardinals, Miami Hurricanes, Mississippi State Bulldogs, National Championship, NFL, Peach Bowl, Ron Zook, SEC, SEC Championship, South Carolina Gamecocks, Steve Kragthorpe, Steve Spurrier, Sugar Bowl, Tom Jurich, Tony Alford, University of Louisville, Urban Meyer, West Virginia Mountaineers

1 » Tim Tebow, star quarterback of the No. 1 Florida Gators, is scheduled to be held out of practice for the second consecutive day this week, a source close to the team told OGGOA. Reports state Tebow attended practice yesterday as a spectator and continues to be asymptomatic following a concussion suffered during Florida’s 41-7 win over the Kentucky Wildcats on Sept. 26. Should Tebow continue to show progress throughout the day, I predict we will see him on return to practice in an active role on Wednesday.

With that being said, Ben Volin of the Palm Beach Post made an interesting report today. Apparently, UF officials believe even if Tebow is medically cleared to play Saturday, he will sit and back-up John Brantley will start in his place.

2 » Running backs coach Kenny Carter made some interesting comments regarding Tebow’s playing status for Saturday night’s game against No. 4 LSU Tigers. “It’s rather presumptive to think that Tim’s not playing,” Carter said. “He may be playing.” Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald reiterated that Carter said the team was doing its best to get him ready to go for the game. “When you have a concussion, they have to do tests and make sure you’re ready to go,” Carter said. “I’m very confident. He’s Tim Tebow. All I know is he’s Tim Tebow, and my money is on him.”

3 » While no players were officially classified as H1N1 swine flu cases, the bug that ran rampant through the Gators locker room over the last few weeks seems to have dissipated for the time being. According to Jeremy Fowler of the Orlando Sentinel, the only remaining Florida player with a bug is freshman offensive lineman Nick Alajajian. The team has no plans to take separate planes to Baton Rouge, LA, later this week, and the Gators trainers are eagerly awaiting the government-issued H1N1 vaccine when it is released in the next month or two.

4 » Head coach Urban Meyer continues shows respect and support for Florida State Seminoles head coach Bobby Bowden, who is seemingly walking the plank with his own boosters and trustees. “I have great respect for coach Bowden, and we’ve become pretty good friends,” Meyer said Monday. “It’s the nature of the beast. It’s not the positive part of this coaching profession. There are so many positives, and that’s the back end of the negative. I just have a lot of respect for him.” Since Meyer took the Florida job, the Gators are 4-0 against Bowden and the Seminoles, beating them by a combined score of 90-27 in the last two games.

Tags: John Brantley, Kenny Carter, Nick Alajajian, Tim Tebow, Urban Meyer