1 » On Feb. 1, OGGOA reported that former Florida Gators safety Reggie Nelson could be cut by the Jacksonville Jaguars if he does not show significant improvement by the time training camp concludes. Nelson owned up to ESPN about his issues in 2009 and has figured out why they occurred. “I had mistakes last year, I did,” he said. “I’ve watched film since I’ve been here in February and I can own up and say, ‘Yes, I did blow some coverages. Yes, I did miss tackles.’ That’s something I’ve looked at. I have to correct them. You’ve got to look at it: I played safety, corner, nickel, so many different positions. Most players would be like, ‘Oh, no, I’m not doing that, y’all drafted me for this.’ That’s not me, I want to win. I took that challenge, I played corner, I played nickel. I am a competitive guy. [...] They made their decision and I’ve got to live with it.” Nelson also said he will not do the same thing in 2010 – if it is up to him. “The way things happened last year, I don’t think I’d do it,” he said. “I will not do it. I tried that last year. It didn’t work. I don’t think it was fair to me. I would not go back. You live and you lean. It’s their decision, regardless. The only thing I can do is show up and play football.”

2 » The New England Patriots want former Florida defensive end Jermaine Cunningham to replace recently released outside linebacker Adalius Thomas – this much is known. How he will progress in the transition remains to be seen, but head coach Bill Belichick is just as confident as Cunningham is in himself. “It’s all football. I’m a football player,” Cunningham said. “I’m going to study the playbooks and just do whatever it takes to get better, and keep on getting better. […] I’m a hard worker and fundamental technician. […] Left or right, just get to the ball.” For what its worth, Cunningham has also taken to giving a name to the influx of former Gators with the Patriots – “Gator Nation North,” he calls it.

Four more BITS on softball, lacrosse, baseball and Kentucky basketball posting the lowest average GPA in the SEC…after the break!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: Nelson, Cunningham, softball, lax, UK

Tags: Adalius Thomas, ALC, ALC Tournament, baseball, Bill Belichick, Cara Canington, Ensley Gammel, Jacksonville Jaguars, Janine Hillier, Jermaine Cunningham, John Calipari, Kentucky Wildcats, lacrosse, Lakeside Field, Mississippi State Bulldogs, MSU Softball Field, New England Patriots, Nolan Fontana, Northwestern Wildcats, Reggie Nelson, SEC, softball, Stephanie Brombacher

1 » The No. 3 Florida Gators women’s tennis team was honored extensively by the Southeastern Conference on Wednesday, taking home the top three available annual awards. Freshman Lauren Embree won SEC Player of the Year, freshman Allie Will took home SEC Freshman of the Year honors and Roland Thornqvist was named SEC Coach of the Year. Also representing the team were seniors Marrit Boonstra and Anastasia Revzina, who were named to the All-SEC First Team and Second Team, respectively. Embree and Will also earned All-SEC First Team honors and placement on the SEC All-Freshman Team. Florida was undefeated (11-0) during the regular season, won the 2010 SEC Tournament and will compete in the 2010 NCAA Team Championship beginning May 14.

2 » When it comes to former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow’s future with the Denver Broncos, you will find no stronger advocate or staunch defender than Denver Post columnist Woody Paige. As someone who suggested the team select Tebow from the get-go, Paige has gone on the offensive against a number of his readers who continue to question head coach Josh McDaniels’ decision, comparing Tebow to the likes of John Elway and San Francisco’s Steve Young.

Check out four more BITS on Cunningham, Mullen and Florida baseball…
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: Tennis, Tebow’s defense, Cunningham’s future, Mullen’s job, Johnson’s start, Moyer

Tags: All-SEC, Allie Will, Anastasia Revzina, Andre Smith, baseball, Bob Stoops, Brian Johnson, Carlos Dunlap, Cincinnati Bengals, Coach of the Year, Dan Mullen, Denver Broncos, Draft, Freshman of the Year, Jeff Moyer, Jermaine Cunningham, John Elway, John Jerry, Josh McDaniels, Lauren Embree, Marrit Boonstra, Michael Oher, Mississippi State Bulldogs, MLB, NCAA Team Championship, New England Patriots, NFL, Player of the Year, Roland Thornqvist, SEC, SEC Tournament, Steve Young, tennis, Tim Tebow, Tommy Toledo, Urban Meyer

1a » No. 3 Women’s Tennis won 2010 SEC Championship Tournament
Over the weekend, the Florida Gators women’s tennis team (24-2) captured its 16th conference title in the last 23 years and first since 2006. It defeated the LSU Tigers (10-15) 4-0 on Friday before advancing to the finals to take on the No. 13 Tennessee Volunteers (16-8). Florida took down Tennessee 4-1 in the championship finale Sunday afternoon at the Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, GA. Senior Marrit Boonstra and freshman Allie Will were named to the All-Tournament Team.

1b » No. 6 Men’s Tennis fell in 2010 SEC Championship Tournament finale
Also fighting for a conference crown over the weekend was the men’s tennis team (19-4), which defeated the Mississippi State Bulldogs 4-1 Friday in semifinal action at Boone Tennis Complex in Lexington, KY. The men moved on to the championship game Sunday but were swept 4-0 by the No. 2 Volunteers, who took home the title.

2 » No. 7/11 Baseball took three of four games last week
Beginning the week with a solid 18-8 defeat of the South Florida Bulls (17-20), Gators baseball (28-11, 12-6 SEC) finished out the week by winning two-of-three games at home against the No. 9/7 Arkansas Razorbacks (33-8, 13-5 SEC). UF dropped the opener 8-3 before evening the series with an 8-2 win Saturday and taking it home Sunday with a 2-1 victory.

3 » No. 4/4 Softball dropped two of three games last week
Florida softball (35-7, 15-4 SEC) was hoping for a chance to even out its week after dropping two of its previous three games; unfortunately, inclement weather on Saturday forced the team to cancel its series finale against No. 17/18 Tennessee (39-9, 15-5 SEC). The Gators began the week with a tough 8-3 home loss to the Florida International Golden Panthers (30-15, 11-5 Sun Belt) at Pressly Stadium on Tuesday. The ladies then split a weekend series with the Volunteers, winning game one 6-0 before falling 4-3 in game two at Lee Softball Stadium in Knoxville, TN.

4 » No. 4 Gymnastics fell at home in 2010 NCAA Championship
Gators gymnastics, a consistently great program that has been hoping for a NCAA Championship since it came in second in 1998, once again fell short of a title over the weekend, failing to come out on top during the NCAA Super Six team final in Gainesville, FL. The Florida women came in fifth place with a total of 197.00, behind the new NCAA Champion UCLA Bruins (197.725), second-place Oklahoma (197.25), third-place Alabama (197.225) and fourth-place Stanford (197.10). Utah (196.225) was the only team to finish behind UF). The match was the Gators’ ninth NCAA Super Six all-time and sixth in the last seven years.

Photo Credit: GatorZone.com

Tags: Allie Will, Arkansas Razorbacks, baseball, Boone Tennis Complex, Florida International Golden Panthers, gymnastics, Lee Softball Stadium, LSU Tigers, Magill Tennis Complex, Marrit Boonstra, McKethan Stadium, Mississippi State Bulldogs, NCAA Championship, NCAA Super Six, Pressly Stadium, SEC, SEC Championship, softball, South Florida Bulls, Tennessee Volunteers, tennis, UCLA Bruins

No. 2/5 Florida Gators baseball opened their Southeastern Conference schedule this weekend, sweeping the Mississippi State Bulldogs in a three game series at McKethan Stadium. Taking down the Bulldogs (11-9, 0-3 SEC) by consecutive scores of 7-2, 5-4 and 4-1, the Gators (16-3, 3-0 SEC) will take on Florida Gulf Coast in the final game of their 11-game homestand before spending about a week on the road.

In the series’ first game, sophomore starter Alex Panteliodis (5-0) tossed a career-high 7.1 innings, only allowing four hits and two runs while registering three strikeouts. Florida put together a five-run sixth inning to take a commanding lead, with freshman designated hitter Austin Maddox (2-4) smacking a two-run double and hitting a solo home run. Sophomore first baseman Preston Tucker (2-4) continued his hot streak by scoring two runs and homering for this third-straight game.

The following night, the Gators powered their way to victory with a four-run seventh inning rally that included sophomore outfielder Tyler Thompson (2-3) stealing home plate and Tucker (2-4, three RBI) hitting a two-run double. Sophomore Nick Maronde (2-0) entered in the seventh and picked up a win in 1.2 innings of work even though junior closer Kevin Chapman (S4) allowed two earned runs (he still recorded the save).

Having already clinched the series, Florida was looking to improve their record on Sunday, and a three-run dinger by Maddox in the eighth inning provided them with the series sweep. Chapman came in to relieve a tired Gators bullpen that suffered through 94 minutes of a rain delay; he threw 2.1 scoreless innings and totaled four strikeouts to pick up his first win of the season.

The weekend’s sweep was the team’s first against Mississippi State since 2002. Florida has matched its season-high five-game winning streak and received an elevation to No. 2 in the nation on Monday.

Tags: Alex Panteliodis, Austin Maddox, baseball, Kevin Chapman, McKethan Stadium, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Nick Maronde, Preston Tucker, SEC, Tyler Thompson

NOTE: OGGOA is currently in the process of relocating (AKA I am moving) and is without Internet access until Monday morning. Therefore, we will be coming at you with a ton of news and notes first thing that morning. However, we will still be keeping tabs on Florida Gators basketball throughout the weekend and will still offer a live update right after Selection Sunday, beginning at 6 p.m. Sunday on CBS.

Florida’s win Thursday against the Auburn Tigers appeared impressive enough to earn them a berth in March Madness, but their loss to the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the 2010 Southeastern Conference Tournament quarterfinals coupled with a bunch of upsets and other victories has forced them to the back of the bubble.

Below is OGGOA‘s latest bubble watch update:

» Mississippi State (22-10) defeated Florida 75-69
» Dayton (20-12) lost to Xavier 78-73
» Rhode Island (23-8) defeated Saint Louis 63-47
» Georgia Tech (21-11) defeated No. 19 Maryland 69-64 (considered a lock)
» Illinois (19-13) defeated No. 18 Wisconsin 58-54
» Ole Miss (21-10) lost to No. 13 Tennessee 76-65
» San Diego State (24-8) defeated No. 8 New Mexico 72-69 (considered a lock)
» Minnesota (19-12) defeated No. 11 Michigan State 72-67
» Washington (22-9) defeated Stanford 79-64

Additionally, ESPN bracketology expert Joe Lunardi has dropped Florida out of his final teams to earn a berth. Instead, he has them as his second team out after Illinois after Mississippi State, Minnesota and Washington pulled off impressive victories Saturday coupled with some big upsets from other teams.

Florida [21-12 (9-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 31] The Gators seemed to be in decent shape after defeating Auburn in Thursday night’s first round of the SEC tournament, but then they lost to Mississippi State on Friday and a bunch of other bubble teams won. It will be a close call for Florida, which is trying to end a two-year NCAA drought after winning back-to-back national championships in 2006 and 2007. UF went 9-7 in SEC play during the regular season. The Gators are 3-8 against RPI top-50 foes, but those three are very good: beating Tennessee (home), Michigan State (neutral) and Florida State (home). Eight of their 12 losses came against teams that are ranked No. 24 or better in the RPI ratings. The Gators will have to overcome one ugly eyesore — a 67-66 loss at home to No. 212 South Alabama on Dec. 22.

Selection Sunday will air March 14 beginning at 6 p.m. on CBS. The NCAA Selection Committee will choose five at-large teams to join the 39 locks and 21 automatic qualifiers already in the tournament. OGGOA will provide full coverage of the event.

Tags: Auburn Tigers, March Madness, Mississippi State Bulldogs, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, SEC, SEC Tournament, selection committee, Selection Sunday

It should be no surprise that members of the Florida Gators basketball team were depressed and dismayed following their 75-69 loss to the Mississippi State Bulldogs Friday night in the quarterfinals of the 2010 Southeastern Conference Tournament. Below are some comments from the players who are concerned about a berth in the 2010 NCAA Tournament, courtesy of the Palm Beach Post and Orlando Sentinel.

» Junior forward Chandler Parsons on the loss: “It’s terrible. It’s awful. My first two years, we had a feeling we weren’t going to make (the NCAA Tournament). I think this year we have a much better chance, but it’s completely out of our hands. I’m going to keep my fingers crossed until then. I’m concerned, real concerned, because it’s not in my hands. I can’t control anything, coach (Billy) Donovan can’t, our school can’t. So I think everyone is just concerned and anxious and just hoping.”

» Parsons continued: “It’s a terrible feeling not knowing because it’s not in our hands at all. All we can do is go back to Gainesville and hope and keep our fingers crossed. I think we feel as a team we deserve to be there. We’ve had some good wins.”

» Freshman guard Kenny Boynton on what went wrong: “They wanted it more tonight, it was obvious. Reality kicked in, we tried to come back, but it was too late.”

» Senior F Dan Werner on falling behind: “You can never get by down by that much and expect to come back on a good team.”

» Werner on his miscue (flubbing pass down four with 1:25 left and a clear lane to the hoop to cut the deficit to two): “I saw that there was no one at the basket so I was going to try to run in and get an easy lay-up. When I started running I guess I kind of misjudged the ball. Stuff like that happens.”

» Head coach Billy Donovan on the team’s chances: “I think we’ve played a very, very competitive schedule. We’ve had some really, really good quality wins. If that’s good enough, then so be it. We’ll wait and see what happens on Sunday.”

Florida’s win Thursday against the Auburn Tigers appeared impressive enough to earn them a berth in March Madness, but the Gators must still keep an eye on their competition also on the bubble. While conference tournaments had been kind to UF up to this point, Friday night saw a number of bubble teams find success against top-ranked competition. Below is OGGOA‘s latest bubble watch update:

» Mississippi State (22-10) defeated Florida 75-69
» Dayton (20-12) lost to Xavier 78-73
» Rhode Island (23-8) defeated Saint Louis 63-47
» Georgia Tech (21-11) defeated No. 19 Maryland 69-64 (considered a lock)
» Illinois (19-13) defeated No. 18 Wisconsin 58-54
» Ole Miss (21-10) lost to No. 13 Tennessee 76-65
» San Diego State (24-8) defeated No. 8 New Mexico 72-69 (considered a lock)
» Minnesota (19-12) defeated No. 11 Michigan State 72-67
» Washington (22-9) defeated Stanford 79-64

Additionally, ESPN bracketology expert Joe Lunardi has kept Florida at No. 1 on his list of the final five at-large teams to qualify for the tournament after their loss Friday. Lunardi projects that it would take additional wins by Minnesota or Mississippi State or unexpected teams winning their conference tournaments to knock any of his final five (Florida, Virginia Tech, Illinois, Washington, Rhode Island) off the bubble.

Selection Sunday will air March 14 beginning at 6 p.m. on CBS. The NCAA Selection Committee will choose five at-large teams to join the 39 locks and 21 automatic qualifiers already in the tournament. OGGOA will provide full coverage of the event.

Tags: Auburn Tigers, Chandler Parsons, March Madness, Mississippi State Bulldogs, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, SEC, SEC Tournament, Selection Sunday

Down a game-high 19 points with 13:29 left to play, the Florida Gators (21-12) rallied with a strong 14-0 run but still fell short, losing to the Mississippi State Bulldogs (22-10) 75-69 Friday night in the quarterfinals of the 2010 Southeastern Conference Tournament from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN.

Led by a 23-point effort from freshman guard Kenny Boynton, the Gators’ backcourt scored 48 of the team’s 69 total points. Sophomore point guard Erving Walker contributed 19 points on 6-12 shooting while going 4-for-8 from beyond the arc. Boynton finished 4-of-7 from downtown and 8-for-16 overall with a team-high three assists.

Florida began the game slow, missing their first five shots and allowing Mississippi State to get out to a 10-0 lead. A layup by Walker almost four minutes in ended the drought. The Gators attempted an early comeback, using a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to 13-9, but the Bulldogs answered back and pulled ahead to a 15-point lead halfway through the period. UF finished the half with its backcourt accounting for 25 of its 28 points.

Up a game-high 19 points, 58-39, with 13:20 to left on the clock, MSU looked to have the game locked up. That was until Florida exploded on a 14-0 run to close within five as Mississippi State was held scoreless for six minutes. It would not be enough for the Gators, who would eventually get down to a four-point deficit on a Walker free throw with 1:25 to play. Florida had a chance to get within two with plenty of time left, but a mishandled pass by senior forward Dan Werner – who had a wide-open lane to the hoop in front of him – turned the ball (and perhaps the game) over to the Bulldogs.

Mississippi State shot over 66 percent from both the field and downtown for the majority of the game, but finished 57.1 percent and 50 percent from the respective locations compared to 43.6 percent and 39.1 percent for the Gators. Florida out-rebounded MSU 32-20, mostly due to the majority of the Bulldogs’ baskets going into the hoop.

Mississippi State guard Barry Stewart led the way with a team-high 17 points as F Jarvis Varnado dominated the paint with 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting, four rebounds and four big blocks. In all, five Bulldogs finished in double figures, with G Ravern Johnson adding 12 and G Dee Bost and F Kodi Augustus contributing 10 apiece.

Florida junior F Alex Tyus scored five points one day after a season-high 24-point performance Thursday against Auburn, redshirt junior center Vernon Macklin added three with his first bucket coming with 11:23 left in the game and junior F Chandler Parsons added 10 points with a team-high seven rebounds.

“They wanted it more tonight, it was obvious,” Boynton said after the game.

Friday’s loss was UF’s first to an SEC West opponent this season.

All that is left for the Gators is to wait for the NCAA Selection Committee to make its decision on whether or not they are worthy enough to earn a berth to the 2010 NCAA Tournament. Selection Sunday begins on March 14 at 6 p.m. on CBS. OGGOA will provide full coverage of the event.

Photo Credit: Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

Tags: Alex Tyus, Barry Stewart, Chandler Parsons, Dan Werner, Dee Bost, Erving Walker, Jarvis Varnado, Kenny Boynton, Kodi Augustus, Mississippi State Bulldogs, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, Ravern JOhnson, SEC, SEC Tournament, Selection Sunday, Vernon Macklin

1 » The Gainesville Sun’s Pat Dooley explained the Florida Gators‘ status as a 2010 NCAA Tournament team as succinctly as possible: “They’re in. I think.” The Gators appear to have clinched an at-large berth in March Madness for the first time in three seasons with their victory Thursday in the first round of the 2010 Southeastern Conference Tournament against the Auburn Tigers. Then again, anything can happen with the Selection Committee. Florida has a chance to remove any doubts tonight against a team they already beat this season, the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

2 » Though the SEC is delaying the announcement of its entire football schedule due to some conflicts, it was announced Friday that the Gators’ away contest against the defending National Champion Alabama Crimson Tide on Oct. 2, 2010, will be CBS’ lone prime time game of the season. Each year, CBS picks one conference game to air at 8 p.m., and for 2010 it has decided to choose a rematch of the last two SEC Championship games – a rubber match if you will – between the Gators and Crimson Tide. Then again, the game could very well be less of a rubber match and more of a precursor to the 2010 SEC Championship in Atlanta, GA. Mark your calendars.

3 » While the win Thursday did wonders for Florida, it has likely done just the opposite for Auburn. Tigers head coach Jeff Lebo, who was on the hot seat before the tournament, is likely to get the boot if you believe many of Auburn’s fans and boosters. Gators head coach Billy Donovan has gone out of his way to praise Lebo at every opportunity he has gotten, but the respect of his peers will probably not be enough to save the embattled coach. UPDATE: Just moments after OGGOA posted this, The Birmingham News reported that Lebo will be fired.

4 » Bubble Watch: Illinois (18-13) vs. No. 18 Wisconsin (2:25 p.m.), Rhode Island (22-8) vs. Saint Louis (2:30 p.m.), Mississippi (21-9) vs. No. 13 Tennessee (3:15 p.m.), Dayton (20-11) vs. Xavier [in] (6:30 p.m.), Georgia Tech (20-11) vs. No. 19 Maryland (7 p.m.), Minnesota (19-12) vs. No. 11 Michigan State (8:55 p.m.), San Diego State (23-8) vs. No. 8 New Mexico (9:00 p.m.), Washington (22-9) vs. Stanford (11:30 p.m.)

Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Auburn Tigers, Billy Donovan, Jeff Lebo, March Madness, Mississippi State Bulldogs, NCAA, NCAA Tournament, SEC, SEC Championship, selection committee