1 » Former Florida Gators running back Jeff Demps, who gave up football after his senior season and is now a professional sprinter, did not qualify run for the United States at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials in June. However, he did wind up being added to the team as an injury replacement just days before the 2012 London Olympics got underway and learned this week that he will be running the first leg of the Men’s 4×100 Meter Relay on Friday. “I was very excited,” Demps said in a statement issued by agent Nohemy Baltodano to the Orlando Sentinel. “This is an opportunity of a lifetime.” As a member of the relay pool, Demps was not assured a spot in the event but has still been practicing with the team in London, England. By competing in the preliminaries, he will be eligible for a medal should Team USA win one in the finals of the event even if he is not a member of the four-man team to run that race.

2 » According to ESPN Cleveland, a website that is the online home for radio stations WKNR 850 AM and KNRZ 1540 AM, Cleveland Browns cornerback Joe Haden is facing a possible four-game suspension after failing a NFL drug test that is currently being reviewed by the league. “One source said that Haden tested positive for the prescription drug Adderall during a routine, off-season test,” Will Burge and Tony Grossi wrote. “Adderall, which is commonly prescribed to treat attention deficit disorder and narcolepsy, is also used for excessive tiredness. It is on the NFL’s list of banned substances and is classified by the league as a stimulant.” Haden will have the opportunity to appeal his suspension, if one is handed down, though it would be unlikely for the NFL to change its mind barring something unforeseen.

Tags: Cleveland Browns, field, Jeff Demps, Joe Haden, NFL, Olympics, track, USA

1 » ESPN’s Michael Wilbon, in a piece published on July 31 and apparently missed by OGGOA, said that Florida Gators field star Christian Taylor (United States) is someone whose name should be remembered by the public heading into the 2012 London Olympics. Needing just one jump on Tuesday to qualify for the finals of the Men’s Triple Jump (set to be held on Thursday at 2:20 p.m.), Taylor explained to Wilbon how he learned the event that he has been so successful in up to this point in his career. “I went to YouTube … and how to DVDs. That was my film session,” he said.

2 » Former Gators safety Will Hill continues to turn heads at New York Giants training camp, so much so that the undrafted free agent who spent a year away from football is said to be “vying for significant time at safety” this season, according to Sports Illustrated’s Peter King. Hill was also praised by head coach Tom Coughlin last week for being a standout in the secondary (as well as during special teams drills) and has been taking snaps as a first-team nickel back this week, according to the Associated Press. “I have the mentality, because I wasn’t drafted, [that] I have to prove myself to not only the coaches but also the players that I belong here,” Hill said. “So that’s how I just go out every day and attack it, full-on.” He also admitted that he only had himself to blame. “Me. Me,” Hill said. “Just thinking too highly of myself and thinking, ‘Oh, I am at the top again, nothing can happen to me and I can do whatever I want.’ And I paid for it.”

Click to expand and read two more BITS in this post.

Tags: All-SEC, Chloe Mann, Christian Taylor, field, New York Giants, New York Jets, NFL, Olympics, SEC, Tim Tebow, track, volleyball, Will Hill

1 » U.S. Women’s National Team striker Abby Wambach is indeed a “G,” not due to the fact that she is one of the faces of Gatorade but rather because she used her “guile and gamesmanship” to help the United States achieve a 4-3 extra-time victory over Canada in the semifinals of the 2012 London Olympics on Monday. Wambach told Yahoo! Sports on Tuesday that it was her subtle urging that led the referees to call a rare delay of game penalty on the Canadian goalkeeper, who was holding the ball in the penalty box for up to 15 seconds at times when rules state the ball should be out after six seconds. “I wasn’t yelling. I was just counting,” Wambach told Dan Wetzel of her decision to run next to the referee while heading back down the field. “Probably did it five or seven times.” And of the play in question in which the referee finally blew her whistle? “I got to 10 seconds right next to the referee and at 10 seconds she blew the whistle.”

Canada, of course, believes they were robbed in the match. (The call resulted in an indirect free kick inside the box; a handball was called on the kick and Wambach tied the match 3-3 on a penalty goal.) Though Wambach admits that the call is rare, she notes that it is well within the rules. Her subtle pestering of the referee almost assuredly helped the call be made when it ordinarily might not have been. “Yes it’s uncharacteristic,” she said. “But the rules are the rules. You can say it’s gamesmanship, you can say it’s smart, but I’m a competitor. We needed to get a goal. They’re trying to waste time; I’m trying to speed it up. [...] I think making the referee aware of a situation, there’s nothing wrong with that. At the end of the day, the ref made the decision on her own.”

2 » A former No. 8 overall pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars, former Florida Gators defensive end Derrick Harvey was cut from his third team over the course of a year when the Cincinnati Bengals let him go on Sunday. Harvey, who signed with the team just four months ago, was released before participating in a single preseason game. After being released by the Jaguars last July, Harvey was picked up by the Denver Broncos but barely played last season and spent most of it as a healthy scratch on game day. His NFL career may very well be over.

3 » The commitment of three-star offensive lineman Octavius Jackson (Moultrie, GA), who is unranked by Rivals, to the Florida Gators last week came as a surprise to many considering the team has few open slots remaining and a number of highly-rated prospects on its board. The Gators, however, knew exactly what they were doing by brining Jackson on board and it appears as if they were early to what may become a very crowded party. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Jackson received “last-minute pleas by Alabama and Florida State” before committing to Florida. He already had a firm scholarship offer from Vanderbilt in his possession. “People have missed on him,” said Rush Propst, Jackson’s high school coach. “His only true offer until a few days ago was Vanderbilt, and they couldn’t believe nobody elsewas on him. Neither could I.”

4 » Running back Chris Rainey is turning heads in Pittsburgh Steelers training camp, a fact that should come as no surprise to Florida fans whose necks were often sore from watching him run in Gainesville, FL. USA Today’s Jim Corbett wrote a few days ago that “Rainey has been the Steelers’ buzz guy since he began flashing during organized team activities, and he’s carried it over to training camp.” Almost everyone from the team’s president on down believes Rainey can make an instant impact with Pittsburgh this season though head coach Mike Tomlin is being a bit more cautious considering how early it is in the process.

Tags: Abby Wambach, Chris Rainey, Cincinnati Bengals, Denver Broncos, Derrick Harvey, Gatorade, Jacksonville Jaguars, NFL, Octavius Jackson, Olympics, Pittsburgh Steelers, soccer, USA

1 » Former Florida Gators swimmer Ryan Lochte said he was disappointed in his performance at the 2012 London Olympics, but it appears as if he will use that as motivation going forward after saying Sunday that he plans to not only compete in the 2016 Rio Olympics but participate in more events as well. “I’m probably going to swim more events in 2016, and I’m going to swim as long as I’m having fun,” he said. Lochte plans to concentrate on shorter events but will keep swimming the 400 Meter Individual medley, an event he says he has not lost in three years. “I told my coach, ‘I’ll stop swimming that event when someone beats me,” he said. Lochte will prepare for 2016 outside of Gainesville, FL as he will now be training on the West Coast. He did say, however, that he will visit from time-to-time to work with Florida head coach Gregg Troy and strength and conditioning coordinator Matt DeLancey.

2 » Already 32 years old, U.S. Women’s National Team striker Abby Wambach also told the Associated Press over the weekend that she has designs on remaining with the team the 2016 Olympics despite the fact that she’s had a nagging Achilles injury over the last three years. “It’s eased over the last couple of weeks, and I am happy,” she said. “I’ve even been talking about for sure playing through the next Olympics right now if my body can hold up.” Wambach, who entered Monday’s quarterfinals match against Canada with 142 goals in 186 international matches, would almost guarantee herself of matching and surpassing Mia Hamm’s international goal record.

3 » Though Lochte admitted that he was disappointed in his Olympic performance, fans expressing a similar sentiment after having their expectations raised to impossibly high levels have been criticized by some for having those opinions. Taking a different look at Lochte’s successes and failures is Yahoo! Sports’ Pat Forde, who notes that the effort is what should be praised even if the accomplishments fell short in the eyes of some. “Michael [Phelps] and Ryan are the only guys who have ever done that,” Troy told Forde about the program that the duo took on in London, England. He also notes that Lochte is in a special category with Phelps as two American generalists who “have remained elite across three Olympiads” as each won I.M. medals in 2004, 2008 and 2012.

4 » The University of Florida Fightin’ Gator Marching Band completed its Olympic experience one week ago but posted the video below upon their return featuring all 230 band members singing the school’s alma mater at the Tower of London. Check it out:

Tags: Abby Wambach, Fightin' Gator Marching Band, Gregg Troy, Matt DeLancey, Olympics, Ryan Lochte, soccer, swimming

Former Florida Gators tennis player Lisa Raymond (United States) had two opportunities on Sunday to capture her first Olympic medal. Following a disappointing finish in women’s doubles, Raymond and partner Mike Bryan stood tough against their German competitors and won bronze in mixed doubles at the 2012 London Olympics.

The most accomplished tennis player in school history, Raymond was the first of any gender to sweep the three collegiate Grand Slam titles in a single season (1992). She captured consecutive NCAA Championships as a singles competitor in 1992-93 and helped lead the Gators to the first team NCAA Championship in program history.

Despite not finding much success as a professional singles player, Raymond has been an outstanding doubles teammate. She has won 11 Grand Slam titles over her career including six in women’s doubles and five in mixed doubles.

Raymond/Bryan won Wimbledon in June.

Raymond has also been a part of a No. 1-ranked women’s doubles team twice in her career including this year with partner Liezel Huber, making her – at age 38 – the oldest woman to ever hold that ranking.

Her Olympics career has not been as stellar, however. Raymond was controversially left off the 2000 team and did not qualify for the 2008 squad. She did, however, compete alongside the legendary Martina Navratilova at the 2004 Athens Olympics; the duo fell in the quarterfinals and did not medal.

As the top-ranked team in the world, adding Raymond/Huber to the 2012 team was a no-brainer for the Americans, and Raymond in particular came bitingly close to brining home two medals for the United States.

In the end she and Bryan, ranked third in the field, took bronze with a 6-3, 4-6 (10-4) victory in an event that was last contested at the Olympics in 1924.

Raymond/Huber, listed as the No. 1 women’s doubles team, played well earlier in the day but fell to the third-ranked Russians 4-6, 6-4, 6-1. Huber appeared to injure a stomach muscle following the second set and the duo was unable to perform at the same level for the duration of the match.

For recaps of their performances, a full schedule (including updated events for Monday), live stream links and a Gator Nation vs. The World medal count, be sure to check out OGGOA’s Live Coverage of the 2012 London Olympics.

Tags: Lisa Raymond, Olympics, tennis, USA

Junior swimmer Elizabeth Beisel ended her journey at the 2012 London Olympics with a bang, and former Florida Gators jumper Will Claye started his in the same fashion as the duo each reeled in a bronze medal for the United States over the weekend.

Beisel, who previously captured a silver medal in the Women’s 400 Meter Individual Medley on July 28, became the second-winningest Gators athlete of these Olympics so far (Ryan Lochte) with a bronze in the Women’s 200 Meter Backstroke on Friday.

One of the favorites in the event, Beisel was treading water in fourth place most of the race but fought hard over the final 50 meters to sneak into third and capture the bronze with a time of 2:06.55 (+2.49).

On the second day of athletics action, Claye found himself in a battle for a medal in the Men’s Long Jump. In second after his second jump (8.07m), Claye quickly got bumped down to fifth but was given three more jumps as he was still in the top eight.

He used the first of his new set of jumps to register a mark of 8.12m, which put him back in line for a silver medal. However, Australia’s Mitchell Watt was dynamic on his final two jumps and first took then increased his lead on Claye, hitting 8.13m on his fifth try and 8.16m on his sixth to claim the silver for himself.

Claye, who captured the first field medal in Gators history and the first Men’s Long Jump medal for the Americans since 2004, will be one of three former Florida student-athletes competing in the Men’s Triple Jump, which begins on Tuesday at 5:45 a.m.

For recaps of their performances, a full schedule (including updated events for Monday), live stream links and a Gator Nation vs. The World medal count, be sure to check out OGGOA’s Live Coverage of the 2012 London Olympics.

Tags: Elizabeth Beisel, field, Olympics, Ryan Lochte, track, USA, USA Swimming, Will Claye

Earning five medals in the 2012 London Olympics is nothing to sneeze at though former Florida Gators swimmer Ryan Lochte (United States) has likely found a measure of disappointment in his performance at these games.

With an opportunity to add two more gold medals to his catalog, Lochte was caught from behind by two swimmers in the finals of the Men’s 200 Meter Backstroke and never sniffed first place when he went head-to-head against Michael Phelps in the Men’s 200 Meter Individual Medley less than 30 minutes later.

Lochte racked up a bronze and silver in those respective events on Thursday, giving him a total of five medals (two golds, two silvers, one bronze) in London. He lost out on the 200M Backstroke gold by 0.53 seconds and the 200M I.M. gold by 0.63 seconds.

As of press time, Lochte is the most decorated Olympian in London with his five medals though Phelps, who will also swim the Men’s 100 Meter Butterfly and possibly the Men’s 4X100 Meter Medley Relay, has an opportunity to surpass him shortly.

Phelps continued building on his career record with his 20th Olympic medal on Thursday and could get that number up to 21 or 22 before he officially retires.

Lochte has now racked up 11 career Olympic medals including five golds, three silvers and three bronzes. He plans to return for the 2016 Rio Olympics and increase that total.

Joining Lochte in the pool on Thursday were two Gators and one future Florida swimmer competing in the Women’s 200 Meter Backstroke.

Junior Elizabeth Beisel (United States) swam the best semifinal race and advanced to the finals on Friday. Joining her is incoming freshman Sinead Russell (Canada), who finished eighth. Stephanie Proud (Great Britain) missed out on the finals by one place and just 0.28 seconds, finishing slightly behind Russell.

For recaps of their performances, a full schedule (including updated events for Friday), live stream links and a Gator Nation vs. The World medal count, be sure to check out OGGOA’s Live Coverage of the 2012 London Olympics.

Tags: Canada, Great Britain, Michael Phelps, Olympics, Ryan Lochte, Sinead Russell, Stephanie Proud, swimming, USA Swimming

Tuesday was redemption day for Ryan Lochte and the United States relay team, which made up falling short on Sunday by dominating the Men’s 4×200 Meter Freestyle Relay and earning their third-straight Olympic gold medal in the event.

Lochte and fellow former Florida Gators swimmer Conor Dwyer swam the first two legs of the race, giving the Americans a significant and crucial two-second lead through the first 400 meters. Ricky Berens and Michael Phelps took it the rest of the way and cinched a 3.07-second victory for the United States.

For Lochte it was his ninth Olympic medal and third (second gold) of the 2012 London Olympics. He now has five golds, two silvers and two bronzes and has medaled in all but one Olympic final in which he has participated (Men’s 200 Meter Freestyle on Monday).

The gold for Dwyer is his first career Olympic medal; he swam in the event’s preliminary Tuesday morning and finished fifth in the Men’s 400 Meter Freestyle on Saturday.

The cushion provided by Lochte and Dwyer, which was expanded by Berens, gave Phelps a nearly impossible-to-lose four-second lead. He cruised all the way to the end, breaking the career Olympic medals record by capturing his 19th career medal (15 golds, two silver, two bronzes) spanning three Olympics.

Also in the field for the event was Sebastien Rousseau (South Africa), whose relay team finished in seventh place, 9.95 seconds behind the Americans.

No other Florida swimmers competed in medal events on Tuesday though Jemma Lowe (Great Britain) advanced to the finals of the Women’s 200 Meter Butterfly after finishing eighth overall (2:07.37, +1.47) in the semifinals. She will be the only former Gators swimmer competing for an individual medal on Wednesday.

Florida also had athletes in action on the soccer pitch and tennis court on Tuesday.

For recaps of their performances, a full schedule (including updated events for Wednesday), live stream links and a Gator Nation vs. The World medal count, be sure to check out OGGOA’s Live Coverage of the 2012 London Olympics.

Photo Credit: Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

Tags: Conor Dwyer, Great Britain, Jemma Lowe, Michael Phelps, Olympics, Ryan Lochte, Sebastien Rousseau, South Africa, swimming, USA Swimming