Going into their sophomore NFL training camps each as one of the most dynamic players on their respective teams, former Florida Gators wide receivers Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy both suffered health-related setbacks Saturday.

Harvin, the 2009 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, was carted off of the field during Minnesota Vikings practice according to reports out of the camp, while Murphy was held out of action with the Oakland Raiders with a concussion.

The extent of Harvin’s injury is not currently known, but many of his team’s coaches and players were unaware that it even occurred. This may speak to the severity of the injury being minor or simply the fact that no one saw exactly what happened.

UPDATE: The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports that Harvin has returned to the field and is participating in Minnesota’s evening practice.

Murphy, on the other hand, suffered a concussion after getting kneed in the helmet by Pro Bowl cornerback Nnamdi Asomugah during camp on Friday. He complained of a bad headache and showcased some other symptoms, leading the training staff to decide that it was best to hold him out of workouts. Head coach Tom Cable told the Associated Press that Murphy will be sitting until he passes a series of tests.

OGGOA will keep you updated on the latest developments…

Tags: Louis Murphy, Minnesota Vikings, NFL, Nnamdi Asomugah, Oakland Raiders, Percy Harvin, Pro Bowl, Rookie of the Year, Tom Cable

1 » Though he did not commit to the team as was rumored late last week due to a falsified e-mail, five-star athlete James Wilder, Jr. (Tampa, FL) does have a leader: the Florida Gators are the “team to beat,” according to Rivals’s Mark Wheeler. “Sources say [his upcoming visits are] more to confirm his choice of Florida than anything else,” Wheeler wrote. “Wilder Jr. is enthused that Florida looks to be moving to a more traditional power running game.” In addition to recruiting fullbacks, the Gators are “expected to still feature the dive play and many inside and off-tackle running plays, but instead of [Tim] Tebow carrying the ball, Wilder would be the guy. Throw in his comfort level at Florida as well as that of his family, and the Gators will be tough to beat.”

2 » Former Florida running back Emmitt Smith has done plenty in his career. An inductee to the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year, he holds NFL career records for rushing yards (18,355), rushing touchdowns (164) and 100+ yard rushing games (78). The eight-time Pro Bowl selection and three-time Super Bowl champion was also the 1989 Southeastern Conference Player of the Year and is a member of the Gators’ Ring of Honor. But where he may have made his biggest impact is at Escambia High School, where he began his legacy. The Florida High School Athletic Association Player of the Century, Smith was not only a great player, his presence at the school helped ease racial tensions. “I wasn’t thinking about any racial tensions when I got to Escambia,” Smith told the Canton Repository. “It never dawned on me that I was part of a transformation at the school. I knew Escambia had a negative past, but I saw it was over and done with. I had played with white guys, black guys, all kinds of guys. Maybe that was me being naive.”

Four more BITS on Percy Harvin’s charity work, Cornelius Ingram’s knee, Gators on the Miami Heat and The Open Championship…after the break!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: Wilder, Smith, Harvin, Ingram, Heat, golf

Tags: Brian Gay, Camilo Villegas, Cornelius Ingram, Emmitt Smith, Escambia, Florida High School Athletic Association, golf, James Andrews, James Wilder, Mark Calcavecchia, Miami Heat, Mike Miller, Minnesota Vikings, NBA, NFL, Percy Harvin, PGA, Philadelphia Eagles, Player of the Century, Player of the Year, Pro Bowl, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Ring of Honor, SEC, Super Bowl, The Open Championship, Tim Tebow, Udonis Haslem, University of Florida

1 » Former Florida Gators linebacker, 1992 NFC Defensive Player of the Year and three-time Pro Bowler Wilber Marshall has decided to speak out about the proposed 18-game NFL season because he believes it is a money grab and will take a serious toll on players’ bodies. “I take meds just to walk,” he told Florida Today. “I don’t like taking them. I know what they do to the liver. I saw what happened to Walter [Payton]. So far, my head’s good. It’s just the rest of my body that doesn’t work. […] They should keep it at 16 games and eliminate the two preseason games anyway. But you know how it is. It’s all about the NFL making money, and not about the players’ health.”

2 » Florida freshman shortstop Nolan Fontana was named to the Rawlings NCAA Division I Gold Glove Team on Wednesday, the first player in school history to earn such an honor. The only freshman on the nine-player team, Fontana posted a .986 fielding percentage and only committing four errors in 279 chances in 2010.

3 » In the process of re-signing with ESPN, former Gators dazzler and current sideline reporter Erin Andrews will be featured in the August 2010 issue of Vanity Fair. Complete with an alluring photo spread, Andrews was interviewed by George Wayne who, safe to say, asked her some pretty ridiculous questions. Among them: “Do you have man-size feet like Paris Hilton?” “What is the one thing you take when feeling constipated?” and “What gets me to the vomitorium is that faux romance between you and that cheesy ballroom dancing partner of yours. What was with this tabloid fake romance?” Luckily for OGGOA’s male readers, Wayne’s somewhat absurd interview comes along with a video of Andrews’ photo shoot.

4 » Georgia Bulldogs athletic director Damon Evans was arrested on charges of driving under the influence Wednesday evening. Evans, driving a 2009 BMW, was pulled over just before midnight and is said to have smelled of alcohol while failing a field sobriety test. He refused a breathalyzer test and was released on his own recognizance Thursday morning. The University of Georgia is expected to release a statement sometime soon; some believe the school will ask him to resign.

Photo Credit: Patrick Fraser/Vanity Fair

Tags: baseball, Damon Evans, Erin Andrews, Georgia Bulldogs, Gold Gove Team, NCAA, NFL, Nolan Fontana, Player of the Year, Pro Bowl, Rawlings, Walter Payton, Wilber Marshall

While fans and analysts argue over whether or not former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow can eventually become a starting quarterback in the NFL for the Denver Broncos, a local legend who Tebow is supposed to replace already has his back.

Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway, a nine-time Pro Bowl selection who won two Super Bowl trophies and has his No. 7 retired in the Broncos’ Ring of Fame, endorsed the former Heisman Trophy winner to 9NEWS Tuesday morning while participating in the Colorado Golf Association Four-Ball Championship.

“I think we have a great competitor so that gives us hope,” Elway said of Tebow. “It’s gonna take a little bit of time, but I think he’ll battle his way in there and hopefully get in the thick of things quick. […] He’s got the potential, he won at the college ranks, and won the Heisman, so there is talent there, there’s a want there. I think we have a great competitor so that gives us hope.”

He also spoke with CBS4 in Denver about the same subject, explaining how similar Tebow’s arrival is to that of his’ over two decades ago.

“I think there’s a connection already with Tim Tebow and the way he’s acted, come in answered with the media, the type of person he is. He fits perfect into this community,” Elway said. “I think that’s why everyone is excited about him because they kind of feel like you know he’s the next son of Denver. That’s how I felt when I came in. […] When he did come in to town, he texted me. So I texted him back and said welcome to town and looking forward to meeting him.”

Elway was drafted No. 1 overall in the 1983 NFL Draft and had a 16-year pro career.

Tags: Denver Broncos, Heisman Trophy, John Elway, Pro Bowl, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Ring of Fame, Super Bowl, Tim Tebow

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Andre “Bubba” Cadlwell, who caught 56 passes for 761 yards and seven touchdowns from former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow in 2007, told his team’s official Web site that the Heisman Trophy winner and two-time National Champion does not have what it takes to be an elite passer on the next level.

“He needs time. He needs to sit behind one of those good quarterbacks for about three years because I know he’s going to put in the work and the effort to be a great quarterback. He’s going to learn. I don’t think he’s going to be an elite passer ever. But he’s a playmaker. He’ll get the ball there. He probably can’t make the prettiest looking passes. But he’s going to use what he has to his advantage. Running. Scrambling. Making passes. He’s got a strong arm and I think he can make the throws, but they may not be the prettiest.”

For what it’s worth, Caldwell is simply speaking his mind. He was asked a question and gave an honest reply. Seeing as he’s been catching passes from two-time Pro Bowler Carson Palmer for 21 NFL games and two full seasons of practice, Caldwell is certainly in the position to speak on the topic.

Asked to give an assessment of where he would draft Tebow if he was an NFL general manager, Caldwell was specific. “Late second round,” he said.

10:15 p.m. UPDATE: Caldwell wished to clarify his comments via Twitter this evening, and OGGOA is more than obliged to provide him with an additional forum:

“People are taking my comments about Tebow not being an elite passing QB wrong. Tebow is a college football great. What I meant is that he probably won’t throw as good as [Peyton] Manning or Carson [Palmer] – guys like that. But he can do so many other things that they don’t which make him a great QB but just in a different way. He’s a playmaker in so many ways not just only throwing the ball.”

OGGOA believes Caldwell was perfectly clear in the first place.

Tags: Andre Caldwell, Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals, Heisman Trophy, National Championship, NFL, Pro Bowl, Tim Tebow

Former Florida Gators running back and the NFL‘s all-time leading rusher Emmitt Smith leads the 2010 class that will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, OH, on Aug. 7. Smith, who spent the majority of his 15-year professional career with the Dallas Cowboys, will be enshrined along with wide receiver Jerry Rice, defensive tackle John Randle, guard Russ Grimm, linebacker Rickey Jackson, RB Floyd Little and defensive back/coach Dick LeBeau. A rarity for players, Smith was elected in his first year of eligibility.

He holds NFL career records for rushing yards (18,355), rushing touchdowns (164) and 100+ yard rushing games (78), is an eight-time Pro Bowl selection, four-time rushing champion (1991, 1992, 1993, 1995), four-time All-Pro first-team choice, three-time Super Bowl champion (XXVII, XXVIII, XXX), offensive rookie of the year, 1993 NFL most valuable player, Super Bowl XXVII MVP and member of the Ring of Honor for both the Gators and Cowboys.

“This is almost perfect,” Smith said. “I don’t think even Steven Spielberg could have written a script this nice. [Rice and I] were rewarded on this day.”

In his first full game at Florida, Smith broke the Gators’ all-time single game rushing record (224 yards); he would go on to smash that record with a 316-yard game in 1989. He also set school records for rushing yards in a season (1,599 yards), longest rushing play (96 yards), career rushing yards (3,928) and career rushing touchdowns (36). In all, Smith was responsible for 58 Gators records in only three seasons on the field, many of which still stand today. Upon leaving for the NFL, he received a place in the school’s exclusive Ring of Honor and the College Football Hall of Fame.

Smith retired from football in Feb. 2005 after signing a one-day contract with the Cowboys. He will be the second Florida player to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame after former defensive end Jack Youngblood was inducted in 2001.

Tags: All-Pro, College Football Hall of Fame, Dallas Cowboys, Emmitt Smith, Jack Youngblood, NFL, Pro Bowl, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Ring of Honor, Super Bowl

1 » Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer spoke candidly with The Gainesville Sun’s Pat Dooley after National Signing Day on Wednesday. He was surprised there was not a worse reaction to his temporary resignation but actually had fun dispelling numerous rumors about his next job. “[Five-star defensive end Ronald Powell called me at 3 a.m. and] wanted to know if I was going to ESPN to replace Lee Corso,” Meyer said. That’s what he had been hearing. I just laughed.” Four-star offensive lineman Chaz Green, Florida’s last commitment, had the same question. In the end, for a man dealing with stress, his 2010 recruiting class gave him the best gift of all: relaxation. “I left my phone on (Tuesday) night but I went to sleep,” he said. “I got up, no messages. What is that? That’s the first time since I have been married I wasn’t on the phone at midnight the day before Signing Day. And we were done with the faxes by noon.”

Five more BITS including Tim Tebow’s new organization, Emmitt Smith’s upcoming honor, the women’s basketball team’s loss and much more after the jump!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: 2010 class, Tebow, Smith, awards

Tags: All-American, All-Pro, Azania Stewart, Chaz Green, cross country, Dallas Cowboys, Dwyer, Emmitt Smith, Erick Montoya, Estero, Janoris Jenkins, Matt Elam, MVP, National Signing Day, NFL, O’Connell Center, Pro Bowl, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Ring of Honor, Ronald Powell, Sharielle Smith, Super Bowl, Super Bowl XXVII, Tim Tebow, Tim Tebow Foundation, Urban Meyer, Vanderbilt Commodores, women's basketball

Former Florida Gators wide receiver and Minnesota Vikings first-year player Percy Harvin has won Pepsi’s 2009 NFL Rookie of the Year award as voted by the fans.

Harvin, who was drafted No. 22 overall in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft and totaled a single-season team record 2,081 combined yards in 2009, finished with 60 receptions, 790 receiving yards and six touchdowns as well as 1,156 return yards, two return touchdowns and 135 yards rushing on 15 attempts.

He also took home the Associated Press‘ 2009 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors and was named as the NFC’s kickoff return specialist for the 2009 Pro Bowl. Harvin is the second Viking to win the award in three seasons (Adrian Peterson, 2007).

Tags: Minnesota Vikings, NFL, Percy Harvin, Pro Bowl, Rookie of the Year