1 » Florida Gators senior quarterback Tim Tebow has not yet decided if he will participate in the Senior Bowl on Jan. 30 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, AL. After the 2010 Sugar Bowl, Tebow plans to sit down with head coach Urban Meyer and several of his trusted NFL people before making a decision. “I don’t know [if I will play]. I haven’t talked to anybody about it,” Tebow said. “If the people I talk to that are wise think that I should play in it, I’ll go play in it. If they don’t, I won’t. I don’t know. I’ll do whatever I need to do [to impress] – throw out here a million times, I don’t care.” Tebow can decide to play in the Senior Bowl up until just days before the game.

2 » Nebraska Cornhuskers defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh has been voted The Associated Press College Football Player of the Year. The first defensive player to be awarded the honor, Suh received 26 of 59 votes. Stanford Cardinal running back Toby Gerhart came in second (20 votes) while Tebow, who received the award in 2007, placed fifth with a single vote.

Extra Bit » University of Florida graduate student John O’Hearn created this four-by-six-foot mural of Tebow with 46,000 BBs. It is currently on display at Ripley’s Believe It or Not in Orlando, FL. Head on over and check it out!

Tags: Draft, Florida Gators, Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska Cornhuskers, NFL, Stanford Cardinal, Sugar Bowl, Tim Tebow, Toby Gerhart, University of Florida, Urban Meyer

1 » The 2009 Heisman Trophy will be awarded Saturday at 8 p.m. live on ESPN from the Nokia Theater in Times Square. Finalists for the trophy include Stanford Cardinal running back Toby Gerhart, Alabama Crimson Tide RB Mark Ingram, Texas Longhorns quarterback Colt McCoy, Nebraska Cornhuskers defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and Florida Gators senior quarterback Tim Tebow. Tebow, the winner in 2007 and third-place finisher in 2008, is expected to finish fifth in the voting. OGGOA will not be covering the Heisman ceremony live on Saturday, though we will post a message about the winner on twitter soon after the ceremony.

2 » Tebow sat down with a number of reporters and beat writers on Friday in New York, allowing them to informally ask questions regarding a number of topics including his Heimsan ballot. Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald broke down Tebow’s thoughts on who should be the 2009 winner and came to the conclusion that he voted for Suh. (This would be the correct vote, in OGGOA‘s opinion.)

3 » Losing former offensive coordinator Dan Mullen to the Mississippi State Bulldogs and then former defensive coordinator Charlie Strong to the Louisville Cardinals in back-to-back seasons, Gators head coach Urban Meyer‘s greatest test my be perfecting his coaching turnover, writes Gene Frenette of The Florida Times-Union. Couple that with the loss of a large group of seniors and several big-name juniors, and Florida’s transition to 2010 will have to be seamless in order to keep them at the top.

4 » Speaking of Strong, the new Cardinals coach spent his first two nights in Louisville sleeping at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium as he got acquainted with the program and university. “It’s kind of a whirlwind,” Strong said. “There are a lot of things to be done. The best thing is just catch your breath and take your time and make sure I do the right things.” He even gained a commitment from quarterback recruit DeMarcus Smith, “arguably the state’s best junior” according to The Courier-Journal. Strong will leave the program at the end of the week and return to Gainesville, FL, to coach the Gators’ defense for the 2010 Sugar Bowl against the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Charlie Strong, Cincinnati Bearcats, Colt McCoy, Dan Mullen, Heisman Trophy, Mark Ingram, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Nokia Theater, Papa John's Cardinal Stadium, SEC, Stanford Cardinal, Sugar Bowl, Texas Longhorns, Tim Tebow, Toby Gerhart, Urban Meyer

Florida Gators senior quarterback Tim Tebow was named as one of five finalists for the 2009 Heisman Trophy on Monday. Only the second player in history to be a finalist for the award three times (Herschel Walker, 1980-82), Tebow will compete against running backs Mark Ingram (Alabama Crimson Tide) and Toby Gerhart (Stanford Cardinal), defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh (Nebraska Cornhuskers) and QB Colt McCoy (Texas Longhorns). Tebow won the Heisman Trophy in 2007 and finished third in 2008 but is not projected to be in the top three this season.

“Having the chance to go back to New York means a lot to me,” Tebow said. “It is a special honor but it wouldn’t be possible for me to have this opportunity without my teammates and coaches.”

The 2009 winner will be announced at the Nokia Theatre in New York, NY, on Saturday, Dec. 12. Prior to the Heisman ceremony, Tebow will be up for the Maxwell Award (best college football player) and Davey O’Brien Award (best college quarterback), both of which will be presented on Thursday night. Tebow has won back-to-back Maxwell Awards (one of only two players to do so) and took home the Davey O’Brien Award in 2007. He has already won the Academic All-America of the Year for the second consecutive season, the first student-athlete ever to do so.

Tags: Academic All-America of the Year, Alabama Crimson Tide, Colt McCoy, Davey O'Brien Award, Heisman Trophy, Mark Ingram, Maxwell Award, Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Nokia Theatre, Stanford Cardinal, Texas Longhorns, Tim Tebow, Toby Gerhart

1 » Florida Gators senior quarterback Tim Tebow continues to gain ground in the Scripps Howard Heisman Trophy poll. Accounting for five touchdowns and 311 total yards on Saturday, Tebow now holds the No. 2 spot on the list, earning three first-place votes. Ahead of Tebow is Texas Longhorns QB Colt McCoy (5), while Stanford Cardinal RB Toby Gerhart (2), Houston Cougars QB Case Keenum (0) and Alabama Crimson Tide running back Mark Ingram (0) round out the top five. Ingram led the poll the last three weeks. Voting tabulations are made on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis, with each voter ranking a top five.

2 » Skyrocketing up ESPN analyst Mel Kiper’s NFL Draft Big Board all season, junior defensive end Carlos Dunlap has fallen back to earth after his recent DUI arrest. Dunlap dropped 14 spots from No. 3 last week to No. 17 on Wednesday. Also on the list are junior cornerback Joe Haden – a “polished cover corner with tackling ability to match” – who is up to No. 7 after holding down the No. 9 spot last week, and junior tight end Aaron Hernandez brand new to the list at No. 19. Kiper says Hernandez has “great hands and excellent run-after-catch skills for a TE.” Noticeably absent from the board for a second-straight week is senior middle linebacker Brandon Spikes, who last appeared at No. 25 on Nov. 18.

3 » ESPN Insider and Football Outsiders are featuring the five keys to the Florida vs. Alabama game. While OGGOA cannot reprint the article, here is the gist of it. The five keys and teams with the potential advantage for each are as follows: Yards Per Play (Florida – 6.8 vs. 6.0), Sack Rates (Alabama – 3.9% vs. 10.5%), Second Quarter (Push), Turnover Battle (Push), Field Position Advantage (Florida – 14th vs. 25th).

4 » The Orlando Sentinel reports that redshirt senior safety Dorian Munroe will apply for a medical redshirt and expects it to be granted by the NCAA. Junior cornerback Moses Jenkins, sophomore left tackle Matt Patchan and senior transfer WR Carl Moore have all been granted medical redshirts so far in 2009.

Tags: Aaron Hernandez, Alabama Crimson Tide, Brnadon Spikes, Carl Moore, Carlos Dunlap, Case Keenum, Colt McCoy, Dorian Munroe, Heisman Trophy, Houston Cougars, Joe Haden, Mark Ingram, Matt Patchan, Mel Kiper, Moses Jenkins, Stanford Cardinal, Texas Longhorns, Tim Tebow, Toby Gerhart

1 » Some of you may have noticed the new advertisement in the right column for the OGGOA Gator SportShop. For opening a store with them, th affiliate has decided to provide us with two special promotions to share with OGGOA’s readers. Take advantage of them now before they expire on 11/30/09, especially if you wish to purchase a Tim Tebow jersey or some of the new Nike Pro Combat merchandise. Enjoy!
(1) Free Shipping Over $50 With Coupon Code: FreeShip
(2) 20% Off All Clearance Items (No Coupon).

2 » The Florida State Seminoles may have a 6-5 record, but Florida Gators junior cornerback Joe Haden sees a bunch of talented, athletic players that pose a threat to his team’s 21-game winning streak. “They look a lot better than 6-5,” Haden said. “They have athletes. A couple of plays here and there and they could have a lot better record than they have now. They have the same athletes [they used to have]. Their record isn’t as good, but they have the players. Head coach Urban Meyer agrees. “There is a lot of concern. [E.J. Manuel] is a really athletic guy, and they’re running a lot of triple option. What makes FSU dangerous is their athletes.”

3 » Senior quarterback Tim Tebow continues to lose ground in the Scripps Howard Heisman Trophy poll. Though he accounted for three touchdowns on Saturday, Tebow is in a tie for No. 2 on the list, earning two first-place votes. Ahead of Tebow is Alabama Crimson Tide running back Mark Ingram (5) while Texas Longhorns QB Colt McCoy (2) shares the second spot. Houston Cougars QB Case Keenum (1) and Stanford Cardinal RB Toby Gerhart (0) round out the top five. Voting tabulations are made on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis, with each voter ranking a top five.

4 » Unfortunate circumstances for me this weekend as I will be attending a wedding while the Florida vs. Florida State game is going on. Ironically, another Web site posted on Wednesday what appears to be the absolute greatest wedding cake of all time. Why? Well it is Gators-themed, of course. Check out one of the pictures below, then head over to the original site and find out more about it.

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Case Keenum, Colt McCoy, Florida State Seminoles, Heisman Trophy, Houston Cougars, Joe Haden, Mark Ingram, Stanford Cardinal, Texas Longhorns, Tim Tebow, Toby Gerhart, Urban Meyer

1 » One Southeastern Conference coaching relationship that is surprisingly both polite and friendly is that between Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer and South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Steve Spurrier. Both spoke to the media on Wednesday and exchanged pleasant comments about their respective opponents. Meyer said he respects the appreciation Gators fans have for Spurrier and still sees his success all over The Swamp. “It’s always going to be there,” Meyer said. “Just walk out of the stadium and look on the wall at a bunch of great stuff Coach has done. I think it’s still there, and it should be.” Spurrier said he still roots for Florida when he is not going head-to-head with the Gators and thinks that the team is playing perfectly fine. “Sometimes they were so good last year, maybe [they] haven’t been quite as proficient I guess, scoring as many points,” he said. “They score when they have to and they’ve won all their close games.”

2 » Another tidbit Spurrier dropped on the media Wednesday was that injured defensive end Cliff Matthews, who had previously been ruled out with a shoulder injury, could return to face Florida on Saturday. Matthews was running around at practice on Monday; if he does play, it would allow South Carolina to revert back to the 4-3 formation that it has gotten away from since he initially got hurt.

3 » Junior defensive end Carlos Dunlap continues to skyrocket up ESPN analyst Mel Kiper’s NFL Draft Big Board. Moving up from No. 7 last week to No. 4 on Wednesday, Dunlap’s “physical tools are off the charts” and he is potentially filled with “unlimited upside,” according to Kiper. [OGGOA has long held that Dunlap will easily be a top five selection and potentially the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.] Also on the list are junior cornerback Joe Haden, who held down the No. 11 spot for a second consecutive week, and senior middle linebacker Brandon Spikes, who dropped one spot to No. 25. Kiper believes Haden is a “polished cover corner with tackling ability to match,” while he says Spikes is a “complete MLB, solid in all areas.”

4 » Following a less than stellar performance against the Vanderbilt Commodores, Florida Gators senior quarterback Tim Tebow once again lost the top spot in the Scripps Howard Heisman Trophy poll. Though he accounted for two touchdowns in the game, Tebow fell to No. 3 on the list, earning three first-place votes. Ahead of Tebow were Alabama Crimson Tide running back Mark Ingram (4) and Houston Cougars QB Case Keenum (3), while Texas Longhorns QB Colt McCoy (0) and Stanford Cardinal RB Toby Gerhart (0) rounded out the top five. Voting tabulations are made on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis, with each voter ranking a top five.

Tags: Alabama Crimson Tide, Brandon Spikes, Carlos Dunlap, Case Keenum, Cliff Matthews, Colt McCoy, Heisman Trophy, Houston Cougars, Joe Haden, Mark Ingram, NFL, SEC, South Carolina Gamecocks, Stanford Cardinal, Steve Spurrier, Texas Longhorns, The Swamp, Tim Tebow, Toby Gerhart, Urban Meyer