With the Florida Gators beginning spring practice for the 2010 season on Wednesday, there is plenty of newsworthy information around the program. Rather than publishing it all in long form, OGGOA thought it would be best to lay it out piece-by-piece.
Blink your eyes and check out over 1,000 words and two videos on Florida Gators football after the jump!
Continue Reading » Notes and quotes from the start of spring practice
Below are the uniform numbers for early enrollees from the Florida Gators‘ No. 1-ranked 2010 recruiting class (as well as those for some walk-ons):
» S Matt Elam – 22
» CB Joshua Shaw – 29
» CB Jaylen Watkins – 14
» OL Ian Silberman – 77
» WR Solomon Patton – 83
» TE Gerald Christian – 32
» DT Leon Orr – 68
» S Jordan Haden – 39
» QB Trey Burton – 13
» WR/KR Robert Clark – 81
» NT Neiron Ball – 48
Walk-ons
» Brandon Sanders – 37
*Carver High School – Ocala, FL
» Gery Marseile – 53
*Booker T. Washington High School – Miami, FL
» Thaddeus Blue – 20
*Miami Carol City High School – Miami, FL
» Phillip Bellino – 86
*Santa Fe Community College, Pope John Paul II High School, Boca Raton, FL
1 » After a huge upset win over the No. 17 Tennessee Volunteers last Tuesday, the Florida Gators looked to be squarely in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. A few days later, the Gators found themselves back on the bubble falling to the Georgia Bulldogs on the road. ESPN’s Mark Schlabach looks at what happened and what the team needs to do from this point forward.
2 » Four former Florida golfers were at the top of the leaderboard going into the final round of the PGA‘s Waste Management Phoenix Open on Sunday. Mark Calcavecchia, Matt Every, Camilo Villegas and Chris Couch were all in the hunt for the tournament title, but each wound up falling short in the end. Couch finished T4 (-13), Villegas was T8 (-11) with Every and Calcavecchia shot a final-day 74 to fall to T43 (-7).
Four more BITS on Brantley, Brown, tennis and baseball…after the break!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: NCAA bubble, PGA, Brantley, Brown
Five-star defensive end Ronald Powell on ESPNU’s College Football Recruiting Insider:
Head coach Urban Meyer on ESPNU’s College Football Recruiting Insider:
On ranking his class: “I don’t rate it as a class yet, I think that’s down the road – three or four years. But there’s certain elements of this class: size and the defensive line. It’s one of the best I’ve ever seen with Ron Powell, Lynden Trail, Leon Orr, Dominique Easley and Sharrif Floyd. Not just great players, but great people. A good work ethic, good leadership qualities. There are certain areas that I like better than others, but I think our defensive front [is one of them]. That’s where college football is played and that’s where you start on defense.”
On who excites him the most: “We got a tailback named Mack Brown – probably the highest-rated tailback we’ve signed here at Florida, in our tenure here. It’s a guy that we needed, a guy that we had to have. He made a commitment. Nowadays, when you make a commitment, at least you know you’re in the top four. He made a commitment to Florida – didn’t take another trip. Really classy family. Hardworker. Has battled some injuries too, but we’re counting on him to be a big-time playmaker sooner than later for us.”
ESPN had 11 more questions for Meyer. Read them all after the jump!
Continue Reading » ESPN’s coverage of Gators’ 2010 recruiting class
Aside from having to hire a new head coach after Urban Meyer‘s shocking resignation, one of the most immediate issues facing the Florida Gators football program in 2010 is retaining recruits from one of the top incoming classes in the country. With 20 recruits currently verbally committed to the Gators and plenty more considering their commitment one way or another, losing Meyer will almost certainly a blow to the team’s recruiting – how big of a blow is yet to be determined. Numerous sources including Rivals, GatorCountry, the Palm Beach Post, the Orlando Sentinel, the Gainesville Sun and the Sporting News have spoken with these recruits over the past few hours, and OGGOA has compiled some information on where each of them stand.
Because the list is so long, it is best to view it after the jump!!!
Continue Reading » Meyer’s decision stuns Gators 2010 recruits
It has been a slow weekend as far as Florida Gators news goes, but OGGOA has done its best Sunday morning to provide you with a few notes to wrap up the weekend. Expect more from us later in the day, so stay tuned!
1 » A dozen Gators commits and recruiting prospects including five-star safety Matt Elam (Fort Lauderdale, FL) visited Gainesville, FL, this weekend for official visits with Florida coaches, staff and current players. In what will be a crucial weekend for Gators’ recruiting after losing defensive coordinator Charlie Strong and wide receivers coach/recruiting coordinator Billy Gonzales to other schools, Florida hopes to secure commitments it has already received and establish new ones, possibly pulling players away from other teams. With National Signing Day approaching at the beginning of February and early enrollment for the spring semester (and spring practice) less than a month away, expect to hear a bunch of recruiting news come out over the next few days and weeks. Commits: Elam, four-star DE Neiron Ball (Jackson, GA), four-star OT Ian Silberman (Fleming Island, FL), four-star ATH Travon Van (New Berlin, NY), four-star CB Jaylen Watkins (Cape Coral, FL), three-star QB Trey Burton (Venice, FL) – Recruits: five-star LB Jordan Hicks (West Chester, OH), four-star WR Chris Dunkley (Pahokee, FL), four-star WR Justin Hunter (Virginia Beach, VA), four-star OT Morgan Moses (Fork Union, VA), four-star C Brandon Linder (Fort Lauderdale, FL), three-star CB Robert Clark (West Palm Beach, FL).
2 » Though senior quarterback Tim Tebow came in fifth in Saturday’s 2009 Heisman Trophy ceremony, two of his teammates were awarded honors of their own. Juniors cornerback Joe Haden and center Maurkice Pouncey were both named to the 2009 Football Writers Association of America All-America Team. Both are seemingly racking up All-America honors this season, which bodes well for them considering they are (likely) heading into the 2010 NFL Draft.
Four-star cornerback John Fulton (Manning, SC) will be taking a trip to the University of Florida for an official visit this Saturday when the Florida Gators take on the Vanderbilt Commodores. Fulton is currently favoring his hometown South Carolina Gamecocks and Alabama Crimson Tide. With Florida already having a plethora of cornerback commitments, he may just be doing his due diligence.
More football, basketball and volleyball recruiting news after the jump…
Continue Reading » Recruiting visits for Vandy, update on Knight
Taurean Green (@TaureanJGreen):
"Yes yes....my #GatorBoys in the Elite 8. All u jive time turkeys that thought Marquette was gonna win can sit down and go to sleep!"
The Silver Lining is an exclusive column written by Adam Silverstein of OnlyGators.com for Yahoo! Sports and Rivals.com affiliate InsideTheGators.com. OGGOA readers can receive a special discount on a subscription to InsideTheGators, which can be accessed by clicking the image above!
