The University of Florida has raided the NFL for a defensive coordinator for the second time since Charlie Strong left to become head coach of the Louisville Cardinals in January. After hiring George Edwards from the Miami Dolphins only to lose him to the Buffalo Bills 27 days later, the Florida Gators have agreed to name Arizona Cardinals defensive backs coach Teryl Austin as their new defensive coordinator.

Coaching since 1991, Austin has experience on both the collegiate and professional levels. Tutored by names like Joe Paterno, Dick MacPherson, Lloyd Carr and Mike Holmgren after playing four years of college football at Pittsburgh from 1984-87, the 44-year-old has yet to hold a defensive coordinator position at either level. Both of his stops in the NFL, the Seattle Seahawks and the Cardinals, reached the Super Bowl while he was leading their respective secondaries.

Though he has not previously worked with head coach Urban Meyer, Austin has connections to interim head coach and offensive coordinator Steve Addazio and quarterbacks coach Scot Loeffler. During Addazio’s tenure as offensive line and tight ends coach with the Syracuse Orange from 1995-98, Austin was on the staff as a defensive assistant (1996-98). Loeffler knows him through his time with the Michigan Wolverines, where the former worked as a graduate assistant (1998-99) and QB coach (2002-07) while the latter served as a defensive assistant (1999-2002).

“I am pleased to have Teryl join our staff,” Meyer said in a UF release. “Coach Addazio did a great job coordinating our efforts with Chuck Heater and Dan McCarney to hire Teryl. It was important that we had some familiarity with Teryl as both Coach Addazio and Coach Loeffler had worked with him before. He also comes highly recommended from my close friend Bill Davis, the defensive coordinator of the Cardinals. It was also important that we hire a coach who is a great teacher, a great mentor and has the ability to be a great recruiter. Coach Austin has all of those qualities and beyond that is a good family man.”

“I’m excited to join the Gator coaching staff,” said Austin in the release. “I’ve watched from afar what this program is about – winning championships with dynamic players and doing things the right way. Now, I’m honored to be a part of the program and a part of The Gator Nation. I look forward to getting to work with an outstanding group of players and a great coaching staff.”

Co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach Chuck Heater, a 33-year coaching veteran and one of Florida’s strongest recruiters, is expected to retain his new title and position. Heater has worked with Meyer on-and-off since 1986 when he coached the secondary for the Ohio State Buckeyes while Meyer was a graduate assistant. Since joining the Gators, Heater has coached cornerbacks and safeties, served as recruiting coordinator from 2005-07 and assistant defensive coordinator from 2008-09.

Florida Gators (Projected) 2010 Coaching Staff …after the jump!
Continue Reading » Teryl Austin hired as Gators’ defensive boss

Tags: Arizona Cardinals, Charlie Strong, Chuck Heater, George Edwards, Michigan Wolverines, NFL, Scot Loeffler, Steve Addazio, Syracuse Orange, Teryl Austin, University of Florida, Urban Meyer

1 » Clemson Tigers co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach Charlie Harbison has removed his name from consideration for the Florida Gators defensive coordinator position according to a report by FootballRumorMill.com. The Post and Courier reports that Harbison told his head coach Dabo Sweeney on Thursday that he is staying put. Habison may very well have declared he is no longer a candidate or (more likely) the Florida coaching staff decided he was not a good fit and he is simply trying to save face. It is believed that Arizona Cardinals DB coach Teryl Austin is the Gators’ top candidate to replace George Edwards.

2 » University of Florida orthopedic surgeon Dr. Peter Indelicato, the team physician for the football and men’s basketball teams, will be honored on Feb. 20 as a “Champion With Heart” at the Gainesville Heart Ball. Though he has four championship rings with the Gators, Indelicato calls the award “the greatest honor of my life.” Read the rest of his story at The Gainesville Sun.

3 » One of the best long distance runners in Florida state history, Matt Mizereck (Tallahassee, FL) has committed to run at UF in the fall. The 2009 Gatorade Cross Country Runner of the Year, 2009 Footlocker Cross Country All-American and three-time individual state champion signed his letter of intent on Tuesday. “I really felt comfortable being with the team,” Mizereck told the Tallahassee Democrat. “They were like automatic best friends. I felt the atmosphere with the University of Florida was phenomenal.”

4 » Former Gators defensive end Bobby McCray, now a Super Bowl XLIV champion with the New Orleans Saints, was interviewed by Jim Rome on his national radio show Wednesday. The audio is available below.

Bobby McCray on Jim Rome – 02/10/10

Tags: Arizona Cardinals, Bobby McCray, Charlie Harbison, Clemson Tigers, cross country, Dabo Sweeney, Dr. Peter Indelicato, Gainesville Heart Ball, George Edwards, Matt Mizereck, New Orleans Saints, Super Bowl XLIV, Teryl Austin, University of Florida

Former and current Florida Gators student-athletes usually find a home in the Summer Olympics; however, when it comes to the Winter Olympics, appearances are few and far between. That changed in 2006 when Steve Mesler, a scholarship decathlete who earned a degree in exercise and sport science from the University of Florida in 2000, competed in his first Olympic Winter Games in Torino, Italy.

After graduation, Mesler wanted to continue his athletic career and tried out for bobsled in San Diego, CA, in June 2001. After practicing with Todd Hays’ four-man team for a few years, Mesler participated in the 2006 Games in Torino; his team’s sled would finish in seventh place.

Four seasons with Hays’ team was enough for Mesler, who moved on to the aptly nicknamed “Night Train,” a four-man sled squad piloted by Steve Holcomb. Night Train has been on a tear since coming together, starting with winning the 2009 World Championships in Lake Placid, NY, the United States’ first four-man world title in 50 years. The team has since captured the 2010 World Cup title (for the first time in 17 years) and the 2010 World Cup overall crown.

Team Holcomb is now the medal favorite heading into the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver with Mesler occupying the third slot in the sled. On each run, he is responsible for managing the balance and speed of the sled, partially due to the fact that he is the team’s fastest member stemming from his days as a decathlete with the Gators.

The two-time Olympian (he was a reserve in 2002) is a key member of the USA-1 sled, which could be the first in 62 years (since 1948) to bring home a gold medal for the United States in the Olympics. “Right now, we are the team to beat,” Holcomb told the Associated Press on Friday.

Keep an eye out for the futuristic-looking, shiny black USA-1 “Night Train” sled at the Whistler Sliding Centre during the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.

OGGOA Related Story: Mesler’s family was scammed out of $7,332 and lodging by a Whistler house rental company. They have since received the money back.

Tags: bobsled, Olympics, Steve Holcomb, Steve Mesler, Todd Hays, United States, University of Florida, Whistler Sliding Centre, World Championships, World Cup

1 » Picking seventh in the 2010 NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns are likely looking to upgrade their secondary with either a safety or cornerback. Assuming Tennessee Volunteers S Eric Berry is off the board, the Browns are expected to target Florida Gators CB Joe Haden with their first-round selection. Seriously lacking defensive backs and a starting quarterback, the Browns could go either way to start the draft, but Haden may be as can’t-miss as it gets at that spot and could even start from day one.

2 » Head basketball coach Billy Donovan mentioned that the University of Florida will be honoring the 2000 NCAA Championship runner-up Gators team with a video and posters during Saturday’s home game against the Xavier Musketeers. “[There are] too many guys still playing/coaching to get them [all] back,” Donovan said. “[I] hope people remember what a special team that was.” The game will air live at 6 p.m. on ESPN.

Tags: Billy Donovan, Cleveland Browns, Draft, Eric Berry, Joe Haden, NCAA Championship, NFL, Tennessee Volunteers, University of Florida, Xavier Musketeers

Former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow spent a good part of the Friday before Super Bowl XLIV not speaking about his Focus on the Family advertisement set to air during the game but rather working out at a makeshift Gatorade Performance Lab in Miami, FL. Tebow went through a number of exercises including a caloric expenditure test while wearing a Gatorade towel and promoting the company’s newest line of beverage products: G Series.

G Series, which will be introduced at the Super Bowl, is a three-part regimen designed to fuel every step of an athlete’s performance. It consists of three components: a priming drink, performance drink and recovery drink. “Whether it’s practice, training or competition, the G Series three-part system fuels the body at every stage of your routine – before, during and after – helping you perform at your best,” according to Gatorade.

With plenty of endorsement opportunities sure to come Tebow’s way (and some already have), none makes more sense than Gatorade, a product developed by University of Florida scientists in 1965 in Gainesville, FL.

Should Tebow receive a full endorsement offer from the company, he would join Indianapolis Colts QB Peyton Manning, New York Giants QB Eli Manning and San Diego Chargers RB LaDanian Tomlinson as its NFL representatives.

“I don’t have to fake it,” Tebow told The Miami Herald of his endorsing Gatorade. “I believe in the product. It’s part of my life for a long time. Being a Gator, that’s what you drink. My personality, if I don’t believe in something, I can’t fake it.”

Tebow also spoke with the Herald about his life’s direction since the 2010 Sugar Bowl.

“It’s crazy,” he said. “It’s obviously a lot of scrutiny. There are a lot of good things and a lot of bad things when you’re dealing with it. There are pros and cons, just like with everything. I want people to believe in me. So when they don’t, when they talk negatively about me, when they create lies about me, when they stir stuff up about me, it can be frustrating. Some of it is false. Some of it is lies. Some of it, people just want to bring you down. It’s frustrating. But it does give me a lot of motivation.”

Video of Tebow working out for Gatorade, courtesy of the Sun-Sentinel, after the jump!
Continue Reading » Tebow and Gatorade: A match made in Gainesville

Tags: G Series, Gatorade, NFL, Super Bowl XLIV, Tim Tebow, University of Florida

ESPN‘s Adam Schefter is reporting that recently hired Florida Gators defensive coordinator George Edwards, last season an inside linebackers coach with the Miami Dolphins, has been hired away from Gainesville, FL, by the NFL‘s Buffalo Bills to serve as defensive coordinator.

Edwards, who was officially hired by the University of Florida on Jan. 8, is an 18-year coaching veteran who started his career with the Gators as an assistant under Steve Spurrier in 1991. Three stops later, he moved to the NFL to coach the defensive line for the Dallas Cowboys (1998-2001) but was snatched up by the Washington Redskins and then-head coach Spurrier as a linebackers coach and eventual defensive coordinator. Upon Spurrier’s dismissal, Edwards worked for the Cleveland Browns and then most recently the Dolphins from 2005-09.

The Bills hired Chan Gailey as head coach on Jan. 16. Gailey was head coach of the Cowboys in 1998-99 and had Edwards on his staff as defensive line coach. Joe Schad reports that Edwards was offered the position on National Signing Day.

“We are very excited that George Edwards has joined our staff as defensive coordinator,” Gailey said in a statement. “He brings a wealth of experience, not only as a motivator and communicator, but he has been involved with some great schemes and we are excited about him being the head of our defense.”

“I feel like this is a great opportunity for me to come in and have a chance to work with coach Gailey again and the staff that he has been able to put together,” Edwards added. “I am excited to have the opportunity to come to Buffalo and look forward to getting started as quickly as possible. This is a team that has played good defense in the past and I am excited to continue on with that tradition.”

Florida head coach Urban Meyer raved about Edwards upon his hiring. “George is a tremendous teacher of the game of football,” he said. “He is a great addition to our staff and will be a great coach and mentor to our players.” He also said Edwards “came strongly recommended by many, many people and kind of blew us away.”

Edwards seemed equally as pleased to coach the Gators. “I’m thrilled to be joining the UF coaching staff. I enjoy teaching and molding young men. I am looking forward to working with a great group of people at Florida and a great group of players.”

He was expected to institute a pro-style 3-4 defense but left after less than a month on the job and just a day after the Gators signed the nation’s top recruiting class.

OGGOA, on pure conjecture, expects co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach Chuck Heater to be promoted to defensive coordinator.

Tags: Buffalo Bills, Chan Gailey, Chuck Heater, Dallas Cowboys, George Edwards, Miami Dolphins, National Signing Day, NFL, Steve Spurrier, University of Florida, Urban Meyer

With 23 of the Florida Gators 25 verbal commitments either already enrolled at the University of Florida or having sent in their letters of intent (LOIs) by 10 a.m., the Orange and Blue looks was rolling toward a unanimous No. 1-ranking for its 2010 recruiting class. Three-star linebacker Darrin Kitchens (Homestead, FL) helped put the Gators over the top by becoming the team’s 26th commitment.

Kitchens, 6’3″ 215 lbs., led Miami-Dade County with 19 sacks last season. and was strongly considering the Texas Tech Red Raiders and Syracuse Orange. He would be the first of three new commitments that Florida would earn Wednesday.

OGGOA will update this story after the conclusion of National Signing Day.

Tags: Darrin Kitchens, National Signing Day, University of Florida

1 » One story surrounding the 2010 Under Armour Senior Bowl was former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow’s lingering illness. Believed to be a strep throat early in the week, Tebow was actually suffering from a viral infection of his esophagus. Pam Tebow, Tim’s mother, said his sickness was “much worse than strep throat” and caused eating to be too painful for him throughout the week. Tebow met with a doctor all week and lost more than 10 pounds over the course of the week.

2 » While many sports writers have spent the last week criticizing Tebow, Sports Illustrated’s Stewart Mandel took a look at the situation from another angle. Former Purdue Boilermakers head coach Joe Tiller, who coached Drew Brees, Curtis Painter and Kyle Orton (among others), laughed at all of Tebow’s doubters. “I can remember NFL critics saying the same thing when Drew was a senior,” Tiller told Mandel. “‘He’s in that Purdue offense all the time. He lines up in the shotgun all the time, and our guys line up under center. It’s not like college football has a monopoly on the shotgun formation. Now that I’m out of coaching, I’ve watched more NFL football this year than I have the last 10 years combined. There’s hardly any team in the league that doesn’t have their quarterback in the shotgun anymore. [...] The entire league is doing what Drew Brees was criticized for coming out of college. [...] Actually, I think a guy coming out in the shotgun is better equipped than a guy coming out of center.”

3 » Fifty-one University of Florida student athletes were named to the 2009-10 Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll for the fall semester. Football led the way with 23 honorees, followed by soccer (18) and volleyball (10). Prominent names on the list include Tebow, sophomore RB Jeff Demps, junior punter Chas Henry, senior kicker Jonathan Phillips and junior kicker Caleb Sturgis.

4 » Florida track and field was responsible eight provisional-qualifying marks/times, three event wins and two NCAA automatic-qualifying marks/times during the Texas A&M Challenge in College Station, TX, on Saturday. The second half of the event was highlighted by thrower Mariam Kevkhishvili and jumper Shara Proctor, who earned the NCAA automatic-qualifying bids. For more information on the Gators’ performances over the weekend, click here (day one) or here (day two).

Tags: Academic Honor Roll, Caleb Sturgis, Chas Henry, Drew Brees, field, Jeff Demps, Joe Tiller, Jonathan Phillips, Mariam Kevkhishvili, NCAA, Pam Tebow, Purdue Boilermakers, SEC, Senior Bowl, Shara Proctor, soccer, Texas A&M Challenge, Tim Tebow, track, Under Armour, University of Florida, volleyball