Gator Bites for Tuesday, July 27th

From time to time, OGGOA will come across a plethora of news and notes that we wish to share with our readers. In those instances, we present a special post: Gator Bites. Enjoy.

» Former Florida Gators dazzler and ESPN reporter Erin Andrews, who spoke exclusively with OGGOA for an interview on Friday, is headed to Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., Tuesday to join Congressional sponsors in support of an anti-stalking bill. Andrews, a victim of stalking herself, will appear along with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota) to introduce the Simplifying The Ambiguous Law, Keeping Everyone Reliably Safe Act (STALKERS).

» With training camps set to begin in just a few days for the Denver Broncos, rookie quarterback Tim Tebow may end up being a hold out – something that is likely beyond his control and is in the hands of his agent. Nevertheless, The Denver Post’s Mark Kiszla has put the onus on Tebow, calling a potential holdout a “dire dilemma” and one that is “destined to make folks mad,” whether it be fans or fellow players. Fact is, Kiszla is simply trying to paint Tebow as imperfect in this piece…which is true for everyone. Should he not be at camp on day one, he will be shortly after, as Tebow’s goal is to get on the field. But he does have to listen to his agent in this regard.

» The Gainesville Sun caught up with Gators four-star athlete De’Ante “Pop” Saunders on Monday. Saunders, the team’s very first commitment for the 2011 signing class, reaffirmed his desire to play in Gainesville, FL, after he was recently seen wearing Florida State gear. “They were giving me [a hard time] about wearing a Florida State helmet because I didn’t bring my helmet,’ he said. “That’s all it was. I forgot to bring mine and that’s all they had. I’m still here. I’m still Florida.” Saunders plans to enroll early.

» OGGOA has learned that four-star defensive end recruit Aaron Lynch (Cape Coral, FL) is leaning toward Notre Dame and Florida State with Florida now in a distant third place. According to our source, Lynch is concerned about playing time with the Gators and has formed a solid relationship with the staff in South Bend, IN.

Seven more Gator Bites on Corey Brewer, Brad Beal, Houston Nutt, Dallas Baker, Marreese Speights and Udonis Haslem…after the break!

» Minnesota Timberwolves guard/forward Corey Brewer, currently hosting a basketball camp in Gainesville, was asked a number of questions during a recent media availability, including what it is like to play against former teammates Joakim Noah (Chicago) and Al Horford (Atlanta) in the NBA. “Those are still fun games because Jo is always talking smack,” Brewer said. “Last year Jo was pushing me all over the court when the play was over. It’s always fun to play against those guys. I get on him about the ugly jump shot he has. So I always mess with him. But they always give me a hard time. They’ve both been in the playoffs so I gotta make the playoffs.”

» Florida five-star guard commit Brad Beal (St. Louis, MO) is the talk of high school and AAU basketball these days after putting on a fantastic performance in international competition and leading his team with 36 points last week on the way to the AAU Super Showcase championship game on Tuesday. Check out this profile piece on Beal.

» With all this talk about former Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli possibly winding up on Ole Miss, we are reminded that head coach Houston Nutt brought in another discipline-challenged player, former Florida cornerback Jamar Hornsby, just last year. If you remember, Hornsby stole a credit card from Joe Haden’s deceased girlfriend and racked up a bunch of fraudulent charges. After being dismissed from the Gators, he had a stop in junior college before Nutt picked him up, only to see him get indicted on a felony assault charge just a few weeks after joining the team.

» Former Florida wide receiver Dallas Baker, now dominating the AFL with the Jacksonville Sharks, has averaged two touchdowns per game this season and may be one of the most important players on his team, which is about to begin what they hope is a long playoff run. “It’s about conditioning. You’re always playing and it’s about being in shape,” he told The Daytona Beach News-Journal. “With Arena [football], it’s all about quickness and toughness. You had guys when I first started playing they were dirty. There’s positives and negatives.” Baker has the opportunity to be one of the rare players who could wear a National Championship, Super Bowl and Arena Bowl ring.

» Gators head volleyball coach Mary Wise announced Monday that Chris Keen – a former volunteer assistant – has been promoted to assistant volleyball coach. “We are very excited Chris will be working with us again this season,” Wise said. “His knowledge, energy level and work ethic will be a tremendous asset to our program.”

» Former Florida center Marreese Speights, who left school early only to be drafted in the first round of the 2008 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, has struggled recently but is hoping to rebound and take the next step in his career. “I’m just going to go out there and play basketball,” he told the Sun. “I’m not worried about roles or anything like that. I’m just going to play basketball and do what I’ve got to do. I’ve got to get my legs stronger, work on my conditioning and keep playing more basketball.”

» OGGOA also wanted to take a moment to send our sincerest condolences to Miami Heat power forward Udonis Haslem, who lost his mother Debra to cancer earlier this week at the age of 53. Haslem had been taking care of his mom for the last year after doctors discovered a tumor wrapped around her urethra in early 2009.