Bait & Bits: Florida Gators Football & Basketball Recruiting, Mr. 2-Bits, and Volleyball
By Brett Kaplan
Nov 18, 2013; Gainesville, FL, USA; Florida Gators head coach Billy Donovan coaches from the sidelines against the Southern Jaguars during the first half at Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: ©Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Welcome to Bait & Bits, a series on Hail Florida Hail that will feature one “bait” about an opposing school and some bits about the Gators. Have any links that you want on Bait & Bits? Tweet it at us @HailFloridaHail or @BrettKaplan13 or email it to us at brettmkaplan@gmail.com.
Bait
Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders. The Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders Men’s Basketball team comes in to the O’Connell Center tonight holding the nation’s longest road winning streak. The Blue Raiders have won nine straight away from Murphreesboro, TN and have won all four games to start the season. MTSU has played North Florida and Arkansas-Little Rock, two opponents Florida has faced as well.
Bits
Men‘s Basketball Announces the Signing of Three Letters of Intent for 2014-15 Class. Guard Chris Chiozza, guard Bradone Francis, and forward Devin Robinson have all made good on their commitment to the University of Florida. All three have signed their National Letters’ of Intent to play basketball at UF.
Chiozza measures in at 5’11”, 160 lbs. and rated a four-star prospect and top-50 player by ESPN and Rivals. He’s described as an attacking point guard who can to distribute or score.
Francis comes in at 6’5″, 205 lbs. and rated a four-star prospect and top-30 prospect by ESPN and Rivals. He’s described as an athletic guard who can handle, pass, and rebound against smaller opponents.
Robinson, the gem of this class, comes in at 6’8″, 180 lbs. and rated a five-star prospect (20th overall) by Rivals, and a four-star prospect (28th overall) by ESPN. He has great size, which creates matchup problems for opposing teams, and has great open-floor ability and shooting range. In my opinion, he sounds like a Corey Brewer type.
Florida has the number six ranked recruiting class according to Rivals, and the tenth-ranked class on ESPN.
Top Florida Target Announces Today. David Sharpe, a five-star offensive lineman and top target on the Gators board, will announce where he will play college sometime today. The 6’6″ 290 lb. tackle has been considered a Florida lean to this point. Sharpe played his high school football at Providence in Jacksonville.
Updated at 1:15pm: David Sharpe will not announce today as expected. Here’s his announcement via Twitter:
23 Consecutive 25 Win Campaigns by Volleyball. The seventh-ranked Florida volleyball team traveled to Knoxville to take on the Tennessee Lady Vols and came out with a win. The Gators swept the Lady Vols, 3-0. In the process, Senior Chloe Mann added an accolade to an already great career. Mann has put together a career .471 hitting percentage at UF, which is the best in NCAA history. If she continues to play at this high of a level, then she will hold the NCAA record for hitting percentage.
Wes Chandler Selected as Celebrity Mr. Two-Bits. Wes Chandler (1974-1977) will lead the “Two-Bits” cheer Saturday against Georgia Southern, his first time running onto Florida Field since 1977. Chandler was a First-Team All-American in 1976 and 1977. He caught 92 passes for 1,963 yards and 22 touchdowns, a Florida record to this day. He’s also the highest ever drafted UF receiver, going third overall to the New Orleans Saints in 1978. I know this season’s been tough, but go out and support a Gator Great as he returns to The Swamp for the first time in decades.
Basketball On Tap. Men’s and Women’s Basketball will be on display today in the O’Dome. Women’s Basketball tips it off against Florida State at 5:00 pm. Men’s Basketball will take the court against Middle Tennessee State when the women’s game finishes with tip-off scheduled for 7:30 pm. This will be Florida’s first game without starting point guard Kasey Hill. You can catch the game on SunSports if you live in Florida.
Also competing today are the Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Teams as they compete in the Ohio State Buckeye Invitational. We’ll keep you posted about the results for all games and competitions.
For more on the Gators make sure to follow us on Twitter (@HailFloridaHail and @BrettKaplan13)