The Long Snapper (8/9/10)
All Gators. All Bulls. My Monday present to you.
• We all have collections. Some seem perfectly normal. Others seem completely off the wall. I would never put down a Florida fan for any Gator-related collection they may have. I’ve heard of people buying two copies of NCAA Football ’11 – one to play and one to keep wrapped and put away in their Tim Tebow collection. May seem a little odd, but to each his/her own I guess.
I’m not going to bash anyone who bought the Tebow shoe – the Nike Trainer 1.2 – either. People love Tebow. They want all they can get. Add it all to the collection. But I will say this…DAMN, those things are ugly!
I love the Florida orange and blue. I like a nice Gator blue shirt or hat. But the Gator blue on a shoe is a little much to me. Buy them. Collect them. Sure. Wear them? I may just chuckle as you jog by. It’ll be fun to count how many of these we see at Florida games this fall.
• Florida begins the 2010 season ranked third in the coaches’ poll. Rejoice Gator fans. And when you’re done celebrating, realize that’s too high. Obviously I want Florida to start as high as possible. The higher you start the less you have to climb. But third is too high.
Think about it for a second. Here’s what the Gators lost: one of the greatest players in the history of college football; a wide receiver and tight end that were one-two on the team in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns; an All-American center; the team leader and runner-up in sacks; an All-American cornerback who was a three-year starter; and a hard-hitting, talented safety. Urban Meyer and staff are among the nation’s best at reloading. Regardless, you lose that much and you don’t start the following season at #3.
Then again, I’m not really sure who you rank higher. Most will say Boise State. I still believe the Broncos have a long way to go before truly being considered one of the best teams in the nation, but I wouldn’t have a problem with them starting the season ahead of the Gators. I could also say the same for Texas. Beyond that, I’m not sure there are any other teams I would be comfortable ranking higher than Florida. Even so, third seems high.
• On October 2, the #3 Gators will take on #1 Alabama in possibly the matchup of the season. The good thing for both teams is that they could realistically lose and still find themselves playing in the SEC Championship Game two months later.
It’s hard to imagine any other team in either division being able to run through their conference schedule unscathed. Florida and Alabama have the best chance, so even with one loss, they could find themselves in Atlanta. However, it’s a defining game. If the Tide come out victorious, the Gators are still a step away. If Florida comes away with the win, the tide (no pun intended) shifts back to the orange and blue.
• Wide receiver is a position of question for the Gators. Who will step up? Will the lack of overall experience be an issue? What young guy can emerge in 2010?
What isn’t a question is the number of bodies there are. Florida has added quite a few WRs in recent years and because of that you had to believe at least one would eventually transfer. That has now happened.
T.J. Lawrence will leave the program and head somewhere else. Lawrence cited playing time as his main motivation from transferring. You can’t really blame him. His classmates – Omarius Hines and Frankie Hammond – always seemed higher on the depth chart than him and there were plenty of newcomers that had a chance to push him further down.
• Skip Holtz had a chance to give his thoughts on USF’s most recent additions in a news conference last week. He had the following to say about some of the newest transfers:
In terms of running backs Dontae Aycock and Darrell Scott, there isn’t as much of an actual recruitment this time around. Holtz alludes to it mostly being an exchange of facts. The players know what they’re looking for and so does the school. Holtz is looking for good kids that fit his program and fit the needs. Running back is obviously one so he looked long and hard at Aycock and Scott and made a decision to extend an offer based on what was discovered about the two.
For someone like Spencer Boyd, the situation is much the same. Holtz says Boyd contacted USF when he was permitted to do so and expressed his interest in being closer to home. He has some versatility in being able to play both wide receiver and cornerback and should be a great fit for the Bulls.
• USF wide receiver Colby Erskin saw his comeback attempt end as he suffered a torn ACL for the fourth time. Horrible luck for Erskin who’s career is now over.