One Eyed Observations: Football Recruiting, Looking Ahead, Gators Baseball

One Eyed Willy. Questions. Answers. Truth.

The Bull Gator: With two more commits last week, football recruiting seems to be picking up steam again. Which positions are the most important for Florida to be focusing on?

One Eyed Willy: I consider myself a pretty knowledgeable guy when it comes to college football and to the Gators. However, I would have to believe that the coaches at UF are just a tad-bit smarter than I am. I know, hard to imagine, but probably true in this case. So just looking at the targets that we are going after in the 2012 recruiting class, one would have to come to the determination that offensive line, most specifically offensive tackle, is the position of most importance for the Gators heading into the future.

There have been rumors for months now that Will Muschamp and crew are looking to sign as many as five to seven offensive linemen in the 2012 class. To put that in perspective, in 2010 and 2011 combined we only signed four offensive linemen. You have to go back to 2009, when we signed five offensive linemen, to find the last time that we made a significant push in bringing offensive linemen to Gainesville. So far, Florida only has one commitment at this position – Jessamen Dunker from Boynton Beach – but with guys like D.J. Humphries, John Theus, and Avery Young all ranked in the top 40 by Rivals and all seriously considering UF as one of their top college choices, you have to like our chances of filling this need with some quality prospects.

Second to offensive lineman, I would have to say that getting several quality wide receivers is of the utmost importance to Charlie Weis and the new offensive coaching staff. As I stated in an earlier edition of One Eyed Observations, UF will have nine scholarship WRs on the roster to start the 2011 season. Luckily only one out of the nine is a senior – Deonte Thompson – so most will hopefully be returning for the 2012 season, but regardless, UF needs to add a few more athletes at this position in order to have the depth and quality that is needed to challenge the stout defenses that run amuck in the SEC. Latroy Pittman has already committed to the 2012 class and is a top 250 player on Rivals. He should be a great addition, but getting a guy like Stefon Diggs or getting Avery Johnson to reverse his commitment to LSU and join the Gators would be a huge step in solidifying this position for the Gators into the future.

TBG: We may already know the answer to this, but with the Gators sports season almost over, which one team should we be the most excited for next season?

OEW: I think the obvious answer is football. Let’s face it, UF is and always will be a football school. And given the way the team underperformed last year, I think enthusiasm and wonder heading into this season may be at an all-time high.

On the flip side of that, UF fans also have to be excited to see what the basketball team has in store for the 2011-2012 season. Just as the football team underperformed last year, the basketball team overperformed in the eyes of many (including myself) this previous season. Although the basketball team was ranked in the top 15 in many preseason polls, I am not sure that many Gator fans thought that getting past the first round or two in March Madness was achievable. In the end, the Gators made a run into the Elite 8 and, looking back, were oh so close to possibly making it to the National Championship game and who knows what could have happened then. UF lost three significant members of the team last year in Chandler Parsons, Vernon Macklin and Alex Tyus, who are each hoping to get their names called in Thursday’s NBA draft, but UF has also added Bradley Beal, the second best guard in the 2011 class per Rivals, and we will be able to start to utilize the services of guard Mike Rosario, who transferred from Rutgers prior to last season but was forced to sit out due to NCAA regulations. The basketball team will certainly be different in 2011-2012, relying on the backcourt to win us games more than we have in a number of years, but with some of the talent we have coming back and joining the team, it will be fun to see how they perform with loftier expectations than they have had during the past several seasons.

And lastly, I am always excited to see what my favorite girls’ lacrosse team can do in 2012!!!

TBG: After winning their first two games in Omaha, is Florida the favorite to win the College World Series?

OEW: I wanted to wait to see how the Virginia vs. South Carolina game went before responding to this question, but after watching UVA’s performance last night, I would have to say that without a doubt, the Gators are the favorites to win the College World Series at this point in time.

Really there can only be two favorites right now: the two teams that are in the winner’s bracket. In the College World Series it is extremely difficult to make it to the championship game if you have lost one of your first two games and therefore have to battle-back and beat a really good team twice in two days. Florida and South Carolina are currently sitting alone in their respective winner’s brackets. While Florida knows who it will have to face next – a Vanderbilt team that we have already shown that we can beat throughout this season – USC has to wait until tonight to find out if it will have to play the #1 team in the nation again – Virginia – or the Cinderella story of the tournament – California. My guess is that Virginia handles its business tonight and they go on to play a must-win game against the Gamecocks on Friday evening.

I think the biggest goal for UF right now is to win on Friday afternoon and not take the chance of having a winners-take-all game with Vandy on Saturday. The Gators are playing lights-out baseball right now. Both our starting pitching and our bullpen has been amazing over the past few weeks and our bats seem to be alive and well in Omaha. You never know what can happen in this type of format and with the quality of teams that are left playing right now, but if I was a betting man (and I am!), I would like UF’s chances and truly believe that the good guys can come home with the first baseball national championship in school history.