Florida Gators Bait & Bits: Miami Rivalry Renewed? Plus Deiondre Porter, Tyler Jordan, & Dan Cross

Welcome to Bait & Bits, a series on Hail Florida Hail that will feature one “bait” about an opposing school and some bits about the Florida Gators. Have any links that you want on Bait & Bits? Tweet it at us @HailFloridaHail or @BrettKaplan13 or email it to us at BrettKaplanHFH@gmail.com.

Bait

Kentucky Wildcats Baseball. Florida will face Kentucky in its first SEC Tournament action after the Wildcats defeated Alabama Tuesday. UF and UK played a three game series in Lexington earlier this season with Kentucky taking two out of three. But that only marginally helped the ‘Cats deficit in the win column. Over the entire series, the Gators hold a 133-61-1 advantage on the diamond, including 4-2 in SEC Tourney play. Florida and Kentucky sqaure off after the Mississippi State-South Carolina game, or around 5:30 pm. You can catch the action on CSS or ESPN3.

Bits

Florida-Miami to Renew Rivalry? It sounds like it’s a distinct possibility. Miami Athletic Director Blake James has opened discussions with Florida AD Jeremy Foley to renew the rivalry. The catch? Foley would like the game to be played on a neutral site. (Barry Jackson, Miami Herald)

Muschamp Speaks in Gainsville. In another stop on the tour of Gator Clubs, Will Muschamp got to stick close to home with a visit to the Titletown Gator Club at Emerson Alumni Hall. Muschamp continued to field questions on the disappointment of the 2013 season and the excitement new offensive coordinator Kurt Roper has brought to the program. More on this later. (Zach Abolverdi, Gainesville Sun)

Signee Deiondre Porter Tampa Male Athlete of the Year. The Tampa Tribune honored the top athletes in the Bay area and UF football signee Deiondre Porter took away the Male Athlete of the Year. The dual-threat quarterback from Jefferson High School put up some prolific numbers on his way to the award. He complete 57 percent of his passes for 3,199 yards and 33 touchdowns while also rushing for 1,499 and 20 TDs. Porter also excelled on the track, placing second in the state in the long jump and seventh in the 200m. With highly touted QBs Will Grier and Treon Harris signed to the 2014 class as well, Porter could move to wide receiver, a position a former Tampa Jefferson QB excelled at during his time at Florida: Reche Caldwell. (Scott Purks, The Tampa Tribune)

A Look at Current Commit Tyler Jordan. Florida currently has the top SEC center prospect in the 2015 recruiting class in Tyler Jordan. Jordan’s the number three center recruit in the nation. As good as he is on the field, he strives to excel off the field as well. It’s great seeing a kid focus on school as well as on the football field. (Brian McLaughlin, Saturday Down South)

Gators in 16th at NCAA Championship. After the first round at the NCAA Championship, Florida’s women’s golf team is in 16th. The Gators had a strong front nine, but faded down the stretch. The NCAA Championship continues in Tulsa, OK through Friday. (GatorZone)

Gator Great Dan Cross in the Community. Dan Cross was the starting point guard on Florida’s first Final Four team in 1994. He was one of the keys for head coach Lon Kruger in their NCAA Tournament run. After playing professionally in Europe and the U.S., Cross founded the Athlete Connections Foundation which helps place athletes in the workforce. Cross now coaches at-risk youth in basketball and helps them understand how to be a productive member of society. It’s good to see such a great ambassador for the University of Florida. (Ed Heiland, News 13)

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