A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:

Simply calling winning one of three games at Arkansas “a frustrating weekend” was probably diplomatic on the part of Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan. He knew the Gators should have departed Fayetteville with a sweep but in games one and two they shot themselves in the foot, both times turning perfectly winnable games into one-run losses.

“We continue to talk about the same things over and over and they continue to happen... ,” O’Sullivan said Saturday after the Gators lost game one to Arkansas, 6-5, thanks in large part to a baserunning blunder, then won game two when Jac Caglianone’s 26th homer of the season, a fifth-inning grand slam, led UF to a 9-5 win.

For a change, the Gators (22-21, 9-12 SEC) couldn’t really blame a 1-2 weekend on the pitching. The Gators got excellent starts from Pierce Coppola on an extended pitch count Friday and 5-1/3 innings of 3-hit pitching from Brandon Neely in the first game of the Saturday doubleheader. Fisher Jameson continued to throw well out of the bullpen, allowing just two hits in 4-1/3 innings over two appearances.

The pitching was fine. If only the Gators could have pitched like that in some of their previous weekend series. The problem was execution at the plate and on the basepaths. The Gators lost game one 2-1. On a night when each team managed only three hits, the Gators couldn’t move runners over when it counted. The Gators lost the first game Saturday when they turned an easy game-tying sacrifice fly into a game-saving double play.

Florida won game three largely because Arkansas was forced to pitch to Caglianone. Intentionally walked three times previously and once in game one, Cag came to the plate in the fifth inning with the bases loaded. Given a chance to hit with runners in scoring position, he delivered a grand slam on a 1-2 pitch. An inning later, Ty Evans hit a 2-run homer for insurance.

While happy to escape with one win, O’Sullivan could only shake his head in frustration about the weekend as a whole.

“I mean, we're doing things that aren't conducive to winning games,” he said. “Shoulda, coulda, woulda. We should have won this one. We could have won that one. The bottom line is we didn't. But we did battle today and we're walking out of here with at least one." 

With three SEC weekends remaining and a pair of non-conference games to go, every game is must win for UF. Five SEC wins (14 in the regular season) will pretty much assure the Gators of making the NCAA Tournament, but the next two weekends are formidable with Tennessee (33-7, 15-6 SEC) coming in Thursday and SEC East leader Kentucky (33-9, 16-5 SEC) the following weekend. Florida will finish off its SEC schedule in Athens against Georgia.

SEC baseball standings

East: 1. Kentucky (33-9, 16-5 SEC); 2. Tennessee (37-7, 15-6 SEC); 3. (TIE) Vanderbilt (31-13, 11-10 SEC) and South Carolina (29-14, 11-10 SEC); 5. Georgia (31-12, 10-11 SEC); 6. FLORIDA (22-21, 9-12 SEC); 7. Missouri (19-26, 6-15 SEC)

West: 1. Arkansas (37-7, 16-5 SEC); 2. Texas A&M (38-6, 15-6 SEC); 3. Mississippi State (29-15, 12-9 SEC); 4. Alabama (28-16, 9-12 SEC); 5. (TIE) LSU (28-17, 7-14 SEC) and Ole Miss (23-20, 7-14 SEC); 7. Auburn (21-22, 3-18 SEC)

UF SOFTBALL: Falby ignites game-winning rally against Georgia

With the Gators trailing 4-3 to Georgia in the top of the seventh Sunday, Kendra Falby gambled that she could outrun the softball and it paid off with a little help from the replay people in Birmingham. On second due to a throwing error on a potential game-ending double play ball, pulled off a daring delayed steal of third with the ball still in the hands of Georgia pitcher Shelby Walters. Walters made the throw to Sara Mosely in plenty of time to nail Falby, but instead of a swipe tag, Mosely reached high to tag Falby’s left leg.

Sliding into third, Falby gave the safe sign, but umpire James Colzie called her out. Florida coach Tim Walton asked for a replay and the folks in Birmingham saw clearly that Falby’s right leg was on third ahead of the tag on her left. Korbe Otis moved to second on the play. One out later, Jocelyn Erickson hammered a low, inside pitch over the right field fence to give the Gators a 6-4 lead. Reagan Walsh followed with her 16th homer of the season to dead center and later in the inning Katie Kistler delivered a 3-run triple.

Georgia did score three in the bottom of the seventh, but it was too late as the Gators left Athens with a 10-7 Sunday win and two wins to take the series.

In winning two against the 11th-ranked Bulldogs (37-13, 11-10 SEC), 12th-ranked Florida (39-13, 14-7 SEC) remained two games behind SEC leader Tennessee (36-9, 16-5 SEC). The Gators will host Texas A&M (39-9, 15-6 SEC) next weekend. If the Gators can beat the Aggies two out of three, they will tie for second but the Gators would be the No. 2 seed for winning the head-to-head series.

The Gators will be at Florida State Wednesday in their final regular season non-conference game.

SEC softball standings: 1. Tennessee (36-9, 16-5 SEC); 2. Texas A&M (39-9, 15-6 SEC); 3. FLORIDA (39-12, 14-7 SEC); 4. Arkansas (34-13, 13-8 SEC); 5. Georgia (37-13, 11-10 SEC); 6. LSU (36-13, 12-12 SEC); 7. Mississippi State (30-14, 9-9 SEC); 8. Missouri (35-13, 8-10 SEC); 9. Alabama (32-14, 9-12 SEC); 10. South Carolina (32-18, 8-13 SEC); 11. Kentucky (30-18, 8-13 SEC); 12. Auburn (25-17-1, 7-14 SEC); 13. Ole Miss (28-23, 5-16 SEC)

SEC FOOTBALL: The latest from the portal

Alabama

Outgoing: PK Reed Harradine (6-3, 185, FR); WR Andre Craig (6-0, 180, SO); DL Khurtiss Perry (6-2, 265, FR); C James Brockermeyer (6-3, 285, SO) to TCU

Incoming: OT Kadyn Proctor (6-7, 360, FR) from Iowa; PK Graham Nicholson (6-0, 185, JR) from Miami (OH)

Arkansas

Outgoing: TE Francis Sherman (6-3, 237, SR); RB Isaiah Augustave (6-2, 208, RFR); OT Andrew Chamblee (6-6, 304, FR); QB Jacolby Criswell (6-1, 230, JR); EDGE Jashaud Stewart (6-2, 257, SR); P Max Fletcher (6-5, 174, SO) to Cincinnati; CB Snaxx Johnson (6-0, 193, JR) to Baylor

Incoming: RB Rodney Hill (5-10, 186, SO) from Florida A&M; LB Larry Worth III (6-4, 220, SO) from Jacksonville State; EDGE Keyron Crawford (6-4, 243, SO) from Arkansas State

Auburn

Outgoing: DL Brenton Williams (6-3, 262, FR) to Liberty; CB J.D. Rhym (6-1, 178, SO); LS Kyle Vaccarella (6-3, 229, SO); WR Ja’Varrius Johnson (5-10, 167, SR); WR Jay Fair (5-10, 186, SO) to Southern California; LB Wesley Steiner (6-0, 245, SR); CB Tyler Scott (6-1, 193, FR); CB Colton Hood (5-11, 183, FR) to Colorado; OL Garner Langlo (6-6, 297, SO)

Incoming: DL Philip Blidi (6-3, 295, SR) from Indiana; DL Isaiah Rakes (6-2, 320, JR) from Southern California; LB Jaylin Alderman (6-1, 230, JR) from Louisville; WR KeAndre Lambert-Smith (6-1, 185, JR) from Penn State

FLORIDA

Outgoing: LB Mannie Nunnery (6-2, 227, RSR); CB Ethan Pouncey (6-0, 169, RJR)

Georgia

Outgoing: RB Andrew Paul (5-11, 218, FR); OT Chad Lindberg (6-6, 325, JR) to Rice; WR Tyler Williams (6-3, 205, RFR) to Minnesota; DL Christen Miller (6-4, 305, FR)

Incoming: QB Jaden Rashada (from Arizona State

Kentucky

Outgoing: RB LaVell Wright (5-11, 202, JR); WR Darius Cannon (5-9, 175, FR); WR Raymond Cottrell (6-3, 210, RFR); QB Shane Hamm (5-11, 209, SO); WR Shamar Porter (6-3, 205, FR); PK Jackson Smith (5-11, 204, FR); WR Ardell Banks (6-3, 187, FR); CB Jaramiah Anglin Jr. (6-1, 180, FR); CB Jordan Robinson (6-4, 208, SO)

Incoming: DB DJ Waller Jr. (6-3, 205, FR) from Michigan

LSU

Outgoing: EDGE Jaxon Howard (6-4, 240, FR) to Minnesota; WR Khai Prean (6-0, 202, FR) to Tulane; CB Ryan Robinson Jr. (5-11, 180, FR); TE Connor Gilbreath (6-5, 272, SO); DL Bryce Langston (6-3, 300, SO) to Florida Atlantic; CB Jeremiah Hughes (6-0, 187, FR); LB Christian Brathwaite (6-1, 217, FR); S Ryan Yaites (6-1, 203, FR); RB John Emery (6-0, 224, SR); OG Joseph Cryer (6-3, 300, FR)

Incoming: DL Gio Paez (6-3, 310, SR) from Wisconsin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: S Trent Singleton (6-0, 195, FR); CB Luke Evans (6-2, 180, FR); P Keelan Cummings (6-3, 215, FR) to Purdue; WR Justin Robinson (6-4, 220, JR); OT Zay Alexander (6-7, 340, FR); OT Jayden Hobson (6-5, 295, FR); LB Avery Sledge (6-3, 220, FR); LB Khalid Moore (6-2, 250, FR)

Incoming:

Missouri

Outgoing: WR Dannis Jackson (5-11, 171, JR); DL Serigne Tounkara (6-2, 235, FR); TE Ryan Hoerstkamp (6-2, 240, SO)

Incoming: QB Drew Pyne (6-0, 190, SO) from Arizona State; OT Marcus Bryant (6-8, 318, SR) from SMU

Oklahoma

Outgoing: QB Jacob Switzer (6-2, 192, SO); Shane Whitter (6-0, 226, JR); CB Justin Harrington (6-3, 215, SR); CB Jasiah Wagner (5-11, 172, FR)

Incoming: C Branson Hickman (6-4, 297, JR) from SMU; DL Jermaine Lole (6-3, 310, SR) from Louisville

Ole Miss

Outgoing: DL Joshua Harris (6-4, 325, SR) to North Carolina; QB Deljay Bailey (6-1, 200, FR); DT Demarcus Smith (6-3, 295, SO); CB Amorion Walker (6-3, 180, SO)

Incoming: RB Jacory Merritt (5-11, 204 SR) from New Mexico; RB Henry Parrish (5-10, 190, JR) from Miami  

South Carolina

Outgoing: OL Jaxon Hughes (6-6, 297, SR); EDGE Terrell Dawkins (6-4, 251, SR); WR Kelton Henderson (6-0, 165, FR); OT Sidney Fugar (6-5, 327, SO); S Keenan Nelson Jr. (6-1, 195, FR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: LB Elijah Herring (6-3, 238, SO)

Texas

Outgoing: LB S’maje Burrell (6-0, 219, FR); EDGE Billy Walton III (6-3, 225, FR); OL Payton Kirkland (6-6, 350, FR) to Colorado; EDGE J’mond Tapp (6-3, 266, FR) to Arizona State; DL Zach Swanson (6-4, 270, FR); RB Ky Woods (5-9, 175, SO); CB Terrance Brooks (6-0, 200, SO); DB Austin Jordan (6-0, 198, SO); RB Savion Red (5-10, 214, SO); S Austin Jordan (6-0, 198, SO)

Incoming: DL Bill Norton (6-6, 325, SR) from Arizona

Texas A&M

Outgoing: S Sam McCall (6-1, 185, FR); LB Alex Howard (6-2, 230, SR); S Jacoby Matthews (6-2, 215, SO); EDGE Fadil Diggs (6-5, 260, JR) to Syracuse; OL Derrick Graham (6-4, 314, SO); PK Ethan Moczulski (5-11, 200, FR); OL Bryce Foster (6-5, 330, SO); OL Colton Thomasson (6-8, 320, FR); RB Jerry Johnson (6-1, 235, GR)

Incoming: EDGE Josh Celiscar (6-4, 265, SR) from UCF; C Koli Faaiu (6-3, 326, SO) from Utah; LB Solomon DeShields (6-3, 225, JR) from Pittsburgh

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: LB Dante Kelly (6-3, 201, FR); S John Howse IV (6-1, 195, JR); TE Josh Palmer (6-4, 192, FR); OT Leyton Nelson (6-6, 308, SO) to Wisconsin; CB Jameson Wharton (6-1, 170, SO); DB Quantaves Gaskins (6-1, 190, SO); RB Deago Benson (5-11, 204, FR)

Incoming: Cade McConnell (6-5, 310, FR) from Minnesota; OL Steven Hubbard (6-3, 314, SR) from UTEP

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Kingsley Eguakun, who started 26 consecutive games at center for the Gators in 2021-22 only to spend most of the 2023 season dealing with injuries, signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Detroit Lions Sunday. Detroit has an established starter at center in Frank Ragnow, and backup Michael Niese spent most of 2023 on Detroit’s practice squad although he was active two other games. In addition to Eguakun, the Lions are bringing in undrafted free agent centers Duke Clemens (UCLA) and Bryan Hudson (Louisville).

That Ricky Pearsall was the only Gator taken in the draft (San Francisco, 1st round) and Eguakun is the only undrafted Gator to sign a free agent contract, is just further proof of how far the Florida football program backslid in the years following Urban Meyer walking away after the 2010 season.

The National Football League has held its annual cattle show,  a showpiece for all the usual suspects like Michigan, Texas, Alabama and Georgia whose programs combined to send 42 players to the league. The SEC, as always, led the way with 59 players selected, 16 more than the Pac-12, 17 more than the Big Ten.

Ricky Pearsall, selected with the 31st pick by the San Francisco 49ers not only kept Florida’s streak of years with at least one first rounder alive at five, but prevented the Gators from whiffing completely. Twelve SEC schools – Alabama 10, Georgia 8, Missouri 6, LSU 6, Auburn 5, Kentucky 4, South Carolina 4, Texas A&M 4, Arkansas 2 – had more players selected than Florida.

Why even Wake Forest, Troy, South Dakota State and UTEP had more players drafted than the Gators. There is something seriously wrong when that happens.

If you are looking for reasons – not excuses but reasons – why the Florida Gators have had three consecutive losing seasons, the last two during the coaching realm of Billy Napier – then look no further than the draft. College football, just like the pros, is mostly about talent acquisition. The teams with the best talent win the most games and the teams that win the most games send the most players on to the NFL.

As Ron Zook used to say, “It’s not about Xs and Os, it’s all about Jesses and Joes.”  

Sure, coaching has something to do with it. My friend, the late, great Al McGuire, told me once that coaching mattered at practice. Once the games began, he typically made only two or three decisions that truly impacted the games. Sure, he was talking about basketball, but whether it’s basketball or football, it is one and the same. Once the games begin, it’s the players who decide the outcome probably 90 percent of the time.

Florida has combined for a 17-21 record the last three seasons, 6-7 in Dan Mullen’s last year, 11-14 in the first two seasons under Billy Napier. In the last three seasons Georgia is 42-3. Alabama is 36-6. That is just in the Southeastern Conference. In the Big Ten, Michigan is 40-3 and Ohio State is 33-6. Georgia, Alabama, Michigan and Ohio State have been draft dominant because they have far more talent. Florida has been sinking like a rock to the bottom of the Southeastern Conference because it has been losing the talent acquisition battles in a very big way.

Florida State, which had 10 players drafted this weekend, is 23-4 in the past two seasons. In the two previous seasons, Mike Norvell and the Seminoles were 8-13. Did Mike Norvell suddenly figure out how to coach football in 2023 when the Seminoles went 10-3 (13-1 last year) or did he finally load up on talent?

You know the answer to that one. Once Mike Norvell accumulated enough talent, he started winning football games. To Florida State’s credit, Mike Norvell was allowed time to build a roster capable of winning at a high level.

That brings us back to the Florida Gators and Billy Napier. It’s all too easy to complain that the Gators have had three straight losing seasons and how the distance continues to increase between the UF and Georgia programs. The reason is fairly simple and quite obvious. Georgia has had better players. Lots of them. And, Kirby Smart has done a brilliant job of bringing in players that fit the systems he runs.

Florida has been playing catch up and it hasn’t been easy because Florida’s downhill slide was years in the making. Billy Napier is the sixth Florida football coach since Steve Spurrier left to coach in the NFL after the 2001 season. Kirby Smart is just the second Georgia coach during the same time frame. Mark Richt was an excellent recruiter. Kirby took Richt’s foundation and expanded the program by loading up with even more talent.

When kids look at where they plan to play college football they want to know these things in this order: 1. What’s in it for me (NIL and Georgia is way ahead there)? 2. Who is sending the most players to the league (Georgia)? 3. Which program is the picture of stability (Georgia) while the other gives the appearance of a revolving door for coaches (Florida)?

Georgia  has done a better job of accumulating talent, creating a pipeline to the NFL and maintaining stability in its program. It isn’t rocket science why Georgia has been loading up with one loaded recruiting class after another.

It also isn’t rocket science why Florida only sees Georgia’s tail lights in the distance.

Can Florida and Billy Napier reduce the distance between the two programs? Right now, Georgia seems to have an insurmountable lead but it wasn’t all that long ago that Alabama was far ahead of Georgia. Georgia caught and surpassed Alabama.

Florida has the resources to catch up but it is only now that the Gators are starting to reverse the slow descent that began immediately after Urban Meyer resigned following the 2010 season. Florida hasn’t been the same since Meyer left. It has taken a systematic approach by Napier, rebuilding from a ground level organizational standpoint that the Good Ship Gator has stopped taking on water.

Napier may not seem like the most charismatic guy you’ve ever met, but he is an organizational freak who plans everything down to the most minute detail. That may not sell well with many in the Gator Nation, but most fans and boosters alike are unaware of just how far behind Georgia and Alabama the program was when Napier took over. Systematically, he has plugged one hole after another to stop the Florida ship from sinking.

The proof will be on the field and in future NFL drafts. If the Gators are winning football games it will be because Billy Napier has recruited better players to the University of Florida. If Florida has better players and is winning football games, then more Gators will be drafted.

There isn’t a week that goes by that Gators everywhere hear someone say, “Winning cures everything.” However true that may be, it starts with accumulating better players.

Perhaps in a couple of weeks Todd Golden will be able to give a more definitive answer about the team he will be sending out on the O-Dome floor in November. He has at least two open scholarships and that number could swell to at least four if Walter Clayton Jr. and Will Richard get enough affirmation from workouts to remain in the NBA Draft.

It is entirely possible that Clayton and Richard could light it up working out for NBA teams and at the combine if they are invited. Because the NBA only selects 60 players in a 2-round draft and neither Clayton nor Richard appear on anyone’s top 75 lists, it seems more likely they will be returning for their senior seasons at Florida. The uncertainty, however, means Golden and his staff will continue to interview and recruit players from the transfer portal.

The portal has already provided Golden with three building blocks for an improved team in 2024-25. Although he lost second team All-SEC big guy Tyrese Samuel to graduation and 7-1 Micah Handlogten is scheduled to take a redshirt year to rehab the leg he fractured in the SEC Championship Game against Auburn, Golden has reloaded the big guy rotation by adding 6-9, 240-pound Sam Alexis from Chattanooga and 6-11, 245-pound Rueben Chinyelu from Washington State. Combined with 6-11 Alex Condon and 6-9 Thomas Haugh, who had impressive freshman seasons, Florida should be very strong up front next season.

“Sam, even though, he had a very good year last year as a double-double guy, had some really great numbers,” Golden said. “A really good rim-protector. We feel he’s got room to just keep getting better. He’s only 19. Really young, but strong, big body. It’ll be a great summer for him here and we think he’ll be really impactful next year.

“And Rueben is a guy, when you look at his counting stats from last year they don’t really jump out, but if you dig into his numbers and see that he was over 60 percent from the field, a great rim protector, incredible size, we feel like he’s going to take a huge jump going into next season.”

Compensating for the loss of point guard Zyon Pullin will be difficult since he provided the Gators with consistent scoring, one of the best assist-to-turnover margins in the entire country and good defense that often times was lockdown quality. Golden dipped into the portal to bring in 6-2 Alijah Martin from Florida Atlantic. A 3-year starter for the Owls who averaged 13.2 points and 5.9 rebounds last season, Martin brings the experience of conference championships and a run to the 2023 Final Four to the Gators.

One of the reasons Martin chose UF over several other schools that reached out to him once he put his name in the portal is a chance to play the point. He will get that chance but the position might end up being played by committee.

“I think what’s important for him is just to get more of an opportunity to play on the ball,” Golden said. “That doesn’t necessarily mean he’s going to be the main point guard, but we are confident in his ability to play out of the ball screen a little more. At FAU last year – and they were very good, obviously – he was more of an off-ball and spacer, but we want to give him more of an opportunity to get downhill in our ball-screen action and make more plays for himself and others. It’s just kind of the natural progression of his career. For him, to be an impact player at the next level, he has to be able to prove he can do that, so it’s going to be a good marriage for the both of us to allow him to be able to do that and prove that he can.”

That doesn’t rule out a committee approach. Clayton played the point at Iona and backed up Pullin on the point last season. Denzel Aberdeen came on strong at the end of last season, raising hopes that he will be a major contributor as a junior. He has size (6-5), a nice touch from the 3-point line and a fearlessness when it comes to taking the ball to the rack. Rising sophomore Kajus Kublickas, a Lithuanian important who played sparingly as a freshman, is well liked by the coaching staff.

With two scholarships remaining and Handlogten taking a redshirt, Golden has decisions to make. Does he add another big guy? Does he go for someone in the 6-6 to 6-8 range that can play on the perimeter and do inside duty when the Gators go with a smaller lineup? A shooter? A point guard in the Pullin mold?

Golden made it abundantly clear that there is no need to rush to any decision. The portal continues to expand so there is no shortage of talented players to select from. He knows he needs 12 available bodies to compete at the SEC level, but no decision has been made about recruiting to a certain position.

“Again, I think we're in a really good spot right now and we can kind of take a step back and kind of see what's out there,” Golden said. “With Walt and Will, that's going to determine a lot of what happens. If they both come back, we'll definitely get one more in the frontcourt and maybe a younger guy in the backcourt or on the perimeter. If one of those guys ends up staying in the draft, then we're going to have to adjust, so it's hard to really say today what those two other scholarships will be. But we're just going to be cognizant of what happens and try to get some contingency plans in place if we do end up having one of those guys move on to the NBA.”

Following the expanding number of players that enter the portal on a daily basis tells Golden he can find an abundance of talented players. Talent is important, but more important is finding players that fit the culture that is being built at Florida.

Just because a player looks good on film and has stats to match doesn’t necessarily mean he will blend in at UF. Experienced players are nice to have, but it’s more important that whoever is added adds to the team chemistry and understands the vision and direction of the program as it moves into the third year of Golden’s tenure at UF.  

“Like we're pretty targeted in terms of who we go after and we want all those guys to be the right fits,” Golden said. “And we're pretty passionate about selling our program to these guys and the vision of how they would fit with what we're doing and it's great to see when they see it also. But we're not taking swings on guys that we don't think make a lot of sense. We're definitely not bringing guys to campus unless we really want them, for the most part. So we want to hit more often than not when we have these guys.”

The key word for now is patience. The portal will be open for a few more days and then Golden will have time to bring in selected players to fill the openings.

Even before the final roster spots are filled, Golden has a reasonably good idea what kind of team he will be putting on the floor next season.

“I think we’ve gotten better with the three guys we added in the portal, Rueben, Sam and Alijah,” Golden said.

And, with the right players filling the final spots on the roster, the Gators could make a very serious run at tournament time next March. At the end of the season, Florida was one of those teams nobody wanted to play. The Gators got a win at Rupp Arena, beat Auburn handily at home and then crushed Final Four participant Alabama in two of the three games the two teams played.

Seeing Alabama make the Final Four was a bit of a tough pill to swallow since the Gators handled the Crimson Tide so easily both in Gainesville and the SEC Tournament. Florida actually should have beaten Alabama three times since the Gators blew a big lead in Tuscaloosa and then lost in overtime.

“Yeah I mean it’s good but it was also tough at the same time, because we beat them pretty handily the last two times we played them,” Golden said. “I think we beat them by 18 here and 14 in the (SEC) tournament. We were up by 20 in the second half against them in the tournament. I actually texted Nate (Oats) after they made it to the Final Four and I was like, hey, and I actually like Nate a lot and he’s a really good coach and I was like congrats, great run, and it also makes me feel really good about where our program is now and he agreed.”

The decision to redshirt Handlogten: “He’s probably going to redshirt this year. I think that from just talking to him, the number one key in my mind is like his comfort and his recovery. Knock on wood he had a great surgery. Everything at Vanderbilt went really, really well. We were fortunate to get him in there as quickly as we did. And, just talking to him, it would be best for him to know that he doesn’t feel pressured to get back quick, which we didn’t want him to feel anyway. So, when we had that conversation, it was great. It provided clarity to him. It gave him comfort and in a way it helps us because before we got Rueben and Sam, you know, if guys were looking at us and they saw Micah coming back, starter. Like we knew it would be hard for him to come back but they wouldn’t really think about well is he going to be back in time or not. Like it was going to be a little bit difficult. So, having clarification on that and Micah’s such a great dude. Like he helps us recruit these other bigs. He’s an awesome young man. But it was good for Micah, good for our program and now he can just pour all his efforts into his rehab and not feel the pressure of ‘I need to try to get back on the court by November.’ My hope is now, obviously not next year but the year after, he should be an absolute monster, you know as he comes back fully healthy with a lot of confidence on the leg. So, you know, his recovery is going as well as it could. His mentality has been amazing. I’m really proud of him and the way he’s gone about it. So, he’ll be back.”

On what he’s seen from his returning players since the season ended: “They've all had a monster spring. It hasn't been that long, but just kind of their approach and their mentality after the season to get back in there pretty quickly. Those three guys that you mentioned, Condo, Tommy and Zel, first of all, they're really close. They have a great relationship. They're going to be living together next year and they kind of push each other on a daily basis and it's a tough group to keep up with because they work so hard. Tommy and Condo and Zel are in there lifting right now. So again they were really important for us to keep because they all obviously showed a good level of promise last year in their own ways and we think all of them will be really, really impactful next year. I'm really happy about Denzel. Just because he's a guy that had again some inconsistent playing time but really showed up down the stretch when we needed him the most. And I feel like he's at the point now confidence-wise where he really feels that he can take off and he's going to be a really good player. And then Tommy and Condo, I think we'll just continue to grow going from that freshman to sophomore year.”

Ricky Pearsall won’t have to wait for the second round of the NFL Draft to get here. That’s where he was expected to go Thursday night, but the San Francisco 49ers obviously weren’t willing to wait around. With the 31st pick in the first round, the 49ers chose Pearsall, extending Florida’s streak to five straight years with a No. 1 pick.

Pearsall is the 45th Florida wide receiver taken in the draft, third most in NCAA history and first in the Southeastern Conference. He is the eighth Florida receiver to be selected in the first round.

After starting his collegiate career at Arizona State where he caught 61 passes for 794 yards and five touchdowns, Pearsall transferred to Florida where he caught 98 passes for 1,626 yards and nine touchdowns in two seasons. In 2023, Pearsall caught 65 passes for 965 yards and nine touchdowns. Additionally, he ran the football 11 times for 175 yards and three touchdowns.

Pearsall began the 2023 season expected to go fourth round or after in the draft, but he had an impressive season highlighted by a play against Charlotte in September that will forever be remembered by Florida fans as “The Catch.” It was a seam route and a high throw from Graham Mertz, but Pearsall elevated and made the catch with one hand the way a centerfielder yanks down a fly ball up against the fence.

At the Senior Bowl and the NFL Draft Combine, Pearsall impressed the NFL scouts with precision route running and superb pass catching abilities. In the workout portion of the combine, Pearsall ran a 4.41 in the 40 and shocked everyone with a 42-inch vertical.

Even though he elected to skip working out at Florida’s Pro Day, Pearsall’s draft stock elevated to a consensus second round. However, Mel Kiper Jr. of ESPN offered this subtle warning a few days ago, “He tests off the charts, he’s tough, he’s aggressive with the ball in his hands, he loves football. There’s no way, after the numbers he’s shown, he gets out of the second round. It wouldn’t shock me if he went very early in the second.”

Very early second became first round Thursday night.

UF MEN’S GOLF: Gators move up to No. 2 at SEC

Florida was the hot team on the course Thursday at the Southeastern Conference Tournament at the Sea Island Golf Club on St. Simon’s Island. With freshman Jack Turner leading the way with a 5-under par 65, the Gators shot -10 under to move into a tie with Georgia, four shots off the pace of Vanderbilt. At -7 after two rounds, Turner is a shot off the pace of Auburn’s Jackson Koivun on the individual leaderboard.

The top eight teams that emerge from Friday morning stroke play will advance to match play to determine the conference championship.

Team scores: 1. Vanderbilt -15; 2. (TIE) FLORIDA and Georgia -11; 3. Auburn -10; 5. Tennessee -9; 6. Texas A&M -6; 7. Alabama -5; 8. Arkansas -3; 9. Ole Miss +1; 10. South Carolina +5; 11. Mississippi State +9; 12. Kentucky +10; 13. LSU +19; 14. Missouri +22

Florida individual scores: Jack Turner -7; Ian Gilligan -3; Tyler Wilkes +1; Parker Bell +1; Matthew Kress +2

UF FOOTBALL: Pouncey to the portal, Riley Simonds to student coach

Florida’s roster reduced to the NCAA mandated 85 Thursday with corner Ethan Pouncey putting his name in the transfer portal and the announcement that offensive lineman Riley Simonds will forego his last year of eligibility to work with the UF program as a student coach.

Pouncey was plagued by injuries while at Florida. A former 4-star recruit in 2020 from Winter Park, he only played in 14 games. Pouncey has two remaining years of eligibility.

Simonds, who earned his BA from Florida in 2023, is working on his master’s degree. A 4-year member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll, Simonds played in 15 games in his Florida career.

SEC football

Alabama

Outgoing: PK Reed Harradine (6-3, 185, FR); WR Andre Craig (6-0, 180, SO); DL Khurtiss Perry (6-2, 265, FR); C James Brockermeyer (6-3, 285, SO)

Incoming: OT Kadyn Proctor (6-7, 360, FR) from Iowa; PK Graham Nicholson (6-0, 185, JR) from Miami (OH)

Arkansas

Outgoing: TE Francis Sherman (6-3, 237, SR); RB Isaiah Augustave (6-2, 208, RFR); OT Andrew Chamblee (6-6, 304, FR); QB Jacolby Criswell (6-1, 230, JR); EDGE Jashaud Stewart (6-2, 257, SR); P Max Fletcher (6-5, 174, SO) to Cincinnati; CB Snaxx Johnson (6-0, 193, JR)

Incoming: RB Rodney Hill (5-10, 186, SO) from Florida A&M; LB Larry Worth III (6-4, 220, SO) from Jacksonville State; EDGE Keyron Crawford (6-4, 243, SO) from Arkansas State

Auburn

Outgoing: DL Brenton Williams (6-3, 262, FR); CB J.D. Rhym (6-1, 178, SO); LS Kyle Vaccarella (6-3, 229, SO); WR Ja’Varrius Johnson (5-10, 167, SR); WR Jay Fair (5-10, 186, SO); LB Wesley Steiner (6-0, 245, SR); CB Tyler Scott (6-1, 193, FR); CB Colton Hood (5-11, 183, FR); OL Garner Langlo (

Incoming: DL Philip Blidi (6-3, 295, SR) from Indiana; DL Isaiah Rakes (6-2, 320, JR) from Southern California; LB Jaylin Alderman (6-1, 230, JR) from Louisville; WR KeAndre Lambert-Smith (6-1, 185, JR) from Penn State

FLORIDA

Outgoing: LB Mannie Nunnery (6-2, 227, RSR); CB Ethan Pouncey (6-0, 169, RJR)

Georgia

Outgoing: RB Andrew Paul (5-11, 218, FR); OT Chad Lindberg (6-6, 325, JR) to Rice; WR Tyler Williams (6-3, 205, RFR) to Minnesota; DL Christen Miller (6-4, 305, FR)

Incoming: QB Jaden Rashada (from Arizona State

Kentucky

Outgoing: RB LaVell Wright (5-11, 202, JR); WR Darius Cannon (5-9, 175, FR); WR Raymond Cottrell (6-3, 210, RFR); QB Shane Hamm (5-11, 209, SO); WR Shamar Porter (6-3, 205, FR); PK Jackson Smith (5-11, 204, FR); WR Ardell Banks (6-3, 187, FR); CB Jaramiah Anglin Jr. (6-1, 180, FR); CB Jordan Robinson (6-4, 208, SO)

LSU

Outgoing: EDGE Jaxon Howard (6-4, 240, FR) to Minnesota; WR Khai Prean (6-0, 202, FR) to Tulane; CB Ryan Robinson Jr. (5-11, 180, FR); TE Connor Gilbreath (6-5, 272, SO); DL Bryce Langston (6-3, 300, SO) to Florida Atlantic; CB Jeremiah Hughes (6-0, 187, FR); LB Christian Brathwaite (6-1, 217, FR); S Ryan Yaites (6-1, 203, FR); RB John Emery (6-0, 224, SR); OG Joseph Cryer (6-3, 300, FR)

Incoming: DL Gio Paez (6-3, 310, SR) from Wisconsin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: S Trent Singleton (6-0, 195, FR); CB Luke Evans (6-2, 180, FR); P Keelan Cummings (6-3, 215, FR) to Purdue; WR Justin Robinson (6-4, 220, JR); OT Zay Alexander (6-7, 340, FR); OT Jayden Hobson (6-5, 295, FR); LB Avery Sledge (6-3, 220, FR); LB Khalid Moore (6-2, 250, FR)

Incoming: RB Rashad Amos (6-2, 224, SR) from South Carolina

Missouri

Outgoing: WR Dannis Jackson (5-11, 171, JR); DL Serigne Tounkara (6-2, 235, FR); TE Ryan Hoerstkamp (6-2, 240, SO)

Incoming: QB Drew Pyne (6-0, 190, SO) from Arizona State; OT Marcus Bryant (6-8, 318, SR) from SMU

Oklahoma

Outgoing: QB Jacob Switzer (6-2, 192, SO); Shane Whitter (6-0, 226, JR); CB Justin Harrington (6-3, 215, SR); CB Jasiah Wagner (5-11, 172, FR)

Incoming: C Branson Hickman (6-4, 297, JR) from SMU; DL Jermaine Lole (6-3, 310, SR) from Louisville

Ole Miss

Outgoing: DL Joshua Harris (6-4, 325, SR) to North Carolina; QB Deljay Bailey (6-1, 200, FR)

Incoming: RB Jacory Merritt (5-11, 204 SR) from New Mexico; RB Henry Parrish (5-10, 190, JR) from Miami  

South Carolina

Outgoing: OL Jaxon Hughes (6-6, 297, SR); EDGE Terrell Dawkins (6-4, 251, SR); WR Kelton Henderson (6-0, 165, FR); OT Sidney Fugar (6-5, 327, SO)

Tennessee

Outgoing: LB Elijah Herring (6-3, 238, SO)

Texas

Outgoing: LB S’maje Burrell (6-0, 219, FR); EDGE Billy Walton III (6-3, 225, FR); OL Payton Kirkland (6-6, 350, FR) to Colorado; EDGE J’mond Tapp (6-3, 266, FR); DL Zach Swanson (6-4, 270, FR); RB Ky Woods (5-9, 175, SO); CB Terrance Brooks (6-0, 200, SO); DB Austin Jordan (6-0, 198, SO)

Incoming: DL Bill Norton (6-6, 325, SR) from Arizona

Texas A&M

Outgoing: S Sam McCall (6-1, 185, FR); LB Alex Howard (6-2, 230, SR); S Jacoby Matthews (6-2, 215, SO); EDGE Fadil Diggs (6-5, 260, JR) to Syracuse; OL Derrick Graham (6-4, 314, SO); PK Ethan Moczulski (5-11, 200, FR); OL Bryce Foster (6-5, 330, SO); OL Colton Thomasson (6-8, 320, FR); RB Jerry Johnson (6-1, 235, GR)

Incoming: EDGE Josh Celiscar (6-4, 265, SR) from UCF; C Koli Faaiu (6-3, 326, SO) from Utah; LB Solomon DeShields (6-3, 225, JR) from Pittsburgh

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: LB Dante Kelly (6-3, 201, FR); S John Howse IV (6-1, 195, JR); TE Josh Palmer (6-4, 192, FR); OT Leyton Nelson (6-6, 308, SO) to Wisconsin; CB Jameson Wharton (6-1, 170, SO); DB Quantaves Gaskins (6-1, 190, SO)

Incoming: Cade McConnell (6-5, 310, FR) from Minnesota; OL Steven Hubbard (6-3, 314, SR) from UTEP

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: In Texas, they say only God has more money than the Longhorns, so it was probably only a matter of time before some sort of a here we are SEC announcement was issued. That came Thursday when Texas announced that the NIL collective Texas One Fund has partnered with the international financial services company Ouro to ensure that every single student-athlete at UT will have an NIL deal next year.

Consider this a wake-up call to the other 15 schools in the SEC. Texas doesn’t lack for booster money, but the partnership with Ouro puts the resources of a multi-billion dollar company at the disposal of the Longhorns. To put it simply, boosters whose bank statements are measured by the number of commas, have even more money at their disposal to buy athletes for the University of Texas.

This new partnership will be viewed from two different angles. We can expect whiners who complain that it just isn’t fair for a school with so many billions behind its athletic program can (a) access billions and (b) offer NIL deals to every single athlete. Then there are the realists. If they aren’t already doing so, they will be hustling to put together committees to seek out partnerships with financial institutions, hedge funds or corporations to raise enough money to be competitive.  

When Texas and Oklahoma were admitted to the SEC, it was a well known fact that both schools have plenty of oil money backing their athletic programs. This latest move of an expanded financial base by Texas means everybody else in the league will have to find their own financial resources to compete or forever dwell among the bottom feeders.

So how will the University of Florida compete? Florida doesn’t have the numerous big money boosters that Texas has, but there are plenty of wealthy Gators and one of the largest alumni bases in the entire country. There is plenty of corporate money that can be tapped into. Florida and other SEC schools might be wise to study IPTAY, Clemson’s athletic booster club. Founded in 1934 as “I Pay Ten a Year,” hence IPTAY, the membership options have expanded with the rising cost of doing business. IPTAY members can pay as little as $60 a year. The University of Florida has more than 450,000 living alumni. With a similar plan and the right marketing approach, those alums could provide UF with millions and millions of support.

Florida and all the other schools in the Southeastern Conference have to decide what they’re willing to do. Everybody understands that NIL is going to require a lot of money and some creative thinking to come up with new ways to raise it. It is either raise the cash or choose to dwell among the SEC bottom feeders.

Now that spring football practice is over and done with a few thoughts about the state of the SEC:

The Florida Gators will be the SEC’s most improved team in 2024:

There is good news and bad news for the Florida Gators in 2024. The good news is they will be the Southeastern Conference’s single most improved football team. The bad news is they have the nation’s most brutal schedule. Athlon’s all too early top 25 includes nine teams on the UF schedule. Florida could be the most improved team in the conference and still go 6-6.

The belief here is that the Gators will do better than 6-6. How much better? That’s hard to say because critical injuries could change everything, but this is the most experienced team Napier has been able to put on the field. All those kids who took their lumps the last two seasons are veterans now. A year older doesn’t make you necessarily a year better but it’s a good place to start.

Because quarterback is the single most important position in all of sports, the Gators will have an advantage in 2024 they didn’t have either of the past two seasons. Anthony Richardson came into 2022 with one career start. Graham Mertz was in his first year in a brand new offense a year ago, handicapped by a rather inefficient offensive line. He still threw only three picks, averaged more than eight yards an attempt and would have easily surpassed 3,000 yards if he hadn’t broken his collar bone against Missouri. The Gators might have won that game and the next week against FSU with a healthy Mertz. Perceptions would certainly be different if UF had gone 7-5 instead of 5-7, wouldn’t they?

Napier brought in two transfer tackles who have experience and good pass blocking skills. It’s being reported that he’s looking for another guard to bolster the interior line.

There is a budding super star in wide receiver Tre Wilson, the best running back in the SEC in Montrell Johnson Jr., speed enough to go vertical in the passing game every single play, and an improved defense that should be able to get off the field.

On paper, at least, the Gators are better. Games are played on the field so that’s a concern right there and there is the issue of injuries. Avoiding them will go a long way toward determining Florida’s success in 2024.

Breaking the SEC into four quads

The league expands to 16 teams in 2024 with the additions of Texas and Oklahoma. Some say it will be four teams – Georgia, Texas, Ole Miss and Alabama – and everybody else for the SEC title but the next four will be tough outs and the four below them will be a player or two away from being really, really good. Of course, there will be four at the bottom. Everybody needs a good homecoming opponent.

The Fab Four, each in two sentences or less

1. Georgia: As long as Carson Beck (a) remains upright and (b) Trevor Etienne doesn’t get him blindsided when he whiffs on an edge rusher, Georgia will be one of the two or three best teams in the country when the season starts.

2. Texas: Only God has more money than the Longhorns so whatever Steve Sarkisian needs, he can go out and buy. Quinn Ewers is one of the top three or four quarterbacks in the country and now he has four new stud receivers to throw to.

3. Ole Miss: Better living through the portal should be Lane Kiffin’s theme song. The offense will be splendid but Lane went portaling to load up on defense, which should make everyone very, very afraid.

4. Alabama: Nick Saban is gone and I’m not sold on Jalen Milroe in Kalen DeBoer’s offense but all those top three or four recruiting classes mean the cupboard is far from bare. DeBoer’s college head coaching record is 104-12.

The next tier

5. Missouri: The offense can win shootout games which Mizzou might have to do since losing its defensive coordinator to LSU. Brady Cook to Luther Burden III is every defensive coordinator’s nightmare.

6. Oklahoma: Underestimate the Sooners at your own risk. The O-line and all 11 starters on defense are upperclassmen who can play.

7. LSU: Everybody will have them in their top 25 but the flaws in that defense will take more than one year and Blake Baker to fix.

8. FLORIDA: The schedule is brutal on the back half but it shouldn’t be a shock if the Gators get some momentum by winning at least five of their first six games prior to Georgia.

Good enough to make everybody sweat

9. Tennessee: I’m not sold on Nico Iamaleava at QB nor am I sold on the UT defense. If Josh Heupel’s history from UCF repeats itself, now’s about the time he starts losing a few games that he should win.

10. Texas A&M: Are you sold on Conner Weigman (a) as a stud QB and (b) making it an entire season without a serious injury? Neither am I.

11. Auburn: Unless Hugh Freeze can land a decent QB in the portal, Auburn is going to have issues on offense. A 6-6 record might be an achievement.

12. Kentucky: Mark Stoops will win six or seven games, go to a bowl game and all the UK people will talk about how great the Wildcats could be if only they had the talent like Alabama or Georgia. Stoops stays at UK because he can win six or seven games a year and they’ll never fire him.

Down at the Bottom

13. South Carolina: Shane Beamer loaded up on running backs with Raheim Sanders (Arkansas), Oscar Adaway III (North Texas) and Jawarn Howell (South Carolina State). He’s going to have to grind and shorten games on the ground to be anything more than break even.

14.  Arkansas: KJ Jefferson transferred to UCF, Raheim Sanders to South Carolina and AJ Green to Oklahoma State. Not even Bobby Petrino can save this offense from a very bad season.

15. Mississippi State: Nine of the spring starters on offense came in via the portal window. It’s going to be a very long year in Starkvegas.

16. Vanderbilt: Every conference needs a designated homecoming opponent. That is Vanderbilt’s sworn duty.

The Best Quarterbacks in the SEC will be …

1. Carson Beck, Georgia: If Georgia wins the national championship, he could win the Heisman Trophy.

2. Quinn Ewers, Texas: Since he shed the blonde mullet and became a real leader both he and Texas have flourished.

3. Brady Cook, Missouri: He’s gotten better every year and he’s got Mizzou on the verge of becoming one of the SEC’s four elite teams.

4. Graham Mertz, Florida: He doesn’t have the cannon of an arm like Beck or Ewers and no one will mistake his feet for those of Jalen Milroe, but he can outthink the other guys and this year he’s got weapons and an O-line.

5. Jaxon Dart, Ole Miss: He’s very good but he also has studs at wide receiver and the best running backs room in the SEC and perhaps the entire country.

6. Jalen Milroe, Alabama: Can Kalen DeBoer harness all that talent and turn him into a consistent and decisive QB?

7. Garrett Nussmeier, LSU: LSU lost its receivers, doesn’t have a running game without Jayden Daniels and the defense sucks. That’s a lot to overcome.

8. Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee: He’s got skills, but there will be growing pains. Josh Heupel is going to kick himself in the butt for playing Joe Milton last year and redshirting Nico.

The Best Running Backs in the SEC Will Be

1. Montrell Johnson Jr., FLORIDA: He has run for 2,496 yards and 27 touchdowns while catching 48 passes for 347 yards and two more TDs.

2. Raheim Sanders, South Carolina: If he’s healthy like he was in 2022 (1,443 yards, 6.5 per carry) he can destroy a team’s will to resist when he’s moving the chains in the fourth quarter.

3. Trevor Etienne, Georgia: Always a breakaway threat (1,472 yards, 5.9 per carry) he adds a running game dimension Georgia hasn’t had since the days of D’Andre Swift. Can’t block a lick but that may not matter.

4. Jarquez Hunter, Auburn: Gained 909 yards a year ago and has 2,170 for his Auburn career. Plus he can catch passes and never fumbles.

5. Marcus Carroll, Missouri: Never heard of him? You will. He ran for 1,350 yards at Georgia State last year. He runs over, under and through defenders.

6. Henry Parrish, Ole Miss: Back at Ole Miss after two years at Miami. He’s gained 2,057 yards and caught 56 passes in his career.

7. Gavin Sawchuk, Oklahoma: Gained 740 yards (6.2 per carry) and scored nine TDs while sharing the backfield. He will be the main squeeze this year.

8. CJ Baxter, Texas: He will be the No. 1 guy running behind one of the best lines in the country. Gained 659 yards as a true freshman in a part-time role a season ago.

The best wide receivers in the SEC will be …

1. Luther Burden III, Missouri: Not just the best in the SEC, but he’s the best in the entire country. He had 86 catches for 1,212 yards and nine TDs a year ago. He’s a big play looking for a place to happen.

2. Tre Harris, Ole Miss: A season ago the numbers were 54-985 (18.24 per catch, 8 TDs). For his career he has 160 catches for 2,512 yards and 22 touchdowns.

3. Nic Anderson, Oklahoma: As a freshman a season ago he had 38 catches for 798 yards (21 per catch) and 10 touchdowns. He’s 6-4, fast and essentially uncoverable.

4. Juice Wells, Ole Miss: The healthy Juice Wells at South Carolina in 2022 caught 68 passes for 928 yards and six touchdowns. He will thrive in Lane Kiffin’s offense.

5. Tre Wilson, FLORIDA: Comparisons to Percy Harvin might be a stretch, but he seems to be a more reliable and uncoverable 2.0 of Kadarius Toney. As a true freshman last season he caught 61 passes for 538 yards and six touchdowns. He will be running more than drag patterns and tunnel screens this year.

6. Isaiah Bond, Texas: At Alabama a year ago he emerged as the most reliable receiver with 48 catches for 668 yards and four touchdowns.

7. Theo Wease Jr., Missouri: Because Luther Burden is on the other side he doesn’t get near enough passes thrown to him but he’s really, really good. Caught 49 passes for 682 yards and six touchdowns.

8. Dominic Lovett, Georgia: Counting two years at Mizzou and one at Georgia, he’s caught 136 passes for 1,632 yards and seven TDs. Caught 54 for 613 last year at UGa, 56 for 846 at Mizzou in 2022.

The Five best O-lines in the SEC will be …

1. Texas: Four starters return on the O-line including right tackle Cam Williams, who has 48 career starts.

2. Georgia: The starting five led by right guard Tate Ratledge is outstanding. The backups are talented but very young.

3. Tennessee: Three starters return including center Cooper Mays and right tackle John Campbell. The new left tackle is former LSU starter Lance Heard.

4. Missouri: Getting Cayden Green to transfer in from Oklahoma to play left tackle was critical.

5. Ole Miss: The Rebels poached a pair of guards with starting experience from Washington to solidify a line for one of the country’s most balanced offenses. Center Caleb Warren is a 3-year starter.

The two most improved defenses will be …

1. Ole Miss: The Rebels improved last year under Pete Golding. Now Pete has some toys to play with thanks to portal additions EDGE Princely Umanmielen (Florida), DT Walter Nolen (Texas A&M), LB Chris Paul (Arkansas), CB Amorion Walker (Michigan), CB Brandon Turnage (Tennessee) and S Key Lawrence (Oklahoma). Lane Kiffin is counting on the new and improved defense giving him a couple of extra possessions a game. If the Rebels have a good defense, they could be scary in 2024.

2. FLORIDA: Billy Napier replaced three defensive coaches and all three are upgrades. Ron Roberts, the guru of the creeper defense, is the guy who will be the difference maker. He made Auburn a touchdown and four first downs better in 2023. If he can do that at UF in 2024, the Gators will probably be the most improved team in the league. The Gators have more experience on the defensive side than either of the last two years and they addressed all three levels by bringing in experienced players from the portal. Three names to watch from the portal: EDGE George Gumbs (Northern Illinois), ILB Grayson (Pup) Howard (South Carolina) and S DJ Douglas (Tulane).

There was plenty of buzz leaving Condron Family Ballpark Tuesday night about the 2,814 feet seven Florida home runs traveled. There were two opposite field home runs by Jac Caglianone, a rare homer by Michael Robertson also to the opposite field, a monster of a home run to the right of the green monster in center field by Cade Kurland, a line drive of a homer over the left field bullpen by Luke Heyman and a deep blast in left center by Ty Evans. Plus, there was a 493-foot moonshot by Brody Donay, who earlier in the game laid down a perfect bunt between the Stetson pitcher and third baseman.

All those dingers made for a rather pleasant night at the ball yard as the Gators (21-19) did a 13-3, 7-inning run-rule on those same Stetson Hatters who had boinked the Gators 7-4 a few weeks ago in DeLand. Home runs are nice, but what pleased Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan was the number zero.

As in zero walks.

Do you know how many times that has happened in this roller coaster ride of a season? The Stetson win marked just the third time this season that Florida pitchers haven’t walked a batter. The last time was three weeks ago against FAMU. Cade Fisher (2 innings, 37 pitches), Ryan Slater (2-2/3, 34 pitches), Frank Menendez (1-1/3, 26 pitches) and Luke McNeillie (1-1/3, 8 pitches) limited a good hitting Stetson team to two earned runs on nine hits, eight of which were singles. Slater pitched the Gators out of a third inning jam with a pair of ground outs and a swinging third strike. Menendez faced two on with two out in the fifth and got the Gators out of it with a called third strike.

Coupled with a strong 9-inning win back on Saturday when the Gators salvaged their series with Vanderbilt with a game three win, this was the kind of effort from the pitching staff that lends hope that the Gators can generate some momentum in the final four weeks of the regular season before they head to Hoover for the Southeastern Conference Tournament. That none of the pitchers were over-extended means the Gators head to Arkansas this weekend with a fresh pitching staff.

“We didn't walk anybody,” O’Sullivan said. “I thought Ryan coming in with bases loaded, nobody out and limited to one run was probably the turning point in the game even though it was early, but I thought he threw the ball really well had some soft contact, but the stuff looks sharp. That's the second really good outing in a row for Frankie and obviously, Luke came in and threw eight pitches and seven strikes.  To be able to play a midweek game and not anybody that overextended, and they're still fresh to go on Friday night is important and that's kind of what you hope for…"

For all practical purposes, the game was over after the Florida half of the second when the Gators hit three balls out of the yard in a 7-run outburst. Following a single by Tyler Shelnut, Heyman homered to stake UF to a 2-0 lead. Robertson singled up the middle to score Hayden Yost and Cade Kurland for a 4-0 lead, then Evans hit his 2-run homer. That brought up Caglianone who took a 1-1 pitch the opposite way to left field for his 24th home run of the season.

The Gators hit two home runs in the fourth to extend their lead to 9-2. Robertson hit his first homer of the year and one out later, Caglianone took the first pitch he saw opposite field for his 25th homer.

Kurland hit a 2-run homer in the seventh and Donay hit an absolute moonshot out of the stadium onto Hull Road to put UF ahead 12-3. Robertson’s third hit of the game and a single up the middle by Evans brought Caglianone up with a chance to end the game. He didn’t disappoint although he didn’t hit the ball out of the park. Instead it was a line drive down the right field line that brought in Robertson to give the Gators the 10-run lead, good for another run-rule.

Game notes: Caglianone stretched his consecutive game hitting streak to 19 games and his consecutive games on-base streak to 26 … The two home runs raised Caglianone’s career total to 65, fifth all-time in the SEC (record 80) and nine behind UF’s all-time leader Matt LaPorta. Caglianone is two home runs behind Rafael Palmeiro for fourth in SEC history … The home run by Evans was his 10th, a career high … Heyman’s homer was his ninth and Kurland’s was his eighth … The Gators have hit 90 home runs this season, which is third in the SEC.

UF FOOTBALL: Crunching numbers

With the reclassification to 2024 by offensive lineman Enoch Wagnoy (6-7, 314, Jacksonville, FL Zarepath Academy), Billy Napier finds himself teetering on the verge of a real scholarship crunch. The Gators are at the NCAA limit 85 but when Wagnoy enrolls at UF, they will be one over, more if Napier signs any players out of the transfer portal.

Currently, the Gators are pursuing at least two in the portal per Jacob Rudner of Swamp247 – Colorado State wide receiver Justus Ross-Simmons (6-3, 205, SO) and Southern Cal offensive lineman Jason Zandamela (6-3, 306, RFR). Ross-Simmons, a teammate of UF quarterback transfer Clay Millen, caught 45 passes for 724 yards (16.09 per catch) and three TDs last season; 26 for 424 and three TDs in 2022. He plans to be on campus this weekend. Zandamela, who has four years of eligibility remaining, played high school football at Clearwater Academy. He will visit UCF and then Florida. If he doesn’t commit to UCF, Florida is likely to get the commitment.

UF SOFTBALL: Gators host FSU tonight

Although tonight’s showdown with arch-rival Florida State (36-10) won’t have any bearing on the Southeastern Conference race, getting a win will certainly help the Gators (37-10) when the NCAA selects its regional hosts and seeds the top 16 teams for the tournament. The Gators are almost certain to host a regional, but they have work to do to get to a top eight seed to host a super regional. Florida State finds itself in a similar position, so there is added weight to tonight’s game (6 p.m., SEC Network+) at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.

The Gators were in very good shape to host both a regional and super until they dropped a midweek game against South Florida and went into a 3-game tailspin that included losing the first two games at Missouri. The Gators have rebounded to win three of their last four games, but they need a big win not only for NCAA purposes, but to establish momentum heading into the weekend series with Georgia in Athens. Just like the Gators and FSU, Georgia is a mortal lock to host a regional but has work to do to host a super.

Korbe Otis leads the nation in on-base percentage at .592 while leading the SEC and ranking seventh nationally with a .451 batting average.

USA Today/NFCA top 25: 1. Texas 38-6; 2. Oklahoma 42-4; 3. Tennessee 34-8; 4. Oklahoma State 39-8; 5. Duke 39-6; 6. LSU 35-10; 7. Stanford 36-10; 8. Washington 30-8; 9. UCLA 27-9; 10. Texas A&M 37-9; 11. Georgia 36-11; 12. FLORIDA 37-10; 13. Virginia Tech 35-9-1; 14. Missouri 35-13; 15. Arkansas 32-12; 16. Florida State 36-10; 17. Alabama 31-12; 18. Mississippi State 30-13; 19. Arizona 31-13-1; 20. California 31-14; 21. Kentucky 29-15; 22. Clemson 31-15; 23. Boston University 40-4; 24. Oregon 26-16; 25. Louisiana 33-15

ESPN/USA Softball top 25: 1. Texas 38-6; 2. Oklahoma 42-4; 3. Tennessee 34-8; 4. Oklahoma State 39-8; 5. Duke 39-6; 6. UCLA 27-9; 7. LSU 35-10; 8. Stanford 36-10; 9. Georgia 36-11; 10. Washington 30-8; 11. Texas A&M 37-9; 12. FLORIDA 37-10; 13. Arkansas 32-12; 14. Missouri 35-13; 15. Virginia Tech 35-9-1; 16. Florida State 36-10[ 17. Alabama 31-12; 18. Mississippi State 30-13; 19. Louisiana 33-15; 20. Arizona 31-13-1; 21. Clemson 31-15; 22. Kentucky 29-15; 23. Oregon 26-16; 24. Texas State 37-12; 25. California 31-14

D1Softball top 25: 1. Texas 38-6; 2. Oklahoma 42-4; 3. Tennessee 34-8; 4. Oklahoma State 39-8; 5. UCLA 27-9; 6. Stanford 36-10; 7. Duke 39-6; 8. LSU 35-10; 9. Texas A&M 37-9; 10. Georgia 36-11; 11. Washington 30-8; 12. Arkansas 32-12; 13. FLORIDA 37-10; 14. Missouri 35-13; 15. Virginia Tech 35-9-1; 16. Florida State 36-10; 17. Mississippi State 30-13; 18. Arizona 31-13-1; 19. Alabama 31-12; 20. Louisiana 33-15; 21. Northwestern X; 22. Boston University 40-4; 23. Kentucky 29-15; 24. Oregon 26-16; 25. Texas State 37-12

UF TRACK AND FIELD: UF men No. 4; women No. 7

USTFCCCA men’s top 25: 1. Texas A&M; 2. Alabama; 3. LSU; 4. FLORIDA; 5. Texas Tech; 6. Southern California; 7. Texas; 8. Virginia Tech; 9. Arkansas; 10. South Florida; 11. Tennessee; 12. North Carolina; 13. Georgia; 14. Oklahoma State; 15. Mississippi State; 16. Kentucky; 17. Virginia; 18. Auburn; 19. Arizona State; 20. South Carolina; 21. Iowa State; 22. Iowa; 23. Miami; 24. Minnesota; 25. BYU

USTFCCCA women’s top 25: 1. LSU; 2. Arkansas; 3. Texas A&M; 4. Oregon; 5. South Carolina; 6. Illinois; 7. FLORIDA; 8. Georgia; 9. Texas Tech; 10. Tennessee; 11. Ole Miss; 12. Nebraska; 13. Texas; 14. Notre Dame; 15. Alabama; 16. Oklahoma; 17. Harvard; 18. Clemson; 19. Southern California; 20. California; 21. Florida State; 22. Washington; 23. Houston; 24. Michigan; 25. UTEP

UF LACROSSE: Gators ranked 10th

IWLCA top 25: 1. Northwestern 13-2; 2. Notre Dame 14-2; 3. Boston College 13-3; 4. Syracuse 12-4; 5. Michigan 14-2; 6. Virginia 13-3; 7. Maryland 12-4; 8. Yale 12-2; 9. Loyola 14-2; 10. FLORIDA 14-2; 11. Pennsylvania 11-3; 12. Denver 13-3; 13. Stony Brook 14-2; 14. North Carolina 10-5; 15. Johns Hopkins 10-6; 16. Penn State 9-6; 17. James Madison 11-4; 18. Princeton 9-5; 19. Stanford 10-3; 20. Navy 13-3; 21. Southern California 11-4; 22. Fairfield 15-1; 23. Colorado 10-5; 24. Duke 10-7; 25. Harvard 10-3

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The NFL Draft promises to be rather light when it comes to Florida Gators. Ricky Pearsall is close to a mortal lock for the second round. Pearsall is expected to go in the first half of the second round, but even Mel Kiper Jr. thinks he may hear his name called shortly after the first round concludes.

Other than Pearsall, center Kingsley Eguakun is probably the only Gator who will be selected. Most of the mock drafts out there have him going late in the seventh round. He doesn’t have ideal size (barely 300 pounds) and he struggled to handle the bigger, stronger nose tackles one-on-one. To his credit, he’s quite cerebral and if drafted, that will be his ticket.

The scarcity of Gators in the draft says plenty about where the Florida football program was when Billy Napier took over. This was once a football factory but the number of prospects in the program has been on the decline for the last few years. That should never happen at the University of Florida.

To his credit, Napier is rebuilding the Florida program to the point that for the first time since he arrived, the spring roster looked like one that belongs in the Southeastern Conference. When the Gators take the field against any of their SEC opponents this year, they won’t look like large boys playing against grown men for a change. They still have to perform on the field, but it is indeed evident that Napier is putting together a bigger, stronger and faster roster, which is a necessity if the Gators are to rise out of this lake of mediocrity from which they’ve been doing a slow drown since the 2020 season.

What happened to Florida football did not happen overnight and the rebuild hasn’t been an overnight job, either. Napier could have gone the transfer portal route, which has worked well for Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss, but the more players you take from the portal, the bigger a crapshoot it becomes. Lane’s model is working but is it sustainable?

Napier’s choice has been to rebuild the program from the ground up, using the portal as a supplement rather than a main source of talent acquisition. When he finished with spring practice, Napier looked and sounded more confident than at any point since he’s been at Florida. There is still a lot of work to be done, but everything about the way the Gators ended spring combined with the elevation of recruiting seems to indicate that Florida football has either turned the corner or is on the verge.

Barring some sort of shocking development over the next couple of days, Ricky Pearsall won’t hear his name called Thursday night when the NFL selects its first round picks of the 2024 Draft. A year or two from now, a bunch of teams that could have taken Pearsall early might regret letting the former Florida wide receiver slip into the second round.

Thought to be a fourth round or after prospect prior to the 2023 season, Pearsall has climbed up everyone’s charts based on 2023 productivity and a brilliant combine in which he turned in a 4.41 time in the 40, a 10.9 standing broad jump and a 42-inch vertical. Nearly every mock draft his him going second round now, which, if it holds true, will mean he goes Friday night.

Pearsall doesn’t have the top end speed of prospects such as Marvin Harrison Jr. (Ohio State), Malik Nabers (LSU) or Xavier Worthy (Texas) nor does he have the size and brute physical strength of Xavier Legette (South Carolina), but there may not be a receiver with a better combination of speed, hands, precision route running and the ability to decleat DBs as a blocker.

Florida wide receivers coach Billy Gonzales, maybe the best there is in the country at teaching route running and blocking, lights up when he talks about Ricky Pearsall.

“Obviously, Ricky’s a special football player,” Gonzales said a few weeks ago. “He was not a good football player, he was a great football player. He’s going to have a great career. I love him to death. He’s phenomenal.”

Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com, one of the more highly regarded draft analysts, ranks Pearsall as the No. 40 prosect in the entire draft.

Writes Jeremiah: “Pearsall is a loose, smooth wideout with outstanding hands and toughness. He is quick in his release and he understands how to change gears as a route runner. He is fluid getting into and out of breaks. He has outstanding hands. He attacks the ball at the highest point and makes some circus catches (see one-handed gem vs. Charlotte). After the catch, he is quick to transition up the field and has the elusiveness to make defenders miss in space. He has a lean frame, but he plays with excellent toughness and competitiveness. Pearsall followed up an excellent 2023 season with a solid week at the Senior Bowl and should have a starting role from Day 1 for his drafting team.”

ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. has Pearsall solidly in the second round, going with the 45th pick overall to the New Orleans Saints. In one of its latest rankings of the top 100 prospects for the draft, ESPN’s Jeff Legwold rates Pearsall as the No. 46 overall prospect.  

Kiper recently told Field Yates on the First Draft podcast, “He’s a 6-foot-1, 190-pound eceiver who ran a 4.41,” Kiper elaborated. “He has good strength, he’s got tremendous athletic ability. A vertical of 42 inches – that’s unbelievable vertical. When you look at the production at Florida, what he did at Arizona State? I talked to Herm Edwards and the first thing he says to me is, ‘That’s my guy, Pearsall!’. He was saying that before the year even began. Herm loves the kid.”

“He tests off the charts, he’s tough, he’s aggressive with the ball in his hands, he loves football. There’s no way, after the numbers he’s shown, he gets out of the second round. It wouldn’t shock me if he went very early in the second.”

SEC FOOTBALL: The portal is heating up

Alabama: Alabama hasn’t lost anyone of significance but has made two substantial pickups from the portal. Last year’s starter at LT, Kadyn Proctor, transferred to Iowa, but has come back to Tuscaloosa where he will start once again. Placekicker Graham Nicholson won the Groza Award at Miami (OH) last year where he hit 27-28 field goals.

Outgoing: PK Reed Harradine (6-3, 185, FR); WR Andre Craig (6-0, 180, SO)

Incoming: OT Kadyn Proctor (6-7, 360, FR) from Iowa; PK Graham Nicholson (6-0, 185, JR) from Miami (OH)

Arkansas: Punter Max Fletcher (46.95 per kick last year) is a huge loss as is corner Snaxx Johnson. Running back Rodney Hill isn’t going to make up for the loss of Raheim Sanders (South Carolina) or AJ Green (Oklahoma State). LB Larry Worth III (Jacksonville State) and EDGE Keyron Crawford (Arkansas State) don’t move the needle very far.

Outgoing: TE Francis Sherman (6-3, 237, SR); RB Isaiah Augustave (6-2, 208, RFR); OT Andrew Chamblee (6-6, 304, FR); QB Jacolby Criswell (6-1, 230, JR); EDGE Jashaud Stewart (6-2, 257, SR); P Max Fletcher (6-5, 174, SO) to Cincinnati; CB Snaxx Johnson (6-0, 193, JR)

Incoming: RB Rodney Hill (5-10, 186, SO) from Florida A&M; LB Larry Worth III (6-4, 220, SO) from Jacksonville State; EDGE Keyron Crawford (6-4, 243, SO) from Arkansas State

Auburn: No losses of any significance, but three defensive imports that will help immediately in D-linemen Philip Blidi (Indiana) and Isaiah Raikes (Southern Cal by way of Texas A&M) and linebacker Jaylin Alderman (Louisville). Raikes played for the Aggies last year, then spent the spring with Southern Cal.

Outgoing: DL Brenton Williams (6-3, 262, FR); CB J.D. Rhym (6-1, 178, SO); LS Kyle Vaccarella (6-3, 229, SO); WR Ja’Varrius Johnson (5-10, 167, SR); WR Jay Fair (5-10, 186, SO); LB Wesley Steiner (6-0, 245, SR)

Incoming: DL Philip Blidi (6-3, 295, SR) from Indiana; DL Isaiah Raikes (6-2, 320, JR) from Southern California; LB Jaylin Alderman (6-1, 230, JR) from Louisville

FLORIDA: The Gators are a couple over the scholarship limit and Mannie Nunnery is the only exit so far. Billy Napier needs a D-lineman, an experienced interior O-lineman and another experienced pass catcher.

Outgoing: LB Mannie Nunnery (6-2, 227, RSR)

Georgia: Georgia hasn’t lost anyone important but could land former Florida QB commit Jaden Rashada by way of Arizona State.

Outgoing: RB Andrew Paul (5-11, 218, FR); OT Chad Lindberg (6-6, 325, JR) to Rice; WR Tyler Williams (6-3, 205, RFR)

Kentucky: The Wildcats were counting on Raymond Cottrell, who transferred in from Aggieland, but now he’s on his way out. None of the other exits will be missed immediately.

Outgoing: RB LaVell Wright (5-11, 202, JR); WR Darius Cannon (5-9, 175, FR); WR Raymond Cottrell (6-3, 210, RFR); QB Shane Hamm (5-11, 209, SO); WR Shamar Porter (6-3, 205, FR); PK Jackson Smith (5-11, 204, FR); WR Ardell Banks (6-3, 187, FR)

LSU: Eight departures so far and only one entry. Gio Paez did a good job of clogging up the middle from his nose guard slot at Wisconsin. None of the departures will be missed in 2024.

Outgoing: EDGE Jaxon Howard (6-4, 240, FR) to Minnesota; WR Khai Prean (6-0, 202, FR) to Tulane; CB Ryan Robinson Jr. (5-11, 180, FR); TE Connor Gilbreath (6-5, 272, SO); DL Bryce Langston (6-3, 300, SO) to Florida Atlantic; CB Jeremiah Hughes (6-0, 187, FR); LB Christian Brathwaite (6-1, 217, FR); S Ryan Yaites (6-1, 203, FR)

Incoming: DL Gio Paez (6-3, 310, SR) from Wisconsin

Mississippi State: The Bulldogs got a big pickup in running back Rashad Amos, who gained 1,075 yards and scored 13 TDs at Miami (OH). Two significant losses in wide receiver Justin Robinson and punter Keelan Cummings. Robinson was the leading returning receiver and Cummings averaged nearly 41 yards a punt.

Outgoing: S Trent Singleton (6-0, 195, FR); CB Luke Evans (6-2, 180, FR); P Keelan Cummings (6-3, 215, FR) to Purdue; WR Justin Robinson (6-4, 220, JR)

Incoming: RB Rashad Amos (6-2, 224, SR) from Miami (OH)

Missouri: The Tigers aren’t looking for much in the portal. They got a backup QB in Drew Pyne from Arizona State, formerly of Notre Dame.

Outgoing: WR Dannis Jackson (5-11, 171, JR); DL Serigne Tounkara (6-2, 235, FR)

Incoming: QB Drew Pyne (6-0, 190, SO) from Arizona State

Oklahoma: Monday the Sooners picked up a starting center in Branson Hickman (from SMU) and a starter at nose tackle in Jermaine Lole (from Louisville).

Outgoing: QB Jacob Switzer (6-2, 192, SO); Shane Whitter (6-0, 226, JR); CB Justin Harrington (6-3, 215, SR)

Incoming: C Branson Hickman (6-4, 297, JR) from SMU; DL Jermaine Lole (6-3, 310, SR) from Louisville

Ole Miss: Beware the Rebels in the running game next year. In January Lane Kiffin landed Logan Diggs from LSU. Now he’s added Jacorey Harris, who ran for 1,190 yards and 17 TDs last year at New Mexico, and Henry Parrish Jr., back at Ole Miss after a 2-year hiatus at Miami. He’s run for more than 2,000 yards in his career. None of the losses in the portal will be misses.

Outgoing: DL Joshua Harris (6-4, 325, SR) to North Carolina; QB Deljay Bailey (6-1, 200, FR)

Incoming: RB Jacory Merritt (5-11, 204 SR) from New Mexico; RB Henry Parrish (5-10, 190, JR) from Miami

South Carolina: The Gamecocks did almost all their shopping in January. None of the losses will be missed.

Outgoing: OL Jaxon Hughes (6-6, 297, SR); EDGE Terrell Dawkins (6-4, 251, SR); WR Kelton Henderson (6-0, 165, FR)

Tennessee: The loss of MLB Elijah Herring, last year’s leading tackler (80) is huge. Eight starters from last year’s defense have now transferred out.

Outgoing: LB Elijah Herring (6-3, 238, SO)

Texas: Losing OT Payton Kirkland to Colorado is a big loss. The defense got the big, mobile force at NT in Bill Norton from Arizona.

Outgoing: LB S’maje Burrell (6-0, 219, FR); EDGE Billy Walton III (6-3, 225, FR); OL Payton Kirkland (6-6, 350, FR) to Colorado; EDGE J’mond Tapp (6-3, 266, FR); DL Zach Swanson (6-4, 270, FR)

Incoming: DL Bill Norton (6-6, 325, SR) from Arizona

Texas A&M: Losing Jacoby Matthews and Fadil Diggs (to Syracuse) are tough losses, but the Aggies picked up an outstanding EDGE in Josh Celiscar (from UCF), a starting OLB in Solomon DeShields (from Pittsburgh) and a starting center in Koli Faaiu (from Utah).

Outgoing: S Sam McCall (6-1, 185, FR); LB Alex Howard (6-2, 230, SR); S Jacoby Matthews (6-2, 215, SO); EDGE Fadil Diggs (6-5, 260, JR) to Syracuse; OL Derrick Graham (6-4, 314, SO); PK Ethan Moczulski (5-11, 200, FR)

Incoming: EDGE Josh Celiscar (6-4, 265, SR) from UCF; C Koli Faaiu (6-3, 326, SO) from Utah; LB Solomon DeShields (6-3, 225, JR) from Pittsburgh

Vanderbilt: The Commodores lost a starting OL to Wisconsin (Leyton Nelson) but picked up two probable starters in Cade McConnell (from Minnesota) and Steven Hubbard (from UTEP).

Outgoing: LB Dante Kelly (6-3, 201, FR); S John Howse IV (6-1, 195, JR); TE Josh Palmer (6-4, 192, FR); OT Leyton Nelson (6-6, 308, SO) to Wisconsin; CB Jameson Wharton (6-1, 170, SO)

Incoming: OL Cade McConnell (6-5, 310, FR) from Minnesota; OL Steven Hubbard (6-3, 314, SR) from UTEP

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Stetson a must win? Who would have ever thought that when the 2024 Florida baseball season began? Why would have thought that even three weeks ago when the Gators (20-19) were still ranked fourth nationally?

This is a rather strange season, not at all what was expected when it began, but in retrospect, perhaps we should have seen something like this coming when Caden Fisher struggled out of the gate as the Friday starter and the only thing consistent about every pitcher not named Jac Caglianone on a freshman-dominated staff was inconsistency.

Fisher has moved to the bullpen but he’s struggled to get people out. Brandon Neely was moved from closer to Friday night starter. What he’s shown is why he’s a closer. He’s good for about three or four innings, but after that he doesn’t fool anyone. Freshman Liam Peterson and Luke McNellie can throw high 90s but the ball doesn’t always move. When it doesn’t move it tends to fly high and deep toward the fences. Pierce Coppola has some good stuff, but he shows the rust of two years without pitching. Fisher Jameson may have found himself lately but he’s got to put several games together. Ryan Slater had a couple of short outings that went well at Vandy, but he needs to come around in a hurry.

Caglianone? He can give the Gators five of six innings but then which bullpen is going to show up?

Starting with tonight’s game with Stetson at Condron Family Ballpark, the Gators are in a desperation mode. The magic numbers are 14, as in 14 SEC wins, and 30. It may take a win or two at the SEC Tournament in Hoover to get to 30 wins. But, 14 SEC wins or 30 wins for the season should get the Gators into the NCAA Tournament.

We know what they have to do. The question is can they do it? This is Kevin O’Sullivan’s 17th season as Florida’s head coach. He’s never failed to make the NCAA Tournament in the previous 16 seasons.  

Todd Golden added one more piece to the puzzle Sunday when Alijah Martin announced he is transferring to Florida from Florida Atlantic. A 3-year starter for Dusty May at FAU, Martin averaged 13.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. In 124 games in four years at FAU, Martin scored 1,476 points.

The addition of Martin leaves Golden with two open scholarships. An offer has been extended to Lorenzo Cason (6-3, 195, Lakeland, FL Victory Christian), who signed with Florida Atlantic but got his NLI released when May left FAU to take the Michigan job. Cason played the point at Victory Christian but he also had scoring games of 57 and 45 points. The Gators are listed as one of the six final schools for Villanova transfer TJ Bamba (6-5, 208, SR), a career 38 percent 3-point shooter who averaged 10.1 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game last season.

The Gators could emerge as a landing spot for Saint Mary’s guard Aidan Mahaney (6-3, 180, SO), who Golden recruited very heavily when he was the head coach at San Francisco. An exceptional shooter, Mahaney averaged 13.9 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game for the Gaels last season. A year ago, the Gators were very much in the mix for Vanderbilt shooter Tyrin Lawrence (6-4, 210, SR), who was in the portal but elected to return to Vandy. He’s in the portal again and this time expected to transfer.

Big guys (5): Micah Handlogten (7-1, 230, SO); Sam Alexis (6-9, 240, SO/TR); Alex Condon (6-11, 230, FR); Thomas Haugh (6-9, 215, FR); Rueben Chinyelu (6-11, 245, FR/TR)

Guards/wings (6): Alijah Martin (6-2, 185, SR/TR); Will Richard (6-4, 206, JR); Walter Clayton Jr. (6-2, 195, JR); Denzel Aberdeen (6-5, 190, SO); Kaijus Kublickas (6-2, 170, FR); Isaiah Brown (6-5, 190, FR/Signed)

UF SOFTBALL: Gators stage comeback to win game three

Korbe Otis, the hottest hitter in the Southeastern Conference, scored all the way from first base on a 6th-inning single by Jocelyn Erickson to give Florida (37-10, 12-6 SEC) a come-from-behind 7-6 win over South Carolina Sunday afternoon. The win enabled the Gators to win the series from the Gamecocks and remain two games behind SEC leader Tennessee.

It was an uphill battle for the Gators, who fell behind 4-1 in the second, forcing Tim Walton to call on Mackenzie Wooten to come in from the bullpen to put out the fire. The Gators got one run back in the bottom of the second on an Emily Wilkie pinch-hit single and they took the lead at 6-5 in the fourth on a 2-run homer by Ariel Kowalewski, an RBI triple by Kendra Falby and an RBI single by Erickson.

South Carolina tied the score in the fifth, but Otis drew a one-out walk and one out later, Erickson delivered the game-winning hit.

The Gators will be home Wednesday against Florida State and home next weekend against Georgia.

SEC softball standings: 1. Tennessee (33-8, 14-4 SEC); 2. Texas A&M (37-9, 15-6 SEC); 3. FLORIDA (37-10, 12-6 SEC): 4. Arkansas (32-12, 11-7 SEC); 5. Georgia (36-11, 10-8 SEC); 6. LSU (35-10, 11-10 SEC); 7. Mississippi State (29-13, 9-9 SEC); 8. (TIE) Missouri (31-12, 8-10 SEC) and Alabama (31-12, 8-10 SEC); 10. Kentucky (28-15, 6-10 SEC); 11. South Carolina (29-17-1, 6-12 SEC); 12. Auburn (23-14-1, 5-11 SEC); 13. Ole Miss (24-22-1, 3-15 SEC)

UF BASEBALL: No easy games moving forward

The NCAA Tournament is not out of the question for the Gators (20-19, 8-10 SEC) but the margin for error is razor thin. Florida managed only one win in Nashville against Vanderbilt, but by salvaging the series with a 6-2 win Saturday there was a ray of hope.

Tyler Shelnut came through at the plate with a 3-run homer and a clutch 2-run double to salt the win away while Fisher Jameson shut the door on the Commodores (29-11, 10-8 SEC) with 3-1/3 innings of outstanding relief. Jac Caglianone gave the Gators a strong start but when Cade Fisher struggled with his control in the sixth, Kevin O’Sullivan went to the bullpen for Jameson, who delivered the best relief appearance of his career. Jameson gave up a harmless 2-out single in the seventh but otherwise was untouchable with no walks and six strikeouts.

Caglianone’s streak of nine straight games with a home run ended Saturday, but he got a single to increase his hitting streak to 17. Shelnut continued his recent power surge. He has four homers (12 for the season) and 12 RBI in his last six games.

With four SEC weekend series remaining along with two non-conference games, the Gators are on thin ice when it comes to making the NCAA Tournament. The magic number is 30, which may take a win or two at the SEC Tournament in Hoover to achieve.

“Obviously, everything is in front of us and every game matters,” O’Sullivan said. “I just talked about it again. Tuesday night is another big game for us. Every game seems like a playoff game and we're going to have to continue to play well, that's for sure.”

The Gators host Stetson Tuesday night in a non-conference game, then travel next weekend to Arkansas.

SEC baseball standings

East: 1. Kentucky (32-6, 15-2 SEC); 2. Tennessee (32-7, 11-6 SEC); 3. Vanderbilt (29-11, 10-8 SEC); 4. (TIE) Georgia (29-10, 9-9 SEC) and South Carolina (27-13, 9-9 SEC); 6. FLORIDA (20-19, 8-10 SEC); 7. Missouri (18-23, 6-12 SEC)

West: 1. Arkansas (34-6, 14-4 SEC); 2. Texas A&M (35-5, 13-5 SEC); 3. Mississippi State (26-14, 10-8 SEC); 4. Alabama (25-15, 7-11 SEC); 5. Ole Miss (21-18, 6-12 SEC); 6. LSU (25-16, 5-13 SEC); 7. Auburn (19-20, 2-16 SEC)

SEC BASKETBALL: A very active portal

Alabama

Outgoing: SF Kris Parker (6-8, 195, RFR); SG Rylan Griffen (6-5, 185, SO); SG Davin Cosby (6-5, 205, FR); Sam Walters (6-10, 198, FR)

Incoming: PG Houston Mallette (6-5, 180, JR) from Pepperdine; SG Chris Youngblood (6-4, 212, SR) from South Florida; PG Aden Holloway (6-1, 178, FR) from Auburn

Arkansas

Outgoing: PG Keon Menifield (6-1, 150, SO); F Denijay Harris (6-7, 200, SR); WG Joseph Pinion (6-6, 195, SO) to Arkansas State; C Baye Fall (6-10, 200, FR); SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) to Texas

Incoming: C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) from Kentucky; PF Jordan Burks (6-9, 220, FR) from Kentucky

Auburn

Outgoing: CG KD Johnson (6-0, 190, SR) to George Mason; PG Tre Donaldson (6-2, 190, SO) to Michigan; PG Aden Holloway (6-1, 178, FR) to Alabama

INCOMING: PG JP Pegues (6-1, 165, JR) from Furman

FLORIDA

Outgoing: SG Riley Kugel (6-5, 206, SO) to Kansas; PF Aleks Szymczyk (6-10, 250, RFR)

Incoming: PF Sam Alexis (6-9, 240, SO) from Chattanooga; C Rueben Chinyelu (6-11, 245, SO) from Washington State; SG Alijah Martin (6-2, 185, SR) from Florida Atlantic

Georgia

Outgoing: SF Matthew-Alexander Moncrief (6-7, 220, SR); PG Justin Hill (6-0, 185, SR); C Jalen Deloach (6-9, 215, JR); SG Mari Jordan (6-8, 185, RFR); WF Jabri Abdur-Rahim (6-7, 214, SR) to Providence

Incoming: DeShayne Montgomery (6-4, 190, SO) from Mount St. Mary’s

Kentucky

Outgoing: SG Adou Thiero (6-6, 200, SO); SG Joey Hart (6-5, 203, FR) to Ball State; C Aaron Bradshaw (7-0, 220, FR) to Ohio State; C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) to Arkansas;  PG DJ Wagner (6-3, 175, FR);  PF Jordan Burks (6-9, 220, FR) to Arkansas

Incoming: PF Amari Williams (6-10, 227, SR) from Drexel

LSU

Outgoing: SF Mwani Wilkerson (6-5, 205, SO); SG Carlos Stewart (6-1, 185, JR) to Santa Clara

Incoming: PG Cam Carter (6-3, 195, JR) from Kansas State; PG Jordan Sears (5-11, 175, JR) from UT-Martin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: PG Andrew Taylor (6-3, 190, SR); SG Trey Fort III (6-4, 195, JR); PF Jaquan Scott (6-8, 230, JR); SG Shakeel Moore (6-1, 180, SR)

Incoming: PG Kanye Clary (5-11, 192, SO) from Penn State; SG Claudell Harris Jr. (6-3, 190, JR) from Boston College; C Michael Nwoko (6-10, 245, FR) from Miami

Missouri

Outgoing: SG Curt Lewis (6-5, 215, JR); PF Jesus Carralero (6-8, 210, SR); SG John Tonje (6-5, 222, SR); C Jordan Butler (7-0, 230, FR) to South Carolina  

Incoming: PF Jacob Crews (6-8, 210, JR) from UT-Martin; SG Tony Perkins (6-4, 210, SR) from Iowa; PF Mark Mitchell (6-8, 220, SO) from Duke; PG Marques Warrick (6-2, 170, SR) from Northern Kentucky

Oklahoma

Outgoing: CG Otega Oweh (6-5, 210, SO) to Oregon; PF John Hugley (6-9, 240, JR) to Xavier; PG Javian McCollum (6-1, 170, JR) to Georgia Tech; PG Milos Uzan (6-4, 183, SO) to Houston

Ole Miss

Outgoing: PF Rashaud Marshall (6-9, 220, FR) to Arkansas State; C Malique Ewin (6-10, 240); Jacob Gazzo (6-8, 215, FR); PF Cameron Barnes (6-9, 195, FR); C Moussa Cisse (6-10, 220, SR)

Incoming: PF Mikeal Brown-Jones (6-8, 210, SR) from UNC-Greensboro; C Malik Dia (6-9, 240, SO) from Belmont; Davon Barnes (6-5, 212, JR) from Sam Houston State; SG Drew Davis (6-5, 220, SR) from Seton Hall

South Carolina

Outgoing: PG Meechie Johnson (6-2, 184, JR) to Ohio State; CG Ebrima Dibba (6-5, 214, SR); C Josh Gray (6-11, 255, SR)

Incoming: C Jordan Butler (7-0, 230, FR) from Missouri

Tennessee

Outgoing: SG Freddie Dilione (6-5, 185, FR); SG D.J. Jefferson (6-5, 2-7, FR); PF Tobe Awaka (6-8, 250, SO); C Jonas Aidoo (6-11, 230, JR)

Incoming: SG Darlinstone Dubar (6-6, 207, SR) from Hofstra

Texas

Outgoing: SF Alex Anamekwe (6-6, 200, SO); PG Chris Johnson (6-5, 180, FR); PF Dillon Mitchell (6-8, 205, SO); PG Tyrese Hunter (6-0, 170, JR)

Incoming: SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) from Arkansas; PF Jayson Kent (6-8, 205, SR) from Indiana State; PG Julian Larry (6-3, 185, SR) from Indiana State

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: PG Paul Lewis (6-2, 170, SO); C Lee Dort (6-10, 245, SO) to California; SG Tyrin Lawrence (6-4, 200, SR); PF Colin Smith (6-8, 220); SG Jason Rivera-Torres (6-6, 180, FR); PF Carter Lang (6-9, 235, FR); WG Isaiah West (6-2, 190, FR)

Incoming: PF Jaylen Carey (6-8, 245, FR) from James Madison; SF Tyler Nickel (6-7, 200, SO) from Virginia Tech; SG Grant Huffman (6-3, 185, SR) from Davidson; SG Jason Edwards (6-1, 170, FR) from North Texas

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: At some point, probably in the very near future, Jenny Rowland won’t be knocking on the NCAA championship door. Instead, she will be kicking it down. It is a matter of when not if the Gators will be winning another national championship.

Florida finished fourth at the NCAA Championships in Fort Worth Saturday after an unfortunately slow start on vault and some uncharacteristic low scores on balance beam. That the Gators even made it to the final four is remarkable considering how heavily Rowland had to rely on three freshmen Additionally, last year’s best SEC freshman and All-American Kayla DiCello took her sophomore year off to prep for the Olympics while 5-star signee Sky Blakely delayed her enrollment until after the Paris Olympics. Those two will be with the Gators next year, as will Leanne Wong, who won the bars and floor Saturday with 9.950 scores; Sloane Blakely; former US National team member Riley McCusker, who missed the 2024 season with an injury; and this year’s outstanding freshmen Anya Pilgrim, Skylar Draser and Danie Ferris. The UF roster will also include 5-star recruit Lily Bruce and 4-star recruit Taylor Clark.

Rowland has kept Florida gymnastics as one of the two best programs in the country since taking the program over from Rhonda Faehn. Florida finished fourth in 2021, second in both 2022 and 2023 and fourth again this year. The Gators won the SEC regular season championship – the only one that really counts, not the one-day event in New Orleans that LSU celebrated – for the sixth straight year.

Is this the year Jenny Rowland finally

kicks the door down to that NCAA gymnastics championship that has eluded the Florida Gators the last two years? There is no Oklahoma standing in the way as the Gators take on LSU, California and Utah today for the NCAA title in Fort Worth (4 p.m., ABC).

The margins of defeat were microscopic. A slight flaw here, a slight hop on a landing there the difference as Oklahoma eked out a championship by .1125 in 2022, by .15 in 2023.

The way the Sooners dominated their competition in the regular season, they were expected to blow the competition away in Fort Worth. Florida meanwhile, made it to Fort Worth with the least experienced team Jenny Rowland has had in years. It was thought that with three freshman factoring prominently in UF's rotations that simply making the final four would be an accomplishment for UF.

But a funny thing happened on the way to the final four Thursday night. It was Oklahoma that made the kind of errors you expect from inexperienced teams Thursday night, failing to qualify for the final four for the first time in years. Florida, meanwhile, only had a couple of stumbles and didn’t have a single score below 9.80 that counted.

While Oklahoma struggled, the Gators were pictures of consistency, scoring 49.450 on bars, 49.475 on beam, 49.500 on floor and 49.500 on vault, good for a final score of 197.875, good for second to Utah’s 197.9375 in the night session. In the afternoon session, LSU won with 198.1125 with California second at 197.7125.

The Gators should feel confident since they beat LSU in the regular season, 198.150-197.950, and Utah in the Gainesville Regional, 198.325-197.575.

All-Americans: Earning All-America honors Thursday night were Leanne Wong (first team all-around, vault and bars; second team floor); Ellie Lazzari (first team vault); freshman Anya Pilgrim (first team vault; second team all-around) and Victoria Nguyen (second team all-around and bars).

UF BASEBALL: Gators fall to Vandy, but Caglianone homers again

Three Vanderbilt pitchers held the Gators to four hits and struck out 12 Friday evening in Nashville as the Commodores took game two of the weekend series, 5-2. Carter Holt allowed four hits and struck out 10 in the first seven innings, but one of the hits was the 23rd home run of the season by Jac Caglianone, a solo shot to right center in the top of the sixth.

It was the ninth consecutive game that Caglianone has homered, tying an NCAA record. The homer also extended Caglianone’s hitting streak to 17 games. Earlier in the sixth, Brody Donay led off the inning by taking a 1-1 pitch from Holt over the fence in dead center field, his sixth home run of the season.

The two home runs were all the offense the Gators generated. Holt was relieved by Ryan Ginther who struck out two in a 1-2-3 eighth. Greyson Carter set the Gators down in order in the ninth to pick up his third save of the season.

Pierce Coppola got the start for the Gators. He gave up two runs in the first inning and left in the second with two outs when his pitch count reached 48. Liam Peterson got the final out in the second but he gave up a third inning home run to Alan Espinal that stretched the Vanderbilt lead to 3-0.

Ryan Slater went 1-2/3 scoreless innings before handing the ball over to Luke McNellie. McNellie was touched for two insurance runs in the eighth before giving way to Fisher Jameson for the final out.

The Commodores (29-10, 10-7 SEC) and Gators (19-19, 7-10 SEC) finish the series at 4 p.m. (SEC Network+) with Caglianone taking the mound for Florida.

UF SOFTBALL: Gators hammer South Carolina, 11-6

The 10th-ranked Gators (36-9, 11-5 SEC) combined nine hits with 10 walks and three hit batters Friday night as they took game one of their weekend series with South Carolina, 11-6, at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Florida jumped to an 11-1 lead in the first three innings, then went on cruise control the rest of the way to remain two games behind league leader Tennessee (33-7, 13-3 SEC), a 3-0 winner over LSU (34-9, 10-9 SEC).

Korbe Otis led the Florida attack with an RBI single and a 3-run double. Reagan Walsh had a 2-run single and Jocelyn Erickson drove in two with a double and a walk.

When Florida starter Keagan Rothrock struggled in the fourth, she was replaced by MacKenzie Wooten, who pitched two shutout innings to earn her first win as a Gator. Olivia Miller had a rough sixth inning when she gave up a pair of runs, but settled in for an easy seventh to close things out.

Skylar Wallace was 0-1 but reached base four times on three walks and a hit by pitch. She also stole two bases and with 110 for her career needs just three more to tie Kelsey Stewart for first place on Florida’s all-time list.

The Gators and Gamecocks (29-16, 5-11 SEC) square off at noon today (SEC Network) in game two of their 3-game series.

UF WOMEN’S TENNIS: Gators move into SEC semifinals

Freshman Qavia Lopez scored a 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 win over Olympe Lancelot Friday morning to clinch a 4-3 win over South Carolina in the quarter-finals of the SEC Tournament in Athens, Georgia. The 14th-ranked Gators (16-7) will take on 12th-ranked Texas A&M in the semifinals at 11 a.m. today. The Gators, who have won 11 consecutive matches, lost a 4-3 decision to Texas A&M back in March.

Florida won the all-important doubles point against South Carolina then got wins at No. 1 from Rachel Gailis and No. 3 from Carly Briggs along with the win by Lopez to move on to the semifinals.

UF MEN’S TENNIS: Gators fall to Tennessee in SEC quarter-finals

The Gators dropped a 4-1 decision to 6th-ranked Tennessee Friday afternoon in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament in Baton Rouge. The Gators (13-11) will have to wait until April 29 to learn if the season will continue in the NCAA Tournament.

SEC IN THE FOOTBALL PORTAL

Alabama

Outgoing: PK Reed Harradine (6-3, 185, FR); WR Andre Craig (6-0, 180, SO)

Incoming: OT Kadyn Proctor (6-7, 360, FR) from Iowa

Arkansas

Outgoing: TE Francis Sherman (6-3, 237, SR); RB Isaiah Augustave (6-2, 208, RFR); OT Andrew Chamblee (6-6, 304, FR); QB Jacolby Criswell (6-1, 230, JR); EDGE Jashaud Stewart (6-2, 257, SR); P Max Fletcher (6-5, 174, SO) to Cincinnati

Incoming: RB Rodney Hill (5-10, 186, SO) from Florida A&M

Auburn

Outgoing: DL Brenton Williams (6-3, 262, FR); CB J.D. Rhym (6-1, 178, SO); LS Kyle Vaccarella (6-3, 229, SO); WR Ja’Varrius Johnson (5-10, 167, SR)

FLORIDA

Outgoing: LB Mannie Nunnery (6-2, 227, RSR)

Georgia

Outgoing: RB Andrew Paul (5-11, 218, FR); OT Chad Lindberg (6-6, 325, JR) to Rice; WR Tyler Williams (6-3, 205, RFR)

Kentucky

Outgoing: RB LaVell Wright (5-11, 202, JR); WR Darius Cannon (5-9, 175, FR); WR Raymond Cottrell (6-3, 210, RFR); QB Shane Hamm (5-11, 209, SO)

LSU

Outgoing: EDGE Jaxon Howard (6-4, 240, FR) to Minnesota; WR Khai Prean (6-0, 202, FR); CB Ryan Robinson Jr. (5-11, 180, FR); TE Connor Gilbreath (6-5, 272, SO); DL Bryce Langston (6-3, 300, SO) to Florida Atlantic; CB Jeremiah Hughes (6-0, 187, FR); LB Christian Brathwaite (6-1, 217, FR); S Ryan Yaites (6-1, 203, FR)

Incoming: DL Gio Paez (6-3, 310, SR) from Wisconsin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: S Trent Singleton (6-0, 195, FR); CB Luke Evans (6-2, 180, FR); P Keelan Cummings (6-3, 215, FR); WR Justin Robinson (6-4, 220, JR)

Incoming: RB Rashad Amos (6-2, 224, SR) from South Carolina

Missouri

Outgoing: WR Dannis Jackson (5-11, 171, JR); DL Serigne Tounkara (6-2, 235, FR)

Incoming: QB Drew Pyne (6-0, 190, SO) from Arizona State

Oklahoma

Outgoing: QB Jacob Switzer (6-2, 192, SO); Shane Whitter (6-0, 226, JR)

Ole Miss

Outgoing: DL Joshua Harris (6-4, 325, SR); QB Deljay Bailey (6-1, 200, FR)

Incoming: RB Jacory Merritt (5-11, 204 SR) from New Mexico

South Carolina

Outgoing: OL Jaxon Hughes (6-6, 297, SR); EDGE Terrell Dawkins (6-4, 251, SR); WR Kelton Henderson (6-0, 165, FR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: LB Elijah Herring (6-3, 238, SO)

Texas

Outgoing: LB S’maje Burrell (6-0, 219, FR); EDGE Billy Walton III (6-3, 225, FR); OL Payton Kirkland (6-6, 350, FR); EDGE J’mond Tapp

Texas A&M

Outgoing: S Sam McCall (6-1, 185, FR); LB Alex Howard (6-2, 230, SR); S Jacoby Matthews (6-2, 215, SO); EDGE Fadil Diggs (6-5, 260, JR) to Syracuse; OL Derrick Graham (6-4, 314, SO)

Incoming: EDGE Josh Celiscar (6-4, 265, SR) from UCF

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: LB Dante Kelly (6-3, 201, FR); S John Howse IV (6-1, 195, JR); TE Josh Palmer (6-4, 192, FR)

Incoming: Cade McConnell (6-5, 310, FR) from Minnesota

SEC IN THE BASKETBALL PORTAL

Alabama

Outgoing: SF Kris Parker (6-8, 195, RFR); SG Rylan Griffen (6-5, 185, SO); SG Davin Cosby (6-5, 205, FR); Sam Walters (6-10, 198, FR)

Incoming: PG Houston Mallette (6-5, 180, JR) from Pepperdine; SG Chris Youngblood (6-4, 212, SR) from South Florida

Arkansas

Outgoing: PG Keon Menifield (6-1, 150, SO); F Denijay Harris (6-7, 200, SR); WG Joseph Pinion (6-6, 195, SO) to Arkansas State; C Baye Fall (6-10, 200, FR); SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) to Texas

Incoming: C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) from Kentucky

Auburn

Outgoing: CG KD Johnson (6-0, 190, SR) to George Mason; PG Tre Donaldson (6-2, 190, SO); PG Aden Holloway (6-1, 178, FR)

INCOMING: PG JP Pegues (6-1, 165, JR) from Furman

FLORIDA

Outgoing: SG Riley Kugel (6-5, 206, SO) to Kansas; PF Aleks Szymczyk (6-10, 250, RFR)

Incoming: Sam Alexis (6-9, 240, SO) from Chattanooga; Rueben Chinyelu (6-11, 245, SO) from Washington State

Georgia

Outgoing: SF Matthew-Alexander Moncrief (6-7, 220, SR); PG Justin Hill (6-0, 185, SR); C Jalen Deloach (6-9, 215, JR); SG Mari Jordan (6-8, 185, RFR); WF Jabri Abdur-Rahim (6-7, 214, SR) to Providence

Incoming: DeShayne Montgomery (6-4, 190, SO) from Mount St. Mary’s

Kentucky

Outgoing: SG Adou Thiero (6-6, 200, SO); SG Joey Hart (6-5, 203, FR) to Ball State; C Aaron Bradshaw (7-0, 220, FR) to Ohio State; C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) to Arkansas;  PG DJ Wagner (6-3, 175, FR);  PF Jordan Burks (6-9, 220, FR)

LSU

Outgoing: SF Mwani Wilkerson (6-5, 205, SO); SG Carlos Stewart (6-1, 185, JR) to Santa Clara

Incoming: PG Cam Carter (6-3, 195, JR) from Kansas State; PG Jordan Sears (5-11, 175, JR) from UT-Martin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: PG Andrew Taylor (6-3, 190, SR); SG Trey Fort III (6-4, 195, JR); PF Jaquan Scott (6-8, 230, JR); SG Shakeel Moore (6-1, 180, SR); PF Keshawn Murphy (6-10, 245, SO)

Incoming: PG Kanye Clary (5-11, 192, SO) from Penn State

Missouri

Outgoing: SG Curt Lewis (6-5, 215, JR); PF Jesus Carralero (6-8, 210, SR); SG John Tonje (6-5, 222, SR); PF Jordan Butler (7-0, 230, FR)

Incoming: PF Jacob Crews (6-8, 210, JR) from UT-Martin; SG Tony Perkins (6-4, 210, SR) from Iowa; PF Mark Mitchell (6-8, 220, SO) from Duke

Oklahoma

Outgoing: CG Otega Oweh (6-5, 210, SO); PF John Hugley (6-9, 240, JR); PG Javian McCollum (6-1, 170, JR) to Georgia Tech; PG Milos Uzan (6-4, 183, SO) to Houston

Ole Miss

Outgoing: PF Rashaud Marshall (6-9, 220, FR) to Arkansas State; C Malique Ewin (6-10, 240); Jacob Gazzo (6-8, 215, FR); PF Cameron Barnes (6-9, 195, FR)

Incoming: PF Mikeal Brown-Jones (6-8, 210, SR) from UNC-Greensboro; C Malik Dia (6-9, 240, SO) from Belmont; Davon Barnes (6-5, 212, JR) from Sam Houston State

South Carolina

Outgoing: PG Meechie Johnson (6-2, 184, JR) to Ohio State; CG Ebrima Dibba (6-5, 214, SR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: SG Freddie Dilione (6-5, 185, FR); SG D.J. Jefferson (6-5, 2-7, FR); PF Tobe Awaka (6-8, 250, SO); C Jonas Aidoo (6-11, 230, JR)

Incoming: SG Darlinstone Dubar (6-6, 207, SR) from Hofstra

Texas

Outgoing: SF Alex Anamekwe (6-6, 200, SO); PG Chris Johnson (6-5, 180, FR); PF Dillon Mitchell (6-8, 205, SO); PG Tyrese Hunter (6-0, 170, JR)

Incoming: SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) from Arkansas; PF Jayson Kent (6-8, 205, SR) from Indiana State; PG Julian Larry (6-3, 185, SR) from Indiana State

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: PG Paul Lewis (6-2, 170, SO); C Lee Dort (6-10, 245, SO) to California; SG Tyrin Lawrence (6-4, 200, SR); PF Colin Smith (6-8, 220); SG Jason Rivera-Torres (6-6, 180, FR); PF Carter Lang (6-9, 235, FR)

Incoming: PF Jaylen Carey (6-8, 245, FR) from James Madison; SF Tyler Nickel (6-7, 200, SO) from Virginia Tech; SG Grant Huffman (6-3, 185, SR) from Davidson  

While Alabama, Utah and OU had scores of 49.20 or lower on events, Florida remained consistent all night with a low of 49.45 and a high of 49.50. Leanne Wong shared 2nd place in the all around title with Oregon State’s Jade Carey (she was competing with the Gators Thursday as an individual competitor).

Florida’s rotation was Floor, Vault, Uneven Bars and Beam. At nationals, six judges score each routine with the high and low dropped and the middle four averaged. There are also two line judges on the floor exercise who watch for gymnasts to stepping out of bounds. Six gymnasts compete with the top 5 scores counting.

On to the recap:

Floor Exercise: (Last meet: 49.650, Average: 49.565, 5th Nationally)

Victora Nguyen- 1st pass: flip to backflip. Lunge forward. 2nd pass: triple series. Stuck- 9.875

Ellie Lazzari: 1st pass: backflip. Extra step. 2nd pass: double flip. Stuck- 9.825 (The dropped score)

Anya Pilgrim: 1st pass: twist to backflip. Perfect. 2nd pass: triple series. Stuck. Should be a very high score- 9.875.

Sloane Blakely: 1st pass: twist bounce to flip. Stuck. 2nd pass: flip. Backflip. Stuck- 9.8875

Danie Ferris: 1st pass: triple series. Stuck. 2nd pass: backflip twist. Slight hop- 9.900

Leanne Wong: 1st pass: twist flip. Stuck. 2nd pass: tumble to flip. Hop- 9.9125

Score: 49.450 Florida is in 3rd place after one rotation.

Vault: (Last meet: 49.575, Average: 49.530, 3rd Nationally)

Skylar Draser: Yurchenko 1 ½. Stuck landing- 9.875

Victoria Nguyen: Yurchenko 1 ½. Big vault- 9.850

Anya Pilgrim: Yurchenko 1 ½. Stuck.,(10?)- 9.9125

Danie Ferris: Yurchenko 1 ½. Slight hop forward- 9.850 (The dropped score)

Leanne Wong: Twist to face the table. 9.9375

Ellie Lazzari: Yurchenko 1 ½. Slight hop- 9.9250

Score: 49.500 Florida is 2nd after two rotations.

Uneven Bars: (Last meet: 49.300, Average: 49.425, 5th Nationally)

Sloane Blakely: Strong handstands. Hop on landing- 9.850

Victoria Nguyen: legs together. Stuck landing. Solid routine.- 9.9125

Ellie Lazzari: Springboard mount to top bar. Fell down on landing- 9.165 (The dropped score)

Anya Pilgrim: Legs together. Very smooth. Stuck landing- 9.900

Skylar Draser: Great form. Slight hop on landing- 9.8250

Leanne Wong: Long handstands. Stuck landing. (Can we get one 10 tonight?)- 9.9625

Score: 49.450 Florida has a big lead at 2nd. Only .025 behind 1st place after three rotations.

Beam: (Last meet: 49.575, Average: 49.530, 3rd Nationally)

Skylar Draser: Double back flip. Twist landing. Stuck- 9.900

Sloane Blakely: Front to backflip. Side dismount. Stuck- 9.9250

Anya Pilgrim: Springboard mount. Triple flop. Backflip side dismount. Hop- 9.850

Victoria Nguyen: Backflip series. Nice leaps. Slight hop on landing- 9.9125

Leanne Wong: Double backflip. Backflip twist dismount. Hop-9.8875

Ellie Lazzari: Backflip. Falls hard. Gets up and finishes routine. Nice effort- 8.9750 (The dropped score)

Score: 49.475 Florida finishes 2nd after four rotations.

It's been a season of improvement. Scoring higher every meet during the regular season. Florida  won 197.8750 is UF’s fifth highest score in program history at the NCAA championship. A mixture of fabulous freshmen and the right mix of upper class women are poised to do something special.

The door is wide open now that Oklahoma is eliminated after a 49.10 on Beam and a 48.325 on Vault. Could this team without Trinity Thomas and Kayla DiCello actually pull off what was only a far away dream in January?

Competing against Utah, LSU and Cal Saturday. They already beat two of these squads this year. Coach Rowland and team have to feel confident for what would call the Gators first title since 2015.

The Florida Gators will own the paint next year. Count on it.

Todd Golden added Washington State freshman Rueben Chinyelu (6-11, 245) from the portal Thursday, the second big guy to sign with Florida this week. Adding Chinyelu and Sam Alexis (6-9, 240) from Chattanooga, takes the pressure off Micah Handlogten, who doesn’t have to rush his rehab process. Golden will be able to go with a 4-man rotation of big guys until Handlogten is ready to go again. And, if the rehab is slow, there will always be the option to redshirt Handlogten.

Once Handlogten returns healthy, however, the Gators will have five bigs who are 6-9 or taller. If Olivier Rioux (7-7, 300, Montreal, Quebec/Bradenton, FL IMG Academy) reclassifies and enrolls at UF this summer, Florida will easily be the tallest team in the nation. As the old basketball saying goes, you can’t teach tall.

With Alexis, Chinyu and incoming freshman Isaiah Brown signed, Golden has 10 roster spots filled with three to be filled. From all reports, Golden will be looking to add at least two perimeter players and perhaps someone in the 6-7 to 6-8 range that can play both inside and outside.

Big guys: Micah Handlogten (7-1, 230, SO); Alex Condon (6-11, 230, FR); Thomas Haugh (6-9, 215, FR)00

Perimeter: Will Richard (6-4, 206, JR); Walter Clayton Jr. (6-2, 195, JR); Denzel Aberdeen (6-5, 190, SO); Kaijus Kublickas (6-2, 170, FR)

Signed: Isaiah Brown (6-5, 190, Orlando, FL) from Orlando Christian Prep; Sam Alexis (6-9, 240, SO) from Chattanooga; Rueben Chinyelu (6-11, 245, FR) from Washington State

SEC in the basketball portal

Alabama

Outgoing: SF Kris Parker (6-8, 195, RFR); SG Rylan Griffen (6-5, 185, SO); SG Davin Cosby (6-5, 205, FR); Sam Walters (6-10, 198, FR)

Incoming: PG Houston Mallette (6-5, 180, JR) from Pepperdine; SG Chris Youngblood (6-4, 212, SR) from South Florida

Arkansas

Outgoing: PG Keon Menifield (6-1, 150, SO); F Denijay Harris (6-7, 200, SR); WG Joseph Pinion (6-6, 195, SO) to Arkansas State; C Baye Fall (6-10, 200, FR); SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) to Texas

Incoming: C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) from Kentucky

Auburn

Outgoing: CG KD Johnson (6-0, 190, SR); PG Tre Donaldson (6-2, 190, SO); PG Aden Holloway (6-1, 178, FR)

INCOMING: PG JP Pegues (6-1, 165, JR) from Furman

FLORIDA

Outgoing: SG Riley Kugel (6-5, 206, SO) to Kansas; PF Aleks Szymczyk (6-10, 250, RFR)

Incoming: Sam Alexis (6-9, 240, SO) from Chattanooga; Rueben Chinyelu (6-11, 245, SO) from Washington State

Georgia

Outgoing: SF Matthew-Alexander Moncrief (6-7, 220, SR); PG Justin Hill (6-0, 185, SR); C Jalen Deloach (6-9, 215, JR); SG Mari Jordan (6-8, 185, RFR); WF Jabri Abdur-Rahim (6-7, 214, SR) to Providence

Incoming: DeShayne Montgomery (6-4, 190, SO) from Mount St. Mary’s

Kentucky

Outgoing: SG Adou Thiero (6-6, 200, SO); SG Joey Hart (6-5, 203, FR) to Ball State; C Aaron Bradshaw (7-0, 220, FR) to Ohio State; C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) to Arkansas;  PG DJ Wagner (6-3, 175, FR)

LSU

Outgoing: SF Mwani Wilkerson (6-5, 205, SO); SG Carlos Stewart (6-1, 185, JR) to Santa Clara

Incoming: PG Cam Carter (6-3, 195, JR) from Kansas State; PG Jordan Sears (5-11, 175, JR) from UT-Martin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: PG Andrew Taylor (6-3, 190, SR); SG Trey Fort III (6-4, 195, JR); PF Jaquan Scott (6-8, 230, JR); SG Shakeel Moore (6-1, 180, SR); PF Keshawn Murphy (6-10, 245, SO)

Incoming: PG Kanye Clary (5-11, 192, SO) from Penn State

Missouri

Outgoing: SG Curt Lewis (6-5, 215, JR); PF Jesus Carralero (6-8, 210, SR); SG John Tonje (6-5, 222, SR)

Incoming: PF Jacob Crews (6-8, 210, JR) from UT-Martin; SG Tony Perkins (6-4, 210, SR) from Iowa

Oklahoma

Outgoing: CG Otega Oweh (6-5, 210, SO); PF John Hugley (6-9, 240, JR); PG Javian McCollum (6-1, 170, JR) to Georgia Tech; PG Milos Uzan (6-4, 183, SO) to Houston

Ole Miss

Outgoing: PF Rashaud Marshall (6-9, 220, FR) to Arkansas State; C Malique Ewin (6-10, 240); Jacob Gazzo (6-8, 215, FR); PF Cameron Barnes (6-9, 195, FR)

Incoming: PF Mikeal Brown-Jones (6-8, 210, SR) from UNC-Greensboro; C Malik Dia (6-9, 240, SO) from Belmont; Davon Barnes (6-5, 212, JR) from Sam Houston State

South Carolina

Outgoing: PG Meechie Johnson (6-2, 184, JR) to Ohio State; CG Ebrima Dibba (6-5, 214, SR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: SG Freddie Dilione (6-5, 185, FR); SG D.J. Jefferson (6-5, 2-7, FR); PF Tobe Awaka (6-8, 250, SO); C Jonas Aidoo (6-11, 230, JR)

Incoming: SG Darlinstone Dubar (6-6, 207, SR) from Hofstra

Texas

Outgoing: SF Alex Anamekwe (6-6, 200, SO); PG Chris Johnson (6-5, 180, FR); PF Dillon Mitchell (6-8, 205, SO); PG Tyrese Hunter (6-0, 170, JR)

Incoming: SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) from Arkansas; PF Jayson Kent (6-8, 205, SR) from Indiana State; PG Julian Larry (6-3, 185, SR) from Indiana State

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: PG Paul Lewis (6-2, 170, SO); C Lee Dort (6-10, 245, SO) to California; SG Tyrin Lawrence (6-4, 200, SR); PF Colin Smith (6-8, 220); SG Jason Rivera-Torres (6-6, 180, FR); PF Carter Lang (6-9, 235, FR)

Incoming: PF Jaylen Carey (6-8, 245, FR) from James Madison; SF Tyler Nickel (6-7, 200, SO) from Virginia Tech; SG Grant Huffman (6-3, 185, SR) from Davidson

UF BASEBALL: Vandy clocks Gators, but Cag homers in 8th straight game

There wasn’t much to write home about for the Gators Thursday night in Nashville as 13th-ranked Vanderbilt (28-10, 9-7 SEC) hit four balls out of Hawkins Field to give the Commodores a 10-5 win over Florida (19-18, 7-9 SEC).  Vandy came into the game dead last in the SEC in home runs, but the Commodores lit up Brandon Neely for three homers in five innings and reliever Blake Purnell for another one.

The highlight for Florida was the 22nd home run of the season by Jac Caglianone, hit in the top of the seventh with one on. With Ty Evans on first via a hit by pitch, Caglianone hit a 1-1 curve ball off Miller Green opposite field to left, extending his streak to eight straight games with a home run, one away from tying the NCAA record. Caglianone, who also had singles in the first and ninth innings, has hit in 16 consecutive games. During his hitting streak he has gone yard 13 times.

Once again, the fifth inning proved fatal for Florida starter Brandon Neely. Neely gave up two runs and four hits in the first four innings, but the bottom fell out in the fifth when the Commodores bunched five hits together including a 2-run homer by Alan Espinal for a 7-2 Vandy lead. The Gators got one run back in the top of the sixth, but Neely gave up a leadoff homer to Troy LaNeve in the bottom half to end his night. Blake Purnell came on to relieve Neely but two outs later gave up a homer to RJ Austin.

About the only thing promising about Florida’s pitching was freshman Frank Menendez, who set down all six batters he faced in the seventh and eighth innings.

In addition to Caglianone’s home run, Tyler Shelnut hit his 11th homer of the season in the fourth. Colby Shelton had an RBI ground out in the first and Luke Heyman had an RBI single in the sixth.

Game two of the series will be on ESPN2 tonight (7 p.m.) with lefty Pierce Coppola Florida’s likely starter.

UF MEN’S TENNIS: Gators knock off Vandy, 4-2, at SEC Tournament

Down 2-0, the Gators won four consecutive singles matches at the Southeastern Conference Tournament in Baton Rouge Thursday afternoon for a 4-2 win over Vanderbilt that sends UF into the quarter-final round. The Gators (13-10) will face 2nd-seeded Tennessee (21-5) at 3 p.m. today.

After dropping the doubles point and No. 1 singles, the Gators roared back with wins at No. 2 by Kim Aidan, No. 3 by Nate Bonetto, No. 4 by Adhithya Ganesan and No. 5 by Tanapatt Nirundorn to advance to the quarter-finals.  

UF SPORTS FRIDAY

The 9th-ranked Florida softball team (36-9, 10-5 SEC) will be home against South Carolina (28-15-1, 5-10 SEC) at 6 p.m. (SEC Network+) … Florida’s 14th-ranked women’s tennis team (15-7) will be facing South Carolina (17-6) in an SEC Tournament quarter-final match beginning at 9 a.m.

SEC FOOTBALL: Another busy day in the transfer portal

Alabama

Outgoing: PK Reed Harradine (6-3, 185, FR); WR Andre Craig (6-0, 180, SO)

Incoming: OT Kadyn Proctor (6-7, 360, FR) from Iowa

Arkansas

Outgoing: TE Francis Sherman (6-3, 237, SR); RB Isaiah Augustave (6-2, 208, RFR); OT Andrew Chamblee (6-6, 304, FR); QB Jacolby Criswell (6-1, 230, JR); EDGE Jashaud Stewart (6-2, 257, SR); P Max Fletcher (6-5, 174, SO)

Auburn

Outgoing: DL Brenton Williams (6-3, 262, FR); CB J.D. Rhym (6-1, 178, SO); LS Kyle Vaccarella (6-3, 229, SO); WR Ja’Varrius Johnson (5-10, 167, SR)

FLORIDA

Outgoing: LB Mannie Nunnery (6-2, 227, RSR)

Georgia

Outgoing: RB Andrew Paul (5-11, 218, FR); OT Chad Lindberg (6-6, 325, JR) to Rice; WR Tyler Williams (6-3, 205, RFR)

Kentucky

Outgoing: RB LaVell Wright (5-11, 202, JR); WR Darius Cannon (5-9, 175, FR); WR Raymond Cottrell (6-3, 210, RFR)

LSU

Outgoing: EDGE Jaxon Howard (6-4, 240, FR); WR Khai Prean (6-0, 202, FR); CB Ryan Robinson Jr. (5-11, 180, FR); TE Connor Gilbreath (6-5, 272, SO); DL Bryce Langston (6-3, 300, SO) to Florida Atlantic

Incoming: DL Gio Paez (6-3, 310, SR) from Wisconsin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: S Trent Singleton (6-0, 195, FR); CB Luke Evans (6-2, 180, FR); P Keelan Cummings (6-3, 215, FR); WR Justin Robinson (6-4, 220, JR)

Incoming: RB Rashad Amos (6-2, 224, SR) from South Carolina

Missouri

Outgoing: WR Dannis Jackson (5-11, 171, JR)

Incoming: QB Drew Pyne (6-0, 190, SO) from Arizona State

Oklahoma

Outgoing: QB Jacob Switzer (6-2, 192, SO); Shane Whitter (6-0, 226, JR)

Ole Miss

Outgoing: DL Joshua Harris (6-4, 325, SR); QB Deljay Bailey (6-1, 200, FR)

South Carolina

Outgoing: OL Jaxon Hughes (6-6, 297, SR); EDGE Terrell Dawkins (6-4, 251, SR); WR Kelton Henderson (6-0, 165, FR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: LB Elijah Herring (6-3, 238, SO)

Texas

Outgoing: LB S’maje Burrell (6-0, 219, FR); EDGE Billy Walton III (6-3, 225, FR); OL Payton Kirkland (6-6, 350, FR); EDGE J’mond Tapp

Texas A&M

Outgoing: S Sam McCall (6-1, 185, FR); LB Alex Howard (6-2, 230, SR); S Jacoby Matthews (6-2, 215, SO); EDGE Fadil Diggs (6-5, 260, JR) to Syracuse; OL Derrick Graham (6-4, 314, SO)

Incoming: EDGE Josh Celiscar (6-4, 265, SR) from UCF

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: LB Dante Kelly (6-3, 201, FR); S John Howse IV (6-1, 195, JR); TE Josh Palmer (6-4, 192, FR)

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The Jaden Rashada saga continues. After a season in which he played three games at Arizona State (a win over D1AA Southern Utah, losses to Oklahoma State and Arizona), Rashada is on the move once again. The former Florida signee, who got a release from his national letter-of-intent when an NIL deal went sideways in January of 2023, Rashada has his name in the NCAA transfer portal.

We shouldn’t be all that surprised that Rashada is leaving Arizona State. The Sun Devils went 3-9 last season and even with the move to the Big 12, prospects for a winning season in 2024 seem grim. Additionally, Arizona State isn’t exactly flush with NIL spending dollars. Given the fact Rashada walked out on a restructured deal at UF that would have paid him quite well for a deal that was worth next to nothing at Arizona State, we shouldn’t be surprised that Rashada and pops are looking for something that pays well.

Early reports from Matt Zenitz of 247Sports indicate that Georgia is the likely landing spot for Rashada. The backups behind Georgia starter Carson Beck are former 4-star Gunner Stockton and 4-star Ryan Puglisi, a true freshman. Georgia just got a commitment earlier in the week from 4-star Ryan Montgomery.

Stay tuned on this one. Since it involves Jaden Rashada and pops, there could be several twists and turns before a final landing spot is found.

With only 18 regular season games remaining, the Florida baseball team finds itself in the unusual predicament of absolutely zero in the way of wiggle room. At 19-17 overall,  7-8 in Southeastern Conference play, not only are the Gators the longest of long shots to host an NCAA regional, but they’re in danger of not making the 64 team NCAA field for the first time in Kevin O’Sullivan’s 17 years as the UF head coach.

That was the sobering message O’Sullivan delivered to the Gators Tuesday night before they demolished Jacksonville, 12-1, in a 7-inning run-rule game. O’Sullivan told the Gators “we are literally at a point in our season where it's pitch to pitch, inning to inning, game to game.” Florida has five SEC series left on the schedule starting tonight when they face 13th-ranked Vanderbilt (27-10, 8-7 SEC) in Nashville (7:30 p.m., ESPNU).

Although it’s still early to be thinking magic numbers for making the NCAA field, figure the bare minimum for the Gators is 30 regular season wins and even that might require a win or two at the Southeastern Conference Tournament. As strong as the SEC is this year, a 15-15 record in conference play would go a long way toward punching the UF ticket.

The Gators are expected to go with a rotation of Brandon Neely tonight with Pierce Coppola getting the Friday start and Jac Caglianone going Saturday afternoon.

Caglianone watch: Caglianone takes three impressive streaks to Vandy. He has a 22-game on-base streak, a 15-game hitting streak and a streak of seven consecutive games with a home run. For the season, Caglianone is hitting an even .400 with 21 homers and 43 RBI.

With his 516-foot home run Tuesday night, Caglianone moved into a tie with Andy Phillips (Alabama, 1996-99) and Will Clark (Mississippi State, 1983-85) for sixth place on the all-time SEC career home run mark with 61. Caglianone trails 5th-place Justin Smoak (South Carolina, 2006-08) by one home run and fourth place Rafael Palmeiro by six. In third place is Florida’s all-time home run leader, Matt LaPorta, with 74.

UF BASKETBALL: Gators get a commitment; Richard will test draft waters

It was a busy day for Todd Golden as the Gators got a commitment from 4-star 2025 combo guard Alex Lloyd (6-4, 165, Fort Lauderdale, FL Westminster Academy). Lloyd is ranked No. 37 nationally by ESPN, No. 46 nationally by 247Sports, No. 51 nationally by On3, and No. 67 by Rivals. Lloyd averaged 19.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game as a junior.

Will Richard announced Wednesday that he is going to test the NBA Draft waters while holding open his option to return to Florida for his senior season. Like Walter Clayton Jr., who announced for the NBA Draft a week ago, the main purpose for Richard declaring for the draft is to participate in workouts for scouts to get feedback on what he needs to work on to move up the draft ladder for 2025. Neither Clayton nor Richard are listed among the top 60 prospects for 2024. The NBA only drafts two rounds (60 players).

SEC Basketball: Busy day for the portal  

Alabama

Outgoing: SF Kris Parker (6-8, 195, RFR); SG Rylan Griffen (6-5, 185, SO); SG Davin Cosby (6-5, 205, FR); Sam Walters (6-10, 198, FR); C Nick Pringle (6-9, 220, SR)

Incoming: PG Houston Mallette (6-5, 180, JR) from Pepperdine; SG Chris Youngblood (6-4, 212, SR) from South Florida

Arkansas

Outgoing: PG Keon Menifield (6-1, 150, SO); F Denijay Harris (6-7, 200, SR); WG Joseph Pinion (6-6, 195, SO) to Arkansas State; C Baye Fall (6-10, 200, FR); SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) to Texas

Incoming: C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) from Kentucky

Auburn

Outgoing: CG KD Johnson (6-0, 190, SR); PG Tre Donaldson (6-2, 190, SO); PG Aden Holloway (6-1, 178, FR)

INCOMING: PG JP Pegues (6-1, 165, JR) from Furman

FLORIDA

Outgoing: SG Riley Kugel (6-5, 206, SO) to Kansas; PF Aleks Szymczyk (6-10, 250, RFR)

Incoming: Sam Alexis (6-9, 240, SO) from Chattanooga

Georgia

Outgoing: SF Matthew-Alexander Moncrief (6-7, 220, SR); PG Justin Hill (6-0, 185, SR); C Jalen Deloach (6-9, 215, JR) to Loyola; SG Mari Jordan (6-8, 185, RFR); WF Jabri Abdur-Rahim (6-7, 214, SR) to Providence

Kentucky

Outgoing: SG Adou Thiero (6-6, 200, SO); SG Joey Hart (6-5, 203, FR); C Aaron Bradshaw (7-0, 220, FR) to Ohio State; C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) to Arkansas;  PG DJ Wagner (6-3, 175, FR)

LSU

Outgoing: SF Mwani Wilkerson (6-5, 205, SO); SG Carlos Stewart (6-1, 185, JR) to Santa Clara

Incoming: PG Cam Carter (6-3, 195, JR) from Kansas State; PG Jordan Sears (5-11, 175, JR) from UT-Martin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: PG Andrew Taylor (6-3, 190, SR); SG Trey Fort III (6-4, 195, JR); PF Jaquan Scott (6-8, 230, JR); SG Shakeel Moore (6-1, 180, SR); PF Keshawn Murphy (6-10, 245, SO)

Incoming: PG Kanye Clary (5-11, 192, SO) from Penn State; C Michael Nwoko (6-10, 245, FR) from Miami

Missouri

Outgoing: SG Curt Lewis (6-5, 215, JR); PF Jesus Carralero (6-8, 210, SR); SG John Tonje (6-5, 222, SR)

Incoming: PF Jacob Crews (6-8, 210, JR) from UT-Martin; SG Tony Perkins (6-4, 210, SR) from Iowa; PG Marques Warwick (6-2, 170, SR) from Northern Kentucky

Oklahoma

Outgoing: CG Otega Oweh (6-5, 210, SO); PF John Hugley (6-9, 240, JR) to Xavier; PG Javian McCollum (6-1, 170, JR) to Georgia Tech; PG Milos Uzan (6-4, 183, SO) to Houston

Ole Miss

Outgoing: PF Rashaud Marshall (6-9, 220, FR) to Arkansas State; C Malique Ewin (6-10, 240); Jacob Gazzo (6-8, 215, FR); PF Cameron Barnes (6-9, 195, FR)

Incoming: PF Mikeal Brown-Jones (6-8, 210, SR) from UNC-Greensboro; C Malik Dia (6-9, 240, SO) from Belmont; SG Dre Davis (6-5, 220, SR) from Seton Hall

South Carolina

Outgoing: PG Meechie Johnson (6-2, 184, JR) to Ohio State; CG Ebrima Dibba (6-5, 214, SR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: SG Freddie Dilione (6-5, 185, FR); SG D.J. Jefferson (6-5, 2-7, FR); PF Tobe Awaka (6-8, 250, SO); C Jonas Aidoo (6-11, 230, JR)

Incoming: SG Darlinstone Dubar (6-6, 207, SR) from Hofstra

Texas

Outgoing: SF Alex Anamekwe (6-6, 200, SO); PG Chris Johnson (6-5, 180, FR); PF Dillon Mitchell (6-8, 205, SO); PG Tyrese Hunter (6-0, 170, JR)

Incoming: SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) from Arkansas; PF Jayson Kent (6-8, 205, SR) from Indiana State; PG Julian Larry (6-3, 185, SR) from Indiana State

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: PG Paul Lewis (6-2, 170, SO); C Lee Dort (6-10, 245, SO) to California; SG Tyrin Lawrence (6-4, 200, SR); PF Colin Smith (6-8, 220); SG Jason Rivera-Torres (6-6, 180, FR); PF Carter Lang (6-9, 235, FR); SG Isaiah West (6-2, 190, FR); Malik Presley (6-6, 200, FR)

Incoming: PF Jaylen Carey (6-8, 245, FR) from James Madison; SF Tyler Nickel (6-7, 200, SO) from Virginia Tech; SG MJ Collins (6-4, 190, SO) from Virginia Tech

Alabama

Outgoing: PK Reed Harradine (6-3, 185, FR); WR Andre Craig (6-0, 180, SO)

Incoming: OT Kadyn Proctor (6-7, 360, FR) from Iowa

Arkansas

Outgoing: TE Francis Sherman (6-3, 237, SR); RB Isaiah Augustave (6-2, 208, RFR); OT Andrew Chamblee (6-6, 304, FR); QB Jacolby Criswell (6-1, 230, JR); EDGE Jashaud Stewart (6-2, 257, SR)

Auburn

Outgoing: DL Brenton Williams (6-3, 262, FR); CB J.D. Rhym (6-1, 178, SO); LS Kyle Vaccarella (6-3, 229, SO); WR Ja’Varrius Johnson (5-10, 167, SR)

FLORIDA

Outgoing: LB Mannie Nunnery (6-2, 227, RSR)

Georgia

Outgoing: RB Andrew Paul (5-11, 218, FR); OT Chad Lindberg (6-6, 325, JR) to Rice; WR Tyler Williams (6-3, 205, RFR)

Kentucky

Outgoing: RB LaVell Wright (5-11, 202, JR); WR Darius Cannon (5-9, 175, FR); WR Raymond Cottrell (6-3, 210, RFR)

LSU

Outgoing: EDGE Jaxon Howard (6-4, 240, FR); WR Khai Prean (6-0, 202, FR); CB Ryan Robinson Jr. (5-11, 180, FR); TE Connor Gilbreath (6-5, 272, SO)

Incoming: DL Gio Paez (6-3, 310, SR) from Wisconsin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: S Trent Singleton (6-0, 195, FR); CB Luke Evans (6-2, 180, FR); P Keelan Cummings (6-3, 215, FR)

Incoming: RB Rashad Amos (6-2, 224, SR) from South Carolina

Missouri

Outgoing: WR Dannis Jackson (5-11, 171, JR)

Incoming: QB Drew Pyne (6-0, 190, SO) from Arizona State

Oklahoma

Outgoing: QB Jacob Switzer (6-2, 192, SO); Shane Whitter (6-0, 226, JR)

Ole Miss

Outgoing: DL Joshua Harris (6-4, 325, SR); QB Deljay Bailey (6-1, 200, FR)

South Carolina

Outgoing: OL Jaxon Hughes (6-6, 297, SR); EDGE Terrell Dawkins (6-4, 251, SR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: LB Elijah Herring (6-3, 238, SO)

Texas

Outgoing: LB S’maje Burrell (6-0, 219, FR); EDGE Billy Walton III (6-3, 225, FR); OL Payton Kirkland (6-6, 350, FR); EDGE J’mond Tapp

Texas A&M

Outgoing: S Sam McCall (6-1, 185, FR); LB Alex Howard (6-2, 230, SR); S Jacoby Matthews (6-2, 215, SO); EDGE Fadil Diggs (6-5, 260, JR) to Syracuse; OL Derrick Graham (6-4, 314, SO)

Incoming: EDGE Josh Celiscar (6-4, 265, SR) from UCF

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: LB Dante Kelly (6-3, 201, FR); S John Howse IV (6-1, 195, JR)

UF TRACK AND FIELD: Gator men ranked No. 2, women No. 7

USTFCCA men’s top 25: 1. Texas A&M; 2. FLORIDA; 3. Alabama; 4. LSU; 5. Texas Tech; 6. South Florida; 7. Southern California; 8. Mississippi State; 9. Georgia; 10. Virginia Tech; 11. Oklahoma State; 12. Kentucky; 13. Auburn; 14. Texas; 15. California; 16. Arizona State; 17. BYU; 18. New Mexico; 19. South Carolina; 20. Baylor; 21. Montana State; 221. North Carolina; 23. Iowa State; 24. Arkansas; 25. Arizona

USTFCCA women’s top 25: 1. LSU; 2. Texas A&M; 3. Arkansas; 4. Illinois; 5. Oregon; 6. South Carolina; 7. FLORIDA; 8. Georgia; 9. Texas Tech; 10. Tennessee; 11. Ole Miss; 12. Nebraska; 13. Texas; 14. Oklahoma State; 15. TCU; 16. Florida State; 17. Clemson; 18. BYU; 19. Washington; 20. Houston; 21. Michigan; 22. UTEP; 23. Southern California; 24. Alabama; 25. Baylor

UF SOFTBALL: Gators remain in everybody’s top 10

D1Softball top 25: 1. Texas 35-6; 2. Oklahoma 38-4; 3. Stanford 34-7; 4. Duke 37-4; 5. Tennessee 32-7; 6. Washington 28-7; 7. Oklahoma State 35-8; 8. LSU 33-8; 9. FLORIDA 36-9; 10. Missouri 33-11; 11. Texas A&M 32-9; 12. UCLA 24-9; 13. Arkansas 30-11; 14. Georgia 33-10; 15. Virginia Tech 31-9-1; 16. Florida State 31-10; 17. Mississippi State 29-12; 18. Alabama 30-9; 19. Arizona 28-13-1; 20. Louisiana 29-14; 21. Northwestern 26-8; 22. Clemson 28-13; 23. Boston University 35-4; 24. Kentucky 26-15; 25. Oregon 24-15

USA Today/NFCA top 25: 1. Texas 35-6; 2. Oklahoma 38-4; 3. Duke 37-4; 4. Tennessee 32-7; 5. Stanford 34-7; 6. Oklahoma State 35-8; 7. LSU 33-8; 8. Washington 28-7; 9. Georgia 33-10; 10. FLORIDA 35-9; 11. Texas A&M 32-9; 12. UCLA 24-9; 13. Missouri 33-11; 14. Alabama 30-9; 15. Virginia Tech 31-9-1; 16. Arkansas 30-11; 17. Mississippi State 29-12; 18. Florida State 31-10; 19. Arizona 28-13-1; 20. California 29-12; 21. Clemson 28-14; 22. Oregon 24-15; 23. Boston University 35-4; 24. Kentucky 26-15; 25. Louisiana 29-14

ESPN/USA Softball top 25: 1. Texas 35-6; 2. Oklahoma 38-4; 3. Duke 37-4; 4. Tennessee 32-7; 5. Stanford 34-7; 6. Oklahoma State 35-8; 7. LSU 33-8. Washington 28-7; 9. Georgia 33-10; 10. FLORIDA 36-9; 11. UCLA 24-9; 12. Texas A&M 32-9; 13. Missouri 30-11; 14. Arkansas 30-11; 15. Alabama 30-9; 16. Virginia Tech 31-9-1; 17. Mississippi State 29-12; 18. Florida State 31-10; 19. Louisiana 29-14; 20. (TIE) Clemson 28-13 and Oregon 24-15; 22. Arizona 28-13-1; 23. Kentucky 26-15; 24. California 29-12; 25. Texas State 33-12

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Okay, brace yourself. The NCAA, in its infinite wisdom, approved immediate eligibility for multi-transfers in sports. Yes, they’ve been transferring right and left the last month in particular with both the football and basketball portals open, but  this was because of a federal injunction. Rather than go to court, where it’s a certainty the NCAA will lose, the choice was made to approve legislation that allows multiple transfers.

This is a stiff upper lip move by the NCAA, which is about to get clobbered on several fronts in the court rooms of America in the weeks and months ahead. The NCAA is trying to give the appearance that it is still in charge while knowing the end is near. That the NCAA is going to go belly up shouldn’t surprise anyone. What should be a concern is that it is going to die and there won’t be an organization already in place ready to take over when last rites are performed.

Caglianone HR No. 21 was an absolute moon shot

This wasn’t one of those seen one you’ve seen them all home runs. No, the one Jac Caglianone hit with Ty Evans on second in the bottom of the fourth was special even by Caglianone standards. Caglianone’s 21sthome run of the season was an absolute moonshot, hit so high that the pitchers in the Florida bullpen put their backs against the fence so they could watch it clear the 40-foot high scoreboard in right field.

Gravity pulled the ball back down to earth 516 feet from home plate, perhaps the longest home run ever hit at Condron Family Ballpark. This was a game that Florida’s young pitchers scattered five hits and allowed only one run in seven innings. Tyler Shelnut, who had five RBI, drilled a pair of home runs and would have had a third one if he had pulled it just a little bit instead of hitting straight away. Seven of the nine starters got at least one hit as the Gators pounded out a 12-1, 7-inning run-rule win over Jacksonville University.

It was an impressive midweek win for a Florida (19-17) team that has struggled in midweek games, but all the fans could talk about leaving the stadium was the Caglianone home run.    

For reasons unknown, someone in the JU dugout was under the mistaken impression that lefty Dy Faulkner could sneak a fast ball by Caglianone. One pitch earlier, Caglianone was so far out in front of a fast ball that he yanked it on a hard line foul onto the berm down the third base line. Maybe the JU brain trust thought Caglianone would be expecting a breaking ball on the second pitch.

Bad decision. Caglianone wasn't the least bit fooled.

The pitch was a little lower than belt high and far enough over the plate that Caglianone got his arms extended. From the crack of the bat there was no doubt Caglianone had homered in his seventh consecutive game. The only question was would the ball ever come back down to earth.

As impressive as the home run was, probably Caglianone’s best piece of hitting was in the bottom of the first inning when he beat the shift by taking an outside pitch from JU lefty Dakota Stone opposite field for a single. A year ago, Caglianone would have probably tried to overpower the ball and pull it to the right side. This season, however, he isn’t afraid to go with the pitch and use the entire field.

“He’s going the other way obviously a lot differently than he did last year,” Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “He’s hitting home runs from pole-to-pole. They put the shift on him, he’s gotten numerous hits the other way this year, some on the ground, some in the air, some on a line. He’s handling lefthanded pitching way better. That lefthander comes out of the pen, I never think this boy, this is a tough matchup for Jac. He’s staying on the ball better.”

Through Florida’s 36 games, Caglianone has more hits (43), walks (21) and home runs (21) than he does strikeouts. He is hitting an even .400, having hit safely in 15 straight games while getting on base in 22 consecutive.

Shelnut, who is in the midst of a career year himself with 10 home runs and 34 RBI, says Caglianone is so locked in this season that it’s rare to see him swing and miss.

“Where he was faulty last year was he would chase stuff down a lot, that’s how he got out,” Shelton said. “He has some of the best bat-to-ball skill I’ve ever seen. When he swings he usually hits the ball and I think that’s probably his biggest strength honestly. It doesn’t matter what pitch, doesn’t matter where the location is, when he takes a swing, he’s usually hitting the ball. That’s the biggest reason he doesn’t walk a lot.”

Besides the home runs by Caglianone and Shelnut that accounted for seven of Florida’s runs, the Gators got a single, a double and two RBI from Evans; two hits including a run-scoring single from Brody Donay and two gifts, an error on a pickoff that allowed Caglianone to score in the first and a throwing error on a Dale Thomas sacrifice bunt that brought home Cade Kurland.

Redshirt freshman Jake Clemente, who missed all of last year recovering from an injury, got the start, gave up two hits and struck out five in two innings to earn his first win as a Gator. Freshman Frank Menendez went 1-2/3 innings, relieved by Blake Purnell. Purnell went an inning and gave up a run before Ryan Slater came on to get four straight outs. Landon Russell, in his first appearance of the season, pitched a scoreless seventh.

The pitching was good, not great. O’Sullivan lamented four walks and three hit batters, but compared to some of the recent midweek outings, this was a revelation. It was the second straight win for the Gators, who had lost six straight prior to a Sunday win over South Carolina. Prior to the game, O’Sullivan made it abundantly clear to his team that the margin for error in making the NCAA field of 64 teams is very, very small.

“The only message for the game really was, we are literally at a point in our season where it's pitch to pitch, inning to inning, game to game,” O’Sullivan said. “Every game is extremely important. Not that at any other point the games aren't equally as important, but in the big picture now with where we are with our record, that we've got to treat each game the same and I thought we did that tonight."

Shelnut said the Gators played with a sense of purpose, sort of a backs against the wall mentality.

“We can’t change the games that we lost or won in the past,” Shelnut said. “We are where we are. The only thing we can do is put our head down now, and have a sense of urgency. Every game means something whether it’s JU on a Tuesday or Vandy on a weekend or out at Arkansas or wherever. Every game means something at this point. You can’t take a day off. You can’t take a pitch off.”

SEC FOOTBALL: The portal is open for business

Alabama

Outgoing: PK Reed Harradine (6-3, 185, FR)

Incoming: OT Kadyn Proctor (6-7, 360, FR) from Iowa

Arkansas

Outgoing: TE Francis Sherman (6-3, 237, SR); RB Isaiah Augustave (6-2, 208, RFR); OT Andrew Chamblee (6-6, 304, FR); QB Jacolby Criswell (6-1, 230, JR); EDGE Jashaud Stewart (6-2, 257, SR)

Auburn

Outgoing: DL Brenton Williams (6-3, 262, FR); CB J.D. Rhym (6-1, 178, SO)

FLORIDA

Outgoing: LB Mannie Nunnery (6-2, 227, RSR)

Georgia

Outgoing: RB Andrew Paul (5-11, 218, FR); OT Chad Lindberg (6-6, 325, JR) to Rice; WR Tyler Williams (6-3, 205, RFR)

Kentucky

Outgoing: RB LaVell Wright (5-11, 202, JR); WR Darius Cannon (5-9, 175, FR); WR Raymond Cottrell (6-3, 210, RFR)

LSU

Outgoing: EDGE Jaxon Howard (6-4, 240, FR)

Incoming: DL Gio Paez (6-3, 310, SR) from Wisconsin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: S Trent Singleton (6-0, 195, FR); CB Luke Evans (6-2, 180, FR)

Incoming: RB Rashad Amos (6-2, 224, SR) from South Carolina

Missouri

Outgoing: WR Dannis Jackson (5-11, 171, JR)

Incoming: QB Drew Pyne (6-0, 190, SO) from Arizona State

Oklahoma

Outgoing: QB Jacob Switzer (6-2, 192, SO); LB Shane Whitter (6-0, 226, JR)

Ole Miss

Outgoing: DL Joshua Harris (6-4, 325, SR); QB Deljay Bailey (6-1, 200, FR)

South Carolina

Outgoing: OL Jaxon Hughes (6-6, 297, SR); EDGE Terrell Dawkins (6-4, 251, SR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: LB Elijah Herring (6-3, 238, SO)

Texas

Outgoing: LB S’maje Burrell (6-0, 219, FR); EDGE Billy Walton III (6-3, 225, FR); OL Payton Kirkland (6-6, 350, FR);  

Texas A&M

Outgoing: S Sam McCall (6-1, 185, FR); LB Alex Howard (6-2, 230, SR); S Jacoby Matthews (6-2, 215, SO); EDGE Fadil Diggs (6-5, 260, JR) to Syracuse; OL Derrick Graham (6-4, 314, SO)

Incoming: EDGE Josh Celiscar (6-4, 265, SR) from UCF

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: LB Dante Kelly (6-3, 201, FR)

SEC BASKETBALL: The portal is open for business

Alabama

Outgoing: SF Kris Parker (6-8, 195, RFR); SG Rylan Griffen (6-5, 185, SO); SG Davin Cosby (6-5, 205, FR); Sam Walters (6-10, 198, FR); C Nick Pringle (6-9, 220, SR)

Incoming: PG Houston Mallette (6-5, 180, JR) from Pepperdine; SG Chris Youngblood (6-4, 212, SR) from South Florida

Arkansas

Outgoing: PG Keon Menifield (6-1, 150, SO); F Denijay Harris (6-7, 200, SR); WG Joseph Pinion (6-6, 195, SO) to Arkansas State; C Baye Fall (6-10, 200, FR); SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) to Texas

Incoming: C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) from Kentucky

Auburn

Outgoing: CG KD Johnson (6-0, 190, SR); PG Tre Donaldson (6-2, 190, SO); PG Aden Holloway (6-1, 178, FR)

INCOMING: PG JP Pegues (6-1, 165, JR) from Furman

FLORIDA

Outgoing: SG Riley Kugel (6-5, 206, SO) to Kansas; PF Aleks Szymczyk (6-10, 250, RFR)

Incoming: Sam Alexis (6-9, 240, SO) from Chattanooga

Georgia

Outgoing: SF Matthew-Alexander Moncrief (6-7, 220, SR); PG Justin Hill (6-0, 185, SR); C Jalen Deloach (6-9, 215, JR) to Loyola; SG Mari Jordan (6-8, 185, RFR); WF Jabri Abdur-Rahim (6-7, 214, SR) to Providence

Kentucky

Outgoing: SG Adou Thiero (6-6, 200, SO); SG Joey Hart (6-5, 203, FR); C Aaron Bradshaw (7-0, 220, FR) to Ohio State; C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) to Arkansas;  PG DJ Wagner (6-3, 175, FR)

LSU

Outgoing: SF Mwani Wilkerson (6-5, 205, SO); SG Carlos Stewart (6-1, 185, JR) to Santa Clara

Incoming: PG Cam Carter (6-3, 195, JR) from Kansas State; PG Jordan Sears (5-11, 175, JR) from UT-Martin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: PG Andrew Taylor (6-3, 190, SR); SG Trey Fort III (6-4, 195, JR); PF Jaquan Scott (6-8, 230, JR); SG Shakeel Moore (6-1, 180, SR); PF Keshawn Murphy (6-10, 245, SO)

Incoming: PG Kanye Clary (5-11, 192, SO) from Penn State

Missouri

Outgoing: SG Curt Lewis (6-5, 215, JR); PF Jesus Carralero (6-8, 210, SR); SG John Tonje (6-5, 222, SR)

Incoming: PF Jacob Crews (6-8, 210, JR) from UT-Martin; SG Tony Perkins (6-4, 210, SR) from Iowa

Oklahoma

Outgoing: CG Otega Oweh (6-5, 210, SO); PF John Hugley (6-9, 240, JR) to Xavier; PG Javian McCollum (6-1, 170, JR) to Georgia Tech; PG Milos Uzan (6-4, 183, SO) to Houston

Ole Miss

Outgoing: PF Rashaud Marshall (6-9, 220, FR) to Arkansas State; C Malique Ewin (6-10, 240); Jacob Gazzo (6-8, 215, FR); PF Cameron Barnes (6-9, 195, FR)

Incoming: PF Mikeal Brown-Jones (6-8, 210, SR) from UNC-Greensboro; C Malik Dia (6-9, 240, SO) from Belmont

South Carolina

Outgoing: PG Meechie Johnson (6-2, 184, JR) to Ohio State; CG Ebrima Dibba (6-5, 214, SR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: SG Freddie Dilione (6-5, 185, FR); SG D.J. Jefferson (6-5, 2-7, FR); PF Tobe Awaka (6-8, 250, SO); C Jonas Aidoo (6-11, 230, JR)

Incoming: SG Darlinstone Dubar (6-6, 207, SR) from Hofstra

Texas

Outgoing: SF Alex Anamekwe (6-6, 200, SO); PG Chris Johnson (6-5, 180, FR); PF Dillon Mitchell (6-8, 205, SO); PG Tyrese Hunter (6-0, 170, JR)

Incoming: SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) from Arkansas; PF Jayson Kent (6-8, 205, SR) from Indiana State; PG Julian Larry (6-3, 185, SR) from Indiana State

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: PG Paul Lewis (6-2, 170, SO); C Lee Dort (6-10, 245, SO) to California; SG Tyrin Lawrence (6-4, 200, SR); PF Colin Smith (6-8, 220); SG Jason Rivera-Torres (6-6, 180, FR); PF Carter Lang (6-9, 235, FR); SG Isaiah West (6-2, 190, FR)

Incoming: PF Jaylen Carey (6-8, 245, FR) from James Madison; SF Tyler Nickel (6-7, 200, SO) from Virginia Tech; SG MJ Collins (6-4, 190, SO) from Virginia Tech

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The NCAA, in its infinite wisdom, hit Michigan with three years of probation and show cause for people involved in recruiting violations that took place years ago. The NCAA will still pursue Jim Harbaugh and others for the sign stealing scandal. Doesn’t matter to the NCAA that Harbaugh is in the NFL and odds are the only way he ever returns to college football is when we can stick a fork in the NCAA and declare that corrupt organization done.

Just to show you how focused the NCAA has been lately on weeding out the real problems that are overwhelming college sports these days, it was just a couple of months ago that the organization handed out this ruling: No longer can schools decorate the hotel rooms of prospective athletes when they arrive for recruiting visits. And – are you ready for this one – the school can’t leave snacks or a cake in the hotel room. Those goodies have to be given to the recruit in the hotel lobby.

Now I’m sure you understand why Florida has been losing 5-star recruits to Georgia. It’s because Georgia was putting snacks, cakes and balloons in recruits’ hotel rooms.

Aren’t you glad we got that cleared up? Aren’t you glad the NCAA is doing its part to keep college sports clean?

A few thoughts to jump start your Tuesday morning:

Forget the Florida State game that ended Florida’s 2023 football season. Neither the Gators nor the Seminoles were playing with starting quarterbacks so both the offensive and defensive numbers are a bit out of whack. Focus instead on the five previous games in which the Gators were outscored 203-163, an average score of 40.6 by the bad guys, 32.6 by the Gators.

The numbers don’t lie. The Aggies were the only team in the SEC that averaged 32 or more points that failed to win at least 10 games, so the offense really wasn’t the problem. Certainly, it could have been better, but the Gators played well enough and scored enough points to have finished 8-4 instead of 5-7.

If you saw the Orange and Blue Game, then you’re well aware that Billy Napier has surrounded quarterbacks Graham Mertz and DJ Lagway with serious weapons. Even slight improvement on the offensive line should mean Florida lights up a lot of scoreboards.

The problem that has to be solved is on the defensive side of the ball. Three new coaches – Ron Roberts, Gerald Chatman and Will Harris – were brought in to bring about the kind of change that has to happen if the Gators are to avoid a fourth straight losing season. Roberts is the catalyst for improvement. At Auburn last season, he improved the defense by seven points and four first downs per game. Can he do that at UF this year?

What we saw Saturday in the Orange and Blue Game is not a real indicator of what coaches have been talking about all spring. The Orange and Blue Game was as vanilla as it gets. In the fall we'll see what happens when the Gators can blitz and throw some exotic coverages at people.

Here are a few basic observations:

D-Line: The players who made the biggest strides in the spring were nose tackle Cam Jackson and tackle Caleb Banks. Kelby Collins was moved inside after playing on the EDGE last year. Joey Slackman couldn’t move Banks out at tackle, which says more about Banks’ improvement than it does about Slackman. Jamari Lyons will be in the rotation. Will Desmond Watson ever get his weight below 400? It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Gators go after a transfer here.

EDGE/Linebackers: Injuries to Shemar James and freshman Myles Graham led to increased snaps for South Carolina transfer Grayson “Pup” Howard and Mannie Nunnery. Howard is going to be a beast. Nunnery has plenty of speed and had an interception in the Orange and Blue game. He’s much improved. Justus Boone is still recovering from injury, but there are a lot of people who can get after a QB starting with TJ Searcy, Northern Illinois transfer George Gumbs, Kamran James, juco transfer Brien Taylor and freshman stud TJ McCray. The tackling was better all spring. Based on what we saw, the starting linebackers to be Howard and James with Gumbs and Searcy the starters of the edge.

Secondary: The three corners who got the most praise and who seem at the head of the rotation are Jason Marshall Jr., Devin Moore and Ja’Keem Jackson. Aaron Gates had a good spring to emerge as the starter at STAR. The three transfers at safety – DJ Douglas, Asa Turner and Trikweze Bridges – are real players who understand the concept of keeping receivers in front of them. Shareef Denson and Jordan Casteel are going to play. There is much more experience, especially at safety. The entire unit will be much improved.  

SEC FOOTBALL: Transfer portal already heating up

Arkansas

Outgoing: TE Francis Sherman (6-3, 237, SR); RB Isaiah Augustave (6-2, 208, RFR); OT Andrew Chamblee (6-6, 304, FR); QB Jacolby Criswell (6-1, 230, JR)

Georgia

Outgoing: RB Andrew Paul (5-11, 218, FR)

Kentucky

Outgoing: RB LaVell Wright (5-11, 202, JR); WR Darius Cannon (5-9, 175, FR)

LSU

Incoming: DL Gio Paez (6-3, 310, SR) from Wisconsin

Outgoing: EDGE Jaxon Howard (6-4, 240, FR)

Mississippi State

Incoming: RB Rashad Amos (6-2, 224, SR) from South Carolina

Missouri

Incoming: QB Drew Pyne (6-0, 190, SO) from Arizona State

Oklahoma

Outgoing: QB Jacob Switzer (6-2, 192, SO)

Ole Miss

Outgoing: DL Joshua Harris (6-4, 325, SR)

South Carolina

Outgoing: OL Jaxon Hughes (6-6, 297, SR); EDGE Terrell Dawkins (6-4, 251, SR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: LB Elijah Herring (6-3, 238, SO)

Texas

Outgoing: LB S’maje Burrell (6-0, 219, FR); EDGE Billy Walton III (6-3, 225, FR); OL Payton Kirkland (6-6, 350, FR)

Texas A&M

Incoming: EDGE Josh Celiscar (6-4, 265, SR) from UCF

SEC BASKETBALL: Busy Monday in the portal

A name for Florida fans to watch closely is Alabama freshman Sam Walters (6-10, 198), who entered the portal on Monday. Walters, who played high school ball at The Villages Charter, is a long lefty with serious 3-point range. He was a 3-point specialist for the Crimson Tide, averaging 5.4 points per game while hitting 39.4 percent of his shots beyond the arc. Mike White and the Gators weren’t involved in his recruitment out of high school and by the time Todd Golden took over at UF, Walters was already committed to Alabama. The Gators are expected to be a major factor in his relocation now that he’s leaving Alabama.

Kentucky dominated the portal news Monday as Aaron Bradshaw committed to Ohio State, Zvonimir Ivisic committed to Arkansas and point guard D.J. Wagner put his name in the portal. Wagner is expected to commit to Arkansas.  It was a good day for Ole Miss, which landed Belmont transfer Malik Dia, one of the top big man prospects in the portal. Dia is a sophomore who spent his freshman season at Vanderbilt.

Texas got a pair of transfers from NIT runner-up Indiana State, small forward Jayson Kent and point guard Julian Larry. Tennessee got a scoring guard from Hofstra in Darlinstone Dubar, who will be expected to pick up the scoring load left behind by Dalton Knecht.

Alabama

Outgoing: SF Kris Parker (6-8, 195, RFR); SG Rylan Griffen (6-5, 185, SO); SG Davin Cosby (6-5, 205, FR); Sam Walters (6-10, 198, FR)

Incoming: PG Houston Mallette (6-5, 180, JR) from Pepperdine; SG Chris Youngblood (6-4, 212, SR) from South Florida

Arkansas

Outgoing: PG Keon Menifield (6-1, 150, SO); F Denijay Harris (6-7, 200, SR); WG Joseph Pinion (6-6, 195, SO) to Arkansas State; C Baye Fall (6-10, 200, FR); SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) to Texas

Incoming: C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) from Kentucky

Auburn

Outgoing: CG KD Johnson (6-0, 190, SR); PG Tre Donaldson (6-2, 190, SO); PG Aden Holloway (6-1, 178, FR)

INCOMING: PG JP Pegues (6-1, 165, JR) from Furman

FLORIDA

Outgoing: SG Riley Kugel (6-5, 206, SO) to Kansas; PF Aleks Szymczyk (6-10, 250, RFR)

Incoming: Sam Alexis (6-9, 240, SO) from Chattanooga

Georgia

Outgoing: SF Matthew-Alexander Moncrief (6-7, 220, SR); PG Justin Hill (6-0, 185, SR); C Jalen Deloach (6-9, 215, JR); SG Mari Jordan (6-8, 185, RFR); WF Jabri Abdur-Rahim (6-7, 214, SR) to Providence

Kentucky

Outgoing: SG Adou Thiero (6-6, 200, SO); SG Joey Hart (6-5, 203, FR); C Aaron Bradshaw (7-0, 220, FR) to Ohio State; C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) to Arkansas;  PG DJ Wagner (6-3, 175, FR)

LSU

Outgoing: SF Mwani Wilkerson (6-5, 205, SO); SG Carlos Stewart (6-1, 185, JR) to Santa Clara

Incoming: PG Cam Carter (6-3, 195, JR) from Kansas State; PG Jordan Sears (5-11, 175, JR) from UT-Martin

Mississippi State

Outgoing: PG Andrew Taylor (6-3, 190, SR); SG Trey Fort III (6-4, 195, JR); PF Jaquan Scott (6-8, 230, JR); SG Shakeel Moore (6-1, 180, SR); PF Keshawn Murphy (6-10, 245, SO)

Incoming: PG Kanye Clary (5-11, 192, SO) from Penn State

Missouri

Outgoing: SG Curt Lewis (6-5, 215, JR); PF Jesus Carralero (6-8, 210, SR); SG John Tonje (6-5, 222, SR)

Incoming: PF Jacob Crews (6-8, 210, JR) from UT-Martin; SG Tony Perkins (6-4, 210, SR) from Iowa

Oklahoma

Outgoing: CG Otega Oweh (6-5, 210, SO); PF John Hugley (6-9, 240, JR); PG Javian McCollum (6-1, 170, JR) to Georgia Tech; PG Milos Uzan (6-4, 183, SO) to Houston

Ole Miss

Outgoing: PF Rashaud Marshall (6-9, 220, FR) to Arkansas State; C Malique Ewin (6-10, 240); Jacob Gazzo (6-8, 215, FR); PF Cameron Barnes (6-9, 195, FR)

Incoming: PF Mikeal Brown-Jones (6-8, 210, SR) from UNC-Greensboro; C Malik Dia (6-9, 240, SO) from Belmont

South Carolina

Outgoing: PG Meechie Johnson (6-2, 184, JR) to Ohio State; CG Ebrima Dibba (6-5, 214, SR)

Tennessee

Outgoing: SG Freddie Dilione (6-5, 185, FR); SG D.J. Jefferson (6-5, 2-7, FR); PF Tobe Awaka (6-8, 250, SO); C Jonas Aidoo (6-11, 230, JR)

Incoming: SG Darlinstone Dubar (6-6, 207, SR) from Hofstra

Texas

Outgoing: SF Alex Anamekwe (6-6, 200, SO); PG Chris Johnson (6-5, 180, FR); PF Dillon Mitchell (6-8, 205, SO); PG Tyrese Hunter (6-0, 170, JR)

Incoming: SG Tramon Mark (6-5, 180, JR) from Arkansas; PF Jayson Kent (6-8, 205, SR) from Indiana State; PG Julian Larry (6-3, 185, SR) from Indiana State

Vanderbilt

Outgoing: PG Paul Lewis (6-2, 170, SO); C Lee Dort (6-10, 245, SO) to California; SG Tyrin Lawrence (6-4, 200, SR); PF Colin Smith (6-8, 220); SG Jason Rivera-Torres (6-6, 180, FR); PF Carter Lang (6-9, 235, FR)

Incoming: PF Jaylen Carey (6-8, 245, FR) from James Madison; SF Tyler Nickel (6-7, 200, SO) from Virginia Tech

UF MEN’S GOLF: Gators move up three spots in latest poll

The Gators, who closed out their regular season with a win in the Calusa Cup, moved up three places to No. 14 in the Bushnell/GolfWeek poll. The Gators are idle until April 24 when they begin play in the SEC Tournament at St. Simon’s Island.

Bushnell/GolfWeek top 25: 1. Auburn; 2. North Carolina; 3. Vanderbilt; 4. Arizona State; 5. Ole Miss; 6. Florida State; 7. Tennessee; 8. Washington; 9. Arizona; 10. Alabama; 11. Texas Tech; 12. Arkansas; 13. Oklahoma; 14. FLORIDA; 15. Virginia; 16. Georgia Tech; 17. Illinois; 18. Texas; 19. New Mexico; 20. East Tennessee State; 21. Georgia; 22. Texas A&M; 23. California; 24. Oregon; 25. Duke

UF WOMEN’S TENNIS: Gailis, Lopez honored by SEC

Rachel Gailis was named SEC Player of the Week and Qavia Lopez SEC Freshman of the Week after the Gators closed out their regular season with a win over South Carolina that stretched their winning streak to 10 games. The Gators will begin play in the SEC Tournament in Athens on Wednesday.

UF LACROSSE: Gators remain No. 9

IWLCA top 25: 1. Northwestern 12-2; 2. Syracuse 12-3; 3. Notre Dame 13-2; 4. Michigan 14-1; 5. Loyola 13-1; 6. (TIE) Virginia 12-3 and Boston College 12-3; 8. Maryland 11-4; 9. FLORIDA 13-2; 10. Yale 11-1; 11. Johns Hopkins 10-5; 12. Denver 11-3; 13. Stony Brook 13-2; 14. Penn 9-3; 15. North Carolina 9-5; 16. James Madison 10-4; 17. Princeton 8-4; 18. Stanford 9-3; 19. Penn State 8-6; 20. Navy 11-3; 21. Colorado 10-4; 22. Southern California 10-4; 23. Fairfield 13-1; 24. Harvard 8-3; 25. Duke 10-6

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Three gripes today, all three about the University of Florida, two for basketball and one for football. It would be so easy to turn these three negatives into positives.

Gripe 1: Why isn’t Neal Walk’s retired UF jersey hanging in the O-Dome? He scored 1,600 points and grabbed 1,181 rebounds in three varsity seasons, which averages out to 20.8 points and 15.3 rebounds per game. He led the nation in rebounding as a junior (19.8) and senior (17.8) and was first team All-SEC. He didn’t make All-America because there was this guy named Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, now known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Neal was the second players taken (behind Alcindor) in the NBA Draft, the highest any Gator has ever been drafted.

Gripe 2: Vernon Maxwell scored 2,450 points in his Florida career. He is the real all-time scoring leader at UF, but he’s not the leader in the record books because this silly notion that he alone is responsible for Florida’s basketball probation in the late 1980s. He accepted some money from an agent and got a ticket to a camp paid for by Norm Sloan, all of which is legal now. It’s ridiculous that he’s not in the record books.

Gripe 3: The 1984 Florida football team won the SEC championship on the field only to have Vince Dooley and Georgia convince six SEC presidents to vote to vacate the title because UF went on a harsh, 2-year NCAA probation. Trust me folks, what was going on at UF was Romper Room compared to some of the stuff happening. That 1984 team should at least be brought back for a weekend in the fall for their 40th anniversary.