Can the Gators rebound from the game 3 disaster vs. UT?

A few thoughts to jump start your Tuesday morning:

What kind of effect did that 11-run disaster of a sixth inning against Tennessee Saturday night have on the Florida Gators? We get our first hint tonight (6:30 p.m., SEC Network+) when the Gators (24-23) take on South Florida (23-24) at Condron Family Ballpark.

There can’t be any hangover or lingering doubt for the Gators, who have absolutely zero margin for error if they wish to make the 64-team field for the NCAA Tournament. Hosting a regional is totally out of the question, but the Gators still have a shot at being selected for an at-large bid. Despite 23 losses and just one game over .500, the Gators have the No. 23 RPI in the country with a No. 1 strength of schedule.

The Gators need wins. Counting tonight’s game with South Florida, the Gators have seven regular season games remaining, six against SEC rivals 4th-ranked Kentucky (35-10, 18-6 SEC) and Georgia (35-12, 13-11 SEC). Florida is 10-14 in SEC, needing to get as close to .500 in league play as possible to influence the NCAA Tournament selection committee.

The Gators have made the NCAA field twice with losing records in SEC play during Kevin O’Sullivan’s 17 seasons on the job. Coming off four straight trips to the College World Series, the 2013 Gators went 29-27 in the regular season, 14-16 in SEC play. After losing to Texas A&M In the SEC Tournament, the Gators were sent to Indiana for the NCAA Tournament where they went 0-2, finishing with a 29-30 record, the only losing season of O’Sullivan’s career. Realistically, the Gators shouldn’t have been in the tournament, but they were selected due to the strength of the SEC and Florida’s previous four seasons.

Florida also made the NCAA in 2019 with a 13-17 record in SEC play. That team finished the regular season 10 games over .500, then went 0-3 in postseason play to finish with a final record of 34-26.

The 2024 Gators don’t have the luxury of four straight NCAA trips, but the fact they played for the national championship could get them into the tournament if they can get to 14 SEC regular season wins.

Gator notes: The Gators knocked off South Florida 6-1 earlier in the season in Tampa … Jac Caglianone (.410, 26 HR, 53 RBI) carries a 26-game hitting streak into tonight’s game. Caglianone, who has been on base in 33 straight games, needs a hit in four straight games to tie Jacob Young for the school record … Caglianone has struck out only 17 times this season in 183 official at bats.

UF SOFTBALL: Gators up to No. 8 in one of the polls

D1Softball ranked the Gators No. 8 after they clinched second place in the SEC with their weekend sweep of Texas A&M. The Gators are ranked ninth in the ESPN and Softball America polls, but curiously No. 11 in the USA Today/NFCA coaches poll, which ranks Texas A&M (No. 8) and LSU (No. 10) ahead. Florida is 5-1 against those two.

Korbe Otis earns SEC honors: Otis was named SEC Player of the Week after going 7-11 with two doubles, two homers (one a grand slam) and 10 RBI as the Gators went 4-0 against Florida State and Texas A&M. Otis leads the SEC in hitting (.455) and on-base percentage (.586).

D1Softball top 25: 1. Texas 45-6; 2. Tennessee 40-9; 3. Oklahoma State 44-9; 4. Oklahoma 46-6; 5. UCLA 34-10; 6. Stanford 42-12; 7. Duke 44-6; 8. FLORIDA 43-12; 9. Arkansas 36-15; 10. Missouri 40-14; 11. Texas A&M 39-12; 12. LSU 38-14; 13. Georgia 38-15; 14. Washington 31-12; 15. Mississippi State 33-17; 16. Arizona 33-15-1; 17. Louisiana 40-16; 18. Florida State 41-13; 19. Virginia Tech 39-11-1; 20. Alabama 33-16; 21. Boston University 49-4-1; 22. Oregon 28-18; 23. Northwestern 33-10; 24. California 36-16; 25. Texas State 42-13

ESPN/USA Softball top 25: 1. Texas 45-6; 2. Oklahoma 46-6; 3. Tennessee 40-9; 4. Oklahoma State 44-9; 5. Duke 44-6; 6. UCLA 34-10; 7. Stanford 42-12; 8. Texas A&M 39-12; 9. FLORIDA 43-12; 10. Washington 31-12; 11. Arkansas 36-15; 12. Georgia 38-15; 13. LSU 38-14; 14. Florida State 41-13; 15. Missouri 40-14; 16. Alabama 33-16; 17. Louisiana 40-16; 18. Virginia Tech 39-11-1; 19. Mississippi State 33-17; 20. Arizona 33-15-1; 21. Oregon 28-18; 22. Clemson 33-16; 23. Northwestern 33-10; 24. Kentucky 30-21; 25. Miami (OH) 45-7

Softball America top 25: 1. Texas 45-6; 2. Tennessee 40-9; 3. Oklahoma State 44-9; 4. Oklahoma 46-6; 5. Duke 44-6; 6. UCLA 34-10; 7. Stanford 42-12; 8. Missouri 40-14; 9. FLORIDA 43-12; 10. Texas A&M 39-12; 11. Arkansas 36-15; 12. Louisiana 40-16; 13. LSU 38-14; 14. Georgia 38-15; 15. Washington 31-12; 16. Florida State 41-13; 17. Texas State 42-13; 18. Virginia Tech 39-11-1; 19. Mississippi State 33-17; 20. Northwestern 33-10; 21. Miami (OH) 45-7; 22. Arizona 33-15-1; 23. Boston University 49-4-1; 24. Alabama 33-16; 25. Charlotte 36-16

USA Today/NFCA top 25: 1. Texas 45-6; 2. Oklahoma 46-6; 3. Tennessee 40-9; 4. Oklahoma State 44-9; 5. Duke 44-6; 6. Stanford 42-12; 7. UCLA 34-10; 8. Texas A&M 39-12; 9. Washington 31-12; 10. LSU 38-14; 11. FLORIDA 43-12; 12. Florida State 41-13; 13. Missouri 40-14; 14. Georgia 38-15; 15. Arkansas 36-15; 16. Virginia Tech 39-11-1; 17. Alabama 33-16; 18. Arizona 33-17; 19. California 36-16; 20. Mississippi State 33-17; 21. Louisiana 40-16; 22. Boston University 4 9-4-1; 23. Clemson (33-16); 24. Kentucky 30-21; 25. 28-18

UF WOMEN’S GOLF: Gators in fourth, day one NCAA

Playing in the East Lansing Regional, the Gators shot a 1-under 287 Monday as first round play of the NCAA championships began. Florida is six shots behind first place Southern California (281). Ines Archer and Maisie Filler came in at -1 to lead the Gators.

SEC FOOTBALL: New faces in new places

The transfer portal has closed its doors for now, but decisions are still being made by those who beat the deadline. Here are the newbies at each SEC school.

Alabama: OT Kadyn Proctor (6-7, 360, FR) from Iowa; PK Graham Nicholson (6-0, 185, JR) from Miami (OH); S Kameron Howard (5-11, 189, FR) from Charlotte; S King Mack (5-10, 188, FR) from Penn State

Arkansas: 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; QB Blake Boda (6-4, 200, FR) from Coastal Carolina; LB Stephen Dix Jr. (6-1, 237, SO) from Marshall; DL Danny Saili (6-2, 389, JR) from BYU; WR Khafre Brown (6-0, 195, JR) from South Florida

Auburn: 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; OL Ronan Chambers (6-6, 290, JR) from Akron

FLORIDA: OG Jason Zandamela (6-3, 305, FR) from Southern California

Georgia: QB Jaden Rashada (6-4, 185, FR) from Arizona State

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

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

Mississippi State: RB Davon Booth (5-10, 205, JR) from Utah State; WR Trent Hudson (6-3, 180, JR) from New Mexico State

Missouri: QB Drew Pyne (6-0, 190, SO) from Arizona State; OT Marcus Bryant (6-8, 318, SR) from SMU; DL Eddie Kelly (6-4, 278, SO) from Georgia Tech; LB Jeremiah Beasley (6-2, 235, FR) from Michigan

Oklahoma: C Branson Hickman (6-4, 297, JR) from SMU; DL Jermaine Lole (6-3, 310, SR) from Louisville; Damonic Williams (6-2, 320, SO) from TCU

Ole Miss: RB Jacory Merritt (5-11, 204 SR) from New Mexico; RB Henry Parrish (5-10, 190, JR) from Miami; DB Isaiah Hamilton (6-1, 175, JR) from Houston  

South Carolina: WR Dalevon Campbell (6-4, 215, SR) from Nevada; WR Vandrevius Jacobs (6-0, 175, FR)from Florida State

Tennessee:

Texas: DL Bill Norton (6-6, 325, SR) from Arizona; CB Jay’vion Cole (5-10, 175, SO) from San Jose State

Texas A&M: 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: OL Cade McConnell (6-5, 310, FR) from Minnesota; OL Steven Hubbard (6-3, 314, SR) from UTEP; TE Emmanuel Adebi (6-5, 265, FR) from Cornell; S Maurice Hampton (6-0, 207, JR) from Memphis; WR Dariyan Wiley (6-1, 193, JR) from Louisiana-Monroe

SEC BASKETBALL: New faces in new places

Alabama: 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; C Cliff Omoruyi (6-11, 240, SR) from Rutgers

Arkansas: C Zvonimir Ivisic (7-2, 234, FR) from Kentucky; C Jonas Aidoo (6-11, 230, JR) from Tennessee; Johnell Davis (6-4, 185, SR) from Florida Atlantic; SG Adou Thiero (6-6, 200, SO) from Kentucky

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

FLORIDA: 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: DeShayne Montgomery (6-4, 190, SO) from Mount St. Mary’s; C Justin Abson (6-9, 235, SO) from Appalachian State; SG Dakota Laffew (6-5, 185, SR) from Mount St. Mary’s; SF RJ Godfrey (6-7, 225, SO) from Clemson; SG Tyrin Lawrence (6-4, 200, SR) from Vanderbilt

Kentucky: PF Amari Williams (6-11, 227, SR) from Drexel; PG Lamont Butler Jr. (6-2, 200, SR) from San Diego State; CG Otega Oweh (6-5, 210, SO) from Oklahoma; PF Andrew Carr (6-9, 210, SR) from Wake Forest; C Brandon Garrison (6-10, 245) from Oklahoma State; PG Kerr Kriisa (6-3, 180, JR) from West Virginia; SG Koby Brea (6-6, 174, JR) from Dayton

LSU: PG Cam Carter (6-3, 195, JR) from Kansas State; PG Jordan Sears (5-11, 175, JR) from UT-Martin; SG Dji Bailey (6-5, 175, SR) from Richmond

Mississippi State: 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; SF RJ Melendez (6-7, 205, JR) from Georgia

Missouri: 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: PG Kobe Elvis (6-2, 170, JR) from Dayton; SG Brycen Goodine (6-4, 185,

SR) from Fairfield; SG Duke Miles (6-2, 175, JR) from High Point

Ole Miss: 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; PG Sean Pedulla (6-1, 190, JR) from Virginia Tech

South Carolina: C Jordan Butler (7-0, 230, FR) from Missouri; C Nick Pringle (6-9, 220, SR) from Alabama; PG Jamarii Thomas (6-0, 185, JR) from Norfolk State

Tennessee: SG Darlinstone Dubar (6-6, 207, SR) from Hofstra; C Felix Okpara (6-11, 220, SO) from Ohio State; SF Igor Milicek Jr. (6-10, 224, SO) from Charlotte

Texas: 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; PG Jordan Pope (6-2, 165, SO); SF Malik Pressley (6-6, 200, FR) from Vanderbilt

Texas A&M: SG CJ Wilcher (6-5, 195, SR) from Nebraska; PF Pharrel Payne (6-9, 255, SO) from Minnesota; SG Zhuric Phelps (6-3, 175, SR) from SMU

Vanderbilt: 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; Devin McGlockton (6-7, 220, SO) from Boston College; SG Chris Manon (6-5, 195, JR) from Cornell

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: If you are such a college football junkie that you don’t care if you’re watching two mediocre teams play in a bowl game in half-empty stadiums, then brace yourself. More games are on the way.

There will be 42 bowl games for the upcoming season, six of which will be connected to the expanded College Football Playoff. In each of the last three seasons, not enough teams finished with winning records, so teams that finished below .500 got to play in a bowl game. More bowl games mean more teams that had losing records will be rewarded for mediocrity.

I like an expanded playoff. I would like to see four more teams added to cap the playoff at 16. I do not like more bowl games. I believe there should be a bare minimum of seven Division I wins to make it to a bowl game. Bowl games should be a reward for playing well. This isn’t kids soccer. Bowl games shouldn’t be a participation trophy.