Thoughts of the Day: January 19, 2022

A few thoughts to jump start your Wednesday morning:

CAN THE GATORS WIN TWO IN A ROW? A case can be made that the SEC is top to bottom the toughest basketball league in the country this year, which is why only two games separate the Gators (10-6, 1-3 SEC) and Mississippi State (12-4, 3-1 SEC) for fourth place in the league standings. There is that much parity in the league this year where only second-ranked Auburn (16-1, 5-0 SEC) and Texas A&M (15-2, 4-0) are unbeaten even though it’s early in the season.

So the question for Florida tonight is can the Gators put together a second straight solid performance against Mississippi State at the O-Dome (7 p.m., SEC Network)? After three straight losses to ranked SEC teams, the Gators finally got their first SEC win against South Carolina in Columbia last Saturday when they played their best game since they got off to a 6-0 start in the month of November. Mike White reshuffled his lineup a bit for that game, inserting freshman Kowacie Reeves into the starting lineup for the second straight game and going with Brandon McKissic and Phlandrous Fleming Jr. at the guards. Reeves scored double figures (14) for the first time in his Florida career and hit four clutch free throws late in the second half. McKissic only scored three points, but he supplemented that with six rebounds and four assists. Fleming also had 14 points.

To beat Mississippi State, which is one of the taller and more physical teams in the SEC, the Gators have to keep Colin Castleton out of foul trouble. Castleton only scored 10 points in the win over South Carolina, but he had seven rebounds and he protected the rim with eight blocked shots. Castleton and 6-7 Anthony Duruji will be up against an MSU front line that goes 6-11, 6-9 and 6-7 up front.

In addition to keeping Castleton engaged and out of foul trouble, the Gators need to have another shooting game like they had against South Carolina when they hit a season high 55 percent. Although the Gators were only 7-22 from the three-point line, it was a marked improvement over the three previous SEC games when they combined to go 21-76, a rotten 27.6 percent.

SEC BASKETBALL Tuesday’s scores: Arkansas (13-5, 3-3 SEC) 75, South Carolina (10-7, 1-4 SEC) 59; Missouri (8-9, 2-3 SEC) 78, Ole Miss (9-8, 1-4 SEC) 53; No. 24 Tennessee (12-5, 3-3 SEC) 68, Vanderbilt (10-7, 2-3 SEC) 60

Wednesday’s games: Wednesday’s games: Mississippi State (12-4, 3-1 SEC) at FLORIDA (10-6, 1-3 SEC); No. 18 Kentucky (14-3, 4-1 SEC) at Texas A&M (15-2, 4-0 SEC); No. 12 LSU (15-2, 3-2 SEC) at No. 24 Alabama (11-6, 2-3 SEC); Georgia (5-12, 0-4 SEC) at No. 4 Auburn (16-1, 5-0 SEC)

GATORS NO. 9 IN D1BASEBALL PRESEASON POLL

There is reason for optimism in the Florida baseball camp. Kevin O’Sullivan returns six returning starters including All-America center fielder Jud Fabian and a pitching staff led by 10-game winner Hunter Barco. That solid roster is bolstered by the consensus No. 2 recruiting class in the country that features three lefty pitchers and Deric Fabian, Jud’s younger brother who probably will settle in at third base. All that talent is why D1Baseball.com ranks the Gators No. 9 in their preseason poll, one of six SEC teams in the top ten.

The Gators had an off year in 2021 when they finished 38-22 overall, 17-13 in SEC play and didn’t make it out of the Gainesville Regional in the NCAA Tournament. Although O’Sullivan will have to replace Tommy Mace and Jack Leftwich in the pitching rotation and leading hitter Jacob Young in the outfield, this figures to be a better Florida team and one that should factor in the SEC race.

The Top 25: 1. Texas; 2. Arkansas; 3. Vanderbilt; 4. Mississippi State; 5. Ole Miss; 6. Stanford; 7. Oklahoma State; 8. LSU; 9. FLORIDA; 10. North Carolina State; 11. Florida State; 12. East Carolina; 13. Notre Dame; 14. Texas Tech; 15. Arizona; 16. Georgia; 17. TCU; 18. Oregon State; 19. Tennessee; 20. UC-Irvine; 21. Georgia Tech; 22. Dallas Baptist; 23. Duke; 24. Long Beach State; 25. Miami

GATORS NO. 5 IN D1SOFTBALL PRESEASON POLL

If Florida’s fall performance was an indicator of things to come, then Tim Walton probably has his best roster in several years, led by first team All-America Charla Echols, who hit .375 with 15 homers and 55 RBI in 2021, third team All-America Hannah Adams, who hit .356 with 10 homers and 38 RBI, and third team All-America pitcher Elizabeth Hightower, who went 17-6 with a 1.61 ERA. Walton added to that strong core by bringing in an outstanding freshman class with projected starters Reagan Walsh and Kendra Falbey, pitcher Lexie Delbrey and early enrollee Samantha Roe, the nation’s top-rated high school senior. Walton also has former All-SEC freshman Skylar Wallace eligible after she had to sit out last year when she transferred from Alabama.

It’s a lineup impressive enough that D1Softball ranks the Gators No. 5 in its preseason poll. A year ago, the Gators won their 9th SEC championship under Walton and finished 45-11, although they didn’t get past the NCAA Super Regionals.

The Top 25: 1. Oklahoma; 2. Alabama; 3. Oklahoma State; 4. UCLA; 5. FLORIDA; 6. Florida State; 7. Washington; 8. Arkansas; 9. Texas; 10. Missouri; 11. Virginia Tech; 12. Michigan; 13. Duke; 14. Clemson; 15. Arizona; 16. Oregon; 17. LSU; 18. Tennessee; 19. Georgia; 20. Kentucky; 21. Arizona State; 22. Louisiana; 23. Northwestern; 24. Liberty; 25. James Madison

SEC FOOTBALL Alabama: Defensive end LaBryan Ray, who had 6.5 sacks in his Alabama career, is off to the NFL … Kendall Randall, who has played in 40 games in his Alabama career, will be back for a super senior season thanks to the NCAA 2020 COVID year rule.

Arkansas: Offensive coordinator Kendall Briles is interviewing with Mario Cristobal for the OC job at Miami.

Auburn: Another transfer quarterback has landed in Auburn. Joining Texas A&M transfer Zach Calzada is Oregon transfer Robby Ashford, who didn’t take a snap in two seasons.

Georgia: Linebacker Quay Walker, who was Georgia’s fourth-leading tackler in 2021, is off to the NFL. Also leaving for the NFL is tight end John Fitzpatrick, who had seven starts and six catches for 83 yards in 2021 … Defensive back Ameer Speer is transferring to Michigan State.

LSU: Safety Jay Ward, who had 69 tackles and two interceptions in 2021, is returning for another season … Linebacker Micah Baskerville, who had 83 tackles, two sacks and an interception, is leaving for the NFL … Transferring in to LSU are former Missouri defensive lineman Mekhi Wingo and former East Tennessee State left tackle Tre’Mond Shorts.

Mississippi State: Wide receiver Makai Polk, who caught 34 passes for 442 yards and five touchdowns, is in the transfer portal.

Missouri: Running back Nathaniel Peat, who led Stanford in rushing with 402 yards and three touchdowns, is transferring to Missouri.

Ole Miss: Officially joining Lane Kiffin’s staff are Charlie Weis Jr. (Co-OC/QB), Marquel Blackwell (RB), Chris Kiffin (Co-DEC/LBs) and Nick Savage (strength and conditioning). Wide receivers coach Derrick Nix is also the assistant head coach.

Tennessee: Former Tennessee quarterback Harrison Bailey is transferring to UNLV where he will have four full years of eligibility.

THE QUARTERBACK SITUATION AT EVERY SEC SCHOOL: JANUARY 18, 2022 Alabama: Heisman Trophy quarterback Bryce Young returns. With last year’s backup Paul Tyson transferring out, the only quarterbacks on campus are redshirt freshman Jalen Milroe, a former 4-star, and 5-star early enrollee Ty Simpson.

Arkansas: K.J. Jefferson is the returning starter. Backup Malik Hornsby was going to transfer but changed his mind. John Steven Jones has started in the past. Also in the QB room are Ole Miss transfer Kade Renfro, who has four years eligibility remaining, and redshirt freshman Lucas Coley, a former 4-star recruit.

Auburn: When three-year starter Bo Nix (since transferred to Oregon) went down with a season-ending injury, LSU transfer TJ Finley took over the starting job. He has since been joined by Texas A&M transfer Zach Calzada, who started nine games in 2021, and Oregon transfer Robby Ashford. The Tigers also have 4-star redshirt freshman Dematrius Davis and 4-star signee Holden Geriner in the QB room.

FLORIDA: Last season’s starter Emory Jones was expected to transfer out but he’s still at UF, although he is expected to transfer out in the spring. Anthony Richardson had spectacular moments and moments he would like to forget in 2021, but he has enormous upside. Former 4-star Jack Miller III transferred in from Ohio State. Also in the QB room are redshirt freshmen Carlos Del Rio-Wilson and Jalen Kitna.

Georgia: Stetson Bennett IV has another year to play but will he come back? As it is, he’s a legend so how could he top 2021? JT Daniels has apparently transferred out, leaving former 4-star Carson Beck and former 5-star Brock Vandagriff as the incumbent backups if Bennett elects to stay. Gunner Stockton, a 4-star recruit, enrolled early.

Kentucky: Starter Will Levis is returning. Deuce Hogan, a 3-star 2020 recruit, transferred in from Iowa. The other QBs are former redshirt freshman Kaiya Sheron and Nick Scalzo, a 2019 recruit who has never played a down.

LSU: Starter Max Johnson transferred out, but Garrett Nussmeier, who got a couple of starts as a true freshman in 2021 returns as does often-injured Myles Brennan, who decided to return to LSU after putting his name in the portal. The only other quarterback is 5-star signee Walker Howard.

Mississippi State: Starter Will Rogers returns. Backups Chance Lovertich, who got a few snaps against Vandy, and Jack Abraham, injured all last year, also return. Sam Houston State transfer Jack Kistofek, who didn’t play in 2021, returns. The Bulldogs signed 4-star Sawyer Robertson in 2021 along with 3-star Daniel Greek. The Bulldogs signed 3-star quarterback Braedon Locke back in December.

Missouri: Starter Conner Bazelac has transferred to Illinois. When Bazelac went down with an injury late season Brady Cook took over as the starter. Freshman Tyler Macon, who saw action in three games returns. The Tigers signed 4-star Sam Horn. Ole Miss: Matt Corral is off to the NFL and John Rhys Plumlee has transferred to UCF. Kinkead Dent has been on campus since 2019 but has thrown only four passes. Luke Altmeyer was the backup last year and at this point is the incumbent. No high school or juco QBs have been signed yet nor has Lane Kiffin landed a transfer.

South Carolina: The Gamecocks landed one of the bigger names in the transfer portal when Spencer Rattler left Oklahoma. Luke Doty, who missed a lot of games due to injury, is basically the returning starter. Colton Gauthier took a redshirt although he played in one game last year. Braedon Davis, a 4-star, early enrolled and the Gamecocks also signed 4-star Tanner Bailey.

Tennessee: Hendon Hooker is the returning starter. Joe Milton III is still on the roster and Harrison Bailey has transferred to UNLV and Brian Maurer has transferred to Stephen F. Austin. The Vols signed 4-star Tayven Jackson.

Texas A&M: Former LSU starter Max Johnson transferred in. Haynes King, who was the starter last year until he was injured is back but Zach Calzada, who started the final nine games, has transferred to Auburn. The Aggies signed 5-star Conner Weigman, who has enrolled.

Vanderbilt: Ken Seals, who started seven games but missed the other five with injuries, is back as is Mike Wright, who was actually more effective in the five games he started, is also returning. The Commodores signed 3-star A.J. Swann and 3-star Drew Dickey.

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: As the Gators begin Phase I of Billy Napier’s team building plan today, I have to wonder how he’s getting all these people hired, interviewing every single player, dealing with recruiting and the transfer portal and still having time to figure out how he’s going to manage the roster. It’s a very serious issue with the transfer portal combined with the NCAA’s rule that gave every single player who played in the 2020 COVID year an extra year of eligibility. The NCAA has offered some roster flexibility for this season, but hasn’t moved the needle even a millimeter when it comes to how all Division I schools will have a max of 85 on scholarship in 2023.

There is actually a simple solution to this problem and it begins with football at the Division I level seceding from the NCAA. Let the coaches and athletic directors set their own rules and more important, their own scholarship limitations. Is 85 enough scholarships with 12-game seasons that can expand to 15 (more when the playoff expands)? How do you deal with what amounts to free agency? Because of the portal, it’s entirely possible that a program can be made irrelevant if enough players transfer out. How can you make up for the losses?

This is a can of worms of the NCAA’s making. The NCAA proves incapable of dealing with these issues on a daily basis. If the schools in Division I are serious about roster management, they can start by jettisoning the NCAA and making some rules that make sense. What a concept that would be.