Gators are in an NCAA regional for the 16th straight year (UAA Photo) A few thoughts to jump start your Tuesday morning: It’s an Oklahoma type of week for the Florida Gators. Thursday night, the Florida softball team will face Oklahoma State in the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City. Friday afternoon, the Florida baseball team will be in Stillwater, Oklahoma for a first round NCAA regional game against Big Ten champion Nebraska. That the softball team is in the WCWS is a bit of a surprise if you go by preseason when UF was picked to finish eighth in the SEC and by what happened on April 24, when the Gators melted down against Florida State, allowing a 12-run sixth inning that led to a run-rule loss at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Since then the Gators are 13-2, winners of the SEC Tournament and both the NCAA Gainesville regional and super regionals. The Gators are 51-13 with one of those losses to Oklahoma State back in February. This is a different Florida team than the one that lost to Okie State at KSP. It's also a different Florida baseball team. Back in February, every single poll had the Gators ranked in the top four. It was supposed to be a return to Omaha for the College World Series, but a funny thing happened on the way to a great season. Florida’s pitching never materialized and instead of an easy go of it, the Gators had to beat Georgia two out of three on the final weekend of the regular season to convince the NCAA selection committee that they belonged. A lot of people aren’t 100 percent sure the Gators (28-27) belong, but they did play the toughest schedule in the country and they own series wins over No. 3 seed Texas A&M, No. 7 seed Georgia and series wins over LSU and Mississippi State, which are both in the tournament. No. 1 Tennessee, No. 2 Kentucky nor No. 5 Arkansas were able to sweep the Gators on SEC weekends. Florida softball’s season will end in Oklahoma. The WCWS is double elimination so the Gators will play at least two games in Okie City, more if they are able to win some games. The Gators are the No. 4 seed in the tournament, while Oklahoma State is No. 5. For the Florida baseball team to avoid seeing its season come to an end in Oklahoma it will take a fast start in a double-elimination weekend. If the Gators are able to win their first two in Stillwater, someone will have to beat them twice. Odds are very favorable for teams that win their first two in regional matchups to advance to the super regional round. Gator notes: This is the 16th consecutive year the Gators have made an NCAA regional, second nationally only to Vanderbilt … For UF coach Kevin O’Sullivan, this makes 25 consecutive years in the postseason, nine at Clemson and 16 at UF. Stillwater regional Friday 3 p.m. FLORIDA (28-27) vs. Nebraska (39-20) Friday 7 p.m. Oklahoma State (40-17) vs. Niagara (38-15) Walter Clayton Jr. will return for his senior season at UF (Gator Bait Photo by Chris Spears) UF BASKETBALL: Clayton makes it official that he’s returning As reported here last week, Walter Clayton Jr. will be back at UF for his senior year after going through the NBA Draft process. A couple of days ago, Will Richard also announced he would be back after testing the draft waters. With Clayton (17.6 points per game) and Richard (11.4) returning and Alijah Martin (13.9) transferring in from Florida Atlantic where he was the leading scorer on the Owls’ 2023 Final Four team, Todd Golden will once again have one of the best perimeter units in the country. At the Ocala Tipoff Club gathering last week, Golden said he expects significant contributions from a much improved Denzel Aberdeen and freshman Isaiah Brown from Orlando Christian Prep. Golden dipped into the transfer portal to bring in bigs Rueben Chinyelu from Washington State and Sam Alexis from Chattanooga. Chinyelu, a 7-footer with a 7-8 standing reach, was the top shot blocker in the Pac-12 as a true freshman last season while Alexis is a big time rebounder who averaged 10.9 points and 9.1 rebounds at Chattanooga last season. Golden is also bringing in 7-6 Olivier Rioux as a walk-on from IMG Academy. Because he wanted to reclassify so he could come to UF a year early, Golden offered him a spot as a walk-on. He needs work but you can’t teach tall. With those guys joining rising sophomores Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh, Golden believes the Gators will be able to compensate for the losses of All-SEC Tyrese Samuel, who ran out of eligibility, and Micah Handlogten, who will take a medical redshirt. “We should be improved defensively and we should be able to play big and fast,” Golden told the Ocala meeting. The Gators are expected to be a top 25-ranked team in the fall. Currently, ESPN has Florida at No. 15 in its too early top 25 while CBS has UF at No. 21. Big guys (6): * Micah Handlogten (7-1, 235, JR); Sam Alexis (6-9, 240, JR/TR); Alex Condon (6-11, 230, SO); Thomas Haugh (6-9, 215, SO); Rueben Chinyelu (7-0, 250, SO/TR); ** Olivier Rioux (7-6, 300, FR) * Will redshirt 2024-25 ** Preferred walk-on Perimeter (6): Will Richard (6-4, 206, SR); Walter Clayton Jr. (6-2, 195, SR); Alijah Martin (6-2, 190, SR/TR); Denzel Aberdeen (6-5, 190, JR); Kaijus Kublickas (6-2, 175, SO); Isaiah Brown (6-5, 190, FR) Jenny Rowland will have a stacked UF gymnastics roster for 2025 (Gator Bait Photo by Chris Spears) UF GYMNASTICS: Selena Harris transfers to UF Jenny Rowland has knocked on the NCAA gymnastics championship door several times in recent years. In 2025 she may have a team that rather than knocking, kicks the door down. The Gators were already going to be one of the favorites to win their first NCAA championships since the threepeat year of 2015 but Monday brought the news that Pac-12 Gymnast of the Year Selena Harris is transferring to Florida with two years of eligibility remaining. A 12-time All-American, Harris was ranked No. 1 on the vault last year when she scored four perfect 10s. Harris will be joining a Florida lineup that includes Leanne Wong, twice a member of gold medal US national teams, 2023 world all-around silver medalist and 2024 NCAA uneven bars champ; 2024 freshman All-American Anya Pilgrim; 2023 All-American Sloane Blakely and outstanding freshmen Danie Feris, Skylar Draser and Gabby Disidore. The Florida lineup will be buoyed by the return of 2023 All-American Kayla DiCielo, who took the year off to prep for the Olympics, and former national team member Riley McCusker, who took a medical redshirt. Skye Blakely and Shilese Jones will also be joining the program immediately after competing for the US national team at the Olympics. Oft-injured former world all-around champion Morgan Hurd could also be back. ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: I have never been much into playing the what if game, but I have always wondered what if when it comes to the basketball careers of Pete Maravich, who passed away in 1988, and Bill Walton, who died Monday after a protracted battle with cancer. Three things always stood out with Pete. First, he only got to play three years of college basketball because freshmen were ineligible in those days but he still scored 3,667 points while averaging 44.2 per game in only 83 collegiate games. Second, there was no 3-point shot in those days. LSU coach Dale Brown used computer enhancement of the film of every college game Pete played, concluding he would have averaged more than 55 a game had there been a 3-point shot. Third, only half of Pete’s heart worked. Instead of four functioning valves he only had two. How much stronger and quicker would he have been? How much more stamina? With Bill Walton, what if there had been in his day the shoe technology and the surgical advances that we have today. Walton was 7-1, not the 6-11 he was listed. He insisted on being listed 6-11 because he thought people think of 7-footers as freaks. He weighed 250 pounds and had very narrow feet for a man his size. His feet and ankles were not at all conducive to the kind of pounding they took on a basketball floor, but the shoes weren’t nearly as supportive or cushiony then and the surgical techniques not nearly as advanced. I wonder what kind of career Bill Walton could have had. I got to know Pete when I was with the Savannah News-Press and he was with the Atlanta Hawks, whose training camp was in Savannah in those days. When Julius Erving tried to bolt the ABA in the summer of 1974, he signed a contract with the Hawks. Fast breaks with Dr. J on one side of Pete and Lou Hudson on the other were a thing of beauty. Watching those three in action made me appreciate just how unselfish and how incredible Pete was with the ball in his hands. Bill Walton came along after Pete left LSU for the NBA. He led UCLA to the 1971 and 1972 NCAA titles. I was at the 1973 national championship game when Walton scored 44 points, hitting 21 of his 22 shots. Greg Lee would just flip the ball up to the rim and Bill would go get it. There were no dunks allowed then but the alley-oop minus the dunk was a thing of beauty. I got to meet Bill in person in St. Louis in December of 1973 when UCLA and North Carolina State had a highly-publicized showdown game. I was with the Rocky Mount (NC) Telegram at the time. UCLA was working on an 88-game winning streak and NC State was unbeaten in 1973 but unable to participate in the NCAA Tournament due to probation. It was touted as Bill Walton vs. David Thompson. UCLA and Bill Walton won the game, in part because David Thompson didn’t shoot well and Walton dominated Tommy Burleson. The real star of that game was David Meyers. In the locker room post game, Bill was shy except when it came to talking about his teammates. That was the first understanding I really had of Bill Walton’s unselfishness. He really was all about the team. We met again in the UCLA locker room on the Friday before the 1974 NCAA Tournament semifinal with North Carolina State in Greensboro. Bill recognized me and smiled, said a few words about basketball but was more interested in talking about his favorite band, the Grateful Dead. I had a roommate who had the entire Dead record collection so I knew a lot of the songs. When Bill discovered I knew the song “Uncle John’s Band” and the Dead’s version of the Merle Haggard classic “Mama Tried,” he lit up. The next day in double overtime, North Carolina State ended UCLA’s 7-year run of national championships. Bill had 29 points and 18 rebounds, but North Carolina State got 28 from Thompson, 20 points and 14 rebounds from Burleson, and 12 points including four clutch free throws from 5-6 Monte Towe, an All-American and one-day University of Florida assistant coach under Norm Sloan. After the loss to North Carolina State I didn’t go into the UCLA locker room, but a friend who did told me that Walton was just devastated and seemed to put the entire blame of losing on his own shoulders. Walton had a brilliant 1977 when he led the Portland Trailblazers to the NBA title. Bill was at the 2006 NCAA Final Four when UCLA was beaten by Florida in the championship game. I was able to listen in when he was asked some questions before the game when he arrived with a contingent of former UCLA greats. Someone mentioned that Walton’s teammate with the Boston Celtics, Larry Bird, might be coming to the championship game at which time, Bill talked about how fun it was to play with the Celtics, who were the embodiment of unselfish play. Unselfish. That’s how I remember Pete Maravich. That is also how I will remember Bill Walton. Both of them were among the greatest players of all time, but they were both unselfish and loved being on a team where they could blend their talents in with teammates.

Keagan Rothrock (7) gets an ice bath after Florida's 5-3 win over Baylor for Gainesville Super Regional title (UAA Photo) Trust was put to the test in the top half of the seventh inning Sunday afternoon in the third and deciding game of the NCAA Gainesville Super Regional. Florida held a shaky 5-3 lead but Baylor had two on, one out and the very intimidating Shaylon Govan stepping to the plate to face Keagan Rothrock. A day earlier with two runners on in the top of the first, Govan sent a Rothrock pitch into orbit, pacing Baylor to a 5-2 win over the Gators to force game three. Tim Walton pondered his options. He could walk Govan but that would load the bases and bring to the plate Aliyah Binford, who had blasted a home run off Rothrock on Friday. He could let Rothrock pitch to the Baylor slugger, who had ripped a line shot single to left center field in the top of the first and hit a deep fly ball to right in the fifth. Confident that Rothrock could get the job done, pitching coach Chelsea Dobbins voted to pitch to Govan. Walton trusted his coach and trusted Rothrock. On the sixth pitch of the at-bat, Govan hit a screamer to left field that looked good enough to clear the fence but it died in the glove of Korbe Otis just a couple feet shy of a home run. The moment the ball left the bat Walton admitted he was “okay, but Charla Echols punched me in my ribs. She goes, oh, and she got mad like she thought it was out, and it was topspin. So yeah, it was definitely … if she would have hit the home run, I think everybody in the country would have said the same thing that I would have said, how do you let their best hitter beat you? But we just went … I went with Chelsea's guide on that, that she felt like she could keep her in the ballpark.” Two down when Otis squeezed the hard liner to left. That still left Binford, a very dangerous hitter with power. Binford worked the count full then got a pitch on her fists that was popped to Avery Goelz at first base. Game over. Series over. Gators (51-13) move on to the Women’s College World Series with a 5-3 win over Baylor (36-23). This win had everything to do with trust and not just the trust Walton showed when he heeded Dobbins’ advice. After the loss Saturday, Walton said bouncing back would be all about trust. “You've got to trust,” Walton said. “You've got to trust yourself. You've got to trust your teammates. You've got to trust the process. And most importantly, you've got to trust your team.” To start with on Sunday, Walton trusted Rothrock (30-7). He yanked her with nobody out in the first Saturday after Govan did a 3-run, sub-orbital job. Ava Brown pitched very well in relief after taking over for Rothrock Saturday, so she was certainly an option on Sunday. Rothrock was the Sunday option, however, and that had been the plan all along. In Walton’s way of thinking, it was a no-brainer. “The plan was Keagan was going to start all three games so why are we going to leave her in a three-nothing game we can bring her back if we score more runs, which I was fully prepared for that,” Walton said, adding, “The kid pitches Friday night and Sunday night all the way through the SEC, and Sundays have been her best starts of the season.” Rothrock didn’t let him down. She gave up an unearned run in the top of the fourth and a 2-run homer to right field by Emily Hitt in the fifth. Walton was willing to live with the home run. It was simply a pitch whose location was off a little bit to a hitter who had done no damage in the previous two games. “I think she only got maybe one hit on the weekend or something like that,” Walton said. Mia Williams crosses home plate after her second inning home run (UAA Photo) Trust extended to Florida’s hitters, who struggled with the offspeed offerings of RyLee Crandall on Saturday. Walton wanted his hitters to lay off the offspeed stuff to force Crandall to throw hard stuff over the plate. From the outset, Walton had a pretty good idea that his hitters would follow the new script. Instead of lunging and tapping weakly at offspeed offerings, Falby waited out Crandall to draw a leadoff walk. A force out later, Skylar Wallace drilled a single up the middle that sent Korbe Otis to third with Wallace taking second on the throw. Jocelyn Erickson hit a fly ball to right that scored Otis and moved Wallace to third. Reagan Walsh ripped a ball past third base to drive home Wallace for a 2-0 lead. In the second, the Gators increased the lead to 4-0. Ariel Kowalewski led off with a single to left. Mia Williams tried to bunt Kowalewski over but the ball caught a piece of her foot in the batter’s box before trickling onto the field. Strike two on a hitter with a .175 batting average. Crandall tried to blow a pitch by Williams for a strikeout, but Williams hammered it to center field for her seventh home run of the season. This, too, was all about trust. “Yeah, I just think going back to my approach before the game, just trusting in a plan was really important in that moment, and I think that's exactly what I did,” Williams said. “So I think good things come when you have trust in your plan and yourself.” The Gators seemed on the verge of a third inning rally that could have blown the game open when they loaded the bases with nobody out. Ava Brown drew an apparent walk to force in Florida’s fifth run, but Baylor challenged that Katie Kistler had left the base too early. The replay booth confirmed that Kistler left early so she was out at second and Brown was back in the batter’s box. Brown drew ball four on the next pitch, but she was caught napping on first when Williams lined a ball back to the pitcher, who flipped to first for an inning ending double play. The Gators wouldn’t score again until the bottom of the fifth when two walks and a fielder’s choice loaded the bases. Kowalewski hit a deep fly ball to center field that scored Erickson from first for a 2-run cushion. That left the final two innings to Rothrock, who gave up a sixth inning single and then a single and a walk in the seventh before closing out Florida’s 12th-ever trip to the Women’s College World Series. It was one more championship game pitched by Rothrock, who has been winning them in the circle since she was a kid. This one, however, was special. “I think this one’s one a lot harder to do and two, a lot more special because everybody kind of knows you anyway with film," Rothrock said. "And I think that also just kind of makes it all the more sweeter just because you have to work hard, you have to scout the other team, and just kind of go in with the mindset, like, we've got this and we can do it.” This was a very satisfying win for Walton, who has won 51 games this season with a completely rebuilt pitching staff. Walton didn’t return anyone who had pitched to even one batter in 2023. Additionally, there are 11 new players on the roster. Gators are off to the Women's College World Series for the 12th time since Tim Walton became head coach (UAA Photo) It wasn’t a complete rebuild, but it was close and yet the Gators won the SEC Tournament, a regional and a super regional while taking 13 of their last 15 games. Even with all that momentum, the Saturday loss caused Walton and his assistants burned the midnight oil asking how they could do a better job as coaches. “All four of us stayed after a long time last night, just talking about not, you know, as people, coaches, players. You know, we just sat upstairs – actually downstairs, then upstairs – for a long time. We just talked about how can we be part of the solution, not part of the problem. You know, why are we going to blame someone for acting a little out of character? Why are we going to blame someone for poor pitch selection? We went back and watched the film to see the accuracy of the strike zone and all the other things just so you can continue to coach up your players the right way. I thought we did a really good job of that yesterday. And then this morning we pushed the reset button, met with each one of our hitters pregame, met with our entire team, and just talked about what it's going to take for us to ... I think it's 81 percent of all teams who win the first game march on to the College World Series, but I know that percentage goes way down to probably less than 50 percent when you lose the second game. I'm not perfect on that math, but I know it's not easy. And so, long and short, I thought we did a really good job of getting our players to kind of reset and get back to who they were.” The reset worked enough that the Gators navigated a tough ball game and won a super regional that no one would have dared predict a month ago. SEC softball scores Sunday’s games Gainesville: FLORIDA (51-13) 5, Baylor (36-23) 3; Florida wins series, 2-1 Austin: Texas (52-8) 6, Texas A&M (44-15) 5; Texas wins series, 2-1 Knoxville: Alabama (37-18) 4, Tennessee (44-12) 1; Alabama wins series, 2-1 Columbia: Duke (52-8) 4, Missouri (48-18) 3, 9 innings; Duke wins series, 2-1 Stanford: Stanford (47-15) 8, LSU (44-16) 0; Stanford wins series, 2-1 Women’s College World Series Thursday’s games 12 p.m. UCLA (42-10) vs. Alabama (37-18) 2:30 p.m. Oklahoma (54-6) vs. Duke (52-8) 7 p.m. Texas (52-8) vs. Stanford (47-15) 9:30 p.m. FLORIDA (51-13) vs. Oklahoma State (49-10)

Despite facing the toughest schedule in the nation, the Gators managed to secure a spot in the postseason after a challenging season where they will be traveling to Stillwater in the Oklahoma State regional. It was thought by some Florida may get another crack at Florida State and be in the Tallahassee regional, but Stetson won their conference tournament and grabbed that four spot.

Skylar Wallace slid safely into second with a first inning stolen base (UAA Photo) Two days into a steady diet of offspeed pitches that have clearly thrown off the timing of his hitters, Tim Walton has a very simple solution to what ails Florida’s hitters. “It doesn't take perfect swings or perfect outcome to hit the ball hard, line drives are the key,” Walton said Saturday afternoon after the Gators dropped a 5-2 decision to Baylor that evened up the Gainesville NCAA Super Regional at 1-1, setting the stage for a winner-take-all encounter at 2 p.m. today. The Gators hit the ball hard but too often right at people Friday when they beat the Bears, 4-2. Five hits were all the Gators (50-13) needed to win game one. They got only five hits Saturday. Other than the three rockets Skylar Wallace hit for singles and the home run that Reagan Walsh hit down the left field line in the second, there weren’t that many hard hit balls. Credit to Baylor for robbing the Gators of three hits with brilliant defensive plays Saturday, but it’s not like the Gators lacked opportunities to score runs and put the pressure on the Bears (36-22). Baylor’s Rylee Crandall (18-7) says she just followed the analytics, threw to the location her pitching coach signaled and mixed up speeds. Basically, it’s the same thing Aliyah Binford did on Friday. Baylor’s pitchers have been good. The Bears might be the best defensive team the Gators have played all year. Still, Walton insists it’s less about the Bears than it is about the Gators and it really isn’t about all the offspeed pitches the Bears are throwing, either. “The pitch sequence isn't the issue,” Walton said. “It's being able to understand the part of the ball that you want to hit. I think that's always the key is deciding drop, change, rise change, screw, change. Just being able to understand the leverage point to where you're going to be. “I don't really feel like the pitches are as important as the confidence, the trust, the ability to follow the pathway of your body and your eyes to get to the barrel. We've got to just get more line drives. I think that's the goal, just more line drives.” The Gators got a two-out single and a stolen base from Wallace in the top of the first, but Crandall got Jocelyn Erickson to ground an offspeed pitch to second to end the inning. Baylor found obvious inspiration when Gators failed to draw first blood in the top of the first. In their half of the inning, the Bears made a statement of their own when the first two hitters reached base on a walk and a single followed by a monstrous homer to left center by Shaylon Govan. That sent Walton to the circle, starting pitcher Keagan Rothrock (29-7) to the dugout and brought in Ava Brown to go the rest of the way. Brown more than held her own against the Baylor lineup. She gave up a second inning run on a 2-out wild pitch and a seventh inning run on a single, a hit batter, a bunt single and a sacrifice fly. Outside of those first three hitters in the first inning, pitching wasn’t Florida’s problem. Getting key hits was. In the Florida half of the third, Korbe Otis reached on a 1-out walk and Wallace drilled a single straight up the middle, but Crandall cooled off the threat with back-to-back strikeouts of Erickson and Walsh. Florida cut the lead to 4-2 in the fifth. Pinch-hitter Baylee Goddard led off the inning by beating out an infield grounder. After consecutive ground outs by Kendra Falby and Korbe Otis, Wallace delivered her third hit of the day, an RBI single pulled to the right of an infield shifted to take away anything up the middle. There was no rally to be had, however, because Crandall got Erickson to ground into an easy force at second on a 1-0 count. There would be no further chances for the Gators as Crandall set down the final six batters to force game three for a shot at the Women’s College World Series. The loss snapped a 12-game winning streak that dated back to April 28. The day before the Gators melted down in a game two loss to Georgia, but they bounced on Sunday with a 10-7 win over the Bulldogs. In all but two of the 12 wins, Florida’s ability to hit the ball and score runs was the critical factor in the equation. Now, the Gators are charged with bouncing back after two subpar offensive showings in a row. Walton seemed confident the Gators will respond. “We've done it all year,” he said. “This has not been an easy year. We won 50 games, but there were plenty of times this team had an opportunity to roll over and die. They just always found a way to continue to pass the bat and continue to get better. It's been an offensive team. Let's be honest. We've been an offensive team all year. We scored six runs in two games. In my mind, it's not enough. We need to score more runs. That'll be the goal.” And just how do the Gators achieve that goal. Certainly, they have to hit the ball better than they have either of their two games with Baylor, but Walton says there is more to it than just hitting. “It's about what you think,” he said. “It's about what you feel. It's about your heart. And it's about your trust. You've got to trust. You've got to trust yourself. You've got to trust your teammates. You've got to trust the process. And most importantly, you've got to trust your team. I think that's the message.” Gator notes: In the month of May, Skylar Wallace has raised her batting average 55 points to .423. Wallace is 22-35 in May, a sizzling .629 with six doubles, five home runs and 24 RBI … In SEC Tournament and NCAA play, Wallace is 16-21 (.762) with four home runs and 17 RBI … Walsh’s home run was her team-leading 17thof the season … Falby, who leads off and gets the UF offense jump started, is just 5-29 in Florida’s last eight games. Her last multi-hit game was on May 5 against Texas A&M … Walton gave no indication who pitches Sunday, whether it’s Brown (15-5) or Rothrock (29-7). Baylor is likely to go with both Crandall and Binford (13-12). SEC in the NCAA Super Regionals Gainesville: Baylor (36-22) 5, FLORIDA (50-13) 2; series even at 1-1 Austin: Texas (51-8) 9, Texas A&M (43-14) 8, 9 innings; series even at 1-1 Knoxville: Alabama (36-18) 3, Tennessee (44-11) 2, 14 innings; series even at 1-1 Columbia: Missouri (48-17) 3, Duke (51-7) 1; series even at 1-1 Stanford: Stanford (47-15) 3, LSU (44-15) 0; series even at 1-1

Katie Kistler launches 2-run double in first inning vs. Baylor (Photo by Chris Spears) The Baylor Bears intended to send a loud and clear message in the top of the first inning Friday afternoon. They bunched three hits, pushed across a run and loaded the bases before Florida’s Keagan Rothrock could escape further damage on a third out fly ball to left field that Korbe Otis hauled in just shy of the fence. Baylor came to play and that 1-0 lead announced to the crowd shoehorned into Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium that they weren’t the least bit impressed with the 4th-seeded Gators. Baylor landed the first punch. It was time for Florida to respond. With one out in the bottom half of the inning, Korbe Otis was hit with a pitch, Skylar Wallace walked and Jocelyn Erickson slapped a double down the left field line that scored Otis to tie the game. One out later, Katie Kistler lined a two-run double into the left center field gap to put the Gators ahead for good, 3-1. Take a punch. Counter punch. Florida’s counter was a staggering body blow. “We get punched in the face and we punch back twice,” Walton said after the 4th-seeded Gators scored a methodical 4-2 win over Baylor in game one of the NCAA Gainesville Super Regional. “I’m really pleased with that mentality.” Florida’s response resonated well with Rothrock. That first inning was teetering on the verge of disaster shaky, but the counter punch spoke volumes. Baylor did get one run back on Aliyah Binder’s third inning home run that hit the left field foul pole, but the Bears never had more than one runner on base the rest of the way. While improving to 29-6 on the season, Rothrock scattered six hits, struck out five and went the last six innings without issuing a walk. It was an impressive outing, but she wasn’t at all pleased with the way she started the game. “Because I gave up a run, not cool,” Rothrock said. The 2022 Gatorade National Player of the Year at Roncalli High School in Indianapolis, Rothrock is accustomed to pitching in big games and winning championships. When she was in high school, any time she needed an out she could dial up an untouchable fast ball. Having to deal with the compartment syndrome has affected her leg drive, which, in turn, has affected her velocity. Now it’s all about location and spin. “She’s a spin kid,” Walton said. “Her spin stuff is stupid, and so she's lost a little bit of that just because of the way her impact in the ground. But long story short, yeah, it looks like a blow-up by you, but her 66 with the best spin you've ever seen looks like 100 sometimes.” Part of the ongoing process in Rothrock’s transition from strikeout dominant to pitch to contact has been the trust she has developed with teammates. She knows they’re capable of scoring however many runs necessary to win a game, whether that’s a low scoring affair or a wild one like that 15-13 win over Florida State in Tallahassee. Saturday wasn’t a vintage day at the plate for the Gators, whose only other run came in the bottom of the fifth when Korbe Otis golfed a home run over the left field fence, her ninth big fly of the season. That run was insurance and Rothrock didn’t need much. You wouldn’t call her performance dominating, but it was efficient. The defense worked well behind her and Baylor couldn’t mount threats after the first inning. Walton’s message to Rothrock, “You don’t have to be perfect. Just make the pitches. Give us your best effort and I think that’s all we ask for.” The Gators can punch their ticket to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series today at 11 a.m. when they face Baylor in game two. Record-setting Wallace: Skylar Wallace scored for the 86th time this season to become the all-time NCAA leader with 303. Her 86 runs leads the nation. “To score that many runs tells you how good she is and how many times she's been on base, but I think one of the coolest things about that, too, is it takes somebody else to drive her in,” Walton said. “With the exception of the South Florida, maybe another game where she stole second and somehow scored on her own on a wild throw, she's relied upon her teammates to set that record. I'm proud of her. It's a tremendous accomplishment.” Wallace went 1-2 for the game, raising her batting average to .413. She also stole her 35th base of the year. SEC softball scores Gainesville regional: FLORIDA (50-12) 4, Baylor (35-22) 2; Florida leads best-of-3 series, 1-0 Austin regional: Texas A&M (43-13) 6, Texas (50-8) 5; Texas A&M leads best-of-3 series, 1-0 Knoxville regional: Tennessee (44-10) 3, Alabama (35-18) 2; Tennessee leads best-of-3 series, 1-0 Los Angeles regional: UCLA (42-10). Georgia (43-19) X; UCLA wins series, 2-0. Columbia regional: Duke (51-6) 6, Missouri (47-17) 3; Duke leads best-of-3 series, 1-0 Stanford regional: LSU (44-15) 11, Stanford (46-15) 1; Series tied, 1-1 UF LACROSSE: Gators fall in NCAA semifinals to Northwestern, 15-11 At the end of the third quarter Friday, the Gators (20-3) trailed No. 1 Northwestern, 10-9. A weather delay of 54 minutes ensued and when the game resumed, the Gators had lost their momentum. Outscored, 5-2, in the final quarter, the Gators saw their season come to an end, 15-11, to Northwestern. Maggi Hall led the Gators with five goals while Danielle Pavinelli scored three goals and had two assists. The Gators set a school record for wins (20) and winning streak (20). The Gators set school records for goals (405) and assists (204). UF MEN’S GOLF: Gators in 8th after one round at NCAA After one round of the NCAA Golf Championships in Carlsbad, California, the Gators are sitting in eighth place, seven shots over par and five shots behind first round leader Virginia. John Dubois shot a 3-under par 69, which is tied for third place among individuals. Matthew Turner was 1-over and is tied for 25th. UF BASEBALL: Gators continue to be projected in NCAA field Both D1Baseball and Baseball America project the Gators will make the NCAA tournament field of 64 teams when bids and seedings are announced Monday. D1Baseball has the Gators going to Tallahassee where the No. 9 national seed Florida State will host (2) Southern Miss, (3) Florida and (4) Florida A&M. Baseball America has the Gators also in Tallahassee where the Seminoles are the No. 11 national seed followed by (2) Southern Miss, (3) Florida and (4) Florida Gulf Coast. SEC Tournament Friday scores South Carolina (36-22) 6, No. 2 Kentucky (40-14) 5; Kentucky eliminated No. 1 Tennessee (48-11) 6; No. 15 Mississippi State (38-21) 5; Mississippi State eliminated Saturday semifinals South Carolina (36-22) vs. LSU (39-20) No. 1 Tennessee (47-11) vs. Vanderbilt (39-20)

Korbe Otis gestures to the Florida dugout after stealing vs. South Alabama (Photo by Chris Spears) A few thoughts to jump start your Friday morning: There will be a day in the future when Korbe Otis is opening up a chest to operate on someone’s heart or maybe repair the knee of some young woman who also plays softball. The junior from Littleton, Colorado dreams big dreams. For now, however, the dream is to help the Florida Gators (49-12) not only return to the Women’s College World Series but bring home the Gators’ first NCAA championship since they did it back-to-back in 2014-15. Otis, a first team All-SEC outfielder who is a finalist for national player of the year, comes into today’s (12 noon, ESPN2) NCAA Super Regional game with Baylor (34-21) fourth nationally in hitting (.462) and No. 1 in on-base percentage (.592). With a first five in the hitting order of Kendra Falby (.391, 84 hits, 19 SB), Otis, Skylar Wallace (.412, 14 HR, 66 RBI, 35 SB), Jocelyn Erickson (.391, 13 HR, 78 RBI) and Reagan Walsh (.373, 16 HR, 61 RBI), the Gators tend to score runs in bunches. Of the Gators’ 49 wins, 28 have been of the run-rule variety. When it comes to the explosiveness of this offense, Otis says, “Like we’ve said before, it’s not a question of if, it’s when and who’s going to get the big hit. It’s really amazing to play with.” Otis spent her first two years at Louisville before transferring to Florida. In her first year with the Gators she has become one of the nation’s most dangerous hitters with 12 doubles, five triples, eight homers and 52 RBI. She has walked 55 times and has struck out only 14. She came to Florida with the goal of making All-America, getting to the College World Series and winning a national championship with the ultimate goal of “getting the best education I can to set me up for life later on.” Serious stuff, but there is a not so serious side that has endeared Otis to teammates. It is her obsession with Elvis. She offers a glimpse when she steps to the plate. Her walk-up song is “Trouble” by Elvis. That’s a carryover from her time at Louisville. “I feel like if I walked up to the plate with anything else it would seem really weird at this point … now it’s become kind of iconic, I guess,” Otis said Thursday. She has been known to show up in the Florida locker room in an Elvis costume. Before she surprised her teammates, the Elvis costume had to pass muster with Erickson, the SEC Player of the Year and Oklahoma transfer who is her roommate. “When I first saw it I was like, oh, yes, Korbe, like you’re doing this,” Erickson said. “It’s happening.” It isn’t just the Elvis costume that’s happening. It’s Otis. It’s the Gators, winners of their last 11 games and 12 of their last 13. Like the walk-up song, Otis and the Gators are trouble for whoever gets in their way. Todd Golden spoke to the Ocala Tip-Off Club Thursday night (Photo by Chris Spears) UF BASKETBALL: Gators will fill final two roster spots with younger guys Speaking at the Ocala Tip-Off Club Thursday night at the Golden Hills Country Club, Florida coach Todd Golden said the Gators will be adding two younger players rather than two more from the transfer portal in response to a question about the final two open scholarships. Golden said the Gators will be looking to add one perimeter player as well as one more big guy. One or both might be international players. A few other tidbits from the UF coach: Indications are that Walter Clayton Jr. and Will Richard will be announcing they will be returning to UF for their senior seasons next week. Both have gone through the NBA Draft evaluation process and have until Wednesday of next week to declare their intentions. Clayton was Florida’s leading scorer last season, averaging 17.6 per game, while Richard averaged 11.4. Micah Handlogten continues to make good progress in rehabbing his fractured leg. To avoid trying to come back too soon from the horrific compound fracture suffered in the SEC Tournament championship game against Auburn, Handlogten will be taking a redshirt next season. Golden expects Handlogten to strengthen and be a real beast in the paint for the 2025-26 season. Golden said he wants his team to be improved defensively next season. He pointed out that the Gators averaged a school record 86 points per game last season while playing “big and fast” but added that he expects the Gators to be “bigger and faster” in 2024-25. Golden is very high on the three transfers (6-2 Alijah Martin from Florida Atlantic; 7-0 Rueben Chinyelu from Washington State; 6-9 Sam Alexis from Chattanooga) and he really likes incoming freshman Isaiah Brown (6-5, 190) from Orlando Christian Prep. A potential starting lineup for the Gators: 7-0 Chinyelu; 6-11 Alex Condon; 6-2 Martin, 6-2 Clayton and 6-4 Richard. Expected to make a huge jump in both playing time and productivity: Denzel Aberdeen. Golden foresees Aberdeen getting serious minutes at the point while also helping on the wing. Interesting recruiting story: Golden tried to land Chinyelu as a freshman, but the big Nigerian instead signed with Washington State, coached by Kyle Smith, now the Stanford coach, but one of Golden’s mentors. Golden worked for Smith at Columbia and San Francisco. While trying to recruit Chinyelu, who was playing for the NBA Africa Academy, Golden started watching Alex Condon, who would go on to sign with the Gators. Now, both Condon and Chinyelu are Gators and expected to be starters. Another recruiting story: Thomas Haugh, who had an excellent freshman season along with Condon, who is his best friend and roommate now, was being recruited to Richmond by Kevin Hovde, who joined the UF staff when Golden became the head coach two years ago. Golden discovered that Florida was Haugh’s dream school and that his room in his home in Pennsylvania was almost a Gator shrine complete with photos, posters etc. of Tim Tebow. Golden already was involved in serious discussions with four Southeastern Conference schools for their head coach vacancies when UF athletic director Scott Stricklin contacted him. Golden said he immediately told Jonathan Safire, who came with him to Florida and serves as “my GM,” that if Stricklin offered him the job he would take it. Golden said he has believed in Florida’s potential to be an elite national program. He said he first started following the Gators during their back-to-back national championship seasons (2006-07) when he was playing collegiately at Saint Mary’s. UF LACROSSE: Gators face No. 1 Northwestern in NCAA semifinals It has been 12 years since Florida made it to the NCAA semifinals. Today, the Gators (20-2) have a chance to do what no UF team has ever done. With a win over No. 1 Northwestern (17-2) this afternoon (3 p.m., ESPNU), the Gators can advance to the national championship game as only the third unseeded team in tournament history to make the finals. The Gators are the hottest team in the country with 20 consecutive wins during which time they have outscored opponents by an average of 11.5 goals per game. The offense has been exceptional, but what has propelled the Gators to the semifinals has been great defense. Florida is allowing only 8.33 goals per game during the streak while holding opponents to .280 shooting in NCAA Tournament play. Florida is the highest scoring team in the country (17.9 per game) while Northwestern comes in at No. 2. Florida has nine players who have scored 20 or more goals this season led by Maggi Hall (60) and Danielle Pavinelli (54). UF BASEBALL: Gators a No. 3 seed in Tallahassee? In their Thursday field of 64 projections, Baseball America had the Gators (28-27) going to Tallahassee as the No. 3 seed in the regional hosted by Florida State. Southern Miss is No. 3 with Stetson as the No. 4 in this bracketology. Baseball America projects 11 SEC teams will make the tournament field with Tennessee (1), Texas A&M (3), Kentucky (4), Arkansas (5) and Georgia (8) earning top eight seeds with Mississippi State (15) also hosting a regional. The other SEC teams making the field are Alabama (No. 3 Clemson Regional); LSU (No. 3 UC-Santa Barbara Regional); Vanderbilt (No. 2 Indiana State Regional) and South Carolina (No. 2 North Carolina State Regional). SEC Tournament Thursday’s games: No. 2 Kentucky (40-13) 9, No. 5 Arkansas (43-14) 6; No. 1 Tennessee (47-11) 7, No. 4 Texas A&M (44-13) 4; LSU (39-20) 11, South Carolina (35-22) 10; Vanderbilt (38-20) 4, No. 15 Mississippi State (38-20) 3 Friday’s games:  4 p.m. No. 2 Kentucky (40-13) vs. South Carolina (35-22); 7:30 p.m. No. 1 Tennessee (47-11) vs. No. 15 Mississippi State (38-20) MORE ON RASHADA: One prominent attorney’s take on the lawsuit Hal Lewis, a prominent Tallahassee attorney with the firm Fonvielle, Lewis, Messer and McConnaugh, examined the lawsuit against Billy Napier brought on by Jadan Rashada and his lawyer, Rusty Hardin. Here is a tweet posted by Lewis that outwardly questions the legality of the suit against Napier: “REMEMBER: The only WRITTEN agreement that ever existed was between "Jaden Rashada" and "The Gator Collective LLC." Yet, that LLC is NOT being sued? The actual individuals being sued were NOT parties to the agreement. There's the problem for Rashada, since people unaffiliated with a company cannot somehow bind or speak for the company. And once that written agreement was terminated on December 6th, everything became oral. Billy Napier can't make a promise to anyone that verbally binds a non-UF entity (Hugh Hathcock and his company) to fulfill a monetary obligation. That's ludicrous... and any lawyer would have told Rashada so. Which is why the lawsuit has to claim that Napier and Hathcock were "conspiring" to NEVER pay Rashada but only to trick him into signing. Think about how ridiculous this is. Napier would have LOVED for the deal to go through so that he could sign a top ranked QB when he desperately needed one. It makes NO SENSE at all to allege that Napier didn't intend for it to happen. The only WRITTEN agreement that ever existed was between "Jaden Rashada" and "The Gator Collective LLC." Yet, that LLC is NOT being sued? The actual individuals being sued were NOT parties to the agreement. There's the problem for Rashada, since people unaffiliated with a company cannot somehow bind or speak for the company. And once that written agreement was terminated on December 6th, everything became oral. Billy Napier can't make a promise to anyone that verbally binds a non-UF entity (Hugh Hathcock and his company) to fulfill a monetary obligation. That's ludicrous... and any lawyer would have told Rashada so. Which is why the lawsuit has to claim that Napier and Hathcock were "conspiring" to NEVER pay Rashada but only to trick him into signing. Think about how ridiculous this is. Napier would have LOVED for the deal to go through so that he could sign a top ranked QB when he desperately needed one. It makes NO SENSE at all to allege that Napier didn't intend for it to happen.” ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The five power conferences – or should we say the four and 1/16th (Pac-12 is now the Pac-2) – have signed off on an agreement that opens the door for players to be legally paid and for former players to receive compensation for their efforts when paying players wasn’t legal. It is complicated and while this is thought to be a major step, it’s not the end of the litigation. There are other lawsuits out there and we have no idea what the government will do about Title IX. Essentially this new deal is only scratching the surface of dealing with the issues that will define the future of collegiate athletics. The biggest question of all is how long will the NCAA be able to stay in business? The lawsuits aren’t going to end and the cost of litigation is going to be draining the organization of energy, the ability to effectively govern and of course, the finances. There isn’t a single plan out there capable of addressing all the problems of the NCAA, but tossing the NCAA in favor of a new organization led by business people and not academics would be a pleasant beginning.

A few thoughts to jump start your Thursday morning: It was business as usual at the Florida football complex on Wednesday. Other than dealing with the aftermath of freshman defensive tackle Michai Boireau having to post $60,000 bond after spending a couple of days in the Monroe County, Georgia pokey for driving a teensy bit over the speed limit and a few other things, widespread panic was not settling in at The Heav. Boireau will be dealt with by both police and Billy Napier. Among other things, he’s charged with reckless driving, driving on a suspended or revoked license, driving 150 or so miles per hour while trying to elude police who were in hot pursuit and crashing his BMW into another car, which caused a serious injury. There was no widespread panic at The Heav over Boireau or the lawsuit by Jaden Rashada. Boireau will pay a price for having his brain jammed in neutral while driving a car and it’s likely his arrest guarantees a redshirt year in which he will have a chance to trim 30 or 40 pounds of excess from his ample body. If Rashada attorney Rusty Hardin or Georgia coach Kirby Smart, who gave the lawsuit his blessing, expected nuclear winter in Gainesville, they were likely disappointed. The lawsuit was well discussed on Tuesday. It was old news on Wednesday and by the time the weekend arrives, fans will be more engrossed in who’s in and who’s out when the NCAA selection committee chooses the 64 teams that will compete for the national championship and the eight teams that emerge from the softball super regionals to advance to the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City. If the intention was the publicity equivalent of a nuclear bomb going off in Gainesville, then the Rashada lawsuit failed miserably. It had all the power and effect of a fart in an elevator. It stunk for a few seconds, then the elevator door opened offering immediate relief. This isn’t to say the lawsuit isn’t serious. Up until now, Billy Napier was considered one of the last boy scouts in college football, a straight arrow among straight arrows so a lawsuit that says Billy Napier helped stiff a kid out of life changing money damages a cultivated image. The lawsuit claims Napier promised to make good but never delivered on a hyper-inflated deal negotiated by Hugh Hathcock worth a paltry $13.85 million. We know Hathcock may have negotiated the deal but when it came time to put up his money, his check-writing hand developed a severe case of rigormortis. Minus a contract  with Napier’s signature, a recording of his voice making promises or a witness who can affirm he knew everything, there is no way to prove if Napier was as involved as the lawsuit alleges. That Jaden Rashada was ever promised $13.85 million qualifies for what Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) calls a “special kind of stupid.” Whether Napier was trying to salvage the deal or not, the perception is that he along with Hathcock were the stunt doubles for Lloyd Christmas (Jim Carey) and Harry Dunne (Jeff Daniels) in the movie “Dumb and Dumber.” Napier could be absolved of any involvement in the negotiations, but even if he wasn’t involved there will be lingering questions. That he signed Rashada to a scholarship raises a lot of questions that need to be but won’t ever be answered at least in public. When it comes to speaking out loud about this deal, Napier’s lawyer needs to cover his mouth with Gorilla Tape. On his Late Kick podcast, Josh Pate suggested that the Rashada lawsuit may be the first but it won’t be the last when it comes to jilted recruits going after coaches or boosters who they believe lied to them. Coaches lie to recruits and players every day. More than half the kids who are recruited to a Division I school sign scholarship papers because they believe that this coach will get them NFL ready. I can’t tell you if Billy Napier lied or not to the Rashadas, but if he did lie, he’s not the first coach to ever do it nor will he be the last. There are lessons to be learned from this debacle. First and foremost, there is no such thing as a high school quarterback worth $13.85 million. John Talty of CBS Sports says the market price for a transfer quarterback to a Power Four school is in the $500,000 to $800,000 range. Obviously, quarterbacks who attained a level of stardom somewhere else will command more, but double up the high end and you still come up more than $12 million less than what Rashada was offered. Second, whenever a kid claims he had a huge offer such as the $9.4 million deal allegedly offered Rashada by Miami, call his bluff. Make him show a proof of funds and if he can’t then consider him a liar. Do not get into a bidding war over a kid who has never played a down in the SEC. Third, make sure whoever does your negotiations to pay NIL money (a) actually has the money and (b) is willing to put the money in escrow until a kid is signed. Fourth, Florida made out like a bandit because Graham Mertz had a great year and now the Gators have a proven 2-year starter at UF, five years a starter in college football. Plus, the Gators got DJ Lagway. Had Rashada been a Gator, it’s not a reach to think Lagway would have chosen another school other than UF. UF BASEBALL: Gators are still in the hunt for the field of 64 At the Southeastern Conference Baseball Tournament in Hoover, Alabama, Wednesday, the league’s top four teams took it on the chin. Tennessee, Kentucky, Texas A&M and Arkansas all lost their first game in the tournament. All four will play elimination games today and two of them will depart Hoover with an 0-2 record. All eight teams that played Wednesday, whether winners or losers, will make the NCAA field of 64. The question is how many more SEC teams make the tournament. Georgia, which lost to LSU Tuesday, is a mortal lock. No SEC team with 17 wins in league play has ever been denied since the tournament expanded to 64 teams, so that’s nine SEC teams in. In addition to Georgia, there were three other losers Tuesday. Ole Miss lost, but the Rebels won’t make the tournament because they have a losing record. That leaves Florida (28-27) and Alabama (33-22). Florida has the No. 1 strength of schedule in the country, but the Gators are No. 28 in RPI and 13-18 against Quad 1 opponents. Alabama is the No. 20 RPI with the No. 5 strength of schedule and a 15-20 record against Quad 1 opponents. If the NCAA decides 10 teams from one league are plenty, then the Gators probably won’t make it. For the NCAA to allow 11 teams in, there can’t be many upsets whether that’s in leagues that should get two or more bids, or in the 1-bid leagues. If LSU, Mississippi State or Texas A&M were to make it to the championship game of the SEC Tournament, that could help Florida’s cause since the Gators won the 3-game series with each of those teams. Wednesday’s games: LSU (38-20) 11, No. 2 Kentucky (39-13) 0; South Carolina (35-21) 6, No. 5 Arkansas (43-13) 5; Vanderbilt (37-20) 13, No. 1 Tennessee (46-11) 4; No. 15 Mississippi State (38-19) 5, No. 4 Texas A&M (44-12) 3 Today’s games: 10: 30 a.m. No. 5 Arkansas (43-13) vs. No. 2 Kentucky (39-13), elimination game; 2 p.m. No. 4 Texas A&M (44-12) vs. No. 1 Tennessee (46-11), elimination game; 5:30 p.m. LSU (38-20) vs. South Carolina (35-21); 9 p.m. No. 15 Mississippi State (38-19) vs. Vanderbilt (37-20) ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The NCAA council has approved a $2.8 billion settlement to halt the anti-trust lawsuit brought on by the United States House of Representatives. The Big 12, Big Ten and Atlantic Coast Conference have already signed off on the deal. The Southeastern Conference and Pac-12 supposedly will sign off today. The NCAA, in its infinite wisdom, has been pushing for this settlement for quite some time. In addition to back pay for athletes who never had a chance to cash in on NIL, the settlement opens the door for revenue sharing and other benefits for the power conference schools. Initial estimates are that revenue sharing will cost 20-22 percent of income for each conference and school. It could go so far as to bankrupt a good many of the Group of Five schools/conferences that won’t be able to afford paying players anything close to 20-22 percent of their revenues. Per Brandon Marcello of CBS Sports, more than half the Group of Five schools have less than $40 million a year in revenue. They operate on a shoestring as it is so how can they afford to pay football players 20-22 percent of their income? The settlement is certain to take away scholarship limits such as the silly 11.7 scholarships allotted for baseball. That will have the Title IX people screaming their lungs out. And, how will the schools justify paying football players and not paying every athlete on scholarship, both male and female? How many non-revenue sports will even survive once this is implemented? There is also the matter of players as employees, which would open the door for unionization and salary caps. Will players ever agree to a salary cap? Will we see a strike that could torpedo a school or an entire conference? All that is on the table. These questions are going to have to be answered and the answers most likely will be found in some court room. Not an ideal situation. There is also the matter of numerous other anti-trust lawsuits against the NCAA, different conferences and schools. How many of these plaintiffs will back down once the House of Representatives suit is settled? If even one or two go forward, it could skewer the entire settlement. Drew Weatherford, the former Florida State quarterback, is working with a hedge fund to help boost college athletic department revenues. It sounds promising, but what happens if the national economy takes a not so good turn? Will these hedge funds continue to bring in the bucks for athletic departments, or will the people who invest in them elect to spend their money on something deemed more practical? The one thing we can know for sure is that college sports as we now know them are about to change forever. There is a very good chance we aren’t going to recognize them in five or ten years. We could be seeing cutbacks in budgets that result in reduced numbers of scholarships. We could be seeing some sports programs curtailed or eliminated altogether. We could see some athletic departments forced to declare bankruptcy. Yes, this does sound doom and gloom, but this is a time when we need practical solutions to lingering problems and we’re seeing money being thrown at the problem without any sustainable answers.

Perhaps we are supposed to feel bad about the plight of Jaden Rashada. He’s a victim. If you don’t believe it then try navigating your way through all that was written Tuesday when Rashada’s lawsuit against Hugh Hathcock, the alleged big money booster; the defunct Gator Collective; and Florida coach Billy Napier. To save those of you who couldn’t make it all the way through the ESPN version or some of the other lengthy essays that were hot topics on the internet Tuesday, here is the Reader’s Digest Condensed version: Jaden Rashada, a high school quarterback from California, was committed to Miami, whose mega booster John Ruiz promised more than $9 million. Then along came Florida, which wanted him, and Hugh Hathcock, who was the point man in negotiating a deal for the Gator Collective. They offered $11 million and bumped it to $13.85 million, which is a serious amount of cash for someone who, at the time, had never thrown a pass in a Southeastern Conference game. Rashada was promised $1 million up front whipout when he signed and a monthly stipend that could feed entire large villages in third world countries for months on end. He signed with Florida, didn’t get his money, and transferred to Arizona State. He played three games at Arizona State, apparently for an NIL deal that was somewhere between zero and a fraction of what he supposedly would be making at Florida. He played three games, broke his thumb, had surgery and transferred. To Georgia. Now Kirby Smart may deny it until the cows come home, but impeccable sources have told me the Rashada lawsuit is with Kirby’s blessing. I suspected Georgia had something to do with it the moment I heard about the lawsuit. A conversation with someone who does indeed know confirmed my suspicions. Kirby is reveling in the possibility top recruits will turn from Florida because of this lawsuit. In the lawsuit, Rashada attorney Rusty Hardin states that his client is “the first scholar-athlete to take a stand against such egregious behavior by adults who should know better” and goes on to say that Rashada wants to “expose the unchecked abuse of power that they so shamelessly wielded.” Scholar-athlete? Oh please. I’ve known some serious scholar-athletes at the University of Florida. Carlos Alvarez was one. So was Brad Culpepper. So was Matt Bonner. So was Trinity Thomas. Jaden Rashada, scholar-athlete? Student-athlete, okay. Scholar? Doubtful. Anyway, back to Rashada and the alleged stand he is taking on behalf of victims everywhere in college sports. In the Orlando Sentinel, Mike Bianchi wrote, “Rashada is suddenly the poor, exploited high school kid who got taken advantage by a multi-millionaire Gator booster and the big, bad SEC football industrial complex … It should be noted that Rashada transferred to three different high schools and has now been tied to four different colleges in less than two years. He originally committed to Miami, signed with the Gators, transferred to Arizona State a few months later after the NIL deal with UF fell through and just recently transferred to Georgia.” Ah yes, Georgia. Do you think for even one second that NIL money wasn’t involved in luring him to Georgia. Now, even Georgia isn’t stupid enough to offer him $13.85 million, but it’s probably a deal worth something close to seven numbers with a couple of commas in between. If we’re going to talk about the egregious behavior by adults as stated by Rusty Hardin, then shouldn’t we include Jaden Rashada and his father in the conversations? His father was the point man in all the negotiations. If $9.5 million was actually on the table at Miami did he not ask for proof of funds? And if $9.5 million was really on the table, which is more than the outrageous amount Tennessee people paid for Nico Iamaleava, considered a far better prospect than Rashada, why did he go looking for more? If $9.5 million is a sure thing and we’re talking about a kid who has never taken a collegiate snap at quarterback, then you are certifiable to walk away from it. That’s egregious behavior by adults. Which brings us to Hugh Hathcock, who allegedly promised to make good on $5.35 million of the $13.85 million including the $1 million up front the moment Rashada signed his letter of intent. People who talk as if they know a whole lot more about this than your basic $100 a year booster, raise a lot of questions about Hathcock. Among them, why didn’t he deliver the $1 million up front? Why didn’t he offer a proof of funds that would have calmed Rashada and pops? Would Rashada have remained a Gator if that had happened? A lot of folks seem to think so. This whole thing is so stinky that quite a few Gator boosters are asking if Hugh Hathcock has actually paid out the entire $12.6 he promised to UF athletics awhile back, which is how his name got on the UF basketball facility. Now that Hathcock is at the center of a lawsuit that is dragging the entire Florida athletic program through the mud and perhaps causing kids who have been promised NIL money to second guess, shouldn’t Scott Stricklin offer assurances that Hathcock isn’t just a fat cat with an alligator-sized mouth and a hummingbird-sized sphincter? The Gator Collective is mentioned. Hathcock had something called the Gator Guard, too, which was supposed to attract elite Gator boosters the way ants are attracted to pimento cheese and fried chicken at picnics. Somehow the Gator Collective and Gator Guard were in on this together through Marcus Castro-Walker, who is no longer with the Florida football program. Eddie Rojas headed the Gator Collective. I’m of the opinion the Gator Collective was headed by a few well-meaning amateurs who were duped by fast talk and promises of delivering a stud quarterback capable of restoring Florida to national glory. Memo to Eddie: Before entering into any deal that involves more than a few hundred dollars, ask for a proof of funds that is not more than 24 hours old. Between Hathcock, Gator Guard and the Gator Collective, Tuesday made the whole world think their brains were shipped off to Pitcairn Island where they have to wait weeks for a re-supply ship to take them back to civilization. We should talk about Billy Napier. He wanted a quarterback with a big arm and Rashada does have a big arm. But, he got Graham Mertz in the transfer portal and I guarantee you for maybe 80-90 percent less than the money Rashada was offered. Graham Mertz came to Florida with more than 30 Division I starts, which showed up last season when he threw for 2,903 yards (8.1 per attempt) and 20 touchdowns, which is slightly more than the 485 yards (5.9 per attempt) and four touchdowns Rashada threw for at Arizona State. Mertz was the better deal and would UF have gotten DJ Lagway if Rashada had stayed a Gator? Would Lagway have signed with the Gators if he didn’t have something positive to prove there is integrity with Napier and UF? The lawsuit says the Gator Collective backed out of the deal a couple of weeks prior to national signing day and that Billy Napier promised UF would “make good” on the original deal. There is nothing in writing to substantiate this claim. Bianchi wrote, “I’m told that Napier actually got wind of this ridiculous NIL deal for Rashada and pulled the plug on it before the Gators did something really, really stupid – like blatantly breaking NCAA rules while giving a high school quarterback an inane contract worth nearly $14 million. It was at Napier’s behest that the Gator Collective finally exercised an option in the contract to terminate the deal before Rashada signed with UF.” I’m no lawyer but a couple of lawyers I know think the best way to deal with this is to offer some go away money to Jaden Rashada. They believe that if this lawsuit ever sees a court room that there will be no winners so the best way is to settle and make sure the non-disclosure agreement is air tight so terms of the agreement never see the light of day. Fighting the suit would cost a lot of money and would keep this stench in the news, which would not be good for Florida recruiting. So, here are suggestions about what should happen with NIL so we can avoid these problems in the future: 1. It is ridiculous to be offering staggering amounts of money to kids who have never played a down of college football. 2. I’m not opposed to kids getting paid, especially football players whose injuries linger long after their playing days end, but maybe the best thing that could happen would be for some high profile kids with big NIL deals to be total busts. If that were to happen often enough, the NIL money might shrink considerably. 3. Find a legal way to make a rule that freshmen get a salary and after their freshman year, they can negotiate NIL deals. 4. Find a way to tie NIL money to performance in the classroom. Any kid who can’t maintain at least a 2.5 GPA and be in good academic standing should not receive NIL money. 5. Change the transfer rules. No kid should be allowed to transfer until he/she has spent a fall and spring on campus. No kid should be allowed to transfer without sitting out a year if he/she has less than a 2.5 GPA. If a kid transfers and is still taking remedial courses, then the kid has to sit a year. 6. No NIL money for any kid taking remedial courses. 7. Schools (or through their representatives) that pay recruits before they’ve stepped on campus (whether high school or portal), are docked THREE scholarships for four years for first time offenders. A second offense within 24 months results in being docked FIVE scholarships for four years. A third offense within a 5-year window would result in TEN scholarships docked for TEN YEARS. 8. Any coach who willfully participates in illegally paying  or promising to pay NIL money to a recruit before the kid steps on campus is fined $1 million. Second offense, suspension for two years. Assistant coaches fined their salary with a two-year suspension for a second offense. 9. Division I college football secedes from the NCAA and forms its own organization with its own rules regarding NIL, transfers, etc., and a commissioner with absolute power to enforce the rules. Once football is on firm footing, then every school that wants to remain Division I must secede all sports from the NCAA. ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The waiting game begins for the Florida baseball team, which took it on the chin, 6-3, to Vanderbilt in the first round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament in Hoover. The Gators are 28-27 so they are eligible to make the NCAA tournament but things could get dicey if some unknown wins the championship in some of the typical 1-bid leagues. There are a lot of reasons Florida had a poor season. Pitching certainly has plenty to do with it although we saw three pitchers Tuesday that could help UF rebound next year in Pierce Coppola, Jake Clemente and Fisher Jameson. That is, if they choose to stay. Another reason the Gators had a tough year is Kevin O’Sullivan didn’t have good people protecting Jac Caglianone. No leadoff hitter with speed who doesn’t strike out. A hitter behind Cag who doesn’t strike out a lot. Too many strikeouts up and down the lineup other than Caglianone, who rarely whiffs. Worst fielding team that O’Sullivan has had at UF. Left side of the infield didn’t get to a lot of balls. Slow outfield that had three below average arms. Not good defense behind the plate when Tanner Garrison got hurt. Florida baseball will almost certainly rebound from this year with a vengeance next season, but that doesn’t erase the anxiety the Gators will feel the next few days as they sweat out what the NCAA selection committee is thinking.

The lawsuit claims Coach Napier promised Rashada $1 million if he signed with UF on National Signing Day. Ultimately, Rashada never received the payments that were supposedly agreed upon. Sixteen months ago, Florida released quarterback Jaden Rashada from his National Letter of Intent after a highly publicized, NIL-fueled breakup. This split is now the center of a lawsuit involving a four-year, $13.85 million NIL contract that led Rashada to flip his commitment from Miami to Florida in November, 2022. According to court documents, the Gators backed out of this unprecedented NIL agreement, leaving Rashada without a school and missing out on millions of dollars. Rashada, now at Georgia after his freshman year at Arizona State, filed a 37-page complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida. The lawsuit claims that he was repeatedly deceived to get him to switch his commitment from Miami to Florida. Defendants include Gators’ head coach Billy Napier, former Florida director of NIL and player engagement Marcus Castro-Walker, and well-known UF booster Hugh Hathcock. The lawsuit also names Hathcock’s former company, Velocity Automotive, which was supposed to help fund the NIL package. Georgia head coach Kirby Smart was aware of the lawsuit and approved it. Rashada is suing for fraudulent misrepresentation, fraudulent inducement, aiding and abetting fraud, civil conspiracy to commit fraud, negligent misrepresentation, tortious interference, aiding and abetting tortious interference, and vicarious liability. The lawsuit offers an unprecedented look into high-level NIL negotiations in college football. The complaint states, “Defendants’ goals were two-fold: (1) to ensure Jaden remained committed to UF; and (2) to avoid paying the promised NIL funds.” It claims that defendants exploited the life-changing prospect of NIL earnings for their own advantage. The University of Florida is not named as a defendant, although its head coach and a former employee are. Rashada is represented by attorney Rusty Hardin, known for working with athletes like Warren Moon, Roger Clemens, and Deshaun Watson. The lawsuit centers around alleged actions that violate NCAA rules. Donor-driven NIL collectives are crucial for attracting and retaining talent, yet only one school has faced NIL infractions. Rashada’s fractured relationship with Florida began with his initial commitment to Miami on June 26, 2022. He signed a $9.5 million NIL deal with Miami booster John Ruiz, which later involved a $150,000 payment facilitated by Hathcock to avoid litigation, according to the complaint. During an official visit to Florida in early June 2022, Hathcock told Rashada he could do whatever it took to land him with the Gators, including securing employment for Rashada’s father. After Rashada committed to Miami, Hathcock offered him an $11 million UF-affiliated NIL deal, running through Hathcock’s Velocity Automotive and his NIL collective, The Gator Guard. Talks with Florida resumed in October 2022 when Castro-Walker contacted Rashada’s agents, expressing urgency to secure his commitment. Negotiations ensued, leading to a $13.85 million contract. Hathcock was to pay $5.35 million, including a $500,000 signing bonus, through Velocity Automotive, as stated in court documents. The complaint alleges that Hathcock, Castro-Walker, and Coach Napier never intended to enforce Hathcock’s promise. On Nov. 10, 2022, the day Rashada flipped to Florida, Hathcock declined to fund the NIL payments through Velocity Automotive or The Gator Guard, instead opting to use The Gator Collective. The Gator Collective’s attorney, Jennifer Grosso, drafted the NIL contract, assuring Rashada of the payments. However, Rashada’s first $500,000 payment, due Dec. 5, 2022, never happened. The Gator Collective terminated the contract on Dec. 6, despite multiple reassurances. By National Signing Day on Dec. 21, 2022, Rashada still hadn’t received any payments, delaying his National Letter of Intent signature. The lawsuit claims Coach Napier promised Rashada $1 million if he signed with UF on National Signing Day. Ultimately, Rashada never received the payments that were supposively agreed upon. The defendants also allegedly interfered with Rashada’s $9.5 million contract with Miami and his business relationships there. As a result, Rashada suffered financial losses. The complaint argues that the defendants intended to end his agreement with Miami for their benefit. After severing ties with Florida and reopening his high school recruitment, Rashada’s previous NIL contracts were cleared. His time at Arizona State did not come with lucrative financial packages. However, Georgia saw potential in Rashada, leading to his transfer there. Rashada’s lawsuit claims he suffered significant damages from the fraud, including the loss of a $9.5 million contract at Miami and missed opportunities with other NIL collectives. Castro-Walker is no longer with Florida, Hathcock is not involved in NIL activities, and his Gator Guard collective has shut down. Coach Napier is also entering a critical year for his future at Florida and has had recent momentum in the transfer portal with excitement for the upcoming season. Attorney Rusty Hardin said, “Sadly, this type of fraud is becoming more commonplace in the Wild West of today’s college NIL landscape. Wealthy alumni are exploiting young athletes with false promises of life-changing sums of money, only to renege on their commitments. Jaden seeks to hold these defendants accountable and expose their unchecked abuse of power.” Florida and Napier will have a response, but that is yet to be determined. Stay tuned for this ongoing story.

The players Billy Napier has added in the portal are changing perceptions (GB Photo by Chris Spear) We used to call this the silly season, the three or so months after the end of spring football before things cranked up again with practice in August. This was, of course, before the transfer portal met NIL which turned silly into borderline insane. Borderline insanity is what we have now. We haven’t passed the point of no return, but we’re getting there. Meanwhile, the portal and NIL have transformed the silly season into one ruled by perceptions that can change on a daily basis. When the curtain came down on Florida’s spring football a few weeks ago, there was a faction trying to sell the perception that while the Gators would be improved, maybe not enough to save Billy Napier’s job. Nobody seems to understand that Billy’s job isn’t on the line right now. If things haven’t turned around after the 2025 season, then and only then can we talk about a blowtorch fired up and ready to scorch his butt. For now, there is no blowtorch, not even a warm seat. Based on how Napier has addressed team needs through the combination of recruiting outstanding high school kids and judicious use of the transfer portal perceptions are beginning to change about the Gators in 2024. The schedule hasn’t changed. Most experts think it’s the toughest in the nation, but the players Napier has brought in through the portal have changed the two deep considerably, to the point that for the first time since he’s been Florida’s head coach, the Gators will field a roster that has very few holes. After the spring game, Napier admitted that the Florida roster looks SEC capable. In the weeks since the spring game, it’s taken on an even better look. Last week alone, Napier added wide receiver Elijhah Badger from Arizona State and former 5-star recruit Cormani McClain from Colorado. Badger and McClain had plenty of offers but they chose Napier and the Gators. That alone tells you that perceptions are changing. There is a huge gap between perception and reality. Perceptions will only change for good when Napier has turned the Florida program into a consistent winner. Two losing seasons by Napier, three straight dating back to Dan Mullen, have produced more than a fair share of skeptics, but it’s worth analyzing the changes Napier has made to his roster. Everything points to changing perceptions. Here is a position-by-position and individual player analysis of everyone who has both come and gone from the portal since the end of the 2023 season. Position-by-position analysis Graham Mertz is a former transfer who is poised for a monster season (GB Photo by Chris Spears) Quarterback (2 in, 2 out): Graham Mertz is set for a monster season and 5-star freshman DJ Lagway has All-American potential. Picking up Clay Millen gives the Gators a QB with 11 games as a starter for insurance. Aidan Warner will be No. 4 in the QB room. Max Brown needed to go somewhere that he can play. Here’s hoping that Jalen Kitna can put the past behind him and have a career. (Florida plus) Running back (1 out): It can be safely argued that Georgia gained more than Florida lost with the departure of Trevor Etienne. That’s not to say Etienne isn’t a supremely talented back because he is, but Montrell Johnson Jr. is an absolute stud and Florida’s running back room is loaded. Still, you never want to lose someone as talented as Etienne, particularly to your top SEC rival. (Florida minus) Wide receiver (2 in, 2 out): Florida gained two starters in Chimere Dike (Wisconsin) and Elijhah Badger (Arizona State) who have a combined 239 catches for 3,078 yards and 19 touchdowns. The Gators lose 28 catches for 436 yards and three TDs combined from Caleb Douglas and Thai Chaikhiao-Bowman. Billy Napier made out like a bandit. (Florida plus) Tight end (1 in, 2 out): Caleb Rillos (Air Force) excels as a blocker because that’s almost all he did at Air Force. He gives the Gators a second tight end for short yardage and goal lines and negates the loss of Jonathan Odom. (Even) O-line (3 in, 4 out): Napier picked up two starters in Devon Manuel (Arkansas) and Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson (San Diego State). They were the starting tackles in the spring. Pencil Manuel in at left tackle, Crenshaw-Dickson at right, but if Austin Barber and Kam Waites return healthy in August, there may be temptation to move Crenshaw-Dickson to right guard. Among his 30-plus career starts are several at guard. Jason Zandamela spent a spring at Southern Cal before electing to transfer closer to home (Clearwater). He was a 4-star prospect when he signed. The Gators lost both starting guards (Richie Leonard, Micah Mazzccua), but both had below average grades and won’t be missed. Jalen Farmer and Jordan Herman were only going to be backups. Call it addition by subtraction for Napier. (Florida plus) D-line (1 in, 3 out): The Gators lost one of their most versatile D-linemen in Chris McClellan, who could play inside or out, but they picked up Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year Joey Slackman (Penn), who not only brings toughness and experience, but real leadership qualities.  (Florida plus) Linebacker (1 in, 1 out): Florida got what it needed in Grayson Howard, a big, strong plant people in the hole type of linebacker. Texas A&M got what it needed in Florida transfer Scooby Williams, who can play inside or outside. If there is any advantage, it is that Florida will have Howard for at least two years while Scooby could bolt for the NFL  if he has an exceptional season. (Even) EDGE (1 in, 1 out): When Princely Umanmielen showed up to play he could be a wrecking crew, but he didn’t always bring his A game. If he plays motivated all year at Ole Miss he will move way up the draft charts. George Gumbs (Northern Illinois) has tremendous instincts but he was a wide receiver two years ago. Florida gets two years out of Gumbs while Ole Miss gets one year out of Princely. Still Princely may be playing for an SEC title in December. (Florida minus) Corner (2 in, 2 out): Even though the long range potential is greater with Jameer Grimsely (Alabama) and Cormani McClain (Colorado), the Gators lose two corners in Jaydon Hill and Jalen Kimber with a ton of experience. Grimsley has four years of eligibility while McClain has three. Hill and Kimber are one-and-dones. (Florida plus) Safety (3 in, 3 out): This and OL were probably Florida’s two most critical needs in the portal and the Gators scored big with three starters. DJ Douglas is an absolute stud who anchored the back end of Tulane defenses that won 23 games the last two years. Asa Turner (Washington) is an aggressive ball hawk who started the national championship game. Trikweze Bridges (Oregon) can play nickel, cover tight ends and slots, and puts people on the ground. Of the three safeties the Gators lost in the portal, Miguel Mitchell is the only one who figured prominently. Jedarrius Perkins was a non-factor and Kamari Wilson has probably outgrown safety and needs to transition to linebacker. (Florida plus) Special teams (1 out): Adam Mihalek lost his job to Trey Smack and wasn’t going to get it back. He has 50-plus range on field goals, but the closer you get the more likely he is to miss. (Florida plus) Florida’s transfers Incoming (16) WR Elijhah Badger (Arizona State): He’s almost a Ricky Pearsall clone, who can play the slot or outside. He’s a huge pickup. WR Chimere Dike (Wisconsin): Dike and Mertz were a nice tandem at Wisconsin and should be again. Dike is a long strider with sure hands who is a lot faster than he looks. TE Caleb Rillos (Air Force): He’s a walk-on at Florida but he will definitely play as a hand in the ground blocker in short yardage and goal line situations. Air Force hardly ever threw so we’ll learn if he can catch consistently in the fall. QB Clay Millen (Colorado State): He is experience insurance. Got 10 starts as a sophomore on a bad Colorado State team. Injured in game one in 2023. Very solid pickup. QB Aidan Warner (Yale): He’s a Winter Park kid who wanted to come home. He will raise the team GPA and will run fourth team. OT Devon Manuel (Arkansas): He’s a starter from day one. Long wingspan, great feet. He can play left or right tackle. OT Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson (San Diego State): More than 30 starts at both tackles and at guard. If Austin Barber returns from shoulder surgery healthy, Crenshaw-Dickson could even move inside to the troublesome right guard. OG Jason Zandamela (Southern California): Four years of eligibility. Very good size and mobility. DT Joey Slackman (Pennsylvania): Ivy League defensive player of the year. Great mobility and versatile enough to play inside or outside. EDGE George Gumbs (Northern Illinois): He is still learning how to play the edge but he has the quickness and instincts. He started out as a wide receiver who grew out of the position. LB Grayson Howard (South Carolina): Starter from day one who has ideal size (6-4, 250) in the middle and the kind of nasty attitude you want in a linebacker. CB Jameer Grimsley (Alabama): When Nick Saban retired he transferred. All four years of eligibility. Long and fast cover guy who will play plenty as a freshman. CB Cormani McClain (from Colorado): Needs to add some muscle, but the speed and closing skills are there. Nice pickup of a Lakeland kid. S Asa Turner (Washington): Starter. Sure tackler with nice ball hawking skills. S DJ Douglas (Tulane): Don’t be surprised if he isn’t one of the top two or three defensive players on the team in 2024. Covers, tackles, hits people. S Trikweze Bridges (Oregon): Versatile enough to play nickel and strong enough to handle tight ends. Outgoing (23) WR Caleb Douglas (Texas Tech): If he can stay healthy, he could emerge as a deep threat. TE Andrew Savaiinea (Nevada): Came to UF as a D-lineman, moved to tight end and was buried on the depth charts. A west coast kid who will do better closer to home. TE Jonathan Odom (Eastern Michigan): Not big enough to play tackle at UF like his All-American dad, not fast enough to be an effective tight end. Good move for him to the MAC. RB Trevor Etienne (Georgia): He’s an explosive runner with go the distance ability on every play, but he’s a liability in the passing game, both as a receiver and protector. He’ll run for big yards behind Georgia’s O-line. QB Max Brown (Charlotte): At Charlotte he will get a chance to play. Good enough talent to play in the American. QB Jalen Kitna (UAB): There was a time when it seemed a promising career was ahead. Perhaps he can resurrect that promise playing for Trent Dilfer. OT Jordan Herman (Charlotte): Monstrous size but didn’t crack UF’s O-line rotation in two years. OG Richie Leonard (Florida State): He needs to be able to play center. A liability in pass protection. OG Micah Mazzccua (Nebraska): There are whispers that he was toxic in the locker room; most say good riddance. Struggled in pass protection last year. OG Jalen Farmer (Kentucky): Could do well in Kentucky’s grind it out running game, but didn’t crack the rotation at UF. DT Chris McClellan (Missouri): He would have played a lot. He’s a tough loss because he is versatile enough to play all four positions on a 4-man front. DT Will Norman (Marshall): He played in four games and had one unassisted tackle. The potential is there but he needs to play. At Marshall and in the Sun Belt he could be a stud. DT Keenan Landry (Louisiana Tech): Former walk-on who earned a scholarship. In Conference USA he can probably be an every game player. EDGE Princely Umanmielen (Ole Miss): Will he come to play every down or play only when he really feels like? If he plays hard every play, he will be missed. LB Scooby Williams (Texas A&M): This was a tough loss because he could play both inside linebackers and out on the edge. He will thrive in Mike Elko’s defense. CB Jalen Kimber (Penn State): Inconsistent coverage guy who struggled against deep routes. CB Jaydon Hill (Texas A&M): Great kid, great attitude but very inconsistent in coverage. S Miguel Mitchell (Arkansas): A very hard hitter who showed plenty of potential. He will play at Arkansas. S Jedarrius Perkins (Toledo): Needed a change of scenery and perhaps a league where the receivers aren’t nearly as fast. S Kamari Wilson (Arizona State): At some point someone is going to have to move him to linebacker. Still available WR Thai Chiaokhiao-Bowman: Has been in the portal a long time without a new home announcement. OT Kiyaunta Goodwin: Left to go home to care for his mother, who has/had cancer. No word on if or when he will play again. CB Ethan Pouncey: Entered the portal after spring football. Didn’t play much at UF.