Percy Harvin is Ready to Be 'Cut Loose'

The Florida Gators are off to another good start this season, winning their first two games in rather impressive fashion, and doing so despite the fact that Percy Harvin hasn't been around to contribute much thanks to heel surgery. Now the Gators are preparing to open their conference schedule against the rival Tennessee Volunteers, and for all those Vols fans out there who had been hoping Harvin would still be limited by his heel, I've got some bad news for you.

Percy is feeling better than ever...

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Does Erin Andrews Favor The Florida Gators?

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Warren Sapp Adds Fuel to Fire, Calls Urban Meyer a 'Classless Dirtbag'

As I went over yesterday, the Miami Hurricanes weren't very happy with Urban Meyer and the Florida Gators decision to kick a field goal with twenty-five seconds left in a game they led 23-3. After the game, Canes coach Randy Shannon questioned the ethics of the move, and said he was hopeful that it would help his recruiting when players see what kind of guy Meyer is.

That prompted Tim Tebow to come to his coach's defense on Monday, and the issue is still not squashed. Now even former players are getting involved...

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Tim Tebow Will Not Tolerate Miami's Insolence

University of Miami coach Randy Shannon wasn't very pleased after the Hurricanes got whipped 26-3 in The Swamp on Saturday night, but his anger wasn't just with his team for their performance. Shannon wasn't very pleased when the Gators kicked a field goal in the closing seconds to cap off the win, going as far as saying that Urban Meyer's decision might actually help his recruiting.

"Sometimes when you do things and people see what kind of person you really are, you turn a lot of people off," Shannon said. "Take from that what you want. It helped us more than you will ever know."

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Tim Tebow Will Cut Your Penis

University of Florida quarterback is an all around threat. He became the first sophomore in the history of college football to win the Heisman Trophy. There's nothing the 6'3 232 pound quarterback can't do. Not only did he throw for 3,286 yards and 32 touchdowns last season, but he also rushed for 895 yards and 23 touchdowns.

That's a whole helluva lot of production, 4,181 yards and 55 touchdowns to be exact. Tebow isn't satisfied with just owning opponents on the football field, though, as he's taken his interests elsewhere. The latest field he's decided to dominate? The most Filipino penises circumcised.

Tebow, who has no surgical training, was visiting an orphanage his father's ministry runs in the country and assisted with the care of locals who had walked miles to the temporary clinic the ministry helped organize.

"The first time, it was nerve-racking," he said. "Hands were shaking a little bit. I mean, I'm cutting somebody. You can't do those kinds of things in the United States. But those people really needed the surgeries. We needed to help them."

Richard Moleno, a Florida graduate and aspiring doctor, said: "You could see he was really into it. He thought it was cool. I'd make a stitch, he'd cut a stitch. He got his hands a little wet in surgery."

I think this is where I'm supposed to make the "he's gone from carving up defenses to carving up Filipino boys" joke, but I'm better than that. Besides, there's nothing I can add to this that Richard Moleno didn't just tell you.

At Least I'm Not This Guy

Anybody who knows me can tell you I'm not the happiest person in the world after a Bears loss, but at least I don't scream at the people I see on the television as if they can hear me.

That's what doctors call "dementia" and our friend Charley here has it. Watch as he takes in the final seconds of Florida's upset loss at home on Saturday night to the Auburn Tigers. My favorite part is when he fires Urban Meyer. You know, cuz Charley has that kind of power. He wants to fire the guy who came in and won a National Title in his first season, and just suffered his first loss as coach of the Gators.

If all Gator fans are like this, Rex Grossman probably thinks Bears fans are pussy cats.

(Via Ballhype)

Billy Donovan Is Returning To Florida

Billy Donovan was the head coach of the Orlando Magic for a few hours, but Billy Boy changed his mind and will now be returning to Gainesville.

Donovan had reservations about leaving the Florida Gators for the NBA on Friday and spent all weekend trying to find a way to get out of his contract. On Saturday, Orlando Magic General Manager Otis Smith went to Gainesville to try to convince Donovan to honor the deal. Smith talked with Donovan again on Sunday, and so did Magic President Bob Vander Weide.

The source said -- barring a change of heart -- the Magic will let him go.

Donovan will be leaving behind $27.5 million to return to Gainesville, which if you weren't aware, is a lot of money.

It's probably the best move for Donovan because I just don't think he'd have had any success in the NBA. It's a completely different animal, and many a college basketball coach has had to learn that the hard way. Donovan's strength is dealing with young men and molding them into good basketball players, not managing the egos of a bunch of millionaires who all think they're more important than you anyway.

There's also the fact that by staying at Florida, Donovan can cement his name as one of the greatest college basketball coaches of all time. Before all is said and done, we could be mentioning his name up there with Wooden, Coach K, Dean Smith, Lute Olson, and Pete Bell.

Your Mom Goes To College

It looks like next season's college basketball is going to be without quite a few of its stars.

Though not yet official, it's expected Kevin Durant will be leaving Texas to join the NBA.

It's good news in Boston and bad news in Austin as DraftExpress.com is reporting that Texas freshman sensation Kevin Durant has decided to declare for the NBA draft and will make his announcement at a news conference next week.

DraftExpress.com cited "multiple sources, both from the NBA and close to the player himself" in its report.

Durant will not be alone.

After winning back-to-back NCAA titles, the Florida Gators will not be returning any of their starters or their sixth man next season. Lee Humphrey and Chris Richard are both graduating, and juniors Joakim Noah, Al Horford, Corey Brewer, and Taurean Green are all going pro together.

Now none of this comes as a surprise, but some people hoped the Gators would return to try for a three-peat. Granted, those people are idiots. They didn't have anything else to prove in college, they'd already won two titles.

As for Durant, he and Greg Oden (should Oden leave) are showing us what the future of college basketball may soon be. Durant was already the first freshman in history to win the Player of the Year Award, but it's likely he won't be the last.

It used to be that the seniors were the best players on the court. Now it looks as if the game is actually moving towards the point where the upper-classmen are the lesser players on a team. With the NBA's new rule that won't allow high schoolers to go pro, the college game is going to be flooded with freshmen who are just getting their year over with before cashing in. As a result, all the best talent will likely be leaving the college game after every season, while the only people who stay are those who can't play in the NBA.

It's going to be an odd shift in the infrastructure of college basketball, but I suggest you start getting used to it. Freshman will be dominating for years to come.

The Gators Beat The Buckeyes....Again

I think it's become pretty clear that the Florida Gators were far and away the best basketball team in the country this season. It was debatable when they lost a few games in February, but all questions have been answered over the last month.

Ohio State really was the second-best team in the country, but the disparity between it and Florida last night was obvious. When you have four players the caliber of Joakim Noah, Al Horford, Corey Brewer, and Taurean Green you're going to be damn good. Throw in Lee Humphrey and his deadly long range accuracy, and it's just not fair.

I'm not going to overanalyze last night's game. Florida pretty much had it in hand from the opening tip, and even though the Buckeyes were staying in range, I never really got the feeling they were going to make a run at it.

Of course, a couple of made three-pointers here and there wouldn't have hurt.

To me, the funniest thing about all of this was Greg Oden. He spent most of this tournament on the bench in foul trouble, but the Buckeyes kept winning. He had the game of the tournament last night, 25 points and 12 rebounds, and they lost.

I'm not saying that it's Oden's fault. I'm just pointing out how important Mike Conley, Jr. is to the success of OSU. With Conley struggling to get anything going thanks to foul trouble of his own, it affected the entire Buckeyes team.

Now the questions turn to next season.

It's doubtful the Gators will be returning any starters next season, especially if Billy Donovan leaves for Kentucky.

With the Buckeyes, I'm pretty sure Oden is going to go pro, but I'm hoping he doesn't. I'd like both Oden and Conley to stick around in Columbus for one more season. Another year of Oden developing his offensive game, combined with the flat-out brilliance of Conley at times, could be something very special to watch next season, and I'd like to see it.

Oh, and here's hoping that Al Horford is still on the board when the Bulls make their pick in this summer's draft.

Into Thin Air

Wow. That was a let-down, huh?

Not much to add that hasn't been rehashed to death in fifty gazillion other places.

The OSU/Georgetown game had basically three good minutes early in the second half. Well, more like three minutes where you hoped it was going to get good.

And Florida/UCLA felt like watching a prize fight between boxers in different weight classes. The little guy, knocked to the the canvas, bloodied and beaten, keeps getting up and taking another shot to the head until you just want the ref to come in and call it.

Thankfully, I went to watch the second game with friends, half of whom were UCLA alum. About midway through the debacle, our frustrated host pulled out some chips and cards and announced, "Poker."

So, I got to take money from depressed UCLA fans while they wept into their beers.

That part... that part was very good.

There's Something Called The Final Four Going On Today

It all started three weeks ago with 65 teams, and today we're down to four. At the end of the day there will only be two remaining.

So who are those two teams going to be?

How the hell should I know? I can't see into the future. But I can guess for you if you like. Seeing as how I'm eliminated from every single bracket pool I'm in, I'm in the enviable position of just being able to watch for love of the game, and there is a lot to love in today's two games.

Of course, there is the chance to watch Greg Oden go against Roy Hibbert, but don't pay too much attention to the seven-footers. You might miss some incredible things from Mike Conley and Jeff Green.

Trying to figure out who's going to win this one is pretty tough. I'm thinking Georgetown pulls it out, but it's hard to go against Ohio State. The Buckeyes have only lost three times this season, and they were all road games against North Carolina, Florida, and Wisconsin. I think the only thing I know for sure is that OSU will get down by at least 10 points in this game. That just seems to be their M.O. Whether or not they comeback from it or not, we'll have to wait and see.

I think they do. I'm taking Ohio State 65-61.

Then there's the rematch of last year's title game between Florida and UCLA. Florida destroyed the Bruins in that game. I think it's going to be a bit closer this time around but I still see the Gators winning this game. Don't know what it is, but I'm pretty much convinced that the Gators are going to win it all again this time around. The only question I have about the Gators is whether or not Billy Donovan is coaching them next season, or hanging out in Lexington.

The final will be something like Florida 72, UCLA 64.

And yes, once these picks go completely awry I will edit this post accordingly.

I Have A Crush On Jeff Green And Other Final Four Thoughts

Let's start with a little trivia.

What do I have in common with the North Carolina Tar Heels?

Neither of us made any baskets at the end of their game against Georgetown. Of course, I wasn't playing in the game.

That was a collapse of Illini-sized proportions.

Anyway, we have our Final Four: Florida, Ohio State, UCLA, and Georgetown.

You know what the best part of the Georgetown win was yesterday? It had nothing to do with the actual game, and everything to do with next Saturday. Yeah, we got to see Greg Oden go against another talented big man in Joey Dorsey on Saturday, and Oden basically emasculated Dorsey in front of the entire country. It was great. Dorsey called Oden overrated, and then he went out there and didn't even score a point.

But next week.....next week, we get to see Oden go against Roy Hibbert. It could be the very first chapter of a story straight out of the Chamberlain/Russell mode. Sure, it would have been pretty cool if Texas made the Final Four so we could see Oden go against Kevin Durant, but they wouldn't be going one-on-one with each other.

Honestly, I don't know what the hell I'm going to do the next five days while waiting for this matchup. That's how excited I am by the prospect.

This Final Four also presents an oddity for me. Usually when we get to this point, I have one team I actually like, two teams I could care less about either way, and the one team I actively hate.

I don't hate any of these teams. In fact I like every single one of them. I've watched them all season. I've like Florida ever since watching their run through the tournament last season, I love Arron Afflalo so I've kept up with the Bruins, and even though I should hate Ohio State, I don't. They're just a really good team, inside and out.

The surprise for me is Georgetown. I grew up hating Georgetown, especially under John Thompson. Why, I don't really know. Asking me to explain why I felt the things I felt when I was thirteen is totally unfair.

This team under Thompson's son, JTIII, I like. I enjoy the way they play, that whole mix of the classic G-Town D with a little dash of the Princeton offense. Then there's the fact that Roy Hibbert is the first in the long line of Hoya big men who doesn't give off that douchebag vibe.

Of course, the biggest reason I enjoy these Hoyas is Jeff Green. Jeff Green is awesome. He does everything, and he does it well. He can shoot, he can get to the rim, and he can play defense against the smaller guys and bigger guys.

He's this year's Brandon Roy. I know he's still a junior but if he decides to go pro after this year, which is very likely now after this run, there will be no adjustment time needed. Sure, Durant and Oden may have the high ceilings, but Green will win the Rookie of the Year. I can see him taking his 15 points and 6 boards a game directly to the pros.

I'll have more to say about the other three teams and players throughout the week, but for now I just had get this man crush off my chest. I feel so free!

The Basketball Diaries, College Edition - Gator Wrastlin'

LSU 66, Florida 56

Struggling all this season and without their lead scorer, the LSU Tigers defense awakened and took a large bite out of the Gators's pride yesterday, taking the lead two minutes into the game and never giving it back.

LSU, once ranked as high as sixth this season, had lost three straight before hosting the number 3 Florida team, so the victory was even sweeter. Missing leading scorer and rebounder Glen Davis, Terry Martin, with 18 points, and Garrett Temple, with 17 , picked up the slack. As LSU ran out the clock, the student section roared, "Overrated," at the fallen Gators. (To Joakim Noah's credit, he did not run into the stands and slap any of the fans.)

You could chalk this loss up to the fact that Florida had already wrapped up the SEC regular season title and really didn't give a crap. And you'd be right.

To a point.

But it is said, "pride goeth before the fall," and this loss was bad enough to make even a die-hard Gator fan a little concerned.

Understand these three quotes and you will understand what's happening to Gator basketball:

• Vandy's Derrick Byers on last week's win over Florida:"This is one for the ages. Twenty years from now, I'll be able to tell my little kids this. This is special. You can't explain it."
• LSU coach John Brady on yesterday's win over Florida: "I was coaching so hard and trying to do everything I could in the last five minutes to make sure we won that game...I was so emotional when I was talking to them after tonight's game I couldn't even finish talking."
• Florida coach Billy Donovan on their loss yesterday: "[Florida] looked like a team that just won a championship, and competing maybe wasn't the most important thing on their mind here today."

Billy Donovan sure better get his team to stop thinking about confetti and endorsement deals and start thinking about the basics. When your opponents are playing for a memory that will last a lifetime, you sure as hell better take the game as seriously as they do. Regardless of the stats they bring into the game.

Or come March, Florida will end up one of the stepsisters at the Ball.

Gators Saved Their Best for Last

It's twelve hours later, and we're still not exactly sure how it happened.

The fact Florida beat Ohio State isn't a surprise to us. It's the way they did it.

Aside from Ted Ginn returning the opening kickoff for a touchdown to give the Buckeyes a 7-0 lead, the Gators almost played a perfect game. In the first half they had the ball seven times, and scored six times.

It was ridiculous.

That was easily the Gators best performance of the year, and it came at the same time that Ohio State played their worst game, not just this season, but probably in the last 3 years.

So how did it happen?

The 51 day lay off didn't seem to affect the Buckeyes when Ginn returned that kick to start the game.

Was it Ted Ginn's injury? Partially. It's not like Ted Ginn could have blocked either of those Gator defensive ends or stopped the Gators offense.

Could it possibly be the fact that the Buckeyes never tried to establish a running game, and that by the time they got around to it, it was too late? The Buckeyes only ran the ball 12 times. They were effective at it, too. Antonio Pittman averaged 6.2 yards a carry, but he only got ten carries. That's not Ohio State football.

Here's the thing. Florida waxed Ohio State last night, but to be completely honest here, we still don't think the Gators have a better team than the Buckeyes. It's obvious that the Gators outplayed them last night, and we're not trying to take anything away from their team, we just think everything came together for them last night, and Ohio State couldn't handle it.

That's the problem with these ridiculously long layoffs for teams. You never know how the layoff is going to affect a team, and it's pretty obvious that 51 days off was not good for the Buckeyes.

But it's all just speculation. The only thing we know for sure is that Florida destroyed Ohio State last night, and they're the National Champs.

Gator Chomp

Ok, so who didn't see a Florida blowout coming?


Congrats to the Florida Gators for beating Ohio State 41-14 to win the National Championship. The win makes Florida the first school in history to hold both the football and basketball crowns at the same time.

We'll write up more about this game tomorrow, but damn, Ohio State never had a chance in this game.

Goin Bowlin Previews - The National Championship

Well it's finally here. Tonight the Ohio State Buckeyes face off against the Florida Gators in Glendale, Arizona for the national title.

You know what's already been settled?

Foul Balls' Goin Bowlin' Contest.

No matter what happens tonight, nobody will surpass the current leader. So, who won?

Me.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

I am the winner of my own contest! How sweet is that?!


Anyway, since I'm such a nice guy, I'll be awarding second and third place instead of first and second. So congratulations to Aaron VanHueklon for finishing in second and taking the $25 Amazon Gift Certificate, and to Rob Vandervate for finishing third, and getting a choice of any one of Busted Tees shirts.

Onto the actual game, which is meaningless unless you care about football.

Ohio State and Florida are the two teams not named Notre Dame and Penn State that I saw the most this season, so I like to think I may know what I'm talking about. Most of what I'm hearing from people is they think Ohio State is going to blow out Florida, but I don't agree.

Ohio State's defense has not faced a team as fast as the Gators, and that could cause them some trouble. On the other side, the Buckeyes offense hasn't faced a defense as fast as the Gators either.

Of course this is always a point made when a Big Ten team faces a SEC team in a bowl, yet if you look at the two games in which these conferences have clashed this year, the Big Ten has emerged victorious in both.

Wisconsin beat Arkansas, and Penn State beat Florida.

Then there's the way that OSU QB Troy Smith tends to perform in the big games. The Heisman Trophy winner saves his best for these situations.

My opinion is that this game will be a lot closer than most people think, but I've been saying that nobody can beat the Buckeyes all season, and I'm not about to change my mind now.

PREDICTION: Ohio State 27 Florida 21

The Wait is Over!

Finally, after what seems like years, we get to see Ohio State and Florida go head to head for all the marbles. (CBS-4PM Est.)

Yeah, we know it's basketball and not football, but that's besides the point. This is still a pretty damn good matchup for this time of year. That, and when you think about it, a big bag of marbles really is a cool prize. You can have all kinds of fun with them.

Ohio State is ranked third in the country and has freshman Greg Oden. The seven-footer has been everything that was advertised so far, and is shooting a ri-damn-diculous .735 from the floor this season. And that's after going 8/15 earlier this week against Iowa State. Before Tuesday he was 17/19 in his first three college games.

There's good news for Florida too, as Al Horford could play even though on Thursday the team announced he was out. Horford practiced on Friday, and felt fine. It won't be decided until after the teams morning shootaround whether or not he'll suit up.

We're guessing he will. If the fourth ranked Gators are going to stop Greg Oden, they're going to need all the help they can get down in the post. He's expected to team up with Joakim Noah against Oden.

While the Ohio State/Florida matchup is the only marquee matchup of the day, Bob Knight is also looking to break Dean Smith's all time wins record when Texas Tech faces Bucknell. (ESPN2-4:30PM Est.)

We're going to go out on a limb and say that the General's probably gonna get that win today.