I know it is still early but I haven't heard much or seen any twitter banter about whether any of our players will be opting out of the bowl game. Anybody heard or seen anything about who we can expect to see on the field against the Citranauts. Maybe we can post any updates over the next few weeks in a single thread to keep track?

By Franz Beard
A few thoughts to jump start your Thursday morning:
IT MAY BE UCF AND THE GASPARILLA BOWL, BUT IT’S A BIG DEAL
Legend has it that the pirate Jose Gaspar leapt from his ship to his death in the Gulf of Mexico to avoid capture by the United States Navy somewhere around 1821. Allegedly, he left behind an enormous trove of treasure that no one has ever found. That’s not the only thing that has never been found. Actual evidence that Jose Gaspar ever lived has never been found, either.

So a pirate who may have never existed is celebrated every year in Tampa with the Gasparilla Pirate Festival. It’s a big deal for the Tampa economy although it pales in comparison to Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans, Mobile and Lafayette, Louisiana.

The Gasparilla Bowl, which is supposed to help kick off what Tampans call “Gasparilla season,” was one step above myth until this year when luck had it that both Florida and UCF rolled snake eyes on what was expected to be big seasons for both teams. UCF’s dreams of a big season crashed and burned when quarterback Dillon Gabriel broke his collarbone in game three but the Knights won five of their last six games to finish 8-4. Florida’s season started going south on October 2 in Lexington when they committed 15 penalties and had a field goal blocked, turning a perfectly winnable game into a disastrous loss. The Kentucky game was part of a 2-5 stretch in which the Gators went from bad to worse before beating FSU in the final regular season game to finish barely bowl eligible at 6-6.

One man’s – or in this case two teams’ – disaster is another man’s opportunity. In one fell swoop of genius, someone in Tampa came up with the idea of a Florida-UCF matchup in the Gasparilla Bowl. Think of it for just a moment. A bowl game whose namesake is a myth invites a school whose greatest accomplishment is a myth. UCF has touted itself as the 2017 national champion. Actual evidence of the national championship doesn’t exist although it does for Alabama, which beat Georgia that year in the College Football Playoff championship game. But as Mark Twain said way back in 1882, never let the facts get in the way of a good story. UCF takes him at his word.

UCF’s opponent? Big brother, the Gators who have more real national championships in football alone (three) than the entire UCF athletic department has won legitimately (zero) in school history. The Gators of the mighty SEC have an athletic department budget of more than $150 million. Their projected media rights/bowl payout from the conference when Texas and Oklahoma join the league (estimates of $80 million) might be as much or more than UCF’s entire athletic budget (about $74 million these days). And one more thing: the Gators have yet to lose a football game to its little brothers UCF, South Florida, Florida Atlantic and Florida International.
Matching little brother and big brother was enough to set off a ticket sales frenzy like nothing ever seen in the Gasparilla Bowl, which has previously been known as the St. Petersburg Bowl, the Beef O’Brady’s Bowl and the Bad Boy Mowers Bowl. Raymond James Stadium, capacity 65,618, is sold out. The previous three Gasparilla Bowls drew 59,485 COMBINED. Behind closed doors, the organizers of the Gasparilla Bowl are so giddy they’re pinching themselves to make sure it’s not a dream because they have two schools from the state who are desperate to win this football game.

As much as they think beating a physically beaten-up Auburn team in the Peach Bowl was its ticket to legitimacy, UCF is still begging to be taken seriously. Years ago they were rejected by the Big East when South Florida put the kibosh on their application. The Big 12 elected to stay at 10 teams rather than take in UCF in 2016. They’ll be going into the Big 12 in 2023 but it’s not going to be the same since Texas and Oklahoma are leaving. UCF will feel legitimate if it beats Florida although if they lose, the Knights can blame it on big brother having all the money and resources, etc. Florida’s in-state brethren in Tallahassee have turned this whine into an art form.

The Gators need to win this one every bit as much as UCF, mainly because it avoids a losing season. UF went from 1980-2012 without suffering a losing season. They’ve had two – 2013 under Will Muschamp and 2017 under Jim McElwain – since then. A third losing season in eight years isn’t the end of the world, but it is a setback for a program that Billy Napier is trying to elevate back to legitimate power status. Losing to UCF will only make Napier’s already enormous job that much tougher.

Second, Billy Napier still has a ton of recruiting to do. There are players on the Florida roster that he needs to re-recruit to keep them out of the transfer portal, high school and junior college players that he wants to add on National Signing Day in February and transfers that he will hope to lure to Gainesville. A winning record and a bowl win can only solidify Florida as a place to be in the minds of many of those kids.

Third, there is the confidence that beating Florida State and topping it off with a bowl win over another Florida wannabe will carry over into mat drills in February and spring practice in March and April. Momentum is a wonderful thing.

Gervon Dexter, whose physical talent says future superstar but whose production hasn’t passed the smell test in two years, knows he and his teammates are auditioning for Napier but he also knows that bragging rights are at stake. The last thing he wants is to go back home to Polk County and hear how the Gators lost to UCF.

He’s motivated. Here is what he said Tuesday about the Gators and the Gasparilla Bowl: “We’re war ready. We’re ready to go. Ready to play. It’s UCF. Win the state.”

GATORS WIPE OUT STONY BROOK BY 25 POINTS
That the Gators (9-3) beat the Stony Brook Seawolves (7-5) probably didn’t surprise anyone Wednesday afternoon, but the way UF did it gives hope that they’ve put a difficult stretch behind them. The Gators played great defense, shot the ball well for a change, and best of all they looked like they came to the O-Dome with a good attitude and had plenty of fun as they won their second straight game, 87-62.

“We hadn’t been shooting as well as we’d want to but seeing a few go in and turning them [Stony Brook] over at a high pace, I think that’s what made it a lot more fun,” said Phlandrous Fleming Jr., who led the Gators with 20 points and hit 4-5 on his three-pointers to go with four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Getting dunks, getting out in transition and seeing everybody score from around the floor, I think it’s a lot more fun than us missing a lot of shots.”

Coming into the game, the Gators had shot only 26.6 percent from the 3-point line and their shooting inside the arc had been sporadic. Against Stony Brook the Gators hit 32-60 overall (53.3 percent) and their 8-23 night on three-pointers was a bit deceiving since there were at least four shots that did everything but go in. Defensively, the Gators held the Seawolves to 5-19 shooting from the three-point line and turned them over 17 times.

Stony Brook coach Ashley Langford lamented that the Gators took them completely out of their offensive game, which relies on the three-point shot, and forced 17 turnovers that were turned into 27 UF points.

“Their ball pressure is elite,” Langford said. “Those guys on the perimeter – you watch film and you don’t realize how good they are on defense. You think they’re pretty good and then you get in the game. We oftentimes couldn’t get by them … They’re so good defensively that I thought at times it was hard for us to function.”

Fleming got plenty of help offensively from Colin Castleton (15 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 blocked shot), Jason Jitoboh (12 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists) and C.J. Felder (10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 blocked shot). Jitoboh’s points and rebounds equaled a career high.

“Coach and the staff have been preaching inner confidence in me, telling me that I’m way better than I think,” Jitoboh said. “So I’ve just been trying to play my role and get in the best condition I can possibly get.”

SEC Basketball
Wednesday’s scores: FLORIDA (9-3) 87, Stony Brook (7-5) 62; No. 12 Auburn (11-1) 71, Murray State (10-2) 58; No. 20 Kentucky (9-2) 95; Western Kentucky (8-5) 60; South Carolina (9-3) 105, Army (6-6) 75; No. 19 Tennessee (9-2) 77, No. 6 Arizona (11-1) 73; No. 17 LSU (12-0) 95, Lipscomb (6-8) 60; East Tennessee State (8-5) 86, Georgia (5-7) 84; Illinois (9-3) 88, Missouri (6-6) 63

OVER, UNDER, AROUND AND THROUGH THE SEC (FOOTBALL)
Alabama (12-1): Offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien and offensive line coach Doug Marrone have tested positive for COVID. Alabama anticipates both will be available for the College Football Playoff semifinal game with Cincinnati in the Cotton Bowl December 31.

Arkansas (8-4): Offensive lineman Jalen St. John, who earlier in the week entered the transfer portal, has had a change of heart and will return to Arkansas after all.

Auburn (6-6): With offensive coordinator Mike Bobo fired, head coach Bryan Harsin has taken over getting the Tigers ready for their Birmingham Bowl game with Houston. The biggest change is moving to a no huddle, up tempo attack.

Georgia (12-1): In addition to quarterback JT Daniels, wide receiver George Pickens has also tested positive for COVID.

LSU (6-6): LSU will be dressing only 51 scholarship players for its Texas Bowl matchup with Kansas State.

Missouri (6-7): Tyler Badie, the SEC’s leading rusher, opted out of the Armed Forces Bowl, which Missouri lost to Army (9-4), 24-22, Wednesday night on a last second field goal. It is hard to imagine Mizzou losing that game if Badie had played.

Ole Miss (10-2): To avoid COVID outbreaks prior to its Sugar Bowl matchup with Baylor, Ole Miss is rescheduling practice and travel plans before departure for New Orleans.

South Carolina (6-6): Defensive back Karon Prunty will be transferring to D1AA North Carolina A&T.

Tennessee (7-5): HBC Josh Heupel says the Vols vaccination rate is more than 90 percent. The Vols haven’t had any positive tests as they go home for a couple of days before coming back to prep for Purdue in the Music City Bowl.

Texas A&M (8-4): Due to the massive COVID-19 outbreak on the team, Texas A&M has had to pull out of the Gator Bowl matchup with Wake Forest. Per A&M athletic director Ross Bjork, the Aggies are down to 38 healthy scholarship players, only 13 on the defensive side of the ball.

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: I never met Robbie Roper, but tonight I grieve for his family. He was just a kid with a whole life in front of him and now he’s gone, never to be replaced. It is in moments like this that I am reminded of something my mentor, Jack Hairston, told me when he first hired me to work for him with the Jacksonville Journal back in 1969. “Get the story,” he told me. “The final score is important, but the story is the people who made the final score possible. Don’t ever forget that it’s just a game that is played by real people.” Sometimes we get so caught up in the winning and losing or the stats that we forget that it is real people playing the game. In Robbie Roper’s case, he was just a kid who loved playing football and he played it at a very high level. I want to remember a kid I never knew, not the football player I didn’t.

Whispers in the Hall: The Coaching staff is done.

By my calculations, after speaking to a few people today, the staff is 100% completed and finished. You will see a few more titles such as Associate Head Coach, Executive Head Coach, etc. We are in a holding pattern due to the ongoing NFL season.

I know a few teams have announced coaches coming from the NFL. I am not sure if we will see that at UF or not; just know the four coaches I am talking about are done.

Do not assume – three of the four names, in my opinion, will surprise you is all I can tell you at this time. I am not some coaching “expert,” but if they surprise me a bit, I assume you will view it the same way. I think you are going to see Chase Clark stay - I think after the bowl game they will sit down and interview Kelvin Bolden and that will be it from the old recruiting staff - imo the rest are moving forward with other opportunities.

When things get announced and the staff is announced on the UF side of things I will talk about salaries - Napier is throwing around some money for sure not only for coaches but support staff. I hope they earn it and turn this thing around quickly.

The team is finishing up meetings and getting ready for a 2:15 practice. It should last until 5 PM or around that time. They are on their own for dinner tonight, and a curfew is at midnight.

They do have some food being catered in from Mission BBQ.

*****UPDATED*****

Yes, Florida would love to keep Corey Bell. If Bell does not get a coaching position with another team maybe he will stay but that is his goal. Ratliff as of this moment has not been told a single thing about staying on at UF so we will see what unfolds. I do not consider Kevin Camps part of that back office staff if that makes sense. Yes, I fully expect Kevin is not going anywhere he is a HUGE piece of this puzzle imo...

Our first game with a new head hancho has arrived. Does this team play inspired and rejuvenated football tonight, or come out flat?

Just started sometime over this past week. Was wondering if others may be having the same problem. Or maybe this old geezer has simply screwed up something again. Thanks.

A buddy of mine has a family emergency and we won’t be making the game tonight.

I have 2 tickets for sale. Section 235 (club level, 50 yard line), row E, seats 13-14. I paid $177.60 including the Ticketmaster fee and that is what I’m charging. If interested, PM me. We can do Zelle or Apple Pay.

Toney now following him and his mother

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Beat mizzou! I can’t stand Drinkwitz!

Sorry 14, deleted your thread by mistake....I have been sitting on this one for a while now. One of our members will give you the entire back story soon...As I always say the members is what makes this community the No 1 UF community around. Way to go APK!

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Anyone know how I can change my user name? Now that the real Heisman is here, I feel like I need to change mine out of deference.
Thanks,
The artist formerly known as 11eisman

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Is Cory Raymond the only coach on this staff with SEC experience? Seems many of these position coaches were on the Louisiana staff with coach Napier.

By Franz Beard

A few thoughts to jump start your Wednesday morning:
A RINGING ENDORSEMENT FOR BILLY NAPIER
If there is one thing we’ve learned about Dameon Pierce in the last four years – other than he can be a beast with the football in his hands – it is that he’s one of those if you’re not sure you’re going to like the answer then don’t ask the question kind of guys. He’s not the least bit afraid to speak his mind and that’s one of the refreshing things about him.

Tuesday in Tampa, where the Gators are preparing for Thursday night’s Gasparilla Bowl game with UCF, Pierce was asked about his first impressions of new Florida football coach Billy Napier. The Gasparilla Bowl will be coached by interim head coach Greg Knox and the remaining coaches from Dan Mullen’s staff, but Napier has still made an impact, particularly with Pierce, who will be playing his final game as a Gator.

“Coach Napier?” Pierce reacted to the question. “Man, he spoke to the team. It was a Monday, I forget the date. He just got off the jet, he just landed in Gainesville and met with us. I like the guy. I like the guy. He’s a good guy. From what I’m hearing from various people on the staff, he’s very people oriented. He wants to make a personal relationship with you. He does that with everyone individually. Like right now, I’m probably finally go meet with him in a couple minutes. He just wants to meet – he’s just a people person. He just wants to know you personally, and that’s a lot, especially me.

“Coming from a player, that means a lot, seeing that a coach is taking extra effort to know you personally, to know your background, to get a vibe of you. You know he’s probably going to take that from what he learned about you and apply that to his coaching style. It’s really important to me, and it’s not only him, it’s the staff as a whole. They’re very people oriented. They look … they passed the first impression with me.”

Extra effort is something Pierce understands completely. Although it’s puzzling that a back with his ability to keep the legs churning to break tackles, get the extra yards and not go down without a fight only carried the ball 316 times in his entire career (gained 1,749 yards; 5.5 per carry; 22 rushing TDs). That’s just five more times than NCAA rushing leader Lew Nichols of Central Michigan had in 2021 while running for 1,710 yards.

This is a team-first guy whose loyalty can’t be doubted. Zachary Carter opted out of the bowl game to prep for the NFL Draft. A year ago, Kyle Pitts, Kadarius Toney, Trevon Grimes and a few other Gators chose not to play in the Cotton Bowl. C.J. Henderson opted out of the Orange Bowl in 2019. Not Pierce. The Gators are playing Thursday and he’s going to strap on his helmet and pads and play.

Asked why he’s playing Thursday night, Pierce answered, “Why? Because I’m a Gator, bro. When I signed here, I signed for four good years, get my education and I’m going to rock out that way until I die, you know?”

Pierce knows the Gators should have been better than 6-6 this season. Asked how close the Gators are to turning things around he responded “three or four games” and explained that if the Gators had done the little things in three or four games in 2021 there wouldn’t have been a need to fire Mullen and bring in a new coach.

“You know, a lot of games weren’t on the same page, especially when it comes to adversity,” Pierce said. “That’s what it was, that’s really what the hump was. We had guys pulling in different directions on how to handle to adversity. Everybody wanted to win, but it was more so that we didn’t want to win the same way. So, that’s where things kind of got off, kind of got weird.

“Like I said, with Napier, hopefully he gets everyone pulling in one direction, and if they ain’t pulling, they pushing. That’s one thing you can look for with Billy, most definitely, because I can see it in his eyes. I can see it with the way he talks, the way he approaches the game, and even with his staff hires, he’s hiring a guy that fits his persona as a coach. You know, everything is just going to blend well for the Gators. We’ve got a bright future with Billy.”

JACK MILLER III COMMITS TO UF, ROB SALE TO COACH OL AND OTHER GATOR NEWS
Ohio State transfer quarterback Jack Miller III ended the speculation Tuesday when he announced he is committing to Florida. For the past 10 days or so, the Miller to Florida rumors were hot and heavy. He’s 6-4, 210, and a former 4-star QB out of high school in Arizona where he set state records for TDPs in a single season (53) and career TDPs (115). He had offers from Alabama, LSU, Texas A&M, Michigan and Southern Cal among others out of high school. It should be noted that Miller’s dad grew up in Cocoa Beach and is a big Gator fan. When Tim Tebow played in the Arizona Fall League during his minor league career, he stayed with the Millers in Scottsdale, where he formed a real bond with young Jack, then 11 years old.

A well-informed source says that current New York Giants offensive line coach Rob Sale will be joining Billy Napier’s staff in the same capacity when the NFL season concludes. Sale worked in strength and conditioning at Alabama from 2007-11), which is where he first hooked up with Napier, and he was the O-line coach at Georgia in 2015. He worked with Napier at Arizona State in 2017 and then came with him to Louisiana in 2018 where he was the O-line coach and held the offensive coordinator title.

Lefty pitcher Hunter Barco (10-2 in 2021) and center fielder Jud Fabian (20 HR, 46 RBI) have been named to Collegiate Baseball’s preseason All-America first team. The Gators are the No. 6 team in Collegiate Baseball’s preseason top 25, the sixth time in the last seven years the Gators have made the top six in the preseason rankings.

GATORS FACE STONY BROOK AT 2 P.M.
Florida’s last game before Christmas and prior to the SEC opener at Ole Miss on December 29 takes place at the O-Dome today at 1 p.m. against the Stony Brook Seawolves (7-4). Hopefully it will be a game in which the Gators regain their shooting touch, particularly from the three-point line where they are shooting 26.6 percent through their last five games.

The Gators (8-3) come into this game at No. 30 in the Kenpom.com rankings which are usually a decent indicator of a team’s overall strength. The Gators are No. 48 in overall offensive efficiency nationally in the Kenpom analytics but they rank 28th in defensive efficiency. Stony Brook, ranked 205th by Kenpom, is 176thin offensive efficiency and 239th in defensive efficiency.

SEC Basketball
Tuesday’s scores: Davidson (9-2) 79, No. 10 Alabama 78; Samford (10-2) 75, Ole Miss (8-4) 73; Texas A&M (9-2) 80, Northwestern State (3-10) 61; Mississippi State (9-3) 84, Winthrop (6-6) 63; Arkansas (10-2) 81, Elon (3-10) 55

Wednesday’s games: Stony Brook (7-4) at FLORIDA (8-3); Army (6-5) at South Carolina (8-3); Murray State (10-1) at No. 12 Auburn (10-1); Western Kentucky (8-4) at No. 20 Kentucky (8-2); No. 6 Arizona (11-0) at No. 19 Tennessee (8-2); East Tennessee State (7-5) at Georgia (5-6); Lipscomb (6-7) at No. 17 LSU (11-0); Illinois (8-3) at Missouri (6-5); Vanderbilt (6-4) at Hawaii (4-3)

OVER, UNDER, AROUND AND THROUGH THE SEC
Alabama (12-1): Former Georgia Tech running back Jahmyr Gibbs is transferring to Alabama. Gibbs ran for 746 yards (5.22 per carry) and two touchdowns while catching 36 passes for 470 yards and two TDs in 2021.

Arkansas (8-4): Offensive lineman Ray Curry Jr. is in the transfer portal. He has four years of eligibility remaining. Curry is the second Arkansas O-lineman in the portal in two days.

Auburn (6-6): All-American corner Roger McCreary is opting out of Auburn’s Birmingham Bowl game with Houston.

Georgia (12-1): JT Daniels, who proved the experts wrong for the second year in a row when he wasn’t a Heisman candidate (Jamie Newman was last year’s Georgia Heisman contender but he never played), has tested positive for COVID-19. He will be quarantined. None of the other Georgia quarterbacks have tested positive but tests will continue.

Kentucky (9-3): Linebacker J.J. Weaver was named the winner of the 2021 Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year. Weaver suffered a torn ACL against Florida in 2020 but came back in 2021 to lead the Wildcats with six sacks.

LSU (6-6): LSU has added three coaches to its strength and conditioning staff.

Mississippi State (7-5): Former Alabama defensive back Marcus Banks is transferring to Mississippi State.

Missouri (6-6): Former Clemson defensive back Joseph Charleston has committed to Mizzou … The Tigers face Army (8-4) today in the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth.

Ole Miss (10-2): Wide receiver Jordan Watkins, who caught 35 passes for 531 yards and four touchdowns at Louisville, is transferring to Ole Miss.

South Carolina (6-6): David Cloninger of the Charleston Post and Courier writes that Spencer Rattler arrives as the most hyped and scrutinized quarterback in South Carolina history.

Tennessee (7-5): Tight end Jacob Warren, who made 18 catches for 179 yards, will return to Tennessee for the 2022 season.

Texas A&M (8-4): The Aggies have shut down football operations as multiple players, most of them vaccinated, have tested positive for COVID-19. The Aggies face Wake Forest in the Gator Bowl on December 31.

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: On a podcast for ESPN, Chris Low made it perfectly clear that it could be nuclear winter in Athens if Georgia beats Michigan in their College Football Playoff semifinal in the Orange Bowl on December 31, but then loses to Alabama in the national championship game.

Low said, “If Georgia’s gonna lose in the Playoff, I think they’re better off losing to Michigan. If they lose to Alabama again? You talk about a long, restless offseason in Athens. If they lose twice in the matter of a month to Nick Saban there’s going to be that old joke: Where does Nick Saban live? He lives in Kirby Smart’s head. You don’t think that’s going to be repeated over and over again in Athens?

“If they beat Michigan, I think they have a decent chance to beat Alabama. It just hard to beat a team like Georgia twice in one season, but the worst scenario for the Dogs and Kirby Smart is to beat Michigan and face Alabama again in the big game and lose that game.”

It should also be noted that as well as Kirby Smart has been recruiting, he stands to lose almost his entire defensive unit to either graduation or the NFL next year, plus three members of the O-line, both specialists, his starting QB and his top two running backs. Throw in that kind of personnel departures with yet another loss to Saban and Alabama and Georgia fans might have to be talked off the ledge for months on end. Georgia is currently a 7.5-point favorite to beat Michigan, but those odds could change if JT Daniels’ positive COVID test is the first of many positive tests for the team.