By Franz Beard
A few thoughts to jump start your Thursday morning:
Billy Napier didn’t have a walks on water finish to National Signing Day. The anticipated last second bonanza never materialized so dreams of the Florida Gators sniffing the top 10 in the final recruiting rankings went up in smoke. Here are the final rankings from the five networks: 247Sports 19, Sports Illustrated 21, Rivals 24, On3Sports 25 and ESPN 32. Based on those rankings, Napier’s sprint to the finish probably resembled a casual stroll, but the rankings are misleading.
The rankings don’t tell the entire story for a couple of reasons. First, the rankings fail to take into account just how much ground the Gators had to make up and second, the fact that Napier didn’t take the easy route.
When you consider what Napier accomplished in only 59 days, it’s pretty remarkable. During the same time he was cobbling together a recruiting class that was already shaky before it went in the tank when Dan Mullen was fired, Billy Napier hired a coaching staff and an “army” of analysts, recruiting specialists and other support staff. He landed five transfers, all of whom will play important roles on the field in 2022. He had a chance to evaluate the returning roster at practices for and during the Gasparilla Bowl, plus interviewed every single player, whether leaving or staying. All that and he signed 17 high school kids to scholarships, nine in December and eight more Wednesday including 4-star edge rusher Jack Pyburn.
Napier could have scored a higher recruiting ranking if he had loaded up the class with several gettable but lower ranked players, but instead he swung for the fences and went after the higher ranked kids. At his NSD press conference, he referenced the old baseball analogy that you never get a hit if you don’t swing the bat. Napier went after 5-star linebacker Harold Perkins, 4-star safety Jacoby Matthews, 4-star defensive lineman Caden Story and 4-star running back TreVonte Citizen. He whiffed but was right there to the bitter end with all four. At some point in the future, Napier will win his share of those battles. There are no moral victories in recruiting, but Napier did get the Gators in the conversation.
It's not unfair or wrong to be disappointed that the Gators didn’t close out and secure all of their big targets, but it’s also not unfair to point out that when you take everything that happened in the last 59 days into consideration, then Billy Napier’s first recruiting class is very good. Not great, mind you, but very good.
GATKEK’S BLOCK PRESERVES ROAD VICTORY OVER MIZZOU
For the second consecutive game, help when the Gators (14-8, 4-5 SEC) needed it most came from the most unlikely source. Tuongthach Gatkek didn’t score a point Wednesday afternoon but he came through with the critical block of a driving shot by Amari Davis with 2.2 seconds remaining to preserve a 66-65 win over Missouri (8-13, 2-6 SEC) in Columbia.
Last Saturday, Gatkek, who has become Florida’s rim protector and paint defender in the absence of Colin Castleton and Jason Jitoboh, scored eight points and had three blocked shots to help the Gators score an unexpected win over Oklahoma State in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. He played 19 minutes against the Tigers, grabbed four rebounds and blocked five shots. Not bad for a 6-9, 172-pound stringbean that Mike White and the Florida staff were thinking to redshirt when he was signed in August.
“He has to continue to fill out,” White quipped. “I’m only going to eat half my pizza and give him the other half!”
It was Florida’s defense down the stretch and clutch free throw shooting that brought the Gators back from a 9-point second half deficit to a second straight win. After a first half in which the Gators hit 8-14 from the 3-point line, the shooting went south after the break. Missouri amped up its defense to limit opportunities for Myreon Jones, who hit 5-7 from the 3-point line in the first half, and without his hot hand, the Gators struggled to find their offense. Fortunately, they got to the foul line 21 times in the second half, hitting 19 to compensate for 6-20 shooting from the field overall and only 2-9 from the 3-point line.
Tyree Appleby, who was scoreless in the first half after picking up two quick fouls, scored Florida’s final eight points including the two with seven seconds remaining that gave the Gators the lead for good. Appleby finished 10-10 at the line, scoring 17 points. Jones, who scored 15 in the first half, missed his only 3-pointer in the last 20 minutes, but he hit three clutch free throws with 6:38 left to pull the Gators back to within three. Anthony Duruji finished with 14 points and Phlandrous Fleming Jr. scored 12.
The Gators can even their SEC record at 5-5 Saturday when they play host to Ole Miss at the O-Dome. Currently, Joe Lunardi of ESPN has the Gators in the NCAA Tournament a 12-seed in his latest bracketology.
SEC Basketball
Wednesday’s scores: FLORIDA (14-8, 4-5 SEC) 66, Missouri (8-13, 2-6 SEC) 65; Arkansas (17-5, 6-3 SEC) 99, Georgia (7-16, 1-8 SEC) 73; No. 5 Kentucky (18-4, 7-2 SEC) 77, Vanderbilt (11-10, 3-6 SEC) 70
Saturday’s games: Ole Miss (12-10, 3-6 SEC) at FLORIDA (14-8, 4-5 SEC); No. 1 Auburn (21-1, 9-0 SEC) at Georgia (7-16, 1-8 SEC); No. 22 Tennessee (15-6, 6-3 SEC) at South Carolina (13-8, 4-5 SEC); Missouri (8-13, 2-6 SEC) at Texas A&M (15-7, 4-5 SEC); No. 25 LSU (16-6, 4-5 SEC) at Vanderbilt (11-10, 3-6 SEC); No. 5 Kentucky (18-4, 7-2 SEC) at Alabama (14-8, 4-5 SEC)
A CHANCE FOR A STATEMENT WIN FOR UF WOMEN TONIGHT
Interim head coach Kelly Rae Finley has the Gators (15-6, 5-3 SEC) looking very much like an NCAA Tournament team the way they played in the month of January when they knocked off three ranked teams. The Gators can add to their already impressive resume tonight at the O-Dome (6 p.m., SEC Network) when they host 7th-ranked Tennessee (19-2, 8-1 SEC), which lost last week to SEC bottom feeder Auburn and then struggled to get past Arkansas at home.
To beat the Vols, the Gators have to figure out a way to slow down Jordan Horston (16.2 points, 9.7 rebounds, 3.9 assists) and get some sort of inside game going against 6-6 Tamari Key, who averages 3.8 blocked shots per game with a high of 11 in a January win over Texas A&M.
In ESPN’s latest bracketology, the Gators are an 11-seed while Tennessee is a two.
SEC FOOTBALL
Alabama: Very quietly, Nick Saban hired Kentucky offensive line coach Eric Wolford from Kentucky, which means Doug Marrone is almost certainly headed back to the NFL ... With new special teams coordinator Coleman Hutzler also named to coach outside linebackers, Sal Sunseri will be elevated to an off-the-field position to evaluate players in the NCAA transfer portal. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 2; 247Sports 2; On3Sports 2; Sports Illustrated 2; ESPN 2
Arkansas: The Hogs loaded up with five O-line recruits. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 26; 247Sports 28; On3Sports 26; ESPN 21
Auburn: On National Signing Day, Auburn lost wide receiver Ja’Varrius Johnson, a former 4-star recruit, to the transfer portal ... Among Auburn’s signees is placekicker Alex McPherson, younger brother of former Gator and now Cincinnati Bengals kicker Evan McPherson. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 18; 247Sports 18; On3Sports 18; Sports Illustrated 16; ESPN 18
Georgia: Winning a national championship has its rewards. Kirby Smart is in negotiation for a long term extension along with a hefty raise from his current $7 million contract. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 3; 247Sports 3; On3Sports 3; Sports Illustrated 3; ESPN 3
Kentucky: Kentucky has lost O-line coach Eric Wolford to Alabama, key analyst Jovon Bouknight to Marshall where he will coach wide receivers, and there is a very good chance the Wildcats will lose offensive coordinator Liam Coen to the Los Angeles Rams should Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell land (as expected) the head coaching gig with the Minnesota Vikings. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 13; 247Sports 13; On3Sports 14; Sports Illustrated 18; ESPN 15
LSU: The Tigers late push on the final official visit weekend convinced LB Harold Perkins to choose LSU over Florida. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 14; 247Sports 12; On3Sports 12; Sports Illustrated 14; ESPN 13
Mississippi State: The QB in the class is 4-star Braedyn Locke. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 16; 247Sports 27; On3Sports 23; Sports Illustrated 20; ESPN 29
Missouri: The Tigers’ top recruit is 5-star wide receiver Luther Burden. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 17; 247Sports 14; On3Sports 15; Sports Illustrated 11; ESPN 11
Ole Miss: Lane Kiffin scored big in the transfer portal Wednesday when former Mississippi State wide receiver Malik Heath committed to Ole Miss. Heath caught 34 passes for 442 yards and five touchdowns last year. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 27; 247Sports 23; On3Sports 21; Sports Illustrated 25; ESPN 23
South Carolina: Tight ends coach Eric Kimrey is leaving the South Carolina staff to take an out-of-state high school head coaching job, reportedly at The Baylor School in Chattanooga. Also leaving the South Carolina staff is former Gamecock record-setting QB Conner Shaw. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 25; 247Sports 26; On3Sports 28; Sports Illustrated 22; ESPN 17
Tennessee: The quarterback in the class is 4-star Tayven Jackson. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 12; 247Sports 16; On3Sports 16; Sports Illustrated 12; ESPN 22
Texas A&M: Late in the day the Aggies landed 5-star safety Jacoby Matthews out of Ponchatoula, Louisiana, who also had Florida and LSU on his final list. The Aggies landed five 5-star recruits. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 1; 247Sports 1; On3Sports 1; Sports Illustrated 1; ESPN 1
Vanderbilt: Offensive tackle Leyton Miller was a last-second flip from UCF to Vanderbilt. Miller said that among the reasons Miller flipped to Vanderbilt was the cost of attendance stipend. Recruiting rankings: Rivals 33; 247Sports 31; On3Sports 31; ESPN 31
ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Did you happen to catch Jimbo Fisher’s rant regarding the swirling rumors that his No. 1-ranked Texas A&M recruiting class was secured through some serious NIL expenditures? Spare me the sanctimony, please.
I have no idea whether the Aggies forked over the rumored millions to convince so many outstanding recruits to spend the next few years of their lives in College Station. Maybe it’s true, maybe not, but I do know that when Jimbo was the coach at Florida State there were always rumors that some of his top recruits perhaps received something beyond the standard scholarship fare and the cost of attendance stipend. FSU wasn’t lit up by the NCAA while Jimbo was the coach, so perhaps he and his football program were as pure as the driven snow.
Perhaps.
Whether the Aggie alums and boosters dipped into their enormous bank accounts – it’s said that only God and the Longhorns have more money than the Aggies – or not, Jimbo isn’t going to live down the perception any time soon, and the way he went off on a rant didn’t come across as someone who had nothing to hide. Instead of his angry rant, he could have kept his cool and said something like, “We do things completely by the book and we welcome anyone to investigate.” That doesn’t sound like a guilty party.
Again, I’m not saying the Aggies are guilty of anything and with the NCAA doing a marvelous imitation of a eunuch when it comes to NIL, who’s to say what’s cheating and what isn’t? The lines of what’s legal and what isn’t are completely blurred and the NCAA seems in no hurry to clarify things. Meanwhile, Jimbo’s rant didn’t exactly leave the impressive with anyone except maybe some rabid A&M fans that the Aggies didn’t bend a rule or two – or three or four – along the way.
