By Franz Beard
A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:
DOUBLE DIPPING! GATORS WIN MEN’S/WOMEN’S NCAA TRACK TITLES
For all his accomplishments as Florida’s track and field coach, the one thing Mike Holloway had never done is win both the men’s and women’s NCAA outdoor track and field championships in the same year until this past weekend in Eugene, Oregon. The Gators pulled off the Friday night shocked when the men sprinted past the favored Texas Longhorns to take the fifth outdoor title in Holloway’s illustrious career. Then Saturday night, the Gators put away Texas for the women’s outdoor title in Holloway’s career. Earlier this year, the Florida women won the first NCAA indoor title for Holloway.
The two NCAA championships brought Holloway’s total to 12: 10 for the men (five indoor, five outdoor) and two for the women. In winning both the men’s and women’s outdoor titles, the Gators became only the seventh team in history to pull
What made the UF men’s title so impressive was they did it without scoring a single point in any of the jumps, throwing or distance running events. It was all done in the sprints, led by Joseph Fahnbulleh winning the 100 and 200 meters. Fahnbulleh also ran the anchor leg on Florida’s second place 4X100 relay team. The Gators scored 12 points in the 400 behind a second place finish by Champion Allison and Ryan Willie, who were part of Florida’s winning 4X400 relay team.
The Gators were so far out in front of Texas that they had clinched the national championship even before the 4X400 relay was run, but the Gators poured it on with a 2:58.58 with Jacory Patterson, Willie, Jacob Miley and Allison obliterating the field.
Saturday, the Gators were led by Jasmine Moore, who won the long jump and triple jump, and Anna Hall, who won the heptathlon and finished second in the 400 hurdles. Moore won the jumper’s grand slam – NCAA titles in the long jump and triple jump at both the indoor and outdoor championships. Talitha Diggs, who won the 400 indoors, also won it outdoors.
When the heptathlon results came in (Hall won, Sterling Lester 5th), the Gators knew they needed only one point in the final two events to clinch the title. In the 1,500 meters, the next to last event of the championships, freshman Parker Valby ran a personal best 15:20.10 to finish second for eight points to provide a final margin of 16 (74-58) over the favored Longhorns.
UF SOFTBALL: KEAGAN ROTHROCK GATORADE NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
About the only thing better than winning the Gatorade National Player of the Year for Keagan Rothrock was pitching the Roncalli Royals to an undefeated state championship season. The Gatorade award came last Wednesday. Saturday, Rockrock pitched a 2-hitter, striking out 15 of the 24 batters (only 94 pitches) she faced as Roncalli smashed Harrison, 16-0, to finish the season 33-0. It was the second straight state title for the Royals.
Rothrock finished the season 28-0 in the circle with a phenomenal 381 strikeouts. She also hit .529 with 14 home runs. Rothrock has a weighted 4.1 GPA and is editor of the school yearbook.
Brian Haenchen of the Indianapolis Star reported that throngs of young girls lined the stairs above the bullpen just to watch Rothrock warm up.
"It's just awesome knowing I can be somebody's role model and that I can inspire somebody in that way," Rothrock said. "I want to continue to do it so those young girls have an inspiration. I know I had a role model when I was their age and it was (Florida pitcher) Kelly Barnhill. So it's just nice knowing that I'm able to be somebody else's role model and to give back to our community."
Only a junior, Rothrock is part of a recruiting class that ranks among the best of all time – SS Mia Williams (Windermere, FL), P Ava Brown (Montgomery, TX Lake Creek), SS/3B Alyssa Hovermale (Norco, CA), C/1B Ariel Kowalewski (Fort Bend, TX Travis) and OF Cassidy McClellan (Bradenton, FL Lakewood Ranch).
SEC FOOTBALL/BASEBALL/TRACK
Alabama: Arch Manning visited Alabama over the weekend where he donned Alabama football gear for photo ops. He did the same thing when he visited Georgia. If I’m a betting man, I think he either chooses Alabama or Texas … At the NCAA track meet, the Tide men finished 11th while the women finished 15th.
Arkansas: The unseeded Razorbacks (43-19) scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth to knock off 10th-seeded North Carolina, 4-3, and win the Chapel Hill Regional. Buddy Slavens drove home the game-winner with a two-out single. This will be the 11th trip to Omaha for Arkansas, the seventh under head coach Dave Van Horn … At the NCAA track meet, the Arkansas women finished sixth while the men finished 23rd.
Auburn: Oregon State forced a game three in the Corvallis super regional by taking down Auburn (43-20), 4-3, Sunday evening. Auburn faces the Beavers today with the winner going to Omaha … At the NCAA track meet, the Auburn men finished 46th while the women finished tied for 62nd.
Georgia: The Georgia men finished fifth while the women finished 45th at the NCAA track meet in Oregon.
Kentucky: If you watched the final event of the NCAA women’s track and field championships Saturday night then you saw Kentucky’s Abby Steiner make up at least 25 meters on the third leg of the Wildcats winning 4X400 relay team. Steiner, who had set the collegiate record in the 200 meters a few minutes earlier (she also finished third in the 100), caught the Texas runner at on the final turn and then had a 10-meter lead when she made the handoff for the final leg of the relay … The Kentucky women finished third while the UK men finished 36th.
LSU: Dylan Tebrake, the Big East pitcher of the year the last two years, is transferring to LSU. He was 8-2 with a 2.81 ERA and 115 strikeouts in 2022 ... At the NCAA track meet, the LSU women finished fourth while the men finished sixth.
Mississippi State: The MSU men finished 30th at the NCAA track meet.
Missouri: The Missouri men finished 50th at the NCAA track meet.
Ole Miss: The Rebels (37-22) were one of the last teams to make the NCAA Tournament field, but after their sweep of Southern Miss in the Hattiesburg regional, they’re on their way to Omaha for the College World Series. Hunter Elliott paved the way for the Rebels by pitching 3-hit baseball over 7-1/3 innings with 10 strikeouts … At the NCAA track meet, the Ole Miss women finished 19th while the men finished 39th.
South Carolina: The South Carolina women finished 23rd at the NCAA track meet.
Tennessee: The Vols finished their baseball season with a 57-9 record after losing in the Knoxville regional to Notre Dame ... The Tennessee women finished third while the men finished in a tie for 62nd in the NCAA track meet.
Texas A&M: The Aggies (42-18) were the first team in the country to punch their ticket to the College World Series after they swept Louisville. Reliever Jacob Palisch came on in relief in the ninth to get two strikeouts and a fly out to preserve the win. First-year coach Jim Schlossnagle has the Aggies going to Omaha just one year after they failed to make the SEC Tournament … The Texas A&M men finished 25th at the NCAA track meet.
Vanderbilt: The Vanderbilt women finished 49th at the NCAA track meet.
ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Think of the 2022 Tennessee Vols as the college baseball equivalent of Lee Westwood. You know what they call Westwood every time there is a golf tournament in which he’s playing – “The best player to never win a major.” Well, just a few days ago Vol fans and a few in the media were proclaiming the 2022 Vols as the greatest college baseball team in history. Now that they’ve been slapped silly by Notre Dame, which arrived in Knoxville wearing the ugliest uniforms on the planet and shiny golden helmets (Golden Domers vs. Mobile Homers was what this super regional was dubbed), it is safe to say that if the Vols were indeed the greatest then they are the greatest to never.
It was suggested by a well-meaning friend of mine that the Vols would have won the Knoxville super regional except they left their game on the back row of the “Dreamland Drive-In” show at nearby Dollywood USA. How else, he asked, could the greatest team ever – the No. 1 seed in the entire NCAA Tournament – not only get kayoed in its own super regional but by a team that wasn’t even seeded.
Color me not surprised. Not surprised in the least. For weeks I’ve been of the opinion that the only national championship the Vols might win this year is arrogance. There is supreme confidence and there is arrogance. I love supremely confident teams. I am annoyed by arrogant teams that flip bats, argue with umpires and do their best impressions of pimps in the dugout when someone hits a homer. It’s been years since I saw a team as arrogant as Tennessee. I’m reminded of that great line by Lou Holtz, who always reminded his Notre Dame teams, “When you get to the end zone, act like you’ve been there before.” When you’re that good you don’t have to tell the world how good you are. The world will notice anyway.
I will concede that Tennessee is loaded with talent, but the team with the most talent rarely takes home the big trophy when the dust settles on the College World Series in Omaha. You have to go all the way back to 1999 to find the last No. 1 seeded team to win the College World Series. That was Miami back when Miami was always on the short list of the best teams in the country.
The 2015 Florida team arrived in Omaha as the No. 1 seed. Talk about a loaded roster, the Gators had it. On that Florida roster were 13 who made it to the Major Leagues including Pete Alonso, Alex Faedo, A.J. Puk, Dane Dunning and Harrison Bader, six who made it to Triple A and one to Double A. We’ll have to wait and see if the 2022 Tennessee roster yields that many big leaguers.
With the exception of Georgia, I always pull for SEC teams when they have a chance to make it to any national championship event. The only reason I see any Gator should ever cheer for Georgia is if a Georgia win betters Florida’s chances to win a championship. I grudgingly hoped Tennessee baseball 2022 would make the College World Series. Grudgingly. The Vols didn’t make it. I can’t say that I’m happy about it, but I’m certainly not the least bit upset.
Nor was Lane Kiffin. Responding on Twitter to a Vol fan trying to get under his skin by asking about son Knox, Kiffin replied with this: “Awesome thanks for asking!! We are watching Ole Miss baseball advance to the CWSOmaha!! What are you guys today in Knoxville?”
A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:
DOUBLE DIPPING! GATORS WIN MEN’S/WOMEN’S NCAA TRACK TITLES
For all his accomplishments as Florida’s track and field coach, the one thing Mike Holloway had never done is win both the men’s and women’s NCAA outdoor track and field championships in the same year until this past weekend in Eugene, Oregon. The Gators pulled off the Friday night shocked when the men sprinted past the favored Texas Longhorns to take the fifth outdoor title in Holloway’s illustrious career. Then Saturday night, the Gators put away Texas for the women’s outdoor title in Holloway’s career. Earlier this year, the Florida women won the first NCAA indoor title for Holloway.
The two NCAA championships brought Holloway’s total to 12: 10 for the men (five indoor, five outdoor) and two for the women. In winning both the men’s and women’s outdoor titles, the Gators became only the seventh team in history to pull
What made the UF men’s title so impressive was they did it without scoring a single point in any of the jumps, throwing or distance running events. It was all done in the sprints, led by Joseph Fahnbulleh winning the 100 and 200 meters. Fahnbulleh also ran the anchor leg on Florida’s second place 4X100 relay team. The Gators scored 12 points in the 400 behind a second place finish by Champion Allison and Ryan Willie, who were part of Florida’s winning 4X400 relay team.
The Gators were so far out in front of Texas that they had clinched the national championship even before the 4X400 relay was run, but the Gators poured it on with a 2:58.58 with Jacory Patterson, Willie, Jacob Miley and Allison obliterating the field.
Saturday, the Gators were led by Jasmine Moore, who won the long jump and triple jump, and Anna Hall, who won the heptathlon and finished second in the 400 hurdles. Moore won the jumper’s grand slam – NCAA titles in the long jump and triple jump at both the indoor and outdoor championships. Talitha Diggs, who won the 400 indoors, also won it outdoors.
When the heptathlon results came in (Hall won, Sterling Lester 5th), the Gators knew they needed only one point in the final two events to clinch the title. In the 1,500 meters, the next to last event of the championships, freshman Parker Valby ran a personal best 15:20.10 to finish second for eight points to provide a final margin of 16 (74-58) over the favored Longhorns.
UF SOFTBALL: KEAGAN ROTHROCK GATORADE NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
About the only thing better than winning the Gatorade National Player of the Year for Keagan Rothrock was pitching the Roncalli Royals to an undefeated state championship season. The Gatorade award came last Wednesday. Saturday, Rockrock pitched a 2-hitter, striking out 15 of the 24 batters (only 94 pitches) she faced as Roncalli smashed Harrison, 16-0, to finish the season 33-0. It was the second straight state title for the Royals.
Rothrock finished the season 28-0 in the circle with a phenomenal 381 strikeouts. She also hit .529 with 14 home runs. Rothrock has a weighted 4.1 GPA and is editor of the school yearbook.
Brian Haenchen of the Indianapolis Star reported that throngs of young girls lined the stairs above the bullpen just to watch Rothrock warm up.
"It's just awesome knowing I can be somebody's role model and that I can inspire somebody in that way," Rothrock said. "I want to continue to do it so those young girls have an inspiration. I know I had a role model when I was their age and it was (Florida pitcher) Kelly Barnhill. So it's just nice knowing that I'm able to be somebody else's role model and to give back to our community."
Only a junior, Rothrock is part of a recruiting class that ranks among the best of all time – SS Mia Williams (Windermere, FL), P Ava Brown (Montgomery, TX Lake Creek), SS/3B Alyssa Hovermale (Norco, CA), C/1B Ariel Kowalewski (Fort Bend, TX Travis) and OF Cassidy McClellan (Bradenton, FL Lakewood Ranch).
SEC FOOTBALL/BASEBALL/TRACK
Alabama: Arch Manning visited Alabama over the weekend where he donned Alabama football gear for photo ops. He did the same thing when he visited Georgia. If I’m a betting man, I think he either chooses Alabama or Texas … At the NCAA track meet, the Tide men finished 11th while the women finished 15th.
Arkansas: The unseeded Razorbacks (43-19) scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth to knock off 10th-seeded North Carolina, 4-3, and win the Chapel Hill Regional. Buddy Slavens drove home the game-winner with a two-out single. This will be the 11th trip to Omaha for Arkansas, the seventh under head coach Dave Van Horn … At the NCAA track meet, the Arkansas women finished sixth while the men finished 23rd.
Auburn: Oregon State forced a game three in the Corvallis super regional by taking down Auburn (43-20), 4-3, Sunday evening. Auburn faces the Beavers today with the winner going to Omaha … At the NCAA track meet, the Auburn men finished 46th while the women finished tied for 62nd.
Georgia: The Georgia men finished fifth while the women finished 45th at the NCAA track meet in Oregon.
Kentucky: If you watched the final event of the NCAA women’s track and field championships Saturday night then you saw Kentucky’s Abby Steiner make up at least 25 meters on the third leg of the Wildcats winning 4X400 relay team. Steiner, who had set the collegiate record in the 200 meters a few minutes earlier (she also finished third in the 100), caught the Texas runner at on the final turn and then had a 10-meter lead when she made the handoff for the final leg of the relay … The Kentucky women finished third while the UK men finished 36th.
LSU: Dylan Tebrake, the Big East pitcher of the year the last two years, is transferring to LSU. He was 8-2 with a 2.81 ERA and 115 strikeouts in 2022 ... At the NCAA track meet, the LSU women finished fourth while the men finished sixth.
Mississippi State: The MSU men finished 30th at the NCAA track meet.
Missouri: The Missouri men finished 50th at the NCAA track meet.
Ole Miss: The Rebels (37-22) were one of the last teams to make the NCAA Tournament field, but after their sweep of Southern Miss in the Hattiesburg regional, they’re on their way to Omaha for the College World Series. Hunter Elliott paved the way for the Rebels by pitching 3-hit baseball over 7-1/3 innings with 10 strikeouts … At the NCAA track meet, the Ole Miss women finished 19th while the men finished 39th.
South Carolina: The South Carolina women finished 23rd at the NCAA track meet.
Tennessee: The Vols finished their baseball season with a 57-9 record after losing in the Knoxville regional to Notre Dame ... The Tennessee women finished third while the men finished in a tie for 62nd in the NCAA track meet.
Texas A&M: The Aggies (42-18) were the first team in the country to punch their ticket to the College World Series after they swept Louisville. Reliever Jacob Palisch came on in relief in the ninth to get two strikeouts and a fly out to preserve the win. First-year coach Jim Schlossnagle has the Aggies going to Omaha just one year after they failed to make the SEC Tournament … The Texas A&M men finished 25th at the NCAA track meet.
Vanderbilt: The Vanderbilt women finished 49th at the NCAA track meet.
ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Think of the 2022 Tennessee Vols as the college baseball equivalent of Lee Westwood. You know what they call Westwood every time there is a golf tournament in which he’s playing – “The best player to never win a major.” Well, just a few days ago Vol fans and a few in the media were proclaiming the 2022 Vols as the greatest college baseball team in history. Now that they’ve been slapped silly by Notre Dame, which arrived in Knoxville wearing the ugliest uniforms on the planet and shiny golden helmets (Golden Domers vs. Mobile Homers was what this super regional was dubbed), it is safe to say that if the Vols were indeed the greatest then they are the greatest to never.
It was suggested by a well-meaning friend of mine that the Vols would have won the Knoxville super regional except they left their game on the back row of the “Dreamland Drive-In” show at nearby Dollywood USA. How else, he asked, could the greatest team ever – the No. 1 seed in the entire NCAA Tournament – not only get kayoed in its own super regional but by a team that wasn’t even seeded.
Color me not surprised. Not surprised in the least. For weeks I’ve been of the opinion that the only national championship the Vols might win this year is arrogance. There is supreme confidence and there is arrogance. I love supremely confident teams. I am annoyed by arrogant teams that flip bats, argue with umpires and do their best impressions of pimps in the dugout when someone hits a homer. It’s been years since I saw a team as arrogant as Tennessee. I’m reminded of that great line by Lou Holtz, who always reminded his Notre Dame teams, “When you get to the end zone, act like you’ve been there before.” When you’re that good you don’t have to tell the world how good you are. The world will notice anyway.
I will concede that Tennessee is loaded with talent, but the team with the most talent rarely takes home the big trophy when the dust settles on the College World Series in Omaha. You have to go all the way back to 1999 to find the last No. 1 seeded team to win the College World Series. That was Miami back when Miami was always on the short list of the best teams in the country.
The 2015 Florida team arrived in Omaha as the No. 1 seed. Talk about a loaded roster, the Gators had it. On that Florida roster were 13 who made it to the Major Leagues including Pete Alonso, Alex Faedo, A.J. Puk, Dane Dunning and Harrison Bader, six who made it to Triple A and one to Double A. We’ll have to wait and see if the 2022 Tennessee roster yields that many big leaguers.
With the exception of Georgia, I always pull for SEC teams when they have a chance to make it to any national championship event. The only reason I see any Gator should ever cheer for Georgia is if a Georgia win betters Florida’s chances to win a championship. I grudgingly hoped Tennessee baseball 2022 would make the College World Series. Grudgingly. The Vols didn’t make it. I can’t say that I’m happy about it, but I’m certainly not the least bit upset.
Nor was Lane Kiffin. Responding on Twitter to a Vol fan trying to get under his skin by asking about son Knox, Kiffin replied with this: “Awesome thanks for asking!! We are watching Ole Miss baseball advance to the CWSOmaha!! What are you guys today in Knoxville?”
