By Franz Beard
A few thoughts to jump start your Tuesday morning:
KELLY RAE FINLEY HAS THE INTERIM LABEL REMOVED!
Kelly Rae Finley has shed the interim label. Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin made her the head coach of the Florida women’s basketball program moving forward Monday. The decision to remove the interim label was made weeks ago, but not announced until Monday. The timing couldn’t have come at a better time.
Having lost the final three games of the regular season, the Gators needed an emotional lift and seeing Finley named as the permanent head coach might be just what they needed. They’ve been putting far more pressure on themselves lately than necessary.
“I think we got here by being ourselves,” Kiki Smith said after the Gators lost to Missouri Sunday afternoon. “One thing we talk about a lot is when we have fun we play our best basketball and I do think because we are who we are, we forget about the fun side of it. Now, to us [lately] it’s business but I think once we get back to the fun part – and you know still keep in the back of our minds we’re trying to get somewhere – we’ll get back to playing the basketball that as a team we know we can play and that we’ve played before. So we’ve just got to bring that fun back that we were playing with before we were in this position. Once we get back to that, we’ll shock a lot of people once we get into the tournaments.”
Making basketball fun is just one reason Finley earned the job. She took over a toxic situation when Cam Newbauer was fired and instantly began the process of winning this team over, one kid at a time. Finley believes it’s not a one-size-fits-all profession but it takes each individual giving up something to be a part of a team. So from a potential full scale mutiny, which was what was about to take place prior to Newbauer’s dismissal, Finley healed the team one player at a time and instilled a winning attitude. Remember, this is a program that suffered through five straight losing seasons and now the Gators head into the SEC Tournament ranked 23rd nationally and with a 20-9 record that includes wins over five ranked teams.
“I want to say there’s some magical thing, but there is not,” Finley told me last week in an interview. “It’s a people-centered business. Sport is fun at its core and we try to keep it that way. It’s not always going to be like that. It’s hard. There are disappointments. There are expectations. There are games that you will lose that you didn’t want to lose but that’s part of it.”
Now they have to regroup before Thursday when they face the winner of Vanderbilt-Texas A&M in the second round of the SEC Tournament. By removing the interim label on Monday when he made the announcement in the UF locker room, Stricklin probably took all the pressure off the Gators moving forward this year and after. Finley, after all, is considered a dynamic recruiter.
“Kelly Rae is such a talented young coach, whose natural poise, intelligence and relational abilities have all been on display during this remarkable Gators’ women’s basketball season,” Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin said a statement released to the media. “I’m excited that she’ll have the opportunity to build off this year’s success and that future Gators will be able to benefit from her leadership the way this team has.”
Associated Press 25: 1. South Carolina 27-1; 2. Stanford 25-3; 3. North Carolina State 26-3; 4. Louisville 25-3; 5. Baylor 23-5; 6. LSU 25-4; 7. UConn 22-5; 8. Iowa State 24-4; 9. Texas 21-6; 10. Michigan 22-5; 11. Maryland 21-7; 12. Iowa 20-7; 13. Ohio State 22-5; 14. (Tie) Indiana 19-7 and Arizona 20-6; 16. North Carolina 23-5; 17. BYU 25-2; 18. Tennessee 22-7; 19. Oklahoma 22-6; 20. Notre Dame 21-7; 22. Florida Gulf Coast 26-2; 23. FLORIDA 20-9; 24. Georgia 20-8; 25. Georgia Tech 20-9
NET RANKINGS MAKE VANDY GAME EVEN MORE IMPORTANT FOR UF
The latest NCAA Net Rankings moved Vanderbilt (14-14, 6-10 SEC) to No. 74, which increases the need for Florida (18-11, 8-8 SEC) to score a win tonight at Memorial Gym (8:30 p.m., SEC Network). Under the Net Rankings system a road win over a top 75 team counts as a Quad 1 win, something that has been in short supply for the Gators, 2-8 in Quad 1 with their only wins over No. 20 Ohio State and No. 11 Auburn.
At No. 51 in the Net Rankings, the Gators are squarely on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament. A win over Vandy might not be that impressive but a loss, would be devastating to Florida’s shaky tournament chances.
When Florida beat Vanderbilt 61-42 in January, the Gators were without Colin Castleton but Jason Jitoboh filled in nicely with six points, 10 rebounds, an assist, a block and a steal. Jitoboh is out for the season but Castleton is back, playing the best basketball of his career. Potentially out, however, is Anthony Duruji, who had eight points and seven rebounds in the first game while spearheading the best defensive effort of the season. Duruji has a lower leg injury that prevented him from playing in the Gators’ 84-72 win over Georgia.
Tuesday’s games: FLORIDA (18-11, 8-8 SEC) at Vanderbilt (14-14, 6-10 SEC); No. 13 Tennessee (21-7, 12-4 SEC) at Georgia (6-23, 1-15 SEC); Ole Miss (13-16, 4-12 SEC) at No. 7 Kentucky (23-6, 12-4 SEC); Missouri (10-19, 4-12 SEC) at South Carolina (17-11, 8-8 SEC)
Wednesday’s games: Texas A&M (18-11, 7-9 SEC) at No. 25 Alabama (19-10, 9-7 SEC); No. 5 Auburn (25-4, 13-3 SEC) at Mississippi State (17-12, 8-8 SEC); LSU (20-9, 8-8 SEC) at No. 14 Arkansas (23-6, 12-4 SEC)
Associated Press Top 25: 1. Gonzaga 24-3; 2. Arizona 25-3; 3. Baylor 24-5; 4. Duke 25-4; 5. Auburn 25-4; 6. Kansas 23-5; 7. Kentucky 23-6; 8. Purdue 24-5; 9. Providence 24-3; 10. Wisconsin 23-5; 11. Villanova 21-7; 12. Texas Tech 22-7; 13. Tennessee 21-7; 14. (Tie) Houston 24-4 and Arkansas 23-6; 16. Southern Cal 25-4; 17. UCLA 21-6; 18. UConn 21-7; 19. Saint Mary’s 24-6; 20. Illinois 20-8; 21. Texas 21-8; 22. Murray State 28-2; 23. Ohio State 18-8; 24. Iowa 20-8; 25. Alabama 19-10
Coaches Top 25: 1. Gonzaga 24-3; 2. Duke 25-4; 3. Arizona 25-3; 4. Baylor 24-5; 5. Auburn 25-4; 6. Kentucky 23-6; 7. Kansas 23-5; 8. Providence 24-3; 9. Purdue 24-5; 10. Wisconsin 23-5; 11. Villanova 21-7; 12. Texas Tech 22-7; 13. Tennessee 21-7; 14. Houston 24-4; 15. Arkansas 23-6; 16. Southern Cal 25-4; 17. Illinois 20-7; 18. UCLA 21-6; 19. UConn 21-7; 20. Saint Mary’s 24-6; 21. Texas 21-8; 22. Murray State 28-2; 23. Ohio State 18-8; 24. Alabama 19-10; 25. (Tie) Iowa 20-8 and Michigan State 19-9
HALTER SEC CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK
All Colby Halter did last week was go 12-22 at the plate (.545) with two doubles, three home runs, six RBI and a stolen base as the 14th-ranked Gators won five straight games to improve to 6-2 on the season. Halter was also selected as one of the National Players of the Week by Collegiate Baseball. For the season, Halter is hitting .429 with three homers and seven RBI.
The Gators travel to Jacksonville to face North Florida tonight. Last week, Brandon Sproat struck out eight in five innings as the Gators beat UNF 3-1 at the Florida Ballpark.
D1Baseball Top 25: 1. Texas 8-0; 2. Ole Miss 6-0; 3. Arkansas 4-2; 4. Oklahoma State 4-2; 5. Vanderbilt 5-2; 6. Stanford 6-1; 7. LSU 7-1; 8. North Carolina State 8-0; 9. Mississippi State 4-3; 10. Florida State 5-2; 11. Arizona 7-1; 12. Notre Dame 5-1; 13. Oregon State 7-0; 14. FLORIDA 6-2; 15. Georgia 7-0; 16. TCU 6-1; 17. Tennessee 7-0; 18. Georgia Tech 7-1; 19. Texas Tech 5-2; 20. Liberty 6-1; 21. Maryland 7-0; 22. Miami 7-1; 23. Sacramento State 7-0; 24. North Carola 6-1; 25. Long Beach State 2-4
USA Today Top 25: 1. Texas 8-0; 2. Ole Miss 6-0; 3. Stanford 6-1; 4. North Carolina State 8-0; 5. Vanderbilt 5-2; 6. Arkansas 4-2; 7. LSU 7-1; 8. Oklahoma State 4-2; 9. Oregon State 7-0; 10. Arizona 7-1; 11. Tennessee 7-0; 12. Notre Dame 5-1; 13. Georgia 7-0; 14. TCU 6-1; 15. Mississippi State 4-3; 16. FLORIDA 6-2; 17. Florida State 5-2; 18. Texas Tech 5-2; 19. Liberty 6-1; 20. Georgia Tech 7-1; 21. Maryland 7-0; 22. Virginia 7-0; 23. Miami 7-1; 24. North Carolina 6-1; 25. Sacramento State 7-0
FALBY SEC FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
For the second straight week, Kendra Falby was named SEC Co-Freshman of the Week. Falby hit .476 for the week with 10 hits including a home run, six stolen bases and five RBI. For the season, Falby leads the 3rd-ranked Gators (16-0) with a .519 batting average, 27 hits, 22 runs scored and 17 stolen bases in 18 attempts.
Next up for the Gators is a Wednesday encounter with Southern Miss (11-5) at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
D1Softball Top 25: 1. Oklahoma 15-0; 2. Alabama 15-0; 3. FLORIDA 16-0; 4. UCLA 12-3; 6. Virginia Tech 11-2; 7. Duke 13-3; 8. Arkansas 8-3; 9. Oklahoma State 10-4; 10. Washington 11-4; 11. Northwestern 10-4; 12. Missouri 12-4; 13. Clemson 10-3; 14. Kentucky 13-1; 15. Oregon 11-3; 16. Michigan 8-5; 17. Tennessee 9-6; 18. Arizona 10-4; 19. Georgia 14-2; 20. Auburn 15-1; 21. Louisiana 10-2; 22. LSU 12-5; 23. South Florida 10-3; 24. Arizona State 9-4; 25. Oregon State 12-3
ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Writing at Saturday Down South, Matt Hayes quoted an NFL scout who had the following to say about former Gator running back Dameon Pierce: “Here’s the thing with Pierce – he showed out so well at the Senior Bowl, he eliminated all hesitation about his part-time role [at Florida]. He’s not the fastest guy, but he’s solid, strong, a big back with twitch. He doesn’t have the tape that Najee Harris had from his college career, and he’s not at that 1st-round level, but I can’t stop thinking of Harris when I was [Pierce] play. He has those Harris jump cuts, and the strength to shed tackles. He’s dangerous in the pass game, too. He’s going to be a player in this league.”
In four years at Florida, we saw Dameon Pierce do things like break a 75-yard run against South Carolina, run over tacklers, pick up blitzing linebackers and put them on their backs, catch passes and score lots of touchdowns. What we didn’t see was Pierce getting a chance to be the featured back.
Ever.
Why was that? It is understandable that he was the third back as a freshman in 2018 when the Gators had Jordan Scarlett and Lamical Perine who combined for 1,602 yards and 12 touchdowns. Pierce averaged 5.65 yards per carry in 2019 but he only carried the ball 54 times. In 2020, he carried 106 times for 503 yards. The Gators had an elite passing game but the way the Gators were able to fling it all over the field, Pierce should have gotten more carries against defenses that were dropping seven and eight to protect against the pass. He got 100 carries in 2021 but it wasn’t until the final two games that he got more than 10 in a game.
Pierce finished his UF career with 329 carries for 1,806 yards and 23 rushing touchdowns. He caught 45 passes for 422 yards and five TDs. In 2020 when Alabama won the national championship, Harris had 251 carries for 1,466 yards and 26 touchdowns while catching 43 passes for 425 yards and four more TDs. What comparing the numbers tells us is that Dameon Pierce was severely under-used during his Florida career.
The good news? He will have fresh legs and a healthy body as he begins his NFL career. Good for him, but it still doesn’t explain how Dan Mullen and running backs coach Greg Knox couldn’t figure out they had a tremendous running back who should have had the ball in his hands far more often.
A few thoughts to jump start your Tuesday morning:
KELLY RAE FINLEY HAS THE INTERIM LABEL REMOVED!
Kelly Rae Finley has shed the interim label. Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin made her the head coach of the Florida women’s basketball program moving forward Monday. The decision to remove the interim label was made weeks ago, but not announced until Monday. The timing couldn’t have come at a better time.
Having lost the final three games of the regular season, the Gators needed an emotional lift and seeing Finley named as the permanent head coach might be just what they needed. They’ve been putting far more pressure on themselves lately than necessary.
“I think we got here by being ourselves,” Kiki Smith said after the Gators lost to Missouri Sunday afternoon. “One thing we talk about a lot is when we have fun we play our best basketball and I do think because we are who we are, we forget about the fun side of it. Now, to us [lately] it’s business but I think once we get back to the fun part – and you know still keep in the back of our minds we’re trying to get somewhere – we’ll get back to playing the basketball that as a team we know we can play and that we’ve played before. So we’ve just got to bring that fun back that we were playing with before we were in this position. Once we get back to that, we’ll shock a lot of people once we get into the tournaments.”
Making basketball fun is just one reason Finley earned the job. She took over a toxic situation when Cam Newbauer was fired and instantly began the process of winning this team over, one kid at a time. Finley believes it’s not a one-size-fits-all profession but it takes each individual giving up something to be a part of a team. So from a potential full scale mutiny, which was what was about to take place prior to Newbauer’s dismissal, Finley healed the team one player at a time and instilled a winning attitude. Remember, this is a program that suffered through five straight losing seasons and now the Gators head into the SEC Tournament ranked 23rd nationally and with a 20-9 record that includes wins over five ranked teams.
“I want to say there’s some magical thing, but there is not,” Finley told me last week in an interview. “It’s a people-centered business. Sport is fun at its core and we try to keep it that way. It’s not always going to be like that. It’s hard. There are disappointments. There are expectations. There are games that you will lose that you didn’t want to lose but that’s part of it.”
Now they have to regroup before Thursday when they face the winner of Vanderbilt-Texas A&M in the second round of the SEC Tournament. By removing the interim label on Monday when he made the announcement in the UF locker room, Stricklin probably took all the pressure off the Gators moving forward this year and after. Finley, after all, is considered a dynamic recruiter.
“Kelly Rae is such a talented young coach, whose natural poise, intelligence and relational abilities have all been on display during this remarkable Gators’ women’s basketball season,” Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin said a statement released to the media. “I’m excited that she’ll have the opportunity to build off this year’s success and that future Gators will be able to benefit from her leadership the way this team has.”
Associated Press 25: 1. South Carolina 27-1; 2. Stanford 25-3; 3. North Carolina State 26-3; 4. Louisville 25-3; 5. Baylor 23-5; 6. LSU 25-4; 7. UConn 22-5; 8. Iowa State 24-4; 9. Texas 21-6; 10. Michigan 22-5; 11. Maryland 21-7; 12. Iowa 20-7; 13. Ohio State 22-5; 14. (Tie) Indiana 19-7 and Arizona 20-6; 16. North Carolina 23-5; 17. BYU 25-2; 18. Tennessee 22-7; 19. Oklahoma 22-6; 20. Notre Dame 21-7; 22. Florida Gulf Coast 26-2; 23. FLORIDA 20-9; 24. Georgia 20-8; 25. Georgia Tech 20-9
NET RANKINGS MAKE VANDY GAME EVEN MORE IMPORTANT FOR UF
The latest NCAA Net Rankings moved Vanderbilt (14-14, 6-10 SEC) to No. 74, which increases the need for Florida (18-11, 8-8 SEC) to score a win tonight at Memorial Gym (8:30 p.m., SEC Network). Under the Net Rankings system a road win over a top 75 team counts as a Quad 1 win, something that has been in short supply for the Gators, 2-8 in Quad 1 with their only wins over No. 20 Ohio State and No. 11 Auburn.
At No. 51 in the Net Rankings, the Gators are squarely on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament. A win over Vandy might not be that impressive but a loss, would be devastating to Florida’s shaky tournament chances.
When Florida beat Vanderbilt 61-42 in January, the Gators were without Colin Castleton but Jason Jitoboh filled in nicely with six points, 10 rebounds, an assist, a block and a steal. Jitoboh is out for the season but Castleton is back, playing the best basketball of his career. Potentially out, however, is Anthony Duruji, who had eight points and seven rebounds in the first game while spearheading the best defensive effort of the season. Duruji has a lower leg injury that prevented him from playing in the Gators’ 84-72 win over Georgia.
Tuesday’s games: FLORIDA (18-11, 8-8 SEC) at Vanderbilt (14-14, 6-10 SEC); No. 13 Tennessee (21-7, 12-4 SEC) at Georgia (6-23, 1-15 SEC); Ole Miss (13-16, 4-12 SEC) at No. 7 Kentucky (23-6, 12-4 SEC); Missouri (10-19, 4-12 SEC) at South Carolina (17-11, 8-8 SEC)
Wednesday’s games: Texas A&M (18-11, 7-9 SEC) at No. 25 Alabama (19-10, 9-7 SEC); No. 5 Auburn (25-4, 13-3 SEC) at Mississippi State (17-12, 8-8 SEC); LSU (20-9, 8-8 SEC) at No. 14 Arkansas (23-6, 12-4 SEC)
Associated Press Top 25: 1. Gonzaga 24-3; 2. Arizona 25-3; 3. Baylor 24-5; 4. Duke 25-4; 5. Auburn 25-4; 6. Kansas 23-5; 7. Kentucky 23-6; 8. Purdue 24-5; 9. Providence 24-3; 10. Wisconsin 23-5; 11. Villanova 21-7; 12. Texas Tech 22-7; 13. Tennessee 21-7; 14. (Tie) Houston 24-4 and Arkansas 23-6; 16. Southern Cal 25-4; 17. UCLA 21-6; 18. UConn 21-7; 19. Saint Mary’s 24-6; 20. Illinois 20-8; 21. Texas 21-8; 22. Murray State 28-2; 23. Ohio State 18-8; 24. Iowa 20-8; 25. Alabama 19-10
Coaches Top 25: 1. Gonzaga 24-3; 2. Duke 25-4; 3. Arizona 25-3; 4. Baylor 24-5; 5. Auburn 25-4; 6. Kentucky 23-6; 7. Kansas 23-5; 8. Providence 24-3; 9. Purdue 24-5; 10. Wisconsin 23-5; 11. Villanova 21-7; 12. Texas Tech 22-7; 13. Tennessee 21-7; 14. Houston 24-4; 15. Arkansas 23-6; 16. Southern Cal 25-4; 17. Illinois 20-7; 18. UCLA 21-6; 19. UConn 21-7; 20. Saint Mary’s 24-6; 21. Texas 21-8; 22. Murray State 28-2; 23. Ohio State 18-8; 24. Alabama 19-10; 25. (Tie) Iowa 20-8 and Michigan State 19-9
HALTER SEC CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK
All Colby Halter did last week was go 12-22 at the plate (.545) with two doubles, three home runs, six RBI and a stolen base as the 14th-ranked Gators won five straight games to improve to 6-2 on the season. Halter was also selected as one of the National Players of the Week by Collegiate Baseball. For the season, Halter is hitting .429 with three homers and seven RBI.
The Gators travel to Jacksonville to face North Florida tonight. Last week, Brandon Sproat struck out eight in five innings as the Gators beat UNF 3-1 at the Florida Ballpark.
D1Baseball Top 25: 1. Texas 8-0; 2. Ole Miss 6-0; 3. Arkansas 4-2; 4. Oklahoma State 4-2; 5. Vanderbilt 5-2; 6. Stanford 6-1; 7. LSU 7-1; 8. North Carolina State 8-0; 9. Mississippi State 4-3; 10. Florida State 5-2; 11. Arizona 7-1; 12. Notre Dame 5-1; 13. Oregon State 7-0; 14. FLORIDA 6-2; 15. Georgia 7-0; 16. TCU 6-1; 17. Tennessee 7-0; 18. Georgia Tech 7-1; 19. Texas Tech 5-2; 20. Liberty 6-1; 21. Maryland 7-0; 22. Miami 7-1; 23. Sacramento State 7-0; 24. North Carola 6-1; 25. Long Beach State 2-4
USA Today Top 25: 1. Texas 8-0; 2. Ole Miss 6-0; 3. Stanford 6-1; 4. North Carolina State 8-0; 5. Vanderbilt 5-2; 6. Arkansas 4-2; 7. LSU 7-1; 8. Oklahoma State 4-2; 9. Oregon State 7-0; 10. Arizona 7-1; 11. Tennessee 7-0; 12. Notre Dame 5-1; 13. Georgia 7-0; 14. TCU 6-1; 15. Mississippi State 4-3; 16. FLORIDA 6-2; 17. Florida State 5-2; 18. Texas Tech 5-2; 19. Liberty 6-1; 20. Georgia Tech 7-1; 21. Maryland 7-0; 22. Virginia 7-0; 23. Miami 7-1; 24. North Carolina 6-1; 25. Sacramento State 7-0
FALBY SEC FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
For the second straight week, Kendra Falby was named SEC Co-Freshman of the Week. Falby hit .476 for the week with 10 hits including a home run, six stolen bases and five RBI. For the season, Falby leads the 3rd-ranked Gators (16-0) with a .519 batting average, 27 hits, 22 runs scored and 17 stolen bases in 18 attempts.
Next up for the Gators is a Wednesday encounter with Southern Miss (11-5) at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
D1Softball Top 25: 1. Oklahoma 15-0; 2. Alabama 15-0; 3. FLORIDA 16-0; 4. UCLA 12-3; 6. Virginia Tech 11-2; 7. Duke 13-3; 8. Arkansas 8-3; 9. Oklahoma State 10-4; 10. Washington 11-4; 11. Northwestern 10-4; 12. Missouri 12-4; 13. Clemson 10-3; 14. Kentucky 13-1; 15. Oregon 11-3; 16. Michigan 8-5; 17. Tennessee 9-6; 18. Arizona 10-4; 19. Georgia 14-2; 20. Auburn 15-1; 21. Louisiana 10-2; 22. LSU 12-5; 23. South Florida 10-3; 24. Arizona State 9-4; 25. Oregon State 12-3
ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Writing at Saturday Down South, Matt Hayes quoted an NFL scout who had the following to say about former Gator running back Dameon Pierce: “Here’s the thing with Pierce – he showed out so well at the Senior Bowl, he eliminated all hesitation about his part-time role [at Florida]. He’s not the fastest guy, but he’s solid, strong, a big back with twitch. He doesn’t have the tape that Najee Harris had from his college career, and he’s not at that 1st-round level, but I can’t stop thinking of Harris when I was [Pierce] play. He has those Harris jump cuts, and the strength to shed tackles. He’s dangerous in the pass game, too. He’s going to be a player in this league.”
In four years at Florida, we saw Dameon Pierce do things like break a 75-yard run against South Carolina, run over tacklers, pick up blitzing linebackers and put them on their backs, catch passes and score lots of touchdowns. What we didn’t see was Pierce getting a chance to be the featured back.
Ever.
Why was that? It is understandable that he was the third back as a freshman in 2018 when the Gators had Jordan Scarlett and Lamical Perine who combined for 1,602 yards and 12 touchdowns. Pierce averaged 5.65 yards per carry in 2019 but he only carried the ball 54 times. In 2020, he carried 106 times for 503 yards. The Gators had an elite passing game but the way the Gators were able to fling it all over the field, Pierce should have gotten more carries against defenses that were dropping seven and eight to protect against the pass. He got 100 carries in 2021 but it wasn’t until the final two games that he got more than 10 in a game.
Pierce finished his UF career with 329 carries for 1,806 yards and 23 rushing touchdowns. He caught 45 passes for 422 yards and five TDs. In 2020 when Alabama won the national championship, Harris had 251 carries for 1,466 yards and 26 touchdowns while catching 43 passes for 425 yards and four more TDs. What comparing the numbers tells us is that Dameon Pierce was severely under-used during his Florida career.
The good news? He will have fresh legs and a healthy body as he begins his NFL career. Good for him, but it still doesn’t explain how Dan Mullen and running backs coach Greg Knox couldn’t figure out they had a tremendous running back who should have had the ball in his hands far more often.
