By Franz Beard
A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:
UF SOFTBALL: ON TO THE NCAA SUPER REGIONALS
Funny, but the idea that the Gators (46-16) could get to the Women’s College World Series doesn’t seem quite as preposterous as it might have three weeks ago. After winning the Gainesville Regional in dominating fashion (10-1 over Canisius, 7-1 over Georgia Tech and 11-0 over Wisconsin), the Gators are one of three SEC teams still standing and the team they face in next weekend’s NCAA Super Regional doesn’t look nearly as frightening as we once thought.
While the Gators were having their way with the Gainesville Regional field, Virginia Tech (45-8) struggled up in Blacksburg. That same Kentucky team the Gators beat in the SEC Tournament, beat Virginia Tech on Saturday and gave the Hokies all they could handle Sunday before losing twice. Kentucky wasn’t the least bit intimidated by Hokie pitching, which leads the nation in strikeouts and ranks among the nation’s best in ERA. Either the Hokies were playing tight or maybe they’re not as good as the hype.
That bodes well for a Florida team that head coach Tim Walton believes is starting to grow up and mature at just the right time.
“As soon as finals were over this team really turned up the dial a little bit,” Walton said. “Getting Hannah (Adams) back (from injury) has been the cherry on top to make us almost believe this could happen as opposed to trying to be the positive psychologist and say, ‘Hey, we’re going to get better’ and now we are.”
The Gators aren’t without flaws. They don’t have a dominating starting pitcher and they don’t have much power (33 home runs all season), but the pitching is good enough and when combined with good defense, it keeps them in games. When Kendra Falby (.398, 35 stolen bases), Hannah Adams (.386) and Skylar Wallace (.394, 48 RBI, 50 stolen bases) are getting on base, their speed puts enormous pressure on opponents. In the three weekend games, Falby (7-11, 5 runs scored), Adams (5-10, 3 runs scored) and Wallace (6-10, 5 RBI, 3 stolen bases, 1 HR, 5 RBI) kept getting on base and that opened things up for the rest of the lineup. The Gators had at least 10 hits in each weekend game (35 total).
Three weeks ago, the idea the Gators could make it to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series might have seemed a crazy notion. Right now, it seems entirely possible.
The rest of the SEC in the NCAA Softball Tournament
Alabama (44-13): The streak of advancing to a super regional ended at 16 when Stanford eliminated the No. 6 national seed Crimson Tide.
Arkansas (47-9): The SEC champions and No. 4 national seed won its regional with a 3-0 record and will unseeded Texas in a super regional next weekend.
Auburn (40-17): The Tigers went 1-2 at the Clemson Regional.
Georgia (43-18): The Bulldogs didn’t get out of the Durham Regional. They beat Duke once Sunday, but were run-ruled in the decisive game.
Kentucky (38-19): The Wildcats only had to win one game Sunday to advance to a super regional, but they dropped two straight to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.
LSU (34-23): The Tigers were an early casualty in the Tempe Regional, losing to San Diego State and Cal State-Fullerton.
Mississippi State (37-25): The Bulldogs pulled off the biggest shocker in the country when they went into Tallahassee and beat No. 2 national seed Florida State to win the regional. The Bulldogs will host unseeded Arizona next weekend in the first super regional in school history.
Missouri (38-22): The 15th-seeded Tigers lost their regional at home, dropping 2-0 and 1-0 decisions to Arizona.
Ole Miss (41-19): The Rebels got to the championship game of the Los Angeles Regional where they were eliminated by 5th-seeded UCLA.
Tennessee (41-18): The 11th-seeded Vols split with Oregon State Sunday and were eliminated.
Texas A&M (31-28): The Aggies got to the championship game of the Norman Regional where they were blown out by No. 1 Oklahoma, 20-0.
GATORS WILL FACE GAMECOCKS IN HOOVER TUESDAY
The Gators (35-20, 15-15 SEC) didn’t sweep South Carolina (27-27, 13-17 SEC) over the weekend, but considering where they were a month ago, winning two of three against the Gamecocks to finish the regular season at .500 in league play is a serious accomplishment. Had the Gators swept South Carolina, it would have meant a No. 6 seed at the SEC Tournament in Hoover. Instead, they’re the No. 7 seed and that means a Tuesday rematch with the Gamecocks in the first round.
Florida’s strong finish all but guarantees the Gators will be playing in the NCAA Tournament, but there is work to be done in Hoover to assure of no worse than a No. 2 in somebody else’s regional. Because the Saturday loss to South Carolina dropped the Gators 10 spots in RPI to No. 24 nationally, they will need at least two wins in Hoover to even get into the conversation of hosting a regional although 38 wins seems to be bare minimum.
Heading into Hoover
1. Tennessee (49-7, 25-5 SEC): The Vols have the top RPI in the country so they are probably the No. 1 seed in the country no matter what happens in Hoover. UT plays the winner of Tuesday’s Vanderbilt-Ole Miss game on Wednesday.
2. Texas A&M (35-17, 19-11 SEC): By winning the SEC West title, the Aggies will certainly host a regional. They need to do some damage in Hoover, however, to get a top eight seed and a super regional since they have a No. 20 RPI. The Aggies will play the winner of Tuesday’s Florida-South Carolina matchup on Wednesday.
3. Arkansas (38-16, 18-12 SEC): The Hogs spent most of the year ranked in the top five but they lost their last two series and that dropped their RPI to 33. The Hogs got the Tuesday bye so they’ll play the winner of Alabama-Georgia on Wednesday. Figure they’ll host a regional no matter what happens in Hoover.
4. LSU (37-18, 17-13 SEC): By winning the final series of the regular season against Vanderbilt, LSU (RPI 23) gets the fourth seed and the Tuesday bye. The Tigers will face the winner of Auburn-Kentucky on Wednesday. Because LSU leads the country in attendance every year, the Tigers are probably going to host a regional even though their RPI is No. 23.
5. Auburn (37-18, 16-13 SEC): That rainout against Alabama that was never made up cost Auburn the No. 4 seed in the tournament, which went to LSU. During the regular season, Auburn took two out of three so if the records had been equal, Auburn would have gotten the No. 4 and LSU the No. 5. The Tigers have a No. 6 RPI so they’re in good shape to host a regional if they win a game or two in Hoover.
6. Georgia (35-20, 15-15 SEC): Georgia (RPI 12) will make the NCAA Tournament, but after losing its last four series hosting is out of the question unless the Bulldogs win it all in Hoover. The Bulldogs open up with Alabama on Tuesday.
7. FLORIDA (35-20, 15-15 SEC): The Gators need three wins in Hoover to have a shot at hosting a regional.
8. Vanderbilt (35-19, 14-16 SEC): The Commodores’ losing record in the SEC offsets a No. 5 RPI. They need three wins in Hoover to even be in the picture to host a regional. Vandy plays Ole Miss on Tuesday. The two teams didn’t play during the regular season.
9. Ole Miss (32-21, 14-16 SEC): The Rebels were once ranked No. 1 in the nation. They will make the NCAA Tournament you can all but forget a chance to host a regional (No. 36 RPI) unless they win it all in Hoover.
10. South Carolina (27-27, 13-17 SEC): The Gamecocks have one chance and one chance only to make the NCAA and that is to win the SEC Tournament. RPI is 67.
11. Alabama (29-25, 12-17 SEC): Barring a miracle of parting the Red Sea proportions, Bama’s season will come to a merciful end in Hoover. The Tide (RPI 48) opens on Tuesday with Georgia. During the regular season, Georgia took two out of three from Alabama.
12. Kentucky (30-24, 12-18 SEC): The Wildcats (RPI 53) shocked everybody by winning two out of three with Auburn to make it to Hoover. They get Auburn again Tuesday in the first round in Hoover.
RICKY PEARSALL TRANSFERS TO UF FROM ARIZONA STATE
Billy Napier added wide receiver transfer Ricky Pearsall from Arizona State over the weekend. Pearsall (6-1, 200) caught 48 passes for 580 yards (12.1 per catch) and four touchdowns last season. He had 61 catches for 794 yards (13.0 per catch) and five touchdowns for his Arizona State career.
The scouting report on Pearsall is that he’s fearless over the middle, has excellent hands and is great for yards after the catch. His 2021 stats are a bit deceptive. He was the leading receiver on a team whose quarterback threw as many interceptions as touchdowns, in part because he was running for his life due to an offensive line that was a sieve.
SEC FOOTBALL/BASKETBALL
Alabama: Defensive lineman Stephon Wynn, who was a 4-star recruit in 2018, is transferring to Nebraska. He played in 21 games in his Alabama career and could play two seasons at Nebraska due to the NCAA Covid rule ... Small forward Dominick Welch (6-5, X), who averaged 12.3 points per game last season, is transferring in from St. Bonaventure.
LSU: Defensive tackle Joseph Evans, who had 28 tackles in three seasons, is transferring to UT-San Antonio.
Missouri: Sean Durogordon (6-7, 220) is transferring to Austin Peay. He played in 12 games last year at Mizzou, averaged 3.2 points and 1.2 rebounds.
South Carolina: Keyshawn Bryant (6-6, 197), who averaged 8.7 points and 4.0 rebounds per game last year, is transferring to South Florida. Bryant is a native of Winter Haven.
Tennessee: There are reports that Josiah-Jordan James is withdrawing from the NBA Draft and return for his senior season at Tennessee. James averaged 10.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game last year.
Vanderbilt: Terren Frank (6-8, 240), a former 4-star recruit, is transferring to Idaho. At Vanderbilt last season, Frank averaged 2.1 points and 1.7 rebounds per game for the Commodores.
ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Take a moment to ponder this statement Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey made to the people at Yahoo Finance:
“There are some concerning trends. We’re not seeing name, image and likeness activity – we’re seeing just straight payments. And, I think it’s important that we recenter ourselves on what’s supposed to be happening here and the desire to keep that activity out of recruitment to benefit young people economically but to do so in a healthy way.”
If you followed the Jimbo Fisher-Nick Saban fiasco – how could you not? It’s dominated the college sports news cycle since Thursday – then you have already figured out that Nick was accusing Fisher and the Aggies of using NIL deals to buy recruits and Jimbo was doing his best Jimmy Carter – “I’ll never lie to you” – impersonation with his response. Nick says Jimbo and the Aggies bought every 2022 recruit. Jimbo, of course, denies everything.
It is not like Nick Saban to call out a fellow coach but he did. Some folks tend to think it was all about getting into Jimbo’s head but Nick can get into the heads of other coaches without accusing them blatantly of cheating. No, for Saban to take it as far as he did, he knows.
And for Sankey to make a statement that includes the words “straight payments,” then you can bet the farm he knows also. Saban is concerned. The commish is concerned. If you’re a college football fan, you should also be very, very concerned. Right now it’s just buying players to come win championships, but what happens when one or more of the buyers gets his/her hooks into a player for six or seven figures and then entices that player with another million or so to throw a game?
Don’t think it can or will happen? If you’re looking for a book that will enlighten you of what could happen, then pick up a copy of “The Scandals of ’51: How the Gamblers Almost Killed College Basketball” by Charley Rosen. Or watch the ESPN: 30 for 30 series “Playing for the Mob.” If you do, you might find yourself agreeing with Nick Saban.
A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:
UF SOFTBALL: ON TO THE NCAA SUPER REGIONALS
Funny, but the idea that the Gators (46-16) could get to the Women’s College World Series doesn’t seem quite as preposterous as it might have three weeks ago. After winning the Gainesville Regional in dominating fashion (10-1 over Canisius, 7-1 over Georgia Tech and 11-0 over Wisconsin), the Gators are one of three SEC teams still standing and the team they face in next weekend’s NCAA Super Regional doesn’t look nearly as frightening as we once thought.
While the Gators were having their way with the Gainesville Regional field, Virginia Tech (45-8) struggled up in Blacksburg. That same Kentucky team the Gators beat in the SEC Tournament, beat Virginia Tech on Saturday and gave the Hokies all they could handle Sunday before losing twice. Kentucky wasn’t the least bit intimidated by Hokie pitching, which leads the nation in strikeouts and ranks among the nation’s best in ERA. Either the Hokies were playing tight or maybe they’re not as good as the hype.
That bodes well for a Florida team that head coach Tim Walton believes is starting to grow up and mature at just the right time.
“As soon as finals were over this team really turned up the dial a little bit,” Walton said. “Getting Hannah (Adams) back (from injury) has been the cherry on top to make us almost believe this could happen as opposed to trying to be the positive psychologist and say, ‘Hey, we’re going to get better’ and now we are.”
The Gators aren’t without flaws. They don’t have a dominating starting pitcher and they don’t have much power (33 home runs all season), but the pitching is good enough and when combined with good defense, it keeps them in games. When Kendra Falby (.398, 35 stolen bases), Hannah Adams (.386) and Skylar Wallace (.394, 48 RBI, 50 stolen bases) are getting on base, their speed puts enormous pressure on opponents. In the three weekend games, Falby (7-11, 5 runs scored), Adams (5-10, 3 runs scored) and Wallace (6-10, 5 RBI, 3 stolen bases, 1 HR, 5 RBI) kept getting on base and that opened things up for the rest of the lineup. The Gators had at least 10 hits in each weekend game (35 total).
Three weeks ago, the idea the Gators could make it to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series might have seemed a crazy notion. Right now, it seems entirely possible.
The rest of the SEC in the NCAA Softball Tournament
Alabama (44-13): The streak of advancing to a super regional ended at 16 when Stanford eliminated the No. 6 national seed Crimson Tide.
Arkansas (47-9): The SEC champions and No. 4 national seed won its regional with a 3-0 record and will unseeded Texas in a super regional next weekend.
Auburn (40-17): The Tigers went 1-2 at the Clemson Regional.
Georgia (43-18): The Bulldogs didn’t get out of the Durham Regional. They beat Duke once Sunday, but were run-ruled in the decisive game.
Kentucky (38-19): The Wildcats only had to win one game Sunday to advance to a super regional, but they dropped two straight to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.
LSU (34-23): The Tigers were an early casualty in the Tempe Regional, losing to San Diego State and Cal State-Fullerton.
Mississippi State (37-25): The Bulldogs pulled off the biggest shocker in the country when they went into Tallahassee and beat No. 2 national seed Florida State to win the regional. The Bulldogs will host unseeded Arizona next weekend in the first super regional in school history.
Missouri (38-22): The 15th-seeded Tigers lost their regional at home, dropping 2-0 and 1-0 decisions to Arizona.
Ole Miss (41-19): The Rebels got to the championship game of the Los Angeles Regional where they were eliminated by 5th-seeded UCLA.
Tennessee (41-18): The 11th-seeded Vols split with Oregon State Sunday and were eliminated.
Texas A&M (31-28): The Aggies got to the championship game of the Norman Regional where they were blown out by No. 1 Oklahoma, 20-0.
GATORS WILL FACE GAMECOCKS IN HOOVER TUESDAY
The Gators (35-20, 15-15 SEC) didn’t sweep South Carolina (27-27, 13-17 SEC) over the weekend, but considering where they were a month ago, winning two of three against the Gamecocks to finish the regular season at .500 in league play is a serious accomplishment. Had the Gators swept South Carolina, it would have meant a No. 6 seed at the SEC Tournament in Hoover. Instead, they’re the No. 7 seed and that means a Tuesday rematch with the Gamecocks in the first round.
Florida’s strong finish all but guarantees the Gators will be playing in the NCAA Tournament, but there is work to be done in Hoover to assure of no worse than a No. 2 in somebody else’s regional. Because the Saturday loss to South Carolina dropped the Gators 10 spots in RPI to No. 24 nationally, they will need at least two wins in Hoover to even get into the conversation of hosting a regional although 38 wins seems to be bare minimum.
Heading into Hoover
1. Tennessee (49-7, 25-5 SEC): The Vols have the top RPI in the country so they are probably the No. 1 seed in the country no matter what happens in Hoover. UT plays the winner of Tuesday’s Vanderbilt-Ole Miss game on Wednesday.
2. Texas A&M (35-17, 19-11 SEC): By winning the SEC West title, the Aggies will certainly host a regional. They need to do some damage in Hoover, however, to get a top eight seed and a super regional since they have a No. 20 RPI. The Aggies will play the winner of Tuesday’s Florida-South Carolina matchup on Wednesday.
3. Arkansas (38-16, 18-12 SEC): The Hogs spent most of the year ranked in the top five but they lost their last two series and that dropped their RPI to 33. The Hogs got the Tuesday bye so they’ll play the winner of Alabama-Georgia on Wednesday. Figure they’ll host a regional no matter what happens in Hoover.
4. LSU (37-18, 17-13 SEC): By winning the final series of the regular season against Vanderbilt, LSU (RPI 23) gets the fourth seed and the Tuesday bye. The Tigers will face the winner of Auburn-Kentucky on Wednesday. Because LSU leads the country in attendance every year, the Tigers are probably going to host a regional even though their RPI is No. 23.
5. Auburn (37-18, 16-13 SEC): That rainout against Alabama that was never made up cost Auburn the No. 4 seed in the tournament, which went to LSU. During the regular season, Auburn took two out of three so if the records had been equal, Auburn would have gotten the No. 4 and LSU the No. 5. The Tigers have a No. 6 RPI so they’re in good shape to host a regional if they win a game or two in Hoover.
6. Georgia (35-20, 15-15 SEC): Georgia (RPI 12) will make the NCAA Tournament, but after losing its last four series hosting is out of the question unless the Bulldogs win it all in Hoover. The Bulldogs open up with Alabama on Tuesday.
7. FLORIDA (35-20, 15-15 SEC): The Gators need three wins in Hoover to have a shot at hosting a regional.
8. Vanderbilt (35-19, 14-16 SEC): The Commodores’ losing record in the SEC offsets a No. 5 RPI. They need three wins in Hoover to even be in the picture to host a regional. Vandy plays Ole Miss on Tuesday. The two teams didn’t play during the regular season.
9. Ole Miss (32-21, 14-16 SEC): The Rebels were once ranked No. 1 in the nation. They will make the NCAA Tournament you can all but forget a chance to host a regional (No. 36 RPI) unless they win it all in Hoover.
10. South Carolina (27-27, 13-17 SEC): The Gamecocks have one chance and one chance only to make the NCAA and that is to win the SEC Tournament. RPI is 67.
11. Alabama (29-25, 12-17 SEC): Barring a miracle of parting the Red Sea proportions, Bama’s season will come to a merciful end in Hoover. The Tide (RPI 48) opens on Tuesday with Georgia. During the regular season, Georgia took two out of three from Alabama.
12. Kentucky (30-24, 12-18 SEC): The Wildcats (RPI 53) shocked everybody by winning two out of three with Auburn to make it to Hoover. They get Auburn again Tuesday in the first round in Hoover.
RICKY PEARSALL TRANSFERS TO UF FROM ARIZONA STATE
Billy Napier added wide receiver transfer Ricky Pearsall from Arizona State over the weekend. Pearsall (6-1, 200) caught 48 passes for 580 yards (12.1 per catch) and four touchdowns last season. He had 61 catches for 794 yards (13.0 per catch) and five touchdowns for his Arizona State career.
The scouting report on Pearsall is that he’s fearless over the middle, has excellent hands and is great for yards after the catch. His 2021 stats are a bit deceptive. He was the leading receiver on a team whose quarterback threw as many interceptions as touchdowns, in part because he was running for his life due to an offensive line that was a sieve.
SEC FOOTBALL/BASKETBALL
Alabama: Defensive lineman Stephon Wynn, who was a 4-star recruit in 2018, is transferring to Nebraska. He played in 21 games in his Alabama career and could play two seasons at Nebraska due to the NCAA Covid rule ... Small forward Dominick Welch (6-5, X), who averaged 12.3 points per game last season, is transferring in from St. Bonaventure.
LSU: Defensive tackle Joseph Evans, who had 28 tackles in three seasons, is transferring to UT-San Antonio.
Missouri: Sean Durogordon (6-7, 220) is transferring to Austin Peay. He played in 12 games last year at Mizzou, averaged 3.2 points and 1.2 rebounds.
South Carolina: Keyshawn Bryant (6-6, 197), who averaged 8.7 points and 4.0 rebounds per game last year, is transferring to South Florida. Bryant is a native of Winter Haven.
Tennessee: There are reports that Josiah-Jordan James is withdrawing from the NBA Draft and return for his senior season at Tennessee. James averaged 10.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game last year.
Vanderbilt: Terren Frank (6-8, 240), a former 4-star recruit, is transferring to Idaho. At Vanderbilt last season, Frank averaged 2.1 points and 1.7 rebounds per game for the Commodores.
ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Take a moment to ponder this statement Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey made to the people at Yahoo Finance:
“There are some concerning trends. We’re not seeing name, image and likeness activity – we’re seeing just straight payments. And, I think it’s important that we recenter ourselves on what’s supposed to be happening here and the desire to keep that activity out of recruitment to benefit young people economically but to do so in a healthy way.”
If you followed the Jimbo Fisher-Nick Saban fiasco – how could you not? It’s dominated the college sports news cycle since Thursday – then you have already figured out that Nick was accusing Fisher and the Aggies of using NIL deals to buy recruits and Jimbo was doing his best Jimmy Carter – “I’ll never lie to you” – impersonation with his response. Nick says Jimbo and the Aggies bought every 2022 recruit. Jimbo, of course, denies everything.
It is not like Nick Saban to call out a fellow coach but he did. Some folks tend to think it was all about getting into Jimbo’s head but Nick can get into the heads of other coaches without accusing them blatantly of cheating. No, for Saban to take it as far as he did, he knows.
And for Sankey to make a statement that includes the words “straight payments,” then you can bet the farm he knows also. Saban is concerned. The commish is concerned. If you’re a college football fan, you should also be very, very concerned. Right now it’s just buying players to come win championships, but what happens when one or more of the buyers gets his/her hooks into a player for six or seven figures and then entices that player with another million or so to throw a game?
Don’t think it can or will happen? If you’re looking for a book that will enlighten you of what could happen, then pick up a copy of “The Scandals of ’51: How the Gamblers Almost Killed College Basketball” by Charley Rosen. Or watch the ESPN: 30 for 30 series “Playing for the Mob.” If you do, you might find yourself agreeing with Nick Saban.
