Photo by: UPI/Mark Wallheiser
After the Georgia game, Riley Cooper was on ESPN’s First Take to talk about the unbelievable one-handed catch he had for a touchdown. In the interview, he was asked about his baseball career and signing with the Texas Rangers. As he was telling about the the signing process, Cooper said the three weeks he had to wait to hear that he could play this year were the longest 3 weeks of his life.
The night in Baton Rouge has not been friendly to many visiting teams, but the Gators were able to escape the night with a 13 to 3 victory over LSU. Tim Tebow was also able to return to the field after his concussion versus Kentucky. With the uncertainty around Tebow’s health, Coach Urban Meyer and Steve Addazio called a very conservative offensive game play against the Tigers.
Is there any way this is all part of some well thought out master plan by Boy Blunder and his League of Super Coaches? If you check out the headlines and stories after the Florida-Tennessee game you can see he pulled a fast one over on the media.
Kiffin had every Gator fan circle September 19th on their calender with his remarks soon after being hired. I’ll admit that I wished time would speed up so these two teams could strap on the helmets and play the off-the-field antics in The Swamp.
GatorsNow is spanning the internet to see what the reactions were after the Charleston Southern game. The Gators were able to kick their 2009 season off and try and answer some of the questions facing the team.
A lot of them were answered in a short period of time. First the running game is legit, the Gators were able to rush for 369 yard with a lot of big plays from Rainey, Demps, and Moody. The Gators did show some of their quick strike offense after a 68 yard pass to Cooper then a quick snap for a 9 yard TD by Jeff Demps.
Cooper looked great hauling in 5 passes for 105 yards, and at one point catching 3 in a row. Deonte Thompson and Brandon James did drop what would have been 2 TD passes by Tebow. The Gators need the WR to step up and show they are SEC ready.
The Gators defense played a lot of base D and didn’t show a lot of blitzs. At times CSU was able to move the ball with quick passes, and hit a couple deep balls over Wondy Pierre-Louis who was filling in for Janoris Jenkins. Jenkins was sitting from his summer fight and run in with the law. Also Jermaine Cunningham did not play. Coach Meyer would only say, “He wasn’t ready to play.”
Although Florida opened its most anticipated season in school history with a near-perfect performance, it came against an overmatched team from the Football Championship Subdivision.
“It’s hard to evaluate that game,” coach Urban Meyer said.
Florida, an overwhelming favorite to repeat as national champs, accomplished everything it wanted to in the opener, though. The Gators unveiled some new wrinkles, won the game in convincing fashion and avoided any major injuries.
Andrea Adelson of the Orlando Sentinel had these nuggets from the game:
On Riley Cooper, who had five catches for 105 yards, “Riley played like he practiced. He’s playing as good as he’s ever played. I know it’s been one game, but the way he practiced, I knew he was ready for a breakout game.”
John Brantley had a solid outing, going 8-of-12 for 67 yards with 2 TDs. He also ran six times for 44 yards. “It was fun watching him and being able to encourage him,” Tebow said.
LG Carl Johnson injured his knee, but Meyer said he was hoping it was just a bruise and listed the player as probable for next week.
OVERALL: A-
Not much opposition but the usual stars showed their stuff in the blowout victory for the Gators.
Read more for the full box score of the game.
When I was looking over the 2009 squad in May, the Wide Receiver position was an area of concern. I was looking forward to the summer practices to see which wide-outs would step up. After everything that has transpired leading up to the start of the season, I just don’t see any way that this Wide Receiver group is going to be any where as good as last year’s.
We need to see more of this from Deonte Thompson
Gator fans–it is only one more week till the 2009 Gators Football season kicks off. During the past week the Gators have dominated the college football news. It all started with the Gators making AP poll history. The Gators were able to get 58 out of the 60 votes and received the most first-place votes ever. Lou Holtz also shocked everyone when he said that Notre Dame would meet Florida in the BCS National Championship this season. I’ve heard everything from rumors that Lou has completely fallen off his rocker to rumors that he is putting pressure on Charlie Weis because he would like to see his son Skip Holtz take the Notre Dame job. Either way one of the teams he picked was right.
Players in circle drills..#51 (LB) Brandon Spikes vs. #81(TE) Aaron Hernandez..#99 (DT) Omar Hunter vs. #58 (OL) Nick Alajajian..#8 (DE) Carlos Dunlap vs. #72 (OL) Jonotthan Harrison..#35 (S) Ahmad Black vs. #6 (WR) Deonte Thompson..#97 (DT) Edwin Herbert vs. #73 (OL) Byran Jones..#34 (LB) Lerentee McCray vs. #48 (FB) Rick Burgess
#98 (DT) Troy Epps vs. #57 (OL) Carl Johnson..#27 (CB) Adrian Bushell vs. #35 (S) Ahmad Black..#6 (DE) Jaye Howard vs. #76 (OL) Marcus Gilbert..#91 (DE) Earl Okine vs. #50 (OL) Sam Robey..#96 (DE) William Green vs. #71 (OL) Matt Patchan
Every since Percy announced he was going pro on January 15, the buzz surrounding the Gators has been about who is going to replace Harvin.
I’ve read many different opinions on how to replace Percy, but I would like to put all that to rest. The Gators will not replace Percy Harvin next year, and we may never see an athlete like him lace up the Nikes for the Gators again.
Percy Harvin Will Be Missed
Percy was a one of a kind athlete that is seldom seen in any program. During his career, he averaged more than a first down every time he touched the ball and had 32 touchdowns over three years.
Orson Charles says the Gators don't feel right
Orson Charles took the Gators off his list of schools he is still considering. This leaves USC, Georgia , and Tennessee still in the running. Now the question I ask is why? He has stated that he will make his official announcement on March 6th, so why take the Gators off the list with 10 days to go? I tried to look at the facts on this one, and why would a hybrid TE like Charles not want to play for the Gators?
With Harvin Gone Who Steps Up?
Heading into the 2009 there is a good chance that 2009 Gators will open as the preseason # 1. The debate will begin with the worthiness of this team to open this high and how Texas, USC, and Oklahoma should be ranked in the useless preseason top spot. If you really consider the situation carefully, this team is going to be improved in just about every way. The defense is going to be two deep in every position, Tebow is back, and the running game is more secure than in the past. However, the one spot that is going to have to improve is the Gators Wide Receiver Position. Right now the roster looks like this:
