Editor's Note: This is the third of a five-part series as we reveal who a six-man alligatorSports panel has voted as the Top 10 UF Athletes of 2008-09.
Spikes' memorable plays, consistent play lead improved UF defense
By ADAM BERRY, Alligator Staff Writer
On Georgia's second play of its first drive, star running back Knowshon Moreno took the handoff from Matthew Stafford, tried to make a cut to get back to the line of scrimmage and was driven to the ground by Brandon Spikes.
Moreno tore the Gators' defense apart in 2007 with 188 rushing yards and three touchdowns in a 42-30 loss, but Spikes made it clear that the 2008 UF defense was not going to make the same mistakes two years in a row.
The vicious hit put Georgia back 1 yard, and Spikes remained on top of Moreno to trash talk for a few extra seconds.
"I just told him he better get ready because I'm going to be here all night," Spikes said after the game.
That hit set the tempo for the Gators' 49-10 win against the Bulldogs in Jacksonville a year after being embarrassed by a team-wide end zone celebration following Georgia's first touchdown in 2007.
Spikes had several other memorable plays during the Gators' run to their second national championship in three years, including an interception returned for a touchdown against LSU.
The middle linebacker rumbled down the field for 52 yards on the first play of the fourth quarter for his first pick-six at any level. After reaching the end zone, Spikes shanked a celebratory punt into the crowd to commemorate the occasion.
"I never took a pick to the house ever in my football career, and just the passion for the game kind of took over," Spikes said following UF's 51-21 victory against then-No. 4 LSU.
As a junior, Spikes was the unquestioned leader of the No. 4 scoring defense in the nation - in the box scores, on the field and in the locker room.
Despite sitting out the first game of the season, Spikes' 93 tackles on the year ranked first on the much-improved UF defense, and he was second on the team with four interceptions.
While the improvement of the Gators defense can largely be attributed to the emergence of a consistent secondary, the solid play by Spikes and the front seven anchored the defense.
A year after allowing 25.5 points and 361.8 yards per game of total offense, Spikes and the defense gave up 12.9 points and 285.3 yards per game in 2008.
And Spikes is never one to disappoint the fans. He stirred up the Tennessee faithful the past two years by questioning the Volunteers' effort on the field.
Although Spikes could have joined Percy Harvin and declared for the NFL Draft, he chose to stay at UF for his senior season.
In 2009, Spikes will be part of a defensive unit that returns everyone in the two-deep depth chart.
For making some of the year's most memorable plays, leading the Gators on and off the field and turning a questionable defense into a lockdown unit, Brandon Spikes is the alligatorSports No. 6 UF Athlete of 2008-09.
BY THE NUMBERS: Spikes earned two second-place votes, one fourth-place vote, one eighth-place vote and was left off two ballots.
Freshman slugger surpasses expectations
By PHIL KEGLER, Alligator Staff Writer
The legend of Preston Tucker's epic slugging abilities preceded him to an almost unhealthy level.
It turned out to be completely true, and he began creating his own folklore from the moment he stepped on UF's campus.
The freshman first baseman arrived in Gainesville last summer and had UF sophomore Josh Adams throw him some batting practice.
The lefty's bat hit bomb after bomb over the fence, including several that bounced off Stadium Road.
Hitting the scoreboard - located in right-center field, 375 feet away from home plate - became a normal occurrence.
Then he started actually playing in games for the Gators.
Tucker turned in one of the best seasons at the plate in school history. He broke the single-season RBI record previously held by Ryan Shealy (80 in 2002), a milestone that withstood four seasons of challenges by Matt LaPorta, one of the best sluggers to come through Gainesville.
Tucker took home UF's "Triple Crown" by leading the team in batting average (.364), home runs (15) and RBI (85). He also led the Gators in four other offensive categories - slugging percentage (.628), total bases (152), multiple-hit games (27) and multiple-RBI games (23).
The freshman's phenomenal season did not go unnoticed.
He became the first UF player to earn the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Freshman Hitter of the Year award. He earned Co-Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year honors with LSU pitcher Matty Ott. He was named to Freshman All-America teams by four different publications (Baseball America, Louisville Slugger, Rivals.com and the NCBWA). Tucker also earned the SEC Freshman of the Week award three times, setting a new school mark.
The Tampa native was even invited to the 2009 USA Baseball National Team Trials.
UF coach Kevin O'Sullivan thought he had something special when he recruited Tucker, but even O'Sullivan was amazed at how well the slugger adjusted in his first year.
"There's just certain guys that when they come to the plate - everybody stops what they're doing and they watch," O'Sullivan said during the postseason. "He's got an air about him. He's got confidence, and you can see it in his mannerisms. He's been locked in for an awfully long time."
Tucker has given people plenty to watch as well.
The most epic feat of his freshman year came on April 8 when UF faced UCF and the slugger had a school-record 11 RBI in a 16-3 Gators victory.
In the fifth inning, he pulled a ball over the right-field fence for a grand slam. The very next inning, Tucker took a ball the other way for a three-run home run to left-center field. To cap it off, the freshman hit his second grand slam of the game to center field in the seventh inning.
The slugger saved his best for his postseason debut, hitting .531 with 14 RBI, including going 13 for 20 in five NCAA games. The freshman earned Regional MVP honors after going 9 for 13 in three games, including six RBI and two home runs as UF advanced out of a regional that included Miami for the first time in 11 tries.
Not bad for someone all 30 MLB clubs passed on for 50 rounds of the draft coming out of high school.
For living up to the insurmountable hype and producing one of the best seasons at the plate in UF history, Preston Tucker is the alligatorSports No. 5 UF Athlete of 2008-09.
BY THE NUMBERS: Tucker is the first athlete revealed to earn a Top-10 ranking on all six ballots: The freshman earned one third-place vote, one fourth-place vote, one fifth-place vote, one seventh-place vote, one eighth-place vote and one 10th-place vote.
