BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Southeastern Conference Commissioner Mike Slive has unfinished business and he isn’t leaving what has lately become college football’s penthouse anytime soon.
As part of The Alligator Awards recognizing the best in UF athletics during the 2011-12 season, columnists Joe Morgan and Corey McCall will debate two of the five nominees in each week’s category. Vote for the winner online at alligatorSports.org.
Although they haven’t competed for Florida yet, three incoming freshman have already started proving their worth to the 2012-13 track and field team. Shayla Sanders, Arman Hall and Robin Reynolds have spent the past week competing at the 2012 IAAF World Junior Track and Field Championships in Barcelona, Spain.
Corey: With opening night of the Olympics 15 days away, baseball has begun its media dominance. Naturally, my time has been spent watching countless hours of NCIS reruns. But we here at alligatorSports have a solution: football talk. Yes, it’s time to start dreaming of the gridiron. So, to kick it off, we debate who will win the Southeastern Conference’s East Division this season. And despite kicking them to the curb on NCAA 13 the other day, I’m taking South Carolina — luckily ECU is a non-conference game. The Gamecocks are coming off of an 11-2 record, and with the Ol’ Ball Coach in charge, this is their year. Marcus Lattimore comes back healthy from an ACL tear, quarterback Connor Shaw will have only improved from last season and both starting safeties return to a secondary that was second in passing defense in the nation last year. Let the Cock growl.
I don’t care about the Home Run Derby.
Although the 2012 season is over and the U.S. Olympic trials are finished, that didn’t stop three Gators from competing last weekend. Marquis Dendy, Jeremy Postin and Eddie Lovett all participated in the North American, Central American and Caribbean Under-23 Track and Field Championships in Guanajuato, Mexico.
SEATTLE — At this point, Mike Zunino just wants to get through the whirlwind of being honored for his college career so his pro career can begin.
Billy Heywood is braver than most. Portrayed by Luke Edwards in the 1994 film Little Big League, Billy inherits the Minnesota Twins after the death of his grandfather, the team’s owner. One week later, Billy names himself manager.
For sprinter Jeff Demps, this year has been about making sacrifices for the 2012 Summer Olympics.
When junior Dwight Barbiasz first started competing in the high jump in 2008, he had to spend that summer watching the Olympics from home. This year Barbiasz wants in.
The Gators’ untimely demise at this year’s College World Series was unexpected to say the least.
The third time against Brian Johnson proved to be the charm for South Carolina.
After losing to South Carolina in the College World Series final last June, Florida has had the two-time defending national champions’ number this season.
Whether the Gators win or lose this year’s College World Series, Brian Johnson will always be remembered in Omaha. After an apparent Johnson home run was called a ground-rule double in Florida’s 8-4 win against Texas last season, instant replay has been implemented for the 2012 College World Series.
You’ve heard of ultimate frisbee — you know, that game with the hippies running around barefoot, throwing around a disc and enjoying Janoris Jenkins’ favorite pastime.
Junior Tony McQuay has had a nice year in 2012. The sprinter started off winning the U.S. Championships in June, then won his first NCAA indoor title in the 400 meters and last week he won his first NCAA outdoor title in the 400 meters as well as Florida’s first 4x400-meter relay NCAA title.
The Gators’ roster boasts nine new MLB prospects, but Florida relied on more than its highly-regarded upperclassmen to advance to a third straight College World Series.
Corey: For those of you looking for a competitive NBA finals, don’t get your hopes up. The real finals ended when the Thunder took four straight games to upset the Spurs. Now begins the encore: like when you sit through a Dexys Midnight Runners concert. When they hit the stage at the end to play one last song, there is only one possible outcome.
With a potential third-straight Omaha appearance on the line, the top-ranked Gators received a bit of help from the dark clouds hovering above McKethan Stadium.
When Keenan Kish struck out Chris Diaz looking to send the Gators to their third straight College World Series, the on-field scene played out like he imagined. Kish was at the bottom of the pile.
Solutions by The State News
