When Florida opened its season at the Carpet Capital Invitational in Dalton, Georgia, over a month ago, it had one major underlying problem: a lack of well-rounded team play.
Jessica Pascoe waited nine months to run with the Gators women’s cross country team again. This was abnormal for a UF runner, as they usually compete not only with cross country in the fall but the indoor and outdoor track and field in the spring as well. But when a tightness started to aggravate her foot, the Australia native knew she would not be able to make a return to the course anytime soon.
Coach Jim McElwain stood in front of reporters and ran through his postgame clichés.
We’re smack dab in the middle of SEC football conference play, and some coaches are already suffering from severe butt sweats from how hot their seats are. Some might also be a little more soothingly warm on the buttocks than you might expect.
Running in stride with Auburn’s back line, Deanne Rose waited for a pass from teammate Sarah Troccoli. A perfectly weighted ball rolled onto Rose’s right foot as she took two dribbles into the Tigers box.
Oliver Crawford played in his first match as a UF tennis player over the weekend at the ITA Regional Championships in Atlanta. Crawford, a freshman from Spartanburg, South Carolina, made his debut a memorable one. He won his first match in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, against Joan Carles Alcala of Georgia Southern on Saturday.
Kentucky’s Kaz Brown went up for the ball on the right side of the net. With two Gators in front and Allie Monserez crashing to aid them, Brown sent the shot toward the left side of Florida’s defense and found open space, doubling UK’s lead in the third set.
There had already been so many. There was the ACL injury during his senior year of high school. There was the season ending injury in 2014. There was the time when a teammate rolled onto his leg against Florida State last year, ending his year.
Tyrel Dodson knew the throw was coming.
As Florida’s libero, it’s not Caroline Knop’s job to score, but her perfectly-placed service ace split two Ole Miss defenders, sealing the deal on the road against Ole Miss on Friday.
As Jordan Sherit lay sprawled out on the ground of Doak Campbell Stadium, staring into the sky with tears in his eyes while Florida’s training staff attended to his knee, he couldn’t help but question his future as a college football player.
Florida emerged from the tunnel at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium last Saturday favored against the visiting LSU Tigers. It didn’t matter. Despite oddsmakers initially favoring the Gators by 3.5 points, Florida lost by one, leaving LSU players dancing on the field. It was coach Jim McElwain’s second-ever loss in The Swamp in 15 tries.
Jachai Polite saw it coming.
It has been a trying week for the Florida Gators football program. The team lost by one-point to LSU, lost multiple players with injuries and lost the respect of some fans by ditching the orange and blue uniforms this weekend. The Gators will take the field Saturday against Texas A&M wearing green jerseys that the Oregon Ducks passed on. The jerseys took 18 months to design since the artist accidentally opened Internet Explorer and had to wait for it to close. He then used the remaining 10 minutes to put black polka dots on a greenish-gray background. The team first got the idea for the jerseys when Nike approached them and told them that no one was buying Gators merchandise. A year and a half later, here we are. The Florida-Texas A&M game is sure to be one of the most interesting picks this week. But before we get into all of our picks and meet our competitors, Alligator sports editors Matt Brannon and Dylan Dixon will break down the much-anticipated matchup between Delta State and West Florida. Be sure to catch Statesmen and the Argonauts on Saturday on BLAB TV.
With a Florida State forward on her back, redshirt senior defender Kristen Cardano made a calm back pass to goalkeeper Kaylan Marckese in the match’s opening minute. Marckese took a touch and then did the one thing a goalkeeper cannot do when a teammate passes her the ball: pick it up.
Last season in the Gale Lemerand Athletic Center, Alex Holston cocked back her left arm and fired a kill into the middle of the Ole Miss defense. Her kill set the tone in the third set for Florida and boosted its offense for the rest of the match.
With a quick turnaround coming off the ITA All-American Championship in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Florida men’s tennis team returns to action this weekend at the USTA/ITA Regional Championship in Atlanta.
Taven Bryan calls him Shrek. Jim McElwain calls him one of the “Bam Bam” kids. Jordan Sherit calls him the 400-pound freshman from Fort Lauderdale.
According to the University Athletic Association’s staff directory, coach Jim McElwain has over 30 employees working for him to help oversee Florida’s football program.
Solutions by The State News
