Gator Bytes

Free Gator News Sites: Gator Sports | Gator Zone

Paid Gator News Sites: Gator Country | Scout/Fightin’ Gators | Gator Bait

Gator Blog Sites: Yardbarker | Gator Sports Nation | Gator Bytes

Select the site above you would like to see the latest news for. If you have a site that you think should be added to the Florida Gator News Hub, please contact us.

Gator Bytes – Palm Beach Post

Ex-Gators coach Urban Meyer accused of unethical recruiting

Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema playfully jabbed at Urban Meyer after Meyer spent a season covering Big Ten games for ESPN and attending teams’ practices, then took a job to compete against them.

He’s not joking around anymore. Bielema is irritated with Meyer, now the head coach at Ohio State, and accused him of “illegal” recruiting practices. Pat Narduzzi, an assistant at Michigan State, also was upset with Meyer’s tactics.

They are angry because Meyer was able flip recruits from those schools to his. Bielema believed there was an unwritten agreement among Big Ten coaches to stop recruiting prospects who had already committed to Big Ten programs.

“There’s a few things that happened early on that I made people be aware of, that I didn’t want to see in this league, that I had seen take place in other leagues,” Bielema said, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. “Other recruiting tactics, other recruiting practices, that are illegal.

“I was very up-front, very pointed to the fact — actually reached out to coach Meyer and shared my thoughts and concerns with him. The situation got rectified.”

Bielema also said that Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez will be speaking to Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany about the issue.

There is no known agreement like this in the SEC, where Meyer most recently coached the Florida Gators.

Also, recruiting other schools’ commitments is not a violation of NCAA rules in any way.

Narduzzi, speaking at a luncheon in Canton, Ohio, said, “Jim Tressel and Mark Dantonio would never call or talk to each other’s commitments. People Coach Dantonio knows well don’t come in and take players away. When you do, you lose friendships over that.”

Meyer called accusations of unethical recruiting “nonsense.”

UPDATE (Feb. 3): According to CBS, Meyer took his defense a step further by saying this at a speaking engagement this morning: “You’re pissed because we went after a committed guy? Guess what, we got 9 guys who better go do it again. Do it a little harder next time.”

Ultimately, it looks like he landed one of the best classes in the country without violating any NCAA rules. His signing class was ranked No. 6 by ESPN, No. 4 by Rivals and No. 3 by Scout.

Michigan coach Brady Hoke, who came to the Big Ten a year ago, said today he agrees with Meyer that recruiting other teams’ commits is fair game.

(read more)

LBs Daniel McMillian, James Hearns commit to Florida for 2013

The 2013 national signing day is a year away, but Florida already has four commitments for that class.

The latest are a pair of linebackers who committed today, according to multiple media reports. Daniel McMillian (6-3, 220) and James Hearns (6-3, 230) both told the coaching staff they will sign with the Gators next year.

Neither commitment is binding until the player signs a letter of intent or enrolls on a football scholarship. They have a lot of time to consider their options.

McMillian is an inside linebacker from Jacksonville-First Coast and has offers from Alabama, Ohio State and Florida State, among others.

Hearns, from Tallahassee-Lincoln, has several offers, including Florida State, Miami, Alabama, LSU and Notre Dame

The two previous 2013 commits were DT Caleb Brantley and RB Adam Lane.

(read more)

RECRUITING: LB Josh Harvey-Clemons signs with Georgia

Florida’s hope of landing LB Josh Harvey-Clemons has ended. Instead, he will spend the next few years playing against the Gators.

Georgia confirmed today it received a signed letter of intent from Harvey-Clemons, stopping speculation that he might end up in Gainesville. Harvey-Clemons announced Wednesday that he was signing with Georgia, but he did not send in his letter of intent.

The Gators were one of the other teams recruiting him and were believed to still have a shot as long as he did not sign.

Most likely, the only remaining recruit in play for Florida in this year’s class is WR Stefon Diggs. Diggs, from Maryland, is choosing from among Florida, Southern Cal and other schools.

(read more)

Signing Day 2013: Gators already have two players committed

While they were busy securing a top-five signing class for 2012, the Gators coaches also picked up commitments for next year.

With the 2013 recruiting cycle officially underway, Florida has commitments from DT Caleb Brantley and RB Adam Lane, according to Rivals.com.

Brantley, who will be a senior at Crescent City HS this fall, also has offers from Florida State and Miami and should continue piling them up between now and next February. He is 6-3, 285.

Lane (5-7, 207) is from Winter Haven HS. He missed his entire junior season due to injury.

(read more)

Gators still in contention for at least two more recruits

Florida put out a press release today listing 23 new signees, but the recruiting class might not be finalized.

Two players the Gators have been recruiting did not sign today: LB Josh Harvey-Clemons and WR Stefon Diggs.

Harvey-Clemons, the No. 1 prospect in Georgia, announced on ESPNU that he would play for the Bulldogs, but had not filed his letter of intent as of tonight. He told ESPN he remains committed to Georgia, but the Gators can recruit him until he signs.

Diggs, a five-star player from Maryland, plans to announce his choice Feb. 10. He is considering Florida, Maryland, Ohio State, California, Southern Cal and Auburn.

Gators coach Will Muschamp declined to say Wednesday whether his signing class was complete or if he was still recruiting.

Last year, Florida added QB Jacoby Brissett from Dwyer HS two days after national signing day.

(read more)

GATORS NSD UPDATE: Florida has 23 signees secured; Class is top-5 nationally

Florida’s interest in national signing day is almost done. The Gators have 23 players signed and will wait on one more undeclared prospect.

WR Stefon Diggs, from Maryland, will announce his decision next week, and Florida is one of the schools in contention.

Six of those 23 prospects are enrolled: OT D.J. Humphries, OG Jessamen Dunker, WR Latroy Pittman, DT Damien Jacobs, LB Antonio Morrison and DB Willie Bailey.

One of the surprises was the signing of Tallahassee WR Raphael Andrades. Andrades (6-1, 175) was a three-star prospect with offers from Arkansas and Illinois. Florida State and Miami did not offer him.

The pick-up of Andrades might be connected to Florida losing out on Tampa WR Nelson Agholor to Southern Cal.

In addition to their list of commits, the Gators are hoping to land tremendous offensive line prospect Avery Young. Young, from Palm Beach Gardens, will announce his decision at 2 p.m.

Florida was unable to sway LB Josh Harvey-Clemons, who passed over the Gators and Florida State to sign with Georgia this morning. Harvey-Clemons was at the center of a story about Gators coach Will Muschamp and Georgia coach Mark Richt recruiting him at his church.

CB Tracy Howard, from Miramar, announced on ESPNU that he chose Miami over the Gators.

DE Leonard Williams, from Daytona Beach, picked Lane Kiffin and Southern Cal over Florida.

A big victory for the Gators: They pulled DE Dante Fowler away from Florida State. Fowler, from St. Petersburg’s Lakewood HS, is a four-star recruit.

Here is where Florida stands:

(read more)

Georgia prematurely puts Palm Beach Gardens OT Avery Young listed on its website

Georgia might have committed a recruiting violation by putting a photo and bio of Palm Beach Gardens OT Avery Young on its website. Young ultimately signed with Auburn.

He is one of the top offensive linemen in the country and top overall prospects in the state. He announced his decision today, live on ESPNU.

Schools are not allowed to comment publicly on recruits or give them any publicity until they sign a letter of intent.

A spokesperson for Georgia did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Here is the graphic from Georgia’s official site:

(read more)

FOOTBALL: Miami, Florida picking up most in-state commitments

Less than half of Florida’s current list of commitments is from this state, but the Gators still have 10 of the top 100 prospects here, according to Rivals.

Of those 100, 90 are committed. From that group, Miami leads with 15, followed by Florida’s 10. Florida State, West Virginia and South Florida each have five.

To view the full list of Rivals’ top 100 players in Florida and where they stand with colleges, click here.

Florida has scooped up commitments from some of the top recruits elsewhere. The Gators have four of the top 14 in North Carolina, the No. 5 prospect in Pennsylvania and the No. 5 recruit in Illinois.

(read more)

Gators basketball player Walter Pitchford injured in scooter accident

Walter Pitchford, a rarely-used back-up on Florida’s basketball team, will miss at least two weeks of practice after spraining his wrist in a scooter accident near campus. The school disclosed the news on its website today.

As a freshman, Pitchford has played a total of 15 minutes over eight games this year, scoring four points. He has appeared in one game out of Florida’s past nine.

The school reported that Pitchford’s accident occurred Sunday when he was trying to stop his scooter to avoid rear-ending another vehicle, but it skidded. Pitchford fell to the ground, causing the wrist injury and a bad scrape.

(read more)

Gators basketball moves up to No. 12 in AP poll

A pair of strong wins over Ole Miss and Mississippi State have the Gators closing in on the top-10 in the polls.

Florida (17-4, 5-1 in the SEC) jumped from No. 14 to No. 12 in the Associated Press poll, and went from No. 13 to No. 11 in the USA Today coaches’ poll. To view the complete polls, click here.

The Gators are off until Thursday, when they face unranked South Carolina (9 p.m., ESPN2) at the O’Connell Center. Florida hosts No. 25 Vanderbilt on Saturday, then visits No. 1 Kentucky the following Tuesday.

(read more)