- Former Gator Earnest Graham is getting paid by the Bucs. The running back went from special teams superstar to feature back will be getting a four-year deal worth $11 million. Early in his career, Graham had been released by the Bucs and was living in a friend's spare room after an acquaintance, who was acting as his agent, basically stole his money. Now, Graham will not have to worry about money for a long time.

- Jeff Demps will not be going to China this summer. While that's better for UF, it does suck. I think an Olympian returning kicks would be an advantage for the Gators.

- Speaking in Ohio, Urban Meyer said he felt "awful" following the Gators' loss to Michigan in the Capital One Bowl. He also has the early leader for Quote of The Year.

He said he has heard many a young student-athlete say, "Coach doesn't like me, so he isn't playing me."

To which Meyer had an answer.

"I look and them and say, 'You are correct. I don't like you,' " he said. " 'If you worked harder, if you got better grades, if you quit being a jerk, pulled your pants up and got the IPod out of your ears, I'd like you a lot better.' "

Meyer then said, "And get off my lawn!"

- Finally, I get a weird feeling this time of year. Today is the start of Summer B at UF, and for nearly all freshman now, the start of their college careers. Two years out of school and I still feel the pull of Gainesville. That's either good (that I haven't lost touch) or bad (that part of me wants to be at UF). Last year on The Sporting Orange, we named the Ten Things to Remember at The University of Florida for the freshmen, and we bring it back today with some updates.

1. Do not date freshmen or sophomore year. There are a lot of awesome girls at UF and you don't want to lock up with one. (Note: The one downfall of UF becoming harder to get into is that the attractiveness of the student body is dropping. I believe it started with my class in 2002, because I'm ugly.)

2. Stand up at every football game. You go to UF, not Miami. Also, remember Championship Mode for the big games.

3. The only reason to rush is to get drunk and get laid. If you have trouble normally doing those things, then you should rush.

4. There are two 24 hour Wal-Marts and two 24 hour supermarkets near Archer and 34th St. in Gainesville. You'll need to know this when your roommate spills beer all over your PS3/X-box controller.

5. Despite what she says, a twin bed is big enough for two people.

6. If you meet a girl at a party, and she says she is from New Orleans, do not tell her your fantasy football team name is the New Orleans Refugees. (Or if she's from Iowa, and you've called your team the Floods. But there are no cute people from Iowa, so this should not happen anyway.) If she keeps talking to you after that, she's a good girl.

6a. If said girl is "hanging out" with the guy hosting the party, wait until that guy is sufficiently trashed before you ask for her number.

7. If you live near Museum Road and Newell, in the back of the IFAS building that gives out free food samples is a giant air vent. The vent blows air that is about 50 degrees. Perfect place to cool off. St. Augustine's Church is pretty good too, and you get the bonus of wine and crackers at 12pm and 5:30pm.

8. From my first ever class, INR 2001, "The only way you'll get smarter is by reading newspapers; The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal."

9. Once you turn 21, start going to bars with live music on a regular basis. You're an adult now.

10. Have fun.

I'm gonna go cuddle my degrees now. Enjoy your day and Let's Go Rays.

- Getting back to our series on the 1996 Florida Gators, after destroying Arkansas, No. 12 LSU and No. 16 Auburn by a combined score of 149-30, the No. 1 Gators (7-0) drove to Jacksonville to face the Georgia Bulldogs (3-4). The series returned to the Bold New River City of The South, after playing a home-and-home while the Gator Bowl was rebuilt. But a renovated yard was not enough as the Gators won 47-7. (Note: Games like this are the reason why current and recent students hate FSU and Tennessee far more than Georgia. In my lifetime, Florida has only lost to Georgia seven times. Since my family moved to Florida, and I became aware of the Gators, there have been only three losses. We didn't know we were supposed to hate someone we always destroyed. Now, that’s all changed since Mark Richt has gladly accepted the black hat/jersey in this rivalry. Although, I still think this should be a home-and-home, at least once a decade. At this point, the game is only staying in Jax because of money and to keep alive the tradition of awkward Florida-Georgia hookups Saturday night.)

- Off topic, but Tampa related so it’s ok; via the awesome Rays Index, comes St. Petersburg propaganda. The Tampa Bay Rays, in addition to sweeping the best teams in baseball at home (Red Sox in April, Cubs this week), want a waterfront stadium in St. Pete. Many people in St. Pete are into art, museums and slowly dying, so paying for a new ballpark on the site of an old Spring Training park is not their cup of tea. So what do they do to make their case? Photoshop. *sociallyconsciousbird points out that the images on the Preserve our Wallets and Waterfront website(anti-Rays group) are wrong. This is either a) deliberately intentional or b) these people are idiots. I expect a massive propaganda machine on both sides (the Rays’ stuff is awesome in that sense), but so far, the Rays haven’t been lying. (As a Tampa-based Rays fan, I have my fingers crossed St. Pete rejects the Rays and sends them here. Tampa has already built world class stadiums for the Bucs and Lightning. Why not one more?) 

- Finally, Blame Canada if Chris Leak comes back stateside. Number 12 was supposed to play last night for the Montreal Alouettes. But it was Adrian McPherson who played the entire second half of the Als 19-16 loss to Winnipeg. The former FSU man is now the leader for Montreal’s third quarterback spot. So when you head to happy hour today, pour one out for Chris Leak. He might be selling cars soon.

The Birmingham News (which isn’t exactly the New York Times, but whatever) ranked the SEC’s athletic programs Sunday, going all the way back to the founding of the league in 1933. With added considerations for football and basketball championships, as well as baseball and women’s basketball being the most important non-revenue sports, you’d have a few usual suspects for top program; Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, and LSU. The Tigers have been competitive in all four of those sports with continued success in football, basketball and baseball, going back several decades. But guess who is Number One?

Florida.

Naturally, schools specialize in particular sports and place more resources into some than others. GAP identifies the best of the best - those athletic departments that win in the popular sports and choose wisely in how to build successful all-around programs.

No one has done it better than Florida.

"We've had tremendous coaches and tremendous student-athletes, lots of resources and great alumni support," Florida Athletics Director Jeremy Foley said. "We've had people who have really taken a vested interest in Gator success across the board, not just football."

In ranking 18 SEC sports, as well as non-league sponsored sports and Directors’ Cup points, Florida dominates. The Gators are in the top-3 of 14 categories, and wins seven of them. Fans like to take pride in the success of Florida Football, but historically, the program does not matchup with Bama, Tennessee and LSU, the top-3 in that sport (UF was tied for fourth). But the Gators’ success in Golf (winning both men’s and women’s), Swimming (second in men’s, first in women’s), Tennis (second in men’s, first in women’s), Soccer and Volleyball create a legacy in sports that isn’t always on ESPN or a message board. Even better, for a seam-head like me, Florida is the only SEC school to have played for national championships in baseball, basketball and football.

Florida’s success can be tied to a few things; Jeremy Foley, Steve Spurrier and Title IX. Foley is willing to drop a few million on a sport, but when success is lacking, he develops a Steinbrenner-like quality and isn’t afraid to make sure heads will roll. Foley’s biggest mistake was hiring Zook, a move he saved by hiring a bright young coach to fill the position, just like he had done with basketball.

Foley may still wear the black hat with some fans after his contentious relationship with Steve Spurrier. But it was Spurrier’s success with football that filled UF’s wallet and provided the cash needed to operate an all-sports powerhouse. Unlike schools that have had to play catch up and build women’s sports, Florida already had great women’s golf, gymnastics, tennis and volleyball teams, so an infusion of cash from the growth of football pushed them all out of the SEC and into national dominance.

The Gators’ success in non-revenue sports is impressive, but it is a sign of a healthy athletic department. That is why it is so important for softball to continue being elite and for women’s lacrosse to show results. Basketball and football drive the blog posts and message board chatter, but that’s the body and engine of a great car. Without everything else, that car and Florida athletics won’t work.

- Gators Baseball got own3d in the SEC Tournament. Two days after I talked about how they style of play could cause fits, UF’s pitching fell apart and Vandy and South Carolina bludgeoned the Gators, 7-3 and 11-3. The two losses eliminate UF (34-22) from the SEC Tournament. Had the Gators won the tournament, they would have probably gotten a 1 seed in the regionals. Even a few wins would get them a 2 against someone they could handle. By crapping the bed in Hoover, UF is looking at a 3 in some “Group of Death” with a team like Miami, one team from a power conference that mashes, and a small Northern school with a pitching staff more experienced than the Tampa Bay Rays. Lovely.

- In our continuing series following the 1996 National Champion Florida Gators, the No. 1 Gators crushed Kentucky 65-0. The Gators (4-0, 2-0) limited UK wonder boy Tim Couch to 6-18 passing with 13 yards and led 41-0 at the half.

- Of course, the story of the weekend is Gators Softball (65-3) aiming for Oklahoma City, facing California (43-25) in the Super Regionals. Game 1 is today at 2pm, with a possible doubleheader (series is best two of three) starting at noon tomorrow. Cal upset Fresno State to get to Gainesville, while No. 1 UF had one hiccup before ousting UCF.

- Gators Softball advanced to the Super Regionals Sunday, defeating UCF 10-0 after missing a chance to eliminate the glorified community college in the previous game. Florida’s 1-0 loss in game one can be taken two ways; it’s bad because it shows UF can’t close or it’s good to lose now than later against a better team. Florida (65-3) will play California (43-25) with the best-of-three series starting Friday and concluding with Games 2 and 3 on Saturday. The Gators have not played Cal this season. Cal advanced as the 3^rd seed in the Fresno regional.

- This afternoon, Gators Women’s Tennis faces UCLA with a chance at the NCAA Finals. The six seeded Gators upset third seed and defending champ Georgia Tech to get to the final four.

- Be proud of Gators Baseball because the boys nutted up this weekend, sweeping Vanderbilt and taking the three seed at Wednesday’s SEC Tournament. While UF (34-20, 17-13) was on the right side of the bubble, the sweep, combined with the lofty seed, definitely earns UF a NCAA bid. Florida will get Vandy (37-18, 15-14) on day one of the double elimination tournament.

- Your SEC Champion Florida Gators softball enters the NCAA Tournament as the overall Number 1 seed. Play begins in Gainesville Friday, with UF hosting Georgia Tech, C-USA champ UCF, and Big East regular season winner USF. (UF plays Tech, but it is double elimination.) If you have not paid attention to softball this season, you better get on the bandwagon now. The train to Oklahoma City is getting ready to leave. (Get it? Train? Wagon? The finals are in Oklahoma? I am hil-arious.)

- Softball is in the field of 64, but Men’s and Women’s Tennis are now in the Sweet Sixteen, which puts them at the final site in Tulsa. (Ewww, Tulsa? Really?) The No. 9 Men curb stomped Miami 4-1 (best of seven) Sunday. The day prior, not even a freshman kicker or terrible officiating would have saved Auburn as the six seeded Gator Women put them down 4-0. The ladies face Vandy Thursday and the men meet Texas Friday.

- Speaking of more Gator ladies, Women’s Golf qualified for the eight team final round of the NCAA Championships, winning the East Regional at Athens. The No. 4 Gators defeated No. 1 Duke by a stroke and host Georgia was six off the pace.

- Survive and advance describes the Gators’ 1-0 win over Ole Miss Thursday in the first round of the SEC Softball Tournament. Sophomore Francesca Enea’s solo homer in the 6^th was the difference as No. 1 UF (60-2) avoided a massive upset. Ole Miss (26-28) only had five baserunners in the game, but was able to limit UF to six hits. The Gators play Tennessee (47-13) this evening in the semifinals. UF swept three games from the Vols last weekend.

- Since baseball is on the road at Alabama and softball is out of town, take some time to check out the NCAA Tennis First and Second Rounds in Gainesville . I was never a tennis fan, but college tennis is the opposite of pro tennis with six matches played all at once and doubles matches with people getting a forehand in the face (the classic move of former UF player Jennifer Magley). Today, the UF women (20-2) face Jacksonville at 6pm. If they win, Saturday they face the winner of Auburn and, oh my, is that who I think it is? OHIO STATE! Can I get you on board with women’s tennis if you knew they could beat the Buckeyes? I thought so. The men’s team (15-7), with SEC Player of The Year Greg Ouellette, gets Navy Saturday morning and would face the winner of Miami and USF Sunday.

- Andy Katz has a story about Billy Donovan and how his decision to stay at Florida looks now that the Magic are in the second round and the Gators crapped out in the NIT. Of course, it worked out best for everybody, but Billy still has a group of kids he is unsure about. Here he is revisiting the, “They’re not committed to it,” line from the SEC tournament.

"I didn't like the tone they had," Donovan said on Thursday. "It wasn't that I didn't want to coach them as sophomores. But I don't think they had an appreciation for what had happened before they got here. I think they thought, 'Hey I've got Florida across my chest, so we're going to win.' I really wanted to make sure they didn't get into a trap because of the way they were viewing the end of the year."

If Billy said made the comment about the name on the jersey originally, it wouldn’t have gotten the same play because that is a common critique. At the time, it sounded like he was throwing the team under the bus. This summer, everyone but Speights will be in town, including transfer Vernon Macklin and the freshmen. Facing them in practice will be Corey Brewer, Taurean Green, and Al Horford. The pressure is on.

"They need to have a level of humility and respect the guys in front of them," Donovan said. "I want to see which freshmen can impact winning. We've got the whole summer to get the right mindset with this group. The guys coming back have to provide the leadership and the other guys have to trust them."

- May 17 is International Gator Day and the Tampa Gator Club is holding a Kickball Tournament for Joshua House. (This is perfect for me.) To find what your local Gator Club is doing, go here. Speaking of helping the community, here is a great story from the St. Pete Times about Gators Football mentoring young kids in Gainesville.

- May 15 Danny Wuerffel will be at the Jacksonville Touchdown Club luncheon raising awareness for his Desire Street Ministries. Several former Gators will be there as well as the Teeeebowwws. For information about the luncheon, go here. If you can’t get to Jacksonville, I suggest you take a look at what the ministry is doing for New Orleans. There are a lot of issues in the world, but don’t forget about rebuilding New Orleans.

- Monday, the Orlando Sentinel profiled Tim Tebow’s work in the Philippines which included performing surgery. Not to be outdone, ESPN a few hours later had a story linked on their front page about Tebow working with prisoners. At this point, anything could be written about Tebow and I’d believe it. (Did you hear Tebow is going to run against Big Brown in the Preakness? He’s already a 3-1 favorite.) In all seriousness, Tebow will make an even larger mark as a humanitarian than football player. I see him in 20 years running an orphanage in the Philippines with his hot Asian wife and his ten-year old son who can bench 175 pounds.

- The one thing Tebow can’t do is save UF from the red marker as the University has cut $47 million from their budget. Hit hardest were IFAS and Liberal Arts, which lost $9.5 million and $5.97 million respectively. Florida will now also reduce the number of incoming students by 1000 in each of the next four years. In total, Florida’s budget will be $69 million less when you include a previously administered cut in October.

- If you’re walking around and you hear that low growl, get the hell out of there because an alligator might be trying to make you his girlfriend. With temperatures rising, so do the libidos of our reptile friends. May is the peak season for some lovin’.

- By the way, check out the post below for more information about our new design. I’m just like you and learning about it too. That said, isn’t it stylish? It’s like we went from wearing a t-shirt and jorts to a tailored suit with an Italian made tie. Remember, it’s better to look good than to feel good.

- In Week Two of "A Season In Championship Mode," the 1996 Florida Gators defeated Georgia Southern 62-14. Here is the New York Times account of the game;

- Let's welcome The Tampa Trib to the Gators Softball Bandwagon. The Gators (56-2, 24-1) face Tennessee (46-10, 14-9) in Knoxville. A sweep of the three game series, or a combination of wins and losses with Alabama (47-4, 23-2) clinches a SEC title for UF.

- Gators Baseball is at South Carolina, a team head coach Kevin O'Sullivan should be familiar with since he was previously at Clemson. Tonight's game, with Tampa's Tommy Toledo pitching, is on Sun Sports.

- When picking a MVP or Rookie of the Year, do you pick the best player or the one who influenced his team the most? Influence is the choice of this article, arguing Al Horford should have been Rookie of the Year. Kevin Durant's numbers were fantastic, and he may be a great player one day, but he made a really crappy Seattle into a really crappy Seattle team. The Hawks went from really crappy to scaring the hell out of everyone from Hartford to Boston to Augusta. From the article;

Wow, college ball helped? What a concept!

- And finally, this weekend is graduation in Gainesville. To my brother, Timmy C. and all graduates, congratulations. Not only does this class have a UF degree, they were students for three national championships and a Heisman.

• The Celtics crushed the Hawks Sunday night 104-81, but it wasn't Al Horford's fault. Horford led all scorers with 20 points (7-10 FG, 6-7 FT) and 10 rebounds. When reached for comment, the leading NBA Rookie of the Year candidate, Kevin Durant said, "What is this playoffs you speak of? I thought the season was over. I'm too busy looking at houses in Oklahoma."
• Gator Softball is moving like a tremendous machine. UF (52-2, 21-1) swept Kentucky this weekend, winning the Sunday finale 8-0. In 10 IP this weekend, junior Stacey Nelson (33-2) allowed only two hits and zero runs. She has a .71 ERA this season.
• On the other side of the fence is Gator Baseball, who is mirroring the late season collapse of teams like the 2002 Expos, 2003 Royals, and 2006 Marlins. The Majors are not like college, but with their third straight SEC series loss, UF (25-15, 10-8) is looking more like the rebuilding team that was expected of them this season. Sunday's 3-2 loss in 10 at Kentucky is not particularly damaging, but the Gators need to get something going. The SEC East leading Georgia Bulldogs are coming into Hogtown this weekend, and UF cannot lose 2 of 3 again.
• One of Tampa's best college prospects, Plant junior QB Aaron Murray will announce his college intentions Thursday. Florida is a likely pick, with Georgia and UCLA also in the mix.
• UF Women's Golf won their eighth SEC Championship and placed three players in the top 10. The No. 5 ranked Gators finished +10 for the three rounds and were 17 strokes clear of second place.
• Men's and Women's Tennis were not as lucky as both lost in the SEC finals. The women lost 4-3 to Georgia. On the men's side, UF lost 4-1 to Ole Miss. However, both have a very good chance to host the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament. As a former tennis writer, I ask that you jump on their bandwagon. College tennis, with six matches happening at once, is compelling stuff.
• Finally, one year ago this weekend The Sporting Orange was launched, which led to this little website. Since then, we've been linked by AOL, Deadspin, Yahoo, everyone for our Girls of The SEC video, and two of the best newspapers in America; The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and The Washington Post. But, I am most proud when I see our sitemeter climb with visitors each day, when I get emails from readers about who should be UF's running back, and when strangers tell me at football games that they read Alligator Army every day. It is so fantastic knowing that a portion of the population doesn't think I'm a jackass. On behalf of Hanson and Timmy C, thank you so much for reading. I'm amazed every day that what was a conversation among friends (and annoyed the hell out of our girlfriends) is now a year old. We kick off our second year the same way we kicked off our first year; with Tim Tebow screaming about his big nuts.