Florida Gator Men's Track Team Earns No. 1 Ranking

The University of Florida men’s track and field team is ranked No. 1 in this week's United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Poll.

Oregon, the 2009 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Champion,  is ranked No. 2, followed by Texas A&M (No. 3), No. 4 Arizona State and fifth-ranked Florida State.

The Gators, fresh off one of the best Penn Relays performances in school history last weekend, jumped from No. 4 last week into the top spot. The Florida men's track and field team has been ranked in the nation’s top-10 the entire indoor and outdoor seasons.

Florida is one of eight SEC teams ranked in the nation’s top 25 this week, including five in the top 10. The list includes: LSU (No. 6), Auburn (No. 7), Arkansas (No. 8), South Carolina (No. 9), Kentucky (No. 16), Georgia (No. 19) and Tennessee (No. 24).

Midday sports report

Former Gator swimmer Ryan Lochte honored by state legislature

Olympic gold medalist Ryan Lochte was recognized on the floor of the state capitol on Wednesday for his accomplishments.

The Daytona Beach was recognized based on House Resolution 9085 honoring Lochte. It was filed by State Representative Dwayne Taylor (D-Volusia).

Locht is a three-time Olympic gold medalist, who has won six Olympic medals and six world medals. He holds the world record for the 200-meter backstroke, which he set at the Beijing Olympics last year

He is part of USA Olympic team record-holders for the 800-meter relay set in Beijing. A graduate of UF, he was a two-time NCAA Swimmer of the Year.  

[Associated Press photo]

Will 2009 Gator football team produce four NFL first-rounders?

SI. com's Andrew Perloff  has released his "Way Early 2010 NFL Mock Draft'' and four current Gators are listed as first-round draft choices.

The players are among 13 SEC players projected as first round selections.

Here's Perloff's list:

Tennessee safety Eric Berry (Oakland Raiders' No. 2 pick), Florida cornerback Joe Haden (Seattle) with pick 12, Florida quarterback Tim Tebow (Washington) with pick 13, Florida defensive end Carlos Dunlap (Minnesota) with pick 15, Alabama defensive tackle Terrence Cody (to Atlanta) with pick 16, Florida linebacker Brandon Spikes (Miami) with pick 17, Ole Miss defensive end Greg Hardy (Seattle) with pick 18, LSU receiver Brandon LaFell (Baltimore) with pick 20, Kentucky cornerback Trevard Lindley (Dallas) with pick 23, Ole Miss quarterback Jevan Snead (San Francisco) with pick 25, Alabama cornerback and Tampa native Javier Arenas (Pittsburgh) with pick 28, Tide linebacker Rolando McClain (Giants) with pick 29 and LSU offensive tackle Ciron Black (Philadelphia) with pick 31.

Take a look at the full SI.com mock draft here.

Midday sports report

Urban Meyer won't be making Gator Gathering appearance in Tampa/St. Pete this year

If you want to gather with coach Urban Meyer this spring, you’re going to have to travel to do so.
 
For the first time in his four-year tenure, the Gators’ head football coach will not be making an appearance in the Tampa/St. Pete area for the annual “Gator Gathering’’, a fundraising event for local UF Gator Clubs.

Meyer’s appearances have garnered huge turnouts since his arrival at UF. In his first season with the Gators, Meyer spoke at the Pinellas County Gator Club gathering in front of an estimated 1,200 at the St. Petersburg Coliseum, one day after 535 turned out in Spring Hill to hear him speak. In 2006, he had standing-room only at St. Lawrence Higgins Hall in Tampa, and in 2007, Meyer spoke in front of approximately 800 at Bright House Field. Last year, the sold-out event was at the Grand Hyatt in Tampa.
 
With two national championships in the past three years, demand for Meyer has grown, but his booster tour appearances have declined. In his inaugural season, he made 20 appearances. Last year, he made seven. This year, he has eight scheduled.

Meyer’s trips are now broken down into regions of the state, and this year Lakeland is the regio closest to our area.

If you’re interested in attending:
WHEN: May 12
WHERE: Tiger Town Hanger, #2, 2220 N. Lake Ave., Lakeland
TIME: Doors open at 5 p.m., coach Meyer will speak at approximately 6:30 p.m.
OF NOTE: The event is limited to the first 900 people.

For more information, call (863) 834-2233.

Gator forward Alex Tyus to remain at UF

Eleven days after sophomore forward/center Alex Tyus asked for, and was granted, his release to leave the UF program, he has decided to stay put.

Florida officials confirmed Tuesday morning that Tyus will remain at UF. He was still in Gainesville after deciding to transfer, finishing up the spring semester, which ends this week.

Tyus met with UF coach Billy Donovan over the weekend before making his final decision. His father said on Friday he was scheduled to return home this week to weigh his options.

"The University of Florida is where I want to be,” Tyus said. “I
truly feel this is the best place for me to continue to grow and improve
and I look forward to this upcoming season.”

The 6-foot-8, 220 pound native of St. Louis started all 36 games last season, averaging 12.5 points and 6.2 rebounds. He was the team's second-leading scorer.

When he decided to transfer, he expressed a desire to play more of his true forward position. He played center for the Gators because of their lack of depth in the frontcourt.

“It’s great to know that his heart is here at the University of Florida,” Donovan said. “I know he will work hard, and I look forward to helping him continue to grow and develop as a person and as a player.”

[AP photo. Click to enlarge.]

Midday sports report

Three former Gators join free agent ranks

One day after the conclusion of the 2009 NFL Draft, three former Gators signed free agent contracts with NFL teams.

OL Jason Watkins signed with the Houstan Texas and fellow OL Phil Trautwein signed with the St. Louis Rams.

Former UF running back Kestahn Moore signed a free agent deal with the Denver Broncos.

They join Percy Harvin, Louis Murphy and Cornelius Ingram, who were all drafted over the weekend.

SEC leads nation in NFL Draft selections

With 37 of its players selected in last weekend's NFL Draft, the SEC had the most selections of any conference in the nation. The ACC was second with 33, followed by the Pac-10 with 32. The Big 12 and the Big Ten each had 28, and the Big East had 27. The Mountain West Conference had 16 players selected while the Western Athletic Conference and Conference USA had 10 each. 

The SEC has now led or tied for the lead in the most selections in an
NFL Draft in 10 of the last 12 years, including the last three drafts. 

Eleven of the 12 SEC schools had at least one player selected in this past weekend's draft. South Carolina led the SEC with seven players selected followed by Georgia and LSU with six each,  and Alabama and Ole Miss with four each.

Florida had just three players selected in the draft: receiver Percy Harvin was a first-round selection, receiver Louis Murphy went in the fourth and TE Cornelius Ingram was a fifth-round selection.

Since 1990, the SEC has had 739 players selected in NFL Drafts, the most in the nation. The league had eight players selected in the first round this year, which was tied for the fourth highest in SEC history.  In 2007, the SEC had 11 players selected in the first round, 2005 and 1998 had 10 each, 1999 had eight in the first round. 

Since the league expanded in 1992,  the SEC has had 107 first round
selections in 17 drafts, an average of 6.29 selections per draft.