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GEORGIA: Redshirt freshman receiver Israel Troupe drew praise from coach Mark Richt even though is fourth string on the depth chart. Richt also complimented sophomore end Demarcus Dobbs. Offensive lineman Chris Little is on crutches following surgery to repair a stress fracture in his foot. The defensive line with Kade Weston, Geno Atkins and Jeff Owens is one of the most experienced units on the team. The Dawgs are on spring break this week. The football team was in such good shape that Richt cancelled the last day of mat drills, which was a first.
Every position on offense is three-deep. UGA Sports.com in a review of the first half of spring practice reported that quarterback Matthew Stafford was very sharp. Stafford even admitted to being a bit bored since he knows the offense so well. Offensive coordinator Mike Bobo is going to add some tweaks after spring break. Joe Cox is the definite No. 2 quarterback, partly because Logan Gray is out with a foot injury. Chris Davis has maintained his position as the No. 1 center. Junior Vince Vance and sophomore Clint Boling are the starters at guard. Sophomore Kiante Tripp, who made an “A” on all the mat drills, has looked great at 6-6, 300 pounds. Tripp has been an adequate blocker. Sophomore Triston Sturdivant has performed well at left tackle. Tripp Chandler has improved his pass catching at tight end. Arron White is the No. 2 tight end instead of moving to receiver. Nine players are battling for three spots. The leading receivers are Mohamed Massaquoi, Kris Durham, Kenneth Harris and Mike Moore. At tailback, Knowshon Moreno looks to be in midseason form. Kaleb King is living up to his hype with amazing speed to the corner. The third tailback might be Richard Samuel since he picked up a blitzing linebacker before Dontavious Jackson did. Coach John Lilly is getting married and there will be no Heisman Trophy campaign for Moreno. MISSISSIPPI STATE: School president Doc Foglesong announced his resignation set for June 30. AUBURN: Quarterback Kodi Burns is working on his footwork in order to throw the ball better downfield. Junior college quarterback Chris Todd has resumed throwing again after a visit to Dr. James Andrews revealed that he had no structural damage to his shoulder. Last season, Auburn was No. 9 in scoring offense (24 ppg) and No. 10 in total offense (335 ypg). They were 4-3 in games decided by seven points or less. Defensive lineman Tez Doolittle has applied for a sixth year of eligibility. Coach Tommy Tuberville singled out Mike McNeil and Michael Goggans on defense and Byron Isom and Terrell Zachery on offense as the most improved players of the spring. OLE MISS: Coach Houston Nutt said he is depending on linebacker Tony Fein to rebound after being nearly kicked off the team a month ago. Ole Miss starts spring practice on Wednesday, March 19. Quarterback Jevan Snead is ready for a new offense under Houston Nutt and offensive coordinator Kent Austin. Snead and the receivers are already practicing. Snead said he has fully recovered from having his knee scoped last November. ALABAMA: The Tide started spring practice Thursday. Coach Nick Saban said in his pre-spring presser that the offensive line was an area of strength with Andre Smith and Antoine Caldwell returning. Receiver is a position where the Tide must rebuild after the loss of D J Hall, Matt Caddell and Keith Brown. Will Oakley, Mike, McCoy, Earl Alexander, or Nikita Stover are battling to take over as the No. 1 target. Redshirt freshman Marquis Maze will also get a shot because of his speed in space. Corey Reamer will get a shot to be the starting weakside linebacker, but Jimmy Johns, the former running back will push him for playing time. Offensive coordinator Jim McElwain will be looking for a No. 2 quarterback behind John Parker Wilson. The possibilities are sophomore Greg McElroy or redshirt freshman Nick Fanuzzi. Linebacker Ezekiel Knight has not been cleared to play this spring. He was hospitalized for a heart related ailment. Defensive tackle Luther Davis will not participate in spring practice for personal reasons. School president Robert Witt has decided to postpone expansion of Bryant-Denny Stadium because of the challenges to raise money. ARKANSAS: The Hogs and Texas A & M have finalized a 10-year deal to play in the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium in 2009. Cowboy owner Jerry Jones, an Arkansas alum, was instrumental in getting the deal done. There is a rumored $5 million payday for each team. The Cotton Bowl will move its game to the new stadium in 2010. KENTUCKY: The Wildcats begin the 2008 schedule with four non-conference games—Louisville, Norfolk State, Middle Tennessee, and Western Kentucky-- before playing eight straight SEC games. MTSU will replace Akron on Sept. 13. Middle Tennessee scared Louisville last year and beat Memphis. The Western Kentucky game was added just this week. SOUTH CAROLINA: The Gamecocks begin practice on Wednesday, March 19. One of the biggest battles will be at quarterback. All the quarterbacks will benefit from being able to have more freedom to run the football. The main three quarterbacks are Stephen Garcia, Tommy Beecher and Chris Smelley. Garcia is the most mobile. The fourth quarterback this spring is Zac Brindise, the younger brother of former Gator quarterback Noah Brindise. With Kenny McKinley out with an injured toe and Dion Lecorn suspended, the opportunity is there for some of the other receivers such as juniors Freddie Brown or Moe Brown or underclassmen such as Mark Barnes, Jason Barnes, Chris Culliver or Joseph Hills to step up. South Carolina must improve its ability to run the football (113 yards rushing per game, which was last in the SEC) and stop the run (last in the SEC in yards allowed 209 ypg). With Captain Munnerlyn (foot injury) and Carlos Thomas (suspension) out for most of the spring, sophomore Addison Williams and redshirt freshman Jamire Williams (First Coast in Jacksonville) will have a chance to show what they can do. Williams ran the fastest time for cornerbacks (4.34) in recent testing. TENNESSEE: The Vols began practice Tuesday. Tennessee returns seven on offense and five on defense. Four starters return on the offensive line that allowed the fewest sacks in the nation. The line could also open holes for tailback Arian Foster. New offensive coordinator Dave Clawson, who has done well in speaking engagements, will have some weapons to work with such as receiver Gerald Jones who ran, caught and threw the ball last year. Jones is also battling a nagging hamstring injury. In all, Coach Phil Fulmer is breaking in four new assistant coaches. Junior safety Demetrice Morley returns this year after missing ’07 due to academics. Cornerback Dennis Rogan is a special teams return threat. Junior Jonathan Crompton should beat out redshirt freshman B J Coleman for the starting quarterback job. Eric Berry could be a superstar in the secondary before he leaves. Demonte Bolden and Dan Williams return at defensive tackle, but there are few backups. Chase Nelson, Victor Thomas and Donald Langley will have to provide depth. Sophomore Chad Cunningham will have to replace the suspended Britton Colquitt for the first half of the season. Last season, the Vols were No. 11 in total defense (403 ypg), No. 10 in scoring defense (27 ppg), No. 9 in rushing defense (164 ypg) and No. 11 in pass defense (238 ypg). The Vol seniors came up with a written contract for behavior including an 11 pm curfew. Rogan is listed as a starter at safety but he will also work at corner. LSU: The Tigers had its first official scrimmage, which was closed to the media, on Thursday. LSU’s No. 1 defense was dominant including two interceptions that were returned for touchdowns by linebackers Kelvin Sheppard and Lydell Smith. LSU had 150 yards rushing. Richard Murphy had 94 including a 40-yard scoring run. Redshirt freshman quarterback Jarrett Lee was 10-of-13 for 100 yards and Andrew Hatch was 8- of- 12 for 70 yards. The Tigers had a 30-play scrimmage at the end of Monday’s practice. Some of the highlights were a 60-yard run and catch by Jared Mitchell and a 40-yard interception return for a score by Ron Brooks. Coach Les Miles said quarterbacks Hatch and Lee are making progress. Lee had the better scrimmage. The Tigers need to improve on special teams. They were No. 10 in kickoff returns (19.7 ypr), No. 11 in punt returns 5.9 ypr) and No. 7 in kickoff returns (19.9 ypr). Joe Robinson was brought in from Arizona to fix the problem. The battle at cornerback is an important one this spring without Chevis Jackson and Jonathan Zenon. Jai Eugene and Chris Hawkins are working with the No. 1 unit. Phelon Jones and Ron Brooks are the No. 2 cornerbacks. VANDERBILT: Vandy returns 12 starters, but all five offensive linemen need to be replaced as the ‘Dores started practice on Tuesday. The defense has more experience especially with all four starters returning in the secondary. MacKenzi Adams and Chris Nickson will battle Jared Funk and Larry Smith for the quarterback position. The spring game is March 29. FLORIDA: Five players who could surprise this spring according to Gatorbait.net: Riley Cooper (6-3, 210), a junior receiver, who had rarely been healthy. Cooper, who has a 22 ypc average, has maybe the best size-speed-physical nature combination on the team; Marcus Gilbert (6-5, 300), a redshirt sophomore offensive tackle, might play either tackle or guard. He will get more time with Phil Trautwein out this spring with a stress fracture; Carl Johnson (6-5, 342), a redshirt sophomore lineman, has lost weight after coming in at 360. He saw action last year at three different positions including the top backup to Drew Miller at center; Terron Sanders (6-1, 289), a redshirt sophomore defensive tackle, saw limited action in six games before sustaining a high ankle sprain. He will have a shot with Torrey Davis and Brandon Antwine being limited; Bryan Thomas (6-1, 201), a redshirt sophomore safety, is a member of the leadership committee. With Tony Joiner gone, Thomas could get more playing time. Emmanuel Moody told GatorBait.net that he is very happy at Florida. Moody, who had 459 yards rushing his last season at USC, is considered the front runner for the starting tailback position. Moody, who is from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, competes with senior Kestahn Moore (only eight carries per game), sophomore Mon Williams (torn ACL last year), sophomore Chris Rainey and junior Brandon James. Jeffrey Demps comes in as a freshman. ACC FOOTBALL CLEMSON: Running back Ray Ray McElrathbey is leaving school. He gained famed for taking custody of his 11-year-old brother. McElrathbey never found a comfortable position. There is speculation that Clemson didn’t renew his scholarship. Coach Tommy Bowden will not respond. Clemson officials in a release said if McElrathby remains at Clemson then he could be a graduate assistant. Quarterback signee Kyle Parker, a mid-term enrollee, hit three home runs in one game recently for the Tiger baseball team. He is hitting .410 and is second on the team in hits with 16. He was 3-for-5 Tuesday in a win over UNC-Greensboro. Starting middle linebacker Cortney Vincent has been suspended for the remainder of the spring. The violation was not related to his DUI arrest last December. Andre Powell has been given the title of special teams coordinator. Darius Gaither, a junior safety, has decided to transfer. Rendrick Taylor has transitioned well to linebacker from receiver. MIAMI: After further review of Thursday’s scrimmage, quarterback Robert Marve and Jacory Harris were poised and accurate. The Canes are planning on getting a second quarterback some time just in case of injury to the starter. Defensive end Allen Bailey was impressive in tackles for loss on Shawnbrey McNeal, Reggie Youngblood and Harris. The centers struggled with snapping the ball. Cornerback DeMarcus Van Dyke did a good job of coverage. Freshman linebacker Sean Spence might be able to start before the year is over. New defensive coordinator Bill Young said Miami has more speed on defense than Kansas did last year. FLORIDA STATE: The Noles start March 17. Warchant.com picked five defensive players to watch this spring: linebacker Nigel Bradham (400 pound bench press, power clean of 365 pounds), who could start in the first game due to suspensions, defensive tackle Emmanuel Dunbar, who is still recovering from two herniated discs, defensive end Kevin McNeil, who missed last year due to a suspension, cornerback Dionte Allen, who redshirted last year and safety from cornerback Jamie Robinson, who has yet to get on the field for any length of time. Several players such as freshman Evan Bellamy have to step up on the offensive line to help out Rodney Hudson and Ryan McMahon. N C STATE: The Wolfpack starts March 18. Spring priorities are to improve the rushing attack, find a go-to receiver and replace safety DaJuan Morgan, who went to the NFL. State was second in the ACC last season in passing yards per game (245 ypg), but they had only 14 touchdowns and 23 picks, the most in the ACC. True freshman Mike Glennon might be the best quarterback. Daniel Evans will compete against him. The running game was No. 110 nationally averaging 89 ypg mostly because Toney Baker and Jamelle Eugene weren’t healthy. SOUTH FLORIDA: Jim Leavitt has signed a two-year extension that carries him through 2014. He will start making $1.5 million next season. Leavitt, who turned down deals at Alabama and Kansas State, is, 79-47, in 11 years. USF was, 9-4, last season. Attendance grew from 23,000 to 53,000 per game. The Kansas game has been moved from Saturday, Sept. 13 to Friday, Sept. 12 to be televised by ESPN2. COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME: First time players on the ballot are Pat Tillman from Arizona State, Paul Palmer from Temple, Wilbur Marshall from Florida, and Bobby Douglas from Kansas. Lou Holtz is the only coach on the ballot for the first time. Troy Aikman from UCLA, Major Harris from West Virginia and Tim Brown from Notre Dame are also on the ballot. The class will be announced on May 1. SEC HOOPS RPI going into the SEC Tournamentt: Tennessee No. 1, Vanderbilt 10, Mississippi State 38, Ole Miss 42, Arkansas 43, Kentucky 49, Florida 65, Alabama 117, South Carolina 139 ESPN locks: Tennessee, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt; Arkansas and Kentucky have work to do. Florida and Ole Miss look to be NIT bound Since 1979, only nine teams have advanced to the championship game after playing on the first day. The 2000 Arkansas squad is the only team to win four games in four days since 1992. Vanderbilt is the third team in three years to win at least 10 SEC games and play on the first day. Tennessee did the same last year and Arkansas in 2006. FLORIDA (21-11, 8-9): The Gators have lost four straight including the opening round of the SEC Tournament against Alabama. The four game losing streak is the longest since losing five in a row during the 1997-98 season. Florida is 3-8 in its last 11 games and 2-8 against teams in the RPI top 50. The Gators will likely be the first reigning national champion to miss the NCAA Tournament since Kansas in 1989. Florida fell behind by 28 in the first half to the Tide. In the second half, Florida cut the lead to six points after a 21-1 run with 9:02 remaining, but could get it no closer. Florida shot 36% from the floor and 26% from the arc. Marreese Speights scored 15 points, but didn’t make his first shot until 11:22 left in the game. The Gators trailed by as much as 16 points before closing the gap to only three with 23 seconds left in the loss to Kentucky. Speights had 20 points and Nick Calathes added 16. Florida beat Alabama in Tuscaloosa by seven back in January. After a 5-1 SEC start, the Gators finished the season 3-7, the worst conference record since going 6-10 back in 1997-98. Kentucky shot 58% from the floor and 55% from the arc. Florida’s non-conference win over Temple is looking more impressive now. ALABAMA (17-15, 6-11): Mykal Riley scored 26 points including 8- of -12 shots from the arc and Richard Hendrix added 22 points and eight rebounds in the SEC Tournament opening round win over Florida. Riley scored 26 points on senior day in the Tide’s win over Vanderbilt in overtime. Alabama missed 13 consecutive shots in the second half allowing Vanderbilt to overcome a 10- point deficit. MISSISSIPPI STATE (21-9, 12-4): In two games against Alabama, Jarvis Varnado scored a total of 12 points, grabbed nine rebounds and blocked just two shots. The Bulldogs swept the Tide in the two regular season games. Charles Rhodes scored 27 points and Jamont Gordon added 23 points in the win over LSU on Saturday. The Bulldogs play Alabama in the early Friday night game. A win would likely match them against Kentucky on Saturday. OLE MISS (21-10, 7-10): The Rebels might have lost their chance to advance to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2002 after a first round loss to Georgia. David Huertas scored 29 points while connecting on 7 of 11 shots from the arc. Dwayne Curtis added 26 points. The Rebels are likely NIT bound despite winning 13 straight games and earning a top 25 ranking. The Rebels beat Georgia last Saturday. Ole Miss was 0-7 in road games until the win over Georgia. Chris Warren and Curtis both scored 15 points each in the win. The Rebels have wins over Clemson and South Alabama. The Tide in 2003 was the only SEC team to finish with a losing record (7-9) and make the NCAA tournament. Ole Miss is 5-4 against top 50 RPI teams. GEORGIA (14-16, 5-12): Coach Dennis Felton earned a big win in the opening round of the SEC tournament when his Bulldogs knocked off Ole Miss in overtime. David Bliss hit a jumper with less than a second remaining in overtime. Terrance Woodbury scored 25 points and Sundiata Gaines added 22. The Bulldogs had lost 11- of -13 games following an earlier Ole Miss defeat. Felton is 27-54 in SEC play and 72-79 overall. KENTUCKY (18-11, 12-4): The Wildcats beat Florida by five points last Sunday during senior day. Perry Stevenson scored a career high 18 points. Derrick Jasper added a career high 14 points. The Wildcats play Georgia in the late game Friday night. If they win they will possibly play Mississippi State on Saturday. The Wildcats have been involved in a dozen SEC games decided by 10 points or less and won every one. VANDERBILT (25-6, 11-6): The Commodores shot 67% in the win over Auburn in the first round of the SEC tournament. Vandy hit on 33-of- 49 shots, just shy of Kentucky’s former record of 68.3% in 1979. A J Ogilvy, who led SEC freshmen averaging 16 points per game, hit 12- of- 13 shots to score 27 points. Shan Foster, who was named the SEC Player of the Year, added 26 points. Foster averaged 20 points per game and scored 20 points or more in 18- of- 31 games. Derrick Byars was named the SEC MVP last season. Vandy’s 27 assists on 33 baskets tied a season high. The Commodores finished third in the Eastern Division after the loss to Alabama. Foster scored 21 points in the loss to Alabama after tallying 42 Wednesday night in the overtime win over Mississippi State. Ogilvy had 17 points and 10 rebounds. Vandy had a, 16-2, run in the second half to take the lead. AUBURN (14-16, 4-13): Rasheem Barrett scored 20 points in the loss to Vandy in the opening round of the SEC tournament. ARKANSAS (20-10, 9-7): The Hogs have won four straight and seven- of -eight against Friday’s opponent, Vanderbilt. Patrick Beverley scored 27 points in Saturday’s win over Auburn. During the early part of the Auburn game, coach John Pelphrey kicked the scorer’s table and broke a glass. Arkansas went on a, 32-15, run afterwards. The Hogs play the winner of Vanderbilt and Auburn on Friday. SOUTH CAROLINA (14-17, 6-11): The Gamecocks beat LSU in the opening round of the SEC Tournament. South Carolina advances to play Tennessee on Friday. The Vols have beaten South Carolina twice this season by a combined score of 57 points. Devan Downey had 11 assists in the LSU win, one short of a tournament record. LSU (13-18, 6-11): Tiger forward Anthony Randolph, who came into the South Carolina game averaging 15 points and eight rebounds per game, is projected as a possible lottery pick if he makes himself available in the NBA draft. Junior Marcus Thornton, who had 17 games of 20 points- or- more, is also likely to test the NBA waters. The Tigers’ four game win streak came to an end with a Saturday loss to Mississippi State. LSU, who had its first losing season since 2000-01, was ahead by five points early in the second half before a, 21-6, State run. Marcus Thornton scored a career high 38 points. A junior shooting guard, Thornton scored 17 points in the final 6:16. He is averaging 26 ppg since the Arkansas game. Since interim coach Butch Pierre took over the Tigers, they are 5-45 and have been in every game except Arkansas. Chris Johnson, a 6-11 center, has been averaging 12 points, 10 rebounds and nearly four blocks per game under Pierre. There are reports that LSU has contacted USC’s Tim Floyd. TENNESSEE (28-3, 14-2): The Vols, who play South Carolina in the SEC Tournament Friday, have won only more than once since 1991 in the SEC Tournament. Tennessee has lost the opening round of the tournament for the past two straight years. The Vols beat South Carolina on senior day in Knoxville. Downey, who didn’t score until 8:37 left the game, was only 1-of-9 from the field. He averages 18.9 points per game. Chris Lofton scored 28 points and JaJuan Smith added 17. Tennessee set a school record with 28 wins. Tennessee outscored South Carolina, 51-19 in the second half. They extended their home winning streak to 32 games.
BRENT BEAIRD IS A SPORTS WRITER FOR MYCLAYSUN IN ORANGE PARK, FLA. HE ALSO WRITES FOR RIVALS.COM, SAMSPORTSLINE.COM AND GATOR BAIT MAGAZINE. HE CAN BE HEARD ON SPORTS RADIO 1010 XL.
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