Wuerffel wowed by Napier’s start, praises Richardson’s processing ability

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — New Florida basketball coach Todd Golden is embracing UF history in a major way, set to hire two-time national champion point guard Taurean Green to his staff as director of player development. New Florida football coach Billy Napier has also embraced the program’s storied past.

Napier has a number of UF football alumni working for him already, with former linebacker Mike Peterson serving as an on-field assistant coach and several other former players on his support staff.

The first-year UF coach has also made it a point to encourage former players to visit Gainesville whenever possible.

“I’ve been very encouraged at so many of the things that I’ve seen,” said 1996 Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel, who was on campus Saturday for the team’s practice.

“The sheer number of quality people that are part of this program now, from all the coaches to the people doing all sorts of other aspects. The GatorMade program, Katie Turner and Bri (Wade) and what they’re doing with recruiting, it is really remarkable. I’ve been very grateful to have a little bit of bandwidth in my life and said, ‘Hey, if I can help with some things…’ So I’ve been around a little more, and I’m enjoying it.”

Wuerffel is one of the most beloved figures in Florida football history.

His statue sits outside the Swamp, with Steve Spurrier sandwiched in between Wuerffel and Tim Tebow. Needless to say, when Wuerffel gives some thoughts on the program, fans tune in. So does Napier.

The two spent several minutes speaking after Saturday’s practice, pointing to different areas of the practice field.

“We were just chatting about a whole lot of different things,” Wuerffel said with a grin. “I was telling him about a couple of plays we ran when I was on the flag football team.”

But Wuerffel has also shared more serious advice with the current players.

“I’ve had a chance to talk with the players at different times, really on the subject of leadership and trying to develop leaders,” he said. “I met with some of them as a group and others individually; it has been really encouraging. I’m really excited to be associated with GatorMade and help really highlight some of the great stuff that they’re doing.”

Florida plans to more fully unveil what the GatorMade program run by Savannah Bailey is in the next week. Napier has been slowly rolling out members of his support staff to meet with the media throughout spring practice, allowing each of them to explain exactly what role they fill in the grand scheme of things.

Wuerffel beamed about the GatorMade program Saturday, so excited he nearly let the cat out of the bag early.

Another thing he’s excited about? The potential of redshirt sophomore quarterback Anthony Richardson.

“Like everybody, you immediately see the physical skills,” Wuerffel said. “He’s a tremendous passer. Really strong guy and runner. Tremendous athlete. But I think what’s encouraging to me is to see the way he processes the game. He’s a really smart guy, and I think he’s got so much potential. And as everybody’s been saying, you hope that you see that potential translate and there’s consistency. And you hope he stays healthy.”

The latter part Wuerffel can’t really help with. What he does know, though, is the intense amount of pressure and scrutiny that comes with being a quarterback at a place like Florida. Especially now, after Wuerffel and Tebow have made those shoes even bigger to fill in the last 30 years.

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If he can lend some advice to Richardson on managing that, he’s all for it. Napier’s all too happy to step aside and let guys like Wuerffel who have been in it first-hand at Florida have the floor for moments like that.

“We’ve talked about a lot of different things,” Wuerffel said. “Mainly, I really just wanted to thank him and encourage him. I felt like both he and Emory (Jones) went through a really difficult situation last year, and they both showed a lot of class and support for one another, and I think that goes a long way.”

Florida basketball: Taurean Green will return to Gators as director of player development

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida women’s basketball is officially heading to the NCAA Tournament after being selected as a No. 10 seed on Sunday evening.
 
The Gators will be headed to Storrs, Conn. to matchup with No. 7-seeded Central Florida on Saturday, Mar. 19. Connecticut will serve as the host during the first and second rounds, holding a No. 2 seed and matching up with No. 15 seed, Mercer.
 
Central Florida and Florida have never met in the postseason, but the Gators hold a 25-0 series advantage over their in-state rival, last meeting in 2015 for a 93-79 Florida victory.
 
Saturday will mark the Orange & Blue’s 16th NCAA Tournament appearance, with their last coming in 2016 when the Gators earned a five-seed with an at-large bid. Overall, Florida holds a 12-15 record in the tournament, including a 9-6 clip in the first round and 2-7 record in the second round.
 
This season, the Gators defied expectations after winning 20 games for the first time since the 2015-16 campaign, finishing the year 21-10. During the season, Florida downed five top-25 squads, including a top-10 victory over No. 7 Tennessee, en route to securing the fifth-seed at the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
 
Multiple Gators also earned postseason honors, as veteran point guard Kiara Smith was named First Team All-SEC and Alberte Rimdal was placed on the SEC All-Freshman Team. Kelly Rae Finley, now officially the head coach of the Gators, has been named a semifinalist for the Naismith Women’s Coach of the Year.
 

The Florida Gators and head basketball coach Mike White parted ways Sunday with White being hired away from Florida by the SEC rival Georgia Bulldogs. The move comes just a few days after the Gators were bounced in the second round of the 2022 SEC Tournament, their earliest exit from the postseason event since 2009.

Sources close to the situation told OnlyGators.com that Florida was expecting to move on from White at the conclusion of the season, perhaps after the NIT. The Gators believed other programs would have interest in White’s services and thought a separation could come without needing to buy out his contract as they did with head football coach Dan Mullen less than four months ago. Instead, Florida will actually receive around $1 million from Georgia for White.

It was thought that Ole Miss, White’s alma mater, would be in play given the team’s poor performances across the last three seasons. However, the Rebels appear set to retain coach Kermit Davis despite not having a winning campaign since 2018-19. Whether that job opens or not, White had an opportunity to get out from under his toxic tenure at Florida by accepting a job with plenty of potential. It just so happens to be with UF’s biggest rival.

“Mike White informed me [Sunday] afternoon that he was accepting another job,” said athletic director Scott Stricklin in a press release. “It’s been a pleasure having Mike, Kira and the White family with us in Gainesville, and we wish them well. They are a wonderful family who always represented the Gators in a first-class manner.

“The search for the next Gator men’s basketball coach has already begun, and I look forward to identifying a leader who will embody the [University Athletic Association’s] vision of providing a championship experience with integrity.”

The loss in the SEC Tournament was Florida’s fifth in the last eight games, and it capped a third straight season in which the Gators were unable to amass 20 wins. Based on its resume, UF was not a candidate for selection in the 2022 NCAA Tournament, an event it will miss for the first time since 2016 (White’s inaugural season). The Gators went 2-8 against the 68-team field, 1-7 against such teams from the SEC, when it was announced Sunday night. Their two wins were by a combined four points.

Florida finished 19-13 overall this season and 34-23 across White’s final two campaigns, the program’s worst record over consecutive seasons by the same coach since Billy Donovan’s first two years (27-32). The Gators also finished 9-9 in SEC play for the third time in seven years under White; Donovan was .500 or worse in league play just four times across 19 seasons, including his first two.

The long-embattled White led Florida to the Elite Eight round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament, but the Gators fell to a higher seed in SEC rival South Carolina and have failed to advance past the second round as no better than a No. 6 seed in three appearances since.

Florida has not finished better than fourth in the SEC standings since 2018. The Gators became a middle-of-the-road team under White’s tenure during a time in which SEC basketball is stronger than its been in years thanks to a concentrated effort throughout the league. Six teams received bids to the NCAA Tournament, and there are star coaches and players littered throughout the conference.

Florida used to battle Kentucky for top billing in the SEC every season; it has become a complete afterthought in the league. Furthermore, the Gators were neither playing nor recruiting well enough for White to be thought of as the future of the program.

Though White and the team were unable to capitalize on the talent of star Keyontae Johnson across the last two seasons — Johnson collapsed on the court with a heart issue early in the 2020-21 campaign — White had plenty of time to build and rebuild his roster. This past offseason, Florida lost four players to transfer. While White did recruit acclaimed transfers to replace those departures, the team was built without a second ball-handler or strong post player; instead, he added a swath of inefficient spot shooters who contributed heavily to poor offensive performances throughout the campaign.

White was hired out of Louisiana Tech after he led the program to 27+ wins in three straight seasons. He was seen as bright, youthful hire for Florida who many compared to Donovan given his success at a lower league, young age, personality and potential.

However, White never led the Bulldogs to the NCAA Tournament, and detractors believed that the Gators should have swung bigger for Donovan’s replacement given the basketball program was far more established and successful compared to when Donovan took over two decades earlier.

Florida will now begin a national coaching search. If it goes the way of its effort to replace Mullen with a specific target in mind, Stricklin may be able to act quickly. However, with the NCAA Tournament set to begin, many of the nation’s top coaches could be busy for the next few weeks.

Here is this year’s SEC tournament schedule.

Wednesday, March 9
First Round
6 p.m. — No. 12 Missouri vs. No. 13 Ole Miss (SEC Network)
8 p.m. — No. 11 Vanderbilt vs. No. 14 Georgia (SEC Network)

Thursday, March 10
Second Round
12 p.m. — No. 8 Texas A&M vs. No. 9 Florida (SEC Network)
2 p.m. — No. 5 LSU vs. Missouri/Ole Miss winner (SEC Network)
6 p.m. — No. 7 South Carolina vs. No. 10 Mississippi State (SEC Network)
8 p.m. — No. 6 Alabama vs. Vanderbilt/Georgia winner (SEC Network)

Friday, March 11
Quarterfinals
12 p.m. — No. 1 Auburn vs. Thursday 12 p.m. winner (ESPN)
2 p.m. — No. 4 Arkansas vs. Thursday 2 p.m. winner (ESPN)
6 p.m. — No. 2 Tennessee vs. Thursday 6 p.m. winner (SEC Network)
8 p.m. — No. 3 Kentucky vs. Thursday 8 p.m. winner (SEC Network)

Saturday, March 12
Semifinals
1 p.m. — Friday afternoon winners (ESPN)
3 p.m. — Friday evening winners (ESPN)

Sunday, March 13
Championship
1 p.m. — Semifinal winners (ESPN)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The six writers who cover Southeastern Conference women’s basketball for USA Today Sports Network have named Kelly Rae Finley their SEC Coach of the Year.
 
Finley spent the 2021-22 season acting as the interim head coach for the Gators, leading UF to a 20-win season for the first time since the 2015-16 campaign and the 16th time in the history of the program. Under her command, the Orange & Blue also won 10 Southeastern Conference games for just the fourth time in program history.
 
Securing the fifth-seed in the SEC Tournament, the Gators defeated five ranked opponents for the first time since the 2005-06 season, including five nationally ranked opponent in the SEC for the first time since 2004. A victory of note, Florida earned their largest margin of victory over a top-10 team when they defeated No. 7 Tennessee, 84-59, handing the Lady Vols their worst loss against an unranked squad since the AP Poll debuted in 1976.
 
Under her continued tutelage, graduate Kiara Smith continued to improve, leading the team this season with 14.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.4 steals per game. In SEC play, the District Heights, Md., native averaged 17.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.3 steals per game, helping her to earn First Team All-SEC honors and All-Defensive Team honors. In addition to Smith, freshman Alberte Rimdal was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team.
 
The Gators begin postseason play on Thursday when they take-on the winner of Vanderbilt-Texas A&M at approximately 3:30 p.m. ET.
 

Down 5 with 44 seconds left, it seemed like Florida Gators Men’s Basketball were headed toward another deflating loss as they try one last push for the NCAA Tournament.

But a clutch block by Phlandrous Fleming led to a layup, followed by a Vanderbilt Men’s Basketball turnover on the inbound pass. Fleming hit a 3-pointer with 6 seconds left to give the Gators the lead they would not relinquish.

Florida is 19-11 and 9-8 in the SEC, tied for 6th in the conference. There’s one last game before the SEC Tournament: a home date Saturday with No. 6 Kentucky Men’s Basketball.

📸: Christopher Hanewinckel / USA TODAY Sports
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