Around the 'Shoe

Lol my bad I ment DePriest will be starting with Texas! !! I wanted DePriest to go to OSU but now we are stacking up at Lb he's a good backer but we have a great crew!!!

You were right the first time. DePriest is at Bama. Jordan Hicks is at Texas.

What do you guys think about Ja'Juan Story as a potential guy who wants to transfer? I've seen his name thrown out a little around the web as well.

Per Scout, he committed to Florida in June 2010 but also attended OSU's summer camp and took an OV in Jan '11, so even though he'd committed, he would have to have been a soft verbal. The only school besides Florida and OSU he visited was Oregon so we can assume we finished in his top 3. I'd say that at this point, he's as good a candidate as any.

were they going 'buck' Nuts

thank you, i'll be here all week, please tip your wait staff

I can see why Crowell might want to leave UGA (Richt signed Keith Marshall, the #1 RB recruit) but in my opinion looking at from his perspective, it makes no sense for him to want to come to OSU. We have so many RBs as it is and by the time he's eligible to play, most of them will still be here and even more experienced. Plus, the spread really isn't built to be attractive to RBs. I would think he'd want to go somewhere with a more conventional offense or even Georgia Tech where they run 90-95% of the time. Anything's possible but this one would surprise me.

I doubt it's Crowell too, Story on the other hand is intriguing. Has good speed, may be that WR Urban is looking for to get the O going. Who knows, he may not be happy with is roll at UF, and I'm sure Urban, even though he wasn't there when Story committed to UF, had built a relationship with him before he left UF. Anyway, it will be interesting to see how this works out.

Probably all of the above at one time or another, though never usually at once. The seasons in the years 2007 and 2010 notwithstanding, Meyer only lost six games – three of those in the first season, 2005, when he installed a whole new playbook and attitude. We gave him a pass in that season for obvious reasons, and were thrilled the way he owned FSU that first year 34-7.
He was outcoached at South Carolina, outmuscled in Baton Rouge, and out-toughed in Bryant-Denny Stadium.

In 2006, we lost at Auburn despite the Tigers inability to score an offensive TD in what was one of the most frustrating games I can remember. We were so pissed at the referees for a fumble ruling that we gave Meyer and his staff a pass – though we played a pretty conservative game offensively.

In 2007 we put up 552 points, but allowed 331. We blamed all of our losses on the defense’s youth and rightly so.

In 2008, we put up 611 points and allowed 181. Our loss to Ole Miss was due to an overly conservative and unimaginative game plan that relied on Tebow running and deep balls to Harvin. We probably still win that game if we didn’t lose three fumbles on our half of the field. Still, a change needed to be made and Meyer made it, installing Rainey and Demps as our backfield double threat (along with Tebow – and Harvin, of course). The offense erupted after that and we steamrolled almost everybody.

The loss in 2009 was to a better-prepared, better coached team – Alabama whipped our ass.
We probably had more talent, but Meyer looked like a ghost on the sideline and the team had no fire.

Of course, we recognize that no matter what, you can't win every single game.

The 2010 season was a whole different animal from the previous five seasons for what should be obvious reasons. Many Gator fans were left scratching our heads with the shambles Meyer led us into and ultimately left us wallowing in – something for which he is ultimately responsible and should bear the lion’s share of blame, in my humble opinion. I’m not selling his achievements at UF short, that four-year run was truly special and I’m certainly grateful for what he was able to accomplish while at UF; but I believe he owed us better than he did us, in the end. I may sound petulant (especially in these days of mercenary coaches and the almighty dollar), but I’m left with the impression he did us wrong, especially since we made him what he is – the most coveted coaching commodity in the game, bar none.

He took a year off, got rejuvenated, refocused, and (by his own account) is ready to get after it again.
If you get 2008 Meyer – the world’s your oyster. If you get Meyer circa 2010, look out.

I'm hearing the same thing. UGA just signed the #1 RB in the nation (Keith Marshall); nevetheless, there have been rumblings of Crowell's problems (immenient transfer) earlier into the season.

There's no doubt Urban Meyer made Florida. Spurrier was looked at as a God down there and he only won 1 championship. Urban came in and dominated and won 2. Urban's been a winner everywhere he's gone so i don't think it was any particular program that can claim to have held his success. He holds his own success with his work ethic and willingness to win

Florida football didn’t begin with Ron Zook, M Runner. Zook’s years are a statistical aberration, if you will. Meyer came to Florida a successful coach, a winner. I never said he didn’t. But let’s be clear, Florida’s history of dominance in college ball since 1990, coupled with our resources, regional recruiting advantage, etc., gave Meyer what he needed to become what he is – one of the most sought after coaches in the game. Heck, Urban even admitted he came to Florida over Notre Dame because we could help get him a title quicker.

Tell me with a straight face you’d be clamoring for Meyer if he had never coached at Florida; never been on TV almost every weekend; never fielded teams with the star-power of Tebow, Harvin, Hernandez, Nelson, Spikes, Wright, Haden, Cooper, Moss, Murphy, McDonald, Siler etc.; never won 22 straight games in the nation’s top conference; never hoisted two crystal footballs. All of those things he was instrumental in, of course, but to think he’d be viewed the same if he had stayed at Utah all these years is ridiculous. We didn’t make him a great coach, that’s obvious, but we gave him the ultimate platform, in his words “the greatest stage in college football.”

That’s what I was getting at.

Now, two other things …1) “you guys had a less than stellar season after he left...”

Meyer gave us a less than stellar season in 2010 and described the program he gave Muschamp as “broken.” It was his program until he handed it over. I’ve never seen a rock star coach break a program faster than him, just saying…

2) “You guys will NEVER achieve the same success with a different coach…”

Probably not, who could? Meyer’s success at Florida was as close to a perfect storm in college football as I have ever seen. I doubt Urban will achieve it again – it was just one of those runs. Who knows, he may have shot his wad and flamed out. We’ll see.

Completely agree that Florida gave him the opportunity to get to the biggest stage which he did and took full advantage of. I know you guys were and are happy for that. Spurrier was very dominate during his tenure at Florida but if i would compare the 2 i would say Meyer's the better coach. It's subjective but i think the coaches that Urban faced in the SEC were as a whole better than the coaches Spurrier faced. Spurrier got to be like Bobby Bowden to where he'd rather be golfing than coaching and Urban was a workaholic. I guess you could say the workaholic thing with the health problems but i'm not gonna even get into that cause i don't know any real details and just won't speak on something i don't know about. Whether he did or not is none of my business

A poster on EW is now saying that it's Giovanni Bernard from UNC and that it's a done deal.