Around The SEC East – 1/22/09

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Here are your top stories and top links from around the East Division of the SEC today:

UF:  The Gators were just 3.4 seconds away from winning their 11th game in a row when Chandler Parsons missed a free throw, Carolina pulled down the rebound, completed a football pass down the floor, and Zam Frederick hit a buzzer-beating lay-up to lift the Cocks (ha-ha, we get it) to a 69-68 win in Columbia.

UF:  Kevin Brockway of The Gainesville Sun says the kid who got beat on the defensive end isn’t to blame, it’s the guy who’s paid millions to have him in the right spot that’s to blame.

UF:  The guy making millions, Billy Donovan, tossed the blame in the area of the kid, Dan Werner.  “It was a bang-bang play, and maybe Dan got caught resting a little bit and Zam (Frederick) blew past him.  It was a heartbreaking loss for our team.”

UF:  In football news, Urban Meyer has hired Washington’s Brian White to coach the Gators’ tight ends next year.

UF:  Reggie Nelson and Percy Harvin were All-Americans in a Gators’ #1 jersey.  Florida wants to make their #1 jersey a big deal.  So the question is: Which future superstar gets that number next?

UF:  Pat Dooley of The Sun writes “I don’t know” when it comes to whether or not Meyer will receive a pay raise this year.

UGA:  Mike Mayock of the NFL Network isn’t sure if Matthew Stafford should be a Top 10 pick in the NFL Draft. 

UGA:  Offensive lineman Chris Burnette decided against enrolling early at Georgia so he could compete for valedictorian status at his high school.  Proving once again that he really is a good guy — Mark Richt vowed to go to Burnette’s graduation if he accomplishes the goal.  How does anyone not like this guy?

UGA:  Athletic director Damon Evans is non-committal on Dennis Felton’s future… but he DOES want a better basketball product for Georgia.

UK:  It wasn’t the rout some Kentucky fans might have expected, but last night’s 73-64 win over Auburn still leaves the Cats undefeated in the SEC and in first place in the East.

UK: Despite an injured finger, Patrick Patterson still burned the Tigers for 21 points and 18 rebounds.  “I thought Patrick was a beast out there, both offensively and defensively,” Billy Gillispie said.

USC:  As you might imagine, the game story on yesterday’s buzzer-beating Carolina victory read a little differently in Columbia than it did in Gainesville.

Haven’t seen the play for yourself?  Here it is (and remember, we’re always putting SEC Video on our… uh… SEC Video page):




USC:  Ron Morris of The State believes last night’s win should be viewed as a giant step forward for Darrin Horn’s team.

USC:  Zam Frederick made the big play at the end, but as usual, it was set up by Devan Downey.

USC:  According to The State’s Seth Emerson, last night’s victory was the most exciting Carolina win he’s covered in three years.

USC:  In football news, Alabama did not hire Brad Lawing away from Carolina which leaves Ray Rychleski as the only Steve Spurrier assistant currently weighing his options (he might get the special teams job with the Indianapolis Colts).

UT:  New Tennessee offensive coordinator Jim Chaney knows that he’ll have to run the ball more than he did at Purdue if he’s going to have success in the SEC.

UT:  Bruce Pearl likes an up-tempo style of play.  This year’s team isn’t equipped to do that, so Pearl is adjusting his style.  The win at Vanderbilt on Tuesday shows that he can do so and still win ballgames.

UT:  Wayne Chism came off the bench against Vandy and still bested All-SEC selection AJ Ogilvy.  Tyler Smith believes Chism was making a point.  “I think Wayne had a point to prove — he said he didn’t — but I think he did.  Because some guys left him off that (SEC) first team, and he belongs on there.”

VU:  Ogilvy, to his credit, has been slowed by an injury not unlike the plantar fasciitis that Alabama’s Ronald Steele dealt with before hanging up his sneakers.  “It’s right in the center of my heel.  Every step you push off to go to explode, it’s a sharp pain.”