Latest news with #CHOMP-IONS!
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Florida football: Three former Gators named to CFB Hall of Fame ballot
Three former Florida football standouts ― Alex Brown, Brad Culpepper and Percy Harvin ― were named on June 2 to the National Football Foundation College Football Hall of Fame ballot for the 2026 class. Harvin helped lead the Florida Gators to national championships in 2006 and 2008 as a two-way rushing and receiving threat in head coach Urban Meyer's spread offense. In three seasons at UF, Harvin had 33 catches for 1,929 yards and 13 TDs, while rushing 194 times for 1,852 yards on 19 TDs. He went on to a seven-year NFL career, winning a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks in 2014. Advertisement Brown played at UF from 1998-2001 under Steve Spurrier, earning consensus All-American honors his final season at UF. A Japser native and former Hamilton High standout, Brown finished his four-year Florida career with 161 tackles, 47 tackles for loss and 33 sacks. He went on to an eight-year NFL career with the Chicago Bears (2002-09) and New Orleans Saints (2010). Culpepper played at UF from 1988-91, finishing his career with 47.5 tackles for loss, 18 sacks, 5 forced fumbles, 5 fumble recoveries and 4 pass breakups. In 1991, Culpepper captained the Gators to their first SEC Championship and led the defense with 50 tackles. Culpepper went on to a seven-year NFL career from 1993-2000 with the Minnesota Vikings, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chicago Bears. Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun's Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@ Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1. Read his coverage of the Gators' national championship basketball season in 'CHOMP-IONS!' — a hardcover coffee-table collector's book from The Sun. Details at This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: CFB Hall of Fame ballot includes three former Florida football standouts
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Report: Florida football special teams coach moving on to Houston
One of the special teams' coaches for Florida football is moving on to a new job. According to a report by Matt Zenitz of 247Sports, Florida Gators Game Changer coordinator Chris Couch is accepting the special teams coordinator job at Houston. Advertisement The move reunites Couch with Houston coach Willie Fritz, whom he worked under at Tulane from 2016-20. Couch endured some ups and downs in his first two years under head coach Billy Napier as lead special teams' analyst. Under Couch, Florida at times failed to line up correctly, resulting in either 10 players or too many players on the field in changeovers for punts and field goal attempts. During the 2024 offseason, Florida added special teams' coordinator Joe Houston to work with Couch. Houston, a former special teams assistant with the New England Patriots (2020-23) and special teams coach at Iowa State (2016-18), added a new voice with experience. Due to a change in NCAA rules, both analysts were able to work on the field during 2024 fall camp, which resulted in smoother special teams' operation during the 2024 season. Coach joins former UF co-defensive coordinator Austin Armstrong as the second coach to leave the Gators for Houston in the last seven months. Armstrong took over as Houston defensive coordinator last December. Advertisement Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun's Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@ Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1. Read his coverage of the Gators' national championship basketball season in 'CHOMP-IONS!' — a hardcover coffee-table collector's book from The Sun. Details at This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Report: Florida football losing special teams analyst to Houston
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Florida softball vs. Texas live scoring updates: Gators begin in WCWS vs. Longhorns
OKLAHOMA CITY — For the 13th time in the last 18 seasons, Florida softball has moved its operations north for the summer. In this case, 1,200 miles northwest to the 'Big Friendly' and Oklahoma City. This current iteration of Gators are no strangers to OKC. UF advanced to the WCWS last season, and its first semifinals since 2017. Now, Florida returns and holds high expectations. After all, it ended the regular season less than a month ago by taking two of three from Oklahoma in Gainesville. Advertisement The Gators have the nation's best young hitter in Taylor Shumaker, All-Americans in Kendra Falby and Mia Williams, and a pitcher in Keagan Rothrock who shined here last season. 'Told my team as we began our journey that this is the greatest show on dirt and the greatest opportunity for student-athletes in our sport to play,' coach Tim Walton said. Florida's opponent is no stranger to success. Texas bested Florida in OKC last season and advanced to the championship series. The 'Horns began this season strong, including taking two of three from UF in Gainesville in March (Rothrock didn't play in that series). However, UT was swept by Oklahoma in April ad has struggled at times to gain momentum back. All in all, it'll be an intriguing all-SEC showdown in OKC Thursday. Advertisement Here's live updates: Florida softball vs. Texas in 2025 NCAA Women's College World Series: Live updates This section will be updated as the game begins. Florida softball vs. Texas in 2025 NCAA Women's College World Series: Starting lineups This section will be updated as the game begins. Florida softball vs. Texas in 2025 NCAA Women's College World Series: Start time First pitch from Devon Park in Oklahoma City is set to for 12 p.m. ET/11 a.m. CT. Florida softball vs. Texas in 2025 NCAA Women's College World Series: TV/Streaming TV channel: ESPN Streaming: Watch ESPN, FUBO (free trial) Advertisement You can listen to it here. Live stats are available on Noah Ram covers Florida Gators athletics and Gainesville-area high school sports for The Gainesville Sun, and the USA TODAY Network. Contact him at nram@ Follow him on X @Noah_ram1. Read his coverage of the Gators' national championship basketball season in 'CHOMP-IONS!' — a hardcover coffee-table collector's book from The Sun. Details at This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida softball vs Texas score updates for Women's College World Series
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Florida football announces future games with FAU, South Alabama for 2026, 2027 seasons
Florida football announced non-conference opponents for the 2026 and 2027 schedule on Monday. The Florida Gators will host FAU on Sept. 5, 2026, and South Alabama on Sept. 4, 2027. UF is 4-0 in its series with FAU, dating back to 2007. The last time the two teams met, Florida beat FAU 35-14 on Sept. 4, 2021 to open the 2021 season. Advertisement It's the first-ever meeting between Florida and South Alabama, which moved up to the FBS level in 2013. The Jaguars went 7-6 last season under first-year coach Major Applewhite, capped by a 30-23 win over Western Michigan in the Salute to Veterans Bowl. Florida Atlantic went 3-9 last season under Tom Herman, who was fired during the offseason and replaced by new coach and former Texas Tech offensive coordinator Zach Kittley. UF's non-conference schedule in 2025 includes games against Long Island University, USF, Miami and Florida State. The Gators will open the season at The Swamp against LIU on Aug. 30. Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun's Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@ Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1. Read his coverage of the Gators' national championship basketball season in 'CHOMP-IONS!' — a hardcover coffee-table collector's book from The Sun. Details at This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida football announces schedule additions for 2026, 2027 seasons
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Celebrate Florida basketball's NCAA championship with collector's book, page prints, gear
It's official! The Florida Gators once again rule college basketball. To be crowned 2025 national champions, Florida basketball had to traverse a gauntlet unlike any team in recent years. En route to a 36-4 record and cutting down the nets at the Alamodome, the Gators twice knocked off the country's top-ranked team (Tennessee in January, Auburn in February), captured the SEC tournament (first time since 2014), toppled the NCAA tournament's overall No. 1 seed (Auburn again) and basked in their latest shining moment (while quashing Houston's dreams). Advertisement And you can relive the glory of the Gators' third national championship and first in nearly two decades through a book and page prints from The Gainesville Sun and USA TODAY. Gator Nation never will forget the iconic moments: Crushing Tennessee's spirit with a 30-point victory and later in the title game of the SEC tournament, the impossible Elite Eight comeback against Texas Tech, an epic final half to eliminate Auburn in the national semifinals, and the brilliance of Walter Clayton Jr., the first Gator to be a consensus first-team All-American (plus be compared to Steph Curry). Check out the lineup from The Sun and USA TODAY. You will want to own a piece of Gators hoops history. Buy our Florida championship book 'CHOMP-IONS! The Florida Gators' Rise to the Top of College Basketball' takes you courtside for every electrifying moment of a championship run that rallied fans nationwide. This 208-page, archival-quality coffee-table book from The Gainesville Sun, the Gators' hometown newspaper, and USA TODAY captures the blood, sweat and cheers behind Florida's first national championship since the back-to-back titles in 2006-07. Florida Gators national championship collector's book after beating Houston in win 2025 NCAA Tournament. Packed with dynamic photos and compelling stories, 'CHOMP-IONS!' commemorates the unbreakable spirit that propelled Florida to the pinnacle of college basketball once again. This keepsake retails for $44.95, plus shipping and handling, but you can receive a 25% discount by ordering right now. We'll do the math: That's $33.71. Find the book at Advertisement Some fans will never take the coffee-table book out of its shrink-wrapping so that it can be passed down to future generations, all brought up the right way to know that It Just Means More. Order Florida Gators championship book Buy Florida commemorative page prints Now that your coffee table and bookcase have been properly adorned, don't forget about your walls. The Sun has two full-page prints that you will want to display proudly. A poster from The Gainesville Sun commemorates Florida winning the SEC tournament. 'GATOR CHOMPS!' celebrates Florida's 86-77 victory over Tennessee in the championship game of the SEC tournament. The page print captures the postgame scene at Nashville in all its glory and joy as coach Todd Golden hoists the hardware and confetti rains down on his team. Advertisement Right now, we're working on a page print that celebrates Florida's victory over Houston. You should see it in the wee hours at the USA TODAY Store. The page prints are produced on high-quality, acid-free art paper. Upgrade options include framed copies and background choices of canvas, acrylic, metal or wood through the USA TODAY Store. Buy GATOR CHOMPS! commemorative page print Get Florida championship gear Looking for Florida national championship hats, T-shirts and more? Fanatics is among the options for championship gear. Buy Florida Gators championship items Read our Florida Gators coverage The Gainesville Sun provides the world's best coverage of the Florida Gators. Follow the Gators at Order a print subscription at 800-443-9493. Advertisement Thank you for supporting local journalism. Order digital and print subscriptions for The Sun Go to The Sun right now! Contact Gene Myers at gmyers@ Follow him on X @GeneMyers. After nearly a quarter-century as sports editor at the Detroit Free Press, Myers unretired to coordinate book and poster projects across the USA TODAY Network. His reading recommendation for this month: 'Flying High,' a hardcover book on the Eagles' Super Bowl championship from Delaware Online/The News Journal. Details at Check out more books and page prints from the USA TODAY Network. This article originally appeared on USATNetwork: Celebrate Florida's NCAA championship with book, page prints and gear
