Latest news with #FloridaGators
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
Florida football offensive lineman arrested on DUI, felony weapons charges
Florida football offensive lineman Devon Manuel was arrested on July 18 on charges of misdemeanor DUI and felony weapons charges. According to a Gainesville Police arrest report Manuel was pulled over for going 60 miles per hour in a 45-mph zone on Southwest 34th Street. Officers detected a strong odor of marijuana in his car and had Manuel take a field sobriety test, which he failed. Police then found a black Glock 20 in the front of Manuel's vehicle, loaded but not chambered, and a black vape that had the words "THC" on it in white lettering sitting on the front passenger floorboard. The 22-year-old Manuel was booked into the Alachua County Jail and later released on bond. The second-degree felony charge for possession of a concealed weapon that Manuel is facing is punishable up to 15 years in prison and a fine of $10,000. A transfer from Arkansas, the 6-foot-7, 307-pound Manuel appeared in three games at tackle for the Florida Gators in 2024, posting an 82.9 pass block grade and a 70.2 offense grade per Pro Football Focus (PFF). He's expected to provide depth on the offensive line again this season behind starting tackles Austin Barber and Bryce Lovett. Manuel is the third Florida football player arrested this offseason, a list that includes sophomore cornerback Dijon Johnson and freshman defensive lineman Stephon Shivers. Johnson was arrested on weapons and drug charges following a traffic stop in Tampa last May. Shivers was dismissed from UF after he was arrested on felony dating violence charges following a physical altercation with a female. Florida released a statement that it is aware of Manuel's arrest and plan to gather all the facts and monitor the situation. 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 OL Devon Manuel arrested on DUI, weapons charges
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Lawson, Rodriguez earn Cape Cod League All-Star nods
The Florida Gators always seem to have at least one player break out over the summer in the Cape Cod League. This year is no exception. In fact, they doubled their pleasure this time around. Last year, it was Jake Clemente who earned the All-Star nod and started the spring as a member of the weekend rotation. This year, infielder Brendan Lawson and right-hander Christian Rodriguez are participating in the event on Jul 19 at 4:05 p.m. ET at Red Wilson Field in Yarmouth, Mass. Lawson will also compete in the home run derby at 2:30 p.m. ahead of the All-Star Game. INF Brendan Lawson Lawson put together an All-SEC Freshman Team spring, slashing .317/.417/.522 with 71 hits and 10 home runs. He also showed a mature eye at the plate, walking in 12.2% of his plate appearances while striking out in just 20.7%. With numbers like that, Lawson came into the summer with one of the highest ceilings in the league. He joined the Brewster Whitecaps midway through the season and "continues to barrel the ball consistently," according to Joe Healy of D1Baseball. Lawson is slashing .344/.475/.719 with three home runs over 10 games. He's walked as much as he's struck out, with seven each, and the Whitecaps are using him at third base most of the time, which could signal a position change for the former shortstop. Florida needs help on the left side of the infield after losing Bobby Boser and Colby Shelton to the draft. RHP Christian Rodriguez Rodriguez was solid with a 5.32 ERA and 1.48 WHIP over 22 appearances as a redshirt freshman in the spring. His fastball is still ramping up from Tommy John surgery that kept him out all of the 2024 campaign, but the "Bugs Bunny changeup" with a 15-mph difference in velocity still baffles hitters. His slider is also working better, coming in the 76-79 mph range as well. Rodriguez has a 1.35 ERA with 0.90 WHIP and 13 strikeouts over 13 1/3 innings for the Harwich Mariners this summer. He's only walked four batters and routinely gets out of innings with 15 or fewer pitches. Healy described Rodriguez as "utterly dominant this summer," and he looks like a strong option to replace his former high school teammate, Clemente, in the closer role. Other Gators on the Cape Billy Barlow, Blake Cyr and Matthew Jenkins are with Lawson on the Whitecaps. Barlow has made three starts for Brewster, compiling a 2.70 ERA and 1.13 WHIP over 13 1/3 innings. He's struck out 16 and walked just two, although Barlow has hit three batters. Cyr is slashing .308/.357/.487 with a home run. He still needs to tone down the aggression at the plate, striking out 11 times to just two walks over about 40 plate appearances. Jenkins is struggling, giving up 11 earned runs over four appearances (two total innings). The command isn't there with four walks and two strikeouts. Ashton Wilson is with the Falmouth Commodores, hitting .206 with 16 strikeouts through 10 games. Luke McNeillie has a 5.68 ERA through 12 2/3 innings with Harwich. His 14 strikeouts are good, but his eight walks are not. Jacksonville center field transfer Jaden Bastian is hitting .100 through 30 at-bats for the Orleans Firebirds, but his elite eye is showing with nearly as many walks (9) as strikeouts (10). Caden McDonald, Landon Stripling and Hayden Yost all play for the Wareham Gateman. McDonald is thriving in a two-way role, slashing .333/.464/.533 with three homers at the plate and maintaining a 4.32 ERA as a hybrid starter-reliever on the mound. McDonald could be considered an All-Star snub given his numbers. He's thrown 16 2/3 innings and is north of 50 plate appearances on the summer, so there's consistency to consider here, too. Stripling is playing a lot of third base for Wareham, but his bat is struggling with just five hits through 35 at-bats. Yost isn't getting a ton of hits either, but he's playing the most of any Gator mentioned so far with 61 at-bats over 23 games. His .197 average is on the wrong side of the Mendoza line, and his strikeout (21) and walk (7) numbers aren't anything special. Still, he's outperforming Bastian, which could end up as a position battle through fall. Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Florida baseball lands dominant DII pitcher in major transfer portal steal
Florida baseball has landed one of the top arms available in the transfer portal in left-hander Ernesto Lugo-Canchola, according to Baseball America's Jacob Rudner. Lugo-Canchola, a 6-foot-5-inch, 230-pound pitcher from Division II Northwest Nazarene University, is widely regarded as one of the most effective pitchers in college baseball. The California native earned Division II National Pitcher of the Year honors after posting a dominant 2.00 ERA across 94.2 innings, allowing just 23 runs on 53 hits. Lugo-Canchola struck out 103 batters and issued 44 walks, capping off an All-American campaign that caught the attention of several major programs. Now, he'll suit up for the Florida Gators, joining a rotation that's been reshaped following multiple MLB draft departures. A portal win for Florida's rotation Lugo-Canchola becomes the fourth pitcher Florida has landed via the transfer portal this offseason, joining Ricky Reeth (Notre Dame Fighting Irish), Russell Sandefer (UCF Knights) and Cooper Walls (Hawaii Rainbow Warriors). It's a clear response to the loss of high-end arms, including Jake Clemente and Pierce Coppola, who were both selected in this past MLB draft. What Lugo-Canchola brings to the Gators With size, power and a track record of improvement, Lugo-Canchola enters the Florida baseball program with a chance to contribute immediately. His ability to miss bats, limit hard contact and eat innings gives the Gators a potential difference-maker on the mound. Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Three Gators among ESPN's best players of all-time in each NFL draft slot
A classic male bonding is listing off arbitrary Day 3 picks from the NFL draft in years past, but ESPN's Ben Solak took the idea to a whole new extreme. Solak broke down the best player drafted of all time in each of the 262 slots of the modern seven-round draft. The bookend picks aren't so difficult to make. Solak had his pick of 14 Hall of Famers to choose from at the No. 1 overall spot, and no one is arguing with Peyton Manning at the top. Brock Purdy in the Mr. Irrelevant spot is another easy one. But the middle rounds get tricky. Three Florida Gators found their way onto this list: NFL rushing yards leader Emmitt Smith at No. 17, Hall of Fame defensive end Jack Youngblood at No. 20 and offensive tackle Trent Brown at No. 244. One of these is not like the others, but that's okay. Perennial Pro Bowlers such as cornerback Joe Haden, do-it-all athlete Percy Harvin and the Pouncey twins missed the cut because of the format. It's an interesting exercise from the offseason and maybe a new factoid to drop at the next draft party members of Gator Nation attend. 17. Emmitt Smith, RB (1990) — Dallas Cowboys Holding the NFL record for career anything should make a player a lock for this list, and Smith is still widely considered the GOAT at his position for his longevity and production. It's been 35 years since Smith donned the Orange and Blue, and his time came before the peak moments in Florida history, but he's still among the best to ever come through Gainesville. "The leader for career rushing yards by almost 2,000 yards takes the top spot here. Just how incredible are Smith's 18,355 rushing yards? Derrick Henry -- who is 19th in career rushing yardage but ninth with 84 rushing yards per game over his career -- would need to maintain his career average over another five seasons to catch Smith." Smith was always dominant on the field. It only took him two games to earn a starting role. In his first start as a true freshman, Smith broke a 57-year-old program record with 224 yards and two touchdowns on 39 carries. He broke 1,000 yards in seven games, the fastest any running back had ever done so to start their college career, and Smith finished ninth in the Heisman voting as a true freshman. A month-long recovery from a knee injury kept Smith from reaching 1,000 yards as a sophomore in 1988, but he broke the program record with 1,599 as a junior. Smith also set a record for rushing yards in a single game (316), longest rushing play (96), career rushing yards (3,928) and career rushing yards per game (126.7) and career rushing touchdowns (36), among 58 total records. A three-time All-SEC First Team selection and the 1989 SEC Player of the Year, Smith earned a unanimous first-team All-American nod and finished seventh in the Heisman voting. With pass-heavy Steve Spurrier coming in to lead the program, Smith decided to forgo his senior year and enter the draft. Dallas traded up four spots to get Smith at No. 17, or else he'd be lower than Youngblood on this list. The rest is history. Three Super Bowl rings, a Super Bowl MVP, an NFL MVP Award, four All-Pro selections, eight Pro Bowl selections and an 18-year career to rival all others. 20. Jack Youngblood, DE (1971) — Los Angeles Rams Youngblood is the defensive counterpart to Smith on offense in Florida history. Both are in the Gators Ring of Honor, an exclusive six-member group of which Steve Spurrier, Wilber Marshall, Tim Tebow and Danny Wuerffel are also members. Youngblood predates the Smith and Spurrier eras. He was a member of the Florida team that tested for what is now known as Gatorade. If anyone is deserving of a spot on the Florida football Mount Rushmore, it's Youngblood. "'What a great name for a pass rusher. Youngblood was a Rams lifer with eight All-Pro nominations and a retired jersey. His longevity just barely gives him the nod over another Hall of Famer, Steve Atwater, a legendary Broncos safety and winner of two Super Bowls. I flip-flopped on this one for a while." An All-State linebacker out of high school, Youngblood shifted to defensive end as a freshman at Florida and spent some time at defensive tackle throughout his career. He came to national prominence with a five-sack game against Florida State as a sophomore and earned a first-team All-American nod as a junior in 1970. That year, Youngblood led the team with 10 sacks and recorded 58 tackles. He spent all 14 years of his NFL career with the Rams, earning five first-team All-Pro selections, three second-team All-Pro selections and seven Pro Bowl selections. Although sacks weren't officially recorded by the NFL until the 1980s, Youngblood's 151 1/2 career sacks rank sixth all-time. 244. Trent Brown, OT (2015) — San Francisco 49ers Brown spent the first two years of his career at Georgia Military College, but he spent the bulk of his two years at Florida as a starter. He took over for tackle Tyler Moore after an injury during the Georgia game and moved to guard before the 2014 season. At 6-foot-8 and 363 pounds, Brown is the largest player in Florida history besides Desmond Watson. His projectability made him a seventh-round pick in the 2015 draft. After 28 starts over three years with San Francisco, Brown was traded to New England in 2018, where he won Super Bowl LIII. He signed a four-year $66 million contract with Oakland in 2019 and earned his first Pro Bowl nod the same year. Much of 2020 was lost due to the pandemic and Brown's own health issues, and he was traded back to the Patriots in 2021. Despite another injury, this time to his calf, New England signed Bown to a two-year $14 million deal. A torn patellar tendon ended his 2024 with Cincinnati early, and now he's with Houston ahead of the 2025 season. The sun is beginning to set for Brown's career, and he probably hasn't done enough to join the other two players on this list in the Hall of Fame, but a decade-long career in the NFL is something to applaud, especially for a seventh-rounder. The next time a friend says, "Who cares about the 200th pick of the draft?" Tell them about Trent Brown. Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Four-star defensive lineman Valdin Sone announces commitment
Georgia has earned a commit from another elite defensive lineman. Four-star DL Valdin Sone committed to the Georgia Bulldogs over Florida Gators, Nebraska Cornhuskers and Auburn Tigers. Sone is a four-star recruit from the class of 2026, who reclassified from the class of 2027. The 6-foot-3, 315-pound defensive lineman plays high school football for Blue Ridge School in Dyke, Virginia. He earned a spot on the Navy All-American Bowl alongside Georgia freshman wide receiver Talyn Taylor. Sone has a different path than most recruits. He was born in Sweden and is of Cameroonian descent. He grew up playing soccer while also partaking in ju-jitsu and taekwondo. In April 2024, he helped Sweden win the 2024/25 IFAF European Junior Football championships, earning two sacks and a fumble against Denmark in the championship game. Sone marks Georgia seventh defensive lineman commit and 30th overall commit in Georgia's class of 2026. He joins a defensive line room with four-star PJ Dean and three-stars Corey Howard, Carter Luckie, Preston Carey, and Seven Cloud. Sone is the highest ranked among them as he is the No. 4 defensive line prospect and No. 46 overall prospect in the class of 2026. Sone is Georgia's fifth commit from the month of July. The Bulldogs are continuing the massive hot streak they had from middle-late June, but Georgia has had four recruits in a six-day span. They have the No. 2 recruiting class of 2026 in the nation, just behind USC.
