Walter Connors

I haven’t been writing much lately, and won’t be until the season starts. However, I am always following and posting Gator news on Twitter.

Follow me @walterconnors.

Six more Florida Gators were drafted on Friday and Saturday in the 2010 NFL Draft. This gives the Gators nine players drafted, the most of any school.

New England drafted Jermaine Cunningham, Brandon Spikes, and Aaron Hernandez, at #53, #62, and #113, respectively.

Carlos Dunlap was taken by the Bengals at #54, while Major Wright was taken by the Bears at #75.

Riley Cooper was the last Gator taken at #159 by the Eagles.

The Patriots have probably struck gold again by getting Hernandez so late, but of course nothing is for sure.

Major Wright was heavily criticized when deciding to leave early, but I’m not sure a player has risen more than him over the last few weeks. His strong workouts were rewarded by a team desperately seeking secondary help.

Brandon Spikes should be successful in New England as long as he is put in a position to make tackles and not take on blocks.

Dunlap is a huge talent that obviously had issues off the field, but he has the chance to be very productive.

Cooper is tough, will compete for a spot, and is a good talent despite a poor Senior Bowl.

Joe Haden, Maurkice Pouncey, and Tim Tebow were selected in the first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday night.

Haden, long considered as the best corner in the draft, was taken #7 overall by the Cleveland Browns.

Pouncey, the best center in the class, was taken #18 by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

In a first round filled with a lot of surprises and trades, the Denver Broncos moved up in the first round via trade and took Tim Tebow at #25, after taking Georgia Tech WR Demaryius Thomas at #22.

Mel Kiper, Jr. was essentially in shock after the Broncos selected Tebow and immediately bashed his skill set while saying he will certainly fail at quarterback. Many of the fans in attendance booed him during the selection.

Tebow has been the most discussed prospect since the end of the college season with many “experts” calling him a fifth-round talent. All I know is, the guy flat out wins games. He’s a high character guy with the potential to be a very good player. The Broncos are a pretty good fit for him, and you can guarantee he will see the field in special packages this season. Every draft, many high picks fail to pan out, while many low picks turn into great players. Only time will tell for those taken in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft, especially Tim Tebow.

The Florida Gators enter spring practice with questions that have not needed answers in a couple of years.

The Gators lost a number of players to graduation and the NFL Draft, but have retooled on both sides of the ball with the top recruiting class.

Obviously, replacing Tim Tebow will be a lofty task, but that won’t be the focus during spring practice. John Brantley is ready to step in and lead the Gators just as Tebow did.

However, the defense will be a huge question mark, much as it was in 2007. The Gators will be very young on defense after losing seven defensive starters and a number of backups.

It’s only the spring, but a lot of eyes will be on the Gators returning players and incoming class, many of which have enrolled early.

If Brantley is able to live up to the expectations and the defense can quickly become a cohesive unit, the Gators should be a Top 10 preseason team, maybe even Top 5. Obviously, this is easier said than done.

Look for more news as the spring unfolds.

The Florida Gators have college football’s top recruiting class.

Four five-stars. 18 four-stars. 28 total signings. 17 ESPNU 150 signings.

It’s been called a class for the ages, the best class ever, and so on.

Recruiting rankings can often be taken with a grain of salt, but one thing is certain: this class is more heralded than the 2006 class which featured the likes of Harvin, Tebow, and countless others. The 2006 class won two National Championships, a Heisman trophy, and became the winningest class in SEC history.

If this class lives up to the hype, Gator fans will be in for a fantastic four years.

The Gators didn’t have any big surprises on National Signing Day, but did lose Demar Dorsey earlier in the week.

After losing a number of players on defense to graduation and the NFL Draft, the Gators re-tooled at almost every position. They signed the top-2 defensive tackles, the top defensive end, the third and fourth best corners, and the second best safety. They also signed the second best tight end, two top-10 offensive lineman, a top-10 wide receiver, and countless others.

A large chunk of this class has already been enrolled for a month and will be participating in spring practice. In other words, expect a lot of the names from this class to be on the field in the fall.

As is the norm with recruiting, not everyone in this class will pan out, but if the majority do, maybe this class will live up to its lofty billing as one of the best ever.

During the Army All-American game today, Florida was able to bolster an already top-2 class. Matt Elam, who had previously changed his commitment to Florida State during the Urban Meyer debacle, has decided to come back to the Gators after a sit-down talk with Coach Meyer. The Gators also land Sharrif Floyd, a five start defensive tackle. Early this week, Ohio State believed to hold the lead on Floyd, but it wasn’t enough as Urban swoops in for another big recruit.

In regards to Ronald Powell, all the thanks must be given to Pete Carroll. USC has long been favored to land Powell, but due to yesterday’s events and Carroll’s return to the NFL, Powell chose the Gators.

Ronald Powell – DE
Position Rank – #1
National Rank – #5

Sharrif Floyd – DT
Position Rank – #1
National Rank – #9

Matt Elam – S
Position Rank – #2
National Rank – #14

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Article originally posted at isportsweb.com.