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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.

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.

Shipman is seeking more playing time and will consider heading south. Some reports have also linked him to the Ivy league.

This marks the 13th basketball transfer at Florida since 2003/2004.

Thursday was no different.

BYU took it to the Gators early and often, leading by as much as 13 points in the second half.

The Gators would rally, led by an incredible effort from Kenny Boynton, who scored 27 points and was more than a game defender on BYU star Jimmer Fredette.

Despite the exceptional defensive effort by Boynton, Fredette had a Steph Curry-like performance, hitting big shot after big shot from all areas on the court. He scored 37 points including a couple of big threes in the decisive second overtime.

The Gators held for the last shot at the end of regulation and the first overtime, but were unable to get a quality look on either possession.

Boynton fouled out at the beginning of the second overtime, and Fredette took it from there.

Michael Loyd, Jr. also had a huge game for BYU. Essentially known as BYU’s 9th man, Loyd Jr. scored 26 points and was huge in both overtime periods.

In addition to Boynton’s 27 points, Chandler Parsons scored 20, Vernon Macklin had 16, and Erving Walker added 12.

BYU will now face the 2nd seeded Kansas State Wildcats in the next round.

Both teams are certainly hungry. Florida is making its first tournament appearance since winning back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007. On the other hand, BYU hasn’t won a tournament game since 1993.

The match-up for this game is quite simple; Florida’s perimeter defense against BYU’s perimeter shooting.

At times, the Gators have played very poor perimeter defense, allowing teams to shoot a very high percentage from the field and beyond the arc.

BYU shoots 42% from three as a team, and has great backcourt play through Jimmer Fredette and Jackson Emery.

The Gators are going to get significant points in the paint and should have a handful of put-back opportunities as BYU lacks an elite rebounder.

So again, this game will simply come down to perimeter play. If the Gators are able to keep the BYU backcourt in check, they have a great chance to win. If BYU gets it going early, the Gators will be in trouble.

Who has the edge?

Frontcourt – Florida
Backcourt – BYU
Coaching – Florida
Overall – Even

Prediction – This is going to be a very competitive game. BYU is more than capable of making a run in this tournament, but I do have the Gators winning. Florida will be able to do enough to limit Fredette and will have a lot of success inside.

Stats

BYU

Jimmer Fredette – 21.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, 4.7 assists
Jackson Emery – 12.6, 4.5, 2.8
Tyler Haws – 11.3, 4.3, 1.5
Jonathan Tavernari – 10.3, 4.5, 1.5

Florida

Kenny Boynton – 13.6 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists
Erving Walker – 12.6, 3.4, 4.9
Chandler Parsons – 12.1, 6.8, 2.5
Alex Tyus – 12.0, 6.8, 0.4
Vernon Macklin – 10.4, 5.5, 0.8

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.

After winning back-to-back National Titles in 2005/2006 and 2006/2007, the Gators have spent the last two seasons in the NIT.

That ends today, as the Gators earned an at-large bid as the 10 seed in the West region. They will play the 7 seed, BYU, in the first round.

The Gators own the longest active NCAA win streak at 12 games. The Gators have also made it to the Final Four the last two times it was held in Indianapolis (2000, 2006).

After a lackluster performance and their first loss to an SEC West team this season, the Gators will be hoping to avoid the NIT for the third straight year.

Mississippi State was firing on all cylinders early and continued to play at a high level for most of the game. As a team they shot 57% from the field, 50% from beyond the arc, and 82% from the stripe. The Bulldogs lead 58-39 with 13:29 to play.

Florida would make a game of it after going on a 14-0 run to pull within five. However, the Gators would get no closer than three, and never led at any point.

All five Mississippi State starters scored in double figures, led by Barry Stewart’s 17.

Kenny Boynton led the Gators with 23, while Erving Walker added 19.

The Gators will now have to wait and hope for a bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Led by Alex Tyus and Chandler Parsons, who combined for 45 points, the Gators beat Auburn for the 12th time in 13 meetings.

After trailing by double digits for most of the game, the Tigers cut the deficit to six with a few minutes remaining. However, they weren’t able to get any closer as the Gators traded baskets with the Tigers for the rest of the game and knocked down free throws in the final minute to seal the win.

Frankie Sullivan scored 27 points to lead Auburn in a losing effort.

The Gators are now 7-0 against the SEC West and will face the West’s #1 seed, Mississippi State, Friday night.