Andre Caldwell Goes!

...eventually. Wide Receiver Caldwell goes to the Cincinnati Bengals with the 97th overall pick.

Here's what College Football News had to say:

34

97

Cincinnati Andre Caldwell, WR Florida One of the toughest calls among the receivers, Bubba has good size, phenomenal speed, and was a dynamic playmaker at times throughout his record-setting Florida career. How much are scouts scared off by the broken leg suffered a few years ago? He might not have the elite skills to blossom into a star of any sort, but he's tough, isn't going to worry about taking a hit, and he can flat-out move either on deep balls or on short routes to rack up big yards after the catch.

Good for you, Bubba. Hey, remember this:

Jacksonville Jaguars Draft Gators DE Derrick Harvey #8

Hey, look at that: a Gator goes at number 8. Harvey will join former teammate Reggie F'n Nelson, whom the Jacksonville Jaguars snapped up last year. You may remember Harvey from last year's BCS Title Game, in which he made Troy Smith weep tears of blood. And look: highlights from this year!

Because it's the Offseason, and There's Nothing to Write About Until the Draft Starts...

...how about a mascot fight?


Yeah, that's the stuff.

Doing The People's Work

The Florida Legislature is doing the people's work. In what was no doubt an excellent use of government resources, the Florida State Senate awarded Tim Tebow the Medallion of Excellence for his off field achievements. Off field achievements? Why, yes:

Tebow, who was home-schooled for 12 years before college, has a 3.77 grade point average at Florida. He spent his spring break visiting orphans and sick children in the Philippines, where his parents are missionaries.

What, no mentions of the many surgeries he performed there? No mention that Tim Tebow can in fact believe it's not butter? Well, regardless, that sweet GPA and 10 days of volunteerism certainly qualifies Tebow to receive "the highest citizens honor the Senate can bestow."

The Florida House of Representations also honored Tebow with a resolution. Ladies and gentlemen, I now present to you the full text of HR 9177, Timothy "Tim" Tebow:

Commends Tim Tebow for his academic & athletic accomplishments, recognizes him for his character & compassion toward his fellow human beings, & congratulates him on his historic recognition in being awarded 2007 Heisman Trophy.

After receiving this honor, Tebow "threw several passes to Speaker Marco Rubio, R-West Miami." What is it with Speaker Rubio? This guy has must have the most achingly unfulfilled football fantasies. Astute football/state politics enthusiasts (all three of you) will recall two years ago when Rubio bobbled a pass from Dan Marino on the House floor. Again, we're sure there was a valid legislative purpose underlying that as well.

This is probably the most important legislative event since Hoopz from Flava of Love came to the state Capitol. Yes, we were there. Jesus, the legislators were more excited for that than they were for Newt Gingrich's visit a week or so later.

Not that we blame them, really.

At the risk of getting bogged down in further editorializing, we give you The People's Work:

Tim Tebow's tears can fix Florida's homeowner's insurance crisis. Too bad he's never cried.

A Blast From the Past: Sport's Illustrated's Indictment of UM Football

From SI.com, a blast from the past: the June 12, 1995 article "Broken Beyond Repair: An Open Letter to the President of Miami Urging Him to Dismantle His Vaunted Football Program to Salvage His School's Reputation."

Now breath, because that's quite a title. The article lays out concisely the many crimes of UM football. Among others:

During the past decade your school enrolled and suited up at least one player who had scored a 200 on his verbal SAT—the number you get for spelling your name correctly. An on-campus disturbance, involving some 40 members of the football team, required 14 squad cars and a police dog to quell. Fifty-seven players were implicated in a financial-aid scandal that the feds call "perhaps the largest centralized fraud upon the federal Pell Grant program ever committed." And among numerous cases of improper payments to players from agents was one in which the nondelivery of a promised installment led a Hurricane player to barge into an agent's office and put a gun to his head.

And perhaps our favorite:
"[T]he 1986 episode in which your mascot pointed a toy machine gun at a visiting team just before a game."

Read it and understand why this more recent screw-up wasn't really that much of a big deal:

Gator's Rainey Warps Space

Let it be known: Percy Harvin may warp the fabric of time, but, brothah, Rainey warps space:

Because It's Spring...

...and we have nothing else to post:



There you go. A mascot fight with a C-USA tie-in. Interestingly, the guy in the Houston Cougar costume is a player on the team-- he's a walk-on wide receiver.

Mascot Fight!

Here at The Persistent Fool, we're quite partial to mascot fights-- even if they arise at Basketball games. Your sublime moment of vicious mascot on mascot action: