Below are the number of verbal commits through July 31, 2011 for the 2012 signing class:
1) South Carolina Gamecocks 18
2) Florida Gators 15
3) Kentucky Wildcats 13
4) Georgia Bulldogs 12
5) Vanderbilt Commodores 12
6) Tennessee Volunteers 12
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ESPN
GEORGIA
Isaiah Crowell, RB: He arrives in Athens with a ton of hype. Georgia has yet to find its feature back and Crowell has all the talent to be that player. Some think he could start by the midpoint of the season. He was the nation’s top running back and in 2010 he rushed for 1,721 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Malcolm Mitchell, WR: Mitchell played both sides of the ball in high school, but Georgia’s staff really likes what he could do at receiver. He’s a tremendous athlete and will get a chance to earn playing time for the fall, especially with some unproven receivers already on Georgia’s roster.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Jadeveon Clowney, DE: Clowney will enter preseason camp with a mound of expectations. He was the country’s top high school player last year, and even though there is a lot of talent on South Carolina’s defensive line, it will be hard to keep him off the field with his freakish ability. He recorded 162 tackles, including 29 tackles for loss, 29.5 sacks, 11 forced fumbles, six recovered fumbles and scored five touchdowns last fall.
KNOXVILLE NEWS- The Vols now have two less defensive tackles than they had at the end of spring. Montori Hughes, listed as a backup on the post-spring depth chart, was kicked off the team because of academic reasons earlier in the month.
Senior Rae Sykes, who went through the junior college route out of Alcoa to land a scholarship with the Vols, is not with the team “at this time” because of academic reasons, UT spokesman Jimmy Stanton confirmed Monday.
KNOXVILLE NEWS- UT will also have a pair of talented freshmen vying for playing time early with A.J. Johnson and Christian Harris on campus, and sophomore Raiques Crump will also be in the mix after leaving spring with a spot on the two-deep.
ESPN- Lane Kiffin spent 4 hours answering questions. Bruce Pearl spent 5 hours. We won't know an answer from the NCAA for 8-12 weeks.
KNOXVILLE NEWS- The facts laid out in 12 major violations presented in the Notice of Allegations UT received in February are thorough and clear.
How the defending parties explain their roles and perceived culpability for those violations, though, promises to elicit at least a few disagreements at today's closed-door hearing, which, according to former COI members, will go as late as it has to.
ESPN- Once again, Phillip Fulmer is putting his hat in the ring for a sports job. As always, he doesn't need the job but if he can help out. Check out the full story on how Phillip Fulmer is positioning himself to be the next athletic director at Tennessee.
Full story
Coach Derek Dooley has dismissed Montori Hughes from Murfreesboro Tennessee. Hughes was suspended for the final regular-season game of the 2010 season because of academic reasons. Hughes played defensive tackle.
Hughes started the first five games of the 2010 season and played in all 12 games. He recorded 17 tackles, and tied a career high four tackles in his first career start against Tennessee-Martin.
THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL- With Kiffin’s consistently blatant ignoring of the rules and Pearl’s lying, all under the head-in-the-sand leadership of Hamilton, they should get tagged with postseason sanctions and scholarship losses in basketball, and one or the other in football.
We predicted Tennessee AD Mike Hamilton's departure 1 year ago.
The firing of coach Phil Fulmer was a catastrophe. The hiring of Lane Kiffin as the Vol coach was mostly a nightmare.
The search for the next Vol coach was a public relations disaster.
Basketball Coach Bruce Pearl...
Early news out is that Mike Hamilton has resigned. Sources say he was forced out. We predicted this day 1 year ago and its long overdue....the program needs stability.
Story will be posted as available
KNOXVILLE NEWS- Coach Dooley confirmed that junior linebacker Herman Lathers fractured his ankle and will need surgery which would keep him from being ready at the start of the season.
Lathers was a starter and his absense will make it tougher for the Vols who are already thin at linebacker.
KNOXVILLE NEWS- AD Mike Hamilton, Bruce Pearl, Lane Kiffin and even coach Derek Dooley and all the other various parties involved in the 12 major violations levied in February’s Notice of Allegation are set to appear before the COI next weekend at the NCAA’s headquarters in Indianapolis.
It’s by no means the final step to what’s now become a 24-month process, as the COI will not deliver its rulings for at least six weeks after the hearing.
KNOXVILLE NEWS- According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, reserve offensive lineman Kevin Revis is transferring after two seasons in the program with the Vols.
UT officials have not confirmed a request from the redshirt sophomore, and Revis has not responded to a request for comment from the News Sentinel.
Revis was a finalist for Mr. Tennessee Football.
KNOXVILLE NEWS- At one time the Vols business model worked really well. Everybody got paid and there was always a little left over.
In 6 years, UT will have paid out nearly $10 million to coaches who have been released.
Phillip Fulmer had a nearly $6 million dollar buyout. Bruce Pearl $948,728 over a 15 month period..
SCOUT- Derek Dooley threw a lot of young players to the wolves in 2010. For 2011, 8 wins is a possibility with the scrub games and the biggest game of the season will be against Florida in the Swamp on Sept 17.
Full breakdown...
Approaching Memorial Day Weekend, the Florida Gators are leading with commitments for the SEC East:
Florida Gators 10
Georgia Bulldogs 6
Vandy Commodores 6
South Carolina Gamecocks 5
Kentucky Wildcats 3
Tennessee Volunteers 2
KNOXVILLE NEWS- Janzen Jackson has a promising freshman year and was one of the top safeties in the SEC. He left school after the bowl game to go home and take care of some personal issues.
Tennessee needs Janzen but Dooley is moving forward as if he won't be back...
NATIONAL FOOTBALL POST- Dave Miller looks at the big questions that need to be answered for each SEC team going into 2011.
Will Jordan Jefferson step up? Will Auburn re-load?....Is Tyler Bray the real deal?
More
ESPN- In order by lowest scores: Derek Dooley, Houston Nutt, Steve Spurrier, Nick Saban, Dan Mullen...
Developing
SEC SPORTS REPORT-- SEC East verbal commitments through early May:
Florida 9
Georgia 6
South Carolina 3
Tennessee 1
Vanderbilt 1
Kentucky 0
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE- Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi and Virginia suffered the worst tornado in decades...
Developing
Tennessee wasted no time in finding a new basketball coach after firing Bruce Pearl last week.
Cuonzo Martin has been named the next basketball coach in Rocky Top. Martin had been at Missouri State for the last three seasons with a 61-41 record....
Press conference introducing the new head coach set for Monday....
University of Tennessee announced today that Bruce Pearl has been fired from the mens basketball program....
Developing
Tennessee AD Hamilton dropped a big bomb yesterday on a sports radio station suggesting "the jury was out" on Bruce Pearl's fate....
Today, the Vols got hammered by Michigan by 30 points.....Tenn 45 Michigan 75 final....
Playing the Odds
80% chance Bruce Pearl either involuntarily resigns or is fired in the next 2 weeks
Kentucky Beats Florida for SEC Championship....
SEC Sending 5 East Teams to the Big Dance.....Kentucky, Florida, Vandy, Tennessee and Georgia....
Click on Blue Link for brackets
Developing
NCAA finally completes a 22 month investigation on Tennessee basketball....no punishments stated.
Pearl was cited for impermissible contact with student-athletes during an unofficial recruiting visit, for not being ethical about the matter, for failing to promote an atmosphere of compliance, and for failing to monitor the activities of his assistant coaches.
Tennessee managed to implode in the 4th quarter to allow the Tar Heels a chance for a come back. With 5:16 left in the 4th, the PAT was blocked which made it a 3 point Tennessee lead.
But with 1:36 seconds left the Vols couldn't get a first down and were forced to punt the ball. A heck of a lot of chaos later and the Heels kick a field goal to send it to overtime....Final NC wins 30-27
Read full story
Ten SEC teams will play in postseason bowl games.
Dec. 30
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl: North Carolina 30 Tennessee 27– FINAL
Dec. 31
AutoZone Liberty Bowl – Georgia 6 Central Florida 10 FINAL
Chick-fil-A Bowl – South Carolina 17 Florida State 26 FINAL– ESPN
Jan. 1
Outback Bowl - Florida 37 Penn State 24 FINAL
Gator Bowl– Michigan 14 Mississippi State 52 FINAL--
Capital One Bowl - Alabama 49 Michigan State 7 FINAL--
Jan. 4
Allstate Sugar Bowl - Arkansas 26. Ohio State 31 final
Jan. 7
AT&T Cotton Bowl – Texas A&M 24 LSU 41 final
Jan. 8
BBVA Compass Bowl – Pittsburgh vs. Kentucky – Noon ET, ESPN (Pitt favored by 3 points)
Jan. 10
Tostitos BCS National Championship Game – Oregon vs. Auburn -8:30 pm ET, ESPN (Auburn Tigers favored by 3 points)
Bruce Pearl has been suspended for the 1st 8 SEC games for violating NCAA rules...Suspended from all team activities including meetings and game....
Commish Slive says he is "disappointed in the nature of the violations"
Developing
SEC SPORTS REPORT- The Southern Football TV crew is headed down to Athens, Georgia to capture the behind the scenes of the Georgia Bulldogs and the Tennessee Volunteers. Day starts out with a sports radio interview at WUOG....
Developing
ESPN- Former Vols Coach Phillip Fulmer says its hard to watch the Tennessee program in its current condition. A lot of people believe the decline started with Fulmer....Read on
Developing
Current Temperatures 5:58 pm Eastern Time
Tuscaloosa, AL 102*, Starkville, MS 100*,Columbia, SC 96*,
Fayetteville, AR 95*, Athens, GA 94*,Auburn, AL 93*
Oxford, MS 91*, Lexington, KY 91*,Baton Rouge, LA 86*
Gainesville, FL 85*, Knoxville, TN 84*,Nashville, TN 75*
ESPN- The early news has starting safety Darren Myles Jr behind bars for resisting arrest and dismissed from the football team....
Developing
SEC EAST SEC WEST
1) Florida 1) Alabama
2) Georgia 2) Arkansas
3) South Carolina 3) Auburn
4) Tennessee 4) LSU
5) Kentucky 5) Ole Miss
6) Vanderbilt 6) Mississippi State
THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL-- Coach Derek Dooley figured out pretty quickly with only 75 scholarship players on the roster that their could be depth issues for the Vols.
With a new offensive line, quarterback and backfield, you might as well have a new head coach to make it full circle...
