Staff writer

Florida rising sophomore linebacker Antonio Morrison was arrested Saturday night on charges of simple battery.

Morrison, a projected starter in 2013, had 34 tackles and one sack as a freshman.

Morrison, 19, was arrested after he punched a Gainesville nightclub bouncer, according to the Gainesville Police Department. He was booked into Alachual County Jail at 6:03 a.m. Sunday.

According to the report, Morrison was about to enter the Kava Lounge in Gainesville when he asked the bouncer about the cover charge at the club. The bouncer said Morrison became upset when he was told he had to pay full price, telling him “Do you know who I am. I am a UF football player. I’m Antonio.”

Florida did not have an immediate statement about the arrest Sunday morning.

But how about UF’s other draft eligible players? Here is ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr.’s take from a recent teleconference:

“Jonathan Bostic I think is a guy you’re going to like, the way he plays the game.  I have him slotted to go either in the second or third-round area.  So he’s a nice football player.  He really put together a heck of a year.  He made some really good plays.  When you watched him in coverage, sideline to sideline against the run, just did a heck of a job.

“I think you look at Jelani Jenkins, the injury obviously, the durability concern with him.  He’s built for today’s NFL with a potential coverage ability.  Jenkins is more of a day three guy.  I think he will come into the National Football League and help you.

“Jordan Reed’s stock has dropped a bit at tight end.  Aaron Hernandez was a fourth-round pick.  Maybe Jordan Reed’s a fourth or fifth-round pick.  But I think he’ll help a team in the NFL.

“Xavier Nixon is a day three pick who can get the job done as a bookend tackle.  I think Xavier Nixon has a lot of ability.

“Mike Gillislee as a second-tier running back, you get him in a fourth to sixth-round area, he’ll make your team, help your team.  I think he certainly has a chance of being a solid back in the NFL.

“You have a couple of receivers (Omarius Hines and Frankie Hammond Jr.) who will probably be undrafted free agents.  Deonte Thompson was an undrafted guy last year, and the Ravens think he can be a real factor as an outside receiver this year and a kick returner.

“Florida’s got a lot of kids. That’s a good group overall.”

Players Kiper didn’t mention, but who may be drafted: Safety Josh Evans, kicker Caleb Sturgis, defensive end Earl Okine, linebacker Lerentee McCray and defensive tackle Omar Hunter.

The Gators now have the second-best odds of winning it all behind Louisville, which is given a 32.4 percent chance.

Silver has increased UF’s chances from 13.2 percent at the start to 21.3 percent, noting its margin of victory in earlier games and its “awfully favorable matchup” with Florida Gulf Coast University in the Sweet 16.

Tebow at the Sugar Bowl. (Doug Finger/The Gainesville Sun

His plan to speak there had drawn criticism around the country from many who – like the Orlando Sentinel’s Mike Bianchi – urged the popular quarterback not to tie himself to the “hateful” Pastor Robert Jeffress.

Tebow announced his change of plans on Twitter with a string of tweets that seemed to indicate he had been unaware of the pastor’s history of divisive comments.

He tweeted: “While I was looking forward to sharing a message of hope and Christ’s unconditional love with the faithful members of the historic … First Baptist Church of Dallas in April, due to new information that has been brought to my attention, I have decided to cancel my … upcoming appearance. I will continue to use the platform God has blessed me with to bring Faith, Hope and Love to all those … needing a brighter day. Thank you for all of your love and support. God Bless!”

To wit:

Florida, which played the nation’s toughest schedule per the NCAA, was 4-1 against BCS top-12 teams, 4-1 against teams that were ranked at the time of the game and 7-1 against teams which will play in bowl games.

While going 1-3 on the road last season, the Gators went 4-0 this season, which is not counting the game at Jacksonville, a neutral site. The Gators had two losses at home a year ago, but went 7-0 this year.

The Gators were last in the SEC in turnover margin last season at minus-12. They finished this regular season tied for the SEC lead with plus-17.

UF was outscored 86-59 in the fourth quarter last season. It turned it around this season by outscoring teams 115-29 in the game’s final 15 minutes.

Florida finished 7-1 in the SEC a season after going 3-5. The four-win improvement in conference play matches the best in program history (1954: Gators went 5-2 in SEC after going 1-3-2 the previous season; 1980: Gators went 4-2 in SEC after going 0-6 in the 1979 season).

Muschamp is the only first-time head coach at a BCS-conference school to win 11 regular-season games in his second season after finishing .500 or worse the previous regular season in records back to 1996. The five-game turnaround in the regular season marked the biggest one-year leap for the program in 32 years (0-10-1 in 1979, 7-4 regular season in 1980).

Muschamp is the third UF coach to record 10 wins in his second season as head coach, joining Steve Spurrier and Urban Meyer.

Impressive stuff indeed. And that’s just without digging deeper into the statistical improvements.

“Heck of a season,” Muschamp said. “We have an outstanding staff that’s completely on board with what we are trying to do and we have all the support as we continue to move forward.”

Muschamp and the Gators have exceeded expectations in Year 2. What does he have for an encore in the following seasons? The Gators are already off to a great start in that regard by having the No. 1-ranked 2013 recruiting class, according to ESPN.

“At the University of Florida, we’re about winning championships,” Muschamp said. “We’re about going to Atlanta (site of the SEC championship game). We didn’t achieve that goal. That’s important to me. … Everybody wants to talk about we’ve arrived and we’re back. Hell, we haven’t won a championship. Until we’ve won a championship, I’m going to have a hard time saying we’ve arrived or we’re back at all.”

Former Florida pitcher Steven Rodriguez made great use of his time in the minor leagues this summer, making his way to “The Show” just 81 days after appearing in his last collegiate game. Rodriguez’s Sept. 5 call-up to the Los Angeles Dodgers makes him the first player from the 2012 draft to reach the major leagues this season. Because of injuries to Scott Elbert and Ted Lilly, Rodriguez joins Randy Choate as the Dodgers’ only two healthy lefty relievers. Los Angeles has one other former Florida player on its roster, second baseman Mark Ellis.

The Dodgers chose Rodriguez in the second round, 82nd overall, in June’s MLB Draft. Rodriguez, a left-hander, posted a 3-2 record with 81 strikeouts in 62 innings to go along with a 2.18 ERA for the Gators during his junior year.

Rodriguez’s first stop in the Dodgers’ organization was with Single-A Great Lakes where the 6-foot-3, 215-pounder struck out 10 in six innings, giving up only four hits, no runs and had two saves. After being promoted to Double-A Chattanooga, Rodriguez, “Paco” to his teammates and fans, appeared in 15 games, striking out 22 in 13.2 innings while surrendering only two earned runs on seven hits and had three saves.

Opponents batted only .149 against Rodriguez in 21 minor-league appearances.

On Sunday, Rodriguez made his major league debut in the bottom of the eighth inning of a 4-0 loss to the Giants at AT&T Park in San Francisco. Rodriguez retired the only batter he faced when he induced Brandon Belt to ground out to first base.

Against the Diamondbacks on Tuesday, Rodriguez was called upon once again in the bottom of the eighth inning to pitch to left-handed batter Jason Kubel with two outs and runners on first and third. With Arizona leading 1-0, Rodriguez struck out Kubel on three pitches for his first major league strikeout while keeping it a one-run game. But the Dodgers failed to get the bats going in the next frame, with the final score holding at 1-0.
Paco could make his Dodger Stadium debut this weekend, as his club returns home Friday for a three-game set against the St. Louis Cardinals.

There has never been a former Florida player to reach the major leagues in as short a time as Rodriguez, according to UF Sports Communications Associate Director John Hines.

Another Gator alum, Nick Maronde recently made his major league debut with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on Sept. 2, three days before his former teammate did. The left-handed pitcher played at Florida from 2009-11 before being selected in the third round of the 2011 draft by the Angels.

To put Rodriguez’s meteoric rise in perspective, Mike Stanley, who caught for UF from 1982-85, made his big league debut on June 24, 1986, after being drafted in the 16th round of the 1985 draft by the Texas Rangers (signed with the Rangers on June 14, 1985).

Ross Baumgarten played at Florida in 1977 and was drafted in the 20th round in June of that year by the Chicago White Sox. The left-handed pitcher appeared in his first big-league game with the White Sox on Aug. 16, 1978.

After being taken as the third overall pick by Seattle in this year’s MLB Draft, Zunino has bulldozed his way through the Mariners’ Low-A affiliate Everett AquaSox with a .375 batting average, 10 home runs and 35 RBIs in only 29 games and has thrown out 44 percent of would-be base stealers.

Zunino’s .474 on-base percentage and .736 slugging percentage for a 1.210 OPS at Everett has granted him a late summer promotion to the Mariners Double-A affiliate Jackson Generals with some predicting a callup to the big club in 2013.
Zunino is 4-for-8 with a double and an RBI in three games for the Generals.

According to the Seattle Times, Zunino’s performance is similar to that of San Francisco slugging catcher Buster Posey.

Both had stellar college careers, including Golden Spikes and Johnny Bench Awards, while being top-5 picks in their respective drafts.

However, in 2008 Posey — drafted out of FSU — didn’t sign his professional contract until mid-August, playing only seven games for the Arizona rookie league Giants and three games with Low-A affiliate Salem-Keizer.
Posey compiled a .351 average with one home run and six RBIs through both leagues.

In 2009, Posey tore up both Single-A and Triple-A, finishing with a .325 average, 18 home runs and 80 RBIs in 115 games earning him a Sept. 2 call-up, eventually helping the Giants win the World Series in 2010.

Zunino is poised to surpass Posey’s impressive numbers if he continues his torrid pace in the Mariners’ system. After 115 games, Zunino could be around the 35-40 home-run range with nearly 120 RBIs.
Considering the Mariners’ catching situation at the big league level, Zunino’s success in the minor leagues could pay large dividends quickly.
Seattle is sporting three catchers on its 25-man roster. Current starting catcher Miguel Olivo is hitting just .218 with a miniscule .231 on-base percentage, nine home runs and 24 RBIs while backups Jesus Montero and John Jaso have seen most of their playing time at designated hitter.
Jaso has been one of the team’s more consistent hitters with a .292 average, eight home runs and 38 RBIs and Montero is hitting .266 and is second on the club with 12 home runs.

But both Jaso and Montero have been tagged defensive liabilities throughout their young careers. Jaso has only thrown out 26 percent of would-be base stealers this year, Montero’s percentage is even lower at 22 with Olivo’s percentage at 32.

If Zunino continues to improve as the competition around him grows stronger, it would be no surprise to see him in a Seattle uniform some time next season.

On Tuesday, Dwyer teamed up with fellow Gator Ryan Lochte and U.S. teammate Ricky Berens to help American swimming sensation Michael Phelps to an Olympic record 19th medal when their relay team won gold in the 4×200-meter relay at the 2012 London Games.

Afterward, Dwyer once again teamed up with Berens to take down a giant tray of the free food that McDonald’s provides in the Olympic village.

“It was pretty bad,” Dwyer told AP reporter Jenna Fryer. “A couple quarter pounders, McFlurries, fries.”

Berens tweeted a picture of his share of the meal (http://www.whosay.com/rickyberens/photos/209486).

“We eat so healthy all the time, so I felt pretty gross after that,” Berens said.

The food angle wasn’t over for the two Olympic champions as Dwyer and Berens made an appearance during a segment on The Today Show with Food Network personality Giada de Laurentiis, host of “Giada At Home.”

Check out a picture of the two with De Laurentiis. http://www.whosay.com/giadadelaurentiis/photos/209642

Bonner has always been a productive player in the NBA. Good to see he has fans who admire his play on the court and his success in the classroom while at UF.

New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin, who is also on the list, wrote the blurb on Tebow.

Lin remarks on Tebow’s competitiveness, work ethic and leadership abilities.

Bubba Watson and Tim Tebow, right, share a laugh on the driving range during the Tim Tebow Foundation Charity Golf Classic.

But it’s Tebow’s “qualities in life off the field” that really stand out, Lin said. “He is unashamed of his convictions and faith, and he lives a life that consistently reflects his values, day in and day out. … As athletes, we pour our hearts into winning games. Tim is a reminder that life is about much more than that.”