Former Gator Emmitt Smith Enshrined into Pro Football Hall of Fame

Former University of Florida running back Emmitt Smith was formally enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Saturday, following a 15-year career in the National Football League that saw him become the league’s all-time rushing leader. The Pensacola, Fla., native leads in the NFL in both all-time rushing yards (18,355) and touchdowns (164). Smith played the majority of his NFL career with the Dallas Cowboys (1990-2002), where he won three Super Bowl championships along with being named the league’s Most Valuable Player in 1993. The eight-time Pro Bowler finished up his pro career with the Arizona Cardinals (2003-04). "This is almost perfect," Smith said. "I don't think even Steven Spielberg could have written a script this nice. So many people said I could not do it. I believed in that little giant inside of me that said I can." Smith graduated from Escambia High School in Pensacola, Fla., and played for the Gators from 1987-89. Smith went on to break the school record for most career rushing yards with 3,928. He was named the SEC Player of the Year in 1989 and was drafted 17th overall by the Dallas Cowboys in the 1990 NFL Draft.

His 2010 induction comes four years after Smith was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, Gator Football Ring of Honor and the UF Athletic Hall of Fame.

'Achilles heel' is literally the Vols' D-line

On Thursday, Tennessee all but lost defensive end Ben Martin for the season with what turned out to be a ruptured Achilles.

Two days later, the latest victim for the Volunteers, sophomore defensive tackle Marlon Walls, who left Saturday's practice with an injury to his lower leg. Specifically, an injury to his Achilles' tendon.

The extent of the injury is not yet known; what is known is that head coach Derek Dooley is hoping Walls' injury isn't nearly as severe as Martin's.

"I don't know," Dooley said when asked about the severity of Walls' injury. "This is what I get, 'Marlon Walls, Achilles, we'll know more later,' It's like Tom Brokaw, he's out. That's all the trainer will tell me, so we'll see.

"I wish I could tell you what happened, but I go in wondering, too. I'm saying, 'I hope it's not bad.'"

Morant rejoins Georgia 'Bulldogs'

Four days after abruptly quitting the football program and returning to his South Carolina hometown, linebacker Dexter Morant has decided to return to Athens and play football for Georgia, again. "We have a new member of the team," Georgia coach Mark Richt announced after practice Saturday. "His name is Dexter Morant." The freshman outside linebacker from Manning, S.C., drove back to Athens on Saturday and is back in the fold after deciding earlier this week to leave school without practicing once. "Dexter called me the other night and realized he did make a big mistake and wanted to come back," Richt said. Morant texted some Georgia players, who gave Richt a heads up that a call might be coming. It did on Friday. Richt talked to defensive coordinator Todd Grantham and the seniors about the situation. The team voted to let Morant return to the team.

Ruptured Achilles likely ends Vols DE Martin's 2010 season

Defensive lineman Ben Martin suffered a lower-leg injury during a practice Thursday, and it was confirmed by head coach Derek Dooley Friday that the senior had indeed suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon.

While such an injury this close to the start of the season would normally knock the player out until next year, Dooley was not ready to officially write-off Martin.

"He's got another year, but I'm not ready to say he's out for the year," Dooley said. "With these injuries, I never get like that. I'm just like, 'Let's see what happens tomorrow in rehab and see how it goes,' and you never know.

"But he does have another year of eligibility if it's that bad."

Most ruptured Achilles are indeed that bad.

Auburn Football Practice Report

The Auburn football team went through its first practice in shells and shorts under the lights Friday night at the Athletic Complex practice fields. The Tigers moved practice into the evening after going in the heat Thursday afternoon. "Day three was interesting. It was our first day in shorts, pads and helmets, and we got some help from the weather tonight," said Auburn head coach Gene Chizik. "The focus was definitely there. They really wanted to come out and try to practice correctly with each other, they didn't have full pads on so they did not try to take them to the ground or any of that stuff, we are trying to make it a physical practice but still take care of your teammates." Divided into two groups for a third straight practice, allowing for more individual attention, the Tiger veterans were on the field for the first half of practice while the newcomers lifted weights during that time before getting onto the practice fields for the second half of practice. Practicing for the first time in shoulder pad shells, Chizik was pleased with the way his team responded. "There was some contact in some of the individual drills, there were some tackling-type drills in there," said Chizik. "Overall, it was as an aggressive practice as it could be without taking someone to the ground and I was proud of the way they practiced because I think they got a lot out of it." The Tigers return to the practice fields on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT. All practices are close to the public.

Auburn opens the 2010 season on Sept. 4 against Arkansas State at 6 p.m. CT in Jordan-Hare Stadium. The game will be televised by Fox Sports Net.

UK Wildcats hold first practice

University of Kentucky football head coach Joker Phillips was all smiles as he walked off the Nutter Training Center practice fields Friday afternoon, saying that he “loved the energy” level of his team in their first practice of fall camp.
Clad in jerseys, helmets and shorts, the team was divided into two groups for a split-squad practice. Phillips said that the current freshmen are usually miles and miles ahead of past freshmen because they are allowed to come in and work out with the team earlier. However, being able to split practice the way they did allowed the freshmen to get more reps.
“When we split practice we are going to teach,” said Phillips, the first-year head coach. “That is what we are trying to do is take a substitute and have a freshman practice. We need the freshman to get a lot of work. We use to have freshman come in and they would get three practice where they had reps, but with this split practice we are trying to get them more reps and that is why we are a little slower with split practice. As we get into it and get together as a whole team, it will be a lot faster and a lot more energy. But I liked that our guys were into practice.”
Phillips said the team will hold two practices in helmets and shorts, followed by the next two practices in shoulder pads. On the fifth day of camp (Tuesday), the Wildcats will have their first fully-padded practice. The team will continue to practice in a split-squad format through Monday.
On Friday morning, the team held its annual media day. Coach Phillips held a 30-minute news conference, followed by a team photo and interviews of assistant coaches and players on the Commonwealth Stadium turf.
The Wildcats will have a two-hour practice Saturday night at Commonwealth Stadium as part of Fan Day activities.

Herb Hand named Vanderbilt's New Offensive Line Coach

Former Tulsa offensive coach Herb Hand has become Head Coach Robbie Caldwell's first hire at Vanderbilt, agreeing to take Caldwell's former role as offensive line mentor.
The staff addition of Hand, a former of New York who has extensive coach experience in spread offenses at both Tulsa and West Virginia, was announced Friday on campus, hours before Vanderbilt's first preseason practice.
In conjunction with announcing Hand, Caldwell also promoted long-time Vanderbilt assistant Bruce Fowler to assistant head coach of the program. Fowler, who formerly served as assistant head coach/defense, will continue to mentor Commodore linebackers.
Prior to accepting the only vacancy on Caldwell's staff, Hand worked three years at Tulsa, serving as an assistant head coach, offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. During a three-year stint with the Hurricane, Hand helped guide Tulsa to consecutive GMAC Bowl appearances behind one of the NCAA's most explosive spread offenses.
Caldwell, named Vanderbilt's interim head coach on July 14 following the retirement of Bobby Johnson, was excited to attract a coach of Hand's reputation to the Commodore program just days before the team gets underway with the upcoming season.
"Coach Hand is a tremendous addition to our coaching staff. He's an excellent coach and a great family man," Caldwell said. "Herb also fits perfectly into what we do offensively at Vanderbilt. He has tremendous knowledge and understanding of the offense we introduced last year. Herb will walk into the first practice and be right at home."

Kiffin ‘not concerned one bit’ about UT situation

A high-ranking USC athletic-department official said he wasn’t happy that the Tennessee story came out at a time when USC is trying to clean up its image. The football program is on probation for four years after receiving major NCAA sanctions in June, and the new administration is determined to make compliance a priority.

New USC athletic director Pat Haden was out of the office and unavailable for comment.

Kiffin denies any wrong-doings While with Vols

Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton confirmed Friday that "there's a possibility we will get a letter of inquiry" from the NCAA regarding potential recruiting violations committed during Lane Kiffin's 13-month tenure as the Volunteers' head coach.

Kiffin was asked after practice yesterday if he was concerned about the NCAA looking into the Volunteer recruiting practices.

"Absolutely not at all," Kiffin said. "There's no way. I have great confidence in what we did there and that we didn't do anything wrong. I'm not concerned about it. It's been going on for eight months."

USC defensive coordinator/recruiting coordinator Ed Orgeron, who was at UT as part of Kiffin's staff, took the same tack as his boss.

"I know exactly what we did in recruiting and I feel very confident that we did it the right way," Orgeron said. "If they come, they can ask me any question they want."

USC's beefed-up compliance department informed Kiffin that the NCAA will likely head to USC to speak to Kiffin again regarding the recruiting allegations. Additionally, the four coaches Kiffin brought with him back to USC, Orgeron, assistant defensive head coach Monte Kiffin, offensive line coach James Cregg and defensive backs coach Willie Mack Garza, are certain to be questioned as well.

'Not good news' on injury front for Vols' DE Martin

Derek Dooley has given an update on the health of defensive end Ben Martin.

While it's far from a definitive diagnosis, it doesn't appear well for the senior's short-term availability.

We now know that Martin indeed suffered a serious injury to his Achilles tendon and, while a return by the lineman at some point this summer camp or, season has not been ruled out, Dooley allowed that "it's not good news" as far as the injury is concerned.

Martin, projected to be a starter for the Volunteers this fall, suffered the injury during the second practice of summer camp Thursday.

Vols expect letter of inquiry...Way to Go Kiffin

According to ESPN.com's Joe Schad, and citing an unnamed source, Tennessee expects to receive a Letter of Inquiry at some point in the not-too-distant future regarding, potential recruiting violations allegedly committed during Kiffin's tenure as the Volunteers' head coach.

It was already known that the NCAA was looking into and had looked into Vols recruiting hostesses having contact with potential recruits away from the Knoxville campus. Schad writes that "the NCAA is expected to interview other former Vols coaches, including Kiffin, about recruiting methods at Tennessee, including the timing of coaching staff contacts with high school players."

Schad reports that, as part of the expanded probe, NCAA investigators this spring interviewed assistant coaches Lance Thompson and Jim Chaney, who are holdovers from the Kiffin "era" still on Derek Dooley's first staff. Additionally, Eddie Gran, a former Kiffin assistant now at Florida State, was interviewed as well.

A source told Schad that "a ton of people" had already been interviewed; among those questioned were recruits signed by Kiffin and his staff. Additional interviews are expected to take place before the NCAA officially sends its findings to the school.

UT athletic director Mike Hamilton would only say that his school has "not received a letter of inquiry and can't comment any further at this time."

Papa John's doesn't renew as sponsor of Birmingham's bowl

The Papajohns.com Bowl is searching for a new name. The bowl announced today that Papa John's has not picked up its option to remain the title sponsor of the 4-year-old bowl, which is scheduled to match the SEC against the Big East. The bowl, owned and operated by ESPN Regional Television, will be rebranded the Birmingham Bowl as ESPN seeks a new title sponsor. ESPN is licensed with the NCAA for the game to be played in Birmingham through the 2013 season. The bowl recently completed four-year agreements with the SEC and Big East that include higher payouts to the conference as part of a complex sharing arrangement that also includes the Liberty Bowl. "We are excited about the future of this game and look forward to continuing the growth we have experienced in our first four years," Birmingham Bowl executive director Mark Meadows said in a statement. "Our agreements with both the SEC and Big East will assure that we continue to provide the competitive and entertaining game that our fans have come to expect." Papa John's and ESPN Regional had an agreement for the past two years and a two-year renewal option for the 2010 and 2011 seasons that Papa John's didn't pick up. In January, Papa John's invested in a three-year, multi-million dollar to become the official sponsor of the NFL and the Super Bowl. It was the largest sponsorship deal in Papa John's history and allows the Louisville-based company to use NFL logos and trademarks in its advertising and marketing. This season's Birmingham Bowl will be Saturday, Jan. 8 at Legion Field. The bowl has also rebranded its web site to birminghambowl.com.

Florida's T.J. Lawrence plans to leave Gators

University of Florida receiver T.J. Lawrence is planning to leave the program and transfer to another school to compete for more playing time.
The redshirt sophomore has not yet announced to where he will go, but it will likely be a school where he could make an immediate impact.
"He tried to move on last year and we talked him into staying because he's a good kid and all that," said head coach Urban Meyer. "I think he just wants to move on to get some playing time."
In two years with the Gators, Lawrence has recorded, zero catches and returned two kickoffs for 69 yards.

Vols' end apparently suffered Achilles injury

Tennessee coach Derek Dooley didn't know much about Thursday's injury to starting defensive end Ben Martin. . "He went down," Dooley said after the afternoon session of UT's preseason football practice. "We'll see if it's serious or not, I think it might be an Achilles or something. "But I've never seen Ben since I got here. He didn't go through snaps in the spring because of a knee injury. He's been kind of this mystery to me. He hasn't been 100 percent since I got here. "But we've got a lot of ends. We've got some pretty good bodies out there, and Malik Jackson certainly helps." Jackson, who played in every game last season as a backup defensive end, transferred from Southern California to UT this summer and will be eligible this season. The Vols also have senior Chris Walker, who is an All-SEC candidate. He and Martin are listed first team on the preseason depth chart, backed up by Gerald Williams and Willie Bohannon, who also have playing experience.

Vols' King, Walls thankful to be back after suspensions

The Tennessee sophomores were both quick to make sure that the smiles they wore during their first practice back from suspension didn't mean they felt they were getting away with something. Soon after the Vols were done sweating through the heat on Wednesday, the expressions turned much more serious as both repeatedly apologized for their roles in the Bar Knoxville brawls last month. "I just want everybody to know right now that those smiles weren't because I felt like I got over or anything like that," Walls said. "It's just, this is what I know right here. Playing ball is what I know and I couldn't do nothing but smile at the fact I was back out here again and having a chance to wear the Tennessee jersey. "That's what the smiles were for, and it's a great load off." The pressure might not be entirely off Walls or King yet with the legal matter not officially closed, but barring any unforeseen circumstances or new information, UT coach appears comfortable with their reinstatement. He also wasn't mandating more apologies to the team from Walls or King, though both offered them publicly anyway. "They know we're sorry, but I would love to apologize again for my actions," King said. "I want to apologize to the young man because it was just the wrong thing to do, I reacted in the wrong way and I just put it on me. "It feels real good to be back out here working with my team, I'm just ready to play ball now. It was a lot of stuff just going on for the last month, rumors going around saying that coach was kicking people off the team and it was getting depressing. He kept me in tune with everything and letting me know what was going on, and come Tuesday, just be ready to play." Both of them looked ready during the afternoon workout, and once it was over they were thankful for the opportunity.

Auburn's 1st Day of Fall Practice Report

RB Michael Dyer showed up after Auburn's first fall practice Wednesday wearing ice on his right knee.
Much to the relief of fans, the answer was,"I just like to ice my knee after games and practice,'' he said. ``I just make sure it's OK.''
Dyer, and the rest of the freshmen, spent most of the practice away from the veterans. Auburn split its practice for the young and old.
Quarterback Cam Newton gave himself a modest report after practice.
"I couldn't really say I felt comfortable. But it was a day to get the cobwebs out,'' he said.
Defensive coordinator Ted Roof was happy to see defensive back Zac Etheridge on the field. Etheridge suffered a scary neck injury last season, but has been cleared to play this fall.
"Same ol' Zac,'' Roof said. "Maybe a new-and-improved version, probably. It was wonderful.''
Coach Gene Chizik split up his veterans and freshmen, and will do it again today and Friday. His first-day assessment of the rookies:
"They tried hard. They practiced hard,'' Chizik said. "I think they're an extremely talented class that hopefully can help us. They need to help us. Today was the first step in that direction.''
Overall, Chizik said, "the energy level was good. I would have been disappointed if it wasn't.''

Tough road this year for the Tide

This season, Alabama is scheduled to face six SEC opponents who will be coming off open dates. Auburn, LSU, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Tennessee are slated to take on the Tide after not playing the previous week.
Since the SEC split into two divisions in 1992, Alabama's schedule predicament is unprecedented. On nine other occasions, SEC teams have faced four teams coming off open dates in one season. Alabama has done that four times.
In fact, the Crimson Tide has played more SEC teams that were coming off open dates than any other league member since 1992. Alabama has faced 34 conference opponents who had enjoyed an open date the previous week, one more than Auburn and three more than Florida.
When facing open-date SEC opponents, Alabama has a 19-15 record since 1992. The Tide was coming off an open date itself for seven of those games. In games where Alabama played the previous week and its SEC opponent didn't, the Tide has a 13-14 record.

QB Cotton picks new home following Ole Miss departure

Cotton has found a new destination in which to continue his collegiate football career.

As has been rumored since the quarterback opted to transfer late last month, Tommy Hicks of al.com is reporting that Cotton has decided to move on to South Alabama and play for the Jaguars. Ole Miss gave Cotton his official release on Wednesday, and Cotton will likely practice with the team Friday.

"We're excited about having Raymond," USA head coach Joey Jones told the paper. "I'd heard a lot of great things about him. Obviously, I've seen high school highlight films on him and kept up with his career a little bit last year. It looks like we've got a good one transferring in here."

Cotton left the Rebels due to concerns over playing time as he would've entered summer camp behind presumptive starter Nathan Stanley, which opened the door for Ole Miss head coach Houston Nutt to pursue former Oregon QB Jeremiah Masoli.