Ben Maller's college sports rumors
by FOXSports.com
On the field, Gators have no budget worries
On July 1, the University of Florida began a new fiscal year in which $47-million and about 150 employees will be cut from the university's budget because of tough economic times and decreased state funding. But as universities and many athletic departments around the nation struggle financially, Florida remains among the nation's wealthiest athletic programs. The Gators' overall budget is expected to increase 8 percent this year, to about $84.5-million. To get a sense of the magnitude of it all, try this: Florida's budget has more than doubled in the past five years. In 2003-04, the year of the Gators' most recent football stadium expansion, Florida's budget was just less than $40-million ($39,829,307), and licensing revenues totaled less than $2-million. Bolstered by two basketball titles and one football national championship in the past four years, licensing revenue is projected at $4.4-million this year. But don't let the numbers fool you. Florida isn't alone, particularly in the SEC where in 2007, seven other schools had budgets more than $50-million: Auburn, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, LSU and South Carolina. -- St. Petersburg Times
FSU offensive lineman Evan Bellamy to miss 2008 season
After suffering a blood clot in his left calf, Florida State starting left guard Evan Bellamy will miss the entire 2008 season, according to a source close to the Florida State football program. Bellamy, a redshirt sophomore from Miami, had been hospitalized last week with the blood clot that might have developed during an extended ride in a car. He was released from the hospital earlier today. The loss of Bellamy, who played in 10 games a season ago and started the Music City Bowl, leaves the Seminoles thin at a position where the team was already at its thinnest. The entire line consists of freshman and sophomores. -- Orlando Sentinel
Tiger's niece Cheyenne Woods will play at Wake Forest
In the face and on the green, there is no doubt Cheyenne Woods is related to her famous uncle, Tiger. But Cheyenne and Tiger Woods share more than golf. Tiger was groomed for the game by his father, Earl Woods Sr., who was Cheyenne's grandfather and her first golf mentor. Earl Woods died in 2006. Cheyenne Woods, one of the best female high school golfers in the country, will have a new home for the next four years after signing with Wake Forest. She fell in love with the campus and the cozy feel of walking the quad. "It's just beautiful there," Woods said last week from Walt Disney World's Palm Golf Course, where she won the Bill Dickey Invitational Junior Golf Championship. "And it is a small school. I like that. I just love Wake Forest." Cheyenne Woods, a two-time Arizona state high school champion, and Tiger Woods live about 400 miles apart, so they don't see each other often. -- (Raleigh) News & Observer
Tigers connection could have big payoff for Michigan football
Southeast Michigan is one place Louisville, Miss., athlete Dennis Thames can play his college football where most will know how to pronounce his phonetically misleading surname. Rivals.com ranks the 5-foot-11 175-pound safety/running back prospect as the No. 218 football recruit in the country. He is also the nephew of Tigers outfielder Marcus Thames. "We're real close," Dennis said of his relationship with his uncle. "He's right there, not far away from Michigan. My uncle could go to another team and he wouldn't be there, but him being there right now is good." But will Thames commit verbally to play for the Wolverines in 2009? Michigan offered Thames a scholarship this past spring, seeing his speed, athleticism and ability to play several positions as an ideal fit for the offensive and defensive schemes being employed by Rodriguez. Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Alabama, Auburn and a host of other schools have also offered Thames a scholarship and are under consideration. -- Detroit Free Press
Facilities don't meet Duke A.D.'s standards
New Duke athletics director Kevin White was almost stunningly candid Monday in his assessment of the school's football facility at Wallace Wade Stadium. Duke's strategic plan for athletics, released in May, has called for renovations at Wallace Wade. White said those renovations need to be so extensive he doesn't even know where to start in talking about them. He wants to consult with architects about possibilities and prices before getting specific. "We need to do an awful lot at Wallace Wade," White said. "This facility is antiquated at best, and we just have got to come in here and do a pretty significant makeover. Not a facelift, but a makeover." -- Charlotte Observer
Richt must eliminate Georgia's 'knuckleheads'
If you're a decision-maker with Georgia's football program, and if you wish to give your talented Bulldogs their best shot at winning a national championship this season, you just can't spend the offseason having two, three, or four of your players arrested. You just can't. The Bulldogs have had seven and counting, by the way. It makes you wonder if coach Mark Richt jumps whenever his Blackberry beeps. "Well," he said, after a long pause over the phone, "the main thing is, I'm sad when anything like (the arrest of a Georgia player) happens. Just like you would if it was your own son. You're sad when somebody in your own family makes a mistake or gets hurt or whatever it might be. When things like this come up, you hate to hear it. But these guys are human. They do make poor decisions at times." That's true, especially since we're talking about those between the often wild ages of 18 to 22. Richt also likes to suggest that the bulk of the 130 or so players in his program are closer to Wally Cleaver than Eddie Haskell. Several Bulldogs took a mission trip to Honduras and worked on summer projects spanning from Habitat for Humanity to Camp Sunshine. Plus, the publicly laid-back image of Richt is somewhat of a fraud. Just ask the Florida Gators. They were stunned along with everybody else last season in Jacksonville after Richt ordered his Bulldogs to charge into the end zone after their first touchdown to celebrate enough to get a penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct. The point is, Richt swings a big stick behind the scenes before and after one of his players becomes a knucklehead. -- Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Galetti lands University of New Mexico PBP gig
University of New Mexico fans finally have a new voice for Lobo sports. On Monday, Scott Galetti was named play-by-play man for Lobo football and men's basketball on KKOB Radio. "It's a university with great tradition in basketball, and football is on the rise," Galetti, a sports writer/broadcaster from Oxnard, Calif., told the Journal on Monday. "One of the things I saw when I went out there for my interview, was a bunch of people, working for the university, who cared. "I like to be in a town where the university is the major game in town. It's a good-sized university and a great market. And I love the city of Albuquerque." Galetti says he will move to town by Aug. 1. Galetti and Russ Langer were the two finalists, each being interviewed nearly two weeks ago in Albuquerque. "The waiting for any job is the hardest part, especially when you're that close," Galetti said. "Finally, when I got the word, it was a sense of relief. 'A,' because it was over. And 'B,' because I was excited I was the guy." Galetti called NFL, NCAA football and NCAA baseball games on RSC Sports Radio Network. He has also done play-by-play for Cal State Northridge football. He has basketball experience, being the play-by-play man for the Wichita Falls Texans (CBA), the Seattle Reign (ABL) and Long Beach State. -- Albuquerque Journal
Seminoles Bowden: Weatherford To Bounce Back
At best, the overall result has been less than favorable for Bobby Bowden and Seminoles fans, but QB Drew Weatherford still has a chance to redeem himself and the Seminoles as he enters his last season when summer practices begin shortly. Weatherford has had his ups and downs, looking solid in an overtime loss to Penn State in the Orange Bowl his freshman year in which he broke Phillip Rivers' ACC freshman passing record to being benched a couple of times since, including last season. But Weatherford has bounced back. When other players would have given up, transferred or just gone back home to sulk with their family, Weatherford has overcome, which pleases Bowden a great deal. "You really find out what people are made out of," Bowden said of Weatherford's adversity. "He has never run from a problem. He faces it. He has a good attitude about it. And he keeps coming back." -- Tampa Tribune
CB Pollard commits to Notre Dame
Notre Dame landed its 10th verbal commitment for the recruiting class of 2009 on Monday when San Bernardino, Calif., cornerback Marlon Pollard switched his commitment from UCLA to the Irish. "I'm done," Pollard said. "I'm a hundred percent." The 6-foot, 160-pound Pollard played his first three seasons at Valencia High School but transferred to Cajon High near San Bernardino following the season. Pollard is ranked as the No. 70 player nationally by CSTV recruiting analyst Tom Lemming. -- South Bend Tribune
Tennessee settles case over copyright infringement
The University of Tennessee has settled with a sports fan group it had sued for what it said was copyright infringement and counterfeiting in using the school's athletic logos. Tennessee had sued the Big Orange Army and its parent organization in February, alleging that the group improperly used the school's trademark "Power T" and other logos for sales and marketing. -- Tennessean
Lou Holtz getting statue near Notre Dame Stadium
Lou Holtz, who abandoned the Gophers for Notre Dame, which he coached to a national football championship, will be honored with a life-size statue near Notre Dame Stadium. -- Pioneer Press
Prized DB recruit to visit Georgia
Georgia coach Mark Richt and his staff hope to welcome Carver's Darren Myles to Athens two days before the talented safety is scheduled to visit LSU. "Darren will be going to LSU on the 20th of July and will hang out there a couple of days," Myles' father and Carver coach, Darren Myles Sr. said. "We may pass through and stop at Alabama. And we're going to try to go back over to Georgia on the 18th." -- Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Ex-Tech offensive coordinator to join Curry's staff at G-State
There are still some paperwork hurdles to clear, but Georgia State should soon have its first three assistant coaches for its new football program. Head coach Bill Curry has made offers to veteran coaches John Bond, John Thompson, and George Pugh to join his staff, which will field its first team in 2010, according to a source close to the process. Reached at his office on Monday, Curry said that no coaches had been hired because of various requirements of the university's Human Resources Department that must be satisfied. Bond, 45, served as offensive coordinator at Georgia Tech last season but lost his job when head coach Chan Gailey was fired. Bond, who built three nationally ranked offenses in four seasons at Northern Illinois before coming to Georgia Tech, still lives in Marietta with his wife, Jennifer, and their three children. -- Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Michigan focusing on state players
Of those 11 commitments, just two have committed to play football for Michigan - Detroit Cass Tech teammates William Campbell and Teric Jones. The remaining two uncommitted prospects will be priorities for Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez if he wants to start strong with an in-state presence to kick off his tenure in Ann Arbor, but there are issues concerning each. -- Detroit Free Press
ABC's Musburger to emcee Big Ten Kickoff Luncheon
The Big Ten Conference announced Monday that ABC and ESPN host and play-by-play commentator Brent Musburger will emcee the 37th Annual Big Ten Kickoff Luncheon. The largest and most exciting preseason celebration of college football in the country will take place Friday, July 25, at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. -- BigTen.org
Ben Maller can be heard weeknights on "The Third Shift on Fox" via the vast Fox Sports Radio Network. The show is broadcast live Monday-Friday from 2am till 6am (est). Check your local radio listenings for the FSR affiliate in your town, listen to XM Satellite Radio Channel No. 142 or via live streaming audio online at FoxSports.com/Radio. Say hi to Ben at myspace.com/benmaller. Interact with Ben's fans and talk sports on Ben Maller's forum Questions, comments and news tips can be sent to Ben via e mail at BigBen@Foxsports.com or Ben@BenMaller.com.
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