rexvol
The Minister of Defense
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Florida Gator head coach Billy Donavan grabbed the headlines even during the college basketball off-season recently when he first accepted the job of head coach for the NBAs Orlando Magic before reneging on his decision and going back to Gainesville where hes won back-to-back National Champions wi
By Rusty Odom
rodom@theheraldnewspapers.com
published: June 11 2007 09:30 AM updated:: June 11 2007 09:50 AM
The top rivalries in sports consist of several elements, each as important as the other. The recipe for rivalry includes such ingredients as multiple matchups every year, a big helping of national attention, a pinch of genuine dislike for the opponent, and even a dash of luck one way or the other.
The Tennessee-Florida rivalry has come to a boil as one of college sports best rivalries, thanks in part to the ladder ingredient: luck.
When a fan of either school ponders the opposing program in regards to a rivalry, football comes clearly into the forefront.
Bruce Pearl and Billy Donovan are not willing to let that method of thought continue.
Billy Donovan is once again the head basketball coach at the University of Florida. And there is a big reason why I think the Gator headmans return is good for the Vols, and more particularly, Bruce Pearl.
After just under a week as head coach of the NBAs Orlando Magic, Donovan, the former dean of SEC coaches, decided that he had made a mistake in taking the challenge of coaching professional athletes.
The Gators, much to the dismay of Tennessee fans, have won back-to-back national championships since Bruce Pearl took the reigns from Buzz Peterson in 2005. However, no single team or coach has had more success against the Gators in their two-title run than Pearl and the Vols.
Pearl has won three of his four matchups against the University of Florida, and has appeared to have Donovans number as pertains to game planning. The lone loss that Pearl has suffered to the Gators came during the initial weeks of SEC play in Gainesville this past season. At that time, the first lull of Pearls UT career was in full effect as the young Vols lost game after game on the road. The infancy of the mid-season Vols slowly turned into a confidence that carried Tennessee into their last SEC game unblemished at home, but facing an obviously superior Florida team.
The Vols were 15-0 inside Thompson Boling Arena, and the Gators were the defending national champs. This matchup was means for a circus-like atmosphere in Knoxville.
The Donovan-Pearl rivalry even brought the likes of Dick Vitale to Thompson Boling Arena. Vitale and Pearl have not always seen eye to eye in the past, but the enthusiasm that Pearl has brought to the Volunteer Nation and beyond was too much for Dickey V. to ignore.
The Vols took a double-digit lead into halftime as Lady Vols head coach Pat Summitt joined the fun and sang Rocky Top dressed in a throwback cheerleading uniform.
The game was a blowout in favor of Tennessee, but the precedent was set.
The Tennessee-Florida basketball game had become a must-see game.
Now former Gator Joahkim Noah may have said what I am trying to say best. The only reason I came back to school this year was to beat Tennessee twice.
That type of emotion is felt by all of the players who have played in the highly competitive contests over the past couple of seasons.
Had Billy Donovan left the Gators permanently, the building rivalry would have surely taken a step back. Now that hes back, no matter how strange the situation, the sky is the limit for two programs that have a belly full of respect for one another.
By Rusty Odom
rodom@theheraldnewspapers.com
published: June 11 2007 09:30 AM updated:: June 11 2007 09:50 AM
The top rivalries in sports consist of several elements, each as important as the other. The recipe for rivalry includes such ingredients as multiple matchups every year, a big helping of national attention, a pinch of genuine dislike for the opponent, and even a dash of luck one way or the other.
The Tennessee-Florida rivalry has come to a boil as one of college sports best rivalries, thanks in part to the ladder ingredient: luck.
When a fan of either school ponders the opposing program in regards to a rivalry, football comes clearly into the forefront.
Bruce Pearl and Billy Donovan are not willing to let that method of thought continue.
Billy Donovan is once again the head basketball coach at the University of Florida. And there is a big reason why I think the Gator headmans return is good for the Vols, and more particularly, Bruce Pearl.
After just under a week as head coach of the NBAs Orlando Magic, Donovan, the former dean of SEC coaches, decided that he had made a mistake in taking the challenge of coaching professional athletes.
The Gators, much to the dismay of Tennessee fans, have won back-to-back national championships since Bruce Pearl took the reigns from Buzz Peterson in 2005. However, no single team or coach has had more success against the Gators in their two-title run than Pearl and the Vols.
Pearl has won three of his four matchups against the University of Florida, and has appeared to have Donovans number as pertains to game planning. The lone loss that Pearl has suffered to the Gators came during the initial weeks of SEC play in Gainesville this past season. At that time, the first lull of Pearls UT career was in full effect as the young Vols lost game after game on the road. The infancy of the mid-season Vols slowly turned into a confidence that carried Tennessee into their last SEC game unblemished at home, but facing an obviously superior Florida team.
The Vols were 15-0 inside Thompson Boling Arena, and the Gators were the defending national champs. This matchup was means for a circus-like atmosphere in Knoxville.
The Donovan-Pearl rivalry even brought the likes of Dick Vitale to Thompson Boling Arena. Vitale and Pearl have not always seen eye to eye in the past, but the enthusiasm that Pearl has brought to the Volunteer Nation and beyond was too much for Dickey V. to ignore.
The Vols took a double-digit lead into halftime as Lady Vols head coach Pat Summitt joined the fun and sang Rocky Top dressed in a throwback cheerleading uniform.
The game was a blowout in favor of Tennessee, but the precedent was set.
The Tennessee-Florida basketball game had become a must-see game.
Now former Gator Joahkim Noah may have said what I am trying to say best. The only reason I came back to school this year was to beat Tennessee twice.
That type of emotion is felt by all of the players who have played in the highly competitive contests over the past couple of seasons.
Had Billy Donovan left the Gators permanently, the building rivalry would have surely taken a step back. Now that hes back, no matter how strange the situation, the sky is the limit for two programs that have a belly full of respect for one another.
lol:
