(SB) OGT-Florida at Tennessee 4/24/2023 7:00 SECN

The Gators have had to use all 3 of their starting pitchers tonight. Not a good sign.

 

Question for those watching tonight...I'm only checking gametracker. Are all these wild pitches truly wild are could the catcher be helping out the pitcher here?

 

Our pitchers have a hard time throwing in the high 60's.

 

Gator pitchers had 21 BB and HBP in this series. You are not going to beat a team with power hitters like UT.

 

They might not be Stacey Nelson level talented, but the talent is way way way better than the performance. That’s on the coaching staff, and what makes this season so frustrating.

 

Hey, there's granny Clampett holding a broom.

 

Up next, FSU in Talley that just swept VT in Blacksburg.

 

Another way to look at it though is their #1 pitcher only threw 2+ innings and gave up 1 run. Almost all of our offensive production came against their #3,4,5 & 6 pitchers. We did very little against their #2. We were picked to win the SEC based on on how we finished last year and the talent we had returning and have underperformed as a team big time, IMO. Unless we win 4 of our last 6 SEC games this will be the first Time Walton team to finish under .500 in conference play and it will probably be his first team not to host a regional.

 

Yes. Very few strikeouts means more balls being put into play and with all the walks and hit batters there's a lot of traffic to deal with.

 

I was hoping you'd get some answers to this. I'm not objective when it comes to #52, as my three past years of posting has shown.

 

Does she have two years left. Does she get back the year she sat out.

 

Jesus Christ what a dumb ass take.

 

She's a redshirt junior, so I think she only has 1 more year of eligibility left.

 

This was a very frustrating series. The first game was 9-1. It happens. But getting leads that should win the game and blow them is unacceptable.
With player guest tickets, you sit among the parents and grandparents. There is a lot of unrest with them.
I'll comment on them sometimes and don't expect them to respond. But this weekend, there was a lot of response. The common theme: "It all starts at the top."
The last time the Gators traveled for a regional was in 2012, the year of the Fagans.
We went to USF, and they beat us 1-0 in Michelle Moultrie's last game in a Gator uniform.
If you can go to USF softball, they have a large brass plaque commemorating that win.
I don't think they have beaten us since.
I know I am rambling. The schedule for this week is atrocious. Hopefully, we fly back to Gainesville tonight, where they can decompress on Tuesday. And, then, they have to bus to Tally on Wednesday and play FSU that night. They then bus back on Wednesday night, rest on Thursday, and then play a 3-game series over the weekend.
I'm sorry, but that is asking a lot. Why did we not schedule FSU last Wednesday instead of UNF?
Lastly, CTM has got to look in the mirror and make the right decisions to right this ship. I think he has to clean the house with all the assistants. Cassidy Brewer has already resigned. We need fresh female coaches in this program. Three 50+ male coaches is not a good look in these times. That is especially true when the male assistants are way underperforming. Hopefully, he has the cojones to do what is right for the program.
Lastly, did anyone catch CTW mouthing on camera, 'Thirty f***ing runs'? Hopefully, that will be his wake-up call.

 

Doesn't she get a Covid year on top of that? Then she's a graduate student.

 

We can hope. I'm not sure how that works since she had to sit out a year after her transfer from Alabama. That would be 6 years in school. Maybe she can get her PhD!!

 

The Fagans were slightly before my time, although I was around for handshake-gate. I'm still pretty fascinated about what when on back then -- from what I have pieced together, there was some sexual orientation bashing/altercation (not race as originally speculated) and CTW basically did the right thing by dismissing the Fagans, despite knowing it would tank the playoffs, which must have been an especially difficult decision since UF was the #5 seed.

When you look at all the coaches (mostly football -- college and pro) that turn a blind eye to even criminal off-the-field conduct as long as the player can produce on the field, it made me pretty impressed with CTW and the "Florida way," which I was just learning about a decade ago.

BTW, I'm pretty sure that UF didn't travel for regionals in 2012 -- they were the #5 seed in the NCAA.

And if anyone around back then has more details, it's still rather murky to me.

 

Very interesting post regarding the parents' comments. My understanding is they are usually very tight lipped under some sort of realization they are supposed to be as secretive about everything as Walton. Particularly regarding injuries. I know a guy who sat with parents during the USC series and he asked about Pollard's status. The response he got was that they knew the status but couldn't comment. Did you, by chance, ask about her status and get an answer? The only thing we know is that she appears to frequently be wearing some sort of back brace or support. You could see it in one of the games this weekend where it was visible under the warmer overcoat.

 

I worked last nights game as a gate security guard AXIS. I had the privilege to work the players guest ticket gate and personally talked to many of the players parents. I met the parents of Echols, Bender, Wilkie, Hightower and the grandfather of S Wallace (He's an fsu grad, who still hates the Gators, and had been a coach of Barnhill prior to her coming to UF. But a nice guy).
They were all super nice, super disappointed with Sundays game, but there to support their daughters. I spent the most time talking with Mr. Bender. His gripe mainly was about the inconsistent and poor officiating of the plate umpire. He thinks umpires purposefully want pitchers to come across the plate to create more runs, offense and TV highlights.

I got to watch Hightower warm up and have to tell you the speed of her pitches wasn't good. I can see why we have so few strikeouts yet hittable balls. I suspect the same for most of our pitchers.

UT has a rabid fanbase and being swept the way we were has to be humbling and deflating for both coaches and team.

 

Scrappy - In 2012, Florida hosted the regional. We lost game 1 to Florida Gulf Coast 2-1, beat UCF 7-1, beat FGCU 6-2, then lost to USF 1-0. That was in Gainesville and I remember that year very well. If my research is correct, the last time the Gators had to travel for a regional was in 2004, before the current format was put in place and before Tim Walton took over the program. With that correction made, I agree with everything else you said and appreciate the insight you gave from the stands.