Spring Practice Updates from Around the Country

Florida

Everyone thought the Gators' running back woes would be over as soon as USC transfer Emmanuel Moody stepped on the field. Moody, who ran for 459 yards as a true freshman at USC transferred after the competition got too tough (that's the spirit Emmanuel, run away when the going gets tough). Moody might not have such an easy job winning the running back job after all since he apparently hasn't learned any of the plays. Florida head coach Urban Meyer stated that Moody "is a little bit behind. I didn't think he'd be that far behind because he was here all fall, but it seems like everything is new and it shouldn't be that way." Looks like Gator fans have another year of watching the Tebow machine carry the entire offense on his shoulders.

"What do you mean, block for the quarterback?"

Texas

The main question in Austin this spring is who will replace Jamaal Charles at running back. Charles, who entered the NFL draft after his junior year, was often the sparkplug for the Longhorns offense, such as in the Nebraska game where he ran for 216 yards and three touchdowns in the fourth quarter alone. The Longhorns will look for their starter among Chris Ogbonnaya, Vondrell Mcgee, and, check this one out, 

Foswhitt Whittaker. Whittacker, a sophomore, is quite the character. Foswhitt apparently is a combination of his dad's name, Foster, and his last name. He also owns a dog, two turtles, a ferret and a catfish. I now officially have a new favorite football player.

Notre Dame

The big news out of South Bend this spring is the improved play and the added bulk of the offensive line. Head coach Charlie Weis, who was one game away from slotting himself in at left guard last year, mandated that all lineman bulk up this off season and sophomore tackle Sam Young really took that to heart (I wonder how much of that was in fear of Weis stealing his job/lunch). Young, who struggled to stay above 300 pounds last year has added nearly 40 pounds and weighed in at over 330 pounds. Now, everyone knows that adding 40 pounds in four months is completely natural and no one would ever insinuate that those pure Catholic boys would ever cheat but we thought it was weird when Barry Bonds added 40 pounds over four years and now this guy comes around and does the same thing in four months. Maybe Charlie should show his weight room plans to his old boss Bill Belichick, it would certainly cut down on the Patriots' video equipment budget.

Notre Dame's starting Right Tackle, Sam Young