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We’ve got some big Florida and SEC news this week.
😢 Mick Hubert retiring as the ‘Voice of the Gators’
Mick Hubert -- the unmistakable “Voice of the Gators” who has excited Florida fans for more than three decades with his signature “Oh, my!” -- is retiring.
The announcement was made Thursday that Hubert, 68, was stepping down after calling more than 2,500 Florida games -- including national championships and iconic plays like “Doering’s got a touchdown” -- over 33 years.
In fact, Hubert does consider his call of Danny Wuerffel’s touchdown pass to receiver Chris Doering in the final seconds of the win at Kentucky in 1993 as the one that “put him on the map” in Gator Nation, according to FloridaGators.com senior writer Scott Carter.
Photo credit: The two photographs above of Hubert are courtesy of the University Athletic Association.
Hubert’s last game as Florida’s play-by-play announcer will be Saturday when he calls the final matchup in the three-game baseball series between Florida and South Carolina in Gainesville.
He reportedly informed Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin earlier this week of his retirement plans.
Hubert said there wasn’t a specific moment when he decided to step away from behind the mic, where he called every Florida football game since the season opener in 1989 -- the year he was hired by Florida. Those games include the Gators’ first football national title (1996), as well as the 2006 and 2008 national championships. Instead, Hubert said, it was more of a feeling.
“That’s going to be it,’’ Hubert said to Carter. “This wasn’t the end of a five-year plan. I don’t know if I can explain how I knew, but I knew. I had been considering this for a little while. I just had to do some praying about it and enjoy every game.”
His replacement was not immediately announced.
Read more about what’s next for Hubert here.
🍿 We’re here for the Nick Saban & Jimbo Fisher feud
In the words of Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, get your popcorn ready.
Alabama coach Nick Saban and Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher are going at it.
It started Wednesday evening when Saban was speaking at an event in Birmingham. He was talking about name, image and likeness and then called out the Aggies over their recruiting class this year.
“We were second in recruiting last year. A&M was first. A&M bought every player on their team. Made a deal for name, image and likeness. We didn’t buy one player,” said Saban, whose comments were first reported by AL.com.
READ MORE: Saban calls out Texas A&M for using NIL deals to buy players | Fisher fires back at ‘narcissist’ Saban
The next day, Fisher held an impromptu news conference.
“It’s despicable that a reputable head coach can come out and say this when he doesn’t get his way or things don’t go his way,” Fisher said Thursday. “The narcissist in him doesn’t allow those things to happen -- it’s ridiculous -- when he’s not on top.
Fisher was an assistant under Saban in the early 2000s at LSU, working as offensive coordinator on the Tigers’ 2003 national title team. That relationship is now seemingly badly damaged.
“We’re done,” Fisher said, adding Saban reached out by phone but he did not take the call. “He showed you who he is. He’s the greatest ever, huh? When you got all the advantages, it’s easy.”
Texas A&M plays at Alabama on Oct. 8, but Fisher and Saban won’t have to wait that long to cross paths as the Southeastern Conference spring meetings will be held in person for the time since 2019 in a little less than two weeks in Destin.
🐊 Bryce Lovett commits to the Gators
The Gators got their fifth commitment in their 2023 recruiting class on Monday from offensive lineman Bryce Lovett.
The 247 Sports Composite has Lovett, from Rockledge, as a three-star offensive tackle.
In the latest episode of Gators Breakdown, host David Waters shares how Lovett fits along the offensive line and discusses who could be the next commit in the class of 2023.
🏈 Lorenzo Lingard is part of ‘consistent competition’ in Florida’s backfield
Lorenzo Lingard has waited his time at Florida, and 2022 looks to be the season when we finally get to see more from the former five-star running back.
David and Will Miles sit down with Lingard in this Gators Breakdown episode as Lingard dives into overcoming adversity so far in his career and why the future is bright for him and his fellow running backs.
During the spring, Lingard said, it was “consistent competition” in the backfield.
Lingard also said he wanted to talk to Gator Nation, and that was made possible by The Gator Collective, which provides fans with exclusive access to -- and experiences with -- their favorite athletes while allowing the athletes to earn NIL compensation.
⚽ New Florida soccer coach named
Samantha Bohon was announced Monday as the new Gators women’s soccer coach.
The Associated Press reports that Danielle Fotopolous, the greatest scorer in NCAA history and one of Bohon’s best friends, started nudging her toward the job a year ago when program architect Becky Burleigh retired. The timing wasn’t quite right then for Bohon, a 45-year-old mother of three boys who was born, raised and coaching in nearby Daytona Beach, but it was this time.
“It was clear early on of our shared values and goals for the program that will ultimately lead to an unforgettable student-athlete experience. The university and athletic department prioritize developing the student, person and player, which will ultimately set our student-athletes up for future success,” Bohon said.
FULL STORY: Florida hires Embry-Riddle’s Bohon as women’s soccer coach
Bohon, a Sunshine State native, comes to Florida after 15 seasons with Embry-Riddle women’s soccer program, leading the Eagles to multiple conference titles. She also has SEC coaching experience, spending four seasons as an assistant coach at Tennessee from 2001 to 2005.
She played collegiately at Duke and with U.S. U-21 and Senior National teams.
Bohon is the Florida soccer program’s third head coach. Bohon replaces Tony Amato, who was fired last month.
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