Terry Kirkman has passed.
So saddened to hear that Terry Kirkman, founding member of the Association, passed on 9/23.
The famous song “Cherish” was composed by him and was one of the major hits for the Association. He also composed “Everything that Touches You”, “Enter the Young” and “Six Man Band.”
Another Kirkman composition, “Requiem for the Masses” showcased the many talents of Kirkman as composer and the group. It is far from a typical 60’s rock song, filled with meaning, amazing harmony and orchestration. A famous performance of this piece was on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in 1967. If you haven’t heard it, here is a link:
I am so glad we were fortunate enough to see them perform in Longwood, Fl.
SEC Players of the Week!
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida safety Jordan Castell and defensive lineman Cam Jackson both earned SEC Player of the Week honors, the league office announced Monday morning. Castell was named SEC Freshman of the Week for the first time in his career and is the first since Trevor Etienne earned the award in 2022. Jackson captured co-Defensive Lineman of the Week after transferring from Memphis. This is the first time this season that a Gator has earned conference player of the week honors.
Starting in his second collegiate contest, and making his second consecutive start for the Gators, Castell totaled ten tackles and one pass break up in Florida’s victory over the Tennessee Volunteers. His ten tackles marked a career high for the freshman and doubled his season total to twenty. The Orlando, Florida native’s pass break up came in the third quarter when Tennessee attempted a deep pass on 2nd & 10 from the Tennessee thirty-one.
Castell’s defensive grade of 82.7 was the highest on Florida’s defense in week three, according to Pro Football Focus. The 6-2, 220-pound Orlando native posted a team high coverage grade of 81.6, allowing one reception for 16 yards on four targets vs Tennessee. The true freshman played in all 66 defensive snaps on Saturday night.
“The guy’s playing partly because he’s mature enough to handle it,” Napier said on Castell during Monday’s press conference. He can process, he can communicate, and he has got physical ability. I think he is a future leader, and certainly amongst his classmates he’s well thought of.”
Jackson, a junior defensive lineman, recorded six tackles and one pass break up in Saturday’s contest. His total in tackles is a season high for the new Gator. Jackson was able to bat a pass down at the line in the middle of the third quarter when the Volunteers were facing a 2nd & 7 on the Florida twenty-four-yard line. Jackson is the first defensive-lineman to win a weekly SEC award since Week 1 of 2022.
The 6-6, 360-pound defensive tackle posted a defensive grade of 71.1, the 5th highest on the Gators’ defense in week three, according to PFF.
“I would say Cam Jackson and Caleb Banks,” OLB Princely Umanmielen said during fall camp on who has stood out on the defensive line. “Cam Jackson, he’s a huge guy. He can overpower anybody he wants.”
Castell and Jackson are the latest duo to win an SEC Weekly award in the same week since Trevor Etienne and O’Cyrus Torrence did so on November 14, 2022.
Go Gators!
Gator National Champs. Track and Field
For the 11th time since Mike “Mouse” Hollowaytook the head post of Florida’s men’s track and field team, he and the Gators hoisted a national championship trophy over their heads late Friday night at the NCAA outdoor championships meet in Austin, Texas.
“It is an incredible feeling. I get asked all the time what my favorite championship is and I jokingly but not jokingly say the next one,” Holloway said.
Early in Friday’s competition, Florida’s Emmanuel Bamidele notched a first-place finish in the men’s 400-meter with a time of 44.24 − a mark that wasn’t only Bamidele’s personal best, but also makes him the collegiate leader, gives him the second-fastest time in program history and the fifth-fastest in the world this year.
Florida’s 4×100-meter relay team recorded a runner-up finish as Ryan Willie, Jacory Patterson, Pjai Austin and Robert Gregory posted a time of 38.26, which was only a hair off LSU’s mark of 38.05.
Heading into the final two events of the night just minutes before 11 p.m., Florida found itself trailing Arkansas by five points. Though the 5K run and the 4×400-meter relay still remained, neither the Gators nor the Razorbacks had a 5K runner, which set the table for a championship-deciding 4×400-meter relay.
Bluntly, Florida’s chances to return to Gainesville with a national title in hand were looking bleak as the Gators would need the perfect storm to get the points they needed to overtake Arkansas. Should the Razorbacks have finished in the Top 4 of the event, the hardware would’ve gone home to Fayetteville.
Instead, Bamidele, Patterson, Jevaughn Powell and Willie all tag teamed the come-from-behind victory with a record-breaking time of 2:57.74.
At the conclusion of the race, the fact that the Gators’ time was good for a school record, facility record, meet record and collegiate record was all moot. The only thing that mattered was the time was good for Florida’s second consecutive national title.
“It is just an awesome feeling. We do not think about last year or think about defending anything,” Holloway said. “Our job was to come in here and win this one and that is what we did.”
National Champions – Gator Golf
Congratulations Gators
Repeaters in Gainesville
Good evening,
I had several people inquiring about the additional repeaters that are available to the club. So rather than a bunch of emails, I decided to list them all here!
| 146.850 | 146.250 | 123.0 | 50 Watt Analog Repeater | |
| 147.270 | 147.870 | 123.0 | 50 Watt Analog Repeater | |
| 444.9875 | 449.9875 | 123.0 | 50 Watt Analog Repeater – AllStar Network (East Coast Reflector) | |
| 146.640 | 146.040 | cc 1 | 50 Watt DMR Repeater (BrandMeister Network) | |
| 444.8375 | 449.8375 | cc 1 | 100 Watt DMR Repeater (BrandMeister Network) | |
| 444.050 | 449.050 | 20 Watt Yaesu Fusion (YSF) Repeater with WiRES-X | ||
| 462.550 | 467.550 | 141.3 | 50 Watt Kenwood GMRS Repeater (Requires GMRS License) |
More information is available at http://kc4mhh.com (and the associated Digital, DMR, and AllStar Link pages).
6-1 – 2pm Tropical Update
Tropical Weather Outlook
NWS National Hurricane Center Miami FL
200 PM EDT Wed Jun 1 2022
For the North Atlantic...Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico:
1. Near the Yucatan Peninsula and Southeastern Gulf of Mexico:
A broad area of low pressure located near the east coast of the
Yucatan Peninsula is producing a large area of disorganized
showers and thunderstorms over the northwestern Caribbean Sea
and Yucatan Peninsula. Despite strong upper-level winds, gradual
development is forecast and this system is likely to become a
tropical depression while it moves slowly northeastward over the
northwestern Caribbean Sea and southeastern Gulf of Mexico during
the next day or two. Regardless of development, locally heavy
rainfall is likely across portions of the Yucatan Peninsula during
the next day or so, spreading across western Cuba, South Florida,
and the Florida Keys on Friday and Saturday. Interests in the
Yucatan Peninsula, western Cuba, the Florida Keys, and the Florida
Peninsula should monitor the progress of this system.
* Formation chance through 48 hours...high...70 percent.
* Formation chance through 5 days...high...80 percent.
2. Southwestern Atlantic northeast of the Bahamas:
A weak surface trough located about 150 miles northeast of the
northwest Bahamas is producing disorganized shower activity.
Surface pressures are currently high across the area, and
significant development of this system appears unlikely as it moves generally east-northeastward over the next several days away from
the southeastern United States.
* Formation chance through 48 hours...low...10 percent.
* Formation chance through 5 days...low...10 percent.2pm Update
The Hurricane Season Starts
WED 6/1/2022 – 9AM CST
Today marks the first official day of the 2022 Atlantic Hurricane Season and we are watching newly designated Invest 91 near the Yucatan Peninsula for development. It has an 80% chance of developing as it track towards Florida this week. We do not expect anything stronger than a minimal tropical storm. The first name would be Alex. Heavy rain and isolated flash flooding will be the main concerns with this system. Stay tuned for updates.
Newberry Adds Gators to staff
Former Gators join Newberry staff
The Newberry football program announced the hiring of a pair of former Gator football players to their staff for the upcoming season.
Travis McGriff, who played wide receiver for UF from 1994-1998, and Reid Fleming, who played linebacker for the Gators from 2000-2003, are the Panthers’ new offensive and defensive coordinators, respectively.
“This is an exciting time for Newberry Football, the school and the community,” said Newberry football coach Ed Johnson. “They both bring extensive knowledge, passion, and success to our staff.”
While the pair are new to the varsity staff they have already been a part of the program.
This past season the Panthers finished 5-6. They advanced to the Class 1A state playoffs based on their strength of schedule but lost at Bradford (Starke), 51-13, in the opening round.
Johnson is hoping McGriff and Fleming can help strengthen both sides of the ball. This past fall, the Panthers were outscored 337-217.
McGriff, who won a national title with UF in 1996, had his most productive season with the Gators in 1998.
The Gainesville native, who starred at P.K. Yonge, caught 70 passes for 1,357 yards, which is first on the UF single-season list for receiving yards and tied for sixth all time with Chris Doering (1995) and Kadarius Toney (2020) for receptions in a single season.
“Travis has a great offensive mind and feel for the game,” Johnson said. “He will work to get our players in the best position possible to have success on the field.”
Fleming was one of the top linebackers in the state coming out of Rutherford (Panama City), which advanced to the 1999 state title game. As a senior at UF, he ranked second among UF linebackers with 68 tackles, which was more than three times his three-year total (22 tackles) entering his senior season.
“Reid is super competitive and organized,” Johnson said. “He fits in perfectly with what we have been doing the past few years on defense. He will have us flying around and being a physical defense on Friday nights.”
The Panthers open the 2022 regular season at Orlando Christian Prep on Friday, Aug. 26.