Florida Sports Wire

The Knoxville(TN) Quarterback Club has named Jacksonville native Gene Deckerhoff the recipient of the 2014 Lindsay Nelson Broadcasting Award. Named after the legendary national sportscaster that began his 50+ year career in the sports broadcasting profession as the Voice of the Tennessee Volunteers in 1948. The Lindsay Nelson Award has been bestowed by the Knoxville QB Club since 1998 to "broadcasters that exemplify a passion for broadcasting during his or her career". Gene joins a host of sports broadcasting legends that have received the award in past years, including Keith Jackson, Lee Corso, Larry Munson, Verne Lundquist, Chris Schenkel, Ron Franklin and John Ward. Gene will accept the award in Knoxville during UT Weekend on April 25.   Former Head Coach of Appalachian State, Jerry Moore, will be honored as this year's recipient of the General Robert R. Neyland Trophy, which is presented annually in memory of the Hall of Fame football coach by the Knoxville QB C

FLORIDA SPORTS WIRE JACKSONVILLE, Fla.--  The 2014 Southern League Champion Jacksonville Suns will take on the Miami Marlins in a special pre-season exhibition matchup at Bragan Field at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville this Saturday, April 4 at 2:05 p.m.  Gates open at 11:30 A.M. and the Marlins will take batting practice at 12:15 P.M. Tickets for the exhibition game are on sale and going fast, so get them now at the Suns box office and online at www.jaxsuns.com.  Homeplate Box seats are $28.50, Reserved seats are $22.50 and General Admission tickets are $16.50.  Season tickets for the 2015 Suns regular season are also currently on sale through the Suns Box Office at (904) 358-2846, or online at www.jaxsuns.com.  Tickets plans begin at $120 per seat.  Sponsorships and group packages are also available.   The 2015 season is presented by Everbank, the official banking partner of the Jacksonville Suns.  The Suns are the reigning 2014 Southern League Champions and the Doub

TAMPA – More than 3,200 fans flocked to the USF Campus on a beautiful spring day to watch the annual USF football Spring Game Saturday afternoon at Corbett Stadium. USF’s new up-tempo offense gave senior quarterback Steven Bench an opportunity to make a big play and the Green Team starter stepped up with a with a 62-yard touchdown run to lead the Green Team to a 10-9 victory over the White Team.  Marlon Mack, the 2014 American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year, added 83 yards rushing, all in the first half, and 123 all-purpose yards for the Green. “We divided the team up. Not everybody is playing with who they’ve been playing with all spring long, so it was good,” USF Head Coach Willie Taggart said. “I like to see who really steps up when you’re playing with somebody you’re probably not playing with in the fall, but you still step up and make plays. Usually when you do that, you’re going to be a pretty good player out here for us.” USF’s defense has shined all spring in

BOCA RATON, Fla. --  A balanced day with tremendous improvement was the word coming out of Florida Atlantic University’s open Saturday scrimmage. “I’m excited that I saw success on both sides of the ball,” said Charlie Partridge, FAU’s head football coach. “There were times when our office was able to finished drives, especially in the later have of the scrimmage. It was good see our defense get some stops. Our offense has had a lot of success this spring. We are nicked up at linebacker. We are being protective of some guys. We are trying to be smart there. So we had some younger guys, some inexperience linebackers - to get some stops is encouraging.” The young linebackers were not the only bright spot of the game. Newcomer Daniel Parr saw his first action as he joined senior Jaquez Johnson, junior Greg Hankerson, redshirt freshman Jason Driskel and Dom Marino, who all took snaps under center. “I’m excited about some of the young guys. Daniel Parr shows that he’s got mobility and

The Jacksonville Armada FC is back in action today at 5 p.m. as it hosts NASL foe Tampa Bay Rowdies at EverBank Field.  The contest is part of the Armada FC Challenge, which begins with Flagler College taking on Jacksonville University at 12:30 p.m. and NASL teams FC Edmonton and Carolina RailHawks at 3 p.m. Tickets are available by calling the Armada ticket office at 1-844-2-ARMADA or visiting armadafc.com . --MIKE BONTS

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Jacksonville Armada FC has announced the addition of former Major League Soccer draft pick Akeil Barrett as the latest player to join the Armada FC lineup. Drafted by Orlando City SC in the second round of the MLS SuperDraft in January, Barrett has been on trial with the Armada FC since the beginning of March and will play forward for the club. He was a standout performer at the University of Tulsa from 2012-14 prior to beginning his professional career. "Akeil is a young player we are excited about adding to our attack," said Armada FC general manager Dario Sala. "He is a strong prospect for our club that should give us depth up front." A native of Kingston, Jamaica, the 22-year-old Barrett was a two-time all-conference performer with 14 goals and 12 assists in 34 career starts for the Golden Hurricane. Barrett also spent a year with the University of Akron as a freshman before transferring to Tulsa. As a youth player in Jamaica, B

JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville Sharks announced that the team has added a pair of veteran players, as Jack linebacker Alvin Ray Jackson and offensive lineman Ray McNeil have been assigned to the Jacksonville roster on one-year contracts. Per team policy, terms of the deals were not disclosed. The 34-year-old Jackson (6’2”, 200) enters his fifth season in the Arena Football League. Most recently, Jackson began the 2014 season with the New Orleans VooDoo, recording 39 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, three interceptions and three pass breakups during 14 regular season appearances. Jackson then joined the Cleveland Gladiators during the postseason, recording a total of 17 tackles and one interception over the course of the Gladiators’ three-game playoff run. The 30-year-old McNeil (6’2”, 315) enters his fifth AFL season, most recently starting 14 games for the Tampa Bay Storm during the 2014 campaign. Prior to his stint with the Storm, McNeil saw action in 15 games along the offe

By FRED WITT Florida Sports Wire NFL owners announced Monday at their meeting in Arizona that the game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills on Oct. 25 at Wembley Stadium in London will be distributed over a digital platform that will be available worldwide. The game will remain available on over-the-air television in the Jacksonville and Buffalo markets. It will mark the first time the NFL will distribute a national game on a platform other than a TV network. They also decided to suspend the league's local TV blackout policy for the 2015 season. The blackouts will be suspended for preseason and regular-season games. The NFL will re-evaluate the rule after the season. There were no local blackouts during the 2014 regular season and only two in 2013. FREE AGENT SIGNINGS - The Jaguars and free-agent tight end Julius Thomas have agreed to a multi-year contract. Thomas earned his second straight Pro Bowl selection after catching 43 passes for

HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, Fla. - Highlighted by top ten finishes from Jessica Welch, Sabrina Rumbaugh and Shania Berger, the Jacksonville University women's golf team took second in a 17 team field at the Bearcat Spring Classic held at the Mission Inn Resort Los Colinas course this weekend. The Dolphins completed the 54-hole, three day event with a 301 team score on Sunday to finish at 917 (316-300-301) for the tournament. "Getting contributions from the whole team is huge for us. This course had some holes that were really quirky and it took us a couple of rounds to adjust," said Head Coach Jennifer Borocz of the Dolphins big turnaround in rounds two and three on Saturday and Sunday. "Once we got familiar with the course we could see what worked and were able to make the swings we needed with confidence." Welch earns her fifth top ten of the year as she tied for fifth at eight-over, 225 (78-73-74). She wrapped up play with a two-over 74 on Sunday that included th

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. --  Marcus Paige scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half as North Carolina pulled away for an 87-78 victory over Arkansas in the NCAA Tournament on Saturday. Justin Jackson had 16 points and J.P. Tokoto added 13 with eight assists as the fourth-seeded Tar Heels (26-11) advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time in three years.     They will play the winner of Sunday's game between top- seeded Wisconsin and eighth-seeded Oregon next week in the West Region semifinals. It was an emotional victory for North Carolina's Roy Williams, who matched his mentor, the late Dean Smith, for the second-most NCAA Tournament wins with 65.   "That means a lot to me," said Williams, who earned the 750th win of his coaching career.   Michael Qualls, playing in his 100th game for Arkansas, registered his first career double-double. The junior guard poured in 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.   SEC Player of the Year Bobby Portis had 18 points and 14 re

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Jalen Reynolds scored 21 points with six rebounds off the bench to help Xavier take down Georgia State, 75-67, in the third round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday. Myles Davis added 17 points in a reserve role for the Musketeers (23-13), who will play Arizona in the Sweet 16. Sixth-seeded Xavier has made it back to the round of 16 for the seventh time in school history and for the first time since 2012. R.J. Hunter, who hit the game-winning 3-pointer in Thursday's upset win over third-seeded Baylor, paced the Panthers (25-10) with 20 points. The Musketeers controlled the game and shot an incredible 67.6 percent from the floor -- including 7-of-13 from beyond the arc -- in the win. Kevin Ware's jumper two minutes into the second half tied the game at 34-34. Xavier used a 9-2 run moments later to take a 45-38 lead, then Davis' 3- pointer made it a 10-point spread with over eight minutes left in the game. Hunter buried a 3-pointer to help

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.- The Jacksonville Armada FC (2-2 preseason) will head south this weekend to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to take on NASL foe Fort Lauderdale Strikers at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Lockhart Stadium. After a 13-day layoff following its 2-0 loss against the Charleston Battery on March 8, the Armada FC will be ready to get back at it. The club has been hard at work on the practice pitch with intense conditioning and drills.  The Armada FC defeated the Strikers 1-0 in their previous meeting on Feb. 28 in Jacksonville. Defender Shawn Nicklaw scored the goal for the Armada FC. The Strikers hold a 3-2 record in preseason play with wins over Florida Gulf Coast University, Florida International University and Palm Beach Atlantic University .

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Neither Arkansas or Wofford led by more than a possession in the second half.  It was a fitting way to end a wild day in Jacksonville. Michael Qualls had 20 points, Bobby Portis added 15 points and 13 rebounds and the Razorbacks edged the Terriers 56-53 in second-round action in the West Region on Thursday night. Karl Cochran and Eric Garcia missed potentially game-tying 3-pointers for Wofford in the final 10 seconds. "Thank goodness they ran out of time," Arkansas coach Mike Anderson said of Wofford. The fifth-seeded Razorbacks (27-8) will play the Tar Heels in the third round Saturday at 8:40 p.m.  There were 18 lead changes and 10 ties in the contest. Neither team led by more than five points. Qualls went 8-of-9 from the field, which included a trio of highlight-reel dunks. Alandise Harris tallied eight points and eight boards for Arkansas, which came in winning 10 of its last 13 games, with two of those lo

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.  -- Right when North Carolina appeared to be on cruise control, pesky Harvard was at it again in the NCAA Tournament. Siyani Chambers' four-point play had just given the Crimson their first lead with just over a minute remaining, but his next shot from beyond the arc helped put the Tar Heels ahead for good.   Justin Jackson's go-ahead fastbreak dunk with 23 seconds remaining lifted North Carolina to a 67-65 victory over Harvard in second-round action from the West Region Thursday night. Chambers nailed his straightaway 3-pointer while being fouled on the arm by Marcus Paige with 1:15 on the clock. He sunk the subsequent free throw for a 65-63 Harvard edge.   Jackson knocked down a jumper at the other end and Chambers was off the mark on a deep 3, leading to a Tar Heels fastbreak. J.P. Tokoto secured the rebound and outletted to Paige, who hit Jackson with a bounce pass for the easy two- handed dunk and a 67-65 UNC cushion.  

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Matt Stainbrook scored 20 points on 8- of-10 shooting, pulled down nine rebounds and dished out five assists as the Xavier Musketeers handled the Ole Miss Rebels 76-57 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Dee Davis made four 3-pointers en route to 17 points for the sixth-seeded Musketeers (22-13), who are making their ninth NCAA Tournament appearance in 10 years. Xavier will play 14th-seeded Georgia State on Saturday. The Panthers stunned third-seeded Baylor earlier Thursday in a West Region matchup. Stefan Moody ended with 14 points for the 11th-seeded Rebels (21-13), who rallied past BYU in Tuesday's first round. M.J. Rhett and Ladarius White tallied 12 and 11 points, respectively. The Musketeers started the game on a 16-5 spurt and never looked back. After Ole Miss got within 21-17, Stainbrook recorded a three-point play to spark a 15-4 Xavier run. Remy Abell capped the burst with a jumper to make it 36-21. The

JACKSONVILLE, Fla -- Georgia State coach Ron Hunter fell off his rolling stool as he watched his son make a game-winning 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left. R.J. Hunter, the two-time Sun Belt Player of the Year, buried a long 3 to cap a 13-0 Georgia State run to end the game, and the 14th-seeded Panthers stunned third-seeded Baylor 57-56 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday. Baylor did not score after going up 56-44 on two Rico Gathers free throws with 2:53 remaining. R.J. Hunter scored nine straight points to get Georgia State within 56-53. After Baylor's Taurean Prince turned the ball over, Isaiah Dennis made 1-of-2 free throws to make it a two-point contest. Kenny Chery missed the front end of a 1-on-1 and T.J. Shipes came down with a key defensive rebound for the Panthers. Shipes then got the assist on Hunter's 3-pointer. Prince's desperation heave from beyond half court was off the mark at the buzzer. Baylor turned the

The Jacksonville Armada FC has announced the addition of defender Jordan Gafa as the latest player to join the Armada FC lineup. Gafa should be familiar with the Florida climate after spending the past two seasons with North American Soccer League outfit Tampa Bay Rowdies. He came to Jacksonville as a trialist in January and earned the starting nod in the Armada FC's March 8 match against the Charleston Battery. "Jordan brings a lot of upside to our team," said Armada FC general manager Dario Sala. "We feel like he gives us the quality depth we are looking for at that position." A 24-year-old native of San Diego, Calif., Gafa made 14 total appearances with the Rowdies in 2013 and 2014. Before beginning his professional career in the NASL, Gafa played with prolific college program University of North Carolina from 2008-12, where he starred on three-straight NCAA Division I College Cup teams in 2009, 2010 and 2011. In 2011, he helped lead the Tar H

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Florida State football team kicked off spring practice on Wednesday at the Albert J. Dunlap Athletic Training Facility and head coach Jimbo Fisher was impressed with the effort of the new-look squad. The Seminoles, who practiced in shorts and helmets, lost 12 starters off the 2014 squad and are expected to have at least 10 players drafted later this spring.   Fisher has plenty of talented players to build around for the coming fall, however, including All-Americans Jalen Ramsey (junior defensive back) and Roberto Aguayo (redshirt junior kicker) as well as veteran defensive leaders Terrance Smith (redshirt senior linebacker) and Tyler Hunter (redshirt senior safety). “I thought (they) executed better than I thought on the first day,” Fisher said. “I was very pleased with a lot of things that went on. Again, it was in shorts, but the tenacity of the way we went about things, we had a really good work day and you see a good base to build

By MIKE BONTS FLORIDA SPORTS WIRE -- On Sunday the NCAA announced the eight teams for the second and third rounds of the 2015 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena.   Bids went to Baylor University, University of North Carolina, University of Arkansas, Wofford College, Harvard University, Georgia State University and the winner of the Brigham Young University-University of Mississippi first round game. On Monday the organizing committee led by host Jacksonville University, JAXPORTS, SMG and city leaders kicked off the tournament week by announcing the game-day schedule, a free, open practice, a Fan Festival and Speaker Series, and game-day access and security details.   “This is a big win for Jacksonville, further showcasing our city as a premier destination for top-tier sporting events,” said Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown. “These games will bring in fans from across the country, putting Jacksonville in the national spotlig

GAINESVILLE, Fla.  – Spencer Massey claimed his first Top Fuel win of the season Sunday during the 46th annual AMALIE Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Auto-Plus Raceway at Gainesville. Ron Capps (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Karen Stoffer (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also were winners at the third of 24 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events in the season. Massey piloted his Red Fuel dragster to a holeshot victory, winning with a performance of 3.882 seconds at 320.74 mph to defending world champ Tony Schumacher’s quicker but losing 3.873 at 313.29 in the U.S. Army dragster. It was Massey’s first win at Gainesville and 18th of his career. The victory moves Massey into a tie with Shirley Muldowney and Darrell Gwynn for 12th on the all-time wins list in Top Fuel.  "Tony has been running really strong," said Massey, who moved to third in points with the win. "I know that he can step his game up and be deadly when he needs to on the starti

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Don Walsh claimed the No. 1 qualifying position and a first round victory Saturday during the J&A Service NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series portion of the AMALIE Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Auto-Plus Raceway at Gainesville. This weekend’s Pro Mod racing, co-presented by the Real Pro Mod Association and Jerry Bickel Race Cars, Inc., is the first of 10 events on the season. Walsh powered his late model Precision Turbo Camaro to a top qualifying run of 5.832 seconds at 248.02 mph, marking the seventh time in his career that he’s claimed the No. 1 spot. “It was great,” said Walsh. “I’m just really happy we have some new sponsors on board and that I’m able to run well for them this weekend. I’m super excited for us to put it all together here at the first race and put together what we had from last year and move it into this year.” Walsh followed his qualifying success with a first round win. He will race Bob Rahaim in the quarterfinals on Sunday. Pro Mod

BOCA RATON, Fla.  – Practice number three of the 2015 spring season was the first to include shoulder pads for Florida Atlantic University’s football team. The Owls took to the field mid-morning greeted by beautiful weather, incoming freshman here to watch and members of several high school football teams from around the area. The team worked at a quick tempo from drill to drill and from play to play many times one unit set to go as soon as the whistle blew the last play dead previous unit. And the coach’s film is sure to show several play between senior quarterback Jaquez Johnson, who will wear #32 this season to honor a fallen friend, and senior receiver Jenson Stoshak. FAU spring practice will conclude with Sat., April 11 with a 1 p.m. Spring Game played in FAU Stadium. The Owls will open the 2015 home schedule versus Miami. Season tickets start as low as $60 and are on sale and can be purchased by calling 1-866-FAU-Owls. Opponents will not change; however, dates and times

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The No. 1-ranked University of Florida softball team suffered its first loss of the 2015 season on Saturday, falling to No. 3 LSU by a score of 14-10 in the second game of the teams' three-game series. Florida overcame a nine-run deficit to tie the game at 10 after six innings, sparked by an historic three-home-run performance by junior Taylore Fuller. LSU (26-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference) plated nine runs in the top of the first on seven hits. A two-out single by Lauren Haeger and a walk to Bailey Castro brought up Fuller, who opened the scoring for Florida (28-1, 1-1 SEC) with a three-run home run to right-center field and cut the deficit to 9-3. Four straight hit batters forced in a run for Florida in fourth, and a bases-loaded single by Kelsey Stewart made the score 9-5. LSU responded with a single and a sacrifice bunt to put a runner at second in the top of the fifth. The runner scored on a single to right, raising the Tigers' lead back to five.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The tougher the competition gets in the NHRA J&A Service Pro Mod Drag Racing Series, the tougher it seemingly gets for Rickie Smith to retire. With talent and competitors at an all-time high in the NHRA J&A Service Pro Mod Drag Racing Series, Smith keeps coming back for more and now the longtime standout is after his third straight NHRA J&A Service Pro Mod Drag Racing Series world championship. That quest in his IDG Chevy Camaro starts at this weekend’s 46th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Auto-Plus Raceway at Gainesville, the first of 10 races during the 2015 season. “I’ve been doing this for 41 years and it’s kind of been my life,” Smith said. “I love racing and competing and I’ve been fortunate enough to win championship. To pull off two in a row gives you that drive to still know you can do it. Can I pull a third one off? I don’t see any reason why I can’t compete for another championship.” Smith has shown that repe