Florida Sports Wire

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced the additions of George Edwards as outside linebackers coach, Brad Idzik as wide receivers coach and Skip Peete as running backs coach. In addition, Jeff Kastl has rejoined the coaching staff as offensive quality control coach and Thaddeus Lewis has been promoted to quarterbacks coach. Edwards joins the Buccaneers for his 26th season of coaching at the NFL level and 34th season of coaching overall. He comes to Tampa Bay after spending three seasons with the Dallas Cowboys (2020-22) as the club’s Senior Defensive Assistant, helping guide a defensive unit that ranked second in interceptions (52), fourth in opponent completion percentage (61.9), sixth in opponent passer rating (86.5) and eighth in sacks (126) over that span. Prior to joining the Cowboys, Edwards served as defensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings (2014-19), linebackers coach for the Miami Dolphins (2005-09, 2012-13), defensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills (2010-11), linebacker

 ATLANTA - Jacksonville University men's basketball redshirt-senior Kevion Nolan was voted to the ASUN's annual All-Academic Team, the conference announced Monday Nolan becomes the first Dolphin since Jace Hoan in 2019 to be named to the team He currently holds a 4.0 GPA in the Sport Communication certification program as he works through his graduate program work. He received his undergraduate degree in social sciences last spring. The Anniston, Alabama native finished an impressive three-year career at JU that saw him record 874 points and 259 assists in the Green and White. While a member of the team, Nolan eclipsed the 1,000 point mark in his career midway through the 2023 season.  He was a member of the All-ASUN first team in 2021-22 in addition to being named to the All-Tournament Team the same season.  In Nolan's final two seasons, he was the team's leader in points and assists averaging 13.9 points and 4 assists per game in 2021-22 and 13.0 and 4.3 assists per

 GAINESVILLE - Florida head football coach Billy Napier named Austin Armstrong the Gators next defensive coordinator. Armstrong, 29, spent the past two seasons as the defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach at Southern Miss. During his first season in 2021, Armstrong was the youngest defensive coordinator in the FBS. The Southern Miss defense, known as the Nasty Bunch during Armstrong's tenure, ranked sixth in the Sun Belt in scoring defense (23.5 ppg), a mark that ranked 45th nationally in 2022. The Golden Eagles were third nationally in tackles for loss per game (8.3), fifth in sacks (3.38) and seventh in interceptions (17). USM was also third in fourth down conversion defense (.231). During his first year as the Southern Miss defensive coordinator, USM ranked No. 42 nationally in total defense (385.5), besting their mark by 18 spots from the season before. His defense also ranked in the top 10 in the country in first downs allowed (No. 2), fumbles recovered (No. 4), r

  LYNCHBURG, Va. - In a season that saw eight games decided by a one possession difference, it was a last-second shot that created the final margin as North Florida men's basketball was bested by Bellarmine's buzzer beater during a 76-74 loss in the 2023 ASUN Championship First Round Monday, Feb. 27. Seventh-seeded North Florida (14-17, 9-9 ASUN) and eighth-seeded Bellarmine (15-17, 9-9 ASUN) traded leads and blows all game, with the contest seeing no greater than a seven-point lead either way. Both teams had their own runs, but UNF's 9-0 run late in the first frame was the largest for either side. All told, there were 13 lead changes and seven tie scores, with the last of the ties coming when Carter Hendricksen slammed in a game-tying dunk with nine seconds to go. Bellarmine's sixth-year senior, Juston Betz, got the ball on the wing and had a fortuitous-contested fadeaway carom off the rim and through the net with 0.4 on the clock.  UNF's 14th-straight ASUN Champio

T AMPA (Florida Sports Wire) -  The   Tampa   Bay  Buccaneers today named  Dave Canal es  as the team’s offensive coordinator. Canales joins the Buccaneers after spending the past 13 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks (2010-22), where he has helped the organization to 10 playoff appearances, two conference championships and a Super Bowl XLVIII title.  Canales originally joined the Seahawks as an offensive quality control coach (2010-12) before being elevated to assistant quarterbacks coach (2013-14) and later wide receivers coach (2015-17), quarterbacks coach (2018-19, 2022) and pass game coordinator (2020-21).   “We are excited to announce Dave Canales as our new offensive coordinator,” said Buccaneers Head Coach Todd Bowles. “I want to thank the various candidates that we interviewed throughout this very thorough process. Dave has done a great job in a variety of roles with Seattle the past 13 years and he brings a passion for coaching and an energy level that players just seem to res

(SportsDay FILE photo by Nancy DeLander Beecher) By Mike Bonts CHARLESTON (Florida SportsDay) - The South Carolina Stingrays (28-14-4-1) dropped a Saturday night matchup at the North Charleston Coliseum to the Jacksonville Icemen (32-15-2-0) by a final score of 3-2. Craig Martin scored two goals and Brendan Harris finished with three points.  The Icemen remain atop the South Division with the win.  Jacksonville gained the first lead of the night on Martin’s 11th goal of the season. Martin crashed the net and flicked a quick shot past the blocker of Tyler Wall for the 1-0 lead with 2:50 remaining in the second period. Martin doubled the lead on his second goal of the contest 1:41 later with a snapshot off a faceoff win from Harris. Martin lined up on the inside of the left circle and flung a shot over the shoulder of Wall for the 2-0 advantage to close out the middle stanza. Lawton Courtnall cut the lead back to one goal as he buried a shot from the right circle that beat the blocker o

TAMPA (Florida SportsDay) —  The University of South Florida women’s basketball team got a game-high 27 points from Elena Tsineke, 18 points from Sammie Puisis, and 12 points and 10 rebounds from Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu as the Bulls defeated SMU, 70-62, on Saturday afternoon at the Yuengling Center.  South Florida improves to 24-5 on the year and 13-1 in the American Athletic Conference, while the Mustangs fall to 15-9 overall and 6-6 in league play. With the victory, the Bulls win The American regular season title and earn the No. 1 seed in the upcoming American Athletic Conference Tournament, March 6-9, at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.   South Florida trailed by as many as eight points, 19-11, midway through the first quarter before using a 6-0 run, capped by a Daniela Gonzalez three-point shot, to cut the SMU lead to two points, 19-17, after 10 minutes of play.     The Mustangs looked to pull away in the second quarter, extending their lead to seven, however, the Bulls put tog

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (JaxSportsTicker) -  For the second time in as many games on the final road trip of the regular season, the game came down to the final possession, although this time it went to the hosts as UNF was clipped, 73-71, at Austin Peay Saturday. The Ospreys (12-16, 7-9 ASUN) had a chance to take the lead, down 72-71 with the ball and 13 seconds on the lock. Austin Peay (9-20, 3-13 ASUN) would force a turnover and convert a free throw with under one second on the clock to conclude the game. The first half was a half of runs for both sides … Jose Placer started UNF's offense early in the game, scoring five points in the first three minutes … Carter Hendricksen gave UNF a 10-9 on a free throw, UNF's first lead of the game at 16:13 in the first half … APSU went on a 13-0 run, its longest of the game, establishing a 22-10 lead at the 12:44 mark … but, UNF replied thanks to a pair of three-pointers from Jarius Hicklen and Oscar Berry, as well as strong defense down low t

NASHVILLE (JaxSportsTicker) -  Jacksonville University men's basketball fell on a buzzer-beater three-pointer to Lipscomb, 62-59, at Allen Arena on Saturday. The Dolphins (13-14, 6-10) held the Bisons without a point for the final 5:38 of the game, until surrendering the banked in 25-footer as the horn sounded. JU used a strong shooting first half and an opportunistic defense to take an eight-point lead into the break. The two teams traded buckets early, with the game tied at 12 at the first media timeout. Mike Marsh hit a hook shot and Kevion Nolan swished a stepback three with 11:32 left in the half to give JU its first two possession lead of the night, 19-14. The lead great to nine when Marsh swished a baseline jumper and Gyasi Powell buried a three-pointer, with JU leading 25-16. Lipscomb cut it to one with 5:27 left in the half, but Marsh drew a foul and split two free throws, followed by Jarius Cook draining consecutive threes and Marsh hitting another shot to make it 36-26 w

By Mike Bonts  Despite an early goal by the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, the team fell 5-1 to the Jacksonville Icemen on Friday night at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.  Greenville need just 1:51 into the game to take the lead, as Max Martin scored his seventh of the season, a power-play strike from the blue line, for the early 1-0 Rabbits lead. At 9:10, Jacksonville answered back with a power-play goal from Ara Nazarian. In the second, Jacksonville took the lead with a  Christopher Brown goal at 5:10, before Luke Lynch added a second Icemen goal in the period at 19:19.  In the third, the Icemen added another goal by Nazarian, an empty-netter, at 17:26, before Brendan Harris added a late power-play goal at 19:22 to solidly the 5-1 score line. With the loss, the Swamp Rabbits fall to 26-14-7-0 while the Icemen improve to 31-15-2-0.  The Icemen play at Charlseton tonight.  the last time these two teams faced off nearly a month ago, Jacksonville has gone 8-3-1 and forced their way into the top s

  TAMPA (Florida Sports Wire)  –   University of South Florida Head Coach Alex Golesh has named L’Damian Washington as the Bulls’ wide receivers coach. A former NFL receiver and standout for Missouri, Washington comes to USF from Western Kentucky, where he was named receivers coach and passing game coordinator in January of 2023, and having served as wide receivers coach at Oklahoma in the 2022 season.   “L’Damian has an incredible background in overcoming the adversity he has faced in his life and going on to become a highly successful player and now coach,” Golesh said. “He played the wide receiver position at a high level and his tremendous life story and experience as a motivational speaker will have a positive impact on our players. I am excited to welcome L’Damian to our Bulls family as we build one of the most explosive offenses in college football.”   At Oklahoma (2022), Washington worked with an offense that produced 32.9 points per game and averaged 8.14 yards per reception.

J ACKSONVILLE (SportsTicker). -   After pre-game rain pushed the start time of the season opener back one hour, North Florida baseball made the wait count for those in attendance, defeating Murray State, 3-2, on Jakob Runnnels' walk-off pinch hit single in the bottom of the 10th Friday, Feb. 17. Murray State (0-1) was rolling with a 2-0 lead behind a no-hit bid through six innings, but freshman shortstop   Alex Lodise   catalyzed  UNF 's late push with an opposite field solo home run in the seventh. Newcomer   Gabriel Esquivel   eventually tied things up, 2-2, with a two-out, two-strike single back up the box in the seventh.  After three more shut down frames by the  UNF  bullpen,   Cade Reich   started the 10th off with a single and eventually scored on Runnels' frozen rope into the left field corner.  Peter Holden   spun a solid outing in his season debut, allowing just two earned in five innings.  UNF  newcomers accounted for all three RBI and four of  UNF 's seven h

JACKSONVILLE (SportTicker) -  Jacksonville University baseball dove into the season on Friday night with a win over the Kent State Golden Flashes, 6-5. The Dolphins (1-0) scored four runs in the bottom of the eighth to come from behind for the victory. Freshman Evan Chrest got the opening day start for the Dolphins, striking out nine batters in five innings on the mound. After a scoreless first inning, the Golden Flashes led off the top of the second with a leadoff double off the left field wall. A base hit to left put runners at the corners with no outs. A sacrifice ground out on a fielders choice, (4-6) plated one run for the Golden Flashes giving them an early 1-0 lead. Chrest settled down and got the next two batters to get out of the inning. The Dolphins got their first runner in the third on a Cam Ridley base on balls. He stole second base and advanced to third on a wild pitch, but was be stranded there after Kent State struck out the side. With one out in the bottom of the fifth

 ARLINGTON, TX,  (Florida Sports Wire) – February 15, 2023 – The XFL today announced the debut of its original, nine-part docuseries, Player 54: Chasing the XFL Dream, in partnership with its exclusive broadcast partner, The Walt Disney Company and ESPN. Directed by Peter Berg, the series follows the creation of the League under new ownership and highlights the unique stories and development of its players and coaches throughout the entire season.  Player 54 will have its linear debut on Thursday, February 16 at 5pm ET on ESPN2. It will also air on ABC on Saturday, February 18 at 2pm ET leading into the XFL’s opening game between the Vegas Vipers and Arlington Renegades. Episodes will be available to stream exclusively on ESPN+ immediately after each debuts on ESPN2. With eight teams, 400 players, 40 coaches, and a new ownership group, Player 54 is a visual manifestation of the League’s motto: where dreams meet opportunity. The original series takes fans behind the scenes of what it ta

 MIAMI GARDENS (Florida Sporst Wire) – The Miami Dolphins today named veteran NFL coach Vic Fangio defensive coordinator. Fangio has 36 years of NFL coaching experience and has spent 22 of the past 28 seasons as either an NFL head coach or defensive coordinator. He has coached three Hall of Fame players – linebacker Kevin Greene, linebacker Rickey Jackson and linebacker Ray Lewis – along with the 1991 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, linebacker Pat Swilling. Fangio has coached 29 players who have a combined 48 Pro Bowl selections. As the defensive play-caller for San Francisco (2011-14), Chicago (2015-18) and Denver (2019-21), Fangio led top 10 scoring defenses in eight of his past 11 seasons. He also led top 10 total defenses in seven of his past 11 seasons as a full-time coach. Fangio was named AP NFL Assistant Coach of the Year in 2018 as his Bears defense led the league in scoring (17.7 points allowed per game) and was third in total defense (299.7 yards allowed per game). From 2

  TAMPA (Florida Sports Wire)   – University of South Florida junior outfielder Drew Brutcher has been named to the 2023 Bobby Bragan National Collegiate Slugger Award (BBNCSA) watch list.   The award, created by the Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation,  is based on performance at the plate, academics and personal integrity.   This year's watch list consists of 51 players representing 19 conferences around the country, including all five power conferences. The list includes 11 seniors, 35 juniors and five sophomores.   “Drew has a chance to be one of the premier college baseball players in the country,” said head coach Billy Mohl. “He is a huge part of our program’s success and I’m looking forward to seeing his continued progress while helping to push our program forward.”   Brutcher, a 2021 Freshman All-American, was also named to the Preseason American Athletic Conference Preseason All-Conference Team for the second year in a row.   One of the best five-tool players in the country, Bru

JACKSONVILLE (SportsTicker)  – The Ribault High School Trojans bested the Raines High School Vikings 8-3 in five innings on Wednesday at 121 Financial Ballpark to win the High School Heritage Classic, taking the A. Philip Randolph Cup for the second time in the four-year Classic history.  “I want to congratulate Ribault High School for again winning the A. Philip Randolph Cup and Raines High School on a very hard-played game,” said Jumbo Shrimp executive vice president/general manager Harold Craw. “The Jumbo Shrimp want to sincerely thank everyone who has helped make the High School Heritage Classic a continued success in our club’s salute to Black History.”   Both teams wore customized Jacksonville Red Caps uniforms to commemorate the Negro American League team that played in Jacksonville from 1938 until 1942. Ribault High School won the A. Philip Randolph Cup, which honors the legacy of local Civil Rights icon Asa Philip Randolph.   After Raines opened the scoring with two runs in th

(SportsDay photo by Nancy DeLander Beecher) JACKSONVILLE (SportsDay) - The Greenville Swamp Rabbits picked up their third win as in as many nights with a 4-3 overtime victory over the Jacksonville Icemen Saturday night before 8,436 at Veterans Memorial Arena. Brannon McManus sored his sixth goal of the year at the 1:20 mark of overtime for the win.  Jacksonville is 12-2 in overtime games this season. The game was tied at two heading into the final period. Brendan Harris (12) gave the Icemen a short-lived lead. One minute later Tanner Eberle (19) knotted the game at three. The Icemen's Easton Brodzinski (7) opened the scoring on the first period. Alex Ierullo (17) tied the contest on a power play goal in the second. Josh McKechney (7) gave the vistitors their first lead of the night. Zach Jordan's 15th goal of the season tied it 3-3. Jacksonville's Charles Williams replaced Parker Gahagen in goal after the first period. Gahagen did not return after stopping seven shots. Will

GAINESVILLE (SportsTicker) - Round two the VyStar Credit Union Gators Invitational was suspended due to inclement weather on Saturday. The resumption of the round will start at 9 a.m. tomorrow immediately followed by round three. Currently, Florida leads the field at 13-under and is thru 15 holes in round two as Florida 'B' is in second at 12-under followed by Liberty (-9), Georgia Southern (-8) and North Florida (-4). The Flames and Gators entered the second round tied at 9-under and battled throughout the second round as Florida erased a four-stroke deficit to regain the advantage. Florida 'B' used a second-round surge to leap Liberty and No. 25 Georgia Southern. The group made the jump from finishing 5th in the first set of 18 and is 12-under in its round right now. Three straight birdies to start the second round moved Ricky Castillo into a tie for the solo lead that he currently shares with Georgia Southern's Mason Williams at -9. The 2020 Gators Invitational

  SUNRISE, Fla. - The Florida Panthers today announced that their bi-annual ‘Pucks & Pints’ Beerfest presented by Funky Buddha Brewery will take place on Saturday, March 4 at FLA Live Arena when the Panthers host the Pittsburgh Penguins at 6 PM.   ‘Pucks & Pints’ Beerfest begins at 2:30 PM in the CITY Lounge by CITY Furniture for all purchasers with the event concluding around 4:45 PM. Fans can enjoy beer samples, live music and Panthers hockey following the event.      The Panthers Foundation’s biannual event requires all to be 21+ to enter and a portion of all proceeds will benefit the Florida Panthers Foundation. The four pillars of the Foundation include: building the game of hockey for children and youth, supporting health and education initiatives for children, advocating for and supporting veterans' issues, and raising awareness about the endangered Florida panther.     The general admission ticket includes unlimited sampling from participating breweries including: