Jamar Hornsby, the former Florida Gator safety who was accused of using Ashley Slonina’s credit card more than 70 times after she died on Oct. 12, 2007, reversed his not guilt plea to guilty on Monday, Jim Slonina said.
The trial will be Dec. 15.
Slonina said Hornsby will plead guilty to four events, with the worst possible punishment coming as a misdemeanor. Slonina expects Hornsby to receive probation.
Check Wednesday’s News Herald for more on this story.
In an e-mail today, the Southeastern Conference wants buyers of tickets to Saturday’s SEC Championship Game in Atlanta to be careful of purchasing counterfeits.
The SEC and the Georgia Dome are partnering to provide a Ticket Validation Window, located at the main box office. It opens at 9 a.m. Saturday, and a ticket’s authenticity can be checked there.
The SEC warns that buyers of counterfeit tickets “risk being denied admission to the Georgia Dome for the game.”
With one regular season over (Big Ten) and the rest either in their last week or just have their championship games left, I thought it’d be a good time to make some, and maybe my final, BCS predictions.
Drumroll please…
Rose: Penn State vs. USC **
Fiesta: Texas vs. Boise State
Orange: Virginia Tech vs. Cincinnati
Sugar: Alabama vs. Utah
National Championship Game: Florida vs. Oklahoma
**Just like a couple years ago when UCLA upset USC, this could change in 60 minutes. Also, I talked with BCS Coordinator Bill Hancock last week and he said the Rose Bowl would’ve invited Penn State and Oregon State regardless of the bowls preference against rematches. The Nittany Lions beat the Beavers 45-14 on Sept. 6
The first time Florida coach Urban Meyer heard that Texas was ousted from the Big 12 Championship Game by Oklahoma because of the BCS standings was during Sunday night’s SEC Championship Game coaches teleconference.
And he didn’t like it one bit.
“I’m disappointed that that was — I guess that’s what I say because it’s not my copnference,” Meyer said. “But I hope the SEC will never have the voters determine who goes to the championship game.”
Texas, Oklahoma and Texas Tech all finished in a three-way tie for first place in the Big 12 South at 7-1. A winner couldn’t be decided through the first four tie-breakers, so it went to the fifth, which determines the division winner by highest BCS ranking.
On Thanksgiving, Texas defeated Texas A&M and on Saturday Oklahoma beat Oklahoma State, but the voters thought the Sooners were more impressive, leaping them over the Longhorns into second place in the BCS, thus giving them the coveted spot in the Big 12 title game.
It’s widely speculated that whoever wins that game will face the SEC champion in the FedEx BCS National Championship Game on Jan. 8 in Miami.
“I think there are three big football teams and I know anybody wants to attack the systeam,” Meyer said. “It’s the system we have. But if there’s a flaw, we’ve got to continue to work to get it right.”
The final weekend in the Southeastern Conference started by Tennessee lame duck coach Phillip Fulmer joining his seniors in the Volunteers’ Last Tackle drill on Thanksgiving.
After the 25 senior Vols went through a gauntlet of teammates before making one final tackle during Thursday’s practice, the former offensive lineman did so himself.
“I kind of got in on a cleanup block,” Fulmer said of his charge through the line on a beautiful Thanksgiving afternoon. “I didn’t have to hit it. It was already on the ground so I just cleaned it up a little bit.”
When Fulmer was asked if he had participated int he annual senior rite, Fulmer answered, “It wasn’t my year to be the ‘Last Tackle.’”
Another SEC lifer joined Fulmer on the outs Saturday.
Sylvester Croom resigned Saturday as Mississippi State’s head coach. He was 21-38 in five years at Starkville, Miss. The former Alabama center inherited a Bulldogs team that came off three losing seasons, one of which was played on NCAA probabtion. Last season Croom led MSU to eight wins including one of Central Florida in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl.
This season, the Bulldogs finished 4-8.
It’s not quite spring yet, but Steve Spurrier did a little house cleaning at South Carolina over the weekend.
Offensive line coach John Hunt, who had been with Spurrier since 1999 at Florida, was let go Sunday.
“I don’t agree with the decision, but I respect Coach Spurrier’s decision,” Hunt said in a release by the school. “I appreciate the opportunity he gave me. I enjoyed my time in South Carolina and wish the Gamecocks the best in the future.”
Quarterback coach David Reaves was dismissed by Spurrier after a season in which Stephen Garcia struggled immensly, spurring Spurrier to say on more than one occassion that Garcia wasn’t good enough to play the position.
Yet, Garcia was named the Gamecocks’ bowl game starter by Spurrier later on Sunday.
Before Phillip Fulmer could pack his bags, the rumors of Lane Kiffin’s hiring were picking up steam.
It was all but confirmed, which will happen Monday at 2 p.m., in Fulmer’s last day.
Kiffin will become Tennessee’s 21st head coach, and is planning on bringing his father, Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive coordinator Monte Kiffing, with him to Knoxville.
Kiffin was fired by the Oakland Raiders in October, just two months into his second season there.
