Spring Football: Suspensions And Suspension-Like Objects Strike SEC East

Derek Dooley says Hunter needs to get past thinking about playing hurt, even though the Vols aren’t going to allow anyone to tackle him on Saturday. Hunter expects to be his old self by the summer and to be good to go in time for the regular season.

For more on Vols football, visit Tennessee blog Rocky Top Talk, plus SEC blog Team Speed Kills.

Josey shattered his knee late last season after posting some of the country’s best rushing numbers. Franklin has been banged up since early in spring ball, when he hurt himself fighting for a loose ball.

It would be mighty fine for Mizzou if both players are able to make full recoveries, whether this year or the next, but it’s nice to remember Josey has a year to spare.

Oregon blog Addicted To Quack says:

While we’re here, let’s watch some college football videos from SB Nation’s new YouTube channel together:

That’s an interesting note, as Frazier is a nimble, 6’3” dual threat not unlike a poor man’s Newton, who thrived in Malzahn’s system. Perhaps it was too easy for many of us to pigeonhole Frazier, who did generate about 10 times as many yards on the ground last year as he did through the air.

For more on War Eagle football, visit Auburn blog Track Em Tigers, plus SEC blog Team Speed Kills.

Murphy has yet to take the field for Florida. He’s a former two-star, dual-threat quarterback recruit out of Connecticut. He’s been praised for his consistency and tight spirals so far in camp.

For more on Gators football, visit Florida blog Alligator Army, plus SEC blog Team Speed Kills and SB Nation Tampa Bay.

He finishes his career at Georgia playing only five games, registering just 10 tackles.

For more on UGA football, visit Georgia blog Dawg Sports, plus SEC blog Team Speed Kills and SB Nation Atlanta.

Via CBS Sports’ Josh Kendall:

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The Associated Press via Sports Illustrated reports that Leonard was seen attending team practices two weeks ago and has been reinstated by the school.

In a statistic that may be a bit too telling, Leonard’s arrest marked the 10th arrest of a Florida player during the 15 months that Muschamp has been acting head coach of the team.

During the day on Thursday, Iowa running back Jordan Canzeri reportedly suffered a knee injury; Thursday night, Canzeri’s father confirmed to Rob Howe of Hawkeye Insider that Canzeri suffered a torn ACL.

Now? Well, if you have eligibility, you might want to contact Kirk Ferentz.

On Thursday, Rob Howe of Hawkeye Insider reported that Canzeri has suffered a knee injury. According to Brian Canzeri, Jordan’s father, his son will be undergoing an MRI. The extent of the injury is not currently known.

In seven games in 2011, Canzeri had 114 yards on 31 carries, as well as 28 yards and a touchdown on six receptions. The Hawkeyes are hoping that Canzeri will be a big contributor during the rest of his time at the school.

This isn’t the first time Dooley has termed a prolonged absence this way, nor is it the first time Rogers has made less-than-savory headlines. It’s also not the 355th piece of bad news to hit the Vols in the past two years, but more like the 1,763rd. I’ve lost count.

Rogers led the team with 1,040 receiving yards in 2011.

Rambo plans to appeal the suspension, Emerson reports, which came as a result of violating athletic department rules.

For more on UGA football, visit Georgia blog Dawg Sports, plus SEC blog Team Speed Kills and SB Nation Atlanta.

Ogletree will be a junior this season. He broke his foot against the Broncos in the season opener, but returned in late October to start eight games and pick up 52 tackles (7.5 for loss) and three forced fumbles.

For more on Rambo, Ogletree and the Georgia Bulldogs, head over to the SB Nation blog Dawg Sports.

Maryland cornerback Avery Graham was granted an unconditional release by the university and will transfer, according to reports. Graham was a redshirt junior and entered spring practice listed behind Jeremiah Johnson on the depth chart. Head coach Randy Edsall released a statement on Graham’s departure:

Via The Baltimore Sun:

Spring game season truly gets underway this weekend, with two of the country’s biggest outfits holding public to-dos. A handful of teams have already wrapped up their spring camps, but April-ish is when the totally pointless magic really shines.

Cross-border recruiting intrigue is also in play:

New basketball coach Frank Martin says he’ll talk with Ellington soon, while Spurrier says Martin “would be a heck of a football coach”. That’s probably entirely accurate, as Martin is comfortably the most intense man in Columbia already.

Ellington originally decided to give up football for just basketball. He should be able to play a big role on both teams, with Alshon Jeffery’s exit leaving the top of the wide receiver depth chart Ellington’s for the taking. Ellington finished second on the team to Marcus Lattimore in yards from scrimmage last year.

Urban Meyer plans to hit the ground running in Columbus, with his opening practice set to be a physical one. Expect constant competition at every turn -- as fellow Big Ten recruiters have noted, Meyer likes to compete all day long:

Elsewhere, UAB has a new head coach (Garrick McGee, from Arkansas) and NIU has replaced offensive coordinator Matt Canada, who went to Wisconsin, with Mike Dunbar. Technically, they replaced Canada with P.J. Fleck, but he resigned after a day on the job. Virginia Tech’s Frank Beamer and Bud Foster are still together, as they have been for decades now, but they’ll have their usual fleet of talent to replace, including ace running back David Wilson.

For more on Canes football, visit Miami blog The 7th Floor.

Patterson practiced as a linebacker in 2010 before sliding over to the offense last year. An ankle injury helped prevent him from suiting up for any action. A rising redshirt sophomore, he was once ranked the No. 40 outside linebacker recruit in the country by Rivals.

At 6’2 and 236 pounds with all sorts of impressive workout numbers, he could still be an outstanding player for another program.

He’s eligible to play right away, having already graduated. Kansas’ defensive line depth chart is wide open, with only two returning linemen boasting more than 10 tackles last year.

From Kansas’ release:

In January, Johnson would only say that the mysterious injury wasn’t a concussion, but hinted that Burnett’s career could be in jeopardy. Now it’s appearing it was a neck injury.

For more on Jackets football, visit Georgia Tech blog From The Rumble Seat, plus SB Nation Atlanta.

Crissman was one of the top quarterback recruits in the nation before going to UCLA five years ago, but was plagued by injuries during his time as a Bruin. He now claims to be 100% healthy and is looking forward to his final year at a school with more opportunities to play.

Crissman is expected to make a decision on a destination school within the next 10-12 weeks.

Penn State began spring practices Monday. So, neat! Some turmoil for Bill O’Brien! Right on time!

For more on Nittany Lions football, visit Penn State blog Black Shoe Diaries, plus Big Ten blog Off Tackle Empire, SB Nation Pittsburgh and SB Nation Philly.

At least new coach Bill O’Brien has already impressed PSU fans, who admit the whole issue is sort of complicated:

And if the chips fall right, Bray’s receiving corps could be pretty darn good (but there are kind of a lot of chips, which is always the case with Tennessee):