All UF Athletics
Notebook: Norman attracts Gators’ attention
By Edward Aschoff
Correspondent
Posted:
11/05/2009 12:57 AM
Florida coach Urban Meyer and his team usually only spend Sundays looking at film on opposing teams’ special teams.
This week, Meyer broke the film out again Tuesday.
Meyer’s extra careful attention to detail this week came because of Vanderbilt’s Warren Norman.
The freshman became only the second player in SEC history to record three touchdowns on kickoff returns in a season when he took a kick 80 yards for a score last week in the second quarter against Georgia Tech. In just nine games, Norman became Vandy’s all-time leader in single-season kickoff return yardage (852). He needs 51 return yards to break the SEC all-time record set by Arkansas’ Dennis Johnson in 2008.
“I’ve never seen a freshman return three kickoffs for touchdowns and it’s not against one of those smaller schools. It’s against SEC opponents,” Meyer said during the weekly SEC coaches call Wednesday.
Vandy coach Bobby Johnson said Wednesday that he was surprised to see Norman tie former Tennessee returner Willie Gault’s (1980) record as a freshman, but he’s not surprised at how talented Norman is as a player.
This week, Meyer broke the film out again Tuesday.
Meyer’s extra careful attention to detail this week came because of Vanderbilt’s Warren Norman.
The freshman became only the second player in SEC history to record three touchdowns on kickoff returns in a season when he took a kick 80 yards for a score last week in the second quarter against Georgia Tech. In just nine games, Norman became Vandy’s all-time leader in single-season kickoff return yardage (852). He needs 51 return yards to break the SEC all-time record set by Arkansas’ Dennis Johnson in 2008.
“I’ve never seen a freshman return three kickoffs for touchdowns and it’s not against one of those smaller schools. It’s against SEC opponents,” Meyer said during the weekly SEC coaches call Wednesday.
Vandy coach Bobby Johnson said Wednesday that he was surprised to see Norman tie former Tennessee returner Willie Gault’s (1980) record as a freshman, but he’s not surprised at how talented Norman is as a player.
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