Gators News: A pair of Florida sports overshadowed by NFL draft on Thursday
Thursday is big for Gators sports with the 2021 NFL draft kicking off this evening, which includes at least one player who will be selected in the first round. In fact, that player has a chance to be the first UF alumnus to be drafted in the first round since Tim Tebow and the highest drafted player at his position in the modern era.
That man is the once-in-a-generation talent known as Kyle Pitts, tight end extraordinaire. Florida fans might also hear a second familiar name tonight, as wide receiver Kadarius Toney has been teetering on the first round in various mocks leading up to today.
However, there’s more to the Gator Nation than just football. UF has a pair of sports in action these past couple of days — here is a look at what has been going down.
Lacrosse
The No. 8 lacrosse team finished off its regular season on Wednesday with its 11th-straight win, this one over the Liberty Flames at home, 17-2. The Gators improved to 14-2 on the year and also hold a share of the conference title; this is the eighth time in program history that Florida has won at least 14 regular-season games.
Florida returns to action on May 6 for the AAC Tournament semifinal against the No. 4 seed Cincinnati Bearcats, scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m. EDT in Gainesville.
Track and field
The No. 4 men’s and No. 10 women’s track and field teams return to the races on Thursday for a pair of weekend meets, starting in Jacksonville at UNF where they will compete in the 1,500 and 5,000-meter events. The two squads then head to Baton Rouge on Saturday for the LSU Invitational. Events begin at 8:10 p.m. EDT on Thursday and 10:30 a.m. EDT on Saturday.
