Mike Bianchi chimes in on Tavadis Glenn…

Tavadis Glenn threw up The U at Florida’s Friday Night Lights camp. Since then, a Sunshine State mini-media frenzy.

Amazing how a story of this nature becomes front page news and will grow in folklore over the years. We’ll see where it all ends up, but for now let’s check out the Orlando Sentinel’s Mike Bianchi – a self-proclaimed Gator – and his insight on the Glenn situation.

It hardly comes as a shock that Bianchi took the stance that Gator coaches were in the right to toss Glenn out of last week’s camp. He was warned, he ‘represented’ a rival school and for that, he deserved to get bounced.

Unfortunately Mike, you’re wrong again.

Glenn is a Miami commitment and Florida knew that before rolling out the invite to camp. The Gators are still pursuing Glenn, even though he’s a full-fledged Cane. The same coach who threw an arm around him and warned him to stop with the U-related antics would just as quickly get in his ear, convincing him that Florida is where he should be.

Welcome to the game of recruiting, coaches. It goes both ways.

Glenn went up against a Florida commitment, beat him in a drill and exuded some excitement after the fact. He tossed up Miami’s “U hands” towards his defeated foe and again for his coach and friends in the stands — folks who paid $35 to see Glenn in action.

Florida is pursuing a kid committed elsewhere, yet gets upset when he pledges his allegiance to said program.

That’s like inviting over a girl with a boyfriend and then getting mad when she talks about him.

Florida team spokesman Steve McClain attempted to spin things, saying “He (Glenn) was asked to leave during the last drill period of the camp because of potential safety issues to other campers.”

Right, Steve. And Nike confiscated tapes of LeBron James getting dunked on because cameras weren’t allowed. It had nothing to do with saving face. Please.

A Florida assistant is said to have told Glenn to “take that s**t down there” regarding his Canes-related display. Classy move, coach. Way to let a 17-year old kid get under your skin.

Had this been a Florida kid doing the ‘gator chomp’ at a Miami camp, my stance would be the same. The issue isn’t with a kid acting like a kid. The problem lies with coaches having no respect for the term ‘commitment’ – especially Florida, where Urban Meyer has oft been accused of shady recruiting practices. (Google ‘urban meyer recruiting‘ and do some digging.) It’s one thing to pursue. It’s another to trash-talk a rival and spread rumors, a common practice in Gainesville.

The fact two Jacksonville products (Glenn and Raines High teammate Louis Nix) are thinking Miami is mud in the eye of the defending champs. Guarantee Florida coaches wanted Glenn in camp to talk down the Canes while hyping the Gators. The fact that Glenn continued to show his love for The U? Nothing more than a case of playing with fire and getting burned.

Next time around Gators, leave the Cane commits alone.

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