Percy Harvin Zone

Florida wide receiver and master of the open space Percy Harvin had heel surgery Monday and is expected to be ready for fall practice. Great news to all Gator fans. A complication would have been devestating!The surgery was performed by foot specialist Dr. Robert Anderson at the Orthocarolina Orthopedic Clinic in Charlotte, N.C.

The Gators hope the surgery will relieve years of pain in Harvin’s right heel, which has bothered him off and on since his high school days in Virginia. I can’t believe that Percy is just now having the surgery if he’s been in pain for so long. If the surgery is simple why did he not do it in the past? Anyways, good luck and get well Percy!

It’s official. Percy Harvin will undergo surgery on his heel this week.

“It’s not a career-threatening injury,” Florida head coach Urban Meyer said Friday. “It’s a very minor surgery, probably an eight-week recovery and then he’ll be full speed for offseason. They’re saying in June we should be able to get him cranked up, for sure July.”

Renowned foot specialist Dr. Robert Anderson will perform the surgery, so it looks like Harvin’s in good hands. Harvin hopes that the decision to go through with this will put an end to years of heel pain.

Source: RF365

The Gators first Spring Practice of the year took place yesterday. The players were amped and ready to take the field after a somewhat disappointing 2007 season. GatorBait.net listed Percy as one of their Top 5 players who stood out. Here’s what they had to say:

Percy Harvin - It can be difficult for a player like Harvin to impress because so much is already expected of him. Despite that, today he was impressive - literally playing with the defensive backs as he ran away from them, beating all he went against on both short and long passes.

While it is true that so much is expected from Percy that it is hard for him to impress us, but it is great news to hear that he is running well and still burning by defensive backs. Without speed, Percy just becomes a regular WR.

We’ll be sure to keep all you Percy Harvin fans updated as the spring practices progress.

The following article was printed in the Alligator today. Urban Meyer is turning the Orange and Blue Spring game into a fun festival will all sorts of activities. He wants to get the attention of the National Media and really amp of future recruits. The fastest non-student athlete will race Percy Harvin for a scholarship. Pretty cool huh?

Think you can beat Percy Harvin, Deonte Thompson, Louis Murphy and Chris Rainey in the 40-yard dash?

UF coach Urban Meyer will give students a chance to prove it — with a full scholarship on the line.

Meyer announced the first-ever speed challenge on Wednesday. The event will take place during the Orange and Blue Game on April 12. ESPN GameDay will broadcast live from Gainesville and ESPN will televise the game live.

While full details have yet to be worked out, Meyer said that on Thursdays of spring practices, which begin March 19, strength coaches will be out on the practice fields and students will be invited to come out and train. The entrants will be whittled down to one lucky contestant who will face Harvin, Thompson, Murphy and Rainey in front of a packed Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

“I want to give back to our students somehow,” Meyer said. “That’s going to be a great afternoon. If I’m a recruit and I come out and watch the ESPN GameDay crew in the stadium, watch it on a beautiful afternoon in the spring in Florida, and then you get to see a 40-yard dash in front of 60,000 people, that’d be kind of neat. Maybe that can help us get a couple of fast guys in recruiting.”

The Gators have a new Running Backs Coach in Kenny Carter. He came from Vandy and is already familiar with Florida situation in the backfield. Last year, Florida’s two leading rushers were Tim Tebow and Percy Harvin. I don’t think that will be the case in 2008, but Carter isn’t so quick to change a good thing. Check out what he recently said in a press conference:

“Our whole deal is to do what we need to do to win games. If we have one guy that rushes for 1,000 yards, outstanding. But if we have a collection of guys that rush for more than 1,000 yards, then we’re getting the production out of the position, which is more important.

“In the end, it all comes down to how many yards did you rush for. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter who rushed for what. What matters is what we produce from that position and how many wins do you have at the end of the season.”

This leads me to believe that the Gators will still use Harvin as a running back in certain situations. What matters is that they produce from that position. The Gators will have a much better running back core in 2008 then they did last year. Percy won’t likely be counted on to run the ball 10 or 15 times a game anymore. He’ll probably be brought in as a change of pace type of guy. Maybe 5 carries a game just to keep the defense on their toes.

The Florida Gators start their spring practices in a couple of weeks, Wednesday March 19th I believe is the first day. Percy Harvin is amped and ready to go. The Gators will work out and players will participate in drills that eventually lead up to the Orange and Blue Game on April 12.

When it comes to skills on the field, Percy doesn’t really have to prove much to the coaches. They know what he’s capable of. What Percy does need to prove is that he can be a leader on and off the field. Harvin is a junior now and will have dozens of underclassmen looking up to him… seeking him for advice.

I’ve always felt like Harvin has been reserved and not outspoken. He’s never vocal in the papers or vying for media attention. He does his job and leads by example. However, this year, I’d love to see Percy take an active role on the sideline and in the huddle when it comes to getting teammates pumped up and ready to play in crucial situations.

Much like the Chinese have “the year of the dog”, I am proclaiming 2008 the Year of Percy Harvin. Percy has to be getting pumped the the Spring Game coming up in 2 months. I’m sure he’s working his ass off in the gym trying to put on a few pounds of muscle and increasing his quickness.

I’m not saying this is a make or break it year for Harvin, but in 2008 I think we’re going to see some very big things from him. Not only on the field, but off the field too. Fans across the country will be hearing the name “Percy Harvin.” I think he’ll be on the cover of magazines, have ESPN stories done about him and more.

That’s why 2008 is the year of Percy Harvin. He’ll dominate the stat line and grace our television screens.

Coming out of high school, Percy Harvin was one of the top recruited wide receivers in the nation. Big things were expected of him from the start. I just wanted to get an idea of what his fans thought about his progress from his freshman to sophomore year and if Percy has surpassed expectations?

Freshman year - 34 receptions, 427 yards 2 touchdowns. 41 rushes, 428 yards, 3 touchdowns.

Sophomore year - 59 receptions, 858 yards, 4 touchdowns. 83 rushes, 764 yards, 6 touchdowns.

He nearly doubled his production from year 1 to year 2. That is very good progress in my opinion. And even though Percy was so highly recruited, I think he has surpassed all expectations. He has brought an excitement to this team and production that no one could have asked for.

What do you think?

College Football News recently published their ranking of the top 32 prospects for the 2009 NFL Draft. They ranked Percy Harvin as the second best wide receiver prospect and #19 overall. Here’s a quick excerpt of what they had to say:

19. Percy Harvin, WR Florida (Jr.)
He might not be a pure wide receiver at an NFL level, but he’s an elite playmaker no matter how he gets the ball in his hands. No, he’s not going to be a No. 1 target for anyone, but he’ll be a fun toy for some creative offensive coordinator to play with.

I would have ranked Harvin higher then 19 overall. If he has a season like everyone is expecting, he could very well be a top 10 pick in the Draft. He has Reggie Bush like skills… meaning he’s very fast, has amazing hands, and is versatile. Teams will love the fact that they can use Harvin in several different positions and situations.

It will be interesting to see if Harvin comes out after his junior year. I guess it all comes down to what kind of season he has. Should he get hurt or have a down year, I really think he’ll be back fo his senior year, making him ready for the 2010 Draft.

University of Florida running back coach Stan Drayton left the Gators to coach for their rival the Tennessee Volunteers. Normally, you couldn’t think a running back coach leaving would have an effect on a wide receiver, but in the spread offense we all know Harvin gets plenty of carries out of the back field. So do you think Drayton’s departure will help or hurt Percy Harvin?

I think it will actually help him. Drayton really has done nothing when it comes to developing running backs. I’m sure Percy spent a lot of time with him at practice going over effective ways to run through the line and possibly pick up blocks.

But from a pure running back standpoint, the Gators have been lacking there for years. Graham was a solid runner, but since him they have been very thin at that position. I hope bringing in a new running back coach helps the Gators build a better running game. This will help Harvin when he is lining up as a receiver and when he’s back as a runner.