RONNIE WILSON HELPS FLORIDA RELOAD
A powerful high-caliber recruit who shot into the starting lineup as a left guard on the 2006 national title team, Ronnie Wilson will be reinstated at Florida as a walk-on on the defensive tackle position*.
Wilson, who spent over a year away from the team following an incident where the lineman discharged an AK-47 in a downtown Gainesville parking lot**, aims to help the Gators reload on the defensive line. The d-line will need significant firepower this season to assist a secondary still reeling from being shot to pieces by opposing quarterbacks in 2007. Wilson, a 6′4″, 310 pound former starting guard, could provide some substantial fire along the line, though there is a firefight of competition surrounding the spot.*** He’ll have to acquire all the skills d-lineman need: looking down the barrel of an onrushing offensive lineman, shooting the gap, and strafing through blocks in rapid-fire fashion to bring down his target.
Given the current state of Florida’s defensive line, we predict Wilson will rise with a bullet to the top of the depth chart!**** Go Gators!*****
*Really? Reeeeeeeeally? Agog. Agape. Not with surprise, but with disgust, since we sort of expected him to be back on the team in November of 2007. By that standard, we should be happy, if that “standard” didn’t mean “bitter sarcasm,” and it does.
**Fucking around and just discharging a weapon? We could live with that. We could, really. Everyone has a gun in Florida. Alligators have guns. Possums do, too, though really they mostly prefer poisoning their rivals, which explains why you see them lying around half-dead all the time. It’s kind of a passion of theirs.
But discharging a machine gun because you feel threatened, or even just carrying one around in your trunk? That’s a behavioral dealbreaker, or rephrased: should have been a behavioral dealbreaker.
***Because vaunted frosh Omar Hunter allegedly already hurt his back weightlifting. The noise you hear is us punting the nearest puppy into a bug zapper. No, we don’t feel better after that.
****Purchase smoke machines and military fatigues immediately. We’re da U now, and will have to live with it. Jacked Jesus on a pogo stick; having a cyborg as your coach has its drawbacks, but this is the greatest one by far. Well, that and his plan to exterminate the human race one fleshy weakling at a time. That’s a potentially inconvenient bit, too.
*****Only possible upside: Ronnie Wilson can wear 47 if Brandon Antwine’s willing to switch jerseys.









101
UFGatorDMD says:
Some of you are such moral pillars that have done no wrong. I’m sure you would all say the same things to Ronnie Wilson’s face that you put down here while hiding behind your computers.
I personally wish Wilson good luck and hope he continues to be a good student, a better person, and a good football player.
I find it hard to believe that some of you think he is outlandish in firing a gun into the air to scare off a car that was following him for over an hour. You think he’s scary enough being a big guy? Guess what, oh knowing ones, guns kill big guys, too. Ask the Pata family in Miami.
Would you guys be saying the same thing if this were your son? No. But you’re all high and mighty here on the internet. Please.
Wilson made a serious mistake. I think he’s paid the price for it. Obviously so does Urban Meyer.
August 1st, 2008 at 5:18 pm
102
Brian O'Blivion says:
he faced a mandatory 20 yr. prison term if he went to trial and was convicted.
Wrong-o. After the incident was investigated, he was charged with battery and discharging a firearm, both misdemeanors. Each charge is a 1 year max prison term, and only someone with a long criminal record would get that.
August 1st, 2008 at 5:48 pm
103
blon57 says:
#100
These kids are representatives of the university. They sign on to play for the athletic department and they wear the school uniforms. They are the face of the university. Fair? Maybe not, but that is the reality.
My alma mater had some players arrested last summer on drug and burglary charges. They were dismissed from the team before they were convicted. We are extremely concerned with our image and so is the coaching staff. I donate to the university and support it as a life member of the ex-student association. If they had not been dismissed I would have pulled my donation, as would many others. The response to those incidents were overwhelming; students and ex-students alike wanted those players GONE. End of discussion. We care about the value of our degree and our face to the public.
And to the statement if he were my son…it would be a painful, painful emotional day for any child of mine if they shot off a gun in the air, charged with a DUI, cocaine distribution… My kid wouldn’t have to worry about the athletic department pulling his scholarship. I would do it for them.
I believe in rehabilitation. I am a white, liberal elite voting for Obama. But rehabilitation is a job for the courts and his family, not the athletic department.
August 1st, 2008 at 6:04 pm
104
Chas says:
#91,
It was all about the TEC-9 in my day.
#99,
I still think it’s apples and oranges to compare the two, but I can see your point. Fair enough.
#100,
I’ve done a lot of stupid things in my life. Discharging an automatic weapon in a public place is not one of them however. (And why did he even HAVE an AK in his car to begin with?) There are mistakes, there are youthful indescretions, and then there’s stuff like this. How exactly did he learn his lesson? By being able to stay in school and allowed back on the team? Wow, that’s some harsh punishment. Oh that’s right, he had to pay for his classes. Funny enough, I had to pay for my classes at UF and I didn’t even own a gun during my time in Gainesville. It’s not being a hater, it’s wanting a higher standard from the people that represent my university in the public eye, and I’m not sorry for it.
August 1st, 2008 at 6:05 pm
105
Al-D says:
when you consider that the NFL only gave chris henry and pacman jones half season and full season suspensions, respectively, for multiple criminal incidents including at least one apiece where guns were fired, then this actually begins to look like a harsh punishment
August 1st, 2008 at 6:09 pm
106
Johneye says:
After Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois there should be no scholarship available for a fool like him. If he were a typical student he couldnt even get back on campus. For the Florida students sake he should have been sent packing PERMANENTLY.
August 1st, 2008 at 6:13 pm
107
blon57 says:
In the NFL I doubt he would have been suspended at all. It is a league rife with thugs and criminal behavior.
This isn’t the NFL. This is college.
August 1st, 2008 at 6:22 pm
108
Brian O'Blivion says:
My alma mater had some players arrested last summer on drug and burglary charges.
All felonies. Not the same. Wilson was formally charged with two misdemeanors.
We are extremely concerned with our image and so is the coaching staff.
Then why were two players, Melton and Kindle, still on the roster after being arrested for DUI last year? They were suspended for 3 games. DUI, as you know, also endangers others, and is also a misdemeanor.
students and ex-students alike wanted those players GONE. End of discussion. We care about the value of our degree and our face to the public.
Great. Anyone convicted of a felony, I want gone off of my team too. Wilson wasn’t.
August 1st, 2008 at 6:28 pm
109
blon57 says:
I don’t necessarliy agree with Melton and Kindle being reinstated. And a DUI should not be just a misdemeanor, but they didn’t consult me when they wrote the law.
August 1st, 2008 at 6:44 pm
110
southernmost says:
A DUI, while not the smartest move in the world, isn’t in the same ballpark as firing a fucking assault rifle in public.
August 1st, 2008 at 6:49 pm
111
blon57 says:
And shooting a gun in a public place can endanger others. That, too, should be a felony. And no one should be able to own an AK 47. But that isn’t my call either.
I live in a state where most people own guns. I grew up in a family of gun-loving
hunters. No one owned an AK 47. They wouldn’t be much of sportsman if they had to use that type of gun.
August 1st, 2008 at 6:49 pm
112
Chas says:
Assault rifles are necessary for hunting today’s super-animals like the flying squirrel or the electric eel
August 1st, 2008 at 7:35 pm
113
watcher16 says:
you people are still ignoring the fact that he violated the terms of his suspension during his college athlete parole (for lack of a better term). Do that in real life and they don’t put you back on the streets free of charge any faster.
August 1st, 2008 at 10:44 pm
114
mdr says:
#112 –
*applause*
August 1st, 2008 at 10:55 pm
115
oc phil says:
Heston @99: So it was a good day if he didn’t use his AK?
August 2nd, 2008 at 12:42 am
116
NRBQ says:
@Florida Dentist
Hope you don’t run into him at 3 a.m. when he’s feeling all threatened.
August 2nd, 2008 at 9:25 am
117
Brian O'Blivion says:
A DUI, while not the smartest move in the world, isn’t in the same ballpark as firing a fucking assault rifle in public.
You’re right. DUI’s are worse. DUI’s kill thousands more people every year.
August 2nd, 2008 at 9:44 am
118
PW says:
116
“May I play Devil’s Advocate for a moment?”
(plays arcade game called “Devil’s Advocate”…one of the funniest moments in Simpson’s history)
I’m sure the ratio of drunk driving-related fatalities to instances of drunk driving is much smaller than the ratio of assault rifle-related deaths to assault rifles fired in public.
Either way, your point is taken that both are extremely serious and stupid.
August 2nd, 2008 at 10:18 am
119
4theU says:
Hilarious! And to think most of you ignorant Gator fans are still runing around calling Miami thug-U!!!!
And for the record, UF is not Da U, Da U whipped ass on the field and won championships. UF is just an out of control bunch of thugs, more like PSU than “The U”
August 2nd, 2008 at 10:53 am
120
Brian O'Blivion says:
I’m sure the ratio of drunk driving-related fatalities to instances of drunk driving is much smaller than the ratio of assault rifle-related deaths to assault rifles fired in public.
I don’t think so. First, you cannot include instances of someone purposely firing an assault rifle at someone with the intent to cause harm, because that isn’t the same thing as what happened here. Go ahead and try to find instances, any instances, of assault rifles randomly fired into the air in this country (not Iraq) that have killed someone. I bet you have a very difficult time finding many, if you do find any, and the total number of randomly fired assault rifles in the air is difficult or perhaps impossible to measure.
You won’t have the same problem with DUI fatalities. So even if the total number of DUI instances in this country is in the millions per year (sad, I know), the thousands of deaths are still going to be a higher ratio.
I agree that both acts are incredibly stupid, but there is no question which one has caused more deaths and more injuries to others – DUI. As you can see on this thread, drinking and driving is just more socially accepted, and therefore, viewed as “not as bad” as this act, when in fact, it’s worse.
August 2nd, 2008 at 11:10 am
121
Biggus Rickus says:
I’m guessing that the number of drunk drivers on a given day would number in the tens of millions, and of those millions per day there are roughly fifty deaths caused by these incidences every day. That’s a minuscule percentage. I would wager the percentage of people injured or killed by random gunfire is much higher, but I can’t get you the statistics because it is rare and nobody conducts studies.
August 2nd, 2008 at 11:48 am
122
Wolf says:
Some facts:
Wilson fired off a .22lr in public according to the police report.
An AK-47 isn’t a machine gun, and the term “assault” rifle is a made up term used by gun banners to attempt to convince people that because certain rifles were black and scary, that they were more dangerous.
Having said that, we fail epically for letting someone who shows that poor judgement back on the team. Firearms are not toys.
As to the various morons that posted how nobody should own such and such a weapon, i say this
You don’t get to decide what I need, and if you don’t like guns, don’t won one.
August 2nd, 2008 at 12:16 pm
123
Steve W says:
A machine gun is a fully-automatic mounted or portable firearm. An AK-47 fires 600 rounds per minute. Let’s go ahead and call that a machine gun.
August 2nd, 2008 at 12:29 pm
124
Mitch says:
Mr. Wolf,
The term assault rifle is a term that is defined as a weapon that discharges a weapon whose ammunition travels faster than the speed of sound.
It is not a made up term to scare people.
The AK-47 is the Russians premier weapon similar to the M-16. The differences is that it fires a 7.62mm bullet rather than the latter 5.56mm bullet. This weapon fires around 500 rounds a minute and the bullets travel in excess of 2300 fps (feet per second). The magazine carries 30 rounds. Additionally, this weapon has a internal bayonet that is 12 inches long.
This weapon is the choice of most paramilitary groups because of its ability to completely maw human bone and flesh.
The shear fact that the AK-47 did not bring ATF and federal prosecustion charges is beyond me.
August 2nd, 2008 at 1:17 pm
125
plastic paddy says:
ask the chef about falling bullets, not so fatal really-
http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=3312784
Sorry, the honeymoons still not over for me, I still like
Coach Meyer and since I have never meet Ronnie Wilson I am going to have to take Coach Meyer’s word that Wilson is ready to play for the Gators.
Ohh… and I have shot a .22 up in the air and no body died… go figure.
Boo-Fucking-Hoo already, pull up your panties you bunch of candy asses.
Go be a bleeding heart liberal.
Go Gators.
August 2nd, 2008 at 1:29 pm
126
blon57 says:
#119
Actually, Brian, an instance happened here in the Austin area. A man was target shooting with a .22 caliber rifle and an errant bullet hit a little boy jumping on a trampoline in a neighboring yard about a third of a mile away. The boy died and the man received an eight year sentence for manslaughter.
Yes, driving under the influence is stupid and dangerous (and I believe the penalties should be more severe for first time offenders even when they do not injure anyone) but so is shooting off a gun in public.
My point was that a student that decides to own a gun, let alone an assault rifle, is just a problem waiting to happen. I don’t care how damn talented he is, I wouldn’t want him playing for my alma mater. (Lord knows we already have enough guns around here, anyway.) I think that was Orson’s point, but he can speak to that.
Kudos to Bob Stoops. He knew the past problems of his program (not necessarily any of his players, but an inherited reputation) and he did the right thing. He averted a likely problem early.
And I cannot believe I just praised Bob Stoops. Damn.
August 2nd, 2008 at 1:47 pm
127
Brian O'Blivion says:
number of drunk drivers on a given day would number in the tens of millions,
In the US? No. There’s only 300 million people here, and probably less than a third drive on any given day. For that stat to be true, more than 10% of them would be drunk. And if that were true, there would be a whole lot more accidents and deaths than there are now.
I would wager the percentage of people injured or killed by random gunfire is much higher
Again, “random gunfire” is different than randomly shooting a gun into the air. Random gunfire could be a drive by shooting where people randomly shoot at a building. I don’t think you’ll find many, if any, instances of firing a gun up into the air killing someone here in the US. But you’ll find thousands and thousands of deaths every year from DUI.
A man was target shooting
Target shooting is not the same as firing a gun into the air.
August 2nd, 2008 at 2:19 pm
128
Hannibal Sativa says:
This must be a record for weekend comments on EDSBS.
Spellcheck on aisle 122!
Is Brian O’B really Coop, back in all his obstinance ?
@122 – Want some Freedom Fries with that?
August 2nd, 2008 at 3:21 pm
129
Cannibal Sativa says:
Aisle 121, dang it.
Stupid fingers.
August 2nd, 2008 at 3:27 pm
130
Brad says:
You Gators must be proud. Your coach has propelled you into a new light. Firing a gun in a crowd and only being supended for a year. Unfuckingbelievable. Who is paying this thug’s tuition? I’m sure that is questionable too.
You will get what you deserve. Your coach will lead your program back to the hole in which it once festered. I almost feel sorry for you all. Enjoy the fall.
August 2nd, 2008 at 6:09 pm
131
hunglikehussain says:
What is interesting here is the “agenda promoting.” Argue all you want….this is a nation still governed by the “rule of law.”
August 2nd, 2008 at 8:00 pm
132
Sparrow says:
Mr. O’Blivion,
The lack of indignation over players being charged with DUIs is in no way a reason to ignore the bad actions of Ronnie Wilson. Whether or not it is hypocritical (on the part of the coaches, the university, the fans, etc.) is another matter completely. If both are offenses that merit dismissal, Wilson doesn’t deserve a pass just because the drunk guys got one. You should be happy UF got it half right and hope they figure out how to handle DUIs in the future.
For what it’s worth, I suspect people don’t get bent out of shape over a DUI is because they are so commonplace. Things that we do are not nearly as outrageous as things that others do.
August 2nd, 2008 at 9:47 pm
133
southernmost says:
Brian, why do you think so many bars do happy hour from 5-7? It’s not to make the winos happy. When I worked in an office, the bar was an everyday stop on the commute home for way more than 10% of the employees, and that was a bunch of computer nerds.
August 3rd, 2008 at 9:41 am
134
Three Days of Orange says:
All I want to know from the Gator homers: if Ronnie Wilson walked on at Georgia would you still be happy for him and still think it was ok?
Otherwise, I’m fine with it. “Da U” is a little harsh, Mr. Swindle.
Thanks for a great article and comment-brush-fire.
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:04 pm
135
Stupidthread.org says:
It was not an AK-47 you gamejobs. If you are going to blog, at least get your facts straight.
August 4th, 2008 at 12:55 am
136
Pitt13-wvu9 says:
I think the difference between “dui” and “firing off my assault rifle” – regardless of which kills more – is this:
Drinking is legal in cities in this country. It is possible to misjudge how many drinks you’ve had and if you’re “over” or “under” a limit – especially when the activity impairs the exact judgement you need to make the determination. People make mistakes in judgement.
On the other hand, it seems kind of hard to “misjudge” whether or not you should be pulling out your gat and firing it into the air in a city after leaving the bar. This isn’t one of those things where “you might be fine.” Its always a no. To compare it to a DUI is asinine.
Just sayin.
August 4th, 2008 at 5:27 am
137
Tim says:
Everyone,
I live in Florida and own six firearms.
August 4th, 2008 at 9:54 am
138
Brian O'Blivion says:
The lack of indignation over players being charged with DUIs is in no way a reason to ignore the bad actions of Ronnie Wilson.
Who’s ignored it? Not I. Just pointed out the over-the-top moral outrage here from the same people who willingly accept people who have been convicted of DUI back on their teams. Yes, what Wilson did was wrong, no question. But is Meyer “slime” for giving him a second chance? No.
Drinking is legal in cities in this country.
So what. Firing a gun, in many cases, is legal as well. Just not this one, which is fine. He was charged and arrested for it. Not disputing that at all.
To compare it to a DUI is asinine.
Not at all. Both acts endanger others? Check. Both acts were a result of poor judgment? Check. Both acts misdemeanors? Check.
The only difference is as previously noted, more people drive drunk, so therefore (to them) this act is somehow more “outrageous”. HOWEVER, it is no less dangerous. DUI’s kill thousands of more people every single year. This is without question. So there’s no question which act endangers others more – DUI.
August 4th, 2008 at 9:55 am
139
PW says:
136
DUI’s aren’t always a “no”?
August 4th, 2008 at 10:18 am
140
Pitt13-wvu9 says:
“More deaths! MORE DEATHS!”
You can scream it over and over again – but thats not how we decide whats worse. If we went by your idea, then athletes shouldn’t drive cars at all, because more people die in sober crashes than dui crashes or random gunfire. Let me fix what you said:
“Driving sober kill thousands of more people every single year. This is without question. So there’s no question which act endangers others more – driving sober.”
Using your logic, driving sober is the worst thing we can do. But we’re not all dumb like that.
The point you keep ignoring, that everyone else on this site understands, is that it was a MUCH POORER display of judgement. To get a dui, you could have had 4 (or was it 3? or 5?) drinks in 3 (or was it 2? or 4?) hours, and sometimes people “misjudge” whether they are at a .07 (you’re fine!) or a .09 (you evil bastard!), or if the law is .10, then .11, or .09, etc. This is not saying DUI is “great” – but rational people understand how easily this misjudgement can be made.
Now, there is NEVER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE WHERE YOU CAN PULL OUT YOUR AK IN A CITY, and then FIRE IT INTO THE AIR. NONE. There is no room for “slight misjudgement” there. It was complete jackassery.
Someone could “think” they were fine to drive a car, but it turns out it was wrong. They misjudged. Tell me when you can “think” you’re ok to pull out an assault rifle in a city and fire it into the air. Go ahead. Please. Explain it to us slow people.
If your point was to prove you can be the most irrational here, congratulations:
Mission accomplished.
August 4th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
141
Bernie Machen must go says:
Bernie is an idiot and will look lost in two years like the PSU president last week on ESPN Outside the Lines…
The program is a thug program- it started with Urban. Shame…It won best party school from the Princeton Review…Where did the days of going after the public-ivy go?
When Miami and UF play this year- only the uniform will show them being different….UF has become FSU. Nice.
August 4th, 2008 at 7:02 pm
142
Pitt13-wvu9 says:
PS. Tell me these CITIES that its ok to fire guns in that you are talking about. Me thinks you’re making it up. I know of none.
August 4th, 2008 at 7:03 pm
143
Allahver Fist says:
#141,
The unraveling of discipline started with [NAME REDACTED].
August 5th, 2008 at 8:15 am
144
Brian O'Blivion says:
Using your logic, driving sober is the worst thing we can do.
Wow, I don’t know where to begin with this line of reasoning.
Driving is a legal activity. So is owning and discharging a firearm (it was not an AK). However, there are things you can do with both of them that make them illegal. That’s how society works. DUI homicides are not just car accidents, which yes, people who are sober die from as well. There is a good reason you get sent to prison for killing someone while DUI, and don’t for just a regular car accident.
Just because you can “accidentally” have a DUI because you “misjudge” how much you drink does not make it any less illegal or dangerous. If you choose to drink and then get behind the wheel, you are endangering others, and you are engaging in an activity that has killed thousands of people.
Whether you meant to do it becomes irrelevant at that point. It goes from a misdemeanor DUI to vehicular homicide, for the very same act. Same would have been true if Wilson’s firing into the air actually had hurt or killed someone. Like someone convicted of vehicular homicide, he could say he didn’t intend to kill anyone and that would be true, but he’ll still be punished accordingly. And statistically, tens of thousands more people have died from DUI than from firing a gun into the air. So while you can write all you want that firing the gun was “worse”, that won’t make it true. The only measure of “worse” is the injuries and deaths to others from the activity.
August 5th, 2008 at 10:24 am
145
Indy says:
This reinstatement is not the sign of a change. It is a confirmation of what everyone north of Tenn already knew. I really hope that every UF grad stays in Florida. If you ever attempt to compete nationally or god forbid internationally for a job outside of FLA. armed with your UF degree — you will be in for one rude awakening.
August 5th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
146
Matthew says:
Bernie Machen must go,
Can you please not compare Miami and UF on terms like this? UM has this ridiculous brand of Thug U, meanwhile the Gators rack up arrests like they’re touchdowns. When a Miami team based on Randy Shannon’s virtues and standards visits Urban Meyer’s successful but delinquent Gators, there will be much different underneath the jerseys.
August 7th, 2008 at 2:43 am