During UF coach Urban Meyer's press conferences this season, I have waited and listened for the same question.
It gets asked almost every time, and the answer usually leaves me more confused than I was beforehand.
Here's the gist of it: "Coach, how is Emmanuel Moody looking, and do you expect him to get more carries?"
It's a fair question, as Moody was expected to be a go-to force for the Gators' offense this season after he transferred from Southern Cal, but Meyer's responses keep my head spinning, like the one he gave Monday:
"I do, but if it doesn't happen, it doesn't happen. Emmanuel Moody is terrific at some things. I think he's good at everything, but there are some things he's outstanding at. That's top-of-the-I, downhill runs that he came out of at USC. I could see him getting more carries as he continues to develop."
First of all, if Moody is still developing, that doesn't say much for the Pac-10 Conference, where he won Offensive Freshman of the Year honors, but let's dig into the saga of Emmanuel Moody's season, which has been more puzzling than prolific.
After a 2-yard day against Hawaii, Moody was left on the bench for the entire Miami game. Then, he reeled off 55 yards on nine carries at Tennessee and fought for 16 tough yards against Mississippi before spraining his right ankle.
He sat out three games while recovering, and then Meyer put him in at the end of UF's victory over Georgia, where he tallied 71 yards on seven carries to lead the team in rushing.
Last week against Vanderbilt, he saw playing time early, but after a 24-yard dash in the second quarter, receiver Percy Harvin took the next four carries on the drive.
Now, I don't pretend to have a wide array of football knowledge or harbor any illusions that I could be a football coach - although 20 consecutive Tecmo Super Bowl championships has to count for something - but the way Moody has been used is really confusing me.
He gets yards when he's in the game and is probably the Gators' most consistent runner besides Tim Tebow. So why doesn't he play more?
Honestly, I can't come up with an answer, which is probably why I'll be asking that question next week.
Nickname still undecided: I got some good e-mail suggestions from readers last week about a nickname for UF running back Jeff Demps, and you can vote for the one you like on alligatorSports.org. We're leaving the poll up for a week, so you've got time to think it out.
Here are a few I liked:
Ethan Rucker suggested "Gump" because, as he says, "Not since Forrest Gump wowed Bear Bryant has college football seen a more explosively fast player than Demps. The added benefit of this moniker is that we've already had a Bubba in Andre Caldwell. The Gator Nation needs another character from that classic film to rally around, (and) who better to receive that nickname than Demps?"
Well done, Ethan. Some other good ones were "The Flash" after the superhero, "Quicksilver," "Roadrunner" and "Rocket Man."
One e-mailer suggested "Beetle Juice" because "just look at him," and others proposed "The Gingerbread Man" (you can't catch him) and "Rapid Transit."
