I don't envy David Letterman. Putting together a top 10 list can be fairly difficult.
At a school like UF, with a successful sports program and plenty of talented athletes, narrowing down the pack to 10 players was not a particularly easy task for myself and the five other alligatorSports columnists. Some, like Phil Kegler, went through a ridiculous multi-step process to create their lists. Phil may have even used matrices, for all I know.
Readers of the paper and listeners of the alligatorSports Podcast have sent in a few e-mails making perfectly valid arguments for people who had great years but didn't make the list. And while we couldn't make a top 25 list - there are only so many papers in a semester - I'd like to recognize some of the athletes who just missed the cut. This list is in no particular order, but it emphasizes the smaller-sport athletes who weren't recognized for their accomplishments.
Kelly Murphy, Volleyball: Elyse Cusack took the 10th spot on our list due to her all-around success and leadership, but Murphy was the breakout star of the 2008 season for the volleyball team. She was named the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year and picked up national freshman of the year from two different organizations. She finished 11th in our voting, but I feel like she was more than worthy of the top 10.
Mariam Kevkhishvili, Track and Field: There were three constants on days that the track and field team had a meet: sunrise, sunset and Mariam Kevkhishvili winning. The national champion shot putter, hands-down the best in the nation in the event, should have made the top 10 for the unbelievable year she had.
Gemma Spofforth, Swimming and Diving: Spofforth won two individual national titles - her second straight 100 back and third straight 200 back - at the 2009 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships. The junior was the SEC Female Swimmer of the Year, and her two NCAA titles were the 99th and 100th in UF history. The fact that she won two national championships made her worthy of the list, but she received far less attention and a much smaller spotlight despite being so successful.
Kelsey Bruder, Softball: Bruder's numbers were comparable to those of Francesca Enea, who was our No. 7 athlete of the year, and that's no small accomplishment. Bruder stepped into the right-field position left open by former Gator Mary Ratliff and had an outstanding year, finishing with 68 RBI, 16 home runs and a .713 slugging percentage.
Aja Paculba, Softball: With Kim Waleszonia injured for most of the season, Paculba's early-season move to leadoff batter became even more important. The sophomore set the single-season steals record with 27, hit .368, had an impressive .603 slugging percentage and a .492 on-base percentage, just two points behind Enea's team-leading .494.
Megan Kerns, Soccer: Perhaps embarassingly, no soccer player even made it on our preliminary list despite the team finishing the year ranked in the top 10. In 2008, Kerns was named to the All-SEC First Team for leading the Gators in goals (13) and tying for the lead in assists (9) totaling 35 points while leading UF to a 19-4-1 record, including a perfect 11-0 in the SEC.
Jeremy Criscione, Cross Country: In a sport all about concentration and dedication, Criscione was the definition of both. Quiet by nature, Criscione didn't flaunt his accomplishments, but after qualifying for the NCAA Championships as an individual, the All-American finished 20th in his final meet at UF to cap off his career.
Corey Hartung, Gymnastics: As the only senior on the UF gymnastics team this year, Hartung helped lead the Gators to a Super Six appearance despite several key injuries and an otherwise young team.
Billy Horschel, Golf: Horschel's final season as a Gator was an appropriate ending to an outstanding career. As a senior, he picked up numerous accolades: his third PING All-America First-Team honor, the SEC Golfer of the Year and a unanimous First-Team All-SEC selection.
Calvin Smith, Track and Field: Smith had an impressive all-around year for the No. 3 men's track and field team, but he shined the brightest at the SEC Outdoor Championships. The 2009 SEC Outdoor Men's Runner of the Year captured the Commissioner's Trophy by finishing first in the 400m, second in the 200m and being a part of the first-place 4x100 team, which held the fastest time in the nation.
So there you have it - 10 athletes whose individual accomplishments were so impressive that they deserved to be recognized, even if they weren't able to squeeze in to our top 10. And the argument could even be made that this list is incomplete, that even a top 20 list doesn't do every athlete justice.
I wonder if Letterman has that many quality jokes left over every night.
