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UF's Meyer: Guns, Gators Don't Mix

Tribune photo by JULIE BUSCH

University of Florida football coach spoke on a number of topics while in Tampa Thursday.

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By JOEY JOHNSTON

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 23, 2008

TAMPA - As University of Florida football coach Urban Meyer has learned, late-night telephone calls usually bring bad news. This one was a stunner. On May 9, he learned that lineman Matt Patchan, the former Armwood High All-American and a cornerstone of UF's recruiting class, had been shot in the left shoulder.

"The first thing you worry about is his health and what the heck happened," Meyer said Thursday night, prior to his appearance during the Tampa Gator Club's spring gathering at the Tampa Bay Grand Hyatt.

After meeting with Patchan and his parents, Meyer learned that the player was a bystander during an altercation at Brandon's Sadie Park. Meyer said the bullet was removed from Patchan's shoulder during a 15-minute procedure. Patchan is back lifting weights, working out and "going full speed ahead."

"Matt will be a factor and he'll see some playing time on the defensive line," Meyer said. "He's tough as nails. You recruit as many Matt Patchans as you can.

"You worry about the guys who don't have the support at home. Matt has that. He comes from a great family. He was just in an unfortunate situation, but he's going to be fine."

Meyer said Patchan was not at fault, but he's still uneasy about the number of occasions that guns mix with athletes.

Florida State coach Bobby Bowden, during a recent booster-club visit to Tampa after running back Preston Parker's arrest on a weapons charge, said he owned a gun and "if you are in certain neighborhoods, you better have a gun. You have to protect yourself and your family. I really hate to say that, but it's the way things have gotten."

After his hiring as head coach last season, Miami's Randy Shannon instituted a team rule. "Zero tolerance," Shannon said. "Get caught with a firearm, you get dismissed from the university."

Meyer's policy?

"I don't think there's any place for it," Meyer said. "I've actually had some conversations with parents who bought their children a gun. It's where they're from and what they believe in. But I tell them that's not acceptable here. Get rid of the gun or they won't play.

"It's one of our core values. We had a guy do it offensive lineman Ronnie Wilson was suspended in 2007 for firing an AK-47 assault rifle into the air during an altercation. He didn't play. The University of Florida doesn't allow guns."

In other UF news:

•Receiver/tailback Percy Harvin, who missed most of spring practice after undergoing heel surgery, is "ahead of schedule" and running in a pool during rehabilitation.

•Defensive lineman Torrey Davis, of Armwood High, is facing a major academic battle to become eligible and "has a long way to go."

•Taking a cue from quarterback Tim Tebow, Meyer and his family will make a mission trip this summer to feed poor people in the Dominican Republic. Meyer was asked if he'll do any recruiting. He laughed, then said, "I think you're allowed to text message down there."

Reporter Joey Johnston can be reached at (813) 259-7353 or jjohnston@tampatrib.com.

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