Looks like Florida and Georgia might get their stars back just in time to face each other.
A source has told me that Treon Harris could potentially return for Florida’s annual showdown with Georgia in Jacksonville (details explained later). This is the same source that told me earlier in the week that Harris will not be charged with a crime when it’s all said and done.
The source didn’t really say anything groundbreaking, when you think about it. He basically reiterated to me everything Harris’s attorney, Huntley Johnson, said. The most important pieces of Johnson’s statement my source confirmed to me were that the woman who claimed that Harris assaulted her was actually the aggressor, and that the Alligator’s report that Harris forced his way into the girl’s dorm room was “patently false”. My source was a bit less kind about that piece of reporting, saying- earmuffs, kids- “that’s f—ing garbage”. (Note: I’m not so quick to knock on the Alligator, as they generally do solid work and they got this wrong- and since admitted to it- the way everybody gets something wrong sometimes. The point is that he emphatically shot it down.)
But the larger point here is this: while my source is not an omnipotent being, he’s also not Harris’s attorney. He isn’t getting paid to publicly defend Harris. The fact that he told me all this on his own, in different words than Huntley Johnson, gave me enough confidence to publish this citing him as my source. (In case you care, this is the same source who told me that Florida-Idaho would not be made up.)
Anyway, here’s where it gets interesting.
Florida plays LSU this Saturday night in the Swamp, and Jeff Driskel will be the starter. We knew that already. The only way a loss to the Bayou Bengals can hurt the Gators in terms of the SEC East is if Missouri (who hasn’t lost an SEC game yet) wins out, and with a road trip to Texas A&M on their schedule, that doesn’t look promising. But here’s the thing. Florida would then have to win out, too, and their next game after LSU is… Missouri. Who they have to beat. With Driskel (or Will Grier if Driskel struggles that much).
Barring a miracle (literally a taped or public confession within the next 24 hours), Harris will not play against LSU. My source said that it is also highly unlikely that Harris will be able to play against Missouri (again, barring a confession or a quicker end to the investigation than we all think). But after that game, Florida has a (yet another) week off… and then they play Georgia.
It is during that two week span, my source says, that he believes the Treon Harris investigation will conclude and Harris could be given the green light to practice. The reinstatement rules are tricky, and when pressed, my source declined to go into specifics, saying that he didn’t know enough to give definitive answers. The source cautioned me (I didn’t really need to be cautioned, but I’ll caution you) that this is not concrete, that these types of investigations could also take longer than they seem they will at first. And of course, again, the alleged victim could hypothetically recant her initial claim and confess at any time, which would clear Harris immediately.
In other news, Georgia running back Todd Gurley has been suspended indefinitely for signing memorabilia (which if you ask me is complete bullshit. And, you know, I hate Georgia). Various people in the know have indicated that this will be a two game suspension. Georgia’s third upcoming game is Florida. Oh, joy; Gurley will get to unleash two weeks of frustration on us. Then again, we do have a great defense…
In the meantime, let’s just sit back, wait and see how this all plays out.
