College basketball makes up for football’s letdown in Florida

A few months ago, I wrote on this blog about how awful the 2011 college football season treated the Sunshine State. The regular powers like Florida, Florida State and Miami barely had a heartbeat. Even up-and-comers like USF, UCF and FAU failed in their efforts to beautify the football landscape in the state.

But all is not lost in Florida when it comes to college athletics. The state’s college basketball teams have made some big headlines during the 2011-12 season that have turned the usual football fanatics into basketball enthusiasts.

For the first time since 1991, the Florida State Seminoles won the ACC Tournament, defeating both North Carolina and Duke in the process. The ‘Noles also notched their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance in 2011-12, and the team actually finished a bit short of its expectations with a third-round loss to Cincinnati in the big dance.

USF made major strides this season and experienced an historic turnaround. Head coach Stan Heath was named Big East Coach of the Year as he turned the Bulls from a 10-win team in 2010-11 to a 22-win team this season. Heath’s club went 12-6 in Big East conference games and won two games in the NCAA Tournament. It was USF’s first trip to the big dance since 1992 and was the deepest run the school had ever made in the tournament. The Bulls came up just short in the third round against Ohio.

In Gainesville, the Gators had yet another successful run in the regular season under longtime coach Billy Donovan. The orange-and-blue of Florida made it to the Sweet Sixteen for the eighth time in school history and the fifth time since 2000. The Gators, who were seeking their third national championship under Donovan, suffered a heartbreaking loss at the hands of the surprising Louisville Cardinals.

Although the Miami Hurricanes failed to make the NCAA Tournament, the team did advance to the second round of the NIT and won 20 games overall. Even Florida Gulf Coast was one win away from a berth in the big dance. FGCU, which had a losing record but went on a run in the Atlantic Sun conference tournament, lost to Belmont in the championship game. North Florida, which also plays in the A-Sun, had a 10-8 conference mark and finished at 16-16.

Let’s not forget the ladies, either. Florida, Miami, USF, Florida Atlantic and Florida International all had winning seasons and made the postseason in either the Women’s NIT or the Women’s NCAA Tournament.

Even though the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat have been front and center with all kinds of hoopla – pun intended – surrounding those organizations recently, it is time to turn at least one eye to college basketball in the state of Florida. There will likely be more players from the Sunshine State on NBA rosters in the coming years based on the success of the current college teams. The same may not be able to be said about the state’s football players making NFL rosters as much, at least for now.