After winning back-to-back NCAA titles in 2006 and 2007, the Florida Gators struggled in 2008 and 2009, and did not even make the NCAA Tournament. In 2010 they lost in the first round to BYU. In 2011 the Florida Gators, a number two seed, advanced to the Elite Eight to face the eighth seeded Butler Bulldogs. The Bulldogs pulled off an upset in overtime, and crushed the Gators dreams of returning to the Final Four. The loss was particularly devastating because following the season, the Gators lost three integral players when SEC Player of the Year Chandler Parsons and center Vernon Macklin entered the NBA draft and forward Alex Tyus graduated. This leaves Gator fans with a question of “When will Florida win the NCAA Tournament again?’

So who will be on the 2012 roster and what are the chances of coach Billy Donovan’s team winning it all? Well, Erving Walker and Kenny Boynton will be returning to the starting lineup and should provide a good portion of the Gator offense. Florida will also have a couple of new faces that you should look out for. Mike Rosario was a redshirt last season after transferring from Rutgers, where he scored an average of 16 points per game as a sophomore. Brad Beal, touted as the seventh-best recruit in the country, will be playing guard for the Gators and should have a significant impact. The question is, will this new group be good enough to make the NCAA tournament, advance round by round through the Sweet Sixteen, Elite Eight, Final Four, and win the NCAA championship? The answer; probably not, but they are young and should be exciting to watch. And, it is college basketball, so anything could happen come March.