Get to Know Your SEC Football Players

In a never-ending quest to seek as much information as my brain can store, it's time to get to know a little bit more (or just anything at all) about one of the Southeastern Conference's football players. Now when this player succeeds, massively fails or is shown milling around in the background of a TV shot, you'll know that his greatest off-the-field accomplishment involves the sale and transportation of hobos. Or something like that.

The team of the player selected is chosen through a super-secret process which I cannot reveal, however, the number of the player is randomly chosen by visiting www.random.org and using whatever number they give me.

Today's number: 86
Today's Team: Florida

#86 Phillip Bellino, RB, Florida
(Note: Eric Strack, a kicker, also wears number 86 but I didn't feel like profiling another kicker. My apologies to all of his fans.)

A brief search of the Internet yielded no photographic evidence that Phillip exists. So in place of that picture, here's one that came up during my search.



Ignoring the design failure, the general awkwardness and confusion of the poster, I too always assumed Urban Meyer's favorite place to read corny self-help/motivational books was walking around Florida Field with the sun blazing in his face and the humidity making it more of a challenge to turn the pages. Who doesn't enjoy a good stand while reading and sweating?

Some background information: A freshman, Phillip hails from Boca Raton, Florida where he played high school football at Pope John Paul II High School. While not a scholarship player (our second one in this series), he can loosely be considered a member of the 2010 Florida recruiting class, which, by all accounts from recruiting junkies, is the single greatest class to ever be assembled by a college coach. Although here's what I find confusing about Phillip. He went to Santa Fe Community College (there's one in Gainesville and Santa Fe; I assume he went to the one closer to home) out of high school and yet he's considered a true freshman. How is that possible? Is it just a typo on Florida's website? Or did Urban Meyer find a walk-on loophole while "resting?" Or did Phillip simply arrive on campus at Santa Fe CC and say, "Yikes, bad idea" and immediately drive over to the registrar's office at Florida? File this under "Things I'd Like to Know, But Will Spend No Time Finding an Answer Because I Hope Someone Will Just Tell Me."

Greatest on-field accomplishment: Achieving walk-on status, although I'm not sure just how difficult that really is.

Greatest off-the-field accomplishment: Making the move from CC status to SEC status.

Way(s) in which he has embarrassed himself, his family, team and school: Under the iron fist of discipline wielded by Urban Meyer, I'm sure it's only a matter of time until Phillip gives Gainesville police a chance to earn their money.

Strengths: Hopefully, this will be the ability to survive getting the holy crap kicked out of him by Florida's starting defense for four months.

Weaknesses: Everything that keeps him planted in the walk-on category. Size, speed, all of the above.

What to expect in 2010: If you want to see Phillip, remember to check the background of all camera shots of the sideline in Florida games. Odds are he'll be wearing the number 86 jersey and a pair of jeans/cargoshorts/regularshorts/whateverelsetheywearatFlorida. And he might also have a towel around his neck and/or a backwards hat. Also, if you're watching their homecoming game, there's a chance he could be in full pads.