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One year from now, this could be quite a crazy weekend for Jeff Demps, who will either be waiting around for an NFL team to draft him, or running with his Florida teammates in the Penn Relays as another step on the road to the 2012 London Olympics.

Or maybe both?

"I'm not really sure," Demps said this week during a break in training for what he and the Gators hope will be a rewarding weekend at Franklin Field. "I'm not thinking about it that much. Sometimes it will go through my mind, but I have to stay away from thinking about it and focus on the present."

It would appear to be quite a pleasant dilemma for Demps, a 5-foot-8, 181-pound junior from Winter Garden, Fla., who is expected to run in three events at the 117th Franklin Field carnival Friday and Saturday.
He broke the 10-second mark for 100 meters last weekend for the second time in his career, running 9.96 in the Tom Jones Invitational in Gainesville, Fla. A few months earlier, he led the Gators in rushing with 551 yards, although a sprained left foot limited him and kept him out of two games.

Of course, a guy with his speed on a football field _ he averaged 32.5 yards on eight kickoff returns in 2010 and has four career rushes of more than 60 yards _ can be special to an NFL team.

Playing two sports at a high level can be taxing for anyone. Demps said that it was difficult to juggle the two when he was a freshman but that he finds the transition has gone more smoothly with experience.

"Our strength and conditioning people do a great job," he said. "They have me prepared for any sport. Coming from football, I'm usually in good shape. I had that sprained foot during football season last year and missed a lot of time, but when I came back to track, I was kind of fresh because I really hadn't taken a lot of hits."

Florida track and field coach Mike Holloway credited the Gators football staff, led by first-year head coach Will Muschamp, with allowing Demps to focus on track this spring.

"Jeff's a guy that shows up every day and does everything that we ask him to," Holloway said. "His transition this year has been wonderful because the football staff has been wonderful. It's allowed him to be a track guy right now. ... His race model overall for 100 meters is getting better and better each week."

Holloway certainly has talent to work with. Before he even enrolled at Florida, Demps shared the world 100-meter junior record of 10.01 and ran in the 2008 U.S. Olympic trials. He clocked his first sub-10 in last year's NCAA outdoor championships and matched that 9.96 time last weekend.

Both marks were wind-aided, but Demps said of last weekend: "The wind was over the limit, but not by that much. I think I can definitely" run a sub-10 with a legal wind.

Holloway joked that when Demps talked recently about breaking the 15-year-old NCAA record of 9.92, "I kept walking like I didn't hear him." He said the more immediate goals are the Southeastern Conference and NCAA championships.

"Whatever time we get on the way to that will be a blessing," Holloway said. "When Jeff and I talk about his season, we don't talk about specific times; we talk about getting better. He talks a lot about being SEC champion and NCAA champion and helping the team win team titles.

"But I think if you got Jeff to be totally honest with you, we'd both like to see him run 9.9 this year."

Demps, who won the NCAA indoor championship at 60 meters, continues the tradition of Penn Relays performers who also starred on the football field, joining a group topped by Olympic gold medalists Bob Hayes of Florida A&M and James Jett of West Virginia. Others included Qadry Ismail of Syracuse, Jamaal Charles of Texas, and Trindon Holliday of Louisiana State.

Demps is passing on the individual 100 meters at the carnival this year and is expected to run on the Gators' 4x100, 4x200, and sprint medley relay teams. Holloway said he will not run in the 4x200 trials but will join the team in Saturday's finals if Florida gets through Friday's heats.

The men's sprint relays should be dynamic, with Florida, Texas A&M, LSU, and Florida State. Mississippi State, which won two men's relays here last year, also will be heard from.

"I think it's going to be a fun meet and very competitive at the same time," Demps said. "We know the competition is going to be tough, but we're going to go out there and compete and have fun."

The distance relays also will have an impact with Brigham Young, making a rare trip to Philadelphia, loading up in Friday's distance medley and Saturday's 4x800 against competition that includes Villanova, Arkansas, Indiana, and Georgetown.