He’ll still be surrounded by palm trees and sunshine and playing for a football powerhouse, but the jersey on his back will be orange and blue, not cardinal and gold. That’s because sophomore Emmanuel Moody, after surveying the University of Southern California roster loaded with 10 fellow tailbacks, decided to look for a program where he’d be assured of a little more playing time. The 20-year-old settled for no less than the University of Florida in Gainesville, the defending national champion.

“I had to make a business decision for my future,” he told the Los Angeles Times on Aug. 18. “I think it was the right thing to do.”

USC’s second-leading rusher last year and the Sporting News’ Pac-10 Offensive Freshman of the Year, Moody missed the last four games of the 2006 season due to an ankle injury.