Theme park fun in Florida

The Gophers spent Saturday afternoon at Busch Gardens, a Tampa, Fla., amusement park and zoo. Linebacker Mariano Sori-Marin, defensive end Boye Mafe and receiver Clay Geary went behind the scenes to pet a cheetah before a big group of teammates rode two of the park's most fearsome roller coasters. Receiver Demetrius Douglas played a sloth-themed game in which he tried to hang from a pole for several minutes in order to win a stuffed-animal sloth dressed in Christmas garb. Defensive end Carter Coughlin said he and his roommates tried their best to canvass the expansive grounds and hit every ride they could in their four hours there. "I'm exhausted, and I'm really bad at directions, so I had no idea where I was going," Coughlin said. "But we made it around."Written by Megan Ryan, Photo by Aaron Lavinsky, Star Tribune staff