Florida center Olivier Rioux, the tallest teenager in the world, dipped his toe into life as a two-sport athlete. Rioux recently threw on a helmet and pads to work out for the football team, according to the Associated Press.
At 7-foot-9, Rioux has plenty of reach, and the Florida coaching staff wanted to see what he could do on the football field. Assistant coaches put Rioux through the paces on special teams, hoping his height could make him an effective weapon when it comes to blocking kicks.
Unfortunately for Rioux and the football coaches, the center’s 11-inch vertical prevented him from getting enough air to block any kicks.
“They were a little disappointed,” Florida basketball coach Todd Golden said at a booster event.
In all fairness to Rioux, he doesn’t need to jump too high at his height. When the Gators won the SEC Tournament, he didn’t need a ladder to cut down a piece of the net.
Still, Golden admired the football coaching staff’s creativity, even if it didn’t work out this time.
“I like the idea,” Golden said. “I give them credit for trying it.”
Unless baseball or another sport comes calling, Rioux will stick with basketball for the time being. That’s probably fine with him, considering he just won a national championship while redshirting as a freshman.
Even though Rioux didn’t see the court last season, he still managed to make key contributions at practice, helping his teammates improve at finishing around the rim. As for Rioux’s development, he still has to fill out more of that 7-foot-9 frame.
“It’s work in progress,” associate head coach Carlin Hartman told CBS Sports in April. “He’s working his tail off on a daily basis. He’s in there with our strength and conditioning guys, He’s in there with the nutritionist, the sports science guys. He’s doing all of it. Kudos to him. He’s been helping us in practice, and he’s developed a really good attitude and workmanlike mindset.”
Once Rioux adds a little more muscle, it should help him see the floor a bit more during the 2025-26 basketball season, and maybe he could give Billy Napier a call and give football another shot.
