Trivia question… and I don’t know the answer!

Were you at UF during the Stormin' Norman era?

 

Tyrone Young. Played football as a wide receiver also. Came from Ocala and played in the NFL. I think he was a QB when he came to college but could be wrong. It has been a few years.

 

Out of that list, Tyrone Young is probably the best athlete, at least professionally. Fun to watch.

 

Yeah, he was an energy guy for Gator basketball. Very athletic, active, and aggressive on the court.

 

Rodney provided the toughness for the Gators, decent scorer and rebounder. If you had to guard him, good luck. Storming got some great players, using his ACC model recruiting against North Carolina, where cheating got Dean Smith his players. That’s the way the top teams get there consistently. Fyi

 

“Don’t worry baby
It don’t cost a bone
I charge my phone calls
To Coach Norm Sloan”
Robin Williams at the formerly great Gator Growl (I was there the best!) 1982
Went to school there 82-84for the great Moten (Clayton reminds me of him the way he leaps and dunks with either hand) and Maxwell days. I bet I saw at least 10 home games in those 2 years. Drove to Baton Rouge by myself (made it back to work next day lol) and saw Clifford Lett & Big Dwane lead us to our first SEC championship
So many good memories

 

Tyrone was a QB, but too many passes into the stands, got him moved to wide receiver, just like Chris Collingsworth. Both became starters in the NFL with recognition of their accomplishments.

 

Reading this made me think of Ronnie Williams a great Florida basketball player recruited out of Harlem by Monte Towe. One of my favorite all time Gators.

 

No, I had gradulated before Norm came back to UF. One year, while I was at UF, I remember playing at Alligator Alley and a very young Jeremy Foley was taking ticket stubs at one of the entrances. Anyone older remember the dude that swept the court at halftime? He would be sweeping and they played some kind of song with a good beat over the PA - this guy was dancing and moving while still sweeping and the crowd went crazy. It was memorable.

 

Yeah, Willy the floor sweeper. Did it to George Benson's "On Broadway," as I recall. It kind of evolved for Willy while I was there. Students cheering his sweeping for no reason at first, then him doing a shuffle or two, and the crowd loving it, and then it became a whole dance.

 

During the waning days of the John Lotz era, right before Sloan.

 

Remember Ric Clarson hitting that buzzer-beater in the Alley to beat LSU?

 

The greatest tennis player to ever play basketball for Florida. lol

 

Yes! Ric grew up very near me and we played sports. He attended Bolles, a private school in Jax with a great athletic program.

 

That was an awesome ending. The Gators were down 7 with less than a minute to go. At that time, there was no 3-point shot and no shot clock, so it was a 4-possession game. The game was essentially over and the fans were streaming out the exits. Gators made a bucket, then another, then another, and suddenly we had a 1-point game with a couple seconds left, LSU ball. Gators get the held ball tie-up so it goes to a jump ball. Gator (Reggie Hannah, I believe) wins the tip, taps it out to Clarson, Ric grabs it, throws up a 30-footer at the buzzer, SWISH! Pandemonium in the Alley! You literally had to be there, because Gator basketball was rarely on TV in the late 70s.

 

I was there and it was incredible, surreal really. I had forgotten the details of the comeback until I read your post and it all comes back to me. Thanks for that!

 

This helps solve a decades old question we always had. When we got to UF in ‘88, they played “On Broadway” all the time. Especially at basketball games. Now maybe I finally know why. Glad I lived long enough to know .

there was also that strangely good mix of La Bamba and Twist and Shout, for anyone that remembers.

 

I live to serve.

 

Alligator Alley was a great venue for college hoops. Small (5,000 or so capacity), cramped, steep seating right down to the floor. The fans were right on top of the court and the benches, and the terrible acoustics made the place LOUD, with sound echoing throughout. Coach John Lotz insisted that the under-design O'Connell Center have the seating just like the Alley because it gave us a distinct advantage. The Gators weren't great but we had some great games and good times there.

My favorite player was Malcolm Cesar. Anyone remember him? As I mentioned, the Gators weren't often on TV, but we'd always listen to the road games on WRUF radio. The great Otis Boggs was the play-by-play guy. During one game, Otis was going on and on about all Malcolm's skills, and summed it up with, "He's just a good, white basketball player." My brother and I looked at each other and just started laughing.

 

Yes, I remember him. The Alley was truly a multi-purpose building. I want to say when I first got to UF as a snot-nosed freshman in 1974, you had to stand in enormously long lines inside the gym for some type of registration or other. (But I could be wrong)
We frequently played hoops in the gym as I was just a short walk away living in Tolbert Hall as a freshman. I clearly remember playing in a game and seeing this very tan, beautiful young girl walk by our game. Heads turned! This young lady became my wife!!