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Wild moment Florida's 7-foot-9 star Olivier Rioux doesn't need a ladder to cut down March Madness nets READ MORE: Florida wins third March Madness national championship By ERIC BLUM Published: 07:38 EDT, 8 April 2025 | Updated: 07:38 EDT, 8 April 2025 e-mail View comments After Florida secured the national title in a dramatic late-game comeback, 7-foot-9 phenom Olivier Rioux had his turn to cut down the net and did not need a ladder to get his tiny strand of cloth. It is tradition after winning a tournament to climb a ladder and get a tiny piece of the net to take home. And just like at the Southeastern Conference tournament, the Gators were the last team in the field standing, with Rioux opting to not use the ladder to get his piece of the net.
Rioux did not play in the national championship game, or at all, this season, as he was redshirted by Florida head coach Todd Golden. If Rioux had played for one second of the college basketball season, he would have lost one year of eligibility. Now, he is able to be with Florida for the next four seasons.
'I should have made that clear (before),' Golden said in November of . 'Honestly, it's put him in a tough situation. He's sitting over there at the end of games and everybody's yelling at him and trying to get him out there.
' 7-foot-9 phenom Olivier Rioux had his turn to cut down the net and did not need a ladder Rioux did not play in the national championship game as he was redshirting this season Florida’s 7-foot-9 center Olivier Rioux did not need a ladder to cut down the nets after winning the national championship. pic.twitter.
com/hdjjwc5uFu — Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) April 8, 2025 Read More BREAKING NEWS Emanuel Sharp distraught after awful late error hands Florida March Madness victory over Houston 'They just hadn't understood that that was our potential plan for him. So that's where we're at at this moment.' 'I'm not saying that's 100% going to be the plan.
We'll continue to talk to him and see if he changes what he wants to do. But as of right now, that's the plan that we're going to have with him as we move forward.' Florida won the national championship with a 65-63 victory over Houston Rioux first came to notoriety in a world-record sense as he was 6-foot-1 at age 8 and 6-foot-11 in sixth grade.
'I was just explaining to him, "Hey, the reason why I'm not putting you in right now is what we've talked about a little bit." This wasn't a choice that I made for him,' Golden continued. 'This is something that people (from) our program have talked with him and his family and his parents, his AAU coach and just kind of trying to figure out what the best route for him is' 'I just went up to him, and I was like, "Hey, I'm not trying to be disrespectful with you.
I'm just not trying to burn your year putting you in for 30 seconds."' Even with Rioux not being on the active roster, he is considered a national champion by being affiliated with the program during the title season by practicing with Walter Clayton Jr. and the rest of the Gators.
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