Florida heart Olivier Rioux, the tallest teenager on the planet, dipped his toe into life as a two-sport athlete. Rioux just lately threw on a helmet and pads to work out for the soccer workforce, in response to the Related Press.
At 7-foot-9, Rioux has loads of attain, and the Florida teaching employees needed to see what he might do on the soccer area. Assistant coaches put Rioux by way of the paces on particular groups, hoping his top might make him an efficient weapon relating to blocking kicks.
Sadly for Rioux and the soccer coaches, the middle’s 11-inch vertical prevented him from getting sufficient air to dam any kicks.
“They have been just a little upset,” Florida basketball coach Todd Golden stated at a booster occasion.
In all equity to Rioux, he would not want to leap too excessive at his top. When the Gators received the SEC Match, he did not want a ladder to chop down a bit of the online.
Nonetheless, Golden admired the soccer teaching employees’s creativity, even when it did not work out this time.
“I like the concept,” Golden stated. “I give them credit score for attempting it.”
Until baseball or one other sport comes calling, Rioux will stick to basketball in the meanwhile. That is most likely high quality with him, contemplating he simply received a nationwide championship whereas redshirting as a freshman.
Although Rioux did not see the court docket final season, he nonetheless managed to make key contributions at follow, serving to his teammates enhance at ending across the rim. As for Rioux’s improvement, he nonetheless has to fill out extra of that 7-foot-9 body.
“It is work in progress,” affiliate head coach Carlin Hartman advised CBS Sports activities in April. “He is working his tail off each day. He is in there with our power and conditioning guys, He is in there with the nutritionist, the sports activities science guys. He is doing all of it. Kudos to him. He is been serving to us in follow, and he is developed a extremely good angle and workmanlike mindset.”
As soon as Rioux provides just a little extra muscle, it ought to assist him see the ground a bit extra throughout the 2025-26 basketball season, and perhaps he might give Billy Napier a name and provides soccer one other shot.