The Rowdies were at their best Jan. 30 in UF's blowout win over No. 9 West Virginia.
Rowdies are No. 1
Tuesday, March 15, 2016 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Rowdy Reptiles' bus to Florida's NIT game at North Florida sold out Tuesday, so their version of "Loud And Proud" will be represented on the road. Why not?
The Rowdies are the best student section in the country.
That became official Monday night when SuperFanU, a fan loyalty and engagement platform for college and universities, crowned the Rowdies the No. 1 bunch among National Collegiate Student Section Association following two weeks of nationwide social media polling.
"It's been one of our goals the past two years," said Rowdies president Austin Pleasants, a junior from Oviedo, Fla. "It validates everything we set out to do."
The Rowdies, who finished second to Arizona in the inaugural competition last year, won in 2016 over a Final Four field that included the student sections from Cincinnati, Maryland and Virginia Commonwealth, three teams in the 2016 NCAA Tournament field.
Of course, that's where the Gators hoped to be, but it didn't work out for Coach Mike White's first team, which instead was dispatched to take on North Florida at 5,800-seat UNF Arena Tuesday night at 9. So a bus packed with Rowdies pulled out of Gainesville at 5 p.m. and plans to be heard from when the Gators and Ospreys butt heads on ESPNU.
"It's about just trying to bring the same energy anytime we can," Pleasants said. "This game was close enough for a bunch of us to go, so we want to bring the Rowdies environment with us to UNF. You'll be able to hear us on TV, believe me."
College basketball fans heard from them Monday night when SuperFanU announced its super student section via Twitter.
"The mission of the UAA is to create a championship experience and that's exactly what the Rowdies do," said Alicia Longworth, assistant athletic director for marketing and promotions. "They bring that energy to the O'Connell Center for every one of our sporting events."
Apparently, that energy travels, also.
The Rowdies are the best student section in the country.
That became official Monday night when SuperFanU, a fan loyalty and engagement platform for college and universities, crowned the Rowdies the No. 1 bunch among National Collegiate Student Section Association following two weeks of nationwide social media polling.
"It's been one of our goals the past two years," said Rowdies president Austin Pleasants, a junior from Oviedo, Fla. "It validates everything we set out to do."
The Rowdies, who finished second to Arizona in the inaugural competition last year, won in 2016 over a Final Four field that included the student sections from Cincinnati, Maryland and Virginia Commonwealth, three teams in the 2016 NCAA Tournament field.
Of course, that's where the Gators hoped to be, but it didn't work out for Coach Mike White's first team, which instead was dispatched to take on North Florida at 5,800-seat UNF Arena Tuesday night at 9. So a bus packed with Rowdies pulled out of Gainesville at 5 p.m. and plans to be heard from when the Gators and Ospreys butt heads on ESPNU.
"It's about just trying to bring the same energy anytime we can," Pleasants said. "This game was close enough for a bunch of us to go, so we want to bring the Rowdies environment with us to UNF. You'll be able to hear us on TV, believe me."
College basketball fans heard from them Monday night when SuperFanU announced its super student section via Twitter.
"The mission of the UAA is to create a championship experience and that's exactly what the Rowdies do," said Alicia Longworth, assistant athletic director for marketing and promotions. "They bring that energy to the O'Connell Center for every one of our sporting events."
Apparently, that energy travels, also.
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