Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson and Christy Mathewson, three of the five inaugural members of the Baseball Hall of Fame, did not have a jersey number. They played before their usage became standardized.

The most famous sports uniform number of all-time? For my money, I'm going with Michael Jordan's No. 23, a numeral branded on my brain the same as ex-Braves star Dale Murphy's No. 3. Someone out there is already fuming at the choice.

The jersey number that carries the most significance for me as a fan? Tony Dorsett's 33 with the Dallas Cowboys of my youth. Check out his 99-yard touchdown run against the Vikings on "Monday Night Football" in 1983.


 
Meanwhile, off the top of my head, I have no idea what uniform number current professional stars like Bryce Harper, Kevin Durant or Odell Beckham wear. Jersey numbers have never been my thing. Yes, it can be embarrassing.

A colleague in the office asked recently what number Pete Rose wore during his career. No. 8, right? Or did Rose wear No. 6? Two strikes. Charlie Hustle wore No. 14. The best NHL number in history? Easy, Wayne Gretzky's 99. People in Pittsburgh are yelling that I have the number turned upside down.

To help ease the concerns of our targeted audience, the memory is nimbler when it concerns the Gators. Emmitt Smith wore 23. Oops, a bad typo. Yes, I'm positive it was 22. And I can still see Loucheiz Purifoy race down the field in No. 15 with that interception against Arkansas a few years ago.

With the Gators in the early days of preseason camp and jersey numbers a topic of discussion for head coach Dan Mullen on media day last week – as Matt Baker of The Tampa Bay Times writes, the Gators don't have just one No. 1 this season, but two in cornerback CJ Henderson and Kadarius Toney – the plan is to touch base with as many players as possible during camp to see why they wear the number they wear.

In the first installment, here are the stories behind the numbers (edited for clarity, some deeper than others) in the players' own words:
 
No. 13 Feleipe Franks, quarterback
"It's the number I was given when I got here. I wanted 18. I've had 18 my whole life, but when I got here 13 was just the number I was given. Now, everything that I have like passwords, I have a 13 built into it. It's pretty cool."
 
No. 2 Lamical Perine, running back (changed from No. 22 this season)
"The only person that can probably vouch for me on this is [former director of player personnel] Drew Hughes and Coach Skip [Tim Skipper]. Honestly, I wanted No. 2 when I first got here. If you look on my official-visit pictures, that's what number I had on. I wanted that number but Tyrie [Cleveland] ended up getting it. I couldn't do anything about it, so I just took No. 22. It's a big number and I just rolled with that. Everybody always wanted to compare me with Emmitt Smith, and I felt like that was no comparison. He's a great. I want to be myself and I want to make a route of my own and have a number I can make them remember me for that number. But hey, it worked out for me."
 
No. 58, Jonathan Greenard, linebacker/defensive end
"I wore it when I first got to college. I went to 7 last year. And then I got hurt, missed the whole year, so I went back to the basics. It got me to where I'm at right now, so I might as well stay with it. I didn't wear it in high school, just when I got to Louisville."
 
No. 11 Kyle Trask, quarterback
"I came here and we didn't really pick numbers. It was just given. I was like, 'OK, I'll see what I can do with it.' I wore 18 in high school. I got it my freshman year because it was the only number available so I just stuck with it. The last time I picked my number was No. 9, freshman team in high school when I first got there. I was trying to be like Drew Brees."
 
No. 21 Trey Dean III, defensive back
"Since we're DBU, I guess we should have a Deion Sanders at Florida. I wore it before and I wore No. 1 in high school, but you know, you've got to live up to No. 1. That's the number I'm working towards. But yeah, there's a Deion at Florida."

Editor's note: Sanders made 21 famous in the NFL after wearing No. 2 at FSU.



No. 1 CJ Henderson, cornerback (changed from No. 5 this season)
"I don't really have a story behind it. I had 5 since Pop Warner in little league football. The reason was for guys I look up to like Joe Haden."
 
No. 43 Tommy Townsend, punter
"It's actually not interesting at all. I think it was the second or third game of the season – I wore 88 for the first two games of the year – and then there was a personnel issue. There was going to be another No. 88 that could potentially be on the field at the same time as me. I had to change my number. Forty-three was one of the first football numbers I wore. I saw that one and said, 'you know what, I'm going to go with that one.' It's treated me pretty good so far. I probably could have changed it again this year but I just wanted to stick with it. I wore 12 in high school."
 
No. 99 Lloyd Summerall III, linebacker
"It's the number they felt like was best for me and I like it. It's me. I wore 11 and 7 in high school. Definitely 11 has been my main number. That's the number that kind of attracted attention. That's the number they seen me making plays in."
 
No. 97 Khris Bogle, linebacker
"They just gave me the number. I wore 90, 7, 72 and 45 in high school. Every year was a different number. It was by my choice. I just wanted to try out different numbers every year to see which one fit me. I'd say probably 7 was my favorite. I played good. I had a chip on my shoulder and my mom's favorite number is 7 and we won state."

No. 29 Jeawon Taylor, defensive back
"I look up to Eric Berry and Earl Thomas and they wear 29, so I felt like it was only right that I wear it. I had 1 in high school."

 

No. 20 Malik Davis, running back
"I've had it since my freshman year of high school. That's just a number I'm sticking with. I was No. 2 before I went to high school. When I got there, No. 2 was taken so I just took No. 20 and stuck with it ever since."
 
No. 75 T.J. Moore, offensive lineman
"I wear No. 75 and have had it since my Ridge Road Middle School days. It was seventh grade. I've even got it tattooed right there on my right leg. It's just an important number to me. It really defines who I am. There's not really a story behind it but I have stuck with it throughout my football career. I just love it."
 
No. 17 Zachary Carter, defensive lineman
"Seventeen doesn't really have a special meaning. I really just wanted a different number and 17 was available. But a former player, Jordan Sherit, did wear 17 and he went to my high school in Tampa and he played here. People say I copied him. I wouldn't really say I copied him. I just wanted 17. I wore 54 in high school. None of my numbers really have any special meaning. I feel like you make the number special."
 
No. 3 Marco Wilson, cornerback
"Originally, 3 was my favorite number. That's what I wore in high school and that was available at the time coming in as a freshman. I just took it and rolled with it and it stuck. It's my favorite number. I've worn it my whole life, from little league on. That's about it."
 
No. 41 James Houston IV, linebacker
"It's kind of a funny story. My sophomore year [in high school], the coach didn't really like me. I wanted No. 11 and he gave me 41 as a joke. It grew on me. I now like 41 and it's my favorite number."
 
No. 70 Michael Tarquin, offensive lineman
"It was just my number in high school. It's always been my number. I'm glad to get it changed. I was 64 when I got here. I never really picked 70. When I was a freshman, my coach threw me 70 when I got moved up to varsity and it has just stuck with me ever since."
 
No. 77 Ethan White, offensive lineman
"No. 77 was the first number I had when I started playing football. It's also that my mom's birthday is on the seventh, so it works out like that. I like to keep that number. Her birthday is Jan. 7, so I've got to have a seven it there somewhere."
 
No. 23, Jaydon Hill, defensive back
"I was assigned to it in the spring, but then I had the option to switch if I really wanted to. But I mean, it's 23 and a Jordan. They just go together. I wore 22 my freshman year in high school. I can do 23 any day because I'm a big Jordan fan. They might as well sponsor me."



No. 10 Josh Hammond, wide receiver
"[My brother] Frankie wore 10 in high school. When he got here, he couldn't get it, so when I got here, I had a chance to get it and I did. When I saw it sitting there, I said give me a 10 jersey with 'Hammond' on the back. I wore 5 in high school."
 
No. 66 Nick Buchanan, offensive lineman
"It's the number they gave me. I wore 70 in high school. Numbers don't matter to me."