COVID-19 - The Independent Florida Alligator

Clifford Taylor IV returns to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium after the Los Angeles Rams victory in Super Bowl 56

Sports

UF walk-on turned Super Bowl Champion: How Clifford Taylor IV made it

By Madeline Lawson | Mar. 4, 2022

“There’s no Rams without the Florida Gators,” Taylor said. Taylor, 22, walked on to the Florida football team in Summer 2019. He never saw any game time, but his determination and resilience proved to be his biggest asset. Taylor became the LA Rams social media and design specialist in June 2021 by having a knack for finding closed doors, knocking on them and getting an answer.

Metro

Split Alachua County school board votes out Superintendent Carlee Simon

By Emma Behrmann | Mar. 4, 2022

A divided Alachua County School Board fired Superintendent Carlee Simon Tuesday. The board voted 3-2, with Leanetta McNealy and Tina Certain dissenting. Chairman Robert Hyatt, who was part of the majority, named Deputy Superintendent Donna Jones acting superintendent until the board can nominate an interim superintendent at the next board meeting Mar. 15.

Gainesville High School students protest outside their school's campus, waving their flags for oncoming traffic in opposition to Florida's ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill, which would effectively ban discussion of LGBTQ+ issues in elementary schools and stigmatize it in upper grade levels.

Metro

High school students protest ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill with walkout

By Emma Behrmann | Mar. 4, 2022

Honks, cheers and rainbow-decorated signs accompanied 30 Gainesville High School students as they walked down Northwest 13th Street Thursday afternoon. Hundreds more stood in protest on the baseball fields. GHS students joined Buchholz and Eastside High and students across the state in a walkout to protest the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill, which passed its final state senate committee Monday and awaits a final vote and signature from the governor. Officially known as the Parental Rights in Education Bill, the legislation would bar state educators from discussing LGBTQ+ topics that are not “age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students.”

UF journalism department chair Ted Spiker interviews Howie Mandel, a comedian who is known for hosting "Deal or No Deal" and judging "X Factor" at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center on Monday, Feb. 28.

University

Student Government hosts Howie Mandel as an Accent speaker

By Maia Botek | Mar. 4, 2022

Howie Mandel filled the O’Connell Center with laughs in an event for UF students Monday evening. The comedian, America’s Got Talent Judge, Deal or No Deal game show host and personality spoke to a crowd of a few hundred students. Accent Speakers Bureau, an agency of Student Government that invites guest speakers to campus, spent $110,000 on the event, according to a contract; it included Mandel’s airfare, meals and hotel.

Junior guard Nina Rickards possesses the ball against Missouri Feb. 27. In Florida's opening game of the SEC Tournament Rickards led the way with 15 points and eight rebounds.

Sports

Florida rallies late and advances to the third round of the SEC tournament

By Brenda Bogle | Mar. 3, 2022

Florida earns a bittersweet 53-52 win over Vanderbilt in the SEC Tournament. Guard Kiara Smith had to be helped off the floor late in the fourth quarter.

Florida third baseman Charla Echols jogs to the dugout during a matchup with FSU, March 2021.

Sports

Florida suffers upset loss at home against Southern Miss

By Jose Tovar | Mar. 3, 2022

The No. 4 Gators dropped their first game of the season Wednesday after falling 5-4 to Southern Miss at the Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.

Jud Fabian rounds second base in a game against Jacksonville. March 2021. He passed Mike Zunino for fifth all-time in home runs during his career at UF on Tuesday against Stetson.

Sports

Gators stomp Rattlers, set up showdown with Miami

By Ethan Budowsky | Mar. 3, 2022

Florida sets up a trip to Coral Gables, Florida, with a midweek win over the Florida A&M Rattlers Wednesday.

UF head coach Kelly Rae Finley observes the floor during a Sunday afternoon home stance against Missouri.

Sports

Overjoyed reactions to Finley hiring flood in

By Caleb Wiegandt | Mar. 2, 2022

Her players, Mike White, Mary Wise and other prominent Gators voiced their support for Finley via social media after Monday’s announcement.

Florida's Fred Biondi tees off during the SEC Match Play Championships at Shoal Creek Club in Birmingham, Alabama. Biondi will compete in the U.S. Open this year.

Sports

Gators place fourth at Southern Highlands Collegiate

By Lillian Randolph | Mar. 2, 2022

The Gators men’s golf team traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada over the weekend to compete against 14 other teams in the Southern Highlands Collegiate. The team placed fourth overall while juniors Fred Biondi and Ricky Castillo secured top-ten individual finishes.

Guard Kiara Smith in the huddle during a game against Missouri Feb. 27. The graduate student was named to the All SEC First Team and SEC All-Defense Team.

Sports

SEC Tournament is the latest obstacle on the horizon for the Gators

By Brenda Bogle | Mar. 2, 2022

With Florida’s SEC Tournament play beginning Thursday in Nashville, Tennessee, take a look back at some of the crucial moments from the team’s historic run.

Metro

A. Quinn Jones Museum hosts Driveway Theater Project’s “Blackademics” play

By Erina Anwar | Mar. 2, 2022

Blackademics is a one-act satire play written by playwright Idris Goodwin in 2012. The play centers around two Black women in academia and serves as a commentary toward colorism, racial stereotypes and socioeconomic backgrounds. It portrays these messages through its bold dialogue and whimsical humor.

Robin Lillie sings “The Greatest Love of All” at the Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America's Day of Action on Sunday, Feb. 27

Metro

Moms Demand Action encourages Gainesville to stand against gun violence in Day of Action Event

By Erina Anwar | Mar. 2, 2022

Moms Demand Action is a nonprofit organization founded after the Sandy Hook Elementary massacre in 2012. Its aim is to promote safer gun legislation and encourage responsible gun ownership. The organization has chapters in every state and has advocated for gun safety on a state and national level.

UF students climb up and down the stands of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on the morning of Saturday, Feb. 26.

University

Students climb for a cause in first annual Ben Hill Griffin relay race

By Elena Barrera | Mar. 2, 2022

On Saturday, Ron Farb, co-founder of The Climb For Cancer Foundation, partnered with members of UF’s Alpha Epsilon Delta pre-health honor society to raise more than $12,000 for their first-annual Gator Mountain Challenge, a relay race up and down the 90 rows of the stadium.

Mayor Lauren Poe delivers his final State of the City Address on at the Cade Museum for Creativity & Innovation on Monday, Feb. 28.

Metro

City of Gainesville hosts annual State of the City Address

By Melanie Pena | Mar. 2, 2022

The plan, Imagine GNV, is a collaborative effort between Gainesville neighbors and the city government. The plan lays out actions the city will take to address elements including racial inequity, affordable housing and education — an area that hasn’t been included in previous city plans. The plan is in the works with nine draft chapters published online.

Graduate transfer Phlandrous Fleming Jr. loads up a jump shot against Auburn Feb. 19. Fleming had a clutch block and 3-point make down the stretch Tuesday against Vanderbilt.

News

Florida survives in Nashville to grab 19th win

By Jackson Castellano | Mar. 1, 2022

With six seconds remaining, Phlandrous Fleming Jr. launched a three to put Florida ahead of Vanderbilt. “They called the play ‘home run,’” Fleming said. “I was wondering who would go and get it.” Fleming went and got it, and he hit it out of the park.

Florida's Sterlin Thompson swings against Jacksonville on March 13, 2021. Thompson hit a solo home run on Tuesday against the North Florida Ospreys en route to a 11-2 victory.

Sports

Gators annihilate Ospreys, 11-2

By Carson Cashion | Mar. 1, 2022

The Gators failed to earn a run through the first three innings against the UNF Ospreys. After that, they scored in every single one.

The Avenue

Food that feeds your soul: Gainesville African and soul food cuisine honors local Black community

Mar. 1, 2022

Although much of the historic legacy of the Black community in America is commemorated through the work of civil rights trailblazers, local African and soul food pop-ups in Gainesville celebrate their culture through their culinary traditions.

Florida’s Talitha Diggs competes during the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships on Saturday, February 27, 2021 at Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Ark. / UAA Communications photo by Alex de la Osa

Sports

Gators earn runner-up position at SEC Indoor Championships

By Ethan Eibe | Feb. 28, 2022

“I think what you saw out of the women is what you're going to see out of them from this day forward.” Mike Holloway’s track and field program took home runner-up finishes at the SEC Indoor Championships, where the women’s squad secured four individual titles.

Florida women's basketball head coach Kelly Rae Finley during her team's game against Missouri Feb. 27, 2022.

Sports

Finley named women’s basketball’s permanent head coach

By Caleb Wiegandt | Feb. 28, 2022

The long-awaited announcement is here. Athletic director Scott Stricklin has named Kelly Rae Finley Florida women’s basketball’s permanent head coach, removing the interim tag after an impressive year.

Florida guard Phlandrous Fleming Jr celebrates victory over No. 2 Auburn after Gator fans storm the court.

Opinion

Let the students storm

By Jesse Richardson | Feb. 28, 2022

After a season of mediocrity, Florida fans have every right to storm the court and celebrate with the team.