Florida will get one other championship celebration, this one within the Swamp in entrance of almost 60K

[ad_1] GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida coach Todd Golden already has a spot picked out for the Ultimate 4 web he lower down in San Antonio.

On Saturday, although, it felt proper at house round his neck.

Golden and the Gators had been revered in one other nationwide championship celebration, this one in entrance of almost 60,000 followers at Florida Area throughout an prolonged halftime of the annual soccer spring sport. The hoops staff has yet one more get-together on faucet: on the White Home, presumably this summer time.

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“It’s simply absurd,” Golden mentioned. “At the moment was superior. … Our guys, particularly our older guys, are going to be shifting on to go prepare for the draft. You don’t know in the event that they’re going to be round.

“To have the ability to put one thing like this collectively on type of quick discover and do a terrific job honoring our gamers in entrance of our followers, which to me is crucial factor. Folks which were supporting us actually all 12 months bought to see these guys collectively once more one final time. It was particular.”

Golden wore the remnants of one of many nets from the Alamodome; heart Micah Handlogten wore the opposite. Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin and Will Richard carried trophies into the Swamp.

Highlights from Florida’s six NCAA Match victories flashed on the stadium replay boards as gamers and coaches had been launched one after the other. Clayton, named most excellent participant of the Ultimate 4, and Golden — hardly surprisingly — obtained the loudest ovations.

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Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward offered Golden with a key to town “so that you’ll at all times know the place house is.”

Golden won't be going anyplace anytime quickly. The coach mentioned he and athletic director Scott Stricklin are near a contract extension. 4 of the previous 5 nationwide championship-winning coaches at Florida — J.C. Deacon (males’s golf), Mike Holloway (monitor and subject), Kevin O’Sullivan (baseball) and Tim Walton (softball) — signed 10-year offers within the wake of their titles. May Golden be subsequent?

“My household and I really like being right here,” mentioned Golden, who made $3.6 million this season and ranks twelfth within the Southeastern Convention in annual wage. “In three quick years, we’ve been in a position to meet a number of nice individuals and get comfy. Florida’s a spot that we will win nationwide championships, as we simply proved. Yeah, we love being right here.

“Scott and I've been speaking loads. I really feel like we’re very near placing one thing collectively that can hold the Goldens in Gainesville for fairly some time. I feel within the subsequent week or two, we’ll get to the end line on that.”

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Golden unveiled a working poster of this system’s third championship banner, which can be hung within the O’Connell Heart to open subsequent season. He additionally took time to thank followers and a number of other key boosters, one in all whom donated $1 million to this system this week. The Gators even have an $8 million renovation to their follow facility on faucet this summer time.

“At this level in faculty athletics, it’s the lifeblood,” he mentioned. “And the fact of it's we'd like much more. We'd like much more to retain our gamers. We've got an excellent drawback proper now. We've got a number of nice gamers in our program that we have to help and retain, and we have to get a pair guys.”

Clayton, Martin and Richard have exhausted their eligibility and can shifting on, and Golden mentioned huge man Alex Condon will undergo the NBA’s pre-draft testing course of to see whether or not he turns professional or returns to highschool.

“If we’re lucky sufficient to get Alex again, I feel we’ll have one of many strongest entrance strains in America,” Golden mentioned. “We’re deep there. We’re athletic now. We’re very achieved. Guys have performed a number of minutes on a very good staff.”

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The Gators completed 36-4 and gained their ultimate 12 video games. They gained 4 of six within the event by rallying late: “Beat the chances to say the least,” Golden quipped.

The 39-year-old Golden turned the youngest coach since North Carolina State’s Jim Valvano in 1983 to win all of it. Golden flung what was left of the online round his neck Monday evening and nonetheless had it on when the staff returned house Tuesday afternoon.

He insisted Saturday he hasn’t slept in it and even thought a lot about it since.

“However I wished to bust it out for right this moment,” he mentioned. “This can be, together with another vital mementos over the past month, in my workplace at house. … This is a bit more vital and just a little extra impactful on the trophy shelf now.”

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