Florida Gators fans received some massive news on the recruiting front on Wednesday night. Emphasis on massive, as they had the world’s tallest teenager officially commit to their basketball program.
Olivier Rioux, currently a player at top high-school basketball prep school IMG Academy, was named the world’s tallest teenager in 2022 by the Guinness Books of World Records, and was even featured in their World Records book for the year.
He is only ranked as a three-star recruit by On3 Sports. But considering he stands at 7’6”, he is clearly an extremely sought-after prospect simply due to the fact that not many other teams can match his sheer size.
Several Division One teams offered Rioux a scholarship. This includes Florida Atlantic, Nebraska, and Florida. He finally made his decision on Wednesday night, taking to social media to reveal his commitment to Florida to the public.
“I am proud to announce that I have committed to the Florida Gators for the 2024 season,” wrote Rioux on Instagram. “I want to thank all my coaches in helping me in this process. The adventure continues in Florida!”
View this post on Instagram
Fans took to social media to offer their opinions on this commitment from Rioux.
7'7 Olivier Rioux commits to Florida pic.twitter.com/EYx86BDjWA
— Daily Loud (@DailyLoud) November 9, 2023
Florida just landed 7 foot 6 center Olivier Rioux 🤯
Holds the world record for tallest teenager 👀 pic.twitter.com/QBxDjPZUsC
— Florida Gators 🐊🔥 (@gatorsszn) November 9, 2023
7-foot-6 center Olivier Rioux has committed to Florida, per his Instagram.
Ranked 147th nationally in the 2024 class, per On3.
Holds the Guinness World Record for tallest teenager.https://t.co/QVT4iIlO9B pic.twitter.com/pvRpjkEK09
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) November 9, 2023
4🌟 2024 C Olivier Rioux has committed to The Gators!
Not only is the IMG product a top 150 player, but he is also the tallest teenager in the WORLD! Here is him next to 6’5 Jordan Seaton🤯 pic.twitter.com/voH9kdPQfa
— Florida Recruiting (@FLRecruits) November 9, 2023
BREAKING NEWS 🚨
Florida has gained the commitment of 7’-6” Center Olivier Rioux. He is according to Guinness the tallest teen in the world right now 🤯
Let’s all welcome Olivier to Gator Nation 🐊🔥 pic.twitter.com/ikTmlXbeRD
— In All Kinds Of Weather Recruiting 🐊 (@IAKOWRecruiting) November 9, 2023
🇨🇦C/O 2024 7’7 C Olivier Rioux has announced his commitment to @GatorsMBK, per his Instagram
Will be interesting to see how the Quebec native pans out. Goes without saying, you can’t teach 7 foot 7. pic.twitter.com/37BYDKnGgs
— Joe Moussa (@Joe_NPH) November 9, 2023
It’s obviously unclear at this point how much of an impact Rioux will have at Florida. But you simply can’t teach the kind of size and physicality he brings to any team.
We have undoubtedly seen how important size can be in college basketball. This is particularly the case with the Purdue Boilermakers the past few seasons. Purdue has been amongst the best teams in the entire sport, in large part thanks to 7’4” star big man Zach Edey.
Florida fans are certainly hoping that Rioux has a similar impact at Florida next season as Edey has brought to Purdue in his career.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.