Olivier Rioux, the tallest player in college basketball at 7-9, has transferred from Florida to UC Irvine. He made history as the tallest player to score a basket in college basketball.
Getty Images
The tallest player in college basketball has a new home. Former Florida 7-foot-9 center Olivier Rioux committed to UC Irvine on Thursday after spending the last two seasons with Florida, he announced on social media.
Rioux, who was a preferred walk-on with Florida, appeared in 11 games during the 2025-26 season. He made history earlier this season by becoming the tallest player in college basketball history -- at any level -- to score a basket. He threw down a two-handed flush in Florida's blowout win over Saint Francis early in the season.
As a deep bench reserve for the Gators, Rioux logged just 16 total minutes in those 11 games. Florida's elite frontcourt depth, headlined by Alex Condon, Thomas Haugh and Rueben Chinyelu, made the path to real playing time tough. Rioux redshirted during Florida's national title run last season and didn't appear in a game.
Condon and Haugh already announced their return to Florida for next season, while Chinyelu is going through the NBA Draft process before deciding on a return to school. The Gators could very well open this season as the preseason No. 1 team, and with those players returning, the path to real playing time for Rioux was slim.
In 2021, Guinness World Records declared Rioux the tallest teenager in the world at 7-foot-5. When he checked in against earlier this season, To give context on how tall Rioux actually is, he to cut down the nets when Florida beat in the Elite Eight last season.
Olivier Rioux became the tallest player in college basketball history to score a basket and played 11 games for Florida.
Rioux transferred due to limited playing time at Florida, where he faced competition from a strong frontcourt.
Olivier Rioux is 7 feet 9 inches tall and plays as a center.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino confirmed that Iran will play its World Cup matches in the United States as planned, despite recent uncertainties due to airstrikes. The Iranian football association was notably absent from the recent FIFA congress in Vancouver.
Don't miss Nuggets vs. Timberwolves Game 6 on April 30 at 9:30 p.m. ET!
Tigers secure a 5-2 win over the Braves with key plays from Matt Vierling.
Gujarat Titans opt to bowl first against RCB; Prasidh Krishna left out again.
Liverpool is looking at Feyenoord's Arne Slot for the head coach role amid tactical struggles.
Paula Badosa revela que necesita parar por problemas mentales y se baja de Roma.
See every story in Sports — including breaking news and analysis.
Rioux will join a UC Irvine squad that finished the 2025-26 campaign 23-12 overall, which included a 75-72 loss to UNLV in the first round of the NIT. The Anteaters have reached the NCAA Tournament twice (2015 and 2019) since the turn of the century.