Florida Gators Distance Themselves From Aaron Hernandez

The Florida Gators appear to be removing Aaron Hernandez from their memory:

The Gators appear to be distancing themselves from fallen football star Aaron Hernandez as his legal troubles mount.

The University of Florida removed a brick at the southwest end of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium honoring Hernandez for his 2009 All-America honor for the Gators, replacing the brick with a blank one.

Hernandez, the first UF player to earn consensus All-America honors at tight end and win the John Mackey Award honoring the nation’s top tight end, has been charged with the murder of semi-pro football player Odin Lloyd. A grand jury reportedly is weighing whether to indict him on charges in connection with two more murders.

“We didn’t feel it was appropriate to celebrate Aaron Hernandez,” the school said in a statement. “We put together an immediate plan after the initial news broke to remove his likeness and name in various private and public areas in the facility, such as the South Endzone team area, locker room, football offices, Heavener Complex Kornblau Lobby and the brick display entrance to the football facility.

This comes after the New England Patriots made it possible for fans to trade in their Hernandez paraphenalia in for that of any other active player at no cost.

In other news, investigators appear to be getting closer to linking Hernandez to a double murder in Suffolk County, Massachusetts that occurred last year. Some theories of the crime he is presently charged with suggest that it is tied in some way to this double murder.

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Doug Mataconis
About Doug Mataconis
Doug Mataconis held a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University and J.D. from George Mason University School of Law. He joined the staff of OTB in May 2010 and contributed a staggering 16,483 posts before his retirement in January 2020. He passed far too young in July 2021.

Comments

  1. al-Ameda says:

    What, the University of Florida is distancing themselves from a formerly highly regarded student athlete? This wouldn’t happen at the University of Miami.