UF President Finalist Stuart Bell Open to ‘Gator Bait’ Chant Return
A once prominent chant may return to The Swamp.
“Gator Bait” once filled college football Saturdays at the Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, before former University of Florida President Kent Fuchs terminated it in 2020 because of historic racist imagery associated with the phrase.
Now, the sole finalist for UF’s president search, Dr. Stuart Bell, said that traditions matter.
“I know there’s a lot around the ‘Gator Bait’ (chant). It’s meaningful to the Gator family,” Bell told 1010XL. “I hope we’re able to have some really great conversations around that.”
Loading ...Gators safety Lawrence Wright coined the “Gator Bait” chant in 1995.
“If you ain’t a Gator, ya Gator bait, baby,” Wright said after a home win against Florida State.
The chant was originally eliminated due to historic imagery that goes back to the late 1800s and early 1900s, when African-American babies were used as alligator bait. The term “alligator bait” was also used as a racial slur.
“While I know of no evidence of racism associated with our ‘Gator Bait’ cheer at UF sporting events, there is horrific historic racist imagery associated with the phrase,” Fuchs said in the email that announced the chant’s ban.
Before the “Gator Bait” chant, another tradition was banned at The Swamp. The ‘Move Back, You Suck’ chant was barred in 2015, before returning in 2024.
During his 10-year tenure as university president of Alabama, Bell saw two national championships and five conference championships in football with former Alabama coach Nick Saban. He also saw 15 conference championships across Crimson Tide athletics.
Bell also acted as the president of the SEC from 2023 to 2025, and sat on the executive committee from 2021 to 2025.
In his new role at Florida, he told 1010XL that winning would be the expectation.
“I already got a lot of good rings, I’d like to get some more of those,” Bell said.
Category: Gators Football, University of Florida
