How tall is Olivier Rioux? Florida’s tallest player also tallest in college basketball

Florida basketball is back in the Final Four of the men’s NCAA Tournament for the first time in over a decade, and it’s largely due to the production from Walter Clayton Jr., the Gators’ All-American guard who was a Wooden Award finalist.

And while Clayton Jr. finds himself in headlines and attention, and rightfully so, there has been another member of Florida‘s roster that has garnered just as much attention through March Madness: freshman forward Olivier Rioux.

Since the Canadian forward is redshirting this season, his popularity has come from being a hard miss on the Gators’ bench during the NCAA Tournament, as he is not just one of the tallest players on Florida‘s roster, but the entire country.

REQUIRED READING: Florida vs Auburn live updates: Final Four score as Gators battle Tigers

Florida currently trails No. 1 Auburn 46-38 at halftime in San Antonio at the time of this writing. If the Gators are able to come back in the second half, they will advance the national championship game for the first time since 2007, the same season that they beat Ohio State to become the then-seventh different program to win back-to-back national championship titles.

Here’s what you need to know about his height and more as Florida competes in the Final Four on Saturday:

How tall is Olivier Rioux? Height of Florida basketball tallest player

Rioux is listed at 7-foot-9 on Florida’s official roster — five inches taller than former Purdue center Zach Edey. Per an ESPN story from November, Rioux is the tallest player in men’s college basketball history.

As noted on his Florida profile page, Rioux holds a Guinness World Record for the tallest teenager. By the time he entered seventh grade, the Terrebonne, Quebec, Canada native was already over 7 feet tall.

Given his 7-foot-9 frame, Rioux did not need to step onto the Weber Ladder at the Chase Center following Florida’s Elite Eight win over Texas Tech in the West Regional.

Tallest players in men’s college basketball history

Here’s a list of the tallest players in the history of men’s college basketball, per ESPN:

• 1. Olivier Riox (Florida): 7-foot-9
• T-2. Kenny George (UNC Asheville): 7-foot-7
• T-2. Mike Lanier (Hardin-Simmons/UCLA): 7-foot-7
• T-4. John Hollinden (Oral Roberts): 7-foot-6
• T-4. Mamadou Ndiaya (UC Irvine): 7-foot-6
• T-4. Neil Fingleton (Holy Cross/North Carolina): 7-foot-6
• T-4. Shawn Bradley (BYU): : 7-foot-6
• T-4. Tacko Fall (UCF): 7-foot-6
• T-9. Chuck Nevitt (NC State): 7-foot-5
• T-9. Connor Vanover (Cal/Arkansas/Oral Roberts/Missouri): 7-foot-5
• T-9. Greg Ritter (Portland): 7-foot-5
• T-9. Jamarion Sharp (Ole Miss/Western Kentucky): 7-foot-5
• T-9. Sim Bhullar (New Mexico State): 7-foot-5
• T-9. Will Forster (Gonzaga): 7-foot-5
• T-15. Alan Bannister (Arkansas State/Oklahoma State): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Blake Vedder (Kent State/Rhode Island): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Chase Metheney (Virginia): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Christ Koumadje (Florida State): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Daniel Jacobsen (Purdue): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Jakub Kusmieruk (Idaho State/UCF): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Lonnie Boeckman (Oklahoma State): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Mark Eaton (UCLA): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Matt Van Komen (St. Mary’s/Utah): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Naheem McLeod (Florida State/Syracuse): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Ralph Sampson (Virginia): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Rik Smits (Marist): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Riley Sorn (Washington): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Rolf Mayr (Duquesne): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Steve Turner (Vanderbilt): 7-foot-4
• T-15. Zach Edey (Purdue): 7-foot-4

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