Florida football Heisman winners OK with jersey numbers not being retired

Florida football does not have any jersey numbers currently retired.

And that's OK with at least two of the three Heisman winners in Florida Gators history.

Danny Wuerffel and Steve Spurrier have no problems with current players wearing their jersey numbers. Freshman quarterback Will Griffin currently wears Spurrier's number 11 on offense, while redshirt sophomore defense end LJ McCray's wears 11 on defense. As for Wuerffel's number 7 − redshirt sophomore tight end Amir Jackson wears it on offense and sophomore linebacker Ty Jackson wears it on defense.

"I don't care that much," Wuerffel said. "I remember some people in my orbit were a little surprised when immediately the next year Jesse Palmer was wearing 7 and I was like, 'Oh, not a big deal.' So, I understand some people when you are here, your families and your extended families kind of get excited and you kind of do own that number, but it's more like a rental. You don't own it."

The issue of whether Heisman winners should have their jersey numbers took center stage earlier this month when 2023 Heisman winner and LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels was upset the school chose not to retire his number 5. Daniels demanded that LSU cease to use his name, image and likeness after new LSU coach Lane Kiffin issued number 5 to sophomore cornerback D.J. Pickett this upcoming season. Pickett said number 5 was promised to him by former LSU coach Brian Kelly during the recruiting process, but that Kelly reneged on the promise.

Spurrier said his number 11 was retired with former UF linebacker Scott Brantley throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s before he unretired it in 1991 to give it to former UF linebacker Ben Hanks.

"When we unretired them I called Scott and he said that's fine, I'd like to see somebody wear my jersey," Spurrier said.

Hanks, whose son Ben Hanks III is a sophomore cornerback at UF, played at UF from 1991-95, earning all SEC honors in 1994 and 1995 before graduating and going on to a five-year pro football career in the NFL, XFL and NFL Europe.

"Coach Spurrier modeled it the best of anyone I've seen when he unretired that number for Ben Hanks," Wuerrfel said.

Spurrier said he also had his number 11 retired at Science Hill High School in Johnson City, Tennessee before allowing another player to wear it.

"They wanted to give it to a quarterback, and I said yeah give it to him, that's wonderful," Spurrier said. "But I didn't know it was that big a deal that some of these guys, they never want anyone to wear their number, and it wasn't even retired."

Jersey numbers have become more personal to the current generation of college football players, who often request the same numbers they wore in high school as leverage for recruiting. First-year Florida football transfer running back Evan Pryor requested and received number 21, the same number he wore as a freshman at Ohio State. Pryor wore number 6 his last two seasons at Cincinnati before coming to UF.

“Yeah, it was either 3 or 21 for me, so I wore 21 there," Pryor said. "It was a weird situation at Cincinnati, so I just got what I could get there. But, you know, I'm back in 21. I feel like myself again.”

Spurrier, Wuerrfel and Florida Heisman winner Tim Tebow were in Gainesville on Sunday, August 23 for the inaugural Florida Legends Card Show, a weekend event for collectors, traders, and enthusiasts for sports and trading card games. Proceeds from the event benefitted the Isaiah 117 House, which aids Alachua County foster children awaiting placement.

Tebow interacted with fans for an hour at the event but declined requests to speak to reporters following his appearance. Former Florida quarterbacks Anthony Richardson and Graham Mertz have worn Tebow's number 15 this decade, and Tebow hasn't protested the school giving out the number either time.

The three Florida stars whose bronze statues adorn the entrance at The Swamp helped drive the event, which according to organizers raised more than eight-figures in sales.

"An incredible trilogy of talent today," said Greg Schultz, a Gainesville resident who attended the event at the Alachua County Sports & Events center. "It's really nice that they've done this. And the cause that they are raising money for is even more important."

Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida football Heisman winners OK with jersey numbers not being retired