Athletics
Intercollegiate Athletics
The University of Florida athletics program took third in the 2008-09 Learfield Sports Directors' Cup standings. The finish matches the second-highest for the Gator program, second only to Florida's tie for second in the 1997-98 standings.
Florida is the only program in the nation to finish among the nation's top 10 in each of the last 26 national all-sports standings.
The football team's BCS/Associated Press national championship led a program-record tying 12 Gator athletic teams among the nation's top 10 in 2008-09 national competition. This is the fifth time 12 Florida teams were among the nation's top 10 in a single season (1992-93, 2001-02, 2003-04, 2007-08, 2008-09).
In Southeastern Conference action, Florida led the league with six team championships in 2008-09 - football, soccer, softball, women's swimming & diving, women's outdoor track & field and volleyball. Those titles helped UF sweep the New York Times Regional Newspaper Group SEC All-Sports titles. It was the 19th overall title for UF, 16th women's and 13th men's.
In 2008-09, 168 University of Florida student-athletes earned a spot on the Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll. UF is the only SEC school to place 100 or more student-athletes on the Academic Honor Roll each of the last 12 years. The SEC annually selects an Academic Honor Roll for each team that honors student-athletes who have posted cumulative 3.0 grade point averages for the previous academic year.
UF is one of only four programs in the 2008-09 Learfield Sports National All-Sports top 10 to post a graduation success rate above 85%.
Recreation
Students are encouraged to participate in all forms of recreational activities. More than 90 percent take advantage of the numerous outdoor courts and playing fields on campus, and in the O'Connell Center, the Student Recreation and Fitness Center, the Southwest Rec Center and the Florida Gymnasium for indoor sports. In all, Florida offers more than 60 intramural and club sports ranging from archery to weightlifting.
Near the campus are many recreational lakes and rivers, including university-owned Lake Wauburg. The beaches of the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean are just a short drive away.
One thousand people can participate simultaneously in eight different recreational activities in the O'Connell Center, which seats 12,000 for concerts and other events. Also on campus are open spaces, small ponds, picnic areas, shady nooks and an 81-acre wildlife sanctuary that provide opportunities to enjoy Florida's year-round outdoor life.