The tallest player in the history of March Madness has officially chosen his new school for his next opportunity.
Canadian center Olivier Rioux, who stands at a hardly-believable 7-foot-9, has committed to mid-major powerhouse UC Irvine, according to his Instagram account.
Rioux previously played at Florida, where he received few minutes behind a frontcourt featuring stars Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon.
Now, the Canadian giant will join an Anteaters team that nearly made the NCAA Tournament last season.
Rioux did set the record for being the tallest player in NCAA Tournament history when he checked in to the Gators’ first-round game against Prairie View A&M.
Fans at Benchmark International Arena in Tampa began chanting ‘We want Ollie’ during the game, encouraging coach Todd Golden to bring in the native of Terrebonne, Quebec.
Florida’s 7-foot-9 giant Olivier Rioux has transferred to UC Irvine for the 2026-27 season
Rioux set the record for being the tallest player in March Madness history earlier this year
Rioux managed a put-back dunk to log two points in the Gators’ blowout victory
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Golden granted the fans their wish when Rioux checked into the game to thunderous cheers and applause.
After he checked into the game, Prairie View A&M junior forward Hassane Diallo was seen staring up at the Quebecois giant.
Rioux contributed a small piece to the Gators’ dominant victory over the Panthers as he logged two points, two rebounds and an assist in Florida’s 114-55 win.
But he did not contribute when Florida lost a stunner to nine-seed Iowa in the second round – ending their attempt at winning back-to-back national championships.
Under coach Russel Turner, UC Irvine has won three out of the last four Big West regular season titles. However, they’ve not made the NCAA Tournament since 2019.
Last season, they went 23-12, lost the Big West Championship game to Hawai’i and then fell to UNLV in the first round of the NIT.
Rioux played in just eleven contests in the 2025-26 season, averaging fewer than two minutes a game and scoring just seven points in total.
