I grew up a Gator and now I go to Florida State
‘I’ll definitely be a Seminole until the day I die’
The day my older sister got into Florida was a national holiday in my household. My dad celebrated, my mom cried, and I couldn’t have been more happy and proud of my sister officially becoming a Gator. Growing up 45 minutes south of Gainesville meant being a Gator fan wasn’t a choice, but a moral obligation. Gator nation was quite literally my backyard, and growing up I spent almost every weekend in Gainesville with family and friends.
The day I told my dad I was transferring to Florida State, I don’t know what I expected. I knew he wouldn’t be angry, but I also knew he’d be taken aback, because in my family Florida State was never on the radar.
Personally, I’d always loved Florida. The campus, the football (Chris Leak was EVERYTHING to me in the 7th grade), the academics, not to mention most of the friends I had we’re die hard Gator fans, too. It wasn’t until it was time for me to transfer colleges that I realized I wanted something different, something new. I hesitantly put in an application, but attending FSU didn’t seem like a reality until I received a letter of admittance, and decided that I’d actually be switching teams for good.
On the day of my orientation at Florida State and two hours into our drive to Tallahassee, my sister and I realized with dread that my mom was unintentionally wearing a blue shirt with an orange cardigan, and my dad was wearing his favorite hat, which happened to say Florida on the front and Gators on the back. It was at that moment I realized how deeply embedded my family was in UF’s culture, and that they needed time to get used to the fact I’d be attending FSU.
When we arrived to Tallahassee, we pulled into a convenience store parking lot so my mom could remove her cardigan before we got too close to campus, while my dad bought his very first piece of Florida State merchandise.
I’ll always respect Florida, but in the past year I’ve developed a ridiculous amount of love for Florida State. Admittedly, being in Gainesville for the rivalry football game, wearing garnet and gold and cheering for the opposite team of my family and all my friends was weird, but there was no better feeling than cheering on Florida State with thousands of other Noles in the middle of The Swamp.
FSU is also incredibly socially and academically sound. The university holds high expectations for it’s students, all university events- including atheletic games- for students, faculty and staff are free (take notes, UF), and Tallahassee is the perfect college town – I choose living here over Gainesville by a landslide.
I may have grown up a Gator, but I’ll definitely be a Seminole until the day I die.