By Nathan Flom
It’s 6:59 p.m., and you’re scrambling with moist hands, trying to find live stats. You’re searching for anything to tell you about the game because the Ospreys are playing a top ranked opponent on the road, and you don’t want to miss the start.
There is now a solution that will keep your blood pressure at a healthy level. It’s called Osprey Fans.
A small group of Osprey fans at UNF formed the club with the goal of solving the previous conundrum. The overall mission of the organization is to get fans together and create an environment of school spirit and pride while teams are on the road battling for supremacy, said Osprey Fans president Trey Gowdy.
“We want to build a tradition that future Ospreys can look back at and say, ‘I was there when this was started,’” he said.
The club’s inaugural event will be held at the at 8 p.m. Nov. 17 at the Boathouse when the men’s basketball team takes on No. 7 ranked Florida in Gainesville’s O’Connell Center. Chartwells will have many specials on food and drinks. There will be many contests throughout the night.
The club’s vision is to air more UNF sports publicly at the Boathouse. Besides pleasing dedicated fans, the club wants to get more students involved with UNF athletics.
UNF men’s basketball coach Matthew Driscoll said clubs such as this can help build attendance at games, as well as inspire new chants and cheers.
“This can help make the UNF Arena the toughest place to play in our league,” he said.
Osprey Fans is growing and hopes to establish itself as a club of which students can be proud members. The leaders want to create an outlet for students to not only cheer on their teams but create an environment where UNF students can mingle and create bonds.
“There is no doubt that having clubs like this brings energy and excitement to the game, which
helps give our players that added lift,” Driscoll said.
If you would like to learn more Osprey Fans or would like to see a schedule of their upcoming events you can go to www.facebook.com/OspreyFans.
