Florida walk-on relishes moment years in making

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Chris Sutherland was sitting near the end of Florida's bench, sandwiched between teammates, when he heard the chants. They were faint at first, growing louder and clearer by the second.

“We want Chris! We want Chris!”

Sutherland had waited years for this moment, a chance to finally play college basketball and complete a journey that started as a kid in Queens, New York, and continued through high school in Fort Myers and well into college.

He should have been ready. After all, he was no stranger to game, the O'connell Center or even the program. But what should have been Sutherland's career achievement ended up feeling more like “One Stumbling Moment.”

His warmup jacket got caught on his arm as he hustled to the scorer's table. An official had to tell him to tuck in his No. 34 jersey, which was the only one without a name on the back. He stood in the wrong spot on the foul line, drawing a dirty look from an opponent. If that weren't bad enough, his wrist band snapped into pieces and delayed the game.

“Why in the world was I so nervous?” Sutherland recalled last week. “There was just so much going on.”

More than most knew.

Sutherland was a graduate student who worked his way onto Florida's bench in January after serving as an arena worker, a practice player for the women's team and team manager for the men's program. Gaining NCAA eligibility required him to pay back scholarship money and remove his name and likeness from a website he created last year to sell streetwear he designed.

“He brings as much positive energy as any player or manager I've ever been around,” Florida coach Mike White said. “It is unbelievable. As soon as you walk into the gym, you hear him. It's crazy. You want guys like that in your program.”

Sutherland was hoping for a few more weeks with the Gators. Then the coronavirus pandemic struck. And with it his shot at playing in the NCAA Tournament.

For Sutherland, it was an abrupt end to a path years in the making.

He turned down several scholarship offers to play college basketball, including one to Division II Belmont Abbey near Charlotte, North Carolina. He chose to stay closer to his mother, a diabetic in Fort Myers, and settled into life as a regular student.

He became a Rowdy Reptile, a member of the raucous stu