{"id":2879,"date":"2026-06-04T23:04:52","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T23:04:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2879"},"modified":"2026-06-04T23:04:52","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T23:04:52","slug":"uf-presidental-finalist-stuart-bell-eyes-more-championship-rings-with-the-gators","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2879","title":{"rendered":"UF presidental finalist Stuart Bell eyes more championship rings with the Gators"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<p>GAINESVILLE \u2014 Stuart Bell, UF\u2019s lone presidental finalist, experienced his share of championship success during his decade in the same role at Alabama.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2877\">Kennedy Center begins process of removing Trump references after judge said it was illegally added<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Soon, he hopes to win more titles with the Gators.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI already have a lot of good rings,\u201d Bell said Thursday on the \u201cThe Frangie Show\u201d on 1010XL in Jacksonville. \u201cI want some more of those.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bell has deep ties to the Southeastern Conference.<\/p>\n<p>He served as Alabama\u2019s president from July 2015 to July 2025, a span during which the Crimson Tide won two national championships and five SEC titles under Nick Saban. Before that, Bell was LSU\u2019s provost from 2012 to 2015 and spent 16 years on Alabama\u2019s faculty from 1986 to 2002.<\/p>\n<p>The 69-year-old earned a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering and a bachelors degree in nuclear engineering from Texas A&amp;M long before the Aggies joined the league.<\/p>\n<p>Bell\u2019s passion and interest in college athletics will serve him well if the school\u2019s Board of Trustees approves him following a formal interview June 10, followed by a vote. The state\u2019s Board of Governors has final approval.<\/p>\n<p>Over the years, he has witnessed the expectations in Gainesville and throughout the premiere athletics conference.<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cGator Nation, they\u2019re used to winning,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Bell knows the SEC\u2019s competitive landscape well. He served as president of the conference from 2023 to 2025 and on its Executive Committee from 2021 to 2025.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe all have the same target,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s to make sure that our athletic plan is able to compete at the highest level, and my expectation is win some championships.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While at Alabama, Bell attended Heisman Trophy ceremonies, including those honoring Crimson Tide winners DeVonta Smith in 2020 and Bryce Young in 2021. There, he met Florida legends Steve Spurrier, Danny Wuerffel and Tim Tebow.<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cI actually stood up with some of those guys and got to know them,\u201d Bell said. \u201cThey\u2019re just a lot of fun.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2875\">US sanctions Cuban President Miguel D\u00edaz-Canel in latest move pressuring island\u2019s leadership<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Bell said he appreciates the pageantry and traditions that define college football programs.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think about just the traditions that have meant so much at Florida, and traditions matter,\u201d he said. \u201cI know there\u2019s a lot around the Gator Bait (cheer). It\u2019s meaningful to the Gator family. I hope we\u2019re able to have some really great conversations around that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Former UF President Kent Fuchs announced in June 2020 that Florida\u2019s band would no longer play the musical cue prompting fans to chant \u201cGator Bait\u201d because of concerns about possible racial undertones. Art depicting alligator hunters using Black babies to lure the animals into the open was popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s.<\/p>\n<p>The decision came amid a broader national reckoning on race following the murder of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis.<\/p>\n<p>Bell emerged as the sole finalist as UF president after the school began its third presidential search in four years in December 2025. Florida\u2019s Board of Governors rejected the selection of Dr. Santa Ono, the former president of the University of Michigan, in June 2025.<\/p>\n<p>UF\u2019s Board of Trustees subsequently extended the contract of Fuchs, who had served as the university\u2019s interim president since Aug. 1, 2024, after serving in the position from 2015 until 2023.<\/p>\n<p>Donald W. Landry, a professor of medicine at Columbia University, has served as interim president since September 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Bell would become UF\u2019s first permanent president since Ben Sasse resigned in July 2024, fewer than 18 months after taking office. Sasse said he stepped down to help care for his wife as she dealt with epilepsy.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=2873\">Colorado appeals court overturns homicide convictions for 2 paramedics in Elijah McClain\u2019s death<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Sasse was diagnosed in December 2025 with stage-four pancreatic cancer.<\/p>\n<p><em>Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>UF presidential finalist Stuart Bell aims for more championship rings with Gators after enjoying his share of titles at Alabama.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2878,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2879","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-college-sports","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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