Mr. Two Bits
Encyclopedia
George Edmondson, Jr. of Tampa, Florida
, known to the University of Florida community as "Mr. Two Bits," is a football fan of—and cheerleader for—the Florida Gators
football team.
Before the beginning of University of Florida
home football games (at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
), Mr. Two Bits comes to midfield wearing his signature yellow shirt with a blue and orange tie to lead the crowd in the "two bits" cheer. Mr. Two Bits silences the crowd by blowing a whistle and holding up a sign which reads "2 Bits." Once the crowd has drawn silent, Mr. Two Bits points to the crowd which signals the beginning of the cheer and the fans begin to cheer:
Two Bits!
Four Bits!
Six Bits!
A Dollar!
All for the Gators
Stand up and holler!
The cheer began when Edmondson attended the season opener for Florida in 1949 against his alma mater
, the Citadel. The Gators had lost five of their last six games the previous year and were not expected to do any better. When the fans booed the players and the coach even before the opening kickoff, Edmondson decided to boost their morale by leading them in a cheer about adding up bits
(a "bit" is an eighth of a dollar, so eight of them would indeed total one dollar). The fans around him were so encouraged that he returned the next Saturday and repeated his direction. Soon he began the pattern he would use for almost all of the games he attended: moving around throughout the game to lead different sections of the stadium in his cheer.
Though Edmondson was never a University of Florida student, the university has named him an honorary alumnus
of the school, and he has claimed it as his new alma mater. He was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as an "honorary letter winner" in 1992.
He retired from his cheerleading at the end of the 2008 Florida football season. Florida held a special ceremony prior to the UF/Citadel game in 2008 to "officially" retire Mr. Two Bits. Unlike his first "retirement" at the end of the 1998 season, Mr. Two Bits has not been seen on the field since the UF/Citadel game.
Mr. Two Bits always wore the same clothes—a yellow shirt, orange and blue tie, and a pair of white and blue striped seersucker pants—to stand out in the crowd.
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
, known to the University of Florida community as "Mr. Two Bits," is a football fan of—and cheerleader for—the Florida Gators
Florida Gators
The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. The "Lady Gators" is an alternative nickname sometimes used by the Gators women's teams...
football team.
Before the beginning of University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
home football games (at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at Florida Field is the football stadium for the University of Florida and the home field of the university's Florida Gators football team. It is located on the university's Gainesville, Florida campus. The stadium was originally built in 1930, and has been regularly...
), Mr. Two Bits comes to midfield wearing his signature yellow shirt with a blue and orange tie to lead the crowd in the "two bits" cheer. Mr. Two Bits silences the crowd by blowing a whistle and holding up a sign which reads "2 Bits." Once the crowd has drawn silent, Mr. Two Bits points to the crowd which signals the beginning of the cheer and the fans begin to cheer:
Two Bits!
Four Bits!
Six Bits!
A Dollar!
All for the Gators
Stand up and holler!
The cheer began when Edmondson attended the season opener for Florida in 1949 against his alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
, the Citadel. The Gators had lost five of their last six games the previous year and were not expected to do any better. When the fans booed the players and the coach even before the opening kickoff, Edmondson decided to boost their morale by leading them in a cheer about adding up bits
BITS
BITS or bits may refer to:* Plural of bit* Background Intelligent Transfer Service, a file transfer protocol* Birla Institute of Technology and Science, a technology school in Pilani, Rajasthan, India, with campuses in Goa, Hyderabad, and Dubai...
(a "bit" is an eighth of a dollar, so eight of them would indeed total one dollar). The fans around him were so encouraged that he returned the next Saturday and repeated his direction. Soon he began the pattern he would use for almost all of the games he attended: moving around throughout the game to lead different sections of the stadium in his cheer.
Though Edmondson was never a University of Florida student, the university has named him an honorary alumnus
Alumnus
An alumnus , according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is "a graduate of a school, college, or university." An alumnus can also be a former member, employee, contributor or inmate as well as a former student. In addition, an alumna is "a female graduate or former student of a school, college,...
of the school, and he has claimed it as his new alma mater. He was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as an "honorary letter winner" in 1992.
He retired from his cheerleading at the end of the 2008 Florida football season. Florida held a special ceremony prior to the UF/Citadel game in 2008 to "officially" retire Mr. Two Bits. Unlike his first "retirement" at the end of the 1998 season, Mr. Two Bits has not been seen on the field since the UF/Citadel game.
Mr. Two Bits always wore the same clothes—a yellow shirt, orange and blue tie, and a pair of white and blue striped seersucker pants—to stand out in the crowd.