Florida Gators will make 3D hologram projection court permanent in O’Connell Center

Basketball

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Florida Gators basketball debuted a new hologram on-court protection for the team’s introductions ahead of its showdown against Kentucky inside the Stephen C. O’Connell Center in February.

While it was a massive hit, fans soon learned that it would not be a permanent fixture of the O’Dome as the one-time installation of four projectors cost $20,000 for the game and was the result of a three-year approval process.

The main reason why the Gators did not install the projectors permanently was a lack of funding, but that has now been cleared up after the University Athletic Association approved a $128 million budget for the 2017-18 fiscal year on Monday.

Carved out in that budget is $350,000 for the projection system, which Florida announced will not be used for every game but rather “select men’s and women’s basketball games, as well as gymnastics meets and volleyball matches.”

When the lights go out… #TheSwamp comes alive. #OneNight #OneTeam #Gators pic.twitter.com/NrFK6Y9i43

— Gators M-Basketball (@GatorsMBK) February 5, 2017

The only other notable item approved that the majority of fans will notice next season are new LED ribbons that will wrap the end zones at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium along with “additional stadium scoreboards and drink rails in the end zones.”