The University of Florida fielded its first official intercollegiate sports team (football) in the fall of 1906.

It adopted orange and blue as its official colors, combining the blue and white of the former Florida Agricultural College in Lake City with the orange and black of the former East Florida Seminary in Gainesville, the university's two oldest predecessor institutions.

The football team did not initially have an official nickname or mascot, and was often referred to as the "Orange and Blue" or "Pee Wee's Boys," after the team's first head coach, Jack "Pee Wee" Forsythe.

With the state of Florida being home to millions of alligators, the "gator" proved a popular choice among members of the student body, and the Florida football team began to refer to itself as the "Gators" during the 1911 fall season.

[4] The primary focus, however, was to design costumes that were more lightweight and better suited for the students performing in Florida's hot weather.