Florida shares birthday tribute to late rock ‘n’ roll icon, Gainesville native Tom Petty
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Three years ago, music fans everywhere were saddened by the shocking news of Tom Petty’s unexpected passing.
As a tribute to Gainesville’s most famous son, Florida football began playing Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” over the PA system in The Swamp before the start of the fourth quarter. The “Full Moon Fever” smash was an instant hit with fans (and media members) and “I Won’t Back Down” was here to stay as a new Swamp tradition following.
Tuesday would have been Petty’s 70th birthday. Florida football’s official Twitter account recognized Petty’s birthday with a video clip of fans and players singing “I Won’t Back Down” over the past three years.
Happy Birthday, @tompetty 🙏 pic.twitter.com/3Ni42UW38p
— Gators Football (@GatorsFB) October 20, 2020
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
