Florida Gators QB Anthony Richardson Announces He’ll No Longer Use ‘AR-15’ Nickname Because of Association with Shootings
Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images
University of Florida Gators quarterback Anthony Richardson announced he will no longer use the nickname “AR-15,” which was his initials combined with his jersey number, due to the gun’s association with mass shootings. He has also taken down the website he was using to sell merchandise with that logo.
Richardson, a sophomore and Gainesville native, posted a statement on his Twitter account sharing that he would be abandoning the nickname as well as an apparel line that used an AR-15 logo and a scope reticle, like that used on a rifle. “[I]t is important to me that my name and brand are no longer associated with the assault rifle that has been used in mass shootings, which I do not condone in any way or form,” he wrote, adding that he and his representatives were working on “rebranding”:
After discussions with my family and much thought, I have decided to no longer use the nickname “AR-15” and the current apparel line logo, which features a scope reticle, as part of my branding.
While a nickname is only a nickname and “AR-15” was simply a representation of my initials combined with my jersey number, it is important to me that my name and brand are no longer associated with the assault rifle that has been used in mass shootings, which I do not condone in any way or form. My representatives and I are currently working on rebranding, which includes the creation of a new logo and transitioning to simply using “AR” and my name, Anthony Richardson.
— Anthony Richardson † (@GVOaant) July 17, 2022
Before this announcement, Richardson had been selling merchandise on his website, anthonyrichardson15.com, like many other college football players in the wake of last year’s unanimous Supreme Court opinion that invalidated an NCAA rule barring amateur student-athletes from profiting from their names, images, and likenesses, or NIL.
The homepage of Richardson’s site is currently all-black and displays the same message he posted on his Twitter account, but it previously showed, from this archived version earlier this year, his former AR-15 logo and a “crosshairs” image like a rifle’s scope.
Other sections of the website included merchandise offerings, mostly jerseys, and shirts, with AR-15 and the scope logo.
The direct link for Richardson’s merchandise sales was still active earlier on Monday, with all but a few of the items shown as “SOLD OUT.” At some point Monday afternoon, that site was replaced with a message stating “AR15 Apparel is no longer active or associated with Anthony Richardson.”
Richardson shared QB duties last year as a redshirt freshman with Emory Jones. After Jones’ transfer to Arizona State, Richardson is expected to be named starting quarterback for the Gators’ coming season, which kicks off September 3 at Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium against the Utah Utes.
