Why I Love Orlando Is Why I Love UCF

Over the years, the moments when our community has come together in extraordinary ways are forever parts of my memory. During challenges and in good times, seeing Orlando united has always given me immense pride as the city’s mayor.

That’s why I’ll always remember the night in January 2018 when downtown Orlando was filled with Black & Gold as we celebrated the UCF football team’s undefeated season and Peach Bowl win over Auburn University. Alumni, students and fans from across the community packed Church Street to honor the team’s 13-0 season, capped by a win over the Tigers in Atlanta.

But the evening wasn’t just a recognition of the Knights’ incredible year. We were also celebrating UCF and our community — our shared success and growth.

I bring this up because when I think about how far UCF has come in the more than 22 years I’ve served as mayor, this is one of the memories that stands out.

Why?

When I started my first term as mayor in 2003, sadly, there weren’t a lot of people wearing UCF gear around town — and you’d see even less Black & Gold around the state. At the same time, there was a sense that UCF graduates weren’t particularly interested in sticking around and living in our community. They had visions of going to the “big city” and
wanted to pursue their dreams in places like New York, Chicago or Washington, D.C.

Depending on who you talked to, UCF was either a sleeping giant or a scrappy underdog of collegiate academia and athletics, or somewhere in between.

Many of the same comparisons were made about Orlando. We were a city with “loads of potential,” which is a polite way of saying we had lots of work to do.

But something magical happened over the past two-plus decades. Alongside one another and in partnership, UCF and Orlando grew and matured.

Alongside one another and in partnership, UCF and Orlando created shared visions for what we could be — and should be — and brought them to life.

Alongside one another and in partnership, UCF and Orlando became places where people wanted to live and pursue their dreams.

Today, UCF is one of the most vibrant and diverse universities in America — located in one of the most vibrant and diverse cities in America. In the classroom, in the community and on the field of competition as a member of the Big 12 Conference, UCF is leading with innovation, creativity and partnership.

UCF has become The University for the Future, at the same time Orlando has become a city for the future.

As UCF and Orlando continue to grow alongside and in partnership with one another, we will continue to diversify our economy and create high-quality jobs for UCF graduates. This is evidenced by our partnership to create the UCF Downtown campus in Creative Village, which solidifies Orlando’s reputation as one of the nation’s largest hubs for video
game design and development. With UCF’s Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy, which is ranked the top graduate program in the world, we’ve created a talent pipeline for Electronic Arts, which develops some of the world’s most popular games, like EA SPORTS College Football 25, right here in our city.

Today, you can’t go anyplace — a city park, a grocery store, a restaurant — without seeing someone wearing a UCF shirt or hat. And when you talk to recent UCF graduates, so many of them can’t wait to tell you that they love living, working and putting down roots in Orlando.

So when I think about the shared future ahead for The City Beautiful and its hometown university, my memories take me back to that night in 2018 when I saw nothing but UCF supporters and a sea of Black & Gold that was indicative of our city’s love for Knight Nation.

I love Orlando. I love UCF. And what I love most is what we’ve built in partnership together and the future that lies ahead — and that Orlando and UCF will continue to Charge On together.

Buddy Dyer is Orlando’s longest-serving mayor, with his first term starting in 2003. He received an honorary Doctor of Public Service from UCF in 2018.