A man who reportedly bets on Florida football games has been involved in an ongoing conflict with several Gators players for months, and he recently made some troubling allegations against the student athletes.
According to a police report obtained by First Coast News, Devante’ Zachery — known by the nickname “Tay Bang” — had his first run-in with a group of Florida players at a nightclub in February. He says there was a friendly argument over guns and claims the players jumped his friend the following week. A bar security manager confirmed to police that a fight took place between some Florida players and local men. Police say they witnessed another confrontation between the two groups the following weekend and advised the football players to leave before they got themselves into trouble.
That was just the start, says Zachery. According to the report, Zachery told police in May that a group of football players spotted him on campus and began throwing rocks at his car. He claims they chased him with pots and pans and a gun he believed to be an AR-15, though it was later determined that it was an airsoft gun with the tip painted so it looked like a real firearm.
Zachery told police he previously had a good relationship with Florida tight end C’yontai Lewis and one other player and that he would give them discounts on rental cars at Enterprise. Lewis said Zachery bet on football games and that he had a good relationship with the players until they started losing.
There are more allegations made by Zachery in the report, including him telling police he feared for his life and that he was told by a player “there’s money behind this,” leading him to believe there was a bounty attached to him. The University of Florida released the following statement to First Coast News:
“We understand GPD has followed up last week’s UPD report with a background report that has Devante Zachery (aka Tay Bangs) as its primary source. We are not aware if there will be any additional information provided by GPD on this matter.Anytime we get information involving our student athletes we look into it.”
The Gators are entering their first season under new head coach Dan Mullen after they finished 4-7 last year and failed to qualify for a bowl game. It remains to be seen if there will be any disciplinary action stemming from the allegations Zachery made or any ensuing investigation.
