As he welcomed the college basketball national champion to the White House, US President Donald Trump informed Thomas Haugh, a basketball standout from Florida, that he has “no hair loss problems.”
To celebrate the team’s national championship, Trump invited Florida to the White House on Wednesday. The Gators won their first national championship since 2007 after defeating Houston 65-63 after trailing by 12 points.
For a while now, American sports teams have been traveling to the White House to celebrate winning their league championships. Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers visited Washington, D.C., last month to celebrate their World Series victory, and Ohio State and the Philadelphia Eagles did the same to commemorate their national championship and Super Bowl victories, respectively.
When Trump stood next to Ohio State’s football team last month, he found a ridiculous technique to make himself appear taller. Winning college teams also travel to the White House. However, his earlier encounter with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa resulted in a bald spot on his head, which dominated much of the social media coverage on Wednesday.
Trump then mocked himself as he praised Ryan Haugh – and his hair. “The Elite Eight brought to a face off with Texas Tech, down by nine with under four minutes left,” the POTUS said. “Florida responded with a furious rally led by sophomore Thomas Haugh, who made back-to-back three-pointers. “Back-to-back. He has got good hair too.
President Trump and the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Champions, the Florida Gators Men’s Basketball, at the White House! 🇺🇸🐊 pic.twitter.com/NmWdGhyghR
— American Citizen 🇺🇸 (@realtalkstruth) May 22, 2025
The President then turned to Haugh and praised his hair, before adding: “He’s got no hair loss problems, I can tell you!” His bald spot amused fans online as he met with Ramaphosa. One user joked: “Someone please tell Trump we can see his shiny bald head underneath his cotton-floss hairdo.”
“Just saw a side profile of Trump’s hairstyle and new hair color…he must have to sit in a chair for 3 hours each morning to manage that hairstyle to cover all of his bald spots and get it all hair sprayed,” another added.
Trump gave Haugh a lot of credit for helping the Gators win their third national championship. In 40 games as a sophomore, he averaged 9.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting 34% from 3-point range. He also finished second in the nation in offensive rating (138.1).
.@POTUS welcomes the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball champions to the White House — the University of Florida @GatorsMBK 🏆 pic.twitter.com/4p67ERsPvC
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 21, 2025
In nine games between the SEC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament, the 6-foot-9 star, who will return to Florida and skip the 2025 NBA draft, improved his playoff performance by averaging 12 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. During that time, he finished in double figures seven times.
Rueben Chinyelu, a center for Florida, has also stated that he will be joining the Gators for the upcoming campaign. Earlier this month, head coach Todd Golden agreed to a six-year contract extension.
