Luke Baumstark had a busy day on Monday. Not only was he starting his spring semester classes at the University of Miami, but like many of his peers, he was also trying to get tickets to the national championship game during his lunch break. And Baumstark was also looking to get some new Canes gear to commemorate this moment in Hurricanes football history.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime game, so I am going to try my best to go,” said the sophomore studying finance and business analytics. “My friends and I are all gearing up to hopefully go to the game together.”
He was looking at T-shirts for himself and his father on Monday at the Campus Store. Baumstark was one of many students, staff members, and community fans streaming into the bookstore, all looking for clothing or paraphernalia to display their pride for the University, as its football team competes for the College Football Playoff National Championship title. The store is restocking daily with national championship shirts—of which they have 14 varieties—but the store also has plenty of other popular Canes gear, like hats, Hurricanes pennants, pins, hoodies, and quarter-zip shirts.
Teresa Thompson, regional manager for Follett, which operates the Campus Store, said she is expecting a shirt that features the dueling helmets of the Indiana University Hoosiers and the Miami Hurricanes by midweek. They are also getting locker room shirts to sell should the Canes win the national title next week. She and Follett area market leader Allison Rotbart are working to ensure that the Campus Store and allCanes, just off campus, are stocked to accommodate the extra Canes fans looking for Hurricanes gear this week.
“We are excited and ready for the increased foot traffic at both stores and love seeing our University of Miami gear being worn all over the country,” said Rotbart.
With a constant flow of customers, Thompson anticipates that the Campus Store will generate 300 percent more business this week, thanks to the football team’s success. The store has extra staff to help customers and will be open additional hours this week from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and this weekend from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday and Monday. Both managers recommended that the best way for fans to shop the Campus Store is to order their items online and then pick them up in person.
As the afternoon continued, many other students and Hurricanes fans stopped into the store. Rachel Sygall, a third-year law student, was video chatting with her family about what Canes swag she should buy for the game between classes. Almost a double Cane, Sygall earned her bachelor’s degree in business law from the University and met her fiancé on the Coral Gables Campus. She was introduced to the school as a child. Her father is an alumnus of the Miller School of Medicine, so Sygall grew up watching the Canes every Saturday during football season, and she is eager to attend the national championship game next Monday.
“This University gave me my best friends, my future husband, and my career, so I can’t ask for anything more—I just want to support the Canes, so I am Facetiming my parents to stock up on gear,” she said, adding that her husband-to-be played for the football team. “We are all super excited and happy for the team. They have overcome so much that they deserve this and Miami does, too.”
Baumstark agreed. “With the team doing this well, it makes me really proud to be a student here,” he said.
