Fans of Michigan's rivals snap up dozens of NJIT T-shirts
Two surprises awaited New Jersey Institute of Technology bookstore manager Peter Maranzano when he arrived at work Monday morning.
The first was that he received about 20 times the number of online orders for NJIT T-shirts and sweatshirts over the weekend as he usually would. The second was that more than half the orders came from Ohio and Michigan addresses more than 500 miles away from the school's Newark campus.
"You're just on autopilot taking orders, and then you notice Detroit, East Lansing, Columbus and you put two and two together," Maranzano said Tuesday. "I had a bunch from Ohio, and I thought, 'Oh, these have to be Buckeyes fans.'"
Of course, the impetus for the barrage of orders was NJIT's stunning 72-70 victory over No. 17 Michigan on Saturday afternoon in what was easily the biggest upset of the college basketball season thus far. Fans of Ohio State, Michigan State and other Big Ten schools snapped up NJIT gear to rub the humiliating loss in the faces of their Wolverines-loving friends.
Although Maranzano was surprised to be shipping dozens of T-shirts to Columbus and East Lansing, the phenomenon of purchasing T-shirts to commemorate a rival's loss isn't new. Hundreds of Missouri fans bought Bucknell shirts seven years ago after the Bison toppled Kansas in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Kentucky fans did the same in 2011 when Kenneth Faried and Morehead State ousted Louisville.
It's possible NJIT's win may be even more surprising than either of those. Not even six years removed from losing a Division I record 51 straight games, the Highlanders showed how far they have come by toppling a name-brand program with resources they can't even fathom.
NJIT plays in a cramped 1,500-seat gym; Michigan's home is spacious newly renovated 12,700-seat Crisler Arena.
NJIT had never faced a AP Top 25 opponent in the history of its program before; Michigan finished both of the past two seasons ranked in the top 10.
NJIT is the only Division I team without a conference to call home; Michigan is a charter member of the prestigious Big Ten.
What NJIT hopes is that the credibility boost from this win combined with facilities upgrades in the works will help the school earn an invitation from a Division I conference in the Northeast. Whether that comes to fruition or not, beating Michigan certainly has brought the school unexpected publicity — both in its home state and throughout the Midwest.
Maranzano received about 90 online orders for T-shirts on Monday and another 20 by midday Tuesday. He said he receives 3-to-5 on a typical day.
"Hopefully it's positive for the program," Maranzano said. "If it raises publicity for the school, I think that can only be a good thing."
- - - - - - -
Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
