As fans fill the stands during football games, Autzen Stadium gradually transforms into blurry patches of yellow and green. Wearing various kinds of Duck gear, from replicas of quarterback Joey Harrington’s No. 3 jersey and Oregon fleeces to Duck tattoos and Mardi Gras beads, Duck supporters make their spirit shine.
And as the Ducks plunge through another successful season, this fanaticism has also shown in the University Bookstore’s sportswear sales, which have seen a 15 percent rise from last year, according to bookstore manager Jim Williams.
“There’s a pretty ground line between the success of the team and sales,” he said. “When the success of the team diminishes, sales definitely go down.”
Because the bookstore is nonprofit, high sales during football seasons also benefit students, he added. The sales are a major reason students can get a 10 percent course book discount each term. The bookstore gives back about $847,000 to students through discounts each year, he said.
Junior Jeff Struthers is one of those big fans who gears up before every game. He said normally on the Thursday of game weeks, he makes a stop at the bookstore to see if there’s anything to add to his game attire.
Aside from the emerald-green paint that he splatters all over his face for games, he usually wears a Harrington jersey his father gave him before the UCLA game last year.
“It’s kind of cheesy,” he said. “But you’ve got to represent the team. It’s total fan support.”
The correlation of enthusiasm for the team and sales in Duck paraphernalia was especially obvious during the Wisconsin game in September, when the Ducks were ranked No. 7 in the Associated Press poll. Between the Duck Shops in Portland and at the stadium, the kiosk in Valley River Center, concessions and bookstore sales, more than $100,000 in Duck gear was sold on that Game Day alone, according to bookstore representatives.
“That was probably one of the biggest days in our history for sportswear sales,” sportswear buyer Beverly Emery said, adding that sales have also been high this week leading up to the Civil War game against Oregon State University.
Emery said memorabilia sales, which include items such as magnets, nail polish and temporary tattoos, have seen an even sharper rise this year. Pompoms, “quackers” and car flags have been a few of the hot items during game weeks, she said.
“We were shocked at how popular the memorabilia were. It’s a real high demand that we didn’t even realize,” she said. “Anything to show their pride.”
A sportswear buyer for 18 years, Emery added that when the Ducks weren’t playing as well, the sales weren’t even close to what they are now.
Williams, who has been the bookstore manager for 26 years, said sales reached their peak in 1995, when the Ducks went to the Rose Bowl. The sales from that successful season led to a 1 percent increase in the course book discount, which used to be only 9 percent.
“It was an extraordinary moment in time,” he said. “And people would just come and buy and buy and buy.”
He added that students are not the only consumers responsible for the high numbers — half of the sales come from alumni.
Jim Perry, former president of the alumni association and a member of the Class of ’58, said he buys one or two new Duck items a year and comes back for most of the games.
“I’ve got a closet full of that stuff,” he said with a laugh. “It’s great when you see all that green and yellow in the stands. That’s a big boost to the team.”