Students began camping out behind the EMU as early as 7 p.m. Thursday night to have a shot at picking up one of the wristbands that would entitle them to a Pit Crew T-shirt Friday morning.
Students wearing Pit Crew T-shirts are allowed to enter University men’s basketball games early and sit in a special courtside section.
“I’m just a big basketball fan,” said freshman Nick Larkin, one of the first people in line. “I heard it’s crazy, a lot of fun.”
Sophomore David Van Der Haeghen recalled his first experience waiting for a Pit Crew T-shirt last year, when the distribution was done in front of McArthur Court the morning of the Ducks’ first exhibition game.
“Ernie Kent came out and brought everyone who spent the night coffee and doughnuts and juice,” Van Der Haeghen said. “That was pretty much when I decided I was going to make this camp-out thing annual.”
Some of the campers discussed quizzes on Friday morning, and others had textbooks open amidst card games and movies on laptop computers.
Van Der Haeghen said he eventually planned to get some sleep.
“The concrete doesn’t really prove the most adequate, but I’m going to try,” he said.
– Eva Sylwester