ORLANDO, Fla. – UCF fans and supporters will honor injured quarterback McKenzie Milton in a colorful way during Saturday's championship game against Memphis.
Every person inside Spectrum Stadium will get a lei to wear and show their support for the team.
UCF alum Sanjay Sam Srinvivasan is the president of Global Enterprises, a local company that makes promotional gear. He is donating thousands of the flower necklaces to the university.
.@UCF alum & local business owner Sanjay Sam Srinivasan is donating thousands of leis for fans to wear during Saturday’s @UCF_Football game in support of #McKenzieMilton. More on how the community is rallying behind Orlando’s hometown team tonight on @news6wkmg #News6 pic.twitter.com/vyVi2yz0xe
— Amanda Castro (@AmandaNCastro) November 28, 2018
"We wanted to give back to the college and let him [Milton] know and let all of the other players know that you got a ton of fans behind him and the entire team," Srinvivasan said.
Srinvivasan is working with UCF to donate the leis. The necklaces represent Milton's home state of Hawaii.
"We're excited about the look, the feel, the energy and the crowd for sure," Srinvivasan said.
The alum isn't the only one rallying in support of Milton. Seminole County public school students were encouraged to "go Hawaiian" on Friday in support of the injured player, with both teachers and student alike tagging their social media posts #10hana.
Srinvivasan said he had the leis in stock at his warehouse in Orlando. Many of the necklaces are already boxed up and ready to be delivered to UCF before the big game. He wouldn't say how many leis he is donating, but UCF ootball expects to hand out 40,000 leis on Saturday.
“Global Promo and owner Sanjay Sam Srinivasan deserve a huge thank you for donating a large number of these leis,” UCF Vice President and Director of Athletics Danny White said. “Sanjay is a UCF alumnus and season ticket-holder and he was integral in helping us put this together. The UCF Student Government Association generously donated a number of leis, as well. Our students have been incredible supporters of the team all season and they continue to do so through this gesture.”
Srinvivasan hopes each lei will lift the team's spirit and let the players know the entire community stands behind him.
"The rally behind KZ, but more so behind our team and the university. We have a city behind us and hopefully we can come out and showcase that this Saturday," Srinvivasan said.