A roaring sense of excitement rang through the air Friday night as DePaul students arrived in droves to kick off the Big East men’s basketball season under the ‘L’ behind McGrath-Phillips Arena.

Fox Sports 1 hosted the event for students and brought in local Chicago fare to satisfy some young pallets before the party got going. Students stopped by Giordano’s Pizza food truck for some Chicago-style deep dish and scurried over to The Salsa Truck for some south-of-the-border flavor.

DePaul Blue Crew resembled a bug zapper, handing out free blue and whitet-shirts with the Blue Demon on the front and Fox Sports 1 on the back. Swamped though they were, Blue Crew relished the opportunity to fulfill the never-ending lust for free t-shirts and promote a basketball program that has been part of Chicago for decades.

“DePaul and Fox Sports 1 have really found a way to bring a real ‘Chicago feel’ (to campus),” Thomas McGlynn of Blue Crew said. “It’s the perfect way to let the city know how excited we are for this basketball season.”

Students caught the excitement and were not shy about it.

“I wish we had started this as a tradition years ago,” Stefanie Pieroppolous, DePaul senior, said. “So many people here are really excited to kick off this season seeing all of this here.”

The men’s basketball season does not begin for a few more days, but the enthusiasm is rife in the student body. Coach Purnell and his staff were busy during the offseason, acquiring promising young recruits such as Billy Garrett Jr. The 2013 – 2014 men’s basketball team gives a reason to look forward to the upcoming season, according to DePaul student Alejandra Lopez.

“The team has a whole new dynamic this season,” Alejandra Lopez, DePaul senior and athletics department marketing intern, said. “There is a cool, new energy this season and I’m looking forward to see how far this group can go.”

Once the kick-off party got started, with bellies filled and t-shirts claimed, the event moved inside McGrath-Phillips Arena where additional festivities took place to amp up the student body for the new season. A dunk contest thrilled the crowd with high-flying acrobatics and lightning-quick ball-handling.

The Bagpipes and Drums of the Emerald Society of the Chicago Police Department introduced coaches Doug Bruno and Oliver Purnell to the liking of many students such as Jeremy Stevenson.

“They always capture the essence of what’s really going on,” Stevenson said. “With such an excellent turnout, there was no way this event could be anything less than a magnificent success.”

The basketball season officially kicks off Tuesday against Lewis at McGrath-Phillips Arena.