The loudest ovation at Xfinity Center during the Terrapins men’s basketball team’s win over Purdue didn’t come during one of Robert Carter Jr.’s breakaway dunks. It came on a missed free throw.
When Purdue guard Johnny Hill’s attempt from the stripe rolled off the rim with 18.3 seconds left in the game, Terps fans went delirious. The Chick-fil-A “Fowl Shot” promotion, new to the program this season, had finally paid off. Every ticket in the stadium was now good for one free chicken sandwich. But for this university’s students, capitalizing on this opportunity isn’t a given.
Unfortunately, students couldn’t just take their tickets to Stamp Student Union right after the game ended to cash in on an ideal Friday dinner.
The Chick-fil-A in Stamp is a Chick-fil-A Express, so tickets from Saturday’s game won’t net a free sandwich there. The restaurant has even gone as far to put up signs explicitly stating that it is not participating in the promotion.
First off, let’s be clear in that it makes a whole lot of sense to not have fans be able to just swarm Stamp after a Terps win. That scene would make the Friday-night R.J. Bentley’s line look tame.
Still, this puts students in danger of missing out on free food, a cardinal sin in college life. Adults who drive to the game can simply stop by a Chick-fil-A on their way home. Where can students go? The restaurant’s nearest location is in Silver Spring, a 15-minute drive from this university, according to Google maps.
If you or your roommate has a car, this trip is probably worth making. If you and your friends don’t have a car but are willing to do whatever it takes to capitalize on some free chicken, you can take the Shuttle-UM route 111 bus to Silver Spring and navigate your way from there.
The promotion runs for a week after the game. That’s more than enough time to organize a carpool and take advantage of an opportunity no college student should pass up.
