CLEARWATER, Fla. — A local clothing company is helping the University of South Florida men’s basketball team celebrate a historic season.
Dave Gesacion owns For the Bay Clothing Company, which was born out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Our other businesses were shut down,” Gesacion explained. “The Buccaneers just signed Tom Brady, it was a passion of mine that I always wanted to do. My wife said, ‘If you ever want to do something like this, now is the time.’”
And the rest, they said, is history. In 2020, the Bucs won the Super Bowl, the Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup, and the Tampa Bay Rays went to the World Series.
Now Gesacion is hoping to catch lightning in a bottle again with USF basketball.
“Coach Amir reached out last week trying to put something together for the postseason run,” He said. “I know they are not done yet.”
USF is the number one seed in the American Athletic Conference tournament. The Bulls will play in the quarterfinal round on Friday.
Head coach Amir Abdur-Rahim called Dave requesting a custom USF hoops hat.
“We wanted to use his phrase of E.D.G.E. to get ready for the postseason,” Gesacion said.
E.D.G.E. stands for Everyone Dedicating Great Effort.
“Putting this out there, it helps us,” Abdur-Rahim said. “It tells a story. They’re part of our Tampa Bay community as well. I just love the fact that everybody got behind the mantra of E.D.G.E.”
Abdur-Rahim ordered one hundred hats.
“He asked if he could get some for his players, and I was just blown away,” Gesacion said. “I had a chance to talk to him for a few minutes about what he’s preaching. I’m a coach as well. Winning is the by-product of all the things he is teaching to his players.”
A local company showing support for one of our own.
“Just being around Tampa and seeing people wear our stuff and post and tag us and share pictures. We’re fanatics like everybody else,” Gesacion said. “It’s been fun to play a small part in it.”
