During his childhood in Jacksonville, Nikhil Joshi was a Miami Dolphins fan. Now, his two kids are growing up to be Jaguars supporters.
Joshi, a UF alumnus, brought son Arjun, 9, and daughter Neelam, 5, to the Gainesville stop on the Jacksonville Jaguars Caravan Tour on Wednesday.
“It’s an amazing feeling as a dad … we’re just happy,” Joshi said. “When they grow up, they’ll realize the magnitude of this.”
Former Gators football players Fred Taylor, Jeremy Mincey and head coach Mike Mularkey were among the Jaguars to sign autographs and take pictures with fans.
New owner Shahid Khan launched the Jaguars Caravan to rally support for the franchise in South Georgia and North Florida.
“Jacksonville itself is a small city compared to most NFL cities, so we need to regionalize,” Joshi said. “I’m really heartened to see the new owner is making this effort.”
The event featured raffles for prizes from autographed memorabilia to game tickets.
“My favorite part is that the jaguar is riding a motorcycle right now,” Neelam said.
Contact Joe Morgan at joemorgan@alligator.org.
