By 7:30 Tuesday morning, while half of Gator Nation was still recovering from a night of raucous celebration, about 40 people already were lined up outside the University of Florida bookstore, determined to pluck the first pieces of championship merchandise off the shelves.

By the end of the day, about 5,000 pieces had been sold in just that one location, according to Lynne Vaughan, the store’s manager.

And the Gators stuff their financial coffers every time a cash register is opened at retail stores around the country.

Winning championships is big business, and it’s twice as nice this year for the Gators, who are reaping the monetary rewards of winning national titles in football and basketball.

Here’s a look at how the Gators stand to benefit from their football championship:

¢ Florida pocketed $3.2 million from sale of merchandise in the last fiscal year, ending in July 2006. This year?

“We’re hoping to double that,” said Debbie Gay, the Gators’ licensing manager.

For perspective, consider the University of Texas earned $8 million from merchandise in the past fiscal year, during which time it won the national championship in football. In other years, the Longhorns collect about $4 million, Gay said.

The Gators are optimistic they will top the $1 million garnered from championship merchandise after they won the 1996 national title in football. They collected $500,000 from officially licensed merchandise recognizing their men’s basketball championship last spring.

The formula

Here’s how the formula works: For any licensed national championship Gators football merchandise sold, UF collects 12 percent of the revenue, with the BCS pocketing 3 percent and the retailer keeping the rest.

For all other Gators merchandise, the university gets 8.5 percent – which is comparable to most major universities – with the retailer keeping the rest. (The Gators decided last year to increase that to 10 percent beginning in March.)

Though the University of Florida bookstore sold about 5,000 pieces of championship merchandise Tuesday, Vaughan says that’s only about half the sales generated on a day when the football team is playing at home.

¢ According to a formula provided by the SEC and UF, the Gators will receive $2.243 million from the SEC for appearing in the national championship game, in addition to the $1.13 million that every SEC school gets for receiving an automatic BCS berth. But the Gators say their bowl-related expenses were $2.165 million.

So the Gators say they made only a $77,900 profit on the game, not counting the $1.13 million allocation that they would have received anyway had they finished first in the conference or last.

Here’s how it works: The BCS gives the SEC a $17 million payout, and Florida gets $1.84 million off the top of that. (It would have been $1.74 million if it were not the national championship game.)

Then the SEC gives Florida $403,000 for expenses. But that allocation covered less than a quarter of UF’s expenses for the championship game, according to Greg McGarity, the Gators’ senior associate athletic director.

The remaining $14.75 million is divided equally among the 12 member schools (including Florida) and the SEC office.

The Gators’ share for the game exceeds what some other major conferences give their champion. For example, the Big Ten and Pac-10 give all of their schools an equal payout. The champion receives extra money only to cover expenses.

“Each school will get money from each bowl that we participate in, so Florida will get money from Tennessee playing in the Outback Bowl,” said Charles Bloom, the SEC’s associate commissioner/media relations.

McGarity said expenses for the national championship were high because they included $915,000 for chartering a flight for players, coaches and other traveling personnel; $250,000 for their hotel accommodations and $200,000 for food.

More expenses

The Gators’ expenses also included $300,000 to charter a flight for 350 band members and cheerleaders, and $250,000 for their food and hotels.

¢ The Gators’ season-ending DVD (available for $19.95 at gatorsdvd.com) could generate between $150,000 and $200,000 – compared with less than $10,000 other years, according to Mike Hill, the Gators’ associate athletic director/external affairs.

Florida and Ohio State receive $1 from each sale of Fox’s DVD of the game broadcast.

¢ McGarity said the Gators likely will increase ticket prices for football, but that’s the only way to increase ticket revenue because all the games – and premium seats and suites – sell out anyway.

“Perhaps there will be increases with donations,” McGarity said. “You might see someone contributing to our new football office facility. I’m sure in scholarship endowments there might be some increase.”