College freshman Jeremy Baron knew he was going to meet famous people when he got to Penn, and yesterday his dreams came true.
"When I knew I was coming to the University of Pennsylvania, I definitely knew I was going to meet some pretty famous and amazing people, but I never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I would meet Jared Fogel from Subway," Baron said.
When Fogel -- known by many for losing more than 200 pounds while on a diet that included Subway sandwiches -- walked down Locust Walk yesterday, he was greeted by a crowd of enthusiastic students with cameras and pens at the ready.
Waiting students took pictures with the notable commercial icon, while whispers of "Hey, isn't that the Subway guy?" floated back down the Walk, bringing with them curious onlookers.
Fogel dropped by Penn's local Subway to meet students and to grab lunch after a morning spent promoting the American Heart Association's upcoming Philadelphia Heart Walk.
His arrival at Subway added a large amount of commotion to the already-bustling lunchtime crowd.
College freshman Jordan Cohen, who confessed that he also used to be a "porker," brought a camera to the event to capture the moment. In his eagerness, he accidentally photographed a Fogel look-alike.
Meanwhile, College freshman Lakshmi Sivarajan called a friend in Chicago to tell her of the sighting.
Sivarajan said that her mother always stressed good eating habits, which included two stops a week at Subway. However, Jared's story showed her that good habits really do pay off.
"It is just one of things that makes you say that Mom was always right ... and it is cool to see someone do something as amazing as lose 200 pounds," Sivarajan said.
With a new class of students facing the "Freshman 15," Jared's story of health hit home with lunchers.
While he says his favorite sub recently is the Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki -- toasted -- he sticks to the rigorous diet that propelled him to fame.
Fogel said that he would never forget the day his weight-loss story hit the front pages of his Indiana University newspaper.
Later that day, "there was a line wrapped around my apartment building where the Subway was, and everybody had a copy of the paper in their hand, all waiting to go inside the Subway," Fogel said.
