In addition to getting his degree, Phil Rothermich, a recent University of Alabama graduate, can now check “Win ‘The Price is Right’ Showcase Showdown” off his to-do list.

Phil Rothermich won approximately $29,000 in prizes during a recent airing of “The Price is Right,” including a grill, clothes, outdoor furniture and a new Hyundai Elantra.

Saeed Saleh, a friend of Phil Rothermich who attended the taping of the show with him, said Rothermich was in shock after he won.

“He had his hand on his head and was walking up to people at the Grove Mall telling them, ‘I just won a car on ‘The Price is Right!’ No one believed him,” Saleh said.

Elizabeth Rothermich, his mother, said he was ecstatic when he told her about the experience.

“He said his adrenaline was pumping so hard that he didn’t think he would be able to sleep for days,” Elizabeth Rothermich said.

She said ever since he was young, he had dreamed about going on the show and winning the Showcase Showdown.

“Phil has watched ‘The Price is Right’ since he was in grade school. He would yell at the contestants on the show, and he loved Bob Barker,” Rothermich said.

Before the show, Phil Rothermich said a producer of the show interviewed him, asking him such questions as “Where are you from?” and “What do you do?”

“I tried to really have a lot of energy and personality,” he said.

During the taping, Phil Rothermich was selected to compete on the show. It came as no surprise to Saleh, who has known him since second grade.

“Knowing Phil for so long, I was not at all surprised that he was chosen,” Saleh said. “The producers wanted a good show and there was no one better for the job that day.”

Rothermich said the studio was a very colorful place, adding that it is much smaller than it seems on television.

“Being inside felt like seeing Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory,” he said.

Overall, Phil Rothermich described his experience at the show as unbelievable.

“I would definitely recommend going to the show to everyone; it was a blast and hey, you never know, you might just win,” he said.