Your first impulse CASH is all he will want from you. Men aren't interested in STUFF. They don't want the clutter, the responsibility of what to do with it now, it seen by others. Keep it simple. CASH.

Things mine recently received that might fit the bill. (Youngest graduated from high school last year.)

Smathers and Branson key fob or bottle opener with college logo

Yeti with college logo

Monogrammed throw blanket

Monogrammed Dopp kit

Monogrammed valet tray

One more! A good family friend gave my boys a nice compact tool kit along with a generous check. They both liked having some basic tools in their dorm rooms.

Wow those are all great suggestions @porkandham - Thank you!!!

Love the idea of a toolkit, either automotive or household.

Yes to cash. but also gift cards to the local eateries. Bagel shop, popular lunch spots etc.

Badic tools come in handy.

Eld I thought of gift cards for eateries but I don't think I can buy them from where I am to where he's going. He's not a chain, or fast food kinda guy. Thanks, tho.

I have given both yeti cups and a leatherman tool .. as noted, the yeti cup can package money and gift cards.

Gift cards can be for trader joes, whole foods, target, game stores, whatever is appropriate.

A young man starting college has no notions or requirements for trinkets, tools, accessories, or the like.

Cash is king, he can buy what he wants. Let his parents buy what he needs. If you can furnish a fake ID, that would be welcome too.

(When my kids were away at college, the "deal" was that I would cover every reasonable expense they had for the school, for their room and board, and for reasonable other activities that they identified a need to be reimbursed for. If unsure if I deemed something would "reasonable", the expectaton was to ask first.

Their summer jobs and part time work (like just a handful of hours each week), along with cash gifts, provided resources for unaccountable, don't ask /don't tell activities. It worked well.)

Cash!

By this time, an incoming freshman would likely have the essentials. Do you have time to order something from his college bookstore? Most sell everything from key chains to jackets.