College Basketball - Praising the Enemy

[I would like to start this post by pointing out that many fellow Tar Heels will find it sacrilegious to say anything positive about the Dookies. With that said, I am prepared for the consequences of my actions.]

Coach K has been reading my blog. Ok, probably not, but if you carefully watched the end of last night's Carolina-Dook game, you may see why I have drawn that conclusion.

For all of my loyal readers (thank you to both of you), you probably recall that this past weekend I wrote an entry discussing the practice of rushing the court in college basketball venues. I pointed out that the practice was over-done and not being reserved for those truly special and unexpected moments of joy.

Fast forward to last night. After a hard fought and close rivalry game, Dook ended up besting the Tar Heels on their home floor. At the final buzzer, a handful of Dookies poured out of the stands and bolted towards center court. At that moment, Coach K took control and immediately stopped the students and scolded them back into the stands. He shook his head in disgust as the students retreated and then proceeded with the traditional post-game handshake ritual with Roy Williams and the rest of the Carolina squad.

I would like to officially take my hat off to Coach K for what he did last night. Regardless of my personal opinions, biases, and feelings on the Tobacco Road Rivalry, Coach K understands that his school should EXPECT to beat Carolina everytime they play. Whether or not that happens is a different story, but it is not a game you ever go into with question marks about what will happen. The same goes for the Heels. Coach K also knows that defeating a Carolina team who is unranked and may or may not get into the NCAA Tournament is only significant because it's a rivalry game, not because it was an impressive victory. It is for this reason that the head Dookie guided the students away from the court and prevented them from making a juvenile and unnecessary public celebration display.

I may not like Coach K, he might be the leader of the enemy, he might look like a weasel, he might speak like a whiny 4 year old girl, he might hug men in an uncomfortably passionate way, and he might be the most obnoxious figure head in all of collegiate sports, but for now, I would like to say THANK YOU for doing the right thing last night. I appreciate it.

- Fishy