I know... I know... it's been a while. I totally haven't done well with my New Year's resolution. Life with 3 babies just keeps getting in the way :) Again... I'll try to do better!
This past weekend was the ACC Tournament. While to some of you that may not be a big deal, to those of us that grew up in the state of NC (especially in the Triangle and surrounding areas), ACC Basketball is HUGE. We take basketball seriously and the ACC Tournament is no exception. Growing up I can remember checking out of school early on Friday afternoons to watch the ACC Tournament. Life somewhat stopped that weekend in March (well pretty much the whole month)... still does to some degree. My point is that, to those of us living in NC, we take basketball as seriously as those of you that follow SEC football. It's just a way of life. It's the way we're raised. It's in our blood. We can't help it!
I've been an NC State (referred to as State from here on out) fan since I can remember. I remember playing "cheerleader" as a child and pretending that Dick Sheridan and Jim Valvano were my "brothers". I remember going to the Henderson Mall to buy a t-shirt when State won the NCAA championship in 1983. (gosh, I loved that t-shirt). I remember how excited State fans were... quite the "Cinderella" story.
As I think back on this, I can't help but wonder how I ended up a State fan... the majority of my family has gone to UNC (referred to as Carolina from here on out). My 5 foot grandmother was/is the BIGGEST Carolina fan you'll ever see, as were most in my family. Bless her heart, she would pull her walker up to the TV to watch Carolina play... and got MAD when they lost...to the point of tears. It was precious and priceless. Such a hard core fan. So why was I (singular) a State fan? Did I just like the underdog at an early age? Did I just like to disagree with my family when I was five? Was it that my Uncle Tim, who I kinda thought hung the moon at the time-still do, was a State graduate? Did I just like the colors RED and WHITE together? Who knows? Regardless... I loved State then and I love State now. It's funny... I was telling Archer yesterday that I'm sure there are many conspiracy theories about why I dislike UNC so much. I honestly don't know... it's not some crazy ex that went to Carolina or was a die-hard fan... not because I didn't get accepted (I didn't apply because I didn't want to be accepted and be pushed to attend). Maybe one day I'll figure it out, but in the meantime, I'm damn sure glad I married a Wolfpacker, even if I was a Meredith Angel :)
State started out the ACC Tournament on Thursday with many thinking we'd lose (yes, we had to play on Thursday and got ridiculed for it)... but guess what? We WON! We played again on Friday... again, we WON! We were on a roll! Saturday (yes, I'm still "whining"), we played our ASSES off against Carolina and due to poor officiating, we lost. (actually we had a few turnovers and missed free throws that could have helped us win and I know, I know... Henson didn't play, but an awful NO CALL at the end of the game certainly helped us lose). Side note: if you're a Carolina fan and feel the need to say something ugly, keep it to yourself... this is MY blog and this isn't about you. Feel free to start your own :)
Would we get into the NCAA Tournament? The Big Dance? That was the big question that we were all waiting on... 6:00pm we started seeing the brackets revealed. What a long wait...whew! and Wouldn't you know that State was the last one called? The last one? I've never seen such excitement from team members, fans, myself, etc! What a huge SURPRISE (my life full of surprises)!
We play this coming Friday against San Diego State. Who knows if we'll win? I sure hope we do, but bottom line is, win or lose, we got there. State is going to dance for the first time since 06-07 with a very capable team that has a craving to win! Thanks to Mark Gottfried for showing us the way! I certainly hope that I'll have more State Surprises to talk about, but if I don't, this one post if just fine. I'm so proud of this team and all that it has accomplished this year. I'm proud to pull for the Cardiac Pack... as I have for the past 30 years... maybe one day I'll just figure out where all of this Wolfpack love has come from.
“Be a dreamer. If you don't know how to dream, you're dead.” -Jim Valvano
“Don't give up, don't ever give up." -Jim Valvano
GO PACK!!!!
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