FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Well, that last blog got all of you talking.

Before I move on to the men's tournament, I would like to add a few words about the women's tournament.  However, the words I would use would get blocked in blog filters.

Fellow Illinois fan will relate.

Its bad enough the men loose to Michigan in `89, or in the championship in `05, or that you take away chief, but now fate is messin with the women too?  I feel the Illini fans are God's baby chicks to step on.

So the words I will add are: As an Illini fan I am proud of the women's team and its run in the tournament this year.  I am also proud of the Men's 2005 team and the 1989 team and all the teams in middle.  I just for once would like to be proud and wear something that says national championship on it.  Hopefully it will sit in the closest next to my Cub's World Championship shirt.

But until then let's move on to the men's tournament. By the way, if any of you are planning on going for the first time and you have any questions please let me know.  I will answer your questions and give advice on the best way possible to navigate the tourney and have your team tear out your heart.  I am an expert at that.

In ode to tournament, I will give you my personal top 5 moments in tournament pasts:

#5 Watching the mastery of Mateen Cleaves.  If you look up "point guard" in the dictionary, you'd, well, be wasting your time since point guard is probably not in the dictionary.  So go watch highlights of Mateen instead.

#4 Seeing my daughter run around the hotel lobby and mall attrium.  She ran ahead of me in the hotel lobby in 2007 and right into a conference room.  The conference room had the Ohio State team meeting going on with the game plan of the championship game.  I could see Greg Oden laughing and the team thought it was cute when they saw her run in by herself. Then I walk in sporting my Illini jacket and they were none to pleased and closed the door.  Another year we were sharing the elevator with some huge Iowa players who had a stack of cookies and offered her one.  I was so glad those nice kids won in 2006.  (Who knew the secret was cookies.).  So if you see some little blond girl running through the atrium up and down steps in the mall near Conseco, that's probably us. Basketball is great but my little girl is my perennial #1 seed. (Pun intended)

#3 The whole 1999 tournament, especially watching an 11^th seed go to the championship. 

#2 Sitting next to Dee Brown's mom.  This was in the hotel lobby after a game in 2006.  It got even better when Dee and the team came down.  He seems like a very nice you man, as did the team we saw in the lobby.  No matter how big a star (and Shawn Pruitt in person is really big) they all looked like kids when they are with their families.  And they are just that:  Kids playing a game.

My #1 moment has nothing to do with basketball:

#1 The crowd's reaction to Bruce Webber the game after his mother died.  Sometimes moments transcend sports.  Win or loose, basketball is a game.  The person next to you is real.