The thought of this blog post gave me so many emotions. As I was thinking about what to write, I remembered all of the fun times I spent with my dad in Cameron Indoor Stadium, the tears I used to shed when Griff and Lucas would make me cry after a Duke loss and all of the players I have followed since their time in the Duke Basketball "Brotherhood." Yes, if you do not know me well enough to know I grew up rooting for the darker shade of blue, you read that correctly. I have since moved past my days of being a die-hard Duke fan. As a UNC undergraduate, it has seemed rather inappropriate for the last two years to even consider slightly pulling for our biggest rival.
This past weekend really tested me in terms of who I was going to ultimately cheer for (I know, how crazy of me). Going into the game, like every other UNC fan, I had my doubts. However, my doubts were accompanied by a sense of contentment. At first, I believed that I would be okay if Duke won for Coach K's last game. This all changed when Armando dunked within the first minute of the game. The intensity in the bar where I was watching the game on Franklin Street was unmatched and I was all in. I grew up believing there was nothing quite like the electricity in Cameron. I truly believed this until Saturday night. Now I know that Franklin street after a Duke win tops every experience I had in Cameron and honestly every experience I have had while at UNC this far. It was incredibly electric.
I had experienced a Franklin Street rush once before during my senior year of high school when I came to visit Sarah. I remember feeling really excited to be attending UNC that fall, yet I was still not attached to my soon-to-be University. It was exciting nonetheless, but as I discussed, I was still bleeding the darker shade then. Even when I arrived at UNC there were times when I found myself subconsciously cheering for Duke, and I never really thought that would ever go away.
A huge reason why I was such an avid Duke fan growing up was because of my dad. Our love for Duke basketball was something that we shared and something I will always cherish. Though I know it is hard for him to cheer for UNC now that I am here, I know that whatever makes me happy makes him happy too. However, I do not think I could say the same about my 14-year-old self who could name every single player on Duke's 2015 National Championship team and all of their stats. She must not be real thrilled with my 20-year-old self who rushed Franklin as hard as I did on Saturday after beating Coach K in his last regular-season game ever (even as my 14-year-old self's crush was in the stands, Grayson Allen). I think it made it easier for me to fully immerse myself in the whole experience Saturday night when I received a text from my dad with two minutes to go in the second half that said, "Game over. Go tear up Franklin Street." This simple text made me shed a little tear, a tear of joy, sadness, and all emotions. It solidified my moving on to a different shade.
I will forever be grateful for my dad for teaching me the game and taking me to Cameron so many times. I will forever be grateful for Duke and for Coach K for instilling the love of basketball in me. However, every good story must come to an end and this is my ending. I now fully bleed the lighter and better shade. The end of Coach K's era is also the end of mine. #sorrydad
With love,
Maymaycalli
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