1.) Until April 2010, we're the National Champions. Pretty easy to overlook sloppy play when you've just hung a new banner in the rafters. (At least for me, probably not so much for Roy.) I'll get back to stressing about our performance, berating players, and accelerating my receding hairline next season.
God Endorses Obama
I can't believe how Coach Smith's endorsement stopped me in my tracks this morning. Like so many North Carolina sons, Dean Smith and Tar Heel basketball are as much a part of my identity as my last name.
I can't really explain it - I feel proud, hopeful, excited...and wish that I could somehow volunteer to run suicides and 3 man weave drills for Coach Smith to show my support for the Obama campaign.
Kelly and I are enthusiastically voting for Barack Obama and we strongly encourage you to do the same. North Carolina is without a doubt in play. Our nation needs a new direction.
Full text of the email:
There is a point in every contest when sitting on the sidelines is not an option. That is why Linnea and I are writing to urge you to join Barack Obama’s campaign for President. There are pivotal moments in history when the right decision by a nation can change its course for the better — opening up new paths before us and providing future generations with opportunities that we had not thought possible. This coming election provides one of those moments. Linnea and I believe Barack Obama is the right leader at this critical juncture. I have written that when coaching a team, you must be prepared to make changes to meet new challenges and obstacles. We must be prepared to do the same as a nation. Now, it is the United States that needs a change in direction… and a change in leadership. Join Barack Obama today by volunteering in your corner of North Carolina:
http://nc.barackobama.com/jointhesmiths
Linnea and I respect all that Senator McCain has done for our country. However, we feel strongly that it is Barack Obama who offers the real leadership our nation needs to tap its potential as a land of opportunity — even as we face difficult times at home and abroad. Senator Obama is a patriotic American, a committed Christian, a good family man, and a man who shares the bedrock values that most North Carolinians have in common: fairness, hard work, respect for others, and personal responsibility. And he has the vision and judgment to help us push through this period of uncertainty to a time of greater economic stability and greater security from threats abroad. If you believe America needs to set a new course, then the time to join us is now. If you are already an Obama supporter, please step up to help our campaign. There are only about three weeks left before Election Day, and if we are going to move away from the failed policies of the past, then we need your help now. So we encourage you to get out there and get involved — talk to your neighbors and sign up to volunteer today.
Get involved now: http://nc.barackobama.com/jointhesmiths
And pass this email along to those you think might be interested. This election is too important to stand on the sidelines and watch history pass us by. Thank you,
Coach Dean Smith and Linnea Smith
Chapel Hill, NC
Tyler Hansbrough and Fathers and Sons
A year ago, I was feeling pretty crappy. Today, I still feel pretty crappy (from the post-MBA Gala malaise), but couldn't be happier.
Kelly and I watched the game with ~300 of our closest friends at Spice Street in Chapel Hill. We screamed like idiots when Tyler made the game-clinching jump shots down the stretch and happily chirped "Carolina Victory" with my friend EJ after the game ended. And then I called my dad, as is the post-game custom.
When I called him, I felt a surprisingly startling emotion beyond the excitement of having just won the big game. I've written before how, when I was a child honing my game on the driveway, my dad would coach me by describing how Tar Heel legends Phil Ford and Bobby Jones did it this way or that way. I obviously knew who these people were, but I didn't get why he referred to them with such reverence.
For a split second after my dad picked up the phone, I remembered those times on my driveway and tried to imagine the touchstone Carolina basketball moments in his life, realizing that I was in the midst of one of my own.
And it made me realize how lucky I am to be able to call him after the game.
Kelly and I watched the game with ~300 of our closest friends at Spice Street in Chapel Hill. We screamed like idiots when Tyler made the game-clinching jump shots down the stretch and happily chirped "Carolina Victory" with my friend EJ after the game ended. And then I called my dad, as is the post-game custom.
When I called him, I felt a surprisingly startling emotion beyond the excitement of having just won the big game. I've written before how, when I was a child honing my game on the driveway, my dad would coach me by describing how Tar Heel legends Phil Ford and Bobby Jones did it this way or that way. I obviously knew who these people were, but I didn't get why he referred to them with such reverence.
For a split second after my dad picked up the phone, I remembered those times on my driveway and tried to imagine the touchstone Carolina basketball moments in his life, realizing that I was in the midst of one of my own.
And it made me realize how lucky I am to be able to call him after the game.
I Can't Believe I'm Not Watching The Game
The Heels open their season tonight against Davidson and I'm too busy to watch.
It's really a strange feeling because I usually go to great lengths to rearrange my life to watch Carolina basketball - either at home on TV or (preferably) at the Dean Dome.
We're tied with 4.49 remaining. I hope we win, but if we lose I'll find solace in the fact that every time Roy Williams has lost his season opener, he's taken his team to the Final Four.
Go Davidson!
It's really a strange feeling because I usually go to great lengths to rearrange my life to watch Carolina basketball - either at home on TV or (preferably) at the Dean Dome.
We're tied with 4.49 remaining. I hope we win, but if we lose I'll find solace in the fact that every time Roy Williams has lost his season opener, he's taken his team to the Final Four.
Go Davidson!