UNC Tar Heel Fans: Guide to Surviving the Off Season Part II
By Matt Hamm
It’s a long, cold off season, the basketball season is long gone, footballs teaser of a summer game is a distant memory. The Diamond Heels, they checked out early, leaving us cold sooner than expected. This is pretty much the dead period in Carolina sports. For those who need the Tar Heels 24/7/365. You need a way to survive, this is the Tar Heels guide to surviving the off season!
There are three simple steps you can take to ward off Tar Heel Fever. Symptoms of THF include, but are not limited to, picking out a jersey and aimlessly going through your TV menu looking for a UNC game, any game! Painting your face Carolina blue and asking your friends and family where the hell the tickets are, when in fact, you know there are no tickets.
Having delusions that it’s March and Kendall Marshall’s wrist magically is fixed and we’re about to face Kansas again. Tailgating in an empty parking lot. Walking around Franklin Street screaming “Go Tar Heels” at everybody you see. Sending out party invitations for the pregame and laughing at everybody that asks “what game?” . This is a very serious condition that affects many Tar Heels fans all over Tar Heel Nation.
Obsess over the incoming recruiting class:
The 2012 recruiting class will be huge for Carolina next season. Marcus Paige will come right in and start in place of the departed Kendall Marshall. Joel James and Brice Johnson will battle it out with sophomore Desmond Hubert for minutes next to James Michael McAdoo inside. JP Tokoto adds a ton of athleticism and even more depth to an already stellar perimeter. These kids are still improving their games while they make the rounds in the summer and All-Star circuits. It’s going to be fun watching them in Carolina blue next season. James recently lost a ton of weight and looks great after playing like one of the best big men in the class so far this summer.
Speculate until you can’t speculate anymore about undecided recruits over the next few classes:
Troy Williams cuts his list to two, Kentucky and North Carolina, announces his date, pushes it back, adds teams, then says it’s still about out UK and UNC, wait what? The Tar Heels are on long lists for Julius Randle, Jabari Parker. And despite no known offer, Nick King has UNC in his top five, but may not ever even get an offer from Carolina. 2014 point guard Joel Berry recently called Carolina his dream school. Roy Williams has already extended an offer to center Jahlil Okafor. Noah Vonleh may or may not reclassify to 2013 like Wayne Selden just did who has received a lot of attention from UNC, just no offer yet.
Kennedy Meeks is closer to making a decision, Austin Nichols is playing the best basketball of his life lately and his Dad says Duke isn’t one of the top teams recruiting him the hardest.
Recruiting to me is just like free agency in professional sports. Your team can instantly get better with one commitment, a team like the Tar Heels are in on all the top recruits. Every class presents intrigue and mystery, the next few classes have a ton of talent and it will a lot of fun watching Roy piece together his classes.
Fantasize about the possibility that real football actually is coming to Chapel Hill:
I don’t want to speak too soon, but this Larry Fedora guy, he seems to know a thing or two about a thing or two you know what I’m saying? The NC Dream Team vision he is pitching is working as the Tar Heels have one of the nations best recruiting classes in 2013 and Fedora has already started the foundation of the 2014 class.
Fedora brings a completely different style to UNC and will look to change the culture around the program. Not an easy task but so far it looks great, something perfect for obsessing over during the cold off season.