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Apr 2, 2012; New Orleans, LA, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari at a press conference after the finals of the 2012 NCAA men

While the dust settles and rumors continue to swirl about which side is at fault in letting the rivalry die, the time to renew the annual Indiana and Kentucky  has passed and college basketball has lost a potentially huge game in late November already.  While both sides are claiming that it was the opposite side’s fault–Indiana head coach, Tom Crean, says that he never wanted to change the location, Kentucky Wildcats coach, John Calipari, offered conflicting reports–it was up to Kentucky to renew and instead, they passed on the opportunity.  Indiana isn’t the first team that Kentucky has ended a series with this season–they also failed to renew against the North Carolina Tar Heels, opting instead for their biggest match up outside of the SEC to be either Louisville or an alternating Big East opponent. To let both series die in the same season is not only a shame for the sport of college basketball but a failure on Calipari’s part and a sign of weakness for the Kentucky basketball program as a whole.

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Most universities would be honored to host just one of the names listed above.  UNC hosted all of them. In our last week of class.

As the school year winds down, the University of North Carolina has seemingly come alive with activity with all of these guests and the start of finals.  Last week, we were lucky enough to host the President of the United States, as well as his large collection of secret service.  It’s slightly surreal to see pictures on Facebook, posted by your friends, of snipers on the top of Carmichael Arena.  Students camped out in the rain to get tickets for the President, full of enthusiasm to see the 44th President of the United States.  Bear in mind, with North Carolina weather playing its part, it was 50 degrees and raining in late April.  Still, thousands lined up for hours for a chance to see the POTUS.  As an unlucky student who had an assignment due during the President’s speech, I had the rare opportunity to see UNC’s campus as if it had been hit by a plague–dining halls, the Union, the Pit, and other famous UNC landmarks were remarkably empty for an April afternoon.

Dec 10, 2011; Landover, MD, USA; United States president Barack Obama waves to fans during halftime at FedEx Field. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-US PRESSWIRE

Following the President’s speech, the student body population turned its attention towards Memorial Hall where Fallon would be hosting the President and musical guest, Dave Matthews Band.  For some bizarre reason (bitter sophomore speaking), UNC decided to give preference to seniors for these tickets, so unless a student was planning on graduating next month, they likely weren’t in attendance.  This didn’t stop myself or friends of mine or 20 others from gathering outside Memorial Hall to try and get pictures with the celebrities themselves.  I, again, was unsuccessful, but several friends of mine now have profile pictures with Jimmy Fallon.

Despite all of this pandemonium that appeared out of nowhere, the world did not stop turning and before we knew it, the last classes of the semester came and went.  Now that the first third of finals are over, it’s hard to believe that the last month is now over and the semester itself is coming to an end.  Looking back at what a year it has been for the University in general, it’s pretty incredible to say

Mar 16, 2012; Greensboro, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Roy Williams (right) reacts after a call against the Vermont Catamounts during the first half of the second round of the 2012 NCAA men

as students, that we were here for it. The President came, the Men’s Soccer Team won a National Title, Tar Heel nation rallied around our basketball team despite an injury plagued season, and we welcomed a new football coach to the UNC family.  It a word, remarkable.

But then again, so is every other here at Chapel Hill.

Credit: Bob Donnan-US PRESSWIRE

Don’t get me wrong, the title is slightly misleading. I don’t think we’re title favorites this year, I don’t even think we’ll make it to the Final Four for that matter.  But part of that is why I’m so excited for this upcoming year.  In my two years at Carolina, the sports news community has set ridiculously high standards for UNC–in 2010-2011, it was that Harrison Barnes would be the savior of our team.  In the summer of 2011, we were all but crowned the 2012 champs even though we all knew the class that Kentucky had coming in. And while it’s easy to claim so in retrospect, I was worried about this past season, even before our problems started to show: the expectations were simply too high for this team.  “They’re all coming back!” or “It’s 2009 all over again!” were posted everywhere online and spoken amongst UNC students when fall semester started.

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Credit: Bob Donnan-US PRESSWIRE

There’s something beautiful about March.  It’s more than just the weather, spring break, the end of midterms, and the reappearance of Carolina women in sundresses.  There’s something in the air, something unique to Carolina and other perennial basketball powers around the nation.  Once UNC students get back from spring break, the entire student body seems to refocus its attention to our team, NCAA region, and our individual brackets. We are no longer a school, but instead, a collection of basketball junkies waiting for our next dose of madness. (more…)

Credit: Mark Dolejs-US PRESSWIRE

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