UNC “This Too Shall Pass”
By mattstradley
Editors Note: With great pleasure I’d like to introduce you to Matt Stradley who is trying out to become a new writer here at Keeping It Heel.
As I sat in the French Quarter early on a Saturday morning, I watched as throngs of red and blue coursed through the streets like blood through a body. My hand calmly navigating the mug of coffee from the table to my mouth. This is not how it was supposed to be. I was supposed to be a nervous wreck. I’ve never been a huge OK GO fan, but the song that sprang to my mind repeatedly as I tried desperately to clear my mind of any thought was “This Too Shall Pass”, and the wonderful Rube Goldberg video that accompanied the song.
Carolina’s Rube Goldberg was set in motion almost a year ago, when Tyler Zeller, Harrison Barnes, and John Henson decided to return to school for another year, forgoing the millions of dollars for another chance at a national championship. The domino’s began to fall.
The beauty of a Rube Goldberg device is that it is amazingly exciting as it happens, but can only be truly appreciated in hindsight. From the ACLs of McDonald and Strickland, the ankle of Henson and the wrist of Marshall, we watched as a team faced an amazing amount of adversity, and plodded forward. Even when it looked like everything would fall apart, the device kept moving forward. At the very end, the grand finale of blasting light blue paint over New Orleans, the device finally faltered.
We can get into a debate over fate vs. free will if you really wish, but it was this thought that got me through that warm Saturday morning. The fact that the coffee was spiked with a bit of whiskey didn’t hurt either.
Tyler Zeller, Harrison Barnes, Kendall Marshall and John Henson will always be part of one of my favorite Carolina teams. This year’s team played on an aircraft carrier in front of the President, while Duke (pronounced Dook) opened against Belmont. They won the regular season ACC title, and most importantly, didn’t lose to Lehigh in the first round.
With the football season almost upon us, and the excitement building around Coach Fedora, we have to look forward. Coach Shelton’s perennially excellent Field Hockey team is gearing up for another year. We all know the excellence Coach Dorrance puts on the field every year. Men’s Soccer is getting ready to defend their National Championship. As a Tar Heel fan, I have very little to hang my head over.These thoughts helped as well, but I kept coming back to “This Too Shall Pass”. I took my last sip of coffee and began walking through the city in my light blue UNC shirt. Kentucky fans said several times “We wish we were playing you.” I responded each time with “Nah, my jump shot’s terrible,” but I appreciated the sentiment.
Maybe next year in Atlanta, when my daughter’s old enough to appreciate the events. We can see Carolina together as a family.
“Can’t stop those kids from dancing but why would you want to
Especially when you are already getting good?
‘Cause when your mind don’t move then your knees don’t bend
But don’t go blaming the kids again”
And then it hit me. The whiskey, that is. Well, the perspective too. Ahh perspective.
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