In school sports activities fandom, just one feeling rivals that of the joys of victory by your favourite workforce.
That may be the agony and distress of your college’s most-hated rival.
Take, for instance, Louisville.
Louisville followers don’t have anything to cheer for on this 12 months’s males’s NCAA match. The Cardinals are mired in maybe the worst stoop in program historical past, contemporary off an 8-24 season that secured a last-place end within the ACC and the dismissal of head coach Kenny Payne. They did not sniff Choice Sunday.
However on Thursday, there was lots for Louisville followers to cheer towards. That was arch-rival Kentucky, which confronted a 14th-seeded Oakland workforce decided to eradicate the Wildcats wanting the NCAA match’s second weekend for a fourth straight season.
Oakland succeeded through an 80-76 win within the largest upset of the match so far, additional extending head coach John Calipari’s March distress. The Golden Grizzlies picked up a bunch of Louisville followers within the course of.
Take it from Oakland head coach Greg Kampe. The longest-tenured coach in school basketball advised reporters on Friday that Oakland’s web site crashed within the aftermath of its win over Kentucky. A whole lot of that visitors got here from Louisville followers, who swarmed the location to purchase up Golden Grizzlies gear.
Oakland Head Coach Greg Kampe says the varsity has offered over $8K of merchandise to on-line clients with Louisville zip codes:
“Our College web site crashed final night time.”
(📹courtesy NCAA March Insanity) pic.twitter.com/19HnnxEeGe
— Charlie Clifford (@char_cliff) March 22, 2024
“Our college web site crashed final night time,” Kampe stated. “Crashed. That is what this does. We additionally offered $8,000 value of T-shirts to Louisville final night time.
“Take into consideration that. Sincere to God. They purchase the T-shirts they usually put the bank card in — Louisville, Louisville, Louisville. So I do not know. Subsequent 12 months when Louisville and Kentucky play, I do not know if all people’s gonna present up in an Oakland shirt or what. I don’t know.”
We now have an thought. And we expect Kampe’s speculation is spot-on. Search for loads of Oakland shirts on Louisville’s campus and the subsequent time the Cardinals and Wildcats play.
Kampe went on to element his personal private expertise within the aftermath of the program-altering win. It feels like he is having fun with each minute of it. Even whether it is exhausting.
“I’ve not been asleep but. I’ve not been to mattress. And I’ve not stopped speaking. I like to speak. I discuss rather a lot, but it surely’s getting ridiculous. Each quarter-hour, I’ve bought a Zoom or one thing.
“Nevertheless it’s actually cool, and it is nice for Oakland. That is simply unbelievable for our college.”