Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Ever since I was little, I wanted to be a Jayhawk.
My brothers and I used to dream about hearing our names announced in Allen Fieldhouse and running out of the tunnel to play for Kansas.
We turned our driveway into James Naismith Court so we could re-enact our favorite plays from Jerod Haase, Paul Pierce, and Raef LaFrentz. My brothers and I spent hours playing against each other and we even painted our own free throw line on the driveway while our parents were away.
We were dedicated fans, and my dream to lead the Kansas Jayhawks was definitely alive.
I had no idea how it would happen, but eventually that dream came true.
I really have had a great time at Kansas during the past four years. Some of my favorite memories come from football and basketball games that I watched with friends and family, and these times will not soon be forgotten.
A few games defi nitely stand out. Here are some of the highlights: The Kansas-Nebraska football game in fall 2008 was really a lot of fun. The Jayhawks entered the game 8-0 and were looking to pick up a rare win against the Cornhuskers.
I still remember how Nebraska used to destroy Kansas every year in football, and this game really showed me that the Jayhawks were for real. I remember watching with friends as the Jayhawks marched down the fi eld for 10 straight touchdowns. Kansas won 76-39 and went on to win the Orange Bowl just two months later.
Both of the Final Four games in 2008 were also games that I will never forget.
My sister, who was in Lawrence at the time, and I both agreed that our brother Mark should be at Allen Fieldhouse to watch the North Carolina game with us. We called Mark just hours before tip-off and offered to pay for his gas if he would come up from Wichita to watch the game with us.
About three hours later, he had started the wave in Allen Fieldhouse. We knew it was going to be a great game and it lived up to all of our expectations.
The semifinal game was so much fun that we decided we needed to have Mark come to Lawrence again for the championship game against Memphis.
It didn’t take much to talk him into it.
We all three watched with friends from the front row of the student section as the Jayhawks fell behind by three points with 10 seconds left.
And then it happened. Mario Chalmers hit the shot that the Jayhawks had been looking for against Arizona in 1997 and against Syracuse in 2003. Chalmers’ three sent the game into overtime and the rest is history.
It was the only time I will ever rush the court in Allen Fieldhouse.
But one game in particular has special significance to me. It was late February 2007, and it was the day I had been waiting for since I started watching the Jayhawks.
Kansas was set to play Iowa State in Allen Fieldhouse and my mom, sister, and Mark were all in the crowd to watch the game.
I waited in the tunnel as another sellout crowd prepared to see the Kansas basketball team run out.
It happened fast, but I was ready for my first game as Big Jay. The team came out of the locker room and I took my cue.
I took off ahead of the team and led the Kansas Jayhawks onto James Naismith Court.
The dream had come true.
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