An Impassioned Plea to Hurricanes Fans

Just a quick break from the fantastic start the football team has mounted.

It's a debate that sports fans will deliberate as hotly as scientists rehash the chicken vs the egg.

You need a full arena to recruit top players and thus have a winning team,  but how do you fill the seats with out that successful team?

Ok, so some fans bases will pack the house regardless.  Let's be clear,  this has not been the case in Miami.

But last year, something wonderful happened.

Shane Larkin, Kenny Kadji,  Durand Scott and Co. gave Hurricanes Hoops fans a magical season, complete with lopsided victories of traditional powers Duke and UNC, ACC regular season and tournament championships, and run to the Sweet 16. At one point they were ranked as high as #2 in the country, and arguably were the best team in America.

A spectacular team fueled by transfers, under the radar recruits, and a coaching staff skilled in player development, overachieved before the fans came.

And to their credit the fans finally did come. They recognized what a special team last year's Hurricanes Hoops squad was, and the packed the BUC!

The team responded.  When the BUC was full, the team played with a palpable swagger. They ran Coach K and Duke out of the arena and nearly made Dickie V cry.  They hammered Michael Jordan's Alma Mater and got LBJ and D Wade out of their seats,  literally.

Remember this?

(ACC Digital)

Watching Miami take the College Basketball world by storm with a true home court advantage was a thing of beauty. How much fun was storming the court and being the lead on Sportcenter?

Fast forward to the present.  Miami lost 6 of its' top 7 players from last season's glorious squad. There are new, talented players like the speedy Manu Lecomte and hot shooting Deandre Burnett.  But even the most optimistic of 'Canes fans knows this is a period of transition.

Can the team overachieve?

Any team with National Coach of the Year Jim Larranaga and his seasoned staff should not be written off.

But in the ultra powerful ACC, now complete with Syracuse, Notre Dame, and Pittsburgh in fold as well as defending National Champions Louisville on the way, a home court edge is imperative!

So I make this plea to the same folks that came out for Michigan State, that screamed their lungs out against Duke, that jumped out of their seats when Larkin went off the glass to Kadji.   Keep coming.

Coach L has parlayed last year's success into a top 15 recruiting class and has a potential top back court in the country for next year when transfers Angel Rodriguez and Sheldon McClellan are eligible.

The players are starting to come.  They want the energy that a packed BUC brings.

But if  'Canes fans want to sustain the foundation that has been built, and continue to get the kind of players needed for long term success, it is paramount that the BUC remain packed.

It's the reason Coach L brings pizzas to the dorms, and his wife goes to Costco and buys boxes of Crispy Cream doughnuts for the fans before game night.

The fans matter.

Keep coming 'Canes fans and this team will continue to give you monumental triumphs it did last year.

And perhaps beyond.

Just a reminder of how it can be, if we keep coming!

(CaneFreak2001)