I’ll admit that I was a little worried for our football game against the University of Miami last Thursday. After all, they held a number ten ranking and we continued to stay unranked after our depressing series of losses. I was terrified that as a student body we had given up hope on our fellow Tar Heels as we stepped foot into our hardest game of the year and that our team could feel the disappointment. However, I was more than pleasantly surprised.
I have never in my life been so proud of our football team or our fans. Our team has had an incredibly difficult year, but instead of letting this defeat effect the way we played on Thursday, we pushed through and fought hard. As a fan standing on the sidelines, I have never felt that much emotion and eagerness flowing from the field. We were prepared to fight and fight is what we did. We played smart, we played hard, and we played fast.
We all know that Carolina isn’t exactly known as a football school and I’m constantly hearing how hard it is to be motivated to go to the games because we “just don’t have that football/tailgating” atmosphere that so many people want. But we really showed up for that game. I have NEVER seen our fans get so riled up, so involved in the game. Everyone showed up way before kickoff ready to root on our players, dawned in their black clothes, dozens of people even painted up. And when I say painted up, I mean these students went ALL OUT. It was a fantastic display of our student body and the support that we give to all of our student athletes for all of the hard work they put in.
So this is my big and sincere thank you to everyone who showed up, even though we were on fall break as well as, a huge thank you and congratulations to our players and coaches because you all did a phenomenal job and should know we’re all proud of you. Heels, you are all amazing and I know that our attendance and support at this game has helped boost the morale of the entire football team. Despite the loss, this game showed the true energy of our fellow Tar Heels and showed what we, Carolina, are really made of. We might not make it to a bowl this year, but if we continue playing like we did and supporting our team like we did, I have no doubt that we can win these next couple games.
So awesome job everyone and as always, it’s a GREAT day to be a Tar Heel!