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Message: [QUOTE="Forza Azzurri, post: 146692, member: 1452"] [FONT=Georgia]My first memories of becoming a huge 'Cuse fan was the 76-77 season when Louie and Bouie were freshmen.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]I don't remember going to any games but I do remember playing nerf basketball in the basement and pretending SU was playing the Bonnies or the Purple Eagles or Canisius, but especially the Bonnies. I remember being Bug Williams and Larry Kelley and Ross Kindel and Marty Byrnes and Dale Shackleford but I especially remember being Louie and Bouie.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]Louie and Bouie were my favorites and, to this day, Roosevelt Bouie remains my all-time favorite player.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]The only game from that season I can even vaguely remember watching was the Tennessee game.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]We lived in Italy from 77 through 79 but moved back for the 79-80 season which is the season that cemented my love affair with SU hoops.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]My first memory from that season was watching as we played Purdue, with Joe Barry Carroll, on the road on a Sunday afternoon on national TV (I think I have that all correct...somebody can google it if they want). We were down by 9 or 10 at the half and came storming back to win late. I remember Bouie had a huge rejection on Carroll late in the game.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]My next memory was Old Dominion where a put back (after the buzzer???) ended our undefeated season.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]Ironically, the first live game I remember attending was the Home Finale against the Hoyas. We were up 32-18 at the half and gave it all back and more...Orr front-rimmed a long jumper that would have sent the game into OT...[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]The next game was against St. John's...at the end of the game, Orr (I think) hit a layup and a blocking foul was called on Reggie Carter (I think)...Carnasecca went beserk, drew a T or maybe a double-T and we won and we won a share off the Big East title...[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]I also remember spanking UConn (Aleksinas, McKay and Corny Thompson) and then losing, again, to the hated Hoyas with Carter, Floyd, Shelton and the Postman, Ed Spriggs, in the inaugural Big East tournament.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]Finally, I remember beating Villanova but then losing to Iowa as Boeheim got T'd up at a critical juncture.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]I was devastated but I was also forever hooked. And I have been a crazed SU hoops fan ever since.[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]The other day, I was wearing an orange hooded UA sweatshirt and one of my buddies said, "You know, even your non-SU stuff is all orange. Do you even own any other colors?"[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]Since that season, there have been a lot of great memories - and a lot of heartbreak...some in person, some not: beating Nova in Triple OT to win the Big East (in person); Sleeping out freshman year for season tix (yes, we still did that back then), Pearl's elbow jumper to beat the Hoyas; sleeping out sophomore year to get tix and believing a rumor that tix were not going to be sold until following day and going back to dorm to take a nap and finding out when I woke up that, in the interim, tix had been distributed (last year ever for sleeping out for seasons); Studying abroad in '87 and missing the entire final four run; being almost incredulous in '96 when we beat Kansas to get to the final four as I felt that it was really MY first final four (I was too young to enjoy the '75 run and I was studying overseas in '87); Going to my first final four in '96 at the Meadowlands (why couldn't someone have boxed out McCarty at 64-62?); and, of course, following the team to Boston, Albany and the Big Easy in '03 (the atmosphere in the Pepsi center was as electric as any stadium or arena I've ever been in; listening to the shellshocked Texas fans at b'fast the next day complain about our "'em up, 'em up...go SU...we're gonna kick the *** out of you"; Gmac's 6 for 6 and "THE Block" and then having a surreal, almost out-of-body experience standing in amazement at the fact that after 26+ years of being with so many heartbreaking misses, we were finally national champs...)[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]Over the years, I have changed considerably as a fan...rabid as he!! and very critical of Boeheim in the 80's, the '96 run mellowed me and the '03 run completed me...I now simply marvel at the consistency with which Boeheim has been able to churn out winning team after winning team for almost 30 years...We are extremely privileged to have this man as our coach with the level of excellence he has been able to sustain for almost three decades...[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]From Louie and Bouie to Pearl to Sherm and Coleman to 'Cuse is in the House to Carmelo and '03 and up to the present, it has been a wild, unforgettable and unbelievably enjoyable ride...[/FONT] [FONT=Georgia] [/FONT] [FONT=Georgia]Hope to see you all in New Orleans again this year...[/FONT] [/QUOTE]

Verification: What is a Syracuse fan's favorite color?