As we head toward 2014, there is much to reflect upon, and some items on the wish list
Oh, to be a Monarch.
The holidays are upon us and it is time for me to butcher a classic Christmas tune.
You don’t want me going through the entire repetitive song, so I’ll start with the final verse.
On the 12th day of Christmas, my true blue gave to me …
You thought I was going to go there, didn’t you?
But I’m going to spare you the corniness of it all.
What Old Dominion University fans want as much as anything is a return to the 20-win seasons on the hardwood. A school that once prided itself on basketball glory needs that again.
It is not difficult to look to the basketball court and wish for a big man for the basketball team. A true big man. Throughout the years, whether it was Wilson Washington or Mark West, Chris Gatling or Odell Hodge, Cal Bowdler or Alex Loughton, ODU always seemed to have really, really good big men who could get it done in the paint.
As an ODU fan, you relished them getting the ball on the low block and lamented whenever they were in early foul trouble. But they took you to great, er, heights.
A big man in the near future, that’s what ODU wants beneath the tree.
Same for the women. The Anne Donovans and Clarisse Machanquanas of the world make a huge difference and ODU needs one of those types of players.
What about the stocking? Well, I believe the true blue fan wants two tickets to a bowl game. Can that happen in the near future? That’s extremely hard to get a handle on, for the step up from the Football Championship Subdivision to the Football Bowl Subdivision is a lot tougher that people really understand. But a year from now, what ODU fans could be talking about is the draft potential of star quarterback Taylor Heinicke and his most prolific receiver, Larry Pinkard. That’s something to look forward to in 2014.
The coming year holds promise, and that’s all anybody can ever really ask for. Coming off NCAA playoff-caliber performances in field hockey and men’s soccer, fans need to begin to realize that there is life after the Colonial Athletic Association for the Monarchs, that the new leagues in which they play offer chances for excitement and success because let’s face it, as an ODU fan do you really come to watch the opposition? No. You show up to watch your Monarchs play.
The spring brings with it baseball in Conference USA, and that should be reason to make it to The Bud to catch some games. I resolve with the New Year to lose 10 pounds, like I resolve every year. But I also resolve to make it to more baseball games.
That’s just me. Your wish list and your resolutions might go to different alleyways on the ODU map. Maybe it’s tennis or golf or wrestling, or maybe it’s on the water where you wish for more success or a national champion.
But we all in the end want the same as Monarch fans: Something to cheer about year-round.