Listen to Duke roll on Senior Night
While putting together a new DBP video and gathering content for an upcoming new display around Cameron, I exported this joyful sequence of the Crazies cheering during Senior Night this past year. If you like Duke, it will be music to your ears. If you want to listen to it again on the go, check out our free DBP iTunes podcast where you can download the audio file (as well as most of our past videos) for free.
Crazie Zach White looks back at the 2009-10 campaign
How can you put into words what it was like being a Cameron Crazie during the 2009-2010 Basketball season? From Countdown to Craziness to the Basketball Banquet, it was a magical time. Everyone has their own version of the season that they will take with them in their memory forever, ready to retell each and every anecdote to whoever is willing to listen. Naturally, the highlights include the NIT Season Tip-Off Tournament win, the UNC sweep, the ACC regular-season title, the ACC tournament win, the Final Four and the mind blowing National Championship. In addition to those momentous milestones, most fans hold personal standout recollections that made the season a fairytale.
From my vantage point as a Cameron Crazie I’ll share my Top Ten…
*Nolan Struts in Johnny Dawkins’ Regalia- When Nolan came out in Johnny Dawkins’ old uniform during Countdown to Craziness he set the tone for the whole season….expect the unexpected, and, just when you think you know this team… they will show you a side you’ve never seen before.
*Our guys may have been eight miles away in the Dean Dome but Cameron was bumpin’. The Crazies watched the first game against UNC on the Jumbotron together in Our House, staying on our feet and chanting wildly, “ Let’s go Duke!” as the Devils pulled away.
*Superzoubs- During the Maryland game, Brian Zoubek, a normal, Division 1 athlete went into a phone booth….SuperZoubs emerged. And the rest is history.
*Farewell Greivis- Cameron Crazies know how to work together as evidenced by their cooperative effort on a going away gift for our Maryland friend….a card signed by 1200 students. His last move in Cameron was a look back over his shoulder at the student section. He gave one farewell nod, and was gone. We will miss him and it sounds like he will miss us.
*K-Ville- Each year there are special K-ville memories. This year, the cold, grace, the talent show and The Fortress are a few standouts, but none compare with the sight of Nolan and his acting class in full cowboy costumes filming a scene. Crazies were the extras and 10-gallon hats were the lids of choice. If you think Nolan and Andre are a deadly duo on the court, you should see them with six shooters in hand!
*Remember the fan ejected from the UNC-Presbyterian game? Well, he may have been in attendance in Cameron for the Duke-UNC faceoff. In the student section. In the front row. Directly across from the opponent’s bench. From start to fantastic finish.
*Senior Night- Motivation for beating UNC at home was plentiful March 6th- It was Senior Night, we were playing our die-hard rivals, and the regular season ACC Championship title and a perfect homecourt season were on the line. Kyle Singler’s 17-0 shirt perfectly symbolized all that the win signified and reminded the Crazies that this house was OUR HOUSE.
*Bench Burning- So intense was the celebration the night we beat UNC that benches from near and far (West AND East Campus) had to be brought in to satisfy the hunger for traditional bench burning.
* A Personal Note- The story I will tell my children about our championship win will include having been hit by a car in the parking lot outside Lucas Oil stadium in Indianapolis. When the ambulance arrived I had to both sign a release, and put the paramedics on the phone with my mother. “Well Mrs. White, I can’t guarantee there is no internal bleeding, but his vitals are fine and he says he NEEDS to be in the front row for the game.” Broken ribs are only a slight inconvenience when your team is cutting down the nets.
*Our Banner- the Welcome Home Celebration in Cameron included Coach K granting permission to all of us to forever hold the Championship Banner as part ours. What a relief, because we DO believe that we are part of the magic, that we are the Sixth Man, that it is OUR team and that we hold stake in it. In some ways, the 2009-2010 team is just like us, Duke Students… good alone, unstoppable together.
Duke fan Jennie Chan shows amazing support as Big Dance begins
If you are driving through Pennsylvania (around Chambersburg), keep an eye out for DukeBluePlanet’s all-time favorite billboard. As you can see below, diehard Duke fan Jennie Chan is not hesitant to let the world know which squad she is backing in the Big Dance. Lay on the horn if you see this one! THANKS JENNIE. What a bold and awesome move!
Team Starts New Tradition with Tent One Pitched in K-Ville for Players
PHOTOS: Tent One
This year’s occupants of Tent One didn’t spend a single night in K-Ville and have never worn a blue wig in Cameron during a game. But, like the Crazies residing in all the other tents, they did invest significantly in the team and played a major role in the 82-50 win over UNC. In the start of a new tradition, Tent One was reserved this year for the Blue Devil players.
The tent, pictured below and called the “Board Room”, was located near the Krzyzewskiville sign in K-Ville. With an 82-inch ceiling and 96 square feet of floor area, the tent could fit eight people comfortably (and every player except Zoubs, the Plumlees and Ryan could stand upright without touching his head on the roof).
The tent featured several amenities so the players could have some fun in K-Ville with their teammates and the Crazies, including a card table and several decks of cards, eight Nerf guns, lawn bowling, a Nerf basketball hoop, a Duke blue carpet and Blue Devil welcome mat, poker chips and a pop-a-shot (setup just outside the tent). By the time gameday vs. UNC arrived, the floor was littered with foam bullets, suggesting the Nerf guns were the biggest hit.
Our players stopped by the tent fairly often since the tent was set up several weeks ago, often swinging by after practice or on their way to the gym. Said Nolan after the UNC game, “The players’ tent was tremendous. I am not sure if we took it down yet but I wanted to stay in there tonight. The tent was a great idea and I enjoyed my time playing cards, shooting the Nerf darts and shooting hoops right beside it… We just want to give back to our fans, our Sixth Man. They were tremendous tonight, this is what they slept out for. They were fired up. To show them we appreciate and love them is what we want to do.”
Crazies Kick Off White Tenting with Race to Secret Location
The next round of tenting season for the Crazies (White Tenting) kicked off tonight at 9 PM as the K-Ville population continues to grow in advance of our March 6th rivalry game against UNC. Since a number of tent groups are pitching their respective tents on the same day, the Crazies race to a secret spot to determine tent order. That spot is revealed here on DukeBluePlanet.com by guard Nolan Smith…
