So I'm sure you remember the other day when I went scorched Earth on Arizona State about that "article" in their student newspaper that went out of its way to say how terrible Syracuse fans are.
In retrospect, I have no qualms about the way I addressed ASU. But I do feel bad about admonishing incoming Syracuse freshman Madeline Brown as much as I did.
As an incoming freshman, young Madeline should be nurtured and welcomed into the flock so that we may prove to her that Syracuse fans are actually fantastic fans, dare I say some of the finest basketball fans in the nation, rather than gang-up on her for her comments.
Her crime? She talked about her crazy uncle to someone outside the family.
You have a crazy uncle, right? Everyone in your family knows he's a crazy uncle. Everyone in your family talks about how he's the crazy uncle. And you all have a good laugh talking about how crazy he is. However, if anyone outside of your family ever says your crazy uncle is crazy, you'll defend his sanity and good graces to the death.
It's just one of those things. And had she made those comments to the Daily Orange...well, that's been done plenty of times before. But because it was an Arizona State paper, who then used those comments to craft a ridiculous, generalized missive painting Syracuse fans as the scum of the college sporting world, that just set me off.
So, let's not judge Madeline based on one thing. Let's welcome her into the Syracuse football & basketball fan fold, prove to her that we are awesome fans (Looking at you, Otto's Army) and change her opinion through proof, not insults.
G'ORANGE!