Caught the Reader Memory by Jim Whitaker and I just HAD to write! Jim was a friend
of mine back in 1978....he negleted to mention the blue and white crocheted scarf he
wore most of that '78 season...that I made! He could often be seen waving it madly
at home games, and had it draped around his sad figure in the Charlotte Observer
pic he mentioned.....my own memories of that Final Four have faded only slightly since
that year. I remember being stunned to beat Notre Dame (we were the *Cinderella*
back then) and all the Arkansas fans in the hotel with their "Soueee, pig, pig, pig"
cheer to all hours, before Kentucky beat them to set up one of a series of great
games between us and KY.
I remember how great Sparks, and G-man and Tink were.
(Banks-Tink was short for Tinkerbell-don't ask me where THAT came from!) I remember
that KY had pulled their starters late in the game, then Duke made a run and back the
starters had to come.....I remember the echoes of the Duke fans cheer "We'll be back"
reverberating around the now dead and buried Checkerdome in St. Louis as the game came to an end. Little did we know at the time it would take 8 years, and a new coach to get back, but back Duke has been--in a BIG way!--ever since. I even got my picture in the Charlotte paper as well, the day of the KY game, front page.....the shot was of Mike Gminski walking out of the tunnel to the floor to practice, and my friends and I were hanging over the railing
cheering them on. That is one college trip I will never forget, and it was a thrill to see
Jim's name on the DBR site, so I just had to write my own memories! (Hi Whit!)
I don't
have any trombones to pass on to my 6 year old daughter, but I am teaching her the
ways of Duke fandom, and made her a blue and white scarf (a la Whit's) to wear to
Duke games. Such is the way of a long-time original Cameron Crazy, class of '78.
Kathy (Buschman) Hoover
(DBR may post this with my blessing)