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After the Duke-Butler title game in 2010, we said that we were sure that Duke and Butler fans would have an enduring bond. We’ve met a few Butler fans since then, and the first thing that comes up is that game, and usually like this: “Oh my God, I still can’t believe that game.”
Because it was almost completely unbelievable. We also said at the time that we would have been fine with Butler winning because they would certainly have been deserving champions.
ESPN later said that Gordon Hayward missed his final shot by the width of a shoelace. They were truly great.
Which brings us to Graham Honaker.
Honaker went to Wake Forest for undergrad and then attended Fuqua and is currently working at Butler and has a new book out that, while we haven’t read it, sounds pretty great. Here’s what he told us about it:
“I have a new book out called The Cinderella Strategy: The Game Plan Behind Butler University’s Rise to Prominence.The book focuses on how Butler University’s basketball program elevated the overall university. I’m very grateful that Coach K, Jay Bilas, and Blair Sheppard (former Dean at Fuqua) all endorsed the book.
“We have a lot of Duke content in the book including a recap 2010 title game and a trip that Butler administration made to Duke that following summer to learn how Duke leveraged its own success. We have a number of leadership lessons throughout the book, and one focuses on how patience paid off for Duke, specifically citing Tom Butters’ decision to offer Coach K an extension rather than fire him in 1984.”
So it sounds like a great read to us and if you think so too, you can grab it from Amazon.