This is the part of the week where I'd usually be writing my "The Hurricanes will beat X if..." article, but to be perfectly honest, I don't think it's necessary. In fact, here's that article in one sentence, "The Hurricanes will beat Florida A&M if they get on the bus."

Instead, I wanted to use this time to talk a little about why I started following the Hurricanes, (this is fan journalism, after all, right?) and hopefully I'll get to hear from you all a bit as well.

You see, I've been getting asked the same question since I started following college football a little over a decade ago. As a young fan in New Jersey, I was left with a fairly tough decision to make. Where does a kid who has allegiances to only local professional teams find a program to love in the wasteland that was New Jersey collegiate football?

Rutgers is the obvious pick, right? Not really, as other New Jerseyans would understand.  I never even met a true Rutgers football fan until I was 19, my sophomore year at RU.  Maybe Penn State, I thought. Nah, something about choosing a team from Pennsylvania didn't sit right. When I was eight, I rooted for Darnell Autrey and Northwestern in the Rose Bowl... but Autrey was gone, along with any actual care for the team. 

Notre Dame? Please, even before I knew who I liked, I hated them.

What about the Hurricanes? Good team that was always on TV, thanks to the Big East dominating TV coverage in the Northeast back then. They were rivals with Florida and Florida State, two schools that I never liked, especially when they played each other.  Plus, my dad hated them, because, in his words, "their fans were just like Cowboy fans, always talking. They could lose by 30 and still have something to say. You'd fit right in." 

Long story short, as my affinity for college football rose, so did my passion for Hurricanes football. From the outstanding talent to the incredible history of the program to the attitude that seemed present in every single facet of the team, I was hooked. It all seemed to work together for this outspoken kid from New Jersey. 

Through the years, there have certainly been a lot of highs and lows when it comes to being a Hurricanes fan. I was lucky enough to have been apart of some great things early on, getting to see the entirety of Ken Dorsey's career, a whole bunch of high draft picks, and even some nice wins from Brock Berlin. The last few years haven't been quite as bright, but never once did my belief in the program dim. 

No more do I hear people calling me a frontrunner, a decade of die-hard rooting will tend to erase that. Gone also are the prodding comments of newly minted Rutgers fans, trying to get me to switch allegiances. Sorry, it was fun for four years RU fans, but back to second fiddle you go. 

Now, after over 11 years, I finally feel like a full-fledged member of the Hurricanes community. I've seen the ups, I've seen the downs, and I'm ready to see whatever it is the future might have in store for my Hurricanes. 

 

Thanks for reading, and more importantly for the forum in which I could share my history with you all.  You can comment on my story all you like, but I really would love to see some of your stories about how and why you started to become fans of the 'Canes.