KVILLE CLASS OF 2009: HALF A YEAR IN A TENT TO SEE FOUR LOSSES TO ARCH RIVAL

Now that sucks.

There has been some ink and some cyber ink about the Duke Class of 2009 never seeing a win by their beloved over the Tar Heels in their house on Coach K court.

Yesterday, Adam Lucas wrote a nice piece called “Loosen UP” which talked about the differences between the two schools’ fans/students. It includes a link to a K’ville blog by what seems like a nice enough bunch of kids determined to revel in their Tent 1 status.

There is a completely different process to get tickets at the two schools, and another one still at Duke for the Carolina game. At Carolina, there is a lottery system. If you don’t get a ticket, you watch the game somewhere. If the Heels lose you stay where you are and party. If the Heels beat Duke you head to Franklin Street for a major celebration. The protocols are fairly simple.

At Duke, kids line up in late December for UNC/Duke student tix, and there are strict rules about how many kids can get tickets and how much time and how many nights they have to spend outside to do so. If Duke beats Carolina, you are, no doubt, reminded that the spoil-sport Durham police department has revoked your “bon fire” permit some years ago. Good news is, you haven’t needed it lately.

Here are some highlights from Lucas’ article:

Duke fans believe spending 196 hours in a tent indicates passion and devotion. Carolina fans believe 196 hours in a tent indicates a telling lack of other social engagements. The undergrads inhabiting Tent 1 in Krzyzewskiville staked their claim on Dec. 26, 47 days ago. Added over four years of college life, that's 188 days--over half a year--in a tent to watch four losses.

What's great about the rivalry, and what makes the two camps so distinct, is that Duke people have the same lack of understanding about the Carolina way that we have about their philosophies.

In the same way that no Tar Heel has ever left Cameron muttering, "If we had cheer sheets, Chapel Hill would be a better place," no Blue Devil fan has ever come back from the Smith Center and said, "Hey, we need to honor a few more jerseys."

To read the whole story click here.