Unbreakable Heart

The on-line front page of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution web-site reads: "Miracle Run: Georgia Wins SEC". That's right. Georgia wins SEC. And no it was not the football team. It was the men's basketball team. A team that has not had a sniff of post-season action since the Jim Harrick days (You remember him. He's the mob boss that ran the team into multiple NCAA violations.) A team who last won the conference tournament 25 years ago (I was 11 and only drinking NyQuil on the weekends). That team. The same team who won four basketball games all on their rival's home court in three days. All upsets. A team that was 4-12 in the conference and the bottom seed in their own division. A team that had no chance. A team coached by a man who had been given five years to clean up shop and as a result had nothing to show for it. Until now.

Coach Felton raised the SEC Tournament trophy over his head on the gym floor at Georgia Tech this evening. His team around him with championship hats and t-shirts worn over their uniforms. His team rallied around his leadership at the right time. They took dynasty by the tail and shook that animal to the floor. It became theirs to take. And they took it. Not without a fight in the end. The Bulldogs rallied to a 19 point lead in the first half. They needed all of that lead as their meters began to run empty. As the second half started, Arkansas began to take advantage of the Bulldogs weary legs and brains. They forced the Bulldogs into bad shots and bad turnovers. They used their speed to rush past them on the defensive side for easy shots. The lead started to slip away. Their legs turned to stone. Georgia players could not get past the Razorbacks defensive players. They did not have to legs to take jump shots. Their minds started to wander as the ball seemed to slip away from them on key possessions. Arkansas pulled to within three.

That's when I started drinking. I had taken multiple Advil just to deal with the pressure of the moment. I started thinking that beer would be helpful as the lead was three and it looked like the run would end as everyone expected. However, the Bulldogs heart would not stop. Arkansas threw everything at them. They threw presses, shoulders, knives, candy, rocks, sinks, and small appliances at the Bulldogs. To no avail. They refused to break. I know that it is the worst cliche in sports: bend but not break. However, I can not think of anything better to describe it. That is what I saw. I saw the Bulldogs bend. Bend like a pretzel made by someone who was blindfolded and gaged with an Arkansas T-shirt. They did not break.

With less than two minutes left in the game, you could see the Arkansas players on the bench looking bewildered, shocked, and embarrassed. They could not believe that they were going to go down to Georgia. Georgia? Play-offs? Play-offs? Don't talk about play-offs? Georgia? In an half empty arena with only their cheerleaders, boosters, family members, band, and coaches to watch it live and in person. Georgia found the last burst of energy they could muster. They managed to make enough shots to stay afloat. Then they made their free throws and sealed the most improbable run in SEC tournament history. This was overall a team with huge heart. An incredibly gutsy heroic performance under absurd circumstances. Tornadoes ripping through downtown Atlanta, the Dome smashed, moving to Georgia Tech's home court, four upsets in a row, three victories in thirty hours, a SEC crown, and an automatic bid to the Dance. This weekend is why sports matters. It is why we watch sports. It is drama. It is heroes. It is beating the odds. That is what Georgia gave us all this weekend. As people across the state cleaned up from the damage they sought solace in a college basketball team down to nine players, the last seed in the league, with a coach on a bubble, win four in a row and take home a trophy. The SEC is not like Little League where everyone who steps on the field gets a trophy. No one gets a trophy unless you win. This is Big Boy world. Georgia walked away with the trophy and the hearts of Bulldog fans everywhere.