STULTZ - Auburn to Kentucky: It's not you, it's me
At one point in everyone’s lives, most of us either use or have been told the age-trusted line of, “It’s not you, it’s me” when ending a relationship. It somewhat helps lessen the blow to the person getting dumped and is probably the easiest way to end things.
Well, this applies to celebrations as well, it seems in college sports. See, Kentucky fans want to take all the credit for what happened on the Plains yesterday, a historic day that Auburn fans have pleaded for quite some time. Fans of Big Blue Nation saw students camping out in the bitter cold, Auburn Arena rocking at an ear-splitting volume and, afterward, fans spilling out at Toomer’s Corner to roll the trees. (Sorry, guys. Auburn fans don’t burn couches.)
Their response was an arrogant and condescending, “That’s because they played us.” Bless their hearts.
No, this day was all about Auburn. It was about a program with little to no history making likely just that with a win that all but sealed a first-ever No. 1 ranking. It was about a team that fans have fallen in love with faster than any plot of a Hallmark Christmas movie. It was about a man named Bruce Pearl, what he has made out of a program left in shambles by years of maltreatment. It was about every player that ever put on an Auburn uniform before and will in the future.
The enthusiasm for Auburn basketball right now made it unnecessary who the opponent on Saturday was. After coming so close to reaching the top of the polls last week and falling short due to some inane voting, the tension and atmosphere were building long before John Calipari’s team arrived. Students lined up hours before the Tigers took on a 5-12 Georgia team. There was some proving to be done by Pearl’s squad, and it reached an earthquake-inducing pitch as it became clear that Auburn would win and that mountain top was in sight.
Yes, the Kentucky brand still means a lot in college basketball, but the notion that this was all about the matchup against the Wildcats misses the big picture entirely. And, to be fair, #BBN should be aware of this as their football program continues to make strides to SEC East contenders year in and year out. So, the next time Kroger Field is full against national champion Georgia, will you say it is all about the Dawgs? Of course not.
The sights coming out of Auburn were pure joy. Delight in a team recording the best start in program history, the fact that (holy moly) the Tigers have the likely No. 1 pick in Jabari Smith Jr. and that Auburn, yes, Auburn, is currently the best team in college basketball. That fact would get edited out of even the most insane fiction book due to absurdity.
It’s already been a great season for the Tigers, and much more is to come. Auburn fans are enjoying this ride and will continue until the end. Saturday was about many things, but it wasn’t about Kentucky.
Sorry, Wildcats. It’s not you. It’s Auburn.