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Wednesday, December 8, 2010
The beautiful game
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KNIGHTS OF NEW JERSEY
No. 6 UConn faces Fairleigh Dickinson
By Matt McDonough Associate Sports Editor
Jon-Paul Roche
During my time writing for The Daily Campus, I’ve covered topics pertaining to world football. I’ve written stories about some of the best clubs in the world like Barcelona, Manchester United, Real Madrid, and several others. I’ve also written about some of the elite competitions in the sport, such as the UEFA Champions League and, of course, the World Cup. But, no matter the topic of the story I write, I have always tried to use my writing to attract readers to the game. Soccer is a game that many people feel relates exclusively to the world’s population outside of the United States. But I refuse to believe that this sport has no bearing on avid sports fans in this country, especially as of late. After this summer’s World Cup, I had more people than ever before coming to me because they were interested in the sport and didn’t know where to start. The one consistent answer I could offer was to simply pick a team and invest your loyalty in them. Picking a team to follow be it club, international, or both - is something that you should take seriously, but have fun with. I first started paying attention to soccer during middle school. I remember coming home from school, turning on ESPN and seeing the UEFA Champions League. I distinctly remember the foreign accents of commentators Tommy Smyth and David Rae as they described the sporting event in a style which I was not used to. Letting play go on, not recounting every action the players made – the commentary left a lot up
» ROCHE, page 12
Patriots make yet another climb to NFL mountaintop By Andrew Callahan NFL Columnist Paul Brown, the late godfather of pro football, used to tell his championship teams one thing: “When you win, say nothing. When you lose, say less.” Had Brown been alive for the Patriots’ Monday night slaughter of the New York Jets, he would’ve been one proud football coach. Led by longtime Brown admirer Bill Belichick, the New England Patriots have once again established themselves as the best team in the NFL. Following an astounding 45-3 victory over their 9-2 rivals who ran their mouth like the NYC marathon, the Pats simply went about their business. They’ve won nine of their last ten and have the Jets and the NFL partying like it’s ‘03 and ‘04. So what does this mean? Well in truth, not much - at least not yet. With four games to go, the Patriots may be atop the power rankings of every ‘expert’ out there, but the only ranking that ever matters is playoff seeding. At the moment, this team is in control of its destiny, which looks to have its course set for a No. 1 seed in the AFC. But there’s work to be done. As for the Jets, their work now essentially consists of four finals weeks to get themselves together before the playoffs. The Patriots picked them apart and blew them out of the water. They were simply outclassed in every phase. Here’s a brief look at how it went down.
» CALLAHAN, page 12
The No. 6 UConn men’s basketball team will look to improve to 8-0 with a win over Fairleigh Dickinson tonight in Storrs. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. at Gampel Pavilion. The Huskies defeated UMBC 94-61 Friday night at the XL Center in Hartford to boost their record to 7-0. UConn moved up in the AP Top 25 poll after Michigan State 7-0 lost to No. 1 Duke this past week. The Huskies were previously ranked No. 7. The Knights enter the contest at 3-3 on the season. Fairleigh Dickinson lost 3-3 at home versus. Wed. 7:30 p.m. Stony Brook and Gampel Pavilion Albany, and at North Carolina SNY/WHUS State to open the season, but has since reeled off three straight. The Knights won at Longwood, and opened Northeast Conference play with home wins over Bryant and Central Connecticut State. Senior guard Mike Scott is the team’s leading scorer. Scott, in his second year with the program after previous stops at the College of Eastern Utah and TCU, averages 17.7 points and 6.5 rebounds. Senior guard Terence Grier can also score. The transfer from Rhode Island averages 12 points per contest in his third year at FDU.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
VS.
DANA LOVALLO/The Daily Campus
Kemba Walker drives to the hoop during the Huskies’ 94-61 win over UMBC Dec. 3 at the XL Center. Walker had 24 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists in the victory. UConn plays Fairleigh Dickinson tonight at Gampel Pavilion.
» WALKER, page 11
» HUSKY HARDCORES
Faces in the crowd: Big Red and Ryan Curry ‘Red’ recalls the history behind the infamous cheer
By Colin McDonough Senior Staff Writer The most memorable moments in UConn basketball history on most lists are the 1988 NIT championship, 1990’s “Dream Season” and the two national championships in 1999 and 2004. These wins catapulted the men’s basketball program into the national spotlight and created a winning tradition for the Huskies. But one basketball tradition was started long before Tate George’s shot and still continues today. Big Red may be the most recognizable face in Gampel Pavilion besides coach Jim Calhoun. Big Red didn’t go to UConn, and when asked what his real name was, he responded with “Big Red” and a hardy chuckle. He didn’t give many details to his personal life, but Red’s spirit for the Blue and White is seen more than any Husky Hardcore in history. At Gampel Pavilion and the XL Center, Red rallies the men’s basketball team during timeouts after big runs in crucial moments of the game. At Gampel he sits in section 221, in Hartford he is behind the basket in section 109, but is shown on the scoreboard with a caption reading “It’s Big Red time.” When his time comes, Red gets out of his seat and spells out “U…C…O…N…N” with his arms while the student section points at him and chants. Big Red doesn’t remember the exact year, either 1976 or 1977, but he knows it was a cold night at the old Greer Fieldhouse. The story of this incredible tradition goes something like this. Red and a friend were watching the Huskies struggling and the cheerleaders were not getting the crowd into it. As the squad does now, the cheerleaders spelled out the letters of UConn to the fans, but Red said the students weren’t getting excited enough. That’s when Big Red became a legend. He stood up and yelled, “Are you ready?” and spelled out “UConn” with his arms while the crowd screamed,
Photo courtesy of Kevin Curry
“Big Red,” center, and Kevin Curry, bottom, pose with Jonathan the Husky and the UConn Marching Band before the Huskies took on Michigan State in the 2009 Final Four at Ford Field in Detroit.
“U…C…O…N…N, UConn, UConn, UConn.” He said he did the chant a couple more times that game but doesn’t remember who they played or the outcome. The next game Big Red walked into the fieldhouse, past the student section, and took his seat. He was wearing a softball jacket, with his name, “Big Red,” emblazoned on it. After UConn made a run, the student section turned to Big Red and began chanting “Red, Red, Red, Red!” He spelled out UConn and has not stopped since. “It just continued and evolved,” Red said. “I think it’s great. I do it when I need to get the crowd involved at the right time.” Big Red’s energy is usually not needed until the Big East schedule. The have mostly blown out their home non-conference slates in the last 20 years, so Red has become accustomed to waiting until winter to help the team. “If the team is doing well then they don’t need the extra energy and support,” Red said. “I don’t want to embarrass a player that is trying hard on the court.”
» RED, page 12
Curry travels the country with father to watch UConn men By Matt McDonough Associate Sports Editor Ryan Curry is not just another face in the crowd. According to YouTube videos, Curry is known as the “UConn shirtless kid.” Curry, who just turned 11-years-old last week, is a 5th grader at Saint Joseph Elementary School in Meriden. When he’s not going to school, he is with his father Kevin at UConn games anywhere from Storrs to Detroit. Kevin, who is a gas station owner and distributor for Danby’s Gasoline Marketers, has owned men’s basketball season tickets for around 15 years and has been a season ticket holder at Rentschler Field since its opening in 2003. The father-andson combination goes to one road football game and one away basketball weekend every season. The duo’s bond started the day on Nov. 1999 that Ryan was born, when,
according to Curry’s wife, Patti, Kevin went to the UConn-UMass basketball game with his friends hours after becoming a father. Although Ryan missed out on that game, along with the two men’s basketball championships and the Motor City Bowl, Kevin has taken his son everywhere. Ryan has traveled to Notre Dame Stadium, gone to UConn’s last three bowl games, smashed oranges on the Carrier Dome concourse and in 2009 went with his father and Big Red, a family friend to the Final Four. “Red said he never saw an 8-year-old who understood basketball so well and you could have a 15-hour conversation with,” Kevin said. But Ryan is known to the UConn student section as the kid who dances with his shirt off during timeouts. Ryan is a staple of the second half dance cam. He tosses his shirt to his father and walks into the aisle. There is no real name or inspiration for his dance moves, according to Ryan. But the student section erupts when Ryan busts a move. Most start to cheer, then point towards Ryan, so the cameras catch him. So far this season, they haven’t.
» CURRY, page 12