DC Coaches Caravan: DAGGER!!!

So many of you may remember that the Old Guys Leave piece written for our friend Jamie’s Mister Irrelevant blog was the impetus for our own JMUSB.  In it, we recounted our ill-fated attempt to blend in with current Dukes at a Forest Hills party after the incredible Appalachian State game in 2008.  Jamie titled the piece “JMU Is No Campus for Old Men”.

First Print

But at the DC Coach’s Caravan Event last Thursday at The Boulevard Woodgrill in Arlington, we finally found a place where overzealous, older alums with high hopes of being overserved are welcomed with open arms (at least so long as they bring their checkbooks).  Events like this make you realize how slippery the slope is between being a great fan and being Buddy Garrity.

But one thing was clear: Even with a number of coaches and the QB1 in attendance, Steve Buckhantz stole the show in our opinion.  He raised the bar for celebrity JMU alums gushing purple and gold blood while emceeing the event and basically brimming with as much pride and excitement for the Dukes as he’s ever put into a gamewinning “DAGGER!” call for the Wizards.

Talking with him after the event, Buchantz even whipped out his cell phone to show us video he shot of everyone rushing the field after the aforementioned App. St. game.  He got distracted by other buttkissing alums before we got the full show, but a cool moment nonetheless.

Other highlights included newly named STARTING QB (thank you Coach Matthews for ending the suspense early this year!) Drew Dudzik making an appearance and a brief speech (basically “all the seniors are going to play our asses off to make sure the half-stadium year is a full success”) and the following quotes from the various speakers:

Buchantz introducing Men’s Basketball Coach Matt Brady by saying “you’re the only coach here without a championship and your ass is the one with the pressure now or you’ll be on the hot seat!”  Loved this because it both acknowledged the incredible success Kenny Brooks has lead the Women’s program to and said something no official member of JMU Athletics would dare say out loud about the future of our MBB coach, the absolute truth.

Mickey: “It was raining like a cow tee-teeing on a flat rock”  I think this may have been in reference to the stadium construction crew’s hard work, but I can’t actually remember.   But really, who needs context when a football coach from Texas says something like that?

Also from Coach Matthews:  “We need smart players…guys who don’t take an hour and a half to watch 60 minutes”

Brady: “Yeah, no good team wants a bunch of guys that look like you”  Yes, he really said this and it really was directed at me. Like the Matthews’ quote we could explain the context, but it doesn’t really matter. The point is that those of you who were worried that Brady was looking to build a roster of tall lanky white guys with freakishly large eyebrows, can rest easy.