Guest Blogger: JMU and SEC in the Same League
We had a tie in last week’s prediction contest, so we offered all the top finishers a chance to guest post. First up is Andrea, a mother of two Dukes who definitely roots.
I grew up in the SEC. I sold Cracker Jacks in Knoxville at UT games when I was in seventh grade. I attended the University of Georgia and as a scared freshman, ran right into Herschel Walker spilling my textbooks all over the sidewalk. I have stepped foot on most SEC campuses during my lifetime. Then a funny thing happened…I fell in love with JMU.
Our oldest child is a proud member of the JMU Class of 2018 (majoring in athletic training) and when she decided JMU was the school for her, we went all in like most parents. Little did I know just how much JMU would come to mean to me. At the First Year send off picnic, we spoke with the Duke Club representative who attended Miss State. He said JMU might not have SEC crowds but JMU fans love the Dukes just like SEC fans love their team.
So we bought season football tickets in 2014. The weather was terrible for several of the games but we trekked over to The ‘Burg and enjoyed the games. I found this blog and quickly came to appreciate the wit here (and no, they didn’t pay me to say that). I started sharing the blog posts with rest of the family and everyone was amused.
Last year, our JMU football fever grew. I was just as happy as anyone when GameDay came to town. Our family came up with clever signs all week and were thrilled when we spotted our daughter on ESPN. We watched the FCS playoff selection show live just like we used to watch bowl bids come out. We attended our first football playoff game. We even went to a JMU basketball game.
Now our other daughter is a happy Duke in the Class of 2020 (engineering major) and we attend as many sporting events as we can including a great volleyball game earlier this fall. We watch the Dukes on TV if we cannot attend the game and the DVR is already set for the FCS playoff selection show. And guess what? I still love the SEC but the Duke Club rep was right–JMU fans love their Dukes just as much as any SEC fans I have ever known.
The game day atmosphere is amazing and the price cannot be beat. We play with the same intensity and enthusiasm as the Power 5 but I think JMU athletes seems a little more grateful and little more excited to be representing JMU. Go Dukes is our family’s new rallying cry and to me, it feels just as natural as Go Dawgs. I still have more red and black in my closet than purple and gold but with 4 more years at JMU, I suspect the purple will overtake the red soon. Go Dukes and this dawg now bleeds purple.
Good post.
What a wonderful post. Thank you. This makes me so proud as a Duke and (hopefully) a Duke parent. Best wishes to you and your daughters for every continued success.
Go Dukes! You go, mom!
Thanks Andrea! Love your story and so glad to have you in the Dukes family!
Thanks for the kind words, everyone! JMU is a special place and it’s great to be part of such a vibrant community. It has also helped me, especially, adjust to the newly-empty nest. Go Dukes! I hope we march into Nova and come out with a decisive win on Saturday.
Great post! Go Dukes!
Excellent post, go DUKES!!!!!!!!
Sic ’em!
I am not likely to allow my daughter to attend JMU as it would be out of state tuition and we have many fine institutions of higher education here. I bleed purple now and forever. I hope she will understand. 🙂