The state of Indiana has had many sports triumphs over the years; they arguably have two of the most iconic programs in both College Football and Basketball; The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Indiana Hoosiers. Both have die hard, national fan bases that are very proud of their tradition. Both teams made a giant return to national prominence this year.
Out of nowhere the Fighting Irish completed a perfect regular-season assuring them a shot to compete for the BCS National Championship. The Hoosiers took the Big Ten Conference by storm, winning the outright regular season championship. Big Ten was considered by many (and rightly so) to be the nation’s top conference this year. Their dominant season resulted in a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament. The success didn’t end there. Fresh off the worst season in the 2012 NFL, the Colts rode the arm of their Rookie QB all the way to the playoffs, despite their coach missing most of the season as he was going through treatment for cancer. Finally you have the Pacers, a team no one talks about, but has quietly built a strong hard working team, epitomizing the values and characteristics of the Midwest. The Pacers dominated the Central Division resulting in a 3-seed in the NBA playoffs.
Unfortunately that’s where the success ended. All four teams failed to deliver. The fan base endured heart break after heart break. The Fighting Irish were manhandled by Alabama in the BCS Title Game. The Colts were thrashed by the Ravens in route to their Super Bowl Title. The Hoosiers were upset in the Sweet 16 by Syracuse. And the Pacers were ousted in game 7 by the defending champion Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. To be honest though, ND, the Colts, and Pacers were large underdogs. The only real disappointment came from the Hoosiers being upset early in the tourney. The Pacers made believers out of a lot of people, pushing the Heat more than any team has in the last two years. At the end of the day their fans should be damn proud. It’s tough to watch your team get so close in each sport and not bring home a title. It’s demoralizing and gets “old.”
It reminds me of the year 2007. We Ohioans have been there before and experienced the same heart break. I like to believe it was worse for us, but that’s because it’s more personal. I can sympathize with what the Hoosier state is going through right now.
Disclaimer: It’s time to relive that year, scroll to the last paragraph if you can’t bear it.
It all started with the Football Buckeyes and their Heisman winning quarterback. As heavy favorites they rolled into Glendale Arizona and got steam-rolled by the Urban Meyer led Florida Gators. A couple months later, the Bucks had their opportunity at revenge as they faced the Florida Gators in the Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament Championship game. As underdogs this time, the outcome was the same. The Bucks kept it close and played tough, but UF controlled the game throughout. Shortly after that we entered the NBA Playoffs. It was LBJ’s coming out party. The Cavs rolled through the Eastern Conference, taking down the heavy favored Detroit Pistons, only to then get swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals. Within a matter of months, three huge heart breaks were suffered. Then we hit the baseball season, the Tribe unexpectedly won the Central Division crown and took out the Yankees in the first round of the playoffs, setting up a meeting for the AL crown with the Boston Red Sox. For anyone following, this was the World Series as the AL was much more dominant than the NL that year. The Tribe jumped to a 3-1 series lead, only to allow Boston to fight back and take the series in seven. Boston went on to sweep the Rockies for the World Series title. The one glimmer of hope from that year was the Browns shocking the entire NFL by going 10-6. But in keeping with the heart break tradition, didn’t make the playoffs. Exciting everyone for the next season….we all know how that went.
Indiana you have had a rough year to this point. The joys of the regular season seem to diminish when you can’t finish the deal. We know exactly how you feel; it’s tough to get beat, even tougher to get embarrassed. Especially if you are a displaced fan like I am. Keep your head up and don’t forget…The Indiana Fever are the DEFENDING WNBA CHAMPIONS!!
The post The Indiana Sports Year of Heartbreak: Been There and Done That appeared first on More Than A Fan.