fbpx
Athletics

A Tar Heel welcome back

Arriving back in Chapel Hill the afternoon following their 77-74 loss to Villanova in the NCAA National Championship, the Carolina basketball team was greeted by more than 3,000 fans expressing their gratitude and pride.

Holding handmade signs and cheering for nearly an hour, Tar Heel fans gathered outside the Dean Smith Center on April 5 to welcome home the men’s basketball team from Houston.

The fans’ overwhelming message to the Final Four team was simple: We appreciate you.

“I really want to say ‘thank you’ to our team for the great effort they put in all year,” said first-year Carolina student Owen Ashley. “I really appreciate all that they’ve done. I wish that we had won last night, but it was a great game and this is a great opportunity to come out and say ‘thank you.’”

Arriving back in Chapel Hill the afternoon following their 77-74 loss to Villanova in the NCAA National Championship, the team was greeted by more than 3,000 fans expressing their gratitude and pride.

“They’re great guys and they’re our Carolina boys,” said Raleigh resident Janice Pridgen. “We’re so proud of them — win or lose.”

After exiting the bus in the Smith Center parking lot, Coach Roy Williams returned the appreciation by stopping in front of the crowd and thanking fans for supporting the team throughout the season and in the NCAA Tournament.

“We’re stunned by the number of you out here,” said Williams. “We appreciate that a great deal. These guys gave us an unbelievable run. The last five weeks have been the most fun I’ve ever had as a college basketball coach. We appreciate everything you do, the way you followed us, the way you’re here today.”

Seniors Marcus Paige, Brice Johnson and Joel James, who played in their final game in Carolina blue Monday, expressed a similar message.

“Thank you,” Johnson said to the cheering crowd. “You guys mean so much to me. You mean so much to the team. You mean to much to our community. Without you guys we wouldn’t be able to do half of the things that we do. I hope you guys are proud of us.”

The fans’ answer to Johnson: a resounding “yes.”

“We’re just so proud of them,” said Jennifer Farrell, a Carolina grad and coordinator of alumni clubs with the General Alumni Association. “This is special group of guys, and a special group of seniors, so we really just wanted to show our support and let them know that we’re so proud about how they represented the University and we’re thankful for all their efforts.”

More on the national championship game: