Growing up in Kansas City is just about the hardest thing in the world for an avid sports fan. If the Royals finish 3^rd in the AL Central that is considered an astonishing season, and even if the Chiefs somehow squeak by into the playoffs it’s only because everyone else that year choked and they managed to pull out a mediocre 8 wins – just barely easing in, only to lose in the first round.

As dismal as that sounds, remember, that is considered a GOOD year. Typically the other teams trample the poor Chiefs into a pulpy oblivion, and in a 182 game season the Royals have about as many wins as Michael Jordan had homeruns. Fans typically consider it a better investment to just drink in the parking lot and just assume the worst.

After a while Kansas Citians get tired of this relentless bloodbath and start picking other teams to support just to make athletic competition exciting again. The Cardinals, Red Sox, Yankees, Patriots and Packers are all excellent examples of jerseys you will see floating around town. I for one am a Red Sox fan for this very reason. I watch all of their games and my MasterCard proudly features their logo. I got a tattered old bumper sticker and a Pedro Martinez T-shirt. I watch their sometimes horrific display of post-season performances (2003, 2011) as well as their triumphant World Series victories (2004, 2007). I feel passion for them and I love them dearly, but for the most part, I am alone.

During both of their World Series wins you know where I was watching? My bedroom. And as pathetic as that may seem, I know a bar would have been worse. This incredible game would be happening, but all it would be to anyone is background noise – something to watch while the boys shoot the shit and play a round of pool. There wouldn’t be fans jumping up and down screaming. Bottles of champagne wouldn’t pop as the last strike hit Varitek’s glove. There may be a few bandwagon fans hanging around and quietly clapping, but that would be the extent of it.

I always wondered what it would be like to grow up in a city like Boston or New York and just feel the vibrations of April 1^st when the stadiums finally open and your life can begin again. Or a city like Green bay where being a cheese head is the best compliment you can get. Cities where winning isn’t just a hope or a goal, but an expectation and a way of life.

Finally in 2006 I got my chance. I moved to a place where winning wasn’t just expected, it was a complete reality. Losses were almost unheard of and a course called Basketball 101 was actually offered as part of “religious studies”. When someone asked you what you were majoring in, you could respond with “championships” and nobody would ask you otherwise. This was a place where “camping” didn’t mean pitching a tent in the woods, but rather holding your spot in line on an air mattress until the start of the next game. This was the University of Kansas.

Lawrence was once described to me as a drinking town with a basketball problem, and it isn’t difficult to understand why. In just my 4 years alone while attending KU I had the privilege of witnessing a national championship, 4 conference championships, 3 Big 12 Tournament championships, an Elite 8, a Final 4, and a Sweet 16. And what is mind blowing about that – the years where we only made it to the Elite 8 and Sweet 16 were considered epic failures.

Also in my four years we were a NCAA Tournament #1 seed 3 times, and a #3 seed 1 time. We only lost at home three times, but won 82 times. We took titles from Blake Griffin’s Sooners, Kevin Durant’s Longhorns and Michael Beasley’s Wildcats in 3 separate years of play. At KU cutting down the net is more of a tradition than an achievement. We have the most amazing field house in all of college athletics and the most riveting fans. And these aren’t opinions of just Jayhawks, these are also the opinions of Sports Illustrated writers, ESPN announcers and some of the most acclaimed sports analysts.

It doesn’t matter if we lose every player we have from the year before and have to start from scratch. It doesn’t matter if our coach leaves us for one of our biggest rivals. Who cares if you are ranked 3^rd and we are 7^th? You picked the Tigers to take the Big 12 title this year – fat chance. This is the University of Kansas. There is no place on earth quite like it, and no place better to be a sports fan.