A Call to Arms: Preparing to Celebrate Hoya Salvation Day

Dear Georgetown People:

Good morning.  In less than 24 hours, Hoyas from here will join others from around the world.  And you will be launching the largest aerial battle in the history of mankind.  Mankind -- that word should have new meaning for all of us today.  We can't be consumed by our petty differences anymore.  We will be united in our common interests.

Perhaps it's fate that yesterday was the 18^th of March, a date that represents past embarrassments (think Ohio, VCU, NC State).

That's the past.

Today is a new day.  With a new foe: Eastern Washington.  We're fighting for our right to live free from embarrassment, to rid ourselves of shame.  We’re fighting for our dignity.

And should we win the day, the 19^th of March will be known as the day when the Hoya faithful declared in one voice:

"We will not go quietly into the night!

We will not vanish without a fight!

We're going to live on!

We're going to survive and advance!"

Today, we celebrate our Hoya Salvation Day!

Listen, there’s been a lot of talking these last few days; hell, there’s been a lot of talking these last few years.  Like it or not, for the last seven years, we’ve been the team that flames out early, the team that plays a "boring" offense, the team that isn’t tough enough in the postseason, the team that hasn’t advanced to the second weekend of the Tourney since 2007.  Starting this weekend, all of that chatter comes to an end.

On March 18, 2010, we lost to Ohio.  On March 18, 2011, we lost to VCU.  On March 18, 2012, we lost to NC State.  On March 19, 2015, the narrative changes.  After that devastating loss to Ohio in 2010, JTIII made a conscious decision to focus on LENGTH – he wanted long, athletic, tough guys who played defense and could rebound the basketball.  "Our team is going to have a new core," JTIII said.  The result was a class that included Otto, Whitt, Jabril, Hop and Tyler.  

Four years later – subtract two of those guys, throw in a monument and a pterodactyl and the result is a roster full of nasty.  This team isn’t the most consistent group of basketball players, or the prettiest, and we don’t shoot the ball particularly well; but what this team undeniably has is a whole lot of attitude.  We’re long, deep and aggressive.  And if we punch you in the mouth, too freaking bad.  This roster actually reminds me of that deep team from 2001 that advanced to the Sweet 16 (ALL HAIL NAT BURTON).

Some of these guys started their careers in Beijing.  Since that summer, they have played all over the world -- in New York, Korea, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, Southern Ontario, everywhere.  They’ve experienced the high of winning the Big East and pummeling Syracuse, and the low of losing to a 15 seed (in the same week!).  Jabril even learned how to use chopsticks:

I’m not ready to see these guys go, and neither are you.

For now, you can take all of the analysts, the Big East haters, the ESPN talking heads, the Doug Gottliebs and Tony Kornheisers of the world, and the traitors who left the Big East, pour them into a blender, mash them up into a delightful little low carb cup of haterade and call it a day.  No matter what bold prediction Jim Hayford may make, THIS TEAM WILL NOT LOSE TO EASTERN F*CKING WASHINGTON.

It doesn’t matter whether we’re overseeded or they’re underseeded.  I don’t care if they have the nation’s leading scorer, or if they shoot really well from beyond the arc, or if they’re the worst defensive team we’ll face all season, or if we’re playing them in their backyard.  Numbers and stats have their time and place.  On Thursday night, the numbers and stats are meaningless.  It’s time for this group of long, tough, seasoned Hoyas to put on their big boy pants and go to work.  They were brought here because we didn’t want a repeat of the 2010 loss to Ohio.  They were brought here because of their toughness.  On Thursday night, we will have the better players and the better team.  The only thing left for us to do is go out there and step on their throats.  We should beat this team by 30.  We will beat this team by 30.

What started in Beijing will end in Indianapolis.  This is our time.  #istillbelieve

Hoya.  Motherfletching.  Saxa.      

Let’s go Hoyas.  Beat the sh*t out of Eastern Washington.

PS - dear Tyler Harvey...