Let me give a little more background on We Coulda Had Okafor.
Emeka Okafor wanted to come to Stanford, and he had the grades. The problem was that Rob Little had already accepted a scholarship offer, and we would only have another to give if Jason Collins decided to forgo his senior year for the NBA. And Mike Montgomery, bless his heart, gave Jason WAAAAAAY too much time to decide. So Emeka had to commit to UConn, Jason eventually decided to go pro, and we were left with an unused scholarship.
And let's return to the 2004 season. We had a starting lineup of, I believe, Chris Hernandez at Point, Matt Lottich at SG, Josh Childress at SF, Matt Haryasaz at PF, and Rob Little at C. And Rob Little did fine, but he was the only one of the 5 that was not exceptional. We went like 26-1 in the regular season and had a #1 seed in the tournament. And we were handily beating Alabama in the 2nd round and then had a heart-breaking late collapse. Emeka Okafor with UConn (and one of the most obnoxious basketball coaches in the NCAA) went on to win the National Championship, Player Of The Year, and graduated in 3 years including heading up some special student Economics project. He is also apparently a very smart, respectful, and good person, so I can't even hate him.
We coulda had Okafor.
For me, the Brass Ring has always been a National Championship, in football or basketball. And to come that close knowing that the last piece of the puzzle could have been ours is a super bummer. And that is why Chryst and/or Costello needs to lead us to a National Championship this year.
Emeka Okafor wanted to come to Stanford, and he had the grades. The problem was that Rob Little had already accepted a scholarship offer, and we would only have another to give if Jason Collins decided to forgo his senior year for the NBA. And Mike Montgomery, bless his heart, gave Jason WAAAAAAY too much time to decide. So Emeka had to commit to UConn, Jason eventually decided to go pro, and we were left with an unused scholarship.
And let's return to the 2004 season. We had a starting lineup of, I believe, Chris Hernandez at Point, Matt Lottich at SG, Josh Childress at SF, Matt Haryasaz at PF, and Rob Little at C. And Rob Little did fine, but he was the only one of the 5 that was not exceptional. We went like 26-1 in the regular season and had a #1 seed in the tournament. And we were handily beating Alabama in the 2nd round and then had a heart-breaking late collapse. Emeka Okafor with UConn (and one of the most obnoxious basketball coaches in the NCAA) went on to win the National Championship, Player Of The Year, and graduated in 3 years including heading up some special student Economics project. He is also apparently a very smart, respectful, and good person, so I can't even hate him.
We coulda had Okafor.
For me, the Brass Ring has always been a National Championship, in football or basketball. And to come that close knowing that the last piece of the puzzle could have been ours is a super bummer. And that is why Chryst and/or Costello needs to lead us to a National Championship this year.