The Elephant in the Room

I might have gone to a certain double overtime basketball game this past Wednesday night. And I might have watched my Aggies lose their third conference game by just two points. I might also have enjoyed said game, even despite the loss. And I'm certainly still a fan, and am looking forward to what is yet to come this season.

And then I came across this quote from A&M coach Billy Gillispie:

I cry like a baby and just thinking about [Acie Law] playing his last game at home will make me cry.

Now, Gillispie is a tough guy. He shows very little emotion in any press conference I've ever seen. He talks about everything coming down to the win or the loss and what we need to do better. He doesn't believe in "moral victories" or other such sentimental things. When I saw this, I felt the tears start to well up in my own eyes.

Acie started his freshman season during Melvin Watkins' last year -- a phenomenally bad 0-16 conference season. He stuck around when Gillispie came, and has been a key part of the turnaround that we've seen in the last few years. He's an amazing player, and his improvement with the team has just been wonderful to watch. And that's just from my perspective as a fan. I would imagine that as a coach, that improvement would be even more exciting and humbling to watch.

If, after the last home game tomorrow, Billy starts crying, I think I will too.