I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think I’m going to miss Coach K.
Legendary Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski is retiring after this upcoming college basketball season.
He’s the winningest coach in Division 1 history, leading his Blue Devils to five national championships in his 41 seasons at the helm of, arguably, the most-hated program in all of college sports.
College basketball fans hate Duke because they win, they win often, and they win arrogantly.
People in our state certainly are not fond of Coach K considering the way that the 2015 National Championship turned out.
So, isn’t his retirement a win?
Why could I possibly find myself feeling, dare I say, sad when the news broke on Wednesday?
The reason is this: sports are better when we have someone to root against.
For nearly half a century, Duke and Coach K have represented just that.
It’s not his fault either.
By and large, he’s done things the right way.
He’s just won more than anybody else and that yields the hatred.
You might be happy to see him go, but college basketball will be worse off without Coach K.
Whether we like them or not, we need our villains as much as we need our heroes.
