On the evening of April 4, 2022, the University of Kansas won the national championship for men’s basketball. This was the first time KU has been to the Final Four since 2018, and their first national championship since 2008. While I am not able to celebrate in Lawrence, this has been an amazing time to be a Jayhawk.
I received my Bachelor’s degree from the University of Kansas last year. During my time in Lawrence, I developed a love for KU Basketball, and I loved going to basketball games with friends after class or on weekends.
I didn’t go to a lot of games my freshman year, but the watch parties in the dorm lobby with my friends provided the best break from homework that a stressed engineering student could ask for. When KU made it to the Final Four, I felt such a strong sense of school spirit and pride in my university’s basketball team. Gathering in Allen Fieldhouse with my fellow students to watch KU play against Villanova on the jumbotron, and then watching them lose, was a mildly upsetting experience, but getting to watch the game with my closest friends is a memory I will cherish forever.
The last in-person game I went to was the Kansas State game in 2020, when a fight broke out at the end. Honestly, a pretty memorable last in-person basketball game to watch in college. While I can no longer root for the Jayhawks in person now that I’m in grad school in Boulder, I can still root for them nonetheless.
Watching the Jayhawks win this year was super bittersweet. Of all the years for KU to win the championship, it’s my first year out of college. But even after graduation, your school will always be your school. Long after I get my master’s degree, I will still be a Jayhawk and a Buff. Seeing my friends’ Instagram and Snapchat stories of them rushing Mass St. Monday night made me a bit sad that I couldn’t be there in person, but it was still a special experience for me and other alumni that are no longer in Lawrence.
Rock Chalk!