On Sidney Lowe

"This is my school. I love this school. It was my hope and dream to come back here and do something special... it hurts me because I know what it's about down here and I know what it's like to win here."

-Sidney Lowe

It started with so much promise.

Lowe stepped into a terrible situation when no one else would. Herb Sendek left and headed to Arizona State, and in turn, we lost almost all our recruits and any continuity the program had accrued over the previous 10 years.

Lowe's first team was basically seven guys deep. They fought and clawed all throughout the season -- a season in which we didn't expect much because of how much we lost from the year before. But we beat UNC. We stormed into the ACC tournament finals and nearly won.

We made the NIT as a No. 6 seed, and through a freak sequence of events -- like the No. 7 seed Marist winning its first-round game and a previously scheduled event at the RBC Center -- Reynolds Coliseum hosted its first truly meaningful game in YEARS.

For those of you unfamiliar with Reynolds Coliseum, I'll say this. Cameron Indoor Stadium and the Cameron Crazies are WEAKSAUCE compared to Reynolds and the Reynolds Rowdies in their heyday. The Crazies wouldn't even exist if not for the Rowdies.

But I digress.

The NIT game at Reynolds -- both the game itself and the week-long lead-up to it -- was incredibly memorable. Demand for tickets was through the roof because the game was going to be at Reynolds. It wasn't exactly a "campout," but I got in line at 6 a.m. to make sure I got tickets and waited until the early afternoon. It was so much fun, the whole atmosphere of the mini-campout, walking up to Reynolds, the game itself.

It was truly special, not because of the game itself (let's face it: it was only an NIT game against Marist), but because it showed how unbelievable our games could be when the fan base is dialed in, involved and, most of all, hopeful that things could be heading in a positive direction.

I remember seeing a hand-made sign while I was in line for tickets to the game. Someone set up a sign that said "Loweville" outside the Reyonds ticket office. And I remember Tanner saying the picture would be a classic one day when the area was actually called Loweville.

It was an honest assessment of how hopeful we all were. We had one of us coaching the team. Lowe is Red and White to the core. He led the 1983 Cardiac Pack national champions. Surely if anyone could lead the program back to where we all wanted it to go, it would be Lowe.

Sadly, it did not turn out that way. This season, we easily had the most talented team we've had in years.

For many reasons -- some coaching miscues, some inexperience and immaturity, some injuries and illness -- we lost time and again to less talented teams. Don't get me wrong, there were plenty of games where we were just outplayed and lost to better teams. It happens.

But too often, we clearly were the more talented team, and we took ourselves out of the game with poor defense, poor shot selection and sloppy play. It plagued us early in the season, and it was there in what will likely be Lowe's last game at State.

So, what's the point of this? Mostly to express my sincere sadness that it's come to this. Sid is one of us. He is family. We all wanted it to work so, so badly. Nothing would have been sweeter than having Sid coach us to the same promised land he led us to as a player. His quote above shows everything you need to know about why we loved him. He's one of us.

For that reason, I am relieved and happy to hear of reports that Debbie Yow won't fire him, but that he'll resign instead. Lowe deserves a dignified, respectful exit, and he will surely have the well-wishes of every State fan.

Thanks for the great memories, Sid. Thanks for your hard work. Sorry it didn't work out. You'll always be Pack family. Best of luck to you.