Confessions from a Stir-Crazy Manager and Team

by Joseph Kuykendall

            I’m writing this as I sit on the bus ride back to Harrisonburg. Because of our road-heavy schedule this year it takes a lot for me to say this but I couldn’t be more happy to be on this bus right now. A place with usual feelings of being entrapped now has an obscure feeling of freedom—a feeling I (we) haven’t felt since Tuesday.

            We got to Delaware Tuesday night, per usual, and things got off to a great start with our dinner that night—I had some delectable shrimp tacos. A great workout (except for the random smelly dude in the workout room who I hope got deodorant for Valentine’s day) with Director of Ops. Rob Summers, grad assistant Kevin Albright and fellow manager Michael Qura prepared me for a great night of sleep. A last minute quality conversation with roommate Andrey Semenov and I knocked out dreaming of spoiling Delaware’s unblemished conference record.

            Wednesday was like any other game day and a few minutes before we left the hotel for the game we got word to bring all of our belongings because we were going to depart towards home following the game no matter how long it took us to get home.

            You know how the game went, no need to rub salt (especially ice salt because it didn’t work well enough to get us home on time, apparently) in that wound. Following the game I was scrambling around trying to get game film and a basketball from Delaware (when Delaware won at Convo it was Monte Ross’ 100^th win so they took the game ball agreeing to give us one when we played at their place, therefore I was the one tasked with making sure we got it back). It took longer than usual for me to do that but luckily Qura (known as “Q”), and other manager Josh Warren (known as “Sitch”) took care of the locker room cleanup. 

           I finally had everything I needed and made it back to the locker room. I saw it was snowing outside which, although I love snow, wasn’t the greatest thing to see considering it wasn’t supposed to start in Newark until midnight. That’s also about the time that Q and Sitch relayed the message of no school (yes!) but that we have to stay another night (no!). What college student wants to spend a snow day away from school let alone cornered in a hotel in a place you know nobody? I was emotionless because of the mixture of happy and sad emotions.

            Administration had called and requested we stay the night for the safety of the team. As much as that is not what I wanted to do, it made complete sense. Rash decisions around safety aren’t always our best ones and our safety is more important than making it back in time to have a day off in the ‘burg.

            So Wednesday night was spent contemplating what we could be doing if we were all back in Harrisonburg with the rest of the college crew. It ended up being a low key night with a bunch of “chilling” until midnight when I affectionately jumped on Dimitrije Cabarkapa to wish him a happy 21^st birthday. What a birthday for the guy who had the game of his short career the evening before! Hopefully it’s the start of something great.

            It ended up being another late night for no reason and I went to bed with the intentions of the team leaving at 11 in the morning (on Thursday) to make it back to the Valley. We woke up had a great breakfast and packed everything up. I was having a few laughs in Dimitrije and Kevin’s room when I went to go walk to my room to get my bags and head for the bus. As I was in the hotel hallway walking to my room, I heard the words of doom, “We’re staying another night.” Again, at the moment not what I wanted to hear but when safety is in the best interest for the decision, not much to complain about.

The view out my hotel window Thursday morning.

            All it meant was another day of just sitting around and staring at each other (not actually) because there was nothing better to do. We utilized the day off to watch film as a team and begin preparing for the next game. I can’t remember who exactly, it was either Q or Christian Pierce, had the quote of the trip when they walked into film saying, “This is worse than jail. In jail they at least have arts and crafts.”

            Some of our free time was spent pulling minor pranks on people. In charge of the movement was resident jokester Dimitrije. You can see what level of boredom we were brought to and how even the littlest things made us crack up. Can you say cabin fever?!

            Now, as we’re almost back to Harrisonburg it’s time to work hard and start a new winning streak—it all begins tomorrow. #CramTheConvo  

The awkwardly disproportionate amount of snow
 that was on my car hood and no where
else when I got to my car Friday morning.

The Best Road Trip

by Joseph Kuykendall

I do enjoy exploring new college towns and arenas, there is one town and arena in particular that I look forward to playing in every year. Simply put, Boston.

Although I moved around a bunch as a kid, (5 houses, 4 states, 3 years—and no, I’m not in a military family) I spent the most recent eleven years of my life just North of Boston. Boston and Massachusetts are my home and luckily Northeastern is in our conference. Every year I have the joy of traveling back to the best city in the US for a few days.

I don't even like coffee but I was back in New
England so I had to, right?

            There is more to the trip than just going back home to Boston. My senior year in high school I was the beat writer for the Northeastern basketball team for a local sports blog. That meant many nights at Matthews Arena interviewing the likes of Bill Coen, Jonathan Lee and Joel Smith. I even went to Richmond to cover them in the CAA Tournament before they eventually bowed out to eventual champion VCU. It was a great experience covering the team and going to Richmond. I will never forget how welcoming Northeastern was of me despite being a high school student.

            Therefore in addition to making a trip to my home city every season I get to go back to Matthews and see a few familiar faces including their SID, Matt McDonald, and co-writer, Joshua Kummins.

            I am blessed to have many supporters so it's been great to have different family and friends attend the games in Boston the past two years. I sure help fill the place with purple! At least My family isn’t in the Philadelphia area because of all the players and coaches that call the Philly area home and use up all the tickets!

Seeing friends and family at the
game is a huge plus!

            Last year we had a lot of free time in Boston so I was able to play the role of tour guide. A few of us ate at Legal Sea Foods the night that we arrived in town and on game day myself and Graduate Assistant, Kevin Albright, did some exploring. We took the subway to Fenway Park, got ourselves a tour (of the eventual World Series champion’s park!—had to throw that in) and then ate burritos at a local Mexican joint that is one of my all-time favorite restaurants in Boston. It’s called El Pelon, if you’re ever in the city give it a try, you won’t regret it.

            Traveling to Boston this year was extra special. My family moved to Colorado this summer when I left to head back to JMU in August. When we flew into Boston last week, it was my first time back in the Bay State since moving. It was a little weird being there without it being “home” but nonetheless it was great to be back. The only thing that was missing was seeing my parents at the game but they’ve been great supporters of the team having been to the Winthrop, Richmond, Sam Houston State, Stephen F. Austin and William & Mary (home) games.

            Kevin and I didn’t have much time to do touristy things in the city this year but we did walk around the city to a few shops and saw the site of the marathon bombings which was 

a very eerie feeling.

            Although I am a big fan of any kind of change in life, switching conferences would mean no more trips to Boston or Northeastern, something I’m not sure I want to lose.