There is nothing to raise a glass to in a toast tonight in Denver.
Winthrop got pummeled. 71-40.
Nobody in the sporting press is seeking out Gary McCann, the great sports writer I rode to Denver with, to ask him if Winthrop can win the next one, like last year when Winthrop beat Notre Dame. Last year McCann was the pied piper.
McCann will write great stories about this brutal beating that comes after a good season. I do not know a single person who can do it better, does it better, than McCann. He was worth the trip, as always.
Yet nobody in the arena, the fans or media, is asking me to give them funny lines about driving across the country tonight. The Road to Denver ceased to be newsy. I no longer exist in Denver.
The terrific guy I sat next to for two days, Jerry Brewer from the Seattle Times, couldn't even cheer me up. He praised McCann and even me in his blog for his newspaper.
But there is no praise for anybody connected with Winthrop hoops tonight.
Winthrop was a great story last year. Now it is over.
We plan to leave in the morning. Drive more than half way home, get back to York County in South Carolina two time zones away Sunday night. It will seem a lot longer than the 1,635 miles out here.
If the world's largest prairie dog in Oakley, Ks. is out of his burrow, I might just stop and say, "No thanks. I hate dogs."
Fun times in Denver
Well, it was fun until the loss. It was cool meeting you Andrew. You're a riot. I'm glad I got to see Winthrop on the road and in the NCAAs before I move from Denver. This was a blast, despite the outcome. Reading the daily chronicle of your trip was fun last year and fun this year, too. And hey, I even got to be a part of it this year! Too cool.