LeBron James and the Cavaliers ended Cleveland’s 52-year-long championship drought on June 19, after decades-long struggle similar to the one NC State fans are currently experiencing. If Ohio natives were able to keep hope alive for that long, there’s nothing stopping NC State fans.
Cleveland sports teams have essentially been the butt of everyone’s jokes for more than half a century. In 2007, the Cavaliers were swept in the NBA Finals by the San Antonio Spurs. In 2010, James announced that he would be leaving the Cavaliers to join forces with Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade in Miami.
The drought contains more letdowns and sadness, as it stretches from the NBA to the NFL and MLB. One of Cleveland’s biggest heartbreaks dates back to the 1997 World Series in which the Cleveland Indians lost to the Florida Marlins in Game 7. Another devastating Cleveland loss can be found by traveling even further back to Jan. 17, 1988 for the AFC Championship game. The Browns lost to the Denver Broncos because their running back, Earnest Byner, fumbled the ball on the Broncos’ 1-yard line with one minute remaining in the game.
The 2015-16 NBA season finally ended this “curse,” as the Cavaliers made history by coming back from down three games to one against the Golden State Warriors to win Game 7 in Oracle Arena and secure the title. The city of Cleveland and the entire state of Ohio celebrated, as 52 years of cheering — and heartbreak — through thick and thin finally paid off.
While collegiate and professional athletics are obviously different, NC State fans certainly feel a pain similar to that felt by Cleveland natives.
NC State has played in two College World Series. The first one in 1968 and the most recent in 2013 in which the Pack was eliminated by rival UNC-Chapel Hill, in a 7-0 drubbing, following its first 50-win season in program history and arguably its best ever. This past season, the team was eliminated by Coastal Carolina in regionals during a game in which State was just one thrown strike away from a victory and advancing to the super regionals. Coastal Carolina made it to the championship series of the College World Series, fighting Arizona for a NCAA National Championship June 29. The game had not concluded as of press time.
NC State football hasn’t won an ACC title since 1979 and hasn’t been able to compete with the upper echelon of the ACC for a while. Each year, the team starts off strong, creating hope for fans as it tends to defeat multiple sub-par opponents, then struggles against average-to-great ACC teams. Last season, the team appeared to have taken a step in the right direction under head coach Dave Doeren when it was invited to play in the Belk Bowl against Mississippi State. The Pack lost 51-28, in a game that wasn’t even as close as the final score.
The NC State men’s basketball program hasn’t won a NCAA National Championship since 1983 and its most recent championship of any kind was the 1989 ACC Championship. While the team has gotten close in recent years, the seasons continue to end in bitter disappointment. The team has suffered two losses in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in the past five seasons, plus an elimination in the Round of 64 in 2014.
The most heartbreaking of those came against St. Louis in 2014, when the Wolfpack had a 14-point lead with five minutes left in regulation. The Billikens countered, erasing the substantial deficit in the final 4:45, thanks in large part to poor NC State free-throw shooting, to send the game to overtime, where the Wolfpack eventually fell 83-80, ending its season for good. But perhaps even worse than blown games was the team’s failure last season to make it into the tournament at all.
Though times are tough, State fans should look to the city of “Believeland” for comfort. The fans persevered until the Cavs’ season ended with cheerful tears. The next time an NC State team wins a championship, State fans will be able to say that they hung on and continued to support the Pack during the worst of times. While State hasn’t had major athletic success for a long time, it hasn’t quite been 52 years. There is no reason to quit yet. As Jimmy V once said, “Don’t give up. Don’t ever give up.”
