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Over the last 48 hours I have been flooding my twitter timeline and facebook newsfeed with Duke basketball. Was I doing the absolute most? Yes. Did I care? No! Twice a year Duke and UNC battle it out on the courts, and for the span of roughly 48 hours anyone who knows me will know all about Duke basketball.

About 24 hours before the game I begin tweeting about how we are going to win. I try to limit my tweets to our prowess in basketball, but occasionally I  must talk about how awesome Duke is in general. I  then move to the game-time tweets. These include play by plays of the game for those foolish enough not be watching. Last, but certainly not least, I end with my post-game comments. These can last for days depending on how epic the game was.

At the bench burnings with Ubong Akpaninyie and Avionna Baldwin after Duke's defeat of UNC last year.

I believe firmly this is the only way for a Cameron Crazy to behave, but my friends at other schools just don’t get it. In fact, someone had the nerve to ask what the big deal was. It’s just a game.

What do you mean? It’s more than just a game! It’s so much more.

The Superbowl is a game. The Olympics is a series of games. The Duke vs UNC game is…is….I don’t know if I even have the words to describe it!

How can you explain to someone what it means to be a part of one of the most legendary rivalries in college sports? How do you convey the bond that exists between Dukies, past and present, as they settle in to watch Duke and UNC players battle it out on the court?

As I watched the game with about twenty other students in the Mary Lou, some that I knew and some that I didn’t know, all I could think about was how great it felt to be back on campus. Abroad was absolutely amazing, but I love being able to take part in events that bring together Dukies from all parts of campus, and that is just what the game does.

I may not know you, but I know exactly what emotions were going through your mind as we watched Duke make a come from behind victory. When we won, against all odds, I screamed incoherently with you before hugging and jumping around with everyone else at the watch party.

That feeling, that shared euphoria that can come from a win, is the reason why last night will be one of my best memories of this year. It wasn’t just a win, and it wasn’t just a game. It was a celebration of Duke pride.

I will never forget rushing out of the Mary Lou and on to the main quad with everyone from my watch party. We were just a fraction of the larger movement. Students ran from their dorms. They sprinted from the library. They took buses from east and central campus. Together we gathered in the middle of the main quad and announced our Duke pride to the world through various chants.

We are Duke.

Such a simple chant, but it’s so true. Everyone at Duke is different, but at the end of the day we are all blue devils. One of the reasons why I love the Duke vs UNC game so much is because this is one of the times when this really shows. So no, it’s not just a game. It will never be just a game, and at least twice a year I will flood my social networks with Duke love. I’m sorry I’m not sorry.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ASF7xLDPIs

It’s super dark, but I had to document the gathering of Duke fans in some way!