Why does it feel so natural to root against Duke?

Look, you’ve got me. The 2010 Division I Men’s Basketball Champions are practically pariahs, for chrissakes. All I know is that it’s one of those stereotypical, everybody’s-doing-it kind of activities that still feels right, somehow. Unless you’re a Duke fan or have been since a wee child, there’s not much to hook you in and convince you to get behind the Blue Devils as a team. It’s a little bit like rooting for pizza to beat out all other foods in a popularity contest, or like pulling for the U.S. to be the wealthiest nation. Organically, stuff like this is going to fall into place sooner or later anyway.

Nobody is sitting around crying for Duke with each year that passes without a Blue Devils national men’s hoops championship. Because everyone who knows even a fart’s worth about college basketball is aware that they have the horses to win the title every year anyway.

Oh and I suppose there is also the inherent unlike-ability factor. Both Mike Krzyzewski and his players just always seem to be completely devoid of personality or, you know, pretty much anything that makes them in any way compelling. This doesn’t necessarily tarnish the impressive accomplishments of the organization, I suppose. By the numbers, Duke is still a model of excellence and consistency in the sport, and that’s what matters most. But when it comes to the bipartisan person, you aren’t going to have a whole lot of people getting behind the school that wins all the damn time anyway. Oh yeah, and the school that’s perceived to have one of the largest contingents of elite, rich, upper crust students.

You know what – congrats to them. They played the best. They won the title. But I can’t think of many people I know that were actually hoping Butler didn’t win that championship game. You want to talk about a longshot? A less-than-mid-major-conference school with an enrollment of less than 5,000 total students came within a last-second missed shot of winning the biggest prize in all of college basketball. This, presumably, is what sucks so many of us into March Madness each year – stories like that. Where even the barely casual followers of the sport become riveted at what’s unfolding. But when Duke beats Butler for the whole enchilada, it just seems like one great big tease.

Sure, the whole 2010 tournament was pretty thrilling – one of the best in awhile. But I have no problem admitting that no more than two seconds after the final buzzer sounded, I promptly changed the channel and didn’t turn it back. This is highly uncommon for me, by the way. I relish the moments to see any championship winning team in those first minutes after the final horn has sounded. To witness the sheer euphoria, the uncontrolled, organic human reactions that stem from the actual desired outcome after months, even years, of ass-busting hard work. There’s nothing like it.

But for Duke? Yeah, not so much interested in seeing them rejoice. Did they do anything to me to elicit these feelings about them? No, not really. But more importantly, I suppose it’s that they don’t do anything FOR me either.