When most people think about college sports, they think of Big 10 football tournaments, or basketball teams like the Fighting Illini, or movies like Hoosiers. But at UCI, where I just recently graduated, our sports department isn’t quite as famous. In fact, we don’t even have a football team. And our mascot is the anteater. Yes, the anteater.
Still, we do have some claims to fame. Our men’s water polo team is nothing to sneeze at, having produced thirteen Olympians, four of whom helped win a silver medal for the USA at the 2008 games in Beijing.
But perhaps even more famous is our men’s volleyball team. In 2007, they won the NCAA championship and were invited to the White House for a visit, where President Bush congratulated them in a speech on the South Lawn.
[flashvideo file=http://vocaro.com/trevor/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/president-bush-congratulates-ncaa-championship-teams.mp4 width=450 height=280 /]
Just to prove it wasn’t a fluke, the team won again last month. I guess now it’s Obama’s turn to invite them to the White House.
So, in honor of this momentous occasion, I hereby proclaim, “Go Anteaters! Fight Anteaters!”
Hey, at least we’re not the Banana Slugs.