Every match is like overtime in the 7th game of an NHL playoff series. I'm a casual fan (not very knowledgeable about the sport, never wrestled myself), and I follow the Hokies as well as a couple of other kids (a friend has a son that wrestles at Cornell). All of these NCAA matches are like watching a 5-year-old kid walk a tightrope across a pit of crocodiles while fighting off birds of prey. My heart's racing, palms are sweating, and I'm just a casual fan. I think the past two days are the only days in the past 35 years that I've ever missed NCAA hoops games to watch something else.

Anyway, I'm an engineering prof at VT, and I had Jared in one of my classes last year. So I started following his progress and watching the matches when possible. He's a great kid, and I will be pulling hard for him tonight.