Why We Love to Hate Duke

It's Selection Sunday, the start of the best time of the year for college sports fanatics. For these fanatics (me included) the month of March is filled with excitement, anxiety, anger, happiness, and many near misses in class when the teacher almost catches you streaming live game footage to you iPhone. But most of all, it's a time for people to root against Duke, unless of course, you are a Duke fan.

Let me give you some personal history regarding my relationship with Duke.

Via thevictoryformation.com

• No one in my family has gone there
• Until I was about 13, I picked Duke to win every year. Once I got my bracket, I immediately penciled (this is before the online bracket) in "DUKE" throughout the bracket.
• When I reached the above age, I realized that my brothers and my dad hated Duke, so I began to hate Duke. 
• Now, I don't know whether I love 'em or hate 'em, I just know a lot of people hate Duke (*cough *cough, Doc O'C), and I want to figure out why.

So why does anybody that doesn't go to Duke, doesn't have a family connection to Duke, doesn't live in Durham, absolutely distain Duke and Duke Basketball? 

Well, it's definitely a combination of things, but I'll delve into the fact that unless you are a fan of the team, when a team has great success in a certain era, you are likely to despise that team. Whether they keep beating your team, whether they keep appearing on your tv, or whether you are just plain jealous, you will start to feel negatively about this team. 

In an article from last March, right before the tournament started, CNN contributor Terrance Moore, covered this same topic. In his article, he quoted Jay Bilas, a sports analyst and Duke grad, saying, "For years, people hated Notre Dame football. For years, so this hatred is not unique to Duke. People don't hate (mediocre) teams."

Via bracketmadness.wordpress.com

When a team keeps winning, it gets annoying unless you are a fan of that team. The thing is, Duke has only won the Tournament four times ('91, '92, '01, '10). Granted, in the Coach K era, they have won a NCAA best 79 tournament games and had 11 Final Four appearances. 

So while I agree with Bilas, that this hatred may not be solely something Duke and Duke fans have to deal with (Yankees, Lakers, Cowboys maybe), there is another reason we love to hate Duke. 

It has to do with how elite Duke is not only athletically, but also academically. How often can a school maintain athletic excellence while still being one of the most selective schools in the country? Duke is better than you, and Duke wants you to know that. I know it isn't as simple as that. Jalen Rose and the Fab Five can tell you some other reasons for hating Duke. As a matter of fact, I bet everyone could give you a reason for why Duke is the enemy. 

Now let me ask, why do YOU hate Duke?