Patti Peabody’s blood might run Jaguar blue instead of red.
“My grandfather brought me to my first game when I was 5,” said Peabody, a 1987 graduate of Augusta University who has worked at the college for 34 years. She was among the Jaguar faithful Sunday morning at the Christenberry Fieldhouse to send off the men’s basketball team ahead of its NCAA Division II Elite Eight game against Chico State Tuesday.
Fans brought homemade signs or used placards featuring the faces of team members and coaches to cheer the team as members walked from the fieldhouse to the bus.
Dip Metress had one message for fans as he stepped aboard.
“Hopefully, I’ll see you Sunday,” he said.
Peabody came out March 20 because she said she feels a connection to the players. Working in the admissions’ office, she meets them and their families early in their university experience.
Another person who has been with the team all season is Jason Scherer, the voice of the Jags, who remarked on the team’s performance this season.
“It’s unbelievable to go undefeated at home,” he said.
The fan support during the Peach Belt Conference tournament and the Southern Regional Division II playoffs was phenomenal, he said, and it helped having that home court advantage. The excitement the fans generated during those last games was more than he’d seen in 15 years.
Henry and Anita Wylds have been Jaguar fans for decades. Henry Wylds started attending Jags basketball games in 1965. While they love the team and the sport, they also love the camaraderie among the other fans.
“We sit with all the same people. It’s good company,” she said.
Scherer has been the public address announcer for 15 years and remembers the last time the Jaguars made it to the Elite Eight and on.
While he doesn’t plan to go to Evansville for Tuesday’s game, he said he will go if they advance past that game. He said he didn’t go the last time they made it to the Final Four and he regrets that.
Peabody, on the other hand, will be on a bus heading to Evansville Tuesday.
The Final Four games are scheduled for March 24 with the championship game scheduled for March 26.
Tuesday’s game will be livestreamed at ncaa.com
Charmain Z. Brackett is the managing editor of The Augusta Press. Reach her at charmain@theaugustapress.com
