OPINION: The power of sports

It’s amazing what watching sports can do to us.

For as long as I can remember, I have been a fan and very close follower of the Miami Dolphins, New York Yankees and the North Carolina Tar Heels men’s basketball.

Now, most people will know that on Monday, the Tar Heels lost to Villanova in one of the best and most heartbreaking NCAA Championship games ever.

The “No!” that slipped out of my mouth in what sounded like a dying breath when Villanova hit the buzzer-beater was something I did not even mean to say.

But that loss started something in my head. Being the fan of a sports team is one of the most interesting things that someone can take part in.

Sports can can tear us apart.

As a dedicated fan of the teams listed above, I feel as though Tom Brady is my mortal enemy, anyone from Boston cannot be trusted and a darker shade of blue means we will butt heads every single day.

Sports can bring us together.

Every July, my brother and I wake up at the crack of dawn almost every morning in order to watch the Tour de France, texting back and forth about why the big names are not attacking, why the peloton won’t catch up that day or what is going to happen after that massive crash involving 20 people.

On Monday night, I felt an extreme heartbreak. It physically hurt to watch North Carolina lose. This is a team that I was rooting for and was mad when they lost against Belmont when I was a sophomore two years ago.

It may be easy to think that something along those lines doesn’t make sense, it is not like i’m playing the game.

Whether bringing us together or pushing us apart, sports allow many people to take part in caring about something together. We can care about something that allows us to free our minds, even if just for a few hours.

When teams win championships, city streets are blocked off so tens of thousands of fans can line the streets, pop confetti cannons and congratulate their team on the big win.

Riots have started from teams losing championships. It’s unfortunate, but it happens. This shows the passion people have for sports.

North Carolina losing hurt more than it should have for someone with no ties to the school, but it made me think about how much sports mean to us.

Now, time to forget about the loss and dive into the Masters for a few days.