Friday, March 16, 2007

The Ghost of Ace Custis

And the Hokies hit the court tonight,
At 7 P.M. vs Illinois in Columbus.
I'll be on Google's internet site,
Searchin' for the ghost of Ace Custis.

Source: Rage Against the Machine's song The Ghost of Tom Joad. Yes, I know it's a Springsteen cover, but I never would have known the song lyrics if Rage didn't have a version.

Explanation: Virginia Tech starts their NCAA tournament off in the West bracket as a 5-seed against 12-seed Illinois tonight at 7:00. For those of you keeping track at home, our mascot is the Hokie Bird and their mascot is... oh, that's right - they don't have a mascot anymore.

Ace Custis was the best player on Virginia Tech back when I was in school. We always thought it was a little odd that he just sort of showed up with the nickname "Ace" and a giant ace of spades tattooed on his arm, but then again, he was good, so we cut him some slack. Come to think of it, I have no idea if Ace was actually his real name. I'll have to do some research on that. Virginia Tech retired his jersey in 1997.

6 comments:

Jeremy said...

After day one of the NCAA Tournament, I am 15/16 (freakin' Davidson) and in the top 10 of my office pool. Having rarely been this high up on the leaderboard, I shall use this opportunity to talk some smack. The following people suck:

Everyone but Bill D, Joe B, Clifford O, Dave H, Meghan C, Mike C, Bill Z, and Roman R.

Jeremy said...

Adrian "Ace" Custis. From and article in the Summer 1996 Virginia Tech Magazine:

"The nickname comes from Custis' grandfather, William Custis. Custis spent so much time shadowing his grandfather that 'he always said I was his No. 1 ace,' Custis says."

Jeremy said...

After 19 games, I have 18 right and am in a 4-way tie for first place! I still have 5 more first round upsets picked, so the carnage for me should start right about now...

So, in my last moments of glory, I shall move Bill D, Joe B, Clifford O, Dave H, and Bill Z officially off the "People who don't suck" list. Behold my (albeit brief) prognostication prowess!!!

Jeremy said...

Wow! 22/24 after 24 games and down to a three-way tie at the top. Time for more trash talk!

The following people don't suck. Tom S and Mike C. Thank you. :)

Jeremy said...

HOKIES!!! WOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Jeremy said...

Well, I finished the first round going 1/4 in the last four games (27/32 total) to drop into 10th place. The following people now suck:

Me.