Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Tar Heels claim fifth* national title

Congratulations to the University of North Carolina Tar Heels for winning its fifth national title in men's basketball last night, with a complete and utter thumping of Michigan State -- in Detroit, no less -- 89-72.

And special congrats to Tar Heel big man Tyler Hansbrough, who, love him or hate him, made a courageous decision to come back to school for his senior year just to win a title.

"Sounds like I made a pretty good decision," Hansbrough said after the game. "Nothing beats this feeling right here."

As you might imagine, there was a celebration on Franklin Street. The town of Chapel Hill seems to have a good grasp on how to handle these things.

And, as is the nature of sports, the discussion this morning isn't so much "man, that was great!" but "can they do it again?" and: "who will stay in Chapel Hill?"

In somewhat (not really) related news, this is just further proof of N.C.'s dominance over Michigan.

Michigan native Brian Groesser and his wife live 750 miles away in a new North Carolina home that looks straight off the set of "Gone with the Wind." His brother moved south two years ago; a cousin left Michigan to join them last year [according to the Detroit Free Press].

Between them, they have six college degrees, four high-paying white-collar jobs, and fewer and fewer connections to Michigan.

"Right now," said Groesser, whose North Carolina license plate reads WOLVRINE, "there's nothing that would draw me back to Michigan." ...

The state had a net loss of 18,000 college-educated residents in 2007, according to a Detroit News analysis of Census Bureau data. The loss, the equivalent of half the faculty and staff of the University of Michigan leaving for warmer climates in one year, was second-worst in the nation, behind only New York.

The two fastest-growing landing spots for Michigan expats today are both in North Carolina, with the number moving to Raleigh-Durham and Charlotte almost doubling between 2000 and 2007. Those cities, with comparatively booming economies and reasonable housing prices, are illustrative of the cities now claiming some of Michigan's most upwardly mobile residents. ...


*Six if you count the Helms Foundation one in the 1920s. I don't.

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