Kentucky fell short in Monday’s NCAA men’s basketball championship game against UConn, but there is one place where the Wildcats always will be 2014 champs: Tyler Austin Black’s right calf.
The dedicated UK fan showed the ultimate faith in his team when he spent $80 on a tattoo that predicted the Wildcats would win this year’s NCAA title before March Madness even got underway. Although eighth-seeded Kentucky went further than anyone expected in the tournament, they couldn’t make Black’s “2014 Nati9nal Champions” tattoo a true statement, but the 22-year-old fan is keeping the ink anyway as a reminder of the team’s historic run.
“I’m keeping it,” Black told ESPN.com after the game. “It’s a way to remember this team and it’s part of my life story.”
Black’s ink catapulted him into something of an Internet celebrity as the Wildcats started busting brackets everywhere, defeating Wichita State, Louisville and Michigan before losing 60-54 to the Huskies. He and his friend were even given free tickets to the national championship game by CBS after news of his tattoo went viral.
Although seeing his Wildcats lose firsthand might not have been the most enjoyable experience of Black’s life, looking down and seeing a daily reminder of that loss might be even tougher.
Photo via Twitter/@Tizzblack
