Lamentations of a DC Area Sports Fan

It's been a rough week for DC area sports fans.

First, the Caps bowed out of the playoffs way to soon. But really, what's new? I've followed this franchise for 25 years. One thing you can say—they're considerate. They know that when the calendar turns to May it's time to make way for baseball season.  

Speaking of baseball, the Nats took a thumping all week long from the Phillies, a club that seems to have a rotation made up of nothing but pitchers who would be No. 1 or No. 2 guys on any other club.

Sure, the Redskins have new draft picks. (The offseason is about all that the Skins seem to win over the past two decades.) Too bad they're locked out of Redskins Park.

And then there were the twin punches to the gut for Terps fans with the departures of Jordan Williams and then—gasp!—Gary Williams.

As I've said before, . I love ya Lions, but the fans in Happy Valley know basketball about as well as the fans in College Park know football (which is to say, not very). I relished seeing the Lions in the tournament this March, even as the Terps watched from home.

But I grew up with the Terps. My wife and my father went to grad school at College Park. My sister and brother-in-law are both Maryland grads. I came close to heading down Route 1 myself. Though I was just a 9-year-old at the time, one of the worst days of my life was June 19, 1986. The day Len Bias died. The fallout for the university and the basketball program was nowhere near as devastating as the loss of such a promising young, local star. But the fallout—NCAA rules violations under coach Bob Wade, followed by bans from appearing on television or in the conference tournament—was still devastating, and the Terps toiled in the college basketball wilderness for years.

Terps fans no doubt have a lot of good memories from the past 22 years, during which time Williams turned Cole Field House and then Comcast Center into "Gary-land." There were many great plays (Steve Blake stripping Jason Williams of Duke just before the half at Cole in 2002) and games. (I'll always think of Gary looking bewildered when Dean Smith finally called off the press and conceded the game to the Terps in 1995. Williams was sure that Smith was up to something even with Maryland up 10 points with a minute to play. The win signaled that Maryland was back to national prominence.)

But the game that brought things full-circle was, of course, the national championship in 2002. That a kid from Baltimore with the story of Juan Dixon would lead the Terps to the title, completing the resurrection of a program rocked to its core by Bias's death 16 years earlier was better than anything anyone could've scripted.

With Williams's departure from the program's day-to-day, the last link to that circle of life for the Maryland men's basketball program—and in many ways for the university, with its transformation from a campus with a drug rep to a premier public research institution—is now gone. (I know Keith Booth is still there, but will he stay on?) Next month will be the 25th anniversary of Bias's death.

The Terps are the only team that matters that have won anything in this town in quite a while. DC area sports fans have Gary Williams to thank for that. Maryland alums can thank him for a lot more.

Here's the "sweating through your suit coat" edition of "The Rundown":

• Longtime Baltimore journalist Michael Olesker .
• In March, Rockville could only root as . Now, you can actually do something to push a local student over the top. Clarissa Libertelli, 12, an Earle B. Wood Middle School seventh-grader student is one of 40 regional finalists in the national "Doodle 4 Google" contest. Libertelli's entry—which you can view and vote for here—depicts her dream to write a fantasy novel and be an art teacher. It was selected from 107,000 entries nationwide. Wood students and staff celebrated the selection with a visit from Google representatives on Wednesday. Four winners will be announced May 19 and will receive a $15,000 college scholarship. Their school will receive $25,000 for computers and technology. Vote early, vote often before May 14.
• The . The market will be held 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. every Saturday through Nov. 19, at the corner of Monroe Street and Route 28.
• Got problems? Rockville wants to hear about it. (Well, as long as the problems have to do with city services. If they're that clicking sound that your jaw makes or that you don't feel fulfilled, you're probably out of luck.)
•  Go take a walk! Max van Balgooy leads a walk of Rockville's historic downtowns from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday. Reservations are recommended. Contact Peerless Rockville for more information.
• Mother's Day is nearly upon us. Stumped for how to show mom you love her? Check out these . One of our picks, , has added a bonus: While supplies last, moms who visit for Mother's Day breakfast, brunch or lunch will get a free box of Russell Stover chocolates. Across Town Square,  offers up its own Mother's Day special menu and will feature singer-songwriter Meredith Seidel performing during brunch.
• Looking to go a little farther than Town Square for Mother's Day. Why not head north and treat mom to wine and music at Linganore Winecellars?
• Feeling a little punchy on Saturday? Oro Pomodoro and DCnightlife are sponsoring a watch party for the Manny Pacquiao—"Sugar" Shane Mosley fight from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday at . The $20 admission includes one drink. Must be 21 or older and wearing proper attire.
• . You should be too. Follow us @RockvillePatch and maybe we'll follow you. Why? Because we like you. Won't you "like" Rockville Patch on Facebook?