Hold That Tiger!

Ever since the Terps announced their 2007-08 schedule, the BasketCases have been eagerly awaiting this Friday night. Not only because it marks the official start of the college season for Maryland (not to mention the first round of the preseason WNIT!), but also because, for the first time EVER, the Terps will be playing Princeton, which just happens to be BasketCase Judith's alma mater.

Now, if you're a women's basketball fan living in our national capital area, and you graduated from an Ivy League school, let's face it, you need to adopt another team. And so BC Judith did. But that doesn't mean she doesn't have a keen interest in seeing how her Tigers do on Friday night, or that she isn't feeling just a wee bit nostalgic about Old Nassau. Indeed, expect to see her at Comcast on Friday in a bright orange Princeton Tee amidst the sea of red (but still cheering for the Terps, of course).

One Tiger we're excited to see play is senior forward Meagan Cowher, who inherited some pretty good DNA as far as athletics are concerned. Maybe you've heard of Meagan's Dad, Bill Cowher. He's had a little bit of success in the NFL over the years. But when it comes to basketball skills, it's pretty clear Meagan gets those from her Mom's branch of the family tree. Meagan's Mom Kaye (nee Young), along with Kaye's rhyming twin sister Faye, played basketball at NC State for the legendary Kay Yow (non-rhyming sister of Maryland AD Debbie Yow). (Hey, what's up with all these ACC twins, anyway?) After college, Kaye and Faye went on to play in the now-defunct predecessor of the WNBA, the Women's Professional Basketball League. They also got a gig pitching "full pints" of Dannon Yogurt (which, for twins, is kind of like being first runner-up to "Double the Pleasure, Double the Fun, Doublemint, Doublemint, Doublemint Gum"):

Thanks to Title IX, though, Kaye's daughter Meagan has had and will have more opportunities to pursue. She had more college scholarship offers than Mom did, and will graduate into a world that now offers sufficiently talented women the chance to make a living playing professional basketball without also having to be a pitchwoman for dairy products. And, in case she ever wants it, Meagan has a pretty good entree into the WNBA front office . . . Mom Kaye and Aunt Faye played with WNBA Commissioner Donna Orender (then Donna Geils) on the New York Stars. That's Donna O, No. 14 below; Kaye is third from the right, back row, and Faye is the one who looks just like Kaye in the back row on the far right.


Of course, with her Princeton degree, Meagan just might decide to pursue other interests. We kind of like the sound of future WNBA Commissioner Meagan Cowher. Or how about NFL Commissioner? Or maybe she'd just like to "settle" for being CEO of Dannon Yogurt.

Good Luck to Meagan and her Tiger teammates Friday . . . against our Terps, they're gonna need all the help they can get!

Photo Credits: (top) Martha Rial, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Meagan Cowher and mom Kaye); center and bottom: wblmemories.com