The signature symbol of Old Dominion basketball is coach Blaine Taylor's mustache, but the signature of this year's team specifically may have shifted to something very different. Thanks to some detective work by Dan Steinberg of the D.C. Sports Bog (this is Hall of Fame Bog stuff, right here), we learn that players on the team are enamored with star Frank Hassell's back.
↵Hassell, who leads the team in scoring and rebounding, has Scoliosis, which causes his spine to be curved. He still performs well, and he sees a chiropractor every so often, so it's no big deal. But it does lead to a lot of jokes, like these ones from his teammates:
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↵↵↵"You ever seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa?" Richard Ross asked me. "There you go. There you go. Just like a bent staple. You ever seen a staple come out crooked and it's bent?"
↵"He runs like a little pregnant woman," Dimitri Batten said.
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Clearly, Butler is psyched out by this whole thing. Imagine losing to a team with a star who runs like a pregnant woman.
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