The university's 'Mob Father'
Student fan sixth man on basketball court
Robert Preliasco
Issue date: 2/6/08 Section: News
Coppa is arguably the most fanatical fan of all. A lifelong Rams devotee, he was the team's ball boy for the 1997-1998 season, which ended with the team's trip to the NCAA Tournament and its loss to Stanford University in the Elite Eight.
Now a college junior, Coppa still gets excited when talking about the 1998 game and he remembers the intimate details of the last-minute play that sealed Rhody's fate. When he talks about the decade-old, two-point defeat, the disappointment is as clear in his voice as it is on the lips of any shell-shocked Patriots fan today.
"That will still, always, for the rest of my life, suck," he said, spitting out every word.
But Coppa is instantly excited when he talks about this season, and what the team means to him.
"Nothing has made me go as crazy as Rhody basketball. This is just our team ... those guys are playing for this whole school and this whole state," he said.
Coppa said he doesn't mind the increasing difficulty of getting tickets to URI basketball games now that the team is gaining national attention, or the long lines on game days.
"[College basketball] is all about people coming out in freezing temperatures, missing classes and even putting your job on hold if you have to," he said.
Coppa can't quite explain what draws him so strongly to basketball.
"Everyone's got their passions and their hobbies, this just happens to be one of my biggest," he said, adding, "everyone who's seen my jump shot knows there's a reason I'm a fan and not a player."
Coppa said the encouragement he received from fellow fans about his cheerleading, along with a mention in The Providence Journal, could make his performance a regular event at home games.
"If I'm going to be a fan, I'm going to be the best damn fan I can be," he said. "I have way too much energy to keep it to myself. I'm going to bring it to everyone who steps into that building."
The Mob hopes to be recognized by the Student Senate, which will debate the issue tonight. Coppa said that the membership list for game tickets is full, but any student interested in helping out can send an e-mail to mob@etal.uri.edu.
Now a college junior, Coppa still gets excited when talking about the 1998 game and he remembers the intimate details of the last-minute play that sealed Rhody's fate. When he talks about the decade-old, two-point defeat, the disappointment is as clear in his voice as it is on the lips of any shell-shocked Patriots fan today.
"That will still, always, for the rest of my life, suck," he said, spitting out every word.
But Coppa is instantly excited when he talks about this season, and what the team means to him.
"Nothing has made me go as crazy as Rhody basketball. This is just our team ... those guys are playing for this whole school and this whole state," he said.
Coppa said he doesn't mind the increasing difficulty of getting tickets to URI basketball games now that the team is gaining national attention, or the long lines on game days.
"[College basketball] is all about people coming out in freezing temperatures, missing classes and even putting your job on hold if you have to," he said.
Coppa can't quite explain what draws him so strongly to basketball.
"Everyone's got their passions and their hobbies, this just happens to be one of my biggest," he said, adding, "everyone who's seen my jump shot knows there's a reason I'm a fan and not a player."
Coppa said the encouragement he received from fellow fans about his cheerleading, along with a mention in The Providence Journal, could make his performance a regular event at home games.
"If I'm going to be a fan, I'm going to be the best damn fan I can be," he said. "I have way too much energy to keep it to myself. I'm going to bring it to everyone who steps into that building."
The Mob hopes to be recognized by the Student Senate, which will debate the issue tonight. Coppa said that the membership list for game tickets is full, but any student interested in helping out can send an e-mail to mob@etal.uri.edu.
