Southern Sightings and the Long Reach of the WCHA

I live in Memphis. No, I do not consider myself a Southerner. I spent the majority of my life in SD and MN and plan to return to that area after my temporary stay in the South. With that being said, and with most collegiate hockey fans living in the North, I though it might be interesting for you to know about the long reach and influence of the WCHA. Without a doubt, the biggest sport in the Southeast is college football. The next most common is college basketball. College hockey is literally almost unheard of (even with Alabama Huntsville only about 4 hours from Memphis.) However, I have seen several WCHA sightings and experiences here in Memphis. I have, on two occasions, been complimented on my St. Cloud State Husky Hockey apparel. It was also one of my Memphian students that first recognized the National Hockey Center on TV and told me about it (See the commercial below...I have seen it many times here in Memphis). I have seen a University of Minnesota hockey jersey at the local hockey team games (the Mississippi River Kings). While driving I have seen a UND Fighting Sioux license plate frame. And most recently, I saw a man crossing the street with a Mankato State Mavericks Hockey sweatshirt on. The only other college hockey experiecne I have had in the South was once talking about Boston University hockey to one of my students parents (they had a kid that went there). So from my experiences in the South, I think it would be safe to say that the WCHA has probably the largest spanning fan base in college hockey. What do you think?

Go WCHA!