Winthrop Eagles

1. Some Winthrop Firsts. 1886: Winthrop first opens its doors. 1972: Winthrop goes co-ed and allows its first males to enroll. August 20, 1977, 10:00 am: Freshman, and future actress Andie MacDowell first steps foot on campus. August 20, 1977, 10:01 am: The few pioneering men who broke the gender barrier see MacDowell and call their friends, telling them that Winthrop is exactly how they pictured going to a former all-girls school would be. August 20, 1977, 10:05 am: The men's dreams are dashed when MacDowell is asked out on and subsequently accepts a dinner date with the school's president. 1999: Basketball team makes first NCAA Tournament. 2003: I hook with a Winthrop girl for the first time. 2007: First Top 25 basketball ranking in school history.

2. Are you feeling lucky? Having once been an all-girls college, Winthrop stills maintains a 3:1 girl-to-guy ratio. For the guys on campus, this creates a law of supply and demand that just can't be topped. And if you get tired of that you can always try and win a car. Every year at a home basketball game, the fans make paper airplanes and throw them toward a car at mid-court with its windows open. First plane in wins the car. The best thing is that people actually win.

3. Nice Pants. When you think about the coaches that you've had in your lifetime, "high fashion" isn't typically the first phrase that pops into your head. Unfortunately a grown man in a t-shirt tucked into some high-riding shorts with socks pulled over his calves might be. Or even a guy in perma-sweats might be a more accurate depiction. Not so for Winthrop. Every year before they play in the tournament, Coach Marshall takes his coaching staff to a tailor in Charleston, S.C., where they are all fitted for custom made suits. With this being the seventh time in nine years that they will be going to The Dance, that makes for a solid wardrobe selection. — John Redcorn