For local basketball fans, FAU Owls have ‘out-Cinderella-ed’ Miami Hurricanes

If this were a less extraordinary Final Four, the table of 20-something sports fans at The Irishmen Pub in Boca Raton would be talking about the local underdogs of college basketball, the University of Miami and its lovable coach Jim Larrañaga.

Instead, a most incredible, confounding, historic thing happened: Over the past two weeks, the Owls of Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton have marched through the NCAA basketball tournament — defying oddsmakers in the last two games by beating SEC power Tennessee and Big 12 force Kansas State — to join the Hurricanes in Saturday’s nationally televised semifinal games.

While it has certainly been a Cinderella season for the Miami Hurricanes, FAU’s storybook journey seems to have captured the hearts of impartial South Florida residents, especially in southern Palm Beach County. Bars are packed for watch parties, coach Dusty May is discussed at Publix, and at least one local priest is seeking divine intervention on behalf of the Owls.

“They got out-Cinderella-ed,” said FAU student Bryant Johnecheck of the Hurricanes. The 22-year-old senior economics major was seated with fellow members of the FAU rugby team on Thursday night at The Irishmen, a few hundred yards from the school’s campus.

“There’s so many fans out right now rooting for FAU basketball, it’s been crazy,” Johnecheck said.

The FAU Owls will face San Diego State at 6:09 p.m. Saturday in a nationally televised game on CBS, while Miami plays in Saturday’s other semifinal game against the University of Connecticut at 8:49 p.m. The winners play on Monday, a game scheduled to be televised at 9:20 p.m. on CBS.

In bars and other venues across South Florida on Saturday night, many standing-room-only watch parties will bring fans of the Owls and Hurricanes together in the same room. No one is expecting much in the way of smack talk.

“I don’t have no problem with those guys. It’s all good. I hope they win and we win, and it’s an all South Florida final,” said Carl Morris, of Plantation, standing outside CanesWear in Davie. “Then on Monday, we’ll see.”

‘Pray for the Owls’

Rev. Dariusz Zarebski, the priest at St. Ambrose Catholic Church in Deerfield Beach, will officiate Mass at 4 p.m. Saturday, two hours before the FAU game, and plans to mention the team in his sermon.

“I will say, ‘It is our team playing tonight, and we pray for the Owls, we pray for them to win,’” Zarebski said. “We hope to see two South Florida teams win.”

Will he ask God to take sides in Sunday’s homily if both teams are in Monday’s final? “We’ll see what the [Saturday] results are. We’re already a winner if both teams are in the final. [Laughs] It’s good to be in the middle.”

Kiss me, I’m Owlish

After moving to the United States from his native Ireland, Rossa Flood spent some years as a bartender in pubs in Midtown Manhattan before he bought The Irishmen Pub near the FAU campus a decade ago. Full-capacity watch parties like the one the bar will host on Saturday feel like a three-hour St. Patrick’s Day celebration, Flood said.

“They’re very similar, to be honest with you. If you were to look at the hourly rings (gross receipts) for the three hours around the game, and you look at a three-hour ring for St Patrick’s Day, they’d be pretty close,” he said. “It’s been what we expected and then some more.”

Fans of both FAU and Miami have gathered to watch games at The Irishmen, and Flood doesn’t expect any rivalry between the groups on Saturday night.

“I’m sure there could be something a little chippy going on, but I think it’s going to all be fairly good-natured,” he said. “I think they’re both rooting for each other. When FAU wins the first game, I don’t think anybody’s going home. I think people are going to stay out and probably cheer for Miami, for a South Florida final, for sure.”

Choose your side

The Palm Beach County ‘Canes alumni club will hold its official watch party at Miller’s Ale House on Yamato Road, about 3 miles north of the FAU campus.

Club secretary David Paolini is a resident of west Boca Raton and has a daughter studying psychology at FAU. He acknowledges that the Owls making the Final Four is “the true Cinderella story.”

“I am on fire. It’s an incredible time to be a basketball fan in South Florida,” Paolini said, citing the successes at Nova Southeastern University and the Miami women’s squad. “And how do you not root for the Cinderella team?”

Because of his affiliation with both schools, Paolini will be at Miller’s Ale House at around 4:30 p.m. Saturday to watch the Owls game. UM fans are asked to arrive at 8:30 p.m., about the time FAU’s game will be ending. They will find a special seating arrangement.

“It’s interesting, they’ll actually draw a line down the middle of the restaurant, left side primarily for the FAU alums and the right side primarily for the UM alums. So it should be pretty lively, to be honest,” he said.

Paolini expects a collegial vibe in the room, with both sides rooting for the other. If FAU wins the game, he hopes Owls fans will stay to root for the Hurricanes.

“And if it all falls in place, Miami wins and FAU wins, I think you’re going to hear the loudest scream in Boca Raton that you’ve heard in years. It’s going to be absolutely crazy. Then, on Monday, there might actually be a little smack talk,” he said, laughing.

Who is Dusty May?

In an informal poll in the parking lot at Publix Super Market at Palmetto Park Square this week, five of 10 shoppers could identify a picture of FAU’s coach, Dusty May. Not bad. One got credit, even though she could not name him, instead offering her “best guess” as “that good-looking basketball coach.”

Shopper Mary Cardwell, of Pompano Beach, was frustrated that more people aren’t on the bandwagon: “It’s amazing what [May] has built here. ... This is history, people.”

‘Can’t walk through it’

If you’re headed to a Boca Raton bar for a watch party on Saturday night, be prepared.

“FAU’s never been this crazy, with this many fans out to watch a sporting event, and not even a football game,” said rugby player Johnecheck at The Irishmen.

“Fat Cats has a really big screen up. Lotta guys go there. It’s really packed, and you can’t walk through it. The Standard, it’s packed, can’t walk through it. OB’s (O’Brian’s Irish Pub) packed, can’t walk through it. Tin Roof had a viewing party up in Delray last week. Can’t walk through it. All for FAU basketball, [which plays in a] stadium of 2,700.”

Sound off, sound on

Packy’s Sports Pub in Boca Raton is best known as a home for Buffalo Bills football fans, but they have been showing FAU games. Packy’s bartender and manager Joey Silvani played football at FAU in 2012-2013.

“When I was there, basketball wasn’t anything. To see what they’re doing is crazy, not something you would have ever expected. It’s very exciting,” said Silvani, acknowledging that he’s heard “a little bit” of smack talk between Owls and Canes fans. “I feel that most people are hoping it comes out a Miami-FAU national championship, and then, you know, FAU comes out and kicks their teeth in [laughs].”

During one recent FAU tournament game, a band came on for its regularly scheduled performance at Packy’s. When the bar turned off the sound on the TVs, frustrated FAU fans sounded off. Eventually, the band took a break and the game sound was put back on.

Silvani said there shouldn’t be a conflict for the next game: “We’ll have a band here on Saturday, but FAU plays at 6? So, we’ll have the sound on. The band doesn’t start until 8, 8:30.”

Boca pride

Colton Ralston is a longtime Boca Raton resident who wears “Boca pride” on his business cards, as owner of Boca Scooters and Boca Auto. His wife owns a salon called Boca Dream Hair, and his sister owns the Boca Strawberry Festival.

On Friday, Ralston threw down a couple hundred dollars to put up a banner saluting the FAU Owls near his Glades Road scooter shop. A few years ago, he created a scooter with the FAU logo and colors and donated it as a prize for a shooting competition the basketball team hosted.

Ralston believes the national TV attention of the Final Four will have long-term benefits for the city and the school.

“I’m thrilled. I can feel the energy around town. People are really excited. They’ve been waiting for something like this,” he said. “It brings a lot of recognition to a school that has been overlooked throughout the years.”

The basketball program is poised for bigger things, he said, especially after TV coverage shows the “allure of the area.”

“I truly think FAU is a sleeping giant. If kids are willing to go to Kansas, wouldn’t they rather go play on a campus near the beach?” Ralston said.

‘Dance the night away’

One of the biggest and loudest FAU watch parties last Saturday was at Biergarten Boca Raton, which posted the scene of fans reacting to the Owls making the Final Four on Facebook.

General manager Erik Brinkmann expects a repeat this Saturday at the Mizner Park bar, longtime home to radio shows for FAU football and basketball coaches, including Dusty May’s program.

“I’m here at the bar right now and there’s three people with FAU hats on, which very rarely used to happen, especially for basketball,” Brinkmann said by phone this week. “When [former FAU football coach] Lane Kiffin was here, there was a lot of buzz around town about the football team. But with basketball, it’s always been a little bit slow, until this year. With Dusty May coming in, you just see the fight that the kids have. You see a real team, a group of guys that want to do well for a small, little school.”

Brinkmann said Biergarten, which has hosted parties for both the FAU Alumni Association and Palm Beach County ‘Canes alumni group, will be decorated in red, white and blue lighting and balloons. Miami fans can expect the Owls color scheme to remain up during the Hurricanes game. The bar also employs many FAU students, who will wear their school swag.

Adding to the indignity for Canes fans: A band is scheduled to perform at 9 p.m., just as the Canes-UConn game is beginning. Brinkmann said the game will be on, but without sound.

“Hopefully it will be a celebration,” he said. “FAU, we think, will win, and we’ll be able to dance the night away.”

Staff writer Ben Crandell can be reached at bcrandell@sunsentinel.com. Follow on Instagram @BenCrandell and Twitter @BenCrandell.