Big 12 Tournament notebook: 'Barnes Stormers' make another Big 12 trip

For 17 years — since the start of the Big 12 — the same 20 or so Texas fans have made the trek from Austin, Texas, to the Big 12 Tournament.

 
By Stephanie Kuzydym | Published: March 15, 2013    Comment on this article Leave a comment

For 17 years — since the start of the Big 12 — the same 20 or so Texas fans have made the trek from Austin, Texas, to the Big 12 Tournament.

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They call themselves the Barnes Stormers, a play on Texas coach Rick Barnes' name.

 This year, there were only 13 of them.

“Seventeen more birthdays makes a difference,” Stormer Terry Bray said.

Each day, they sat in Section 115, wearing their white “Barnes Stormers” hats.

“When we fly home, we can wear anything we want,” Stormer Lee Yeakel said with a laugh.

They do a lot in Kansas City. On Friday, they had breakfast with Barnes. On Saturday, they'll have breakfast with Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds.

“It's just to show they appreciate us being here,” Bray said. “That's why they do that.”

There trip has some Kansas City staples, like a trip to Stroud's for fried chicken.

They go to all the games, not just the Longhorns' matchups.

They even have a statistician in the group that prints out updated stats with important numbers circled.

“Yeah, we have our favorites,” Bray said. “It just depends on who beat Texas.”

Then he paused, “But Oklahoma is always a universal no.”

   

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