Dave Ross - A Tribute

You may or may not have known Dave Ross but he is a legend in the annuls of Cal fandom. The "guy in the ref's shirt" at Cal Basketball games in the early and mid-80's. He graduated in 1984 and when I returned to Cal for grad school in the fall of that year, he was still there. It was a time of resurgence of Cal Basketball. Kevin Johnson, Chris Washington, Eddie Javius, Dave Butler and others. There was a new sense of enthusiasm in Harmon Gym and a sense that we could finally beat UCLA after 25+ years.


So, my friends Joe and Chard and I began arriving an hour before each basketball game. We sat in the front row of the student section and dubbed ourselves the "Front Row Fanatics." We got to know the cheerleaders (ah, Claire...) In those days, you were literally inches from the court. That's when I got to know Dave. His passion and his humor were on full display at each game. He know all the refs by name and they knew him! He also knew the players for the opposing team and held a begrudging respect for many of them. More that that, he was simply a great guy. Always ready with a big smile and a Go Bears! We shared many great moments (including that streak breaking win over UCLA in 1986) and persevered through our share of disappointments.


In later years, I would see Dave at football games and in and around Berkeley. While I wouldn't consider myself a close friend of his, when we did meet, it was always as if I was meeting my old best buddy.


I write this tribute over a year since Dave passed away from cancer. A guy almost exactly my age... He chronicled his experiences in a blog entitled "Oh Crap, I Have Cancer" http://ohcrapcancer.wordpress.com/ . The blog has been supplemented by many tributes and interesting links following Dave's life and antics. I strongly encourage you to check it out and see what kind of guy he was. I just saw it for the first time yesterday and it blew me away.


May we all live life with Dave's optimism and humanity. That's what I think is special about him.