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In many ways, I can't believe I am writing this, but at the same time, how could I not? It still doesn't seem real to me, but sadly it is.
For those who haven't heard, last month certain members of the leadership group at Saint Francis University, in tiny Loretto, Pennsylvania, essentially pulled the beating hearts out of all the coaches, student-athletes, student body, fans and alumni by demoting our proud athletics program to Division III status.
They gave us no warning or even the chance to prevent it, and I fear it will lead to the death of the wonderful place known as "The College Among the Pines."
Of course, this is nothing compared to someone who has lost a loved one, or a person who lost everything to a natural disaster.
This isn't going to make or break the majority of us who are proud to be former Division I athletes.
There are greater tragedies in this life for sure, but this really, really hurts. It feels like a part of all of us was stolen away and we never got the chance to defend it.
Those responsible played the part of thieves who essentially showed up in the middle of the night and snatched our tradition and pride away.
Can we blame the current course of college sports as well? Yes. Wholeheartedly. The NCAA played a part in this.
Folks need to know there was a small group who offered a solution to the NIL issue at Saint Francis, and they were never given the opportunity by the president to deliver their plan of action. It seems as though this rebrand was in the works for some time. What's worse is that it blindsided so many.
In joining the same league as their sister school, Franciscan University, the T.O.R. leadership got what they wanted. It didn't matter they were taking away something that gave thousands of former Saint Francis athletes so much joy and the utmost pride.
We were that little school in Nowheresville, PA, just a few short weeks ago that captured the hearts of the nation, only to be brought down from within.
Talk about a colossal blunder.
Sports at the Division I level has been a huge part of our identity at Saint Francis, going back as far as the early 1950s.
Every Saint Francis athlete has proudly carried on the legacy of our most famous alum, Maurice Stokes. Sadly, that will no longer be the case.
We have always been the Division I version of a young David in the Old Testament.
This didn't have to happen to the current coaches and student-athletes, or those who committed to play here next year.
Many of the high school seniors who have signed on for next year turned down other Division I offers. They probably wouldn't have decided to come here had they known their dream of the small school experience and Division I sports would be taken away.
We also have coaches who relocated their families to chase the dream of being a coach at the highest level. They were told just an hour or so before the announcement.
Why would school leadership quit on those who have always been loyal, especially after so much success?
I'm upset for my teammate and now former head coach Rob Krimmel, as well as newly named head coach, Luke McConnell, two men who have given everything to the school, just to be handed this horrific decision.
We will never know how that improbable tournament run could have helped enrollment or other programs now. The only decision the brass got correct in this whole debacle was naming Luke as Rob's successor.
The school president, Father Malachi Van Tassell, has cited improving the student-athlete experience as a reason for the decision.
How does going Division III improve that for athletes who aspired to play at the top level of collegiate athletics?
Had the alums known this decision was imminent we would have fought tooth and nail to keep our cherished identity.
Then, to add to the tone-deafness, the president insisted on holding a welcome to the Presidents' Athletic Conference press conference just 48 hours later, celebrating something none of the athletes or coaches wanted.
Talk about a slap in the face.
The PAC competition will be a far cry from what the Saint Francis faithful has always been used to. Not to mention, by dropping to Division III we will no longer be the only show in town and will now compete against Mount Aloysius, Penn State Altoona and Juniata College.
It feels like Goliath brushed off David's stone, pulled out a bazooka, and obliterated him.
The diversity that Division I sports has brought to Saint Francis University undoubtedly will be gone. So many that never could have attained a college education were able to because of the scholarships they received.
Our underdog identity will be gone. Hard to believe this has happened after what we just celebrated a few weeks ago. It's a sad day for all members of the Red Flash family.
Things will never be the same again up on the mountain.
Tom Fox played basketball at Saint Francis from 1995-2000. He resides in Altoona.