The Best Story About Roy Williams Came From Former UNC Baseball Player Robert Woodard

With legendary North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams retiring on Thursday, obviously most of the stories people shared came from around the basketball world, from those who played under Williams and coached against him. But my favorite story I saw actually came from former UNC pitcher Robert Woodard, who shared the time Williams traded tickets with his parents while he was pitching in the College World Series because Williams refused to have better seats than them when they were there to see their son.

I love hearing stories like this. By pretty much all accounts, Williams was one of the nicest and classiest guys out there both on and off the court. I'm not saying Coach K wouldn't do something like this, but ... Coach K wouldn't do something like this. He'd sit in those primo seats behind home plate and think up all the excuses he's going to use for why Duke isn't any good the next season.

Woodard pitched 12 innings in the 2006 CWS, giving up four earned runs on nine hits, including a complete game shutout of Clemson in the Tar Heels' first game to put them in the winners' bracket. I am choosing to believe this gesture from Williams came during the Clemson game and Woodard's parents got great seats to see their son throw a CG shutpiece in the CWS, because that makes the story even better.