TRAVERSE CITY -- Jason Johnson hopes to see passion, intensity and focus.
The Traverse City resident and Michigan State University basketball fan believes the Spartans can knock off the University of Connecticut Huskies in today's NCAA tournament Final Four matchup at Ford Field in Detroit.
But Johnson is prepared for a tough battle.
"If they play the way they did last weekend, they can pull it off," Johnson said. "They're going to have to play tough, they're going to have to play (defense) and they're going to have to stay out of foul trouble."
Johnson, 34, was first in line to grab a ticket to watch the game at Traverse City's State Theatre, which will broadcast it live. He and other fans stood in the cold and wind Friday awaiting tickets and debating the Spartans' chances against the favored Huskies.
Johnson is among thousands of local MSU fans and alumni geared up for the school's first Final Four appearance since 2005, when the Spartans lost to the University of North Carolina. MSU will advance to Monday night's national championship game if it beats Connecticut.
Some local fans will get a firsthand look at this weekend's last leg of the title chase. Traverse City resident Jeff Anderson was in Detroit with his family for the weekend, and found out Friday he'll be able to get two tickets to the game. He's excited, and his enthusiasm only grew when he went to a Friday practice at spacious Ford Field.
"There was 25,000 fans there to watch the team practice; it was pretty electric," he said.
Anderson, a 1990 MSU graduate, has high hopes for his team.
"Win or lose, we'll be there rooting for them," he said. "I have a good feeling though. With all of the fans in there, I think they can definitely be the sixth man."
Traverse City is very much a "green-and-white town," said Barry Gray, president of the Grand Traverse Area MSU Alumni Club. Local excitement for today's game is soaring, he said.
"I would say it's at the highest level I've seen it in a long time," Gray said.
Roughly 5,700 registered MSU alumni live in Grand Traverse, Leelanau and Antrim counties, Gray said, and the local MSU alumni club is the third largest in the state. The large contingent of alumni and fans compounds the hype in the area, Gray said.
"It exponentially grows," he said. "It's always fun to share your excitement with somebody else."
Kingsley resident Austin Olson, 14, and his mother Shari Olson also scored some tickets for the theater screening. Austin Olson said he's more of a University of Michigan fan, but will pull for the Spartans this weekend.
"I like the blue and maize, but I guess if Michigan State is going to be there, I'll root for them," he said.
Farther back in line was Beatrice Webster, who was getting tickets for herself and her husband Charles, a die-hard Spartan fan. He had to work and couldn't wait in line, so she was stuck on ticket duty.
"I'm hoping I'll get a nice dinner or something out of it," she said with a grin. "I'm not going to hand him the tickets until he takes me out to dinner, so I guess that's what we're doing tonight."
Traverse City Film Festival founder Michael Moore helped distribute the theater tickets still available by Friday afternoon. Moore said the game means a lot to Michigan residents, regardless of their school loyalty or sports enthusiasm.
"The state of Michigan needs this right now more than anything; a little sliver of joy and happiness," he said.
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