A few days ago, the University of Illinois Athletics program raised a banner for Terrance Shannon Jr., which went poorly. The lead up to it was flawless. An incredible signing with Shannon happened earlier in the day. Everyone attending received Shannon T-shirts on their seats. A bobblehead was available for purchase.

Shannon came out at halftime to thunderous applause. He spoke eloquently about his love for Illinois, his time wearing the orange and blue, the coaching staff, and the fans. There was an incredible video package. It was going great.

And then he pulled the string to unfurl his banner, which was upside down.

Me and thousands of fans in attendance were in shock. Shannon laughed about it on the court, but it left an awful sour taste in everyone’s mouth.

Athletic Director Josh Whitman handled it with class and accountability with his postgame comments. On top of that, Illinois basketball lost the game after not scoring for the final nine minutes. To make matters worse, freshman rebounding machine Morez Johnson Jr. fell on his wrist and is now out indefinitely.

It was an omen. It was, dare I say it, a curse.

Shannon’s mother made a couple of warmly received tweets saying how indicative the upside-down banner was to his final year playing college ball with the rape accusation and ultimate acquittal, turning the basketball program upside down.

However, Terrence Shannon Jr. made light of the situation as he always does and broke any talk of omens or curses with one perfectly timed tweet. He turned a public relations fiasco into a way to use the spotlight that turned negative into a positive.

Selling a new shirt and leaning into the upside-down banner and upside-down final season was perfect.

You can buy the shirts at Gameday Spirit.