Kentucky fan got 2014 national-champions tattoo before NCAA tourney

Kentucky fan Tyler Austin Black needs two more wins by the Wildcats to avoid looking silly for the rest of his life.

Actually, there are some who might think Black will look silly with a “2014 NATION9L CHAMPIONS UK” on his calf no matter what ends up happening in the Final Four this weekend.

But those people just don’t understand what it means to be a die-hard fan.

Black does, though — so much so that he got the tattoo (with the 9 symbolizing what would be the Wildcats’ ninth national title) just before the SEC tournament started.

You know, back when Kentucky was unranked with a 22-9 record after starting the season as the top-ranked team in the country.

“I’m not delusional,” Black told ESPN at the time. “I know we’ve had a rough season. Big Blue Nation is down and the majority of people have no faith in us. But we have faith in ourselves.”

So he got the tattoo, which ESPN verified is the real deal, and even tweeted a photo of it to several Kentucky players. And now look what has happened.

The Wildcats advanced to the SEC championship game, losing to Florida by a point, and then put together a string of impressive victories — over ninth-seeded Kansas State, top-seeded Wichita State, fourth-seeded and defending champion Louisville and second-seeded Michigan — in the Midwest Regional of the NCAA tournament.

And no matter what ends up happening in the Final Four, expect to see that ink proudly displayed on Black’s lower leg forever.

“It’s part of my story,” Black said before the start of the tournament. “If we don’t win, I’ll remember it as the year so many thought we could do it and we didn’t.”