Young Dayton basketball fan stars in viral friendship bracelets video

Caroline, who was wearing a UD cheerleader uniform, gave one to Dayton senior forward Jacob Conner and then freshman forward Damon Friery. She handed another to sophomore forward Amaël L’Etang, who showed his appreciation by giving her a fist bump.

Junior guard Will Maxwell, sophomore guard Bryce Heard and junior guard De’Shayne Montgomery also bumped fists with Caroline after getting a bracelet. Sixth-year forward Keonte Jones grabbed one as well.

Then Caroline handed out bracelets to a long line of cheerleaders. There were plenty to go around. She has made close to 300 of them. It takes a couple minutes to make each one.

“She started making her bracelets toward the end of last season,” Brittany said. “It actually started with a cheerleader named Mary. She had only made one for Mary and gave it to Mary, and she saw how happy that it made Mary. Then she started making a few for just the cheerleaders — like 10 bracelets a game. Then probably the last few games of the season, some of the players started taking the bracelets at the tunnel."

Caroline learned the name of every cheerleader and gave them each personalized bracelets that spell out their names.

Brittany posted the first friendship bracelets video to TikTok in August. Filmed last season, it showed players Javon Bennett, Enoch Cheeks, Zed Key, Malachi Smith and the cheerleaders accepting bracelets in the same spot by the tunnel.

That video and other that followed this fall received thousands of views but didn’t get nearly as much attention as the one that went viral earlier this month.

“It just really took off,” Brittany said. “We were thinking nothing of it. We really just made it for her to have her own memories.”

Brittany has read Caroline some of the comments people made on the video.

• “She’s the team’s biggest cheerleader.”

• “So cute how everyone waited to get their bracelet.”

• “This is so sweet! She must have worked so hard making all those bracelets!”

The Kramers have a long history with the Flyers. Brittany’s husband Collin’s great-grandpa Alfred Frantz started the family tradition of having season tickets.

Now the family has a new story to tell about their relationship to the program. UD also took note of the video and invited Caroline to meet the players before the game against Fordham on Dec. 31 at UD Arena. Caroline will be there, of course. She goes to every game.

“We haven’t told her yet,” Brittany said. “We’re gonna let her be excited.”