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Home Run for the Kernel

2009-04-06T16:05:00.003-04:00

click on title for link to article-

Well, I've certainly had issues with some issues of the student newspaper. This post, however, highlights something they got entirely right. They do a great job of spelling out for everyone that the U.K. basketball coach's salary does not come from tuition or taxes.

Hats off Kernel- this is a great article, and one that's apparently needed, judging the outcries from the ignorant.

One Has Nothing To Do With The Other

2009-04-03T08:40:00.003-04:00

Fantasticly stupid article on foxnews.com. I mean, really dumb. Click the title of this blog post to read this foolishness.

This article rips the decision to hire Coach Calipari as irresponsible in a climate where the state of Kentucky and its namesake University have to make budget cuts. However, the funding for U.K.'s basketball program has nothing to do with taxpayer money, tuition, or anything else that is taking a hit right now. Instead, it has everything to do with U.K.'s athletic department. That departmetnt is rolling in money. So much so, that they routinely give the University's president money to spend on academic endevours. I repeat- money from U.K.'s athletic department helps FUND the academic side, not vice-versa.

The biggest problem with this article is that the author admits that Mitch Barnhart spelled all this out at the press conference. Since the author neither tries to refute this claim with any kind of evidence, and instead goes on trying to prove his faulty thesis, I wonder how stupid the writer is.

He acts like this is akin to failing companies paying their C.E.O.s tons of money. But again, the University of Kentucky's athletic department is not a failing company! It's a crazy-good successful company that makes tons of money.

Sorry I can't be funnier about this, but this really pisses me off and I'm tired of seeing these uninformed articles that are written with a preconceived belief in mind that will not change even when confronted with evidence to the contrary.

Center of Wildcat Universe?

2009-02-12T12:20:00.002-05:00

Monday, January 26th - All is well in the Big Blue Nation. UK is 5-0 in the SEC, and looking like the clear favorite to win the conference title and receive a high seed in the NCAA tournament.

Tuesday, January 27th - The Ice Storm of 2009 ravages the Bluegrass, causing power outages throughout the state. The western portion of the state, including the house pictured above, loses electricity. The Wildcats also go ice cold, dropping their first SEC game to lowly Ole Miss. In the post game interview, Ole Miss Coach Andy Kennedy confirms that his wife is sexually frustrated.

Saturday, Jauary 31st - Electricity remains out for most of Western Kentucky. A state of emergency is issued by the governor. UK loses to South Carolina in Rupp Arena.

Tuesday, February 3 - Most of the state has regained electricity. The house above has not, and the Wildcats drop their third straight to Mississippi State.

Tuesday. February 10th - The ice has melted away. UK's lead in the SEC has also disappeared. The house above is still without power, and the Wildcats are feared to be powerless against visiting Florida.

Tuesday, February 10th (8:30 p.m.) - Power is restored to the house just before game time. The Wildcats are victorious against Florida, energizing the Big Blue Nation.

Ice Storm 2009

2009-02-02T12:50:00.004-05:00

Small Monkey Businesses?

2008-10-31T16:43:00.004-04:00

An unidentified primate ushered in Halloween spirity to several University of Kentucky students Friday afternoon.

No one knows where the beast came from, but he was sporting a Wildcat Textbooks shopping basket and dispensing candy in the middle of Limestone Street, which intersects campus.

Most students were receptive to the ground-dwelling herbivore's offers. His generosity lasted about 15 minutes, then he was gone, never to be seen again.

Is It Me, Or Is This Creepy For Even The Student Newspaper?

2008-10-30T13:36:00.008-04:00

What the hell is the matter with me? I used to be the kind of guy that would get over-served on adult beverages once every five years and then think it was a good idea to roll into a 'Gentlemen's Club' giggling like a 'Tickle Me Elmo' doll whilst drinking six dollar beers and ogling boobies. Now, I see an article in U.K.'s student newspaper and I go all Second Wave Feminist. (CLICK ON THE TITLE OF THIS ENTRY FOR FULL ARTICLE)

You see, I thought stripping was viewed by many as the objectification of women. Especially viewed this way by young, progressive women. You know, the kind you find at a university. Like the University of Kentucky, for instance. However, I am not sure of that anymore.

If you click on the link above, you'll find a story that was on the front page of the Kentucky Kernel October 30, written by a young college woman. In a nutshell she says that if you are a young college woman and need money for college, you should, like, definitely give stripping a go.

The newspaper interviewed a college student/stripper and found that -"She could go to work in the evening, attend classes during the day, use a fun fake name, play dress up and dance on a stage."

Shit, that sounds like something my daughter would like to do.

What? You have to take your clothes off too?

Er, nevermind.

Look, I don't think strip clubs are the bane of society. But to publish an article so pro-stripping makes me wonder why Deja Vu doesn't have a table set up at U.K.'s career day.

Maybe they're afraid company representatives will start dancing on it. Ba dum dum.

But seriously folks, there is nary a negative point made by the author, which surprises me because its fairly common knowledge that Strip Club clientele often include a few creeps here and there, while there's enough cocaine around to make Antonio Montana nervous.

I guess what I'm saying is, don't girls go to college so they can find a job with a better professional environment than stripping? Should college women find this article offensive?

Oh, and before I sign off, I should point out that this wonderful article does not just dole out money making tips to college women. Guys can make some quick cash too, as long as they're willing to donate sperm. My favorite part is when they describe the sperm donation process as "painless". Seriously, it says that, you should read it.

UPDATE- Now with a better picture!

2008-10-25T13:49:00.003-04:00

Just a better picture, but the message is still clear - Vol fans = nutjobs!

What A Volunteer!

2008-10-25T09:07:00.003-04:00

What the hell kind of person would make a false claim about being attacked by a minority supporter of the Democratic Presidential candidate?

Why, a Tennessee fan, that's who!

Out in the distance, a Wildcat did growl.

2008-09-25T17:17:00.006-04:00

Fans have begun camping out for Saturday's Big Blue Madness ticket distribution. The tent city is enveloping Memorial. Last night several players visited the campers, including Kevin Galloway and Darius Miller. Today, Coach Gillispie stopped by to say hello.

Sales Tax on Complaining, Not on Textbooks

2008-09-24T11:18:00.004-04:00

As Americans, it is our god-given right to complain about things we don't like. When Benjamin Franklin wrote the Second Amendment, he knew good and well that people would complain about others walking around with bear arms. First of all, people just look stupid in bear arms, even if it is your Halloween costume. Beyond that, anyone that would wear bear arms is probably a communist.

I like to complain about things too. When George Bush leaves office, I'm going to be a little bit bummed. Complaining about W's nescient presidency has been a staple of my adult political chatter.

Everyone has something they like to complain about. For college students, it's the price of textbooks. As a college bookstore manager, I absolutely agree with students; textbooks are ridiculously expensive. If the price of textbooks was the end-all, cure-all, however, Wildcat Textbooks would be the biggest store on campus, not the smallest. There are books used this semester that Wildcat Textbooks was over $100.00 cheaper than UK Bookstore, but UK Bookstore probably sold more.

However, most innocent complaints often have very complex answers. For example, high gas prices. We don't care why; we just want the price to go back down. As often is the case, the person complaining really has no interest in the reason why or who is really to blame. A recent USA Today Gallup Poll found that 98 percent of the people who complain about anything don't really care as to the cause of their beef. That's why mad cow disease was so devastating in Europe.

UK's Student Government President wanted to prompt state legislators to remove sales tax from textbooks. Why? Because they are too expensive. That's true. It's also true that there is no sales tax on textbooks, but maybe there should be on mindless complaining.

If you really want to know why textbooks are expensive, I would be happy to tell you. If you have four hours to discuss it, let me know. When your eyes start glazing after fifteen minutes, there is only one thing I can say -- George Bush is a stupid-head.

Funny, Funny, Funny

2008-09-09T10:24:00.009-04:00

To the left you'll see an editorial cartoon that appeared in the Kentucky Kernel a few days ago. It is funny. However, I'm afraid it is funny for reasons other than the artist intended.

Let me explain.

I feel the artist is implying that the tution hike that U.K. has levied on its students is paying for the Rupp Arena expansion and the new U.K. Law Building. The question the 'everyman' student depicted in the cartoon asks is that of a rhetorical nature.

Pretty perceptive on my part, huh? Bear with me-

The thing with most rhetoric questions is that the answers should be assumed to be a known truth- most of the time a 'yes' answer. This is an example of a 'rhetorical affirmation' (thank you, wikipedia) - A rhetorical question that intends the communication of "yes, of course". I.E., "yes, of course" my tuition increase is there to pay for Rupp Arena expansion and the new Law Building. Yes. Of course.

HA, Mr. Cartoon-guy- that's funny because it's true! That damned ole U.K. jacking up my rent to pay for some pretty buildings. Screw them and their money-grubbing ways. What's next? A new fountain in the President's yard?

The problem with the artist's joke is that 0% of U.K. students' 9% tuition increase goes to either one of these projects. Do you know how I know that? Because 0% of the total tuition students pay goes towards those projects. That's right, the question the artist apparently expected would receive a resounding 'yes' (or at least a "huh, I bet it does go to that" ) instead gets a resounding 'no'.

That's why I think it's funny. Because it's so ill-informed that I have to laugh at the stupidity of one who would mock an institution of higher learning for its supposed frivolous tuition increases while citing examples that have nothing to do with tuition money from that university.

The Rupp Arena expansion is a city project. Complain about your city taxes if you want, but don't insinuate that the university that has a basketball team that plays there somehow is responsible for paying for a building it doesn't own. That's so obvious I didn't even look it up. Hell, if you really want to blame someone for Rupp Arena's expansion, blame Brad Paisley- he has concerts there all the time and his songs suck.

The Law Building, however, required exhaustive research on my part. This included a google-fueled trip to this website - http://www.uky.edu/Law/alumni/building_fund.html , where I found this statement - "The College is raising private donations in the amount of $13,000,000 to match the $52,000,000 commitment of state funds for the $65,000,000 project."

I was fairly sure that 'private' meant 'no U.K. tuition money'. But what about 'state funds'? Since not 100% sure I was forced to call a buddy that works for U.K. to make sure that I read that right. No tuition to build the new Law Building! He confirmed my suspicion, and after a full 38.2 seconds of digging around, I had my answer.

So, it is very funny to me that a guy would draw a cartoon making fun of the reasons for U.K.'s tuition hike when those reasons don't exist.

Spring 2008 Textbook Price Comparison

2008-07-14T11:50:00.000-04:00

Wildcat Textbooks vs. UK Bookstore

A-H 105 Art Across Time, Vol. 1 Wildcat - $69.95 UK - $74.25

ACC 201 Financial Accounting Wildcat - $99.95 UK - $132.00

ACC 202 Managerial Accounting Wildcat - $119.95 UK - $124.50

ACC 300 Financial Reporting & Analysis Wildcat - $119.95 UK - $139.25

ACC 324 Accounting Information Systems Wildcat - $29.95 UK - $98.00

ANT 160 Dobe Ju/Hoansi Wildcat - $19.95 UK - $24.75

AST 192 Voyages to the Stars & Galaxies Wildcat - $59.95 UK - $64.25

BIO 102 Living in the Environment Wildcat - $99.95 UK - $109.50

BIO 308 Microbiology Wildcat - $99.95 UK - $125.25

CE 106 Engineering Design Graphics Wildcat - $89.95 UK - $93.00

CHE 105 Chemistry Wildcat - $109.95 UK - $132.50

CHE 108 General, Organic, & Biochemistry Wildcat - $79.95 UK - $118.50

CHE 236 Organic Chemistry Wildcat - $39.95 UK - $105.25

COM 181 Confident Public Speaking Wildcat - $87.95 UK - $106.75

COM 252 Interplay Wildcat - $49.95 UK - $54.75

DIS 300 Foundations of Operations Mgmt. Wildcat - $69.95 UK - $99.00

ECO 101 Economic Way of Thinking Wildcat - $84.95 UK - $93.00

ECO 201 Microeconomics Wildcat - $64.95 UK - $90.00

ECO 391 Stats for Mgmt & Economics Wildcat - $69.95 UK - $110.00

EDP 202 Educational Psychology Wildcat - $84.95 UK - $89.00

EPE 301 Justice, Ideology, & Education Wildcat - $59.95 UK - $69.50

FIN 300 Essentials of Corporate Finance Wildcat - $90.50 UK - $96.75

FIN 423 International Financial Management Wildcat - $69.95 UK - $119.25

GEO 130 Elemental Geosystems Wildcat - $59.95 UK - $75.00

GEO 160 Diversity Amid Globalization Wildcat - $49.95 UK - $88.50

GLY 120 Resources of Earth Wildcat - $69.95 UK - $83.25

HIS 104 Sources of the West, Vol. 1 Wildcat - $39.95 UK - $42.75

HIS 108 American History, Vol.1 Wildcat - $64.95 UK - $77.25

ISC 161 Advertising & Promotion Wildcat - $99.95 UK - $123.00

MA 108 Intermediate Algebra Wildcat - $39.95 UK - $43.50

MA 109 College Algerbra Wildcat - $44.95 UK - $48.75

MGT 320 Fund. of Human Resource Mgmt. Wildcat - $69.95 UK - $81.00

MGT 340 Law, Business, & Society Wildcat - $99.95 UK - $117.00

MKT 300 Marketing Wildcat - $89.95 UK - $123.75

MKT 310 Consumer Behavior Wildcat - $99.95 UK - $145.50

PHI 120 Concise Intro to Logic Wildcat - $29.95 UK - $90.50

PHY 211 Enhanced College Physics Wildcat - $99.95 UK - $145.50

PS 210 Good Society Wildcat - $49.95 UK - $54.00

PSY 100 Exploring Psychology Wildcat - $54.95 UK - $58.25

PSY 223 Developmental Psychology Wildcat - $99.95 UK - $104.75

STA 200 Statistics: Concepts & Controversies Wildcat - $59.95 UK - $63.00

UK 101 Your College Experience Wildcat - $29.95 UK - $34.25

You Can't Hide Money

2008-07-02T14:24:00.003-04:00

If you click on this blog title you can check out a story at uky.edu about the big U.K. Bookstore renovation coming this fall. According to the article, "The renovation and expansion is scheduled for completion in November 2008 at a cost of $3.1 million."

That's right, folks. $3.1 million smackeroos.

That's a whole lotta cash to throw around in today's world of inflation, rising tuition costs, and lest we forget - rising textbook costs. But, don't worry. Mega-giant corporation Follett Higher Education runs the U.K. Bookstore and is picking up the tab, not U.K. A look at the price comparison on this very blog shows that U.K. Bookstore is probably not hurting for money in today's troubled times, so don't worry your pretty head about that part.

So, what's all the moolah going toward? Shorter lines? More efficient means of buying back books than scanning books at one counter then sending a customer to wait at another counter before finally giving up the dough?

Nope.

They're promising more square footage for the essentials of college life like, "seating so that the community can spend time browsing the books and magazines." Good thing, because I remember hearing several people at the Community Center last Sunday say that they wished they could sit in the campus bookstore and browse the Math section or look through the July edition of "Guns & Ammo".

I don't know which group I'm more scared of, by the way.

One thing's for certain- there will be a response from Wildcat Textbooks. Just last week, we found an unopened gallon of paint that had been here for over a year and parlayed that, along with 8 dollars worth of drywall, into a brand new dressing room. Sure, if it rains it may leak a little through the roof, but that's only when it rains hard. And that's just the start. In addition to cleaning the windows and mopping the floors every week, we pledge to have the staff shower just as often.

While these cosmetic changes at Wildcat may not entice the community to come in and read our GER 201 textbooks, they will come in about 3.0999999999999999 million dollars less than U.K. Bookstore's cosmetic changes and allow us to continue to sell books for astonishingly less than the campus bookstore.

Wildcat Textbooks- selling books for less instead of flaunting our price-gouging ways with unnecessary building expansions. That's our whole philosophy.

Tayshaun Makes Olympic Team

2008-06-20T10:25:00.002-04:00

http://freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080619/SPORTS03/80619058/0/SPORTS03

Billy Clyde on the Recruiting Trail

2008-05-22T15:44:00.002-04:00

People bitched and moaned that Tubby waited too long to recruit kids. Gillispie recruits them too early. Finally someone from ESPN, of all places, actually gives our coach some props for what he has done.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/mens/news/story?id=3403559

Lexington Herald MisLeader Article

2008-05-20T18:45:00.003-04:00

The following is a link to an article which was published in Sunday's Herald Leader. The article takes a look back at Gillispie's first year as head coach and also addresses many of the notorious rumors.

http://www.kentucky.com/276/story/408374.html

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Buyback

2008-05-08T15:38:00.004-04:00

In an effort to increase the miniscule textbook buyback at Wildcat, we sent our army of collegiate droids to the streets. It was guerilla marketing at its finest, spitting in the eye of bureaucracy and conservative fiefdoms. The results were a resounding, fist-pounding cry of freedom to the college bookstore gods.

Flowing UK Roster

2008-04-30T18:55:00.003-04:00

Scholarship players that will be returning or arriving for sure (we think).

1. Jodie Meeks (Junior)
2. Perry Stevenson (Junior)
3. Michael Porter (Junior)
4. Jared Carter (Junior/Senior)
5. Kevin Galloway (Junior)
6. Ramon Harris (Junior)
7. Patrick Patterson (Soph.)
8. A.J. Stewart (Soph.)
9. Josh Harrellson (Soph.)
10. Darius Miller (Frosh)

That leaves three scholarships available. Jasper (transfer) and Liggins (qualify) have two reserved for them. I feel like Jasper is probably going to transfer. So lets say that Liggins qualifies.

That leaves two scholarships available. Here are the possibilities in order of UK's chance (in my guestimation):

1. Bobby Maze - Juco PG - Good scorer. Committed to Maryland, but couldn't go because of grade issues. Looking at UK and Cincinatti. Update: Maze Committs to UT.

2. Paul McCoy - PG, would be a freshman. Rumored to be down to UK and Virginia. If Maze committs to UK, McCoy is probably out. Update: McCoy Committs to SMU.

3. Maurice Sutton - PF, would be a freshman. UK has not offered. Sutton probably would committ to UK upon invitation. IU has offered, as well as some other eastern schools. With the committment of Harrellson, Sutton probably will not be offered.

Are we done for this year?

Cats in the NBA

2008-04-27T14:07:00.004-04:00

I found this info on the Catspause and thought it was pretty interesting. This is how much these former Cats in the NBA make:

*Jamal Magloire (Mavericks) $231,000

Tayshaun Prince (Pistons) $8,675,620

Rajon Rondo (Celtics) $1,229,280

Keith Bogans (Magic) $2,440,000

Antoine Walker (Twolves) $8,329,640

Randolph Morris (Knicks) $810,000

Derek Anderson (Bobcats) $770,610

Nazr Mohammed (Bobcats) $5,632,200

Keleena Azubuike (Warriors) $687,456

Chuck Hayes (Rockets) $1,750,000

Jamal Magloire's number is a obviously not correct. Someone suggested that a previous team is paying the rest of Magloire's salary.

Rondo looks to be the best player for the money, with Antoine Walker as the worst. Rajon will undoubtedly be getting a big pay raise when his contract comes up.

Earthquake Rocks the Bluegrass

2008-04-18T10:18:00.002-04:00

An earthquake rocked the Bluegrass in the wee hours of the morning, measuring a 5.4 on the Mark Richter Scale. Trimmers were said to be felt from Paducah to Maysville. The most significant damage occurred in the Louisville metro area. The largest structure in Louisville, Rick Pitino's ego, was said to have sustained no major damage. Although, bystanders did say a couple hair plugs were shaken loose.

Jasper Gone / Ramel's Album Here!

2008-04-16T20:24:00.005-04:00

A source extremely close to the UK basketball team has told me that Derrick Jasper is more than likely going to transfer. The reasoning for exactly why Jasper will transfer is debatable. However, it seems to be some combination of feeling like Billy Clyde works people too hard, the new recruits coming in, and sensing a lack of appreciation from the staff.

In other news, Ramel Bradley hand delivered his new album to us today. Oddly enough, the first copy we sold was to Joe Crawford, who said that Ramel told him he had to buy one (no free copies, even if you're on the album).

If you would like a copy, they are available on our website.

http://www.collegegear.com/sf/stores/1139/p-376916.shtml

Jasper Gone?

2008-04-16T08:57:00.002-04:00

Rumors are swirling that Derrick Jasper may be leaving the Wildcats. Sources close to the situation claim the Paso Robles, CA native is homesick. These same sources believe there is a 50% chance Jasper will stay at Kentucky, and a 42% chance that he will transfer. Sixty percent of the time, these sources are correct everytime.

What's Up Chuck?

2008-04-15T19:19:00.003-04:00

Chuck Hayes is one of my favorite UK basketaball players. However, this is the most fugly bo-bugly shooting technique I've ever seen!

Gnome in Vegas

2008-04-04T11:19:00.005-04:00

Gnome at the Alamo

2008-04-04T11:19:00.002-04:00

Gnome in Chicago

2008-04-04T11:18:00.005-04:00

Gnome in Paris

2008-04-04T11:18:00.002-04:00

Gnome in Egypt

2008-04-04T11:12:00.002-04:00

Dwayne Wade Game Thread

2008-03-19T16:21:00.002-04:00

The Wildcats head to California to take on the Marquette War Beagles this Thursday. Despite being a much lower seed, the Cats actually match up very well with Marquette. The game should be a close one, as Kentucky looks to avenge the loss to Marquette in the 2003 Elite Eight game.

Gnome Contest: An NCAA Gnome is on the line. Guess correctly and be the spiritual healer of Keith Bogans' ankle. First to guess winner and spread correctly wins a Kentucky Gnome.

Official Blue Donkey Prediction: Kentucky by 2.

UK / Ole Miss Game Thread

2008-03-14T11:10:00.004-04:00

Above: Wimpy Gillispie gettin' some UK love.

According to ESPN, UK will take on Ole Miss tonight, with the winner getting an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. Unfortunately, the Rebels are runnin' to the NIT instead, along with the two-time national champion Florida Gators. It was an unpredictable first day of SEC tournament action. Had I been filling out a bracket, I would have gone 1-3 on the day.

Tonight, the Cats take on Georgia for the third time this season. A SEC Tournament Gnome is on the line. Let's have it. The spoils go to the first person to predict correctly.

Offical Blue Donkey Prediction: UK by 6.

American League Baseball Preview

2008-03-12T14:04:00.004-04:00

We've been inundated with e-mails calling for the second installment of my MLB preview, so here it is.

The Detroit Tigers went to the World Series in 2006. In 2007, pitchers got hurt, hitters got hurt, and a team in their division (Cleveland) was awesome. They still almost won 90 games, but missed a return to the playoffs. Pissed beyond belief, their owner and GM combined to work a deal for Edgar Rentieria, a really good shortstop. This allowed Sean Casey to go bye-bye and capable bat Carlos Guillen to move over to first from shortstop and keep from getting dinged up as much.

But, that wasn't enough. They then traded 6 minor leaguers for Miguel Cabrera and Dontrell Willis. Willis is a durable left-hander with a funky delivery, which in the baseball world makes him as big of a lock for a full-time job as the mayor's son in a small town. Cabrera, well, on a list of "most similar batters in the history of baseball at age 25" Hank Aaron turns up number one in comparison to Miggy. In case you don't know, Aaron has more career homers than anyone with a size 10 or smaller head.

What does this mean? The Tigers should win 95-100 games if things shake out right, but that may not be enough since Cleveland's so damn good. The AL Central should be a great race, and will likely feature the Wild Card winner.

Defending Champ Boston is still sending out an awesome offense, but they have pitching concerns that will make their annual race with New York typically tight with both teams likely besting 90 wins.

In the West, I think the Angels are pretty good.

In summary, look for the Tigers to face the Cubs in the World Series this year.

Gnome Winner!

2008-03-09T21:34:00.003-04:00

Brett 'The Hitman' Wooton wins the Senior Day Gnome contest, becoming the first person other than Jon G. to receive the honor. Mr. Wooton is a native of Owenton, KY. He is a big Kentucky fan (and by that we mean he is a really large person). Brett said that he really looks forward to receiving the gnome, and that it will finally give Mr. Wooton someone to hang out with.

Florida Game Thread

2008-03-07T09:58:00.007-05:00

Big weekend for sports in the Bluegrass. Billy Donovan returns to Rupp Arena for the first time since he turned down the Kentucky job. Sunday is also Senior Day for Joe Crawford and Ramel Bradley. Most pundits believe a Wildcat victory will ensure Kentucky's chance to dance. A loss for Kentucky, however, will make the Big Blue Nation question the angle of their NCAA dangle. Good article about the turnaround of this season in the Kentucky-hating Herald Mis-Leader.

Weather Update in Lexington: Raining Ice Bullets

On Tuesday, I had the opportunity to sit down will my old friend Danny Trejo. You may recognize Dan from his roles in Con Air, Heat, and Spy Kids. Despite his intimidating appearance, Danny is actually a very friendly guy. We discussed politics and the upcoming presidential election. Mr. Trejo likes Barrack Obama, but doesn't think Obama will be able to beat John McCain in the general election. I personally think who ever wins the election should appoint Danny as the Director of Homeland Security.

On Wednesday, I took part in a round table discussion with Andre Woodson, Wesley Woodyard, and Stevie Johnson. We discussed the upcoming NFL Draft, 40 yard dash times, and the slumping of Swedish tennis since the departure of Bjorn Borg. This was my first interaction with Stevie Johnson, and I was very impressed. Not only did Steve provide some very thought provoking discussion, but he also gave us all a hug when he left. Check out Stevie's pregame performance in the video below.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit Rafael Little at his apartment in Lexington. Rafael just had knee surgery this week, after tearing his ACL and MCL in the Senior Bowl. Despite being immobilized, Rafael was in good spirits. His rehabilitation will take around eight months, so we won't be seeing Rafael in the NFL until the year after next. Rafael said he thinks Joker Philips will be an awesome head coach, and that he fully expects the new version of Knight Rider to be as good as the orginal.

My Old Kentucky Gnome Game Prediction Contest: This is a big one. Be the first to guess winner and spread correctly, win your very own Kentucky Gnome.

Offical Blue Donkey Prediction: Kentucky by 3.

Odom's Last Stand

2008-03-05T13:06:00.005-05:00

The Wildcats head to Columbia's Steak House tonight to take on the South Carolina Odomites. Las Vegas doesn't think the Cats will leave Columbia with a victory. The Blue Donkey disagrees. Ramel Bradley will lead this team to two more regular season victories. If not, the basketball gods be damned.

Offical Blue Donkey Prediction: Cats by 3.

First person to correctly predict winner and margin wins a Kentucky Gnome.

Later

Tennessee game post

2008-03-01T10:31:00.010-05:00

Klive Jr. here - filling in for the one and only Blue Donkey. But lets get down to business. The orange and white wearing Volunteers of Tennessee are predicted to win this game.... but if you remember correctly they were suppose to oust Kentucky on January 22 at Rupp Arena, but failed to do so. They also failed to conquer Vandy shortly after gaining the #1 rank in college basketball. I guess they don't know a whole lot about PRESSURE. That's right, PRESSURE! As an attempt to prepare Kentucky for tough "Pressure" filled games, coach Billy G calls in a special motivational speaker before every game against a ranked team. And not just any motivational speaker, but wildcat textbook's very own Christopher Milisor (aka House). You may be asking yourself "what makes House so special?" I'll tell you what - 4 years of running track on scholarship for U.K. . House has stared down Olympians such Tyson Gay and taunted them with his homemade shirts that say"get used to the view" on the back. Now that's what i call pressure.Off the track House can usually be spotted proudly wearing his letter jacket and "all S.E.C" watch. If you see him on campus and you don't find yourself thinking "What a stud" you might want to go ahead and schedule a CAT scan at your local doctors office.

I'm sure you all know by now that star freshman, Patrick Patterson, will not be playing for the rest of the season because a stress fracture in his left ankle. Sad.... you bet it is! Patterson's the only freshman ranked among the SEC's top 10 scorers (16.4 points per game) and rebounders (7.7 per game). Kentucky not having Patterson is equivalent to Pamela Anderson not wearing make-up (google search it if you dont believe me). What I'm trying to say is, U.K.'s going to need to find a way to "donkey" kick up their performance if they want any chance of making it into the NCAA Tournament. They are gunna need to take serious action - and im not talking about taking action like GW Bush did when hurricane Katrina first hit.

As always, don't forget to make your predictions in the comment section. First person to correctly guess the score of the game wins a Kentucky Gnome.

Official Blue Donkey Prediction: Tennessee by 23.

Official Klive Jr. Prediction: Kentucky by 7 BYAAAHHHHH!!

Brian Smith Game Day Thread

2008-02-27T09:13:00.004-05:00

Brian Smith brings his Ole Miss Runnin' Rod Barnes' into Rupp Arena this evening for an epic battle against the Kentucky Wildcats. Ole Miss has yet to procure a SEC road victory, and the Wildcats are undefeated at home in conference play. Look for a Wildcat victory in typical Kentucky fashion. Vegas has Kentucky by 5. The Blue Donkey has Kentucky by 11.

My Old Kentucky Gnome Game Prediction Contest: Be the first person to correctly predict the winner and margin, win yourself an ass-kickin' Kentucky Gnome courtesy of Wildcat Textbooks. Only one entry per person. Submit your guess in the comments section.

Sunday Succotash

2008-02-24T13:01:00.005-05:00

Another gutsy win for the Wildcats. The Gnome crew was in the house for John Pelphrey's return to Rupp Arena, and the Kentucky fans greeted the 'Unforgettable' with a standing ovation. The attendance for the game was the fifth largest in Rupp Arena history. Gillispie gave the crowd several 'thumbs up' for their participation as he exited the floor.

The victory moved the Cats' RPI up several more spots to #63. A win over Ole Miss this week will hopefully move Kentucky into the 50's. During the Tennessee / Memphis game last night, Dick Vitale even mentioned that he thought UK was playing its way into the tournament.

Great article today in the Herald Leader about my buddy, Wah Wah Jones.

http://www.kentucky.com/287/story/327270.html

Also a good article in the Loserville Ledger about the Cats' recruiting prospects.

http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080224/SPORTS11/802240579/1002/SPORTS

John Pelphrey Game Thread

2008-02-22T17:35:00.023-05:00

John Pelphrey brings his fighting Hillary's to Rupp Arena on Saturday. The game is a 'must win' for the Wildcats, although the Rupp Arena crowd will probably show more affection to an opposing coach that it ever has in the history of Kentucky basketball. The game looks to be a tight one, with the edge going to the home team.

MY OLD KENTUCKY GNOME CONTEST: Predict the correct winner and margin of todays game and you win your very Kentucky Gnome. Only one entry per person. First person to correctly predict wins. Submit answers in the comment section.

In other news, Kelvin Sampson was fired today. After learning of the news, some players didn't show up to practice. It will be interesting to see who plays today.

Also, check out this Duke article:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/stewart_mandel/02/21/duke/index.html

The Next Hoosiers Movie

2008-02-22T09:07:00.003-05:00

Even a well-timed pelvic thrust may not save Kelvin Sampson now, but the IU basketball players are doing what they can to save their beloved coach. During a meeting with Indiana Athletic Director Rick Greenspan, several players reportedly threatened to quit the team if Sampson was fired. Superstar frosh Eric Gordon also threatened to move out of the IU basketball dorm and buy a house if Greenspan lowered the interest rates again. Do you think the IU administration is wishing they still had Bob Knight?

http://www.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/story/10659277

In other news, Billy Clyde traveled through ice and snow last night to watch Scotty Hopson in Hopsonville. Rick 'Dingle' Stansbury of Mississippie State and assistant coaches from Tennessee were also on hand. Hopson had 37 points.

The Sporting News released it's list of the most under and overpaid sports figures. A certain 'coach' made the list, and it's not who you're thinking. Check it out.

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=350924

Arkasas Game Thread will be up later today.

The rooster's first crow

2008-02-20T21:33:00.009-05:00

Greetings, let me be honest about myself; I'm crazy about numbers. Before I even knew what they meant, the stock market page was my favorite part of the newspaper, just for the sheer number of numbers. The backs of baseball cards were another favorite hunting ground for numbers. I, for example, probably could have quoted you Andy Van Slykes' batting average and homerun totals from 1985 until sometime in 1986. I could entertain myself for hours with a calculator. Now, as an adult, this preoccupation has leant itself to some odd, some might even say obsessive, behavior. For example, I knew I could track all the results at Keeneland over a few years and arrive at a formula that would guarantee I went home a winner every week, soon quitting my job and becoming a philanthropic millionaire. This endeavor cost me not a little time and money.

I am not alone. Today, one of the most important mathematics techniques invented in all of mankind is what is known as the RPI, or Ratings Percentage Index. There are a few different variations on this method, such as the Sagarin rating, which crazies like myself like to argue over. The reason such a sophisticated tool was developed; to help so-called experts decide which college basketball teams should be invited to play in the annual tournament. There must have been a stat-head on the tournament committee who, like myself with no talent for evaluating basketball talent subjectively, called upon his stat-head friends to come up with a guaranteed method for objectively comparing teams with grossly different talent levels, styles of play, personnel, competition, injuries, and on and on. Though the goal may have seemed large and unattainable at the time, stat-heads conquered so completely that non-believers today are chastised in the MSM and at the water cooler alike. My only question is "How did I not see that Dayton was the 24th best team in the country before?"

Alas, let me approach the point. People of similar mental defect as myself also tend to be interested in chance, fate, and randomness in the universe, and are predisposed to be predicters and gamblers. So we all now collectively turn our attention to that greatest of tournaments, March Madness. The utmost sage, supposedly, of this time of year is the great and venerable Joe Lunardi, who in his weekly "Bracketology" (don't you love how scientific, even mathematic, it sounds) predicts the field of 64 teams that will be competing in the tournament. No wait, I believe I mispoke, he predicts what teams would be in the field of 64 if the tournament was held tomorrow. WTF, I don't care about if the tournament were held tomorrow, I only care about the tournament that will be held March 21 through April 7. For all I care, Mr. Lunardi can keep any predictions otherwise to himself. But, with his prophet like status, he dare not be incorrect. I on the other hand, thrive off of being wrong so here is my unabashedly RPI-influenced predictions for the rest of the year and how those results will be interpreted by the selection committee in setting the field of 64.

Let us start with the conference champions and the so-called "locks" who could only miss the big dance, rightly or wrongly, due to force majeur. They are;

Big East: Louisville, Georgetown, U Conn, Notre Dame, Marquette
ACC: North Carolina, Duke
CUSA: Memphis
SEC: Tennessee
Atl 10: Xavier
Big 12: Kansas, Texas
PAC 10: UCLA, Stanford
Big 10: Purdue, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan St.
Horizon: Butler
WCC: St. Mary's, Gonzaga
MVC: Drake

Then their are the conference winners of conferences which would not get any at-large bids;

AEC: UMBC
Atlantic Sun: Belmont
Big Sky: Portland State
Big South: Winthrop (whats the preoccupation with "Big" in conference titles anyway?)
Big West: Cal State Northridge
CAA: Colonial Williamsburg
Ivy: Cornell
MAAC: Harlem
MAC: Kent State
MEAC: Morgan State
MWC: The Morman State College of Utah
NC: Robert Morris
OVC: Austin Peay
Patriot League: The School of the Americas
Southern: Davidson
Southland: Lamar (the billboard people?)
SAC (he,he): Alabama St. College of the Arts
Summit: Oral Roberts
WAC: Boise St

Then there is the Sun Belt, with both W. Ky and South Alabama looking like bubble teams, lets assume both are in for simplicity. Thats a total of 43 of 64, leaving 21 bids at-large.

1: Vanderbilt (25-6, 10-6) tight losses on the road to Ark. and at home to Tennessee, and that drubbing of UK, along with a 8-2 final 10 should make them first in
2: Pitt (21-9, 10-8) need a road win at Notre Dame, Syracuse or West Va to finish 3-3, but the RPI loves these guys?
3: Washington St (24-6, 12-6) only a tough loss at Stanford prevents them from finishing 8-0, watch out for the Cougars (thats what the press will be saying at least)
4: Oklahoma (22-9, 10-6) pounding by Texas prevents the sooner-be-dead-than-Oklahomans from finishing 8-0.
5: Kansas St (20-9, 11-5) the loss at Nebraska makes a win at either Baylor or Iowa St critical, but I think they'll win both
6: Arkansas (22-8, 11-5) a road loss at UK is all that prevents this Hog team that can finally win on the road from finishing 6-0. Finish 1st in the west and see a 6 seed. Soooooooooooooey!
7: Clemson (22-7, 11-5) 4-0 finish with win at Maryland and the Orange Crush get back to the big dance
8: Rhode Island (25-6, 11-5) finishing the year five-and-oh makes you proud to be a Rhody
9: UNLV (23-6, 11-3) A road loss to New Mexico makes the Gamblers 4-1. The Mormons' chief rivals make thug-till-death Greg Anthony proud.
10: Texas A&M (22-8, 9-7) a win at Baylor is paramount, a win at Oklahoma or at home against Kansas would be nice boost
11: Miami (22-8, 9-7) 7-1 down the stretch with wins over Duke and Maryland are nice, but doesnt' help condo prices in the metro does it?
12: Villanova (19-11, 9-9) a win at home vs either U Conn or Marquette makes this team 5-2 down the stretch in the Big E(asy)
13: W Va (20-10, 10-8) riding big wins over Providence, dePaul and St. Johns, the miners' daughters finish 3-3 and limp into the tournament on the committee's east coast bias
14: Houston (24-6, 13-3); the oilers go undefeated absentia Memphis in CUSA
15: Wake Forest (20-9, 10-6) 7-1 down the stretch with 3 road victories and home wins over Duke and Maryland
16: Mississippi (22-9, 7-9) 4-2 coming down the stretch to leapfrog Miss St. into contention
17: Kentucky (18-11, 12-4) 6-1 down the stretch, with a close loss to Tenn on the road and the committee saves UK any more embarrassment by letting them in the tournament with an 8 seed
18: Florida (22-9, 9-7) 4-2 with close losses to Tenn at home and at UK is enough to get the young crocs the SECs surprising 6th bid. Is there an SEC bias after it's recent success? Regardless, we know we'll here about one on SS by ACC's pet-shop boy Bilas. Will anyone be listening?
19: USC (19-11, 10-8) Will win at either Arizona or Arizona St, win over Stanford in the finale lifts them higher
20: Arizona (18-12, 9-9) need wins at Washington and Oregon St, and either at Oregon or home over USC
21: Arizona St (18-12, 9-9) need wins at Washington and Oregon St, and either at Oregon or home over USC (sound familiar?)

In case one of these falters

20: UAB (22-10, 11-5) UAB, Memphis and Houston combine for three losses to CUSA teams outside the triangle, and all are by UAB, can't stand the loss at UTEP!
21: Baylor (19-10, 8-8) must win one of the following home against K-State, home agains A&M or away against Tech.

Given what I've had to say about numbers, of course I have to mention my astonishment at this phenomena of Jon G guessing the spread correctly in two straight, the chances of that happening were exactly 31,425-1. Wow!

Rooster

Georgia Recap

2008-02-20T07:45:00.002-05:00

Kentucky dispatched the Georgia Bulldawgs in underwhelming fashion last night. After a sizzling start, the Cats let Georgia stay in the game until the final buzzer. The outcome of the game was no surprise to Jon G., who won the Gnome Contest for the second time. Mr. Guess is the only player to correctly guess a game score so far, making him a legend in his own mind. In recognition of his monumental achiement, Mr. Guess wins a Kentucky collector basketball autographed by Woo, She-Ray, and Bobby Perry.

The Goat, lil' Monkey, Blue Donkey, and the Bert were in house for the game. The lower level crowd was lame as usual, with many of the attendants leaving before the outcome of the was determined. The experience made me realize how badly UK needs a new arena. The Eruption Zone has definitely helped the atmosphere, but the student section needs to encircle the court - give the rest of the lower level student seats to the displaced patrons.

In other news, another Kentucky basketball player is off the team. It's a rather bazarre story - click on the link below to read it.

http://www.kentucky.com/276/story/323138.html

UGA Game Thread

2008-02-19T17:10:00.004-05:00

The Cats take on the Dawgs tonight, as Dennis Felton brings his zany personality to Rupp Arena. Expect a close game, because that's how the Wildcats roll.

Official Blue Donkey Prediction: Wildcats by 8.

Make your predictions in the comment section. First person to guess correctly wins a Kentucky Gnome.

National League Preview

2008-02-18T12:19:00.003-05:00

Spring has sprung, so the time has come for the official Wildcat Blog Major League Baseball Preview. I know for a fact of our 6 or 7 regular viewers, at least one is a baseball fan!

We'll start with the National League, where the New York Mets appear to be the team to beat after unloading a ton of prospects in exchange for Johan Santanna, a very good southpaw from Minnesota.

Note: According to a fine boxer named Balboa, the term "southpaw" comes from a left-handed boxer facing south Philly when he fought- so, paw is his hand, south Philly - south paw, "southpaw".

Anyway, like I said the Mets are really good and got better in the off-season, so despite their late season collapse last year they should win the East, even though Philly (there's that town again) is good as well.

The Reds got Dusy Baker to manage this off-season, so that means all their oldest offensive players will dominate playing time while their young pitchers will have their arms dangling off their shoulder by the end of the year due to overuse. The Houston Astros made a huge trade for Miguel Tejada, who may or may not be facing perjury charges from the Mitchell Report on performance enhancing drugs. The Cardinals have done nothing and there are rumors of Pujols' elbow possibly needing surgery. The Brewers are coming off a good year, but I don't think guys like Braun will repeat their offensive numbers. And, Ben Sheets is hurt almost as much as my Grandma.

What does this all mean? The Cubs should win the Central. And since it's been 100 years since they won a World Series, I'm predicting that they will at least make it there in 2008. They are deep in pitching and signed their biggest need in the off-season by acquiring left-handed (another 'southpaw'!) hitting right-fielder Kosuke Fukudome. Now, his last name is pronounced FOO KOO DOH MAY, though I prefer the phonetic pronunciation myself. (If you don't see the humor in that, you are far too mature to read anything I ever write on this blog, so go away.) In Japan, he got on base a lot and hit for power, something the Cubs haven't had since Fred "the Crime Dog" McGriff had his tour of duty before retiring to hawk Tom Emanski baseball drills videos.

As for the West, who cares. They don't play until 10:30 at night, so no one will know anything about them until October. Arizona will be good and the Rockies might repeat last year's performance. Whatever.

Up next, the American League.

Baton Rouge Game Thread

2008-02-16T11:26:00.006-05:00

Kentucky travels to Baton Rouge today to take on the LSU 'Lucky' Pierre's. The game is a must win for the Wildcats, as any remaining loss (besides Tennessee) will likely put an end to the Wildcats' post season aspirations. Two weeks ago, the match-up seemed like a probable 'W' for the Cats. Since the LSU administration fired John Brady, however, the Tigers have been playing their best basketball of the season.

Last Saturday, LSU held Tennessee's high powered offense to 47 points. The Tigers followed the performance by beating the Florida Gators by 12 in Gainesville.

So what will it be today? Predict the outcome correctly and win your very own Kentucky Gnome. The Blue Donkey predicts a five point LSU victory, ending any NCAA tournament dreams for the Wildcats.

2008 Recruiting Update

2008-02-15T09:01:00.005-05:00

Billy Gillispie works underneath a shroud of mystery, which makes following the recruiting of the new Wildcat regime a difficult task. Where Tubby Smith's recruiting style assimulated a snail race, Gillispie's recruiting is more like a game of Where's Waldo. There seems to be no question that Billy Clyde possesses the aptitude of a successful recruiter, but his methods are new to the Wildcat faithful.

With two newcomers signed and two seniors leaving, Kentucky theoretcially has one scholarship to give. However, there will more than likely will be a couple of defections at seasons end. The remaining need for the Wildcats seems to be on the interior. However, there are very few big men left on the table for 2008.

As we enter the home stretch in recruiting for the class of 2008, let's examine some the names remaining on the Cats' radar.

Roderick Flemings - 6'7", 210, SF - Roderick (pictured)attends Weatherford Junior College. He was a high school All-American from the class of 2005, who orginally committed to Oklahoma State. Roderick is averaging around 20 points and 10 rebounds a game. Some analysts consider Flemings to be the best junior college player in the country. Roderick ranked 26th in the Rivals Top 150, Class of 2005.

Tyrone Appleton - 6'3", 190, PG - Tyrone attends Midland Community College in Texas and is known as being a excellent on-ball defender. He is currently being recruited by Kansas, Kentucky, and Texas.

Verdell Jones - 6'4", 160, PG - Verdell is from Champaign, IL. He considered a three star prospect by Rivals. Verdell has been on the Wildcats' radar for several months, and attended Big Blue Madness in October. Jones is also being recruited by Minnesota and Tennessee.

Brad Tinsley - 6'3" 180, SG - Tinsley, a Rivals' four star recruit, is a recent addition to the Wildcats' list. He is ranked 93rd in the Rivals Top 150. Tinsley is also being recruited by North Carolina, Tennessee, and Marquette.

And of course there is also the Scotty Hopson saga. Hopson, one of the most highly touted Kentucky players in recent history, originally commited to Mississippi State while Tubby was still at U.K. Since the arrival of Gillispie at Kentucky, Hopson has backed out of his verbal commitment to the Bulldogs. Although, reports are conflicting as to whether Kentucky is actively recruiting Hopson. Hopson is known as being incredibly talented and for his poor work ethic. Besides the Wildcats, Hopson is also reportedly interested in Tennessee and Louisville.

Wednesday Whispers

2008-02-13T08:50:00.007-05:00

If you didn't get enough of Kevin Stallings last night, you can see him in King of the Hill on Sunday. As crazy as it seems, no one correctly predicted Vandy by 41 in the Dan Langhi Prediction Contest. However, Coach Billy Clyde did oblige Jon Guess' request to put A.J. in the game.

Add Jimmy 'Butch' Dykes to my list of media members that are too stupid for television.

"Kentucky has enough talent. Joe Crawford, Ramel Bradley, and Patrick Patterson were all McDonalds's All Americans."

Nothing wrong with this statement, except that it's not true.

During an Illinois/Minnesota game update, Dykes stated , "Kentucky fans aren't going to want to hear this, but Minnesota is doing really good right now."

Oddly, at that moment Minnesota was losing at home to Illinois, and eventually lost by 24. The game was Minnesota's worst home loss of the season. Illinois improved there record to 11-14.

"Kevin Stallings is one of the top five 'offensive minds' in basketball."

Really?

"I got my hair cut yesterday. It cost me $41.00. Rascal Flatts gets their hair cut there."

Wow!

"I love coming to Nashville; it's all about the music. If Randy Travis was here, I would sit in his lap."

That I can believe.

If you didn't know, Jimmy Dykes was an assistant coach at Kentucky under Eddie Sutton. The University of Kentucky fired Dykes after Billy Ray Cyrus filed a restraining order against him.

Ouch!

2008-02-12T23:15:00.001-05:00

That one is going to leave a mark.

Dan Langhi's Vandy Prediction Thread

2008-02-12T11:16:00.001-05:00

The Wildcats head to Music City this evening to take on the Marshall County Commodores. With the spirit of of Dan Langhi, Barry Goheen, Aaron Beth, and Dan Hall behind the Commodores, it may be a tough task for the Wildcats.

Billy Clyde will be coaching his first game in Vandy's funky gymnasium. Gillispie down-played the significance of the court design, claiming the he and Ramel Bradley have been able to communicate on a telepathic level since Ramel suffered his concussion.

Tonight's game predictions should be varied, as the Cats will not be favored. Vegas has the Dores by 2.5. What do you have?

The winner will receive their very own My Old Kentucky Gnome statue. Only one guess per person. Point spreads cannot be duplicated. To win, the exact spread must be guessed. No submissions allowed after tip-off.

Bobby Knight

2008-02-12T09:28:00.000-05:00

Even though as a child I was taught to dislike Indiana Basketball, I've always sort of liked Bobby Knight. My lack of disdain is probably based on my age, as Bob Knight's Indiana teams never seemed to be that good while I was growing up. Actually, Mike Davis' tenure with the Hoosiers was much more entertaining from a U.K. perspective.

Last night Bob Knight was on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Mix in Larry the Cable Guy and Mr. Knight dressed in a referee uniform, and you have some truly excellent entertainment.

Check it out.

Alabama Game Thread Winner

2008-02-11T17:12:00.000-05:00

The first ever My Old KY Gnome game predicition contest was held on Saturday against Alabama. Thank you to everyone that participated. We will be having the contest for each of the remaining games this season.

Saturday's winner was Jon Guess of Paris, TN, who correctly picked the score of Kentucky by 10. Jon is an automechanic at Hank's Auto Care, and attends the Paris Mormon Tabernacle. He has one wife and two kids. The Guess' also have a Boston terrier named Mr. Ferdinand, who they enter in dog shows around the country.

Jon graduated from Marshall County High School. He says he's been a Cat fan since he can remember. His favorite Wildcat players of all-time are Richie Farmer and Rob Locke. Mr. Guess thinks the Cats will make the NCAA tournament this year, behind the leadership of Ramon Harris. Jon also said, "Coach, when you gonna put A.J. in?"

Look for the Vandy game thread tomorrow.

Here We Go!

2008-02-11T07:40:00.000-05:00

In the words of the awesome 80's rock band Europe - 'it's the final countdown'. With eight games to go in the regular season, the recent upswing in the Wildcats' play has people wondering what the post season holds for Kentucky. As a fan, I have been unwilling to let myself believe the Cats have a chance to make the NCAA tournament. Yes, Kentucky's name is beginning to be mentioned as a possibly bubble team. And yes, others like ESPN's Jay Bilas seem to be campaigning to keep the Cats out of the tournament. But before you run off and start making anti-Jay Bilas t-shirts, remember that media folk are paid to talk. They are not paid to be correct.

Furthermore, I don't think it does our basketball team any favors to try to predict the future at this point. In the words of my spiritual leader Ramel Bradley "Now is not about making our record look pretty. We just have to keep winning basketball games."

Regardless of what the post season holds for this team, I am proud of what this basketball team has done so far. They have battled through injury and embarassing losses. The have persevered through a difficult coaching change and the transfer of players with lunatic mothers. They have bought in to Coach Clyde's system, and they have come together as a team.

However, there are eight games to go. Tomorrow we play the first. A win at Vanderbilt would be huge for this team, as it would provide the Cats with their first road win over a quality opponent. It will not be easy, but it is possible.

The My Old KY Gnome Game Day Prediction thread will be up in the morning. Have your guesses ready. More on the Alabama game contest winner later in the day.

"I may be bald, and we may not have an athletic department. But we have a funky gym and an Australian player, and that has to count for something."
Kevin Stallings

Another Must See

2008-02-10T18:37:00.001-05:00

I'll break from tradition and cover a movie that's only been on DVD for a short while. 3:10 to Yuma is a great one. What makes it work are the two lead characters, Russell Crowe and Christian Bale. These characters make an unlikely connection that is the focal point of the movie.

Bale plays a rancher who struggles with a drought, railroaders running him off his land, a son that wants to run wild, and a wife that's losing her love for him. Opportunity to set all these straight strikes when he accepts a cash offer to aid in the escort of a dangerous criminal to the 3:10 prison train to Yuma.

That criminal is Ben Wade, played by Crowe. Now, you know just from the guy's last name being Wade that he's a badass and a hit with the ladies. But, what becomes surprisingly apparent as the movie goes on is that this man respects the down-on-his-luck rancher who is intent on seeing him off to prison. Enjoy the subtle dialogue between the two as the movie goes on.

As good as those two are, Ben Foster darn near steals the movie as Charlie Prince, Wade's substitute gang leader. This guy dazzles with the sidearms and is one of the meanest hombres north, south, east, and west of the Pecos.

Favorite scene? I'll just say it's right after this verse is sang- "They-re gonna hang me in the morning A'fore this night is done They're gonna hang me in the mornin' And I'll never see the sun".

Is That You, Yogi?

2008-02-09T13:17:00.000-05:00

Jorge Posada channeled another great Yankee Catcher yesterday when he said - in regards to the Roger Clemens steroid story - "I just hope whoever is telling the truth is telling the truth. We'll see." Jorge's quote on-line

We will see Jorge, because the story got nuttier as reports are coming in that Clemens' wife got some HGH to prepare for a photo shoot in Sports Illustrated. I've researched the photos, purely in the name of journalistic research, and I must say that if she did take HGH then they outta put the stuff in the public water supply because she's hotter than billy goat with four testicles.

This whole saga makes for good t.v., but I'm to the point where people are gonna have to realize that almost every accomplished athlete has made sacrifices and tried things that most of us wouldn't. In other words, if you think that all baseball players are completely PED - free now that testing is stricter you are wrong. If you believe the NFL is PED - free you are crazy. Just watch the combine workouts on the NFL channel this summer. These are guys coming right out of college and they are freaks. Absolute freaks. It takes more hard work than most of us can comprehend and more mental toughness than most of us can muster. And I think it sometimes means taking drugs, but that last part admittedly is speculation on my part.

But, as more and more of these stories come out, can we really believe that only a very small portion of high level athletes use PEDs?

Come Again?

2008-02-08T20:56:00.000-05:00

Over the course of the past 48 hours, I have listened to Rush Limpbaugh's radio show and watched Ann Coulter on the Today Show. There is mention among the conservative ranks that voting for Hillary in the presidential election, with the insinuation that she would ruin the country so quickly, would be more beneficial for the Republican Party in the long run.

First, let me say that I would be happy with any of the three remaining candidates. Beyond that, I have to question whether Limpbaugh or Coulter have been lucid during the past eight years?

Success as a country can be defined in many ways. However, it is beyond me cognitive abilities to define how the past eight years have been in any way a success for the United States. The mistakes are obvious and plentiful, but will be saved for a later post. I do think, however, that the legitimacy of the conservative movement needs to be examined if these two people are truly spokes-people for the cause.

Alabama Game Thread

2008-02-08T12:12:00.000-05:00

Seriously, how could you possibly like anybody that looks like Mark Gottfried? His middle name is Fredrick - that seems appropriate. If I was a high school basketball player and this guy started calling me and sending me letters, I would notify the F.B.I. Oddly enough, Mr. Gottfried seems to be an incredible recruiter. For instance, he beat out North Carolina for the services of Richard Hendrix. Unfortunately, Fredrick seems to be as bad of a coach as he is a good recruiter. Despite having good players, Alabama never seems to have a good team. He's sort of like the sober version of John Brady at L.S.U. (who just got fired).

The Cat's should take this game. I just saw Ramel Bradley walking back from class a couple of hours ago. He was all smiles, and seemed to be back to his old self.

My Old Kentucky Gnome Contest - We are introducing a new contest with the Alabama - Kentucky game this weekend. If you predict the correct spread in the game, you win your very own My Old Kentucky Gnome, courtesy of Wildcat Textbooks. An example would be, Kentucky by 3. Only one entry per person. The Gnome goes to the first person to predict the spread correctly - You cannot duplicate someone else's guess. Submit your guesses in the comment section.

All Aboard - Meet the New Cats

2008-02-06T14:32:00.000-05:00

Kentucky's 2008 football signing class appears to be complete. All 18 players that were expected to commit, as of yesterday, have made it official. In addition, the Cats added Aaron Boyd and Collins Ukwo. Ukwo, a defensive end from Tennessee, was not offered a scholarship from U.K. until yesterday. He was previously commited to Middle Tennessee.

Meet the new football Cats (courtesy of U.K. Athletics):

Eric Adeyemi, Wide Receiver, 6-0, 165, Fr-HS, Miami, Fla. (Southridge) – Swift wide receiver prospect … Has been timed below 4.4 seconds in the 40-yard dash … As a senior, caught 31 passes for 455 yards and four touchdowns for Southridge HS in Miami, Fla. … Rushed 24 times for 246 yards, a 10.3-yard average, and five TDs … Also returned kickoffs and punts, including a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown … Two-way player as a senior and had two interceptions on defense … Named to the All-Dade County team, a talent-rich area … According to a story in the Miami Herald, Eric was the only player this season who caught a pass against heralded Miami defensive back prospect Brandon Harris … Credited with 16 receptions for 353 yards, an impressive 22.1-yard average, and four TDs as a junior … Rushed for 206 yards on 28 carries, a 7.4 average, and three TDs … Coached by Rodney Hunter … Also a track standout … Second in the state in the 300-meter hurdles as a junior … Fourth in the state in the 110-meter hurdles as a junior … Name is pronounced “ad-uh-YEM-ee.”
Aaron Boyd, Wide Receiver, 6-3, 210, Fr-HS, Lexington, Ky. (Henry Clay) – Highly regarded wide receiver … The No. 1 prospect in Kentucky by Rivals.com and Scout.com … One of the nation’s top-40 wide receivers by both services, and rated the No. 18 player in the Midwest by Scout.com … Caught 55 passes as a senior, good for 1,157 yards and 15 touchdowns … First-team all-state by The Associated Press … Named to the Lexington Herald-Leader “Class of the Commonwealth” and “Kentucky Tremendous 26” listing of the top seniors in the state … Named to the all-city team as a junior, snagging 39 balls for 730 yards and five touchdowns … Also saw action as a defensive back … Helped lead Henry Clay HS to a 35-6 record over the last three seasons, including trips to the state semifinals as a sophomore and junior … Coached by Sam Simpson … Also a member of the basketball squad and played for the Henry Clay team that advanced to the Kentucky Sweet 16 state tournament as a freshman … Brother of former Wildcat quarterback Shane Boyd (UK 2000-03), who is now with the NFL’s Houston Texans.
Chandler Burden, Offensive Lineman, 6-5, 280, Fr-HS, Oxford, Ohio (LaSalle) – Athletic lineman who played both offense and defense at LaSalle HS in Cincinnati, Ohio … Projects as an offensive lineman in the collegiate ranks … Played nose tackle and end while on defense … Two-year member of the highly competitive Greater Catholic League in the Cincinnati area … Honorable-mention All-Southwest Ohio as a senior … Has been timed below 5.0 in the 40-yard dash, an excellent clocking for a lineman … Named to an “All-Combine Team” in Cincinnati, an event which featured players from multiple states … Coached by Tom Grippa … Throws the shot and the discus for the track and field team … Advanced to the state meet and finished in the top 10 in both events as a junior … Has several relatives who live in the Lexington area and already were Kentucky fans.
Randall Cobb, Quarterback/Athlete, 5-11, 180, Fr-HS, Alcoa, Tenn. (Alcoa) – Named “Mr. Football” for Class AA in Tennessee … Dual-threat quarterback from perennial power Alcoa HS … Alcoa has won four-consecutive state championships, the last two with Cobb at the offensive controls as the starting QB … Team posted a 27-3 mark during his two campaigns as a starter … As a senior, completed 89 of 139 passes (64.0 percent) for 1,765 yards, 22 touchdowns, and only two interceptions … Rushed for 793 yards, a 9.0-yard average per carry, and 13 touchdowns … During his junior season, threw for 1,893 yards, 25 TDs, and just four interceptions … All-state as a junior and senior … Coached by Gary Rankin … At Kentucky, will be reunited with current Wildcat wide receiver Kyrus Lanxter … One of the top-11 prospects in Tennessee by the Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel … One of the top-20 prospects in Tennessee, according to Rivals.com … Projected as a defensive back by Scout.com, he is listed as one of the nation’s top-100 DBs by that service … Also a member of the track team.
E. J. Fields, Wide Receiver/Defensive Back, 6-2, 190, Fr-HS, Frankfort, Ky. (Frankfort) – Highly regarded athlete … Played quarterback and cornerback at Frankfort (Ky.) HS and has been projected as a wide receiver or DB on the collegiate level … Led team to an 11-3 record and a spot in the state semifinals his senior season … Had eight interceptions as a senior, adding eight pass breakups, 59 tackles, and five tackles for loss … At quarterback, he ran for 1,023 yards and 19 touchdowns … Also passed for 373 yards and five scores … First-team all-state by the Louisville Courier-Journal … Named to the Lexington Herald-Leader “Class of the Commonwealth” and the “Kentucky Tremendous 26” listings of the top seniors in the state … Ran for 1,147 yards and 14 touchdowns as a junior, earning all-county and all-district honors … Career totals feature 2,677 rushing yards and 39 TDs … On defense, he totaled nine interceptions and 190 tackles … Coached by Craig Foley … Has been timed at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash … The No. 4 prospect in Kentucky by Rivals.com, which also lists him as the nation’s No. 63 all-purpose athlete … The nation’s No. 45 safety according to Scout.com … Also has participated in basketball and track … Won the state championship in the 400-meter dash as a junior and also competes in the 100 and 200 meters … Best times include 10.7 seconds in the 100, 22.2 in the 200, and 48.7 in the 400 … Considering running track while at Kentucky.
Winston Guy, Defensive Back, 6-1, 190, Fr-HS, Lexington, Ky. (Catholic) – First-team all-state defensive back as chosen by The Associated Press and Louisville Courier-Journal … Named to the Lexington Herald-Leader “Class of the Commonwealth” listing of the top-22 seniors in the state … Helped lead Lexington Catholic HS to a 13-2 record and Class AAAA state championship as a senior … Earned a reputation as a great cover corner and his athletic ability enabled him to be a devastating blitzer … Senior defensive statistics featured 75 tackles, 18.5 tackles for loss, 7.5 quarterback sacks, 10 QB hurries, two caused fumbles, and two blocked kicks … Offensive stats included 24 carries for 267 yards and six touchdowns, along with 16 pass receptions for 215 yards and two TDs … Also had two kick returns for touchdowns … Set a school career record with 19.5 sacks … Team also won the state title in Class AAA his sophomore season … Has turned in a 4.35 clocking in the 40-yard dash … Coached by Bill Letton … Projected as a safety by Scout.com and listed as the No. 12 safety in the nation … The No. 3 prospect in Kentucky and one of the top-30 safeties in the country as selected by Rivals.com.
Osaze Idumwonyi, Offensive Lineman/Defensive Lineman, 6-1, 275, Fr-HS, Cedar Hill, Tex. – Athletic lineman who excelled on both sides of the ball at Cedar Hill (Tex.) HS … Could end up on offense or defense at Kentucky … Started in the offensive line his junior year when his team went 16-0 and won the Class AAAAA state championship … Chosen for the all-district team as a senior … Noted for his quickness and explosion at the snap … Has run the 40-yard dash under 5.0 seconds, according to Cedar Hill Coach Joey McGuire, an outstanding time for a lineman … Originally played tight end but became a lineman as he matured … Top lifts include 650 pounds in the squat and 330 in the bench press … Listed as the No. 12 center in the nation by Rivals.com and the No. 62 player in the talent-rich state of Texas … Scout.com tabs him among the nation’s top-125 offensive guards … Name is pronounced “o-SAH-zay id-oo-WAH-ee.”
William Johnson, Linebacker, 6-3, 195, Fr-HS, Nashville, Tenn. (Pearl-Cohn) – Versatile athlete who performed at multiple positions at Pearl-Cohn HS in Nashville, Tenn. … At various times he played free safety and linebacker on defense and played wide receiver and tailback on offense … Also excelled at returning punts and kickoffs … Has a frame that will enable him to continue to gain size and strength while in college … His speed enabled him to be an effective blitzer, as he had 12 quarterback sacks as a senior, along with 80 tackles and a pair of interceptions … On offense he had 37 catches for 689 yards and 12 touchdowns … Rushed 21 times for 350 yards and four TDs … Averaged a phenomenal 35 yards per punt return … Helped Pearl-Cohn advance to the Class AAA state semifinals as a junior and senior … All-city, all-region, and second-team all-state as a senior … Has been timed at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash … Coached by Tony Brunetti … Teammate of fellow UK signee DeAunte Mason … His athletic versatility also shows in other sports … Plays basketball and baseball in addition to football … Plays catcher and center field in baseball, another unique combination.
DeAunte Mason, Quarterback/Athlete, 6-3, 215, Fr-HS, Nashville, Tenn. (Pearl-Cohn) – Named “Mr. Football” for Class AAA in Tennessee … Dual-threat quarterback with good size … Began starting at quarterback midway through his freshman season at Pearl-Cohn HS in Nashville, Tenn. … Helped Pearl-Cohn advance to the Class AAA state semifinals as a junior and senior … Threw for 2,375 yards as a senior, also rushing for 1,052 yards, and accounted for 35 total touchdowns … Also the team’s punter and placekicker … Passed for almost 2,000 yards an 19 touchdowns as a junior, to go along with 906 rushing yards and 15 TDs … All-state as a junior and senior … Regional Most Valuable Player and also Nashville Metro MVP as a senior … Coached by Tony Brunetti … One of the top-11 prospects in Tennessee by the Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel … One of the top-20 prospects in the state by Rivals.com … Among the nation’s top 100 QBs by Scout.com … Teammate of fellow UK signee William Johnson … Plays basketball and runs track … Member of the 4x200-meter relay team that won the state championship his junior year … President of his school’s chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes … Currently a finalist for the Admiral Lawrence Scholarship Award given by the Nashville chapter of the National Football Foundation … Name is pronounced “dee-AUN-tay.”
Gene McCaskill, Wide Receiver, 6-0, 175, Fr-HS, Chester, S. C. (Chester) – Named first-team all-state as an all-purpose athlete by the Columbia State newspaper and the High School Sports Report … Talented playmaker performed at quarterback and wide receiver in high school … Expected to get a first look at wide receiver in college … Helped lead Chester HS to the Class AAA state championship game as a senior … Accounted for more than 2,500 passing, rushing, and receiving yards, to go along with 30 touchdowns in those categories … Played in the South Carolina North-South All-Star Game … Has been clocked under 4.6 seconds in the 40-yard dash … One of the top-11 prospects in South Carolina by the Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel … Coached by Vic Floyd … An all-region track and basketball player.
Cartier Rice, Defensive Back, 5-10, 180, Fr-HS, Duncan, S. C. (Byrnes) – First-team all-state selection as a senior by The Associated Press, the Columbia State newspaper and the High School Sports Report … Outstanding cover cornerback with noteworthy quickness … Helped lead Byrnes HS of Duncan, S. C., to three state championships of the largest classification during his four years on the varsity … Had three interceptions as a senior, and capped the campaign by playing in the South Carolina vs. North Carolina Shrine Bowl … Had an interception for the winning South Carolina team in the Shrine Bowl … “Rice took on the challenge all week of covering a very talented group of receivers and came up aces,” wrote recruiting analyst Barton Simmons, who covered the Shrine Bowl game and practices for Rivals.com … Also had three interceptions as a junior, to go along with eight pass breakups … Coached by Chris Miller … Name is pronounced “car-TEE-ay.”
Matt Roark, Quarterback/Athlete, 6-6, 190, Fr-HS, Acworth, Ga. (North Cobb) – Combines excellent height and good speed … Originally a free safety, he moved to quarterback early in his junior year when the team’s starting QB was hurt; blossomed at the new position as he developed into a top-notch quarterback … Honorable-mention all-state as a senior by the Georgia Sportswriters Association and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution …Two-time Cobb County Player of the Year … In 18 career starts he totaled 54 rushing and passing touchdowns … As a senior, he completed 98 of 136 passes (72.1 percent) for 1,552 yards and 15 touchdowns … Rushed for 1,010 yards and 12 TDs, averaging 7.3 yards per carry … Rushed for over 1,000 yards as a junior, scoring 18 touchdowns … Also had five interceptions … Led North Cobb HS to state playoff berths as a junior and senior … Coached by Shane Queen … Also plays basketball … Has Kentucky connections, as he was born in Lexington and still has relatives living in Hazard … Name is pronounced “RORK” … His father, Ray Gover, was a UK football letterman from 1985-88 as a defensive back and wide receiver.
Donte Rumph, Defensive Lineman, 6-3, 260, Fr-HS, St. Matthews, S. C. (Calhoun County) – Talented lineman with the size and strength to play tackle and also the quickness needed to play at end … As a senior, earned first-team all-state honors, covering all classifications, by The Associated Press and the Columbia State newspaper … Also first-team all-state for Class AA by the High School Sports Report … Totaled 107 tackles during senior season, to go along with 14 quarterback sacks, for Calhoun County HS in St. Matthews, S. C. … Chosen for the South Carolina vs. North Carolina Shrine Bowl and played for the winning squad … Made 65 tackles and five sacks during his junior season … Coached by Walter Wilson … Member of the Calhoun County basketball team which has won three consecutive state championships and has an active winning streak of more than 70 games … An uncle, Chris Rumph, is an assistant coach at Clemson … Cousin of Clemson defensive lineman Philip Merling.
Matt Smith, Defensive Lineman/Offensive Lineman, 6-4, 270, Fr-HS, Louisville, Ky. (St. Xavier) – First-team all-state as a senior by the Louisville Courier-Journal … Named to the “Class of the Commonwealth” listing of the top 22 seniors in Kentucky by the Lexington Herald-Leader … Also tabbed for the “Kentucky Tremendous 26” … Played primarily in the defensive line for perennial power St. Xavier HS in Louisville … Helped St. Xavier reach the state finals in his senior and sophomore seasons, going 14-1 in each campaign … Known for his upper-body strength and playing savvy … Although he played mostly on defense in high school, he is usually projected as an offensive lineman in college … Scout.com lists him as the No. 63 offensive guard in the country … Coached by Mike Glaser … Also a competitive swimmer … Grew up as a Kentucky fan.
Sean Stackhouse, Tight End, 6-4, 250, Fr-HS, Jacksonville, Fla. (Mandarin) – Big, athletic tight end … Four-year starter for Mandarin HS in Jacksonville, Fla. … As a senior, caught 32 passes for 426 yards and four touchdowns … Snagged 33 passes his junior season, good for 333 yards … Two-year member of the all-conference team … Team captain as a junior and senior … Listed as the nation’s No. 31 tight end by Scout.com … Selected to play in the Florida North-South All-Star Game but was unable to participate because of an injury … Nominated for the U. S. Army All-America Game … Coached by Luther Price and the late J. D. Hall … Also participated in track and field and played basketball in high school.
Danny Trevathan, Linebacker, 6-1, 210, Fr-HS, Leesburg, Fla. (Leesburg) – Athletic linebacker whose speed and playing intensity have drawn comparisons to UK All-SEC linebacker Wesley Woodyard … Three-year starter for Leesburg (Fla.) HS … Third-team all-state, covering all classifications, by the Florida Sportswriters Association … Named first-team All-Central Florida by the Orlando Sentinel … Also the Area Defensive Player of the Year for Lake and Sumter counties by the Sentinel … Also the Area Defensive Player of the Year by the Leesburg Daily Commercial … Senior statistics included 117 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 5.5 quarterback sacks, two fumble recoveries (one returned for a touchdown), and three caused fumbles … Played quarterback and running back on offense … … Rushed 56 times for 427 yards, a 7.6-yard average, and three touchdowns … Notched 98 tackles, including 17 for loss, along with five caused fumbles, three fumble recoveries, and six sacks as a junior … Has been timed as fast as 4.45 seconds in the 40-yard dash … Coached by Charles Nassar … Also a member of the school’s weightlifting team.
Dave Ulinski, Offensive Lineman, 6-4, 280, Fr-HS, Louisville, Ky. (duPont Manual) – Co-winner of the Paul Hornung Award as the best player in Kentucky … Played center his senior season at duPont Manual HS in Louisville … Helped the Crimsons average 33.9 points and 172 rushing yards per game … Team went 10-2, advancing to the second round of the state playoffs … Named first-team all-state by The Associated Press and Louisville Courier-Journal … Chosen for the Lexington Herald-Leader “Class of the Commonwealth” and the “Kentucky Tremendous 26” listings of the top seniors in the state … Prior to his senior year, he played in the defensive line at Manual … Has the ability and athleticism to play either side of the ball in college … The No. 7 prospect in Kentucky by Rivals.com and the nation’s No. 67 offensive tackle … Scout.com lists him as the No. 46 offensive tackle in the country … Coached by Joe Nichols … Dave’s grandfather, Harry, was a center/linebacker at Kentucky from 1946-49 … Harry was an All-SEC player, honorable-mention All-American, captain of the 1949 Orange Bowl team, played six years in the National Football League, and is one of UK’s retired-jersey honorees … Name is pronounced “u-LIN-skee.”
Collins Ukwu, Defensive End, 6-4, 210, Fr-HS, La Vergne, Tenn. (La Vergne) – Defensive end noted for his speed and quickness … Outstanding mobility indicated by the fact that he set a school career record with 43 tackles for loss at La Vergne (Tenn.) HS … Played only seven games his senior season because of injury, but totaled 86 tackles, 22 tackles for loss, seven quarterback sacks, three fumbles caused, and one fumble recovery … All-region as a junior and senior … Named to the all-area team as a senior by the Murfreesboro Daily News Journal … Honorable-mention all-state … Three-year starter who helped lead La Vergne to state playoff appearances his sophomore and junior seasons … Has run the 40-yard dash in 4.7 seconds … Coached by Will Hester … Member of school’s basketball team that has won four consecutive district championships and two regional titles … Competes in the shot put and discus throw for the track and field team … Name is pronounced “OOK-woo.”
Trevino Woods, Offensive Lineman, 6-5, 280, Fr-HS, Athens, Ga. (Clarke Central) – Sizeable offensive line prospect … Played two seasons in the offensive line at Clarke Central HS in Athens, Ga. … Graded at 82 percent for his senior season, including 45 pancake blocks … Team went 7-3-1 as a senior, advancing to the first round of the Class AAAA playoffs … Known for good quickness in addition to his noteworthy size … Has tremendous upside as he did not begin playing football until his junior year of high school … The nation’s No. 48 offensive guard by Scout.com … Coached by Leroy Ryals … The first commitment of Kentucky’s 2008 signing class … Also on the track and field team, competing in the shot put and discus throw.
Taylor Wyndham, Linebacker/Defensive Lineman, 6-4, 205, Fr-HS, Swansea, S. C. (Swansea) – Tall linebacker who has tremendous speed and range, and also plays with great leverage … First-team all-state for Class AAA by the High School Sports Report and SCVarsity.com … Second-team all-state selection, covering all classifications, by the Columbia State newspaper … Played outside linebacker as a senior, making 86 tackles along with five quarterback sacks, 21 quarterback hurries, one interception, three fumbles caused, and three fumbles recoveries for Swansea HS … Also scored three touchdowns on offense … Was an inside linebacker as a junior, making 130 tackles with three caused fumbles, three fumble recoveries, three quarterback sacks, and one interception … Named all-region as a junior and senior … Totaled more than 300 tackles at Swansea … Also played defensive end early in his high school career … Could possibly return to defensive end in the collegiate ranks as he continues to mature physically … Played in the South Carolina North-South All-Star Game after his senior season … Ranked as the nation’s No. 47 strongside linebacker by Scout.com … Coached by Van Lewis … Also played soccer and basketball.

Boyd is a Cat!

2008-02-06T11:35:00.000-05:00

National Signing Day has kicked into full gear. The Cats' biggest question mark going into the day was Henry Clay's Aaron Boyd. Boyd, the brother of former Wildcat Shane Boyd, had narrowed his list to Oregon and Kentucky. Oddly enough, requiring Boyd to decide whether he would rather play for Rich Brooks at Kentucky or play on Rich Brooks Field in Oregon. The acquisition of the Lexington standout adds a little extra momentum to Kentucky's recruiting class, which is currently expected to rank in the low 60's.

We will have a full list of Kentucky's signees towards the end of the day.

Wrath of Super Tuesday

2008-02-06T09:33:00.001-05:00

The clean up after Fat Tuesday usually consists of collecting beer cans and discarded beads. This year mother nature chipped in on the debauchery, as tornados and 75 m.p.h. winds ripped through the south. Lives were lost in several states. The Wildcat Textbook/UK campus area was hit hard with strong winds.

A newly installed light fixture at Wildcat Textbooks was ravaged by the wind.

Below: A large North Carolina Fur Maple was broken in two from the deadly winds.
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The Central Parking sign in front of the Lexington Seminary was bent to a 45 degree angle. Central Parking charges $9.00 a day to park in the lot, so they can afford it.

Broken trees in front of the Lexington Seminary.

This guy's ass was completely blown away.

Happy Super Tuesday

2008-02-05T09:30:00.001-05:00

Today could be one of the biggest days in the political history of our country and one thought keeps running through my goat brain- I wish Hunter Thompson hadn't shot himself in the face with a shotgun. Thompson was an admitted "political junkie" and would be having a hell of a time with the primaries this year.

I don't feel like looking it up - you'll have to take my word for it, but seldom have there been years where both parties were locked in tight races this late in the process at the same time.

Where we go from here is anyone's guess, but John "Die Hard" McCain is hoping to parlay his slim lead into the GOP nomination. His backroom deal promising Mike Huckabee the VP nomination in exchange for staying in a little longer, thereby hosing Mitt "the Mormon" Romney out of 100% of the religious-right vote, was a very successful tactic. One thing to remember about McCain - Limbaugh and Coulter hate him, so he is hands down the best candidate on that side of the aisle

As for the party that brought us the weekend, it is completely up for grabs. One year ago, this humble blogger thought Hillary would have sewn up the bid and began her run at a third term in the White House. But a thin fellow by the name of Obama has made this very interesting. The race is way to close to call, especially given the Democrats' bizarre primaries in which you can lose a state but still get some electoral votes and some states like Florida and Michigan where you can win and not get any votes.

Anyhow, if Hunter Thompson where alive he would be estatic and maybe even writing some entertaining stuff, which by the end of his life was not happening very often.

New Ride for Knight

2008-02-04T20:01:00.000-05:00

After 902 career victories, the legendary Bob Knight is leaving the coaching profession. Earlier today, the Lubbock Ledger reported Coach Knight would be resigning, effective immediately. Bob Knight's son, Pat, will be taking over as head coach of Texas Tech. The elder Knight has no intentions of slowing down though, as NBC has already contacted him about playing the voice of 'Kit' in the new Knight Rider series.

Immediately following the news of Coach Knight's retirement, Dean Smith held a press conference at a Bob Evan's off of Interstate 90. Smith announced the discovery of 24 victories which had previously been omitted from his record, again making him the winningest coach in NCAA Division I men's college basketball.

Apparently, the victories had taken place during a two week tournament in Puerta Rico. Smith explained to reporters that the victories had previously been neglected because of insinuating circumstances involving a black-out drunk and an exotic dancer named KiKi. "Luckily for me," Coach Smith announced, "KiKi happened to write down the outcome of all 24 games on a cocktail napkin."

In honor of Coach Smith's accomplishment, ESPN has announced "24 Days of Glory." The festivities will include highlights from all of the greastest games between Duke and North Carolina.

Hefty Lefty Gets a Ring

2008-02-04T08:55:00.000-05:00

Jared Lorenzen knew it wouldn't be easy, but the big guy managed to lead the New York Giants to a Super Bowl victory. Tom Coughlin didn't allow J-Load to have his dancers on the sideline with him, which was disappointing. However, Lorenzen was able to catch the cameraman's eye during a couple of his freestyle touchdown dance celebrations. Although he never made it into the game, Lorenzen was voted as the My Old KY Gnome Super Bowl MVP.

Superbowl XLII will probably go down as one of the best ever. The game was fantastic, even for the casual observer. Tom Petty and the Homewreckers were very entertaining during the halftime show. Although, I was really hoping for a Tom Petty wardrobe malfunction. The commercials were so-so, with most people awarding the Coca-Cola with the title of best commercial.

However, the My Old KY Gnome Best Super Bowl Commercial Award goes to Bud Light, featuring Will Farrell.

Tough Win

2008-02-02T15:08:00.000-05:00

As the legendary Wormy Walker liked to say, "Boys, this is a gut check." The Kentucky Wildcats posted a big win in Athens on Saturday, despite playing with an onslaught of continuing injuries.

After entering the game battling illness, Ramel Bradley was forced to leave the contest after suffering a grade two concussion.

Joe Crawford suffered from severe cramps throughout the game, but managed to lead the Wildcats with 26 points. Patrick Patterson added 16 points, including some nasty dunks.

Bill Keightley was hampered by a tender corn on his right foot, which he made Mark Krebbs massage for most of the second half. When asked about the corn in post game interview, Keightley noted Krebbs' possessed a very gentle touch, even though he didn't show it at the foul line during the game.

Entering the game, Georgia was undefeated at home for the season, and Kentucky had yet to post a road victory. The UK Hoops team also gave the Lady Dawgs their first home defeat of the season this past Thursday. Georgia was ranked 14th before the game, giving new UK coach Matthew Mitchell the biggest victory of his tenure. After the game, Mitchell mentioned how proud he was of his girls' effort. Mitchell expressed a desire for his team to practice at the Parthenon during their next trip to Athens.

Oops, I did it again? or $$ ain't everything

2008-01-31T10:34:00.000-05:00

Huge police operation takes Spears from home to hospital
Story Highlights
NEW: L.A. Times: Britney Spears placed on "mental health evaluation hold"
NEW: Hold prompted by call police got from Spears' psychiatrist, Times reports
Police radio traffic: "The package is on the way out, " says L.A. Times reporter
For second time this month, Spears taken to a hospital

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- A police motorcade the length of a football field escorted troubled pop star Britney Spears to a Los Angeles hospital early Thursday to get her some help, a law-enforcement official told CNN.

Okay I will take over from here. Who gives a flying rats netherregion? I go against my rant by ranting about this but it is my hope a person that follows this non-relevant individual "news" will read this rant and mabye jar a cobweb loose and realize; "Hey this might not be important." Britney Spears; if not a millionaire and at one point a fantasy of many males (even I liked the Crazy video [a lot]), would just be considered a bad mother and poor employee and would have been fired and have lost custody of her children already. But, in this world we reside in, the more outrageous and less talented the individual the more "interesting and newsworthy" they become. So, she still has a recording contract and can not show to court but still be considered for custody. I hope B. Spears gets her stuff together just so I don't have to see her on news, internet, newspapers or hear about it from someone that thinks she is a current issue. When you make Kevin Federline (why do I know his name?) look like the responsible one, well... the thing speaks for itself. So, coo-coo ca-choo Ms. Spears, take a bow and let's move on to important issues... Like who is pregnant in Hollywood? Now that is truly newsworthy!

What? It is not? Oh come on!!

Last note: this is an actual headline from CNN.com-
Many make millions off Britney's escapades

Spears exclusive photographs can go for $10,000, even $100,000

To Klive Jr.: The little girl in Man on Fire is really Bette Davis re-incarnated. She frightens most people but she can act. And more importantly, the lady playing her mother looked fantastic.

Hefty Lefty Gets Super-Sized

2008-01-31T09:39:00.001-05:00

I could care less about Tom Brady's foot, the Scruples that live in Bill Belichick's sweatshirt, or the half time show of the Super Bowl (unless there will be some Janet Jackson type stuff going on). However, I am very thrilled about Jared Lorenzen being in the Super Bowl. You may know Jared as the former U.K. quarterback and the guy in the Subway commercials. What many people don't know, however, is that J-Load's physical stature is commensurate with his reputation in the Big Apple.

Jared Lorenzen has become a fixture in the Broadway theather scene, doing cameos in Broadway hits such as Rent and The Lion King. Jared also enjoys the New York restuarant scene, and his deft palette has earned him a renowned culinary reputation. Mix in the rapier's wit and funloving personality of Mr. Lorenzen, and you basically have a Big Apple media darling.

Lorenzen's success has begun to filter back to the Bluegrass, as many now consider him to be the living embodiment of the commonwealth. From his childhood days in Edgewood, to his college days in Lexington and on to the Big Apple, Jared has taught us how to shake it with that Kentucky since of swagger.

So here's to the Big Guy in the Super Bowl. Good luck Jared!

Edwards Says 'See Y'ALL Later'

2008-01-30T10:50:00.000-05:00

Jon Edwards has dropped out of the presidential race, citing that his gut-wrenching accent was too much for the American voters to overcome. Edwards decision came one day after a non-delegated drubbing in Florida by Team HillBill.

In God's Party, Rudy Giuliani is also expected to drop out of the race today after his loss in Florida, proving that even old people can tell when someone is bat-sh#t crazy. Mr. 9/11 is expected to announce his endorsement John McCain.

Not Always Smooth

2008-01-29T16:06:00.000-05:00

Ramel Bradley's legacy as a Kentucky Wildcat may not be that of glory, considering what the U.K. teams that he's been a part of have accomplished. After all, Ramel was a member of what many believed might be Kentucky's best recruiting class ever. A group that included McDonald's All-Americans Randolph Morris, Rajon Rondo, Joe Crawford; a recruiting class that was rated as the best in the country. Those three players, along with Ramel, were supposed to be the building blocks for several national championships in U.K.'s near future.

Unfortunately, things didn't exactly go as planned. Kentucky did manage to make it to the Elite Eight that year, held together by the leadership of Chuck Hayes. Shortly thereafter, the program began to crumble. There were so many things that happened, I will opt to just list them.

Something that needs to be recognized about Tubby Smith's best recruiting class are the two classes that surrounded the 2004 class. 2003 Class: Bobby Perry, Sheray Thomas, Woo, and Shagari. 2005 Class: Jared Carter and Rekalin Sims. With the exception of Sims, there really isn't even a role player in this group.
Joe Crawford tries to leave during the 2004-2005 season.
Kelenna Azubuike leaves after the 2004-2005 season.
Randolph Morris tries to leave after the 2004-2005 season.
Randolph Morris misses half of the 2005-2006 season.
Rajon Rondo leaves after 2005-2006 season.
Rekalin Sims leaves after the 2005-2006 season.
Adam Williams leaves after the 2005-2006 season.
Shagari Alleyne leaves after the 2005-2006 season.
Do you notice a trend here.
Tubby Smith leaves after the 2006-2007 season.
The horrific start to the Billy Gillispie era.

Weathering all of these unfortunate events, you have Ramel Bradley. 'Smooth' has been through it all, and sporting that crazy smile along the way. As Kentucky has seemingly (hopefully) turned things around this season, Ramel has grown into a complete team leader. Everybody knows that Smooth has always had the emotion of leader, but now his play is backing it up.

Ramel Bradley may not be recognized in the annals of U.K. history with the same regard as the Unforgettable's, but his contribution and dedication to the program should be remembered.

In recognition of his play in last weeks' wins over Tennessee and South Carolina, Ramel was named as the S.E.C. Player of the Week.

Senior Bowl Blues

2008-01-28T18:34:00.000-05:00

The Senior Bowl didn't exactly go as planned for the four Kentucky Wildcats that took part in the game. Wesley Woodyard probably came out of the game in the best shape. The S.E.C.'s leading tackler led the south squad with six tackles, although Woodyard missed a key tackle late in the game.

Rafael Little started the game for the south squad, and even carried the ball on the south's first offensive possession. In the practices leading up to the game, Rafael won a lot of praise from the coaches and scouts. During the game, Little made a poor decision on choosing to catch a punt that was going over his head. After bobbling the ball, he did manage to make up several of the yards. Unfortunately, Little did not return to the game in the second half after sustaining an injury.

Jacob Tamme also started for the south team. Tamme made the first reception for his squad, but shortly after was involved in a Colt Brennan interception. Tamme finished the game with two catches.

Andre' Woodson had a tough go of things in the Senior Bowl. Andre' was the second quarterback used by the south squad. After reportedly struggling in the practices throughout the week, Woodson made two key mistakes during the game which may have hurt his draft status. The first being a fumble and the second by taking a sack in the end zone for a safety. Woodson did throw the south's first touchdown. Most analysts are now predicting Woodson to be taken in the second round of the NFL draft.

Long time reader...

2008-01-28T11:18:00.000-05:00

What's up Cleveland!!! What? Oh, hey Lexington, I am a long time reader, 1st time blogger, so bear with me as I get my flow correct. That being said, I will try to contribute a fresh-ish vibe to this blog, while holding up the high bar set by the fine gentlemen that started this blog.

On with the show!!!!

In the vein of the great movies that have been out, I will go with another Denzel action piece. Man on Fire. Brief summary via IMDB:

In Mexico City, the former CIA assassin and presently an alcoholic decadent man John Creasy (Denzel Washington) is hired by the industrialist Samuel Ramos (Marc Anthony), with the recommendation of his old friend Rayburn (Christopher Walken), to be the bodyguard of his young daughter Pita (Dakota Fanning) and his wife Lisa (Radha Mitchell). Pita changes the behavior of the cold Creasy, making him live and smile again, and he feels a great affection for her. When the girl is kidnapped Creasy swears to kill each one responsible for the abduction.

Kick back and check this one out. Great lines, great music and Christopher Walken.

Senior Bowl moments, W. Woodyard played great, Tamme had a couple of catches, Little ran alright and Andre had a good touchdown pass but fumbled and took a safety. Most importantly, the UK players were sporting some new looking decals on their helmets. Is that a sign of new merchandise? We will let you know when we find out more news.

That is my final word.

Training Day

2008-01-25T14:33:00.000-05:00

Continuing my series of examing movies that have been out for a while, we look at "Training Day".

This movie is awesome. Denzel is a great actor, but he's almost always in a role where he's the typical good guy. In this film, he is most assuredly not the typical good guy.

He plays an undercover cop that has to take a promising young police officer (Ethan Hawke) around the block a few times to see if he can cut the mustard as a narc. Denzel spends the whole day messing with Hawke's head and driving him around some of the scarier parts of town, trying to see if he has what it takes to deal with the drug dealers and users of the world. His tactics are unethical. His language is crude. He is a bully. And, he has a pimptastic ride.

In short, he's awesome.

Ethan Hawke's character struggles with the reality that being a narc means having intimate knowledge of drugs and perhaps bending the rules of good police officering every now and then. But, in the best scene in the movie, the situation Hawke struggles with most will have you leaning forward on your couch and hoping like hell he can extricate himself from one of the scariest and most tense couple of minutes of cinematic history.

If you watch this movie and don't think it's one of the best you've ever seen I'll come to your house and give you ten dollars.

Last Chance

2008-01-25T14:25:00.001-05:00

Tomorrow you can see Andre' Woodson, Wesley Woodyard, Rafael Little, and Jacob Tamme in U.K. helmets for the final time. All four players are on the South team in the 2008 Under Armour Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama.

The south team is being coach by the staff of the San Francisco 49ers. Andre' Woodson will have some familiar faces at wide receiver, including Andre Caldwell of Florida and Early Doucet of LSU. Also playing in the Senior Bowl for the fourth straight year will be Louisville's Harry Lloyd Douglas.

Andre' Woodson has been named by analysts as being the best quarterback playing in the bowl, which also includes Tennessee's Danny Ainge and Michigan's Tom Brady. Louisville's Johnny Unitas and Boston College's Doug Flutie are not playing in the game, both of whom are currently predicted to be drafted before Woodson.

Mr. Pearl - Meet Mr. Clyde

2008-01-23T15:50:00.000-05:00

In the words of U.K.'s football team, last night's basketball performance made me 'Believe' for the first time this season. The team not only showed improvement, but actually played pretty good. Gillispie's addition of the shadow man on defense worked brilliantly, and we were able to hold ourselves to only 12 turnovers on offense.

Perry Stevenson had his best game of the season, if not his career. Mahatma Gandhi once told me that four scorers are better than three. Last night, Perry Stevenson proved that to be a noble truth. PPat had his standard awesome game, which led Billy Clyde to refer to him as 'a star, he's just a star,' in the post game Sportscenter interview. Ramel was money at the free throw line, and J.C. hit some big threes when we needed them.

It was an all-around team effort, and one we sorely needed.

Hi, We're Wildcat Textbooks!

2008-01-23T15:40:00.003-05:00

I know that we probably have somewhere around 5-6 loyal readers of this blog. However, if anyone reading this article got here because they googled "cheap textbooks and witty banter", let me give you the down-low on the goings-on here at this bookstore. See, we are kind of small-time on U.K.'s campus, but we're looking to change that. In this article, I hope to explain what it is we do here, while giving examples of what befuddles the living hell out of me about this industry at the same time.

First, ever since I've graced the University of Kentucky with my presence, whether as a student or as a bookstore employee, all I've ever heard about is how expensive textbooks are. Now, this has become more interesting to me since I came to Wildcat Textbooks. The reason is we do everything we can to sell the cheapest textbooks on U.K.'s campus. As a matter of fact, only three times was our lowest price guarantee even in doubt and all three times we adjusted the one to two dollar difference to retain the title of "least expensive bookstore this side of the Mississippi".

None of that surprises me - it's fun to scrounge around for the cheapest books, even if it's more work. What does surprise me is the number of people who still go to the bookstore that's found in the student center even though their books are far, far more expensive than ours. This will all change as we enter our second and third years here at this company, but right now it's frustrating. For instance, if I have one more phone call where a person says "I've looked EVERYWHERE for this book - do you have it there " I'm going to crawl through the phone and give them an atomic wedgie. Why do you have to tell me you did everything you could to NOT call here and get the book? I have a dog, maybe you could come by the house and kick her.

Jesus.

My point is, if the prices are that damn important of an issue, then y'all best start coming here to get your books and stay away from the store with the wall to wall carpeting. Our books are so cheap it stinks to high heaven in our store every time it rains because our roof has holes in it the size of those found in JFK conspiracy theories. And we have no carpeting of any kind. So there.

Lofton's Last Laugh, Tyler's First.

2008-01-22T13:18:00.000-05:00

Bruce Pearl and his overly talented Tennessee Volunteers come to Rupp Arena tonight to beat up on our little kitty-cats. Over the past four years, this game has become a yearly reminder that Tubby Smith was a terrible recruiter. However, this year's Tennessee team will not only feature Chris Lofton, but also former UK recruit Tyler Smith. You may not remember Tyler Smith, but he was Tubby Smith's whiff #7 in an attempt to find someone to play inside with Randolph Morris. In this episode of Kentucky recruiting mishaps, the Wildcats were beat out by mighty Iowa for Smith's services. Tubby even doctored a family tree in an attempt to form a relationship with Tyler, but the raging nightlife of Iowa City proved to be too much of a draw.

After averaging 15 points, 5 rebounds, and making the All Big Ten Freshman team, Tyler decided to transfer home to Tennessee to be closer to his ill father.

Also keep an eye out for J.P. Prince, a relative of Tayshaun.

SWEET SIXTEEN

2008-01-21T13:14:00.000-05:00

I'd like to go ahead and get one thing out in the open before I proceed- I'm a pretty big fan of cheerleaders. In fact, I married a former cheerleader. So, when I heard the University of Kentucky Cheerleaders won their 16th National Championship this past weekend I felt compelled to write a quick note about it.

The squad was nervous only because they had to go first. In the cheer world this is a little tough because you can't sit back and watch the others to see what you have to beat. On the other hand, when you go out and put up a good routine like our beloved Cats, you get to put the heat on the rest of the competition. Sure, it's nerve racking to sit around and watch once you're done and unable to influence the outcome any further, but when you're as dominant as this squad it doesn't matter.

He's No Joke

2008-01-21T09:53:00.000-05:00

As with the theme of this year in UK sports, good football news has trumped bad basketball news over the weekend. Joker Phillips, UK's offensive coordinator, has been named as the next head coach of the University of Kentucky. Joker will take over after Rich Brooks retires, which is estimated to be sometime around the year 2011. This is great news on several levels, and I applaud Mr. Barnhart on his foresight in this hiring.

Reason #1 - Rich Brooks is old, and old people tend to retire. You can't say enough about what Rich Brooks has done for this program. With the added continuity of Joker at the helm, Coach Brooks' endeavor to resurrect the Kentucky program will not falter after his departure. Oregon has been good since Coach Brooks left the Ducks, and hopefully Kentucky can do the same.

Reason #2 - The reason why Louisville is not good at football right now. Kentucky is not a destination school for football coaches. If we hired an outsider after Brooks' departure, a reasonable amount of success at Kentucky for the new coach would provide the opportunity to move on to bigger jobs - see Petrino. Joker bleeds blue. He is from Kentucky, and he played for Kentucky. This is where he wants to be, so hopefully success won't make him jump ship.

Reason #3 - If Barnhart had not of acted now, another school would have hire Joker as their head coach.

Two Things You May Not Know About Joker Phillips

1. He lives on the same road as our regional clothing director, Ricardo Chuevroni. Although, probably not for long.

2. Joker's wife mows their own yard. Let's see how long that lasts.

Book Rush Bonanza

2008-01-20T17:24:00.000-05:00

Book Rush: The term used in the college textbook industry to describe the first week of classes for a college semester.

It's finally over. Yesterday was my first full day off work since December 26th, and it was long over due. I slept until 10:30a.m., ate a huge lunch at P.F. Chang's, went and saw Juno, took a nap, and watched Kentucky get beat again. It was a pretty glorious day.

Overall, the book rush experience (our second at Wildcat Textbooks) was very positive. Our in-store sales were good, and our online sales were through the roof. The best thing about working at Wildcat Textbooks, however, is that most of our customers leave happy. Nobody enjoys buying textbooks, but students do appreciate finding the cheapest books, which is why we are here. Our goal this semester was to provide the absolute lowest textbook prices UK's campus. We sold two thousand different titles, and after it was all said and done, only two customers were able to find a single book cheaper at any other store.

The long hours of book rush inevitably brings about chaos, fatigue, elevated tempers, and drama. The spring 2008 book rush was my 18th as an employee, and it had a sprinkling of all the usual ingredients (crazy customers, concerned professors, lying/cheating publisher sales reps, and moronic coworkers). Don't get me wrong, 99 out of 100 people that walk in our door are perfectly stable, pleasant human beings. When thousands of people come into your store in the course of one week, however, you get your share of people who are full-time residents of Crazy Town. This year we also decided to throw a guy in a gorilla costume to add a little flare. In the end, the spring 2008 book rush was a success.

This past Friday, we celebrated with margarita's and a Dora the Explorer pinata. In the words of Mahatma Ghandi, it was a hoot.

A Letter In The Kentucky Kernel

2008-01-12T12:57:00.000-05:00

The following is a letter to the editor that appeared in our fair University's student newspaper on Friday, January 11. I will run it in its entirety with my own comments in blue at the appropriate times.

This style of e-commentary is based on firejoemorgan.com, a very entertaining blog.

Away we go-

Eliminate UK Athletics Department to save money

In 2003, Vanderbilt University eliminated its athletics department on the basis that athletics had gotten too far away from the university's core mission: academics.

Good for them. A few things I know about Vandy - it's an expensive school, it's gym sucks, and a woman that ranks as one of the smartest, prettiest, and kindest in the world graduated from there.

Today, the Commodores' men's basketball team is 16-0 and ranks 13th in the nation according to The Associated Press, while the Wildcats, with their highly paid athletics department administrators and gold-plated practice facilities, are 6-7.

"gold-plated practice facilities" - I get it- UK's new practice facility is fancy and by god the program is not living up to it. Now, I'm starting to detect a little bitterness here, but let's go on a little further-

The solution to UK's budget problems seems simple to me: instead of raising student tuition again - a devastating proposal that will hurt UK's drive to a top-20 ranking - UK should follow Vanderbilt's lead and eliminate its athletics department.

So, this fellow thinks that if UK gets rid of the athletic department there will be more money for the university.

The problem with that thinking is the university pays nothing toward the athletic department.

The athletic department is 100% self-sustaining - something I found out in 2.34 seconds after doing a google search. 3.4 seconds later I found out that the athletic department gives UK president Lee Todd a minimum of one million dollars for non-athletic scholarships and other campus funding per year.

Let me repeat- not only does the athletic department cost the university nothing to run, it actually gives the university a minimum of one million dollars a year.

Doing so would not only save money,

Doing so would cost over a million dollars a year,

it would be a huge boost to the morale of UK professors who have long resented UK's emphasis on athletics.

This may be partially true, since some in the academic world may not care much about sports. But by and large the faculty I know pretty much cheer for their current employer, as well as their alma maters' sports teams. I don't know how huge a boost to their morale it would be to get rid of the athletic department, but if we did and the minimum of one million dollars a year was lost every year, some of them may be out of jobs and have their morale significantly un-boosted.

Vanderbilt is a fine school for UK to emulate

True. Vandy is a fine school to copy- why, one of their graduates is a person I know to be one of the finest human beings in the world. They also are ranked as the 26th best university in the country by the Times of London and 19th by U.S. News and World Reports.

- and they have proven that they can still be winners on the court.

Damn right they've proven it on the court. Vandy's basketball team has 7 NCAA championships, has more wins than any other team in the history of the NCAA, and has... oh, wait.

Those are UK's numbers.

Vandy has, uh, well they're off to a good start this year. I'll take a wait and see on emulating their basketball program, if you don't mind.

(name withheld by the goat)

Lexington resident

SEC Domination

2008-01-08T10:14:00.000-05:00

LSU's whoopin' of The Ohio State National Championship Doormat in the BCS Championship game propelled the SEC to a stellar 7-2 bowl record for the year. The SEC has now won back-to-back national championships in basketball and football, proving once again to be the most dominant conference in college athletics.

Immediately following last night's game, ESPN's Sportscenter reported that the Duke / North Carolina basketball game is only weeks away, and that the matchup is the best rivalry in all of sport. When Dick Vitale was asked about LSU's victory, he reiterated that fact that Tubby Smith averaged 26 wins a year and that someone put a sign in Tubby Smith's yard. President Bush congratulated the Bayou Bengals this morning by emphasizing an Ohio State victory would have only emboldened the enemy, and that LSU would be wise to stay the course.

A Loserville Lickin'

2008-01-06T10:30:00.000-05:00

I will admit that yesterday's battle between UK and UofL was about what I expected. Still suffering from a football hangover, this years basketball saga has become a bit of an afterthought for me. We are not a good team. Once this is accepted as fact, the losses really don't sting that bad. Even though we were spanked by a coach that I despise as a human being and possibly the most unlikeable group of Louisville Cardinals in the history of the institution, I'm not really smarting from the game.

Give the Devil His Due: On a coaching note, I will say that Pitino did win the battle. UK's four guard lineup threw off Louisville's game plan in the first half. Pitino adjusted accordingly at half time, as UK's line up was rendered useless in the 2nd half.

Now we move on to the SEC, and what an interesting 16 games it will be.

Big Day in the Bluegrass

2008-01-05T07:28:00.000-05:00

It's always a big day in the bluegrass when Rick Pitino brings his ego back to Lexington. Things haven't exactly gone as planned for the boys in blue this year, but a victory over the Cards would definitely brighten the spirits of the big blue nation.

If you are like me and having a bit of trouble getting excited about the game, just take a visit to slick Rick's website, http://www.rickpitino.com/. If the music doesn't get your inner spirit bumpin', maybe you need to invest in one of Rick's highly acclaimed self-help books. -- Don't know where to eat, just check out the revered one's restaurant reviews. Have questions about life, god, where to get some killer hair implants? - Visit the ask 'Ask Pitino' section.

Nothing wake's up the bluebloods in the lower level like Pitino. Who knows, if we are lucky, he might even put Richie in!

Andre the Giant

2008-01-03T19:50:00.000-05:00

This post pays homage to my childhood WWF hero and to my favorite UK football player of all time, Andre Woodson. Today, I was fortunate enough to spend some time with the latter.

As I have mentioned before, the past two years of UK football have been a transformation, not only for the football program, but also for me as a Kentucky fan. Basketball may be king in the bluegrass, but this year's senior class brought a sense of euphoria to the commonwealth not experienced since 1998's basketball championship.

Naturally, an element of stature resonates with a group (senior class) that rises above severe adversity and succeeds at an incredibly high level. However, I found Andre to be as humble and sincerely nice person as any I have ever met. The future NFL player also found it appropriate to spend a little time with My Old Kentucky Gnome.

Quick Hit on the Bowls

2008-01-02T07:53:00.001-05:00

The SEC is now 6-2 in bowls, with LSU / Ohio State remaining for the national championship.
Appalachian State is arguably better than the Florida Gators.
This is the 3rd year in a row that the Heisman winner has flopped in his bowl game.
Andre Woodson broke the record for most touchdowns in school history, beating out Jared Lorenzen by a doughnut.
Kentucky's victory over Florida State is the biggest bowl win for the Cats since the Great Lakes Bowl.
Bowden, Bowden - The Cats have now beat Bowden Jr. and Bowden Sr. in back to back bowls.
Who did Louisville play in their bowl game?
Nashville is a better atmosphere for a Kentucky game than anywhere in the state of Kentucky.

2007-12-29T10:15:00.000-05:00

In a new series, I will start with a review of a movie that's been out for a while and tons of people have seen. I watched "300" for the second time the other night and it was awesome. There is a lot of blood and guts and a lot of liberties are taken in regard to historical accuracy, but there are also a lot of kick-ass fight scenes that make you want to go out in the backyard and kill a wolf with your bare hands.

Unfortunately, there was no wolf in my backyard when I went out there. But let's just say there's a certain ground squirrel that won't be won't be showing his fangs in my suburban neighborhood ever again.

This movie is hyper-masculine, but that's what makes it so refreshing, since we live in a world where one of our modern day male movie heroes is Johnny Depp - sporting eyeliner, hair extensions, and a foppish Brit personality.

John Wayne is spinning in his grave.

But hey, it makes sense. Nowadays you turn on sports radio and hear commercials for Nivea products that promise to soften and exfoliate men's faces. Sure, they try to sound tough with their "take back the shower" pitch making it sound like you're a sissy for using whatever kind of soap your wife may have in there, but they mask the fact that your paying 8 dollars for a bottle of fruity soap while your dad has used the same bar of Dial for the past two years.

We probably can't be like Spartan men, and Spartan men themselves may not have really been as tough as they were in the movie "300", but time has come for us to butch it up a little. We're turning into a generation of males that can't even change the tire on their car. This movie reminds us of that just a little bit.

Rocket Man, Shootin' Up Some HGH

2007-12-26T09:35:00.000-05:00

Well, loyal readers of Wildcat Blog know that I posted awhile back about the possibility of Barry Bonds' heat-catching being proportionate to the amount of pigmentation in his skin. It looks like maybe I was wrong.

See, I often wondered what would happen if a current, high-profile, lock to be a hall-of-famer, white baseball player got wrapped up in this media frenzy to catch all the cheaters in sports other than football, hockey, high school athletics, bodybuilding, basketball, and track. I had seen white guys like Rick Ankiel and others pretty much avoid the scrutiny regularly heaped on Barry and I wondered aloud if it was racial. But, with Roger Clemens' name showing up eleventeen times in the Mitchell Report on Steroids in Our Field of Dreams Pristine National Pasttime, it looks like the scrutiny does not rely on race, but on fame and how much you lie once caught.

It doesn't help if the person under allegations mimics many of our country's finest presidents and denies 'til their dying breath any wrongdoing in the midst of a mountain of evidence to the contrary. That seems to be the real catalyst for the outcries. Roger's buddy Andy fessed up (though he probably held back his level of use) and people are darn-near proclaiming him a hero.

Perhaps a lesson we could take from all this is if you get caught doing something wrong, maybe you should just say you're sorry and move on. Especially if you are famous and better than anyone else in your field. Those types of people are really expected to be more honorable than many of the people who criticize them.

Happy Hollandaise

2007-12-24T15:58:00.000-05:00

Happy Hollandaise

To all of our 1,037 readers out there, the Wildcat Textbook Blog Team would like to wish you the happiest of holidays. By blog team, I am referring to our west KY correspondent Lifer, The Goat (resident deadbeat blogger), and the 2007 Blogger of the Year Award Winner - The Blue Donkey.

Our first year has been a work in progress, as most fledgling endeavors are. However, 2008 looks to be a great year for the Wildcat Blog. First off, we will be changing the name of the blog to My Old Kentucky Gnome, incorporating a life long dream with a force of habit, shaking it twice, stirring it once, and pulling out a rabbit. The Gnome element will bring in the world wide travels of My Old Kentucky Gnome mixed with the journalistic incompetence of the Wildcat Blog. Secondly, we will be adding writers to add more flare (15 pieces is the minimum) and more posts (per Matt Jones). We will also begin interviewing past, and on occasion, former players in typical Wildcat style.

2007 Recap: This year has not been the best of years on the court for the basketball Wildcats. Off the court, however, I would argue that is has been pretty damn good. The addition of Billy Clyde will begin to yield fruit in '08 & '09 (Blue Donkey Guarantee). Beyond that, we have added the best player to play for the Wildcats since '96-'97 in Patrick Patterson. I firmly believe this kid will take us to the promise land. He has been perfect on and off the court, possessing a basketball I.Q. the equals the rest of the team and grounded upbringing that could make him the 'Not Leaving Too Early Poster Child' of the post Tubby Smith Era.

In football, the past year and the one previous have been something that I will always remember as my immersion into Kentucky football. Even though I attended UK at the beginning of the Tim Couch era, never have I seen a Kentucky football team capture the heart of the Wildcat faithful like this one has. This senior class is simply one that should be admired, and one that I hope gets it's due respect in the history of Kentucky football (retire a jersey maybe?).

And finally, let us remember that as a fan base, what happened this year regarding the basketball coach is something that most of us wanted. The outcome of this year may not be pretty, but it is a sacrifice that needed to be made. Change is not always pretty and rarely is smooth. But in the end, remember that we are not content being pretty good - we demand to be great. That is what makes Kentucky, KENTUCKY! That is what makes people like Dick Vitale rant about us. That is what makes the national media portray Kentucky as the red-headed stepchild of college basketball. That is what our opponents fear. As Rick Pitino once said, "Success is a choice, and so are hair implants."

Meeks and Noles

2007-12-18T13:16:00.000-05:00

There could actually be some good news on the horizon for the University of Kentucky's men's basketball team, as sophomore Jodie Meeks could possibly return to the court tonight as the Cats take on the Houston Houndawgs. Meeks has sat out much of the first part of the season in an effort to stay away from Alex Legion, who was diagnosed with Legionnaire's disease. Meeks' father mentioned that Jodie was afraid that close contact with Alex might make him transfer.

In football news, possibly 20 players from the Florida State football team may be suspended for the Music City Bowl match-up with the Wildcats. The players in question were supposedly caught cheating while taking online exams.

Wild Ride

2007-12-17T09:51:00.000-05:00

It's been a crazy couple of weeks for the Blue Donkey. I've bought books in three different states, broken several vehicles and a trailer twice, bought alcohol in Lexington on a Sunday, and witnessed two high school basketball teams play that could beat U.K.

First off, I do feel a bit sad for Joe Crawford and Ramel Bradley. They've had a rough go of things, and I'm sure their senior year is turning out far worse than they could have imagined. Looking back, Joe probably would have been better off leaving when he tried. Joe suffered from a well documented disease, which has proven to be career-fatale for him.

Legionnaire's Disease: A disease commonly found in high school All-Americans hailing from Detroit who commit to play basketball at the University of Kentucky. Typically, these poor souls commit to Michigan, then decommit to play for Kentucky. These symptoms are usually followed by an over-bearing parent that tries to play manager for their child's collegiate career. The meddlesome parents then usually have an explosive confrontation with the coach. The confrontation leads to the player to publicly leave the team before informing the university. Reality then follows, when the player and parent realize the penalty's imposed by the NCAA for a student athlete not completing the first year of the commitment, which leads the player to want to return to the team.

Will Alex's decision turn out better than Joe's? We will see.

Oak Hill / St. Benedict's - I had the opportunity to watch these two unbelievable high school teams play at my old tomato. There were two big time players from the class of 2008 on the court - Semardo Samuels (committed to Louisville) and Brandon Jennings (committed to Arizona). Walter McCarty was in the house to watch Samuels. John Calimari of Memphis and John Brady of LSU were also present. Brady was drunk and Calimari was dangling dollars bills at the players on the court. There were two 2009 interior players UK is looking at; however, I did not see any UK representatives at the game.

Go Cats - Win a Game!

Musings on the 12th Annual Hoopfest

2007-12-10T06:39:00.000-05:00

Once again an orgy of basketball occurred during the Marshall County HoopFest in Draffenville. I am sure the Fire Marshall was absent for the Saturday evening session, but he may have been the only one. Seriously, there was a large crowd (5 to 6,000?) to witness 6 games on Sat. night. Altogether there were 18 games between teams from nine states.
DeAndre Liggins – got the biggest applause when he was introduced as “committed to UK” (the next biggest hand was for Marcus Jordan, son of the man himself).

Sightings – Bruce Pearl- I heard he had been there on Fri night and all day on Sat - he seemed right at home in Reed Condor Gymnasium – Marshall Co colors are like Tennessee’s –he sent at least 452 text messages while in my sight but he did have time to catch a shirt thrown by a cheerleader (not hers). Billy Clyde arrived during the evening session – he obviously was anxious to get away from the massacre in Bloomington. His highness Michael Jordan was a no-show as far as I know, but Harrah’s Casino is close by. A contingent from Liberty U was there watching ???
Best player names: Quackenbush from Rose Hill, he also made more three’s than UK commitment Dakotah Euton; Ge-Lawn Guyn from Scott Co., also had a nice game.
Best hair: someone suggested Dakotah Euton, but my vote goes to Jorge Guiterrez of Findlay Prep & he was definitely the MVP of his game.

Host Marshall Co with no players being recruited outplayed Rose Hill with Euton, Quackenbush, and C. Jackson. Oak Hill was their usual dominating self with several highly regarded players including Brandon Jennings being the most impressive. One defender cannot guard him-Chicago Hales Franciscan, with three or four college prospects learned that first hand. Oak Hill 83, CHF 62. Scott County has some nice players (T. Portwood, Ge-Lawn Guyn, R. Phares) and should be a factor in KY as will Lex. Catholic. Scott Co lost in a close one to Chicago Whitney Young but not because of Marcus Jordan, whose best attribute on the court is surrounding himself with several good ballplayers. Lex Cath. shot better, didn’t turn the ball over and more than held their own under the basket in beating Chicago Simeon 67-56.

Players I was impressed with: Chad Jackson, 6’4 soph from Rose Hill, Joe Jackson from Memphis White Station. Kyle Cassity from Pinckneyville, IL, Brandon Jennings is the real deal, only 6’2 and 165, but a really quick slice and dice lefty) and soph Tiny (he is not at 6’9, 300 lbs) Gallon of Oak Hill, DJ Cooper (he is tiny) from Chicago Hales Franciscan, Richie (not Farmer) Phares (6’7 junior from Scott Co), Taylor Stewart (Lex Cath)

On Liggins and Euton- Liggins seemed athletic enough to become a good college player, but he certainly didn’t dominate. Through the first half he probably led his team in rebounds and handled the ball well enough. On Euton, attempted a bunch of threes and has two more years to learn to make them.

One of the best dunks during a game was by Taylor Stewart of Lex Cath- in traffic following a missed shot. He will continue to fly high at the Air Force.

Longest roster – Lex Cath – had about two dozen players and a bartender who served drinks on demand. They would have brought their full squad but the other 2/3’s was busy sacking Cory Robinson of Lone Oak in the Class 4A state championship.

Shortest roster – Findlay College Prep, NV - only seven dressed out for game – all they needed to put a whippin’ on the boys from Wheeler, Georgia. One can only guess as to the whereabouts of Findlay’s other players, but Harrahs is between Draffenville and Vegas.

Best food – great ice cream provided by the Happy Cow (a Roy Williams favorite in past years) and some good ole Western KY barbeque – that made me pretty happy. I sort of expected to see Rich Majerus in the food line but he may have been with MJ.

Next to final comment: Oak Hill will play another home game (they have played at the Marshall Co. gym many times before) against St. Benedicts (NJ) this coming Thursday night. The game will be nationally televised by ESPN. Marshall County and Graves County girls and boys will be the opening acts.

A final serious thought: The host team, Marshall Co., had more on its mind than basketball. Gunner Gillespie, the seven-year old son of Marshall Head Coach Gus Gillespie, was just recently diagnosed with cancer. As a show of support for Gunner and his family, yellow tee shirts with Gunner’s drawing of a train were worn by many in the gym and some on the court. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Gunner and family.

Posted by Lifer

West Side Story

2007-12-08T11:57:00.000-05:00

It is a big weekend for the western portion of our great state. Possibly overshadowing the Kentucky - Indiana basketball game, Hoopfest at Marshall County High School is taking place. The event will feature some of the best high school talent in the country, as well as top college coaches, and possibly even Michael Jordan. As always, Roy Williams will be in the house, as well as Tubby Smith, Rick Pitino, and others. Billy Clyde Gillispie probably will not be in attendance due to the timing of the Indiana game; however, the University of Kentucky will be represented.

All though I have never been to it, Hoopfest holds a special interest to me. After all, I was a graduate of Marshall County High School, class of nineteen naughty-five. Believe me, the Marshall County Marshall's Can't Be Beat. Unfortunately, due to the limitless transgressions of a pre/post Nirvana teenager on the prowl in rural western Kentucky, I am not allowed to re-enter the hallowed confines of Reed Condor Gymnasium until the year 2050. Therefore, the Wildcat Blog will be sending a guest writer to the event. 'Lifer' will be there in all his glory, set to take in Kentucky commitments Dakotah Euton and DeAndre Liggins.

So, with that said, I will provide some Blue Donkey words of wisdom / suggestions / things you may not know about Marshall County if you are attending this event.

Match Up to See - The Marching Marshalls taking on Dakotah Euton and Chad Jackson. The Marshalls are an annual version of Rupp's Runts. Will Dakotah's golden locks be to much for the home squad? Will the Marshall cheering section do the Funky Chicken?
Marshall County's head coach is named Gillispie.
Carmello Anthony took the ACT at Marshall County High School.
Best place to party after the game is Idaho. If you don't know where that is, ask Don Walker - the boys soccer coach. He will tell you.
Best Restaurant - Mama D's in Calvert City.
Marshall County High School is not actually in Benton; it is in Draffenville - Recognize!
Biggest Question - How will the reception of Tubby Smith go?
Dan Langhi played for Marshall County, as did fellow future Vandy Commodores' Aaron Beth and Barry Goheen. Dan Langhi was on my little league soccer team. I also saw him order 10 tacos at Taco John's once.
I am from Marshall County. I am buying books this week at Marshall University. I had a childhood friend named Marshal, the Marshall County mascot is a U.S. Marshall, and the film U.S. Marshall's was filmed in Marshall County. By the way, former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall was a bad ass.
Keep in mind, this is God's country. So if you are looking for the devil's juice, you'll need to go to Paducah. I recommend the bar at Whaler's Catch. After that, head to the Quilting Museum - tell 'em you were sent by one mean son of a stitch.

The Cats and The Noles

2007-12-02T22:55:00.000-05:00

The football Cats will be making a return trip to the Music City Bowl. After knocking off Bowden Jr. and the Clemson Paw Prints in last year's Music City Bowl, Rich Brooks and company will attempt to defeat old man Bowden and the Florida State Seminoles in this year's event.

It will be a blue new year's eve in Nashville, as tickets for the events are already sold out.

Since the Seminoles were able to get Chris Singleton, it only seems fair that the Wildcat's will get the victory in Nashville.

Mute Vitale

2007-12-02T19:15:00.001-05:00

I simply cannot take any more of Dick Vitale.

"26 wins, Tubby Smith averaged 26 wins!"

"Sign in the yard, someone put a for sale sign in the yard."

"Full page ad, someone took out a full page ad."

"Kentucky fans, it's that five percent that are bad."

Guess what Dick? Five percent of UK fans may be crazy, but 95 percent cannot stand you. You are an idiot. You add nothing to the games you are calling and could care less about the game unless it is Duke versus North Carolina. You use your time on television to promote your products and push your own agenda. Beyond that, your not even good at what you do. The only thing you are good at is promoting yourself. For the sake of actual college basketball fans, could you find another venue to preach. We really just want to watch the game.

Another Shrimp on the Barbie?

2007-11-28T18:14:00.000-05:00

This past week George Bush lost another key ally in his war on the environment. Australian Prime Minister John Howard was ousted from his position in a landslide election. Howard had been a huge Bush supporter in the effort to render the planet unlivable by the year 2050. Australia and the United States are the only industrialized nations not to sign the Kyoto Treaty, which aims to reduce carbon emissions to 1990 levels. Howard's Labor Party opponent pledged to sign the treaty and won the support of a large number of Aussie's by doing so. Once Rudd takes office and signs the treaty, the United States will be the only industrialized nation left to sign. The United States is currently responsible for 25% of the planet's carbon emissions.

Lots 'o News

2007-11-28T10:00:00.000-05:00

There have been several newsworthy events since we last spoke. The Tennessee football game sort of left me in the doldrums, so I haven't really felt like posting. Also, the deviant world of textbooks is heating up, so posts may be fewer and far between.

Winston Guy (pictured above) gave the Wildcats a huge verbal commitment. Guy, a Lexington native, had been committed to Arkansas, but had been wavering on his decision. The departure of Houston Nutt in Fayetteville led Guy to give the Wildcats the nod this week.
There was a big high school basketball match up this weekend, featuring future Wildcat Darius Miller against Scotty Hopson. Hopson is rated as a top ten player in the nation by most recruiting services. Miller overwhelmingly won the battle, posting 41 points to Hopson's 17.
Louisville's journey to Las Vegas turned out to be less than successful. The Cardinal's ducked a possible showdown with North Carolina by dropping a game to the Stormin' Mormons of BYU. Following the loss, pictures surfaced of the Cardinal players enjoying themselves at a Vegas nightclub. When asked about the events, Louisville coach Rick Pitino stated, "I was a little disappointed in the pictures. Juan looked like he had spilled a drink on his shirt. Palacios will have to learn that he'll never be able to manage multiple relationships at one time with those type of sloppy partying habits. Other than that, I thought he looked good. The pictures of the Louisville cheerleader were better though."
ESPN decided to start a rumor that Coach Rich Brooks was going to retire after this season. Brooks later responded by stating he planned on being the longest tenured coach in Wildcat football history. Bill Curry responded by staring blankly in the distance with his headset on.
After the Kentucky loss to Tennessee, reports came out the Tennessee was stealing Kentucky's signals. When asked if this was true, Vols Coach Fulmer responded by eating an entire turkey, bones and all.
UK walk on Kerry Benson has left the basketball team.
Jodie Meeks may be out for the year. Ramon Harris returned to play last night, and Fulmer just ate another turkey.
It looks like Kentucky is likely headed to the Music City Bowl for the second straight year. The opponent would either be Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, or Florida State.

That is all for now. North Carolina is looming.

What's hoppin' in Hoptown

2007-11-20T18:17:00.001-05:00

As the early signing period for college basketball comes to a conclusion, the most interesting story in the state of Kentucky may not be about who did sign, but rather who didn't. Namely, Scotty Hopson, the most highly touted high school player in the state of Kentucky. Scotty verbally committed to Mississippi State well before Billy Clyde came to town. He is currently ranked as the ninth best player in the nation in the class of 2008.

Hopson's UK recruitment was a typical Tubby Smith affair, as the Hopkinsville native made his decision before UK got around to showing him any interest. In addition, Coach Smith even had Ravi Moss (also from Hopkinsville) advising him to recruit Hopson. Kentucky native Rick Stansbury sold Scotty on Mississippi State before Kentucky ever got involved.

This week the early signing period finally gave Hopson the opportunity to make his commitment to Mississippi State official. He didn't pull the trigger. Rumors swirled all week about when, where, and whether Scotty would sign. It never happened.

Today, a newspaper in Hopkinsville ran a story stating that Hopson would not sign and that he was considering other schools. The schools mentioned in the article were Georgia Tech, Tennessee, Louisville, Kentucky, and Mississippi State.

More to come.

USC Trojan Tuesday

2007-11-20T08:58:00.000-05:00

The president of the University of Southern California challenged coach Tim Floyd to find a bigger distraction for the class of 2008 than O.J. Mayo was for the class of 2007. Many thought it couldn't be done, but Tim 'Tool Time' Floyd knocked it out the park when he signed rapper 'lil Romeo to play basketball for the Trojans. On Monday, 'Lil Romeo signed his letter of intent at a posh Beverly Hills hotel, accompanied by his music mogul father Master P.

In other Trojan news, former Southern California recruit Leonard Washington, may or may not be almost, maybe, but not quite qualified to play basketball. Kentucky has flirted with Washington ever since he was released from his letter of intent to play for USC. USC released Washington when he failed to qualify for the class of 2007.

Washington is a interior player in the mold of Chuck Hayes. If he becomes qualified, Leonard could definitely be a welcome addition to the 2008 class. According to sources, Washington has narrowed his list to Kentucky and USC.

Given that Washington is an academic question mark, it will be very important that he places himself in an environment where he can succeed, both academically and athletically. In my opinion, living in Los Angeles and playing on a team a with rapper/movie star could be just what the doctor ordered.

2007-11-16T12:37:00.000-05:00

Americans can rest easy now. One of the world's greatest criminals will face indictment, as the Federal Grand Jury wrapped up their investigation into Barry Bond's lies under oath concerning the use of performance enhancing drugs. The investigation, which covered a mere 4 years and cost taxpayers a piddly millions of dollars, should quickly pay dividends, as the evil Bonds will likely retire from baseball and finally end his reign of terror over America.

Bonds had began to wonder if he may evade any serious consequences when players like Rick Ankiel and Paul Byrd were leaked as names of interest in a seperate, but just as illegal, online pharmaceutical bust implicating those two players (among others) in large purchases of performance enhancers.

But, unfortunatly for Bonds, he has three things going against him that makes him far more important to federal prosecutors than those two. One, he holds two prestigious home run records while the other two barely hold spots on a major league team. Two, he's reportedly a very mean person. And thirdly, he's black.

I'm sorry, I know this is 2007, and racism is so 1960s, but it sure looks to me like Bonds draws a lot more criticism than white boys Byrd and Ankiel, who casual fans don't even know about. Split hairs and tell me those two didn't perjure themselves and I'll come back with the fact that they bought tens of thousands of dollars worth of drugs off the internet with bogus prescriptions from quacks and have yet to face the kind of criticism Bonds gets. Unless buying prescription drugs illegally off the internet is o.k., in which case I stand corrected.

Look, I don't like Bonds. First, he plays for the Giants. If they are ever on t.v., it's way past my bedtime, so I don't really follow them. Second, I've read articles about his wife-cheating, girlfriend threatening, and income tax fudging to know he's not someone I'd like to hang out with. So, my opinion is not born of some fan-boy Bonds lover. It's just that I understand quite a bit more about steroids and HGH than most reporters.

No, really, I do. See, those drugs are everywhere in sports. Everywhere. Steroids are in even more places than just professional sports. Ever been to the Johnson Center? There's fellas there on the gas. College sports? Yeah, they're there too. But reporters act like the sports world is some kind of collection of heroes who, despite any off-field problems, play their game with a purity and sportsmanship not seen since the Yalies challenged Princeton to a rowing competition. Or something like that.

Folks, that's just not based in reality. Sportswriters need to accept the fact that athletes playing for millions of dollars will dabble in performance boosting substances. Should it be legal? No, I don't think so. But let's not act like it's a crime against the sport when Bonds is indicted. Hell, I bet a hundred of his home runs were hit off of pitchers who did steroids or HGH. ALL of sports has problems with this stuff.

And enough already with baseball catching so much more crap than the others. The Patriots are eyeing the first undefeated N.F.L. season in over 30 years and people are wondering if their record will be tainted because their coach had the other team's coaches videotaped to try and figure out their playcalling. But they're not wondering if it'll be tainted because their all-pro safety missed 4 games earlier in the year for testing positive for steroids? Why aren't his career accomplishments questioned? Why don't we put an asterisk on his football from one of his Super Bowls?

Here's another one- "baseball should test like the Olympics, blah blah". Well, that's actually a good idea because it's pretty stringent testing. However, it's not going to keep 'roids and HGH out of sports because there is still 'roids and HGH in the Olympics! Ever heard of Marion Jones? C'mon people. Just test them the best you can and deal with it.

Bill Curry admitted on Mike and Mike in the Morning that he took Deca one summer (Giambi's first steroid love). Mike Golic on the same show said he tried some once. Gaylor Perry threw spitballs and Ty Cobb sharpened his spikes. Defensive linemen spray their jerseys with Crisco and defensive backs spray their hands with Stick-Um. Players on second base steal signs from the catcher and basketball players grab shorts when blocking out for a rebound. People in sports do stuff to get an edge. That's just the way it is.

But hey, we got the worst of them all now and you can put your kids to bed tonight knowing that bad ole Barry got busted and can't hurt them.

Doom and Gloom - Or Not!

2007-11-14T18:27:00.001-05:00

Today is the beginning of the early signing period for college basketball, and there seems to be the typical doom and gloom going on in the Big Blue Nation. Yes, we did lose out on a recruit to Florida State. But..................... We need to put things in perspective. How quickly we forget the past ten years. Today, the first day of the signing period, Kentucky inked a 4 star player and a 5 star player (DeAndre did sign). Compared to recent history, this is an unbelievable success. Almost every high caliber prospect Kentucky has signed in the past couple of years has waited until the last second of the spring signing period to sign. This is a vast improvement, and one that we should enjoy.

Don't worry Cat fans. Billy Clyde is on our side!

Singleton Decision

2007-11-14T16:02:00.001-05:00

As we expected, Chris Singleton committed to Florida State this afternoon, proving that money still talks in college basketball. Singleton discussed his thought process during the announcement. "What it finally came down to," Singleton said, "Was Florida State's willingness to match contributions up to $3000.00 in my Roth IRA. Kentucky's benefit package just wasn't that great. After you got beyond the bigger arena, the better coach, the bigger fan base (>100), being on TV every game, the obvious amount of playing time, the 30 million dollar practice facility, and the free put-put at the Old Testament Miniature Golf Course, Kentucky just didn't stack up with the Seminoles. Coach Bowden is a legend, and I can't wait to play for him."

In other news, DeAndre Liggins is rumored to be signing a letter of intent in the coming days.

One in the Bag!

2007-11-14T11:47:00.001-05:00

Darius Miller of Mason County has signed his letter of intent to play for the University of Kentucky. Kentucky's other 2008 commitment, DeAndre Liggins, is not expected to sign during the fall signing period. There are questions about Liggins' eligibility right now, although his commitment to the Cats is firm.

Signing Day is Here!

2007-11-14T10:54:00.001-05:00

Recruiting: The fall basketball signing period for high school seniors begins today. This is always a crazy day in the world of recruiting. For Kentucky, its an even bigger day. Chris Singleton makes his college choice known today. He has a press conference scheduled at 2:45. Chris is deciding between the University of Kentucky and Florida State. Most analysts predict Florida State will be his destination, which will leave UK in a pickle regarding a big man in the class of 2008. Gillispie was phenomenal with his last minute signings of Patrick Patterson and Alex Legion for the 2007 class, but there simply aren't many quality uncommitted big men left in this years class.

Injury Update: Jodie Meeks will be out three to four weeks with a groin injury. That is not good news for an already beleaguered Kentucky squad.

Criminal Update: Former Kentucky player Rekalin Sims was arrested this week and charged with assault and robbery. The crime was reportedly a group effort, with Rekalin driving the get-away car. Rekalin is (was) playing for the Fresno State Outlaws in his eighth and final season of college basketball. When asked about the situation, Rekalin told reporters that his back was really slowing him down, and that is probably why the cops were able to catch up with him.