On, On, U of K!

LISTEN HERE https://youtu.be/csZxNibf0JI?si=EDMB0jbNJmllSgvG

If you know me at all, you had to know this was coming today. EVERYONE knows I’m a Kentucky basketball fan trapped in Missouri. My friends know it, my coworkers know. Most don’t understand my passion for basketball alone, much less Kentucky basketball. My children, although some are fans too, don’t get the depth of my passionate plea (screaming at them) to “Get out of the way! You’re blocking the game!” They didn’t grow up with it…..although I tried my best…..you can’t understand unless you were raised in it.

I was born into a UK family, thank GOD. In Louisville, where I spent my childhood years, when you met someone, one of the first questions was “Are you a U of K or U of L (Louisville) fan?” No joke. It didn’t necessarily keep you from becoming their friend, but it did let you know where you stood with them. Who you could talk reasonably about basketball to, and who it wasn’t even worth bringing the subject up with. And basketball was THE sport everyone wanted to be the best at. Other sports were important but Lordy, if you were any good at basketball you were a success! I was NOT good. Don’t get me wrong, I had a pretty decent shot and good ball handling skills, but I never had any drive to get better. I was content pretending to be a Kentucky basketball player, on my home court, putting that buzzer beater shot in! Oh and my free throws were very Kyle Macy-like in my eyes…drying my hands on my tube socks and all.

The one thing I remember ALWAYS having as a child was a basketball. Always. It may have been bald, it may not have been leather, but we always had one. And when I got a new one for Christmas? It was like….Christmas! No lie. We lived and breathed basketball. You may think I’m exaggerating. I’m not. Everyone in Kentucky knows basketball. I don’t mean they know the players and cheer for the team. They KNOW basketball. They know the backdoor isn’t on your house, a fadeaway can be beautiful, and that a Tyler Ulis point guard is fun as hell to watch!

Remembering back to my youth, my life revolved around Kentucky basketball. We didn’t get a lot of games on TV, as a matter of fact a little internet search showed 3 games on National networks in 1981. No, we did not have cable at my house. So I saw 3 games in 1981. 3 games. Hard to imagine isn’t it? But I listened to them. Cawood Ledford was the voice of the Wildcats and he was brilliant in painting a basketball picture. He and I spent many nights at the kitchen table. I listened on my transistor radio (look it up kids) he called the game. Oh and the nights where there was a game past my bed time….I snuck that same tiny radio under my pillow so I could still listen.

U of L was our biggest rival, but we didn’t play them regularly in my youth. There was a certain hatred I had (have) for the color red and U of L basketball. Funny story, When I was 18 I was a student at University of Louisville (it was 5 miles from home, if that…gimme a break) and was in their marching band because by doing so it paid half of my tuition. The band needed a few people for the pep band for the first basketball game. It was an exhibition game where Louisville was playing Yugoslavia. I knew I was not going to make it in the pep band when I was at the game, in a Louisville uniform, cheering for Yugoslavia. Seriously it was ingrained in me to hate UL. That was 1991.

1992 changed everything. We had a new rival. Duke. This 1991-1992 Kentucky team was basically a bunch of homegrown Kentucky boys. It was just a couple of years after Eddie Sutton had left Kentucky and Kentucky probably couldn’t recruit big names because of all the violations Sutton had brought down on us. So we have these homegrown boys who weren’t expected to do much I’m sure. But they kept winning! You cannot imagine the love every UK fan had for these boys after the scandals and embarrassment the University had just experienced. They played with heart! They played beyond their talent. And they made it to the Elite 8. “The Unforgettables”, as they were dubbed, met up with #1 Duke Bluedevils who were 34-2 going into the tournament. We shouldn’t have won, but every UK fan thought they could have! I remember that night. 3 days before I left for Basic Training I watched the game at a bar. Although I don’t remember the whole game, I do remember sitting there crying, yes crying, over the loss. I still hate Duke….and Christian Laettner.

Today reminds me of the hope I felt back when “The Unforgettables” played. No, Coach Calipari did not get us in any trouble with the NCAA, BUT he turned Kentucky basketball into something that UK fans hated. Players were no longer playing for name on their chests but the name on their backs. And for every kid that grew up in Kentucky it hurt our hearts. Thanks to Mark Pope, for bringing hope back to the program. I had tears in my eyes as someone who had played for that name on the front of his jersey vowed to instill what Kentucky basketball means to all of HIS future Wildcats!

So kiddos, I’m sorry (not sorry) if you ever thought basketball came before you. It probably did.

But I love you??