EMBATTLED

When Joker Phillips was fired last week by University of Kentucky Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart, most fans echoed the sentiment, "about time."  Whether letting Joker go was the right decision or not it certainly put Mitch in an untenable position.  If he kept Joker the fans would revolt, if he fires him and doesn't come up with a "home run" hire,  the fans will still revolt.  Such is the life of the Kentucky AD.  It wasn't that long ago when one of his first big moves at UK was to attain an elder football coach in Rich Brooks,  that most fans just could not believe.  Had they have bothered to look deeper in Coach Brooks career, they might have found that he was a highly respected member of the coaching fraternity, and the absolute right man for the job to rebuild a probation hampered program..  Not long after bumper stickers appeared with the phrase "Ditch Mitch and Rich."  Years later when Rich Brooks had brought Kentucky Football to a respectability that most had not seen in years, no one responded with a peep about how Mitch had made a good move, they just dwelled on how he could allow a "coach in waiting" to be named,  and of course, the increase price of ticket and parking passes.

Several years ago most fans had grown tired of Tubby Smith, the very successful basketball coach.  When the program started to become somewhat stagnant, and some fans voiced that a change might be in order, well, Mitch intervened and made suggestions to Tubby.  Tubby didn't like it and moved on to coach Minnesota.  Fans seemed happy,  but no one said "atta boy Mitch", they just continued to decide who Mitch should pursue as the next coach.  The worst decision of Mitch Barnhart's career was about to happen in the persona of a over hyped, vulgar man from Texas, who was an up and comer in the basketball world.  Again the criticism came, but not at Billy Gillispie, but at the man who hired him, Mitch Barnhart.  To Mitch's credit he realized the mistake and rectified it in record time.  Guess what the fans said? Mitch was crazy to pay so much to get rid of a man that might have destroyed Kentucky Basketball.

John Calipari was the absolute best man for the job at Kentucky.  But, what did the fans say?  If "Barnyard" wasn't so stupid we could have had Calapari the first time around.  Never once have I heard a nay say er of Mitch Barnhart utter a word of praise for a man that brought Kentucky one of the greatest basketball coaches of this generation.  All of this while Mitch continued to build the women's basketball program to national prominence, baseball has never attained the high level,  in a conference that is noted for baseball, and all while managing to build the Olympic sports to unprecedented heights.  Kentucky has become a destination for world class athletes and coaches.

Mich Barnhart has certainly made mistakes, but what AD doesn't?  He has an aloofness that doesn't always relate well to fans.  Some question his attitude as superior and righteous, he is not one of us, all while forgetting that he is trying to do his best for an athletic program that we all love.  Forget the national championship.  Forget the high rankings, and the number two finish nationally among all collegiate programs. Forget the notoriety that he has brought to this state in the form of a superior athletic program.  If Mitch Barnhart doesn't make a good hire as the next football coach and the football program continues to flounder in mediocrity, his legacy will be unfulfilled,  and forever he will be remembered as one of the most unjustly embattled  athletic directors at the University of Kentucky.

Bluegrass Horses and Basketball: DynastyWebsters defines dynasty as a powerful g...

Bluegrass Horses and Basketball:
Dynasty

Websters defines dynasty as a powerful g...: Dynasty Websters defines dynasty as a powerful group that maintains dominance for a long time.  That would describe many sports teams, t...

Dynasty

Websters defines dynasty as a powerful group that maintains dominance for a long time.  That would describe many sports teams, the New York Yankees, the Boston Celtics, the Montreal Canadians just to mention a few.  I could spend the entire column reciting franchises that could fit this definition.  In college basketball I think there is really just one, the University of Kentucky.  Sure there is a team that has won a couple more National Championships, UCLA, but none have been able to command the dominance that the Wildcats have shown going now on nine decades.  Since the arrival of Adolf Rupp in the 1930s right up to the present with John Calipari the Kentucky Wildcats have been an ever present force in college basketball.

Kentucky leads the college basketball world in almost every category, and now the present group of basketball Cats have moved the bar to an even higher level.  Since Calipari arrived in Lexington three years ago all he has manged to do is go to two straight Final Fours, three straight Elite Eights, and win a National Championship.  All while bringing in the greatest talent that this school or maybe any school has ever seen in history.  Criticism has come his way in the fact that this talent seems to only stay around for a short time and then move on to the NBA where they have fortunately become instant millioners. 

The so called Big Blue Nation, an already exuberant group, has moved the needle to a place that is even rarefied air for them.  I maintain there has been three distinct Golden Ages of Kentucky Basketball, the Rupp Years, the Pitino Years, with some really good years in between, and now the Calipari Years.  These rare occurrences happen even when sometimes we are not prepared, or perhaps, just overwhelmed by them.  This is what Big Blue Nation is in the midst of currently.  We almost take it for granted.  Sometimes it might be wise to just take stock and give thanks that we are along for the ride. In other words enjoy it while it's here.  Remember dynasties don't last forever, and they all are built on the shoulders of giants.

Mikey Cameron

Children of the Bluegrass

Long before basketball became the now sport of most Kentuckians, a sport existed that gave many of our citizens a pride that is now only rivaled or surpassed by the round ball.  Years before Coach Cal exploded on the scene with unbelievably talented youngsters from all across the nation.  Years before Rick Pitino, or even the legendary Adolf Rupp prowled the sidelines in Lexington, a different athlete was already making their names known, not just in America but all around the world.  The almost forgotten native sons and daughters of the Bluegrass, the mighty thoroughbred racehorse.

In a time when world war was common place a sport existed that had fans arguing, as they do today, about which athlete was number one.  Most of these great equine athletes,  as they do today, had their origins in the rolling hills and lush pastures of central Kentucky.  Hardened by the limestone that this magical land rests on, these world class athletes, nurtured by brilliant sunshine and temperate weather, have long made Kentuckians proud.  While we all celebrate the great accomplishments of our great basketball tradition, never loose sight of the fact that the tradition of altering the world horse racing scene has usually started on the hallowed ground of the Bluegrass.

Basketball is over for another season and most Kentuckians turn their sports interests to the Kentucky Derby.  The best young three year olds from around the globe will be positioning for a run at immortality and a chance to get to Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May.  If the fates cooperate and luck is with them, they may have a chance to realize that potential that began on a misty morning some where in the rolling hills of the Bluegrass.  Not all of the best athletes in the world start life with a basketball in their hands some do it by frolicking in the warm sunshine and on the fast race tracks of the world.  While we cheer the greatness of other sports and athletes, don't ever forget that some of the greatest athletes that ever lived, started life here in our own state and they will always remain the Children of the Bluegrass.

Spring Madness

The Bluegrass Region is quickly transferring it's self from winter to spring, flowers are pushing through the greening grass, and the trees are poised for an explosion of color.  The weather is warmer and the hearts of the people of this magical land have a bounce in their step.  Springtime is celebration enough, but around here it means two things, the start of basketball tournament time and the prep races for the Kentucky Derby.  Merged with the climate change is a sense of excitement that few states get the luxury of experiencing.

All ready the young colts and fillies are bounding through the rolling pastures of the great horse farms that dot this fairy tale land we inhabit.  The older horses are shedding their winter hair in anticipation of the strong sunshine that will grow and harden their resolve, and all the while the young three year olds that have a chance at immortality and greatness, are prancing in their morning workouts from New York, Florida, and the west coast.  Their destination is Kentucky for one chance at one moment of glory.

The same thing is true for the young human athletes and their fans, from small towns to the big cities, the goal is the same, a chance at greatness on the biggest stage in their young lives, Rupp Arena and the legendary "Sweet Sixteen".  All have dreamed of making that last second shot while bouncing countless basketballs on gravel courts and shooting at crooked hoops nailed to barns and garages.  This is the lure of this special time of year, a chance at glory.

The same thing holds true for all Kentuckians when their beloved college basketball team makes it's annual quest for a national championship.  Expectations run high only because we all have experienced just how hard it is to attain these lofty goals.  Championships are hard to come by.  Glory is rare, but the hope that arrives each springtime with the basketball tournaments and the road to the Kentucky Derby, makes for an unbelievably emotional high.  Maybe it is madness but what ever it is it sure gives us something to look forward to.  For us Kentuckians spring really is the best time of the year!

Forgotten Legends

It occurred to me while watching a recent game in Rupp Arena that I was watching the end of an era in Kentucky Basketball.  Very few opportunities are left to see the thrilling blocks and dunks of Anthony Davis and the blazing end to end drives of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.   It's almost like a low flying fighter jet that streaks across our sky and then just as quickly all that's left is the distant thunder.  Sometimes you wonder if it really happened at all.

The new era of college basketball has ushered in the "one-and-doner's" and also has caused us to only glimpse these young superstars in their infancy,  while they hone their skills for the NBA.  However, we should not lose sight of the fact that their contributions are many to the basketball team they we love so dearly.  The names of John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Brandon Knight, and of course Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, have given us pleasure while winning many basketball games and prestige.  In fact while they are here they are ours to brag on and cherish.  But, all to soon they are gone!

The jersey's that hang in the rafters of Rupp Arena commemorate the greatest names that ever came through this storied program.  So far, you will not see the names of the "one-and-doner's that have so magically put Kentucky on the tip of the pyramid of college basketball.  Maybe it's time we thought about making a dispensation for these players, even if we only add multiple names on one jersey.  This would show some appreciation of what they have contributed, if for only one year.  After all Anthony Davis has already become the UK leader in blocks for one season, as well as moving up the list for all time blocks; and his one year is not even over.  In all to short a time they will be distant memories in a past that has always found ways to honor the greats.  For the generations of fans to come we shouldn't have them become Forgotten Legends.

Herding Cats

Did you ever try to get a cat to do something for you like come to you when you called it's name?  Dogs can't wait to please, they were born to make their masters happy, but not a cat.  That's kind of what it's like to coach a basketball team, particularly a basketball team that has a lot of freshmen players, who just got through being stars in high school, and now come together as stars, in hopes of making millions in the NBA.  That is what Coach John Calipari faces every year as the Head Basketball Coach at the University of Kentucky.

Coach Cal is a victim of his own success.  He has become the top recruiter of talented basketball players in the entire United States.  That's great right?  That's bad as well, since each year he is confronted with checking these enormous egos at the door of the Joe Craft Center{the practice facility of the UK Basketball Team} and get them to buy in to the team concept, and realize that most of the players that are now your teammates are just as good as you are.  And to make it just a little more difficult it has to be done in under six months. 

College basketball has changed.  No more do you see players coming and staying for four years unless they are not the McDonald's All Americans that have become the prize for the big time programs,  There was a time when players could grow and learn in a system that would nurture them into young adults, but now these young lions must come ready made,  with not just a jump shot, but real world experience and maturity.  Coach Cal has become the gold standard of taking the modern basketball youth and renovating them into a team that is not only good but will likely challenge for Final Fours and even National Championships.  A daunting task at best.  In Coach Cal's third season at Kentucky he has manged to do just that.  However at times I bet Coach Cal thinks it would probably be easier just to herd a bunch of cats.

Block Party

If there is a theme or description of this years Kentucky Basketball team it will certainly be defined by defense and of course blocked shots.  The 2011-12 version of the Cats is playing defense and blocking shots at a record pace.  Opposing players speak of their dread in playing them as fear and intimidation.  In fact Kentucky has never been thought of in these terms because of their defense, it was always the attacking pressure that they put on opponents through their offense.  The barrage of 3 pointers from the 90s and the end to end play of the 2000s.  Not now,  rugged defensive pressure from the half court line to the last line of defense the boundless presence of freshmen Anthony Davis.

AD is maybe the most outrageously talented big man that I have ever seen at Kentucky, and that is saying a lot since All-Americans have patrolled the post for 7 decades.  But what he has manged to do to this point has set the record book on it's ear.  I can't wait to go to games to see what this "phenom" will do next.  It's not just the blocks, it's the soaring dunks, and the galactic rebounds, and all of it is done with a humility that is quite foreign to most modern athletes.  Anthony Davis is simply a joy to watch.

We as Kentucky fans are so blessed to have him for this one year.  This time next year he will be doing the same thing for pay.  While I will be happy for him this is the one draw back in Coach Cal's phenomenal recruiting success.  We barely get to know them and than they are gone.  But at this moment AD and his teammates are ours to claim and the thrills are coming at us in waves.  I say let's live in the moment and immerse ourselves in the best "block party" this Wildcat fan has seen in years.

Christmas Pudding

The Kentucky basketball team continues to lick it's wounds after a narrow loss at Indiana last Saturday in Bloomington.  The loss has left many fans questioning the toughness of this team and in particular their pre-season All American, Terrance Jones.  Questions have been raised that can only be answered as this young team hopefully matures.  True the crowd in Indiana was off the charts, but hostile crowds have always been a staple in the SEC.  Maybe they get a pass for feeling this intensity for the first time.

Now Kentucky embarks on what is probably the softness part of their schedule.  Games with Chattanooga, Samford, Loyola-Md, and Lamar precede a show down of top five teams on New Years Eve with Louisville.  The importance of these games is not the Sports Center type plays that are sure to come out of these games against over matched opponents, it's how much this team can take from defeat and apply it to getting better.  Will they bring intensity, and a work ethic that shows a willingness to get better?

It's Christmas time and the fans will be in a festive mood.  Many will come to Rupp to see their beloved Cats for the very first time, and naturally hope to see some spectacular dunks and sizzle.  But don't lose sight of the fact that this can be a time to improve and set the standard for what can be the start of a magical time in the Big Blue Nation.  Christmas pudding is a wonderful treat this time of year, but don't forget the turkey and the trimmings.

Old Friend

Living can sometimes get you down.  The everyday grind of work and turmoil, traveling here and there, makes it seem like there are never enough hours in each day.  Routines become boring and all of us look for ways of escape.  Sports has always been one of those vehicles of escape for many.  All sports mean certain things to different people.  Some can hardly wait for the first "Kick Off" of football season and spend countless hours contemplating what excitement that will bring.  For me I love the opening day of baseball and the promise of not just a good season, but the added benefit of good weather to follow.  Many of us use sports as a way to lessen the tedious road that is life.

Every fall after the brilliant colors have had their day, and a north wind starts to blow the leaves away, I start to look forward to a season that gives me a buttress to combat the everyday harshness of winter, and that season is basketball,  more specifically Kentucky Basketball.  For months fans from all across the bluegrass, have discussed, speculated, and dreamed about a magical run for the Wildcats.  Can the freshmen blend with the veterans and create a memory that all Kentucky Fans will speak of for years to come?  In the midst of our boring routines a season comes around that gives us pause, and something to look forward to at least twice a week until spring comes again. It is a great distraction.

Tonight the Kentucky Basketball season "Tips Off" and I for one could not be happier.  I need this distraction to help fight off the prospect of spending far to many days inside instead of out.  I need the excitement that a winning season can generate.  I need a friend to help me ward off the chill of that old north wind and the shortening day light.  I need a break from the mundane of all that.  So I say welcome back Kentucky Basketball, what took you so long to arrive?  Things seem a bit brighter looking ahead, now that you are here.  Welcome back Old Friend.

The Hundred Years War

For the first time in a hundred years the University of Kentucky and Transylvania University will square off in a basketball game.  There were only 77 million people in the US, President McKinley was shot, Queen Victoria had just died, and federal spending had just topped the $500 million mark.  Sportswise the first World Series was yet to be played, Harvard was the best football team in the land, and His Eminence won the Kentucky Derby.  Technologically Marconi had just sent the first radio signal across the Atlantic, and this new idea of a horseless carriage was all the rage.  That was some of what was going on the last time Kentucky and Transylvania met in scheduled basketball game.

How does this happen and why is it happening now?  I know that these two universities play on a completely different level when it comes to college basketball.  I know that the economics are not the driving force behind this athletic contest and even pride seems to have little to do with it.  There has never been a ground swell from the fans or the media for this game to take place, so for a century it just never happened.

I must confess that the idea of Kentucky playing a game against a neighbor like Transy never occurred to me, but now that it is happening, I am excited.  You might say I am looking forward to it, not for the expected outcome or the rivalry aspect, but for the idea that this just might be a really good time.  When you stop and think about it that's what college sports is supposed to be about.

Scary Good

Tonight is game seven of the World Series.  This is the first time the Series has gone to a game seven in nine years.  Hard to believe, since most of our fantasies about the great game of baseball seem to revolve around that mythical game seven, and for me it is among the greatest spectacles in sports.  One of the definitions of drama is the seventh game of the World Series.  I know most of you can come up with other moments or events that may rival this, the Super Bowl, the National Championships in football and basketball, and of course the Kentucky Derby.  But for me I just like saying GAME SEVEN OF THE WORLD SERIES!

I don't have a heavy rooting interest in this game, in fact I like both teams and their players, but I will not miss this.  This is what makes sports fun.  Baseball is different from most sports in that the players in tonight's game take the field and linger on the game at a slower pace, they have time to think, to fret between pitches, which ultimately lends more pressure to a simmering cooker.  Mistakes will happen, magical moments will as well, and goats and heroes will share this stage.  Nothing can be much better then that.  All of the players, coaches, and fans spent countless hours in their backyards simulating what they are experiencing tonight, and when you stop and think about it, it is downright scary!  But on the other hand it sure is good!

Basketball Madness

We are only a few short weeks away from another college basketball season, and no place anticipates it more then the folks here in the bluegrass.  A record number of people and tents camped out just to get free tickets to the first practice.  Practice is hardly what Big Blue Madness is all about.  It's more about a celebration of basketball, a way to honor a team, a program for so many memorable moments that occured the last time our basketball team took the floor.  It's an outrageous display of affection for young men who put on our colors and carry us into battle.  It's a time to get behind our General and put our faith in his ability to bring more glory to a pride that is already running over.

Madness is not just the first practice, perhaps at other programs, but not at Kentucky.  Madness is a time to honor and respect a thing that will ultametily get us through the bleak winter weather just ahead.  For more than seventy years basketball has kept a light burning for all of us when the promise of spring seems a distant point.  Pride in something done well, year after year, puts us Kentuckians in a rare class of elitist who "get something" that few groups ever experiance.  Many of our critics think of this as arrogance, and perhaps it is.  But most of our critics have never experianced the longevity of excellence that is Kentucky Basketball.

So, you insane fanatics of Big Blue Madness, who camped out for days and will drive for miles to just watch practice, enjoy.  Does it realy matter to you if someone doesn't understand?  When you paint your faces and scream until you throat is sore for practice, and constantily get reminded that basketball is just a game. Remember this, those that don't get it have proably never had anything in their lives to be proud of.

Baseball Bounce

The 2011 Major League Season just ended.  My team, the Cincinnati Reds, only contended for about half of it, but that's OK because the ending of this season created some magical moments for me.  The collapse of both the Red Sox and the Braves, showed that the 162 game schedule is meant to be played to the end.  The surge of the Cardinals and the Rays was another glimpse of how anything is possible if you don't quit.  There was much to be learned from this memorable baseball season.  In many ways the season is the journey and the playoffs only add a finality that allows us to realize that baseball is rapidly coming to an end.  No more warm summer nights of fun at the ballpark, no more pennant races to watch, and only the prospect of cold winter days while waiting for spring to come.

This has been a memorable season for other reasons.  Millions attended the games, some places attaining record numbers, and all the while baseball didn't disappoint.  There were few controversies this season, although a lot of people think that Jose Reyes was a bit selfish in the way he achieved the National League Batting Title.  No one will soon mistake him for Ted Williams.  The steroid era seems to be in the past and scoring and home run output will bear that up.  Some great pitching performances, Justin Verlander is just one that comes to mind, the entire staff of the Philadelphia Phillies, and a few no-hitters sprinkled in for conversation.  The season has ended and it seems like an old friend who comes to visit, you are kind of glad he's gone but still you can't wait until he comes again.

That's the great thing about baseball, it is like an old friend who has been with you since you were a kid, and now that you are an adult the familiarity of baseball is a true tie to your youth.  Yes, this has been a season to remember.  It won't be that long until the pitchers and catchers report for spring training and we get to do it all again.  Oh, and one more thing if you can't wait that long the Playoffs start tomorrow.

Mediocrity

The University of Kentucky has played 1182 football games since it played it's first one back in 1881.  Kentucky has won 573 lost 565 and tied 44.  That's just about as close as you can get to mediocre in 130 years of gridiron action.  There have been some great moments, the era of Bear Bryant, the mid seventies under Fran Curci, and of course the rejuvenation under Rich Brooks.  But most of the years in between has been characterised by "ho-hum" mediocrity. 

As we arrive on the eve of the Kentucky/Louisville, arguably our biggest rival, football game, I wonder why the fans are so surprised and apathetic of this years showing of Wildcats.  Many fans predicted an SEC Championship, at the very least a bigger bowl then the previous years.  The season is a long way from over Wildcat fans.  People are staying away from this Saturday's game, or at least that's what they claim, like it's some kind of insult that this years team hasn't performed up to their expectations.  Folks this is not Kentucky Basketball, there should be few expectations of championships.  Football at Kentucky is what it is, a way to go out on a fall day, with your family and friends, and root for your home state's school.

Kentucky Football will always be there for you why shouldn't you be there for it.  Why not enjoy the moments when they come.  Remember Andre Woodson's pass to Stevie Johnson in 2007 to win the game over the Cardinals, or that emotional win over number 1 ranked LSU, something akin to that might happen on Saturday.  Don't dwell on the fact that Kentucky Football doesn't live up to your expectations, dwell on the pleasure that a fall afternoon of football brings, and that pleasure is never mediocre.

Hope

We stand on the precipice of another college football season, and hopes here in the Commonwealth of Kentucky are high as usual.  For the last month we have asked the question on our radio show "The Sports Huddle" what this season will bring in football fortune.  After all at the moment Kentucky is undefeated.  Predictions have ranged from 11-1 to 6-6, with an average being around 7-5 or 8-4.  Kentucky has had only three seasons in the last fifty-eight years where they have won eight times, not a lot to base these lofty predictions on.

Kentucky starts the new season with a unseasoned quarterback, holes to fill on both the defensive and offensive lines, non starters in the backfield, and receivers that have played very little.  All the more reason to take a reasonable look at this years addition of Wildcats.  But, then we wouldn't be fans.  Fans want to see the possibility not the realism of well over a hundred years of disappointment.  Don't forget we are still undefeated. 

That's what is so great about a beautiful Saturday afternoon, tailgating with your friends, and bragging about what this season might bring,  Football may very well be the stuff that hope is made of.  The fall brings the last days of pretty weather and for a while holds back the inevitable of the approaching winter.  It's still a time when you can get outside and enjoy nature and hope for a winning football team.  And if the season doesn't go as well as most fans hope, well, each game brings us that much closer to basketball season.  Hopes change to expectation then. 

Revolution

"There is going to be a revolution" or so says the old Beatles song, and this time I think they were right.  There is a revolution a foot in big time college athletics.  Anarchy is the rule among the titans of college sports.  The NCAA is being blasted from all corners, money has become the only ideal that seems to be adhered to by these powers that supposedly put the "student athlete" first, and foremost in their credo.  Look what just happened at Miami, Ohio State, and countless other universities across the NCAA landscape.  Lack of institutional control, or lack of governmental control?  The NCAA has legislated themselves to near extinction and all the while adopted an attitude of being above these dirty little affairs.  Most sports fans see through it!

Revolution is every where these days.  Schools are moving conferences to gain their bigger piece of the pie.  The new catch words are "Super Conferences" and "BCS".  The old way of geographic conferences are fast becoming a thing of the past and the NCAA has little power to stop it.  Talk of paying athletes is gaining legs, playoffs in football are moving toward fruition, and all the while the NCAA fiddles while their Rome burns. 

Other questions arise, such as what happens to mid-major conferences, and where will the revenues come from if all of the television monies are spent on the super conferences?  They will never be able to afford to pay their athletes, and I don't advocate that they should, but it will drive a greater wedge between the major and minors.  Times are changing and when this dam breaks lets hope that the current way of enjoying college athletics is not swept away with it.  Anarchy is brewing and revolution seems inevitable, but there is the old saying of "be careful what you wish for" it could be worse then what you have.

Football Crush

This morning was the annual media day for University of Kentucky football at Commonwealth Stadium.  I always enjoy the event because of the renewal of old acquaintances from print, electronic, television, and radio media.  It's still has the feeling of the first day of school.  The members are catching up on what has transpired since we last got together during basketball season.  Food is served in the Wildcat Den, one of the things that gets so many people to come from all over, and suddenly football is on every ones mind.

Optimism reigns supreme, a mean feat for Kentucky Football.  The coaches are spewing positive spins, the players get their team pictures taken in their uniforms, looking fit and ready to go.  Out on the field reporters flock to coaches and players usually in order of perceived importance.  The atmosphere is just down right jovial.  Can the team go 9-3, is the schedule as tough as last season, and for sure there must be another bowl game at season's end.  Hope is the theme of the day, injury and heart aches, the bane of any football team, is still in the future.  Media day is a time for a new beginning, a renewal of one of the fun things that makes us all enjoy being a Wildcat fan.

Now the football "crush" begins,  two a days, studying the playbook, training regiments, getting use to your teammates and coaches.  The members of the media start the onslaught of gathering information and speculating on every aspect of this brand new edition of Kentucky Football.  Gone will be the giddy atmosphere of this mornings meeting of coaches, players, and the people who bring news of the team to the fans.  Who knows what this season will bring, probably not as good as the most optimistic predictions, and probably not as bad as the most negative observers, just somewhere in between.  One prediction is sure to come true, there will be moments of heart stopping excitement, moments of anger, mixed in with downright despair, but that's football and the real reason that anybody cares at all.  As long as I am at it, can we go 12-0,. win the SEC and challenge for a National Championship?  Maybe, it's early yet.

Tarnished Star

The 82nd Major League Baseball All Star game has come and gone, with out much interest it would seem.  T.V. ratings were down 19% from last year and some are even calling for the end of this summer classic.  Players bolted at an alarming rate, and the "buzz" that once drove argument and excitement is no more.  This amid a game that actually means something now, like home field advantage in the World Series.  What's wrong?

Some blame inter league play, some player's salaries, and some say baseball is simply in decline.  I remember in years past the anticipation of being able to see a galaxy of baseball stars, all gathered in one location, ready to do battle, and uphold the honor of which ever league, National or American, that you happened to root for.  They never seemed to disappoint.  What changed?

For one thing the way we watch T.V. has changed.  Multiple channels of diverse interests has given Americans an endless choice.  I don't think America has turned against baseball I think it's just to easy to push a button and see what's happening up or down the spectrum.  It's summer, people are more mobile now then they ever were in the past.  Most people are under the threat of constant distraction.  Players as well as fans fall victim to the same temptations.  It is a long season and maybe they need a vacation like everyone else.  Where do we go from here?

I don't have the answer.  There are many suggestions out there but it will take someone with more insight then me to find a fix for a declining American Classic.  I continue to watch with mild interest to see how my hometown boys will do,  but never with the fervor that once existed.  Whatever happens with the MLB All Star game, count me as one who misses a time in the past, when I looked forward to a summer evening of pure escapism.  Maybe I am just distracted too.

Bluegrass Pauper

Horse racing has long been known as the "Sport of Kings", primarily because the great races have been contested by owners that are among the wealthiest people in the world.  People who spend millions on horse flesh and expect millions in return for their investments.  However, at most racetracks the "under cards" are cheaper horses owned and trained by people that are no where near being captains of industry, or kings.

Horse racing is a dying sport!  The racetracks care little about the cheap horses or the small horsemen, who dwell just as hard trying to grind out a living in a sport they love but seldom loves them back.  Casino gambling seems to be the only pursuit of racetracks these days, in fact, racing appears to be a nuisance.  Purses for cheap races continue to decline so that most of the money can be diverted to a chosen few that can compete in the bigger races. 

I have owned, trained, and bred thoroughbred racehorses for many years, not to win classic races, but to compete in a sport that is just as much a part of my heritage as the connections that run in the Kentucky Derby.  A bale of hay or straw costs no more for a million dollar horse then it does for a five thousand dollar claimer.  Yet we, the small horsemen, are sacrificed to insure that the racetracks can put on a great show for the public, whom they hope will soon become customers in their casino.

The racetracks may need the small horsemen some day, especially if casino gambling doesn't realize their dreams of riches.  They may find that one day they might need a race filled to complete their "under card", so  they can brag about the quality of choices the bettors have, but you will never catch them increasing purses to attract us.  Horse racing is still the Sport of Kings" only because it has serfs who are willing to do the heavy lifting,  in a sport that apparently has forgotten, or doesn't care, that most of the players are turning into paupers.