Rupp's Rafters and "Blue Blood Programs"

[BAQ]

That board is entertaining as hell.

The Kansas loss has them giddy for reasons I can't pretend to understand, but the thrust of the 9 or so threads about KU have a lot to do with discrediting them as a "blue blood" program. What exactly is a "blue blood" program?

90% of the country could give a rat's a$$ about college basketball in the first place - and no sports fan I've ever met pays homage to the idea of "blue blood" programs, but UK obviously considers itself one. Even though I abhor the term, a true "blue blood" can only be applied to a program such as Alabama football that has dominated the landscape of its sport for decades and remains relevant by stacking championships. UK basketball is not dominant and never has been. The only dominant program there has ever been in the history of college basketball is UCLA in the 70's.

My favorite jewel from the Rafters this weekend comes from a guy blasting Kansas for its "non-relevant" championships from the 30's. We can all see how that differs from UK's chest-pounding over its championships from the 40's and 50's.

UK fans are an embarrassment to the Commonwealth of Kentucky because they are a parody of themselves. Ignorant rednecks with an exaggerated - to say the least - sense of their worth and how they are actually perceived by the rest of the country.

 

[FiletMignCardinal2]

What I was also going to add before someone here got a little ban trigger happy is that Alabama is considered a 'blue blood" in football but doesn't even hold the record for championships and wins. Michigan is the all time wins leader, Alabama is in sixth I believe. In fact, Alabama is behind Princeton and Yale in championships. Notre Dame and Michigan are at 11 claimed.

But look up Helms Athletic Foundation and you will understand the Kansas deal.

As far as the ban, I would appreciate a reason why. I am a Louisville fan just explaining this.

 

[Mike'sMarbles]

UK fans ultimately want to be considered the New York Yankees of college basketball, so any edge they get through failures of other traditional programs like Kansas is good for their narrative.

They are obsessed with having the most wins ever and having more Championships than UCLA. A lot of them feel once they get to that level, they will be THE program.

Kansas is a team competing for most wins, so any Kansas loss is celebrated by UK fans, especially during times like this when UK is already eliminated.

Hope this helps explain.

 

[BAQ]

UK fans ultimately want to be considered the New York Yankees of college basketball, so any edge they get through failures of other traditional programs like Kansas is good for their narrative.

They are obsessed with having the most wins ever and having more Championships than UCLA. A lot of them feel once they get to that level, they will be THE program.

Kansas is a team competing for most wins, so any Kansas loss is celebrated by UK fans, especially during times like this when UK is already eliminated.

Hope this helps explain.

Nope. Doesn't at all explain the lunacy of the whole thing. They are the only ones who care about such things and, as I've already mentioned, the accomplishments they boast of are dubious at best. No one would consider Michigan the best football program of all-time because they have the most wins - like UK they are simply a good program that has played longer than almost everyone else.

 

[Louisvillian]

UK fans ultimately want to be considered the New York Yankees of college basketball, so any edge they get through failures of other traditional programs like Kansas is good for their narrative.

They are obsessed with having the most wins ever and having more Championships than UCLA. A lot of them feel once they get to that level, they will be THE program.

Kansas is a team competing for most wins, so any Kansas loss is celebrated by UK fans, especially during times like this when UK is already eliminated.

Hope this helps explain.

Good post. UK fans hate all of the other top programs with an insecurity that is sad. But when your entire identity is wrapped up in 19 yo college basketball players it's actually understandable.

The Yankees were a dynasty (10 titles in 16 years) along with the UCLA basketball teams of the 60s and early 70s and the Boston Celtics of the Russell- Auerbach era that won 11 Titles in 13 years.

UK is one of the top College basketball programs along with others including our Louisville Cardinals, Duke, UNC, Kansas, MSU etc.

Dynastic? B S. The Yankees? Hilarious. Delusional, myopic fanbase? Check!

 

[Bill Derington]

Alabama has 16 titles I believe, but there were numerous years that several teams claimed national champion in the same year.

UK has 8 individual titles over 70 years with 5 different coaches, I would say they have the most longevity of any school. UCLA did it basically in 1 decade.

 

[Jay Reimenschneider]

They are obsessed with having the most wins ever and having more Championships than UCLA. A lot of them feel once they get to that level, they will be THE program.

Yet they have no idea that no one really cares all that much. Niche sport that most people tune into only for a couple of weeks in March. And yes that is an odd bunch over there. It'd make a great dissertation subject for some smart sociology major. They hate EVERYONE!

 

[Jay Reimenschneider]

Alabama has 16 titles I believe, but there were numerous years that several teams claimed national champion in the same year.

UK has 8 individual titles over 70 years with 5 different coaches, I would say they have the most longevity of any school. UCLA did it basically in 1 decade.

No they didn't. They did it in 2 and have won titles in 3. Learn basketball Billy.

 

[Bill Derington]

No they didn't. They did it in 2 and have won titles in 3. Learn basketball Billy.

Learn timelines, a decade is 10 years.

UCLA won 95% of their titles in a 12 year window.
You're trying way too hard now.

 

[teamcanada]

When your entire sense of self worth is wrapped up in a sports team that is what you get.

 

[Steelers2012]

What I was also going to add before someone here got a little ban trigger happy is that Alabama is considered a 'blue blood" in football but doesn't even hold the record for championships and wins. Michigan is the all time wins leader, Alabama is in sixth I believe. In fact, Alabama is behind Princeton and Yale in championships. Notre Dame and Michigan are at 11 claimed.

But look up Helms Athletic Foundation and you will understand the Kansas deal.

As far as the ban, I would appreciate a reason why. I am a Louisville fan just explaining this.

*** What you ARE is a poster who has been banned under double digit usernames (and counting; including 7 different versions of WattersonSpeedDemon) for posting some EXTREMELY derogatory and disrespectful content about our program and players, including starting multiple threads with some truly disgusting comments regarding the scandal and Terrence Willaims, You are NOT a UofL fan, in any sense of the word. To be VERY clear to you, once you have been banned, you can not come back and post under newly created usernames. There are no "do-overs" once you've been permanently banned. You will not be allowed to post here again...period. To further educate you, each username you use bears the same IP address, which tells mods exactly who you are, and who you have previously been. I am asking you to please cease trespassing (yes, trespassing) on a board that you have been permanently banned from. ***

 

[KerryRhodes]

SuCkS fans consider "bluebloods"
Scat
Ucla
Duke
IU
Kansas and Unc.

They do this jab at UofL.

I dont care about this so called blueblood status. Just winning titles.

 

[Jay Reimenschneider]

Learn timelines, a decade is 10 years.

UCLA won 95% of their titles in a 12 year window.
You're trying way too hard now.

Ok then Numbnuts UK won half if its in a "decade" from 1948-58. I wish you'd try a little harder

 

[Bill Derington]

Ok then Numbnuts UK won half if its in a "decade" from 1948-58. I wish you'd try a little harder

Only it's not like UCLA, because then UK continued to win, with different coaches going on 60 years.

 

[Jay Reimenschneider]

UK is da best .....!!!!!!

 

[Mike'sMarbles]

Nope. Doesn't at all explain the lunacy of the whole thing. They are the only ones who care about such things and, as I've already mentioned, the accomplishments they boast of are dubious at best. No one would consider Michigan the best football program of all-time because they have the most wins - like UK they are simply a good program that has played longer than almost everyone else.

I can't really argue. The sport is in decline from when it was at its height in the 1980's. UK fans truly are the only ones who care, most people don't watch college basketball except for the first round in March until their brackets are ruined. The sad thing is UK fans work so hard to build the argument for being #1 in this fringe sport. For a while there was a guy who would do a regular post on their board, "Why UK basketball is #1 all time" and have pages and pages of stats to back it up.

I guess ultimately it's a "I'd rather be a big fish in a small pond" mentality. The state of Kentucky will always be close to last place in most economic, education, and overall wealth. It's the only thing poor people from around the state have to hang their hats on.

 

[Mike'sMarbles]

Yet they have no idea that no one really cares all that much. Niche sport that most people tune into only for a couple of weeks in March. And yes that is an odd bunch over there. It'd make a great dissertation subject for some smart sociology major. They hate EVERYONE!

Something else that may shed some light on UK fans, they had a big night Friday night because Wiltjer and Indiana both got eliminated. Yes, a very successful night for the average UK fan, indeed.

 

[Mike'sMarbles]

Good post. UK fans hate all of the other top programs with an insecurity that is sad. But when your entire identity is wrapped up in 19 yo college basketball players it's actually understandable.

The Yankees were a dynasty (10 titles in 16 years) along with the UCLA basketball teams of the 60s and early 70s and the Boston Celtics of the Russell- Auerbach era that won 11 Titles in 13 years.

UK is one of the top College basketball programs along with others including our Louisville Cardinals, Duke, UNC, Kansas, MSU etc.

Dynastic? B S. The Yankees? Hilarious. Delusional, myopic fanbase? Check!

This is why I wouldn't mind seeing UNC win the title this year. That would put a ton of pressure on Cal if UNC moved to 6 championships, just 2 behind UK. Couple that with Kansas and UNC approaching them on the all-time wins list. Like the OP pointed out, these things mean nothing to most people, but it's everything to a UK fan. They have to be the best and have to have those stats to prove it.

They can't accept the reality that there are several great traditional programs in this sport with none clearly above the rest. And they always fear someone is going to knock them off the top of a mountain they're not even sitting on. Can you imagine the kind of pressure they exerted on poor Billy Gillispie to 'maintain' Kentucky's status as college basketball royalty?

 

[Wordless65]

I can't really argue. The sport is in decline from when it was at its height in the 1980's. UK fans truly are the only ones who care, most people don't watch college basketball except for the first round in March until their brackets are ruined. The sad thing is UK fans work so hard to build the argument for being #1 in this fringe sport. For a while there was a guy who would do a regular post on their board, "Why UK basketball is #1 all time" and have pages and pages of stats to back it up.

I guess ultimately it's a "I'd rather be a big fish in a small pond" mentality. The state of Kentucky will always be close to last place in most economic, education, and overall wealth. It's the only thing poor people from around the state have to hang their hats on.

Bingo!!!

 

[Bill Derington]

This is why I wouldn't mind seeing UNC win the title this year. That would put a ton of pressure on Cal if UNC moved to 6 championships, just 2 behind UK. Couple that with Kansas and UNC approaching them on the all-time wins list. Like the OP pointed out, these things mean nothing to most people, but it's everything to a UK fan. They have to be the best and have to have those stats to prove it.

They can't accept the reality that there are several great traditional programs in this sport with none clearly above the rest. And they always fear someone is going to knock them off the top of a mountain they're not even sitting on. Can you imagine the kind of pressure they exerted on poor Billy Gillispie to 'maintain' Kentucky's status as college basketball royalty?

It's good to be king!

 

[earsky]

It's good to be king!

 

[NENCHeel]

We fully expect to hear at any time that UK hoops historians have discovered 38 previously undocumented wins over Aztec Veterinary Clinic and Pre-School dating between 1437 and 1462 AD.

 

[Louisvillian]

We fully expect to hear at any time that UK hoops historians have discovered 38 previously undocumented wins over Aztec Veterinary Clinic and Pre-School dating between 1437 and 1462 AD.

And Sandy Bell just found the fax to prove it.

Just build the statue of her and get it over with Mildcat Nation.

 

[ClockCalamity]

Something else that may shed some light on UK fans, they had a big night Friday night because Wiltjer and Indiana both got eliminated. Yes, a very successful night for the average UK fan, indeed.

Most of the UofK fans I know have really pulled for Wiltjer after his transfer. Were most of those same fans not sad to see him transfer? Probably, but, they still consider him a Wildcat and wish him success. Wiltjer just recently tweeted these very same sentiments -

 

[JohnKBA]

College basketball is a niche sport. Outside the hotbeds, nobody gives a crap about it except for 4 days in March. Then it's back to obscurity. And like Kerry said, the past is the past. I didn't witness a UK title prior to the 1996 championship, so why should I care about it? Being relevant in the current landscape is all that matters. There are probably 20 teams that mostly fit that criteria on a pretty consistent basis. That's the only real list that matters.

 

[OmegaCard]

*** What you ARE is a poster who has been banned under double digit usernames (and counting; including 7 different versions of WatersonSpeedDemon) for posting some EXTREMELY derogatory and disrespectful content about our program and players, including starting multiple threads with some truly disgusting comments regarding the scandal and Terrence Willaims, You are NOT a UofL fan, in any sense of the word. To be VERY clear to you, once you have been banned, you can not come back and post under newly created usernames. There are no "do-overs" once you've been permanently banned. You will not be allowed to post here again...period. To further educate you, each username you use bears the same IP address, which tells mods exactly who you are, and who you have previously been. I am asking you to please cease trespassing (yes, trespassing) on a board that you have been permanently banned from. ***

Not flaming here...But an IP ties to an internet account and that's it. That same account can be used by many. For instance a frat house. Or a household/roommates. Point is, don't assume you're speaking to the same person just based up IP address. Is it likely?...Most definitely.

 

[zipp]

UK fans ultimately want to be considered the New York Yankees of college basketball, so any edge they get through failures of other traditional programs like Kansas is good for their narrative.

They are obsessed with having the most wins ever and having more Championships than UCLA. A lot of them feel once they get to that level, they will be THE program.

Kansas is a team competing for most wins, so any Kansas loss is celebrated by UK fans, especially during times like this when UK is already eliminated.

Hope this helps explain.

This.

Slapd!cks are primitive and easy to figure out. Why do they hate us, Duke, Carolina, Kansas, UCLA, IU, etc. simultaneously? Because we all have multiple championships and aspire to the throne. Their paranoia complex is so vast that they can only be happy if no one around them is any good.

Which also explains why they embrace SEC basketball.

"Elite program", my a$$...

 

[moe#8]

I can't really argue. The sport is in decline from when it was at its height in the 1980's. UK fans truly are the only ones who care, most people don't watch college basketball except for the first round in March until their brackets are ruined. The sad thing is UK fans work so hard to build the argument for being #1 in this fringe sport. For a while there was a guy who would do a regular post on their board, "Why UK basketball is #1 all time" and have pages and pages of stats to back it up.

I guess ultimately it's a "I'd rather be a big fish in a small pond" mentality. The state of Kentucky will always be close to last place in most economic, education, and overall wealth. It's the only thing poor people from around the state have to hang their hats on.

I live in state, just wanna be clear, I suppose you live in Louisville, are you saying you have more money than I do??

 

[OmegaCard]

I live in state, just wanna be clear, I suppose you live in Louisville, are you saying you have more money than I do??

No. You're just ignorant.

 

[earsky]

Moe,I'm sure Mike's numbers include Louisville.We are a part of the state,and there are a whole lot of UK fans in Louisville.

 

[Cards1261]

Last 50 years, UK nine Final Fours and four Campionships, UL nine Final Fours and three Championships. Yes, they are " overwhelming " in the modern era and certainly entitled to discount us as a non " blue blood " program.

 

[teamcanada]

This.

Slapd!cks are primitive and easy to figure out. Why do they hate us, Duke, Carolina, Kansas, UCLA, IU, etc. simultaneously? Because we all have multiple championships and aspire to the throne. Their paranoia complex is so vast that they can only be happy if no one around them is any good.

Which also explains why they embrace SEC basketball.

"Elite program", my a$$...

Lol their story is everyone hates them because everyone envies UK. The NCAa screws them, the refs screw them and it's everyone's Superbowl .

 

[NENCHeel]

They really hate dook because we consider them our primary rival and dislike the kitties as a hobby.

 

[JohnKBA]

Last 50 years, UK nine Final Fours and four Campionships, UL nine Final Fours and three Championships. Yes, they are " overwhelming " in the modern era and certainly entitled to discount us as a non " blue blood " program.

Like I said, anything that happened prior to 1996 doesn't mean much to me, but I count 12 Final Fours in the last 50 years for UK, not 9. Still, 12/4 vs 9/3 isn't really much of a difference at all. U of L is absolutely as relevant as UK in the current landscape, and that's all that should really matter.

 

[Senore2006]

Louisville is in a comparatively ideal situation. Since the 1960's, we have been at the very top of attendance figures for the entirety of college basketball. To infer that Louisville has a glorious relationship with college basketball would be an understatement. Championship games, Final Fours, absolute greatness has played on the Freedom Hall floor. Used to be, The Kentucky State Championships were all decided at Freedom Hall in a spectacular pageant whose attention drew a captivated state, in love with the sport. What we are speaking of is a love for the game. What it has done is to allow UofL fans to sink incredibly deeply into their love for the game leading to an intelligent fan base who has given standing ovations to opponents after losses - something generally unheard of and which impelled Jim Calhoun to make this remark:

"I had never played in Freedom Hall, although I had always wanted to. What happened today (in a #1 UConn surprisingly close win in 2006, our first season in the Big East) I had never seen before. Louisville fans were a revelation. An off-the-charts high basketball IQ, hugely enthusiastic, the standing ovation for both teams at the close of our game was just amazing. It was an absolute revelation."

In high school ball in Louisville we find a source of breathtaking historical accomplishment - Wes Unseld, Darryl Griffith...............as well as magnificent legends of the game such as Dallas Thornton, of Male High - a Globetrotter for 14 years - or Mike Redd - incredible talent who was referred to by his biggest champion, Red Aurbach with this back handed compliment: "Michael Jordan is Mike Redd with brains." Redd, played a year at Kentucky Weslyan (where as a youngster I saw every home game he played, averaging 23 points a game and performing early Maravich-like feats of hoopsness)....Redd, drafted by the Army, was drafted when he got out by Aurbach and the Celts in the 3rd round - 4 full years after high school. Aurbach lamented that "Army muscles" had somewhat ruined Mike's edge and he didn't make the team. But he exists as a legend for all the right reasons. As Unseld's team mate during the first of 2 straight state championships for Seneca High, he overshadowed the incredible Wes - voted one of history's 50 best NBA players in history - with his amazing game.

My point? The color and history of UofL basketball dates from Peck Hickman's brilliance, beginning in 1943. Hickman won an NIT Title back when that was relevant and competed with the NCAA. He began a series of winning seasons which stretched out to 46 consecutive seasons. Following that - with the interceding 4 year term of John Dromo (of the heart problems which made him quit) and who recruited the first Denny Crum team who took them to a Final Four in his very first season as coach - perhaps UofL's most remarkable fact is that, essentially 3 coaches have run the program since 1943.....- a period of 73 years. Hickman, Crum and Pitino. That longevity is shared with no one, no where in the college hoops galaxy.

Our proud legacy is unique and high quality. It compares to no one other than themselves and their fans. Yes, it includes high school because these are the roots of our enthusiasm. The whole game, not a slice of life hamboning football schools in front of hundreds.

By any criterion of blue bloodedness, Louisville is either "in" or barely outside this preciously-guarded group. But, like is the case among UCLA fans, the Blue Blood tag means about as much as yesterday's hash browns. We just are not that nervous about our place in the hoops galaxy. It is enough for us to compete hard with excellence. After all, it is the sport which we love and which has given us a richness of spirit in our love for the players, coaches and progress of our teams..

Blue Bloods - bwahahahahaha! How precious!

 

[BooneCo_Card]

Louisville is in a comparatively ideal situation. Since the 1960's, we have been at the very top of attendance figures for the entirety of college basketball. To infer that Louisville has a glorious relationship with college basketball would be an understatement. Championship games, Final Fours, absolute greatness has played on the Freedom Hall floor. Used to be, The Kentucky State Championships were all decided at Freedom Hall in a spectacular pageant whose attention drew a captivated state, in love with the sport. What we are speaking of is a love for the game. What it has done is to allow UofL fans to sink incredibly deeply into their love for the game leading to an intelligent fan base who has given standing ovations to opponents after losses - something generally unheard of and which impelled Jim Calhoun to make this remark:

"I had never played in Freedom Hall, although I had always wanted to. What happened today (in a #1 UConn surprisingly close win in 2006, our first season in the Big East) I had never seen before. Louisville fans were a revelation. An off-the-charts high basketball IQ, hugely enthusiastic, the standing ovation for both teams at the close of our game was just amazing. It was an absolute revelation."

In high school ball in Louisville we find a source of breathtaking historical accomplishment - Wes Unseld, Darryl Griffith...............as well as magnificent legends of the game such as Dallas Thornton, of Male High - a Globetrotter for 14 years - or Mike Redd - incredible talent who was referred to by his biggest champion, Red Aurbach with this back handed compliment: "Michael Jordan is Mike Redd with brains." Redd, played a year at Kentucky Weslyan (where as a youngster I saw every home game he played, averaging 23 points a game and performing early Maravich-like feats of hoopsness)....Redd, drafted by the Army, was drafted when he got out by Aurbach and the Celts in the 3rd round - 4 full years after high school. Aurbach lamented that "Army muscles" had somewhat ruined Mike's edge and he didn't make the team. But he exists as a legend for all the right reasons. As Unseld's team mate during the first of 2 straight state championships for Seneca High, he overshadowed the incredible Wes - voted one of history's 50 best NBA players in history - with his amazing game.

My point? The color and history of UofL basketball dates from Peck Hickman's brilliance, beginning in 1943. Hickman won an NIT Title back when that was relevant and competed with the NCAA. He began a series of winning seasons which stretched out to 46 consecutive seasons. Following that - with the interceding 4 year term of John Dromo (of the heart problems which made him quit) and who recruited the first Denny Crum team who took them to a Final Four in his very first season as coach - perhaps UofL's most remarkable fact is that, essentially 3 coaches have run the program since 1943.....- a period of 73 years. Hickman, Crum and Pitino. That longevity is shared with no one, no where in the college hoops galaxy.

Our proud legacy is unique and high quality. It compares to no one other than themselves and their fans. Yes, it includes high school because these are the roots of our enthusiasm. The whole game, not a slice of life hamboning football schools in front of hundreds.

By any criterion of blue bloodedness, Louisville is either "in" or barely outside this preciously-guarded group. But, like is the case among UCLA fans, the Blue Blood tag means about as much as yesterday's hash browns. We just are not that nervous about our place in the hoops galaxy. It is enough for us to compete hard with excellence. After all, it is the sport which we love and which has given us a richness of spirit in our love for the players, coaches and progress of our teams..

Blue Bloods - bwahahahahaha! How precious!

Great post! I especially enjoyed your comments about Mike Redd. I never got to see him play, but followed his exploits in the day-late C-J. Sadly it was just as I started following HS BB and just as integration in college hoops was starting to gain traction. Imagine the press he would receive today. Red Auerbach's comments tell it all.

 

[NENCHeel]

I cant speak for anyone but myself but I'd rank the Cards as a blueblood program.

 

[Senore2006]

We'll always be my blue blood program.

That's all that matters to me.

 

[Jay Reimenschneider]

"They hate us cuz they ain't us!!" Lol! Hardy har har!!!

 

[Jay Reimenschneider]

Back atcha, Slick!